My wife, Patricia Robson, a socialist, supporter of the BBC, passionate Remainer and Guardian reader, who has died of cancer aged 83, was lucky enough to work at a time when the charismatic primary school teacher was given free rein.
A wordsmith, she would capture the arresting phrase and run with it in her storytelling and poetry. In the 1970s Pat gathered a group of teachers in Kent to engage primary school children in drama productions. They would outline a plot, then get the 20 to 30 children to perform various scenes while a narrator kept the story flowing. Calling themselves The Tree of Tales, the group visited schools after hours, staging dramas such as the Pilgrim Fathers, the Black Death and the Peasants’ Revolt.
