Play relives how major flood swamped village

VILLAGERS’ experiences of a major flood in South Yorkshire have been captured in a new play written by a man whose home was damaged in the deluge.

Fishlake was swamped by floodwater from the River Don in November 2019, with dozens of homes and businesses wrecked as the village was submerged and a major incident declared.

Now theatre company Sheepish Productions are set to stage a new play about what happened, with a “work in progress” performance at the village hall tomorrow evening, ahead of a tour in 2025.

Writer Jeremy Fletcher, who grew up and still lives in the village, said people had been through trauma and work developing the play, with group sessions, workshops and talking to individuals had been “therapeutic”.

"It’s been cathartic and I’m hoping we have a lot of the community there on Friday,” he said.

"It’s the story of the village through the initial floods – there were the flood wardens in charge, the rescue services then the media, the Army and politicians, it’s like waves of an invasion, there are all occupying forces, some very positive, some very negative.

"We are trying to tell the story in an engaging way, lots of heartwarming and heartbreaking things happened.”

There’s the Muslim charity which brings in curries and sandwiches, and the never-ending donations which get a little weird as time goes on – an inflatable canoe and water wings for kids.

Villagers were nonplussed when lots of single green bedsheets which turn up – until they realise they come from the local prison.

And one flood warden got knocked off his golf buggy into a dyke and “got his foot stuck and nearly drowned”.

“We have stacks of material,” said Mr Fletcher, who was out of his home for nine months in the aftermath of the flood.

“It’s actually going to be difficult to cut it down. We haven’t got a finalised script yet.

"I’ve been really pleased by the community engagement, it has been lovely.”

He said the village was closer knit as a result of the flood – and now where there was only four flood wardens in 2019 there are now 32.

When they were threatened by flooding last October, 40 people turned out to lay sandbags on the river bank on a Saturday morning. “Everybody looks out for everybody,” he said. The performance starts at 6pm.