My mum had an admin job at the Belgrade theatre in Coventry during the run of Buddy: The Buddy Holly Story. At the age of 11 or 12 I quite often got the bus into town just to hang out with her after school and she would sneak me in.
The Belgrade is an amazing space. It’s not pretty in a traditional sense, but has a lot of the aesthetic of Coventry, which I love. Walking through the precinct at the end of the day and then into Buddy was great. You could turn up in school uniform not knowing what was happening … and then by the end of it, you’re a fan and you know all about the history. I saw it maybe three or four times; as a child, the run felt like a whole era in my life.
