‘Flame of Freedom’ (Bristol, 1949)

Historical pageants, a sort of amateur re-enactment, were incredibly popular forms of engagement with the past in the early to mid 20th century. They usually took the form of a series of chronological episodes, often starting as far back as the Romans and sometimes coming right up to the present day. The cast was almost always made up of local volunteers, and could be massive - as many as 10,000 people in some cases. You can read more about historical pageants in Britain on this website.

‘Flame of Freedom’ was one such historical pageant, performed 6 times in the Victoria Rooms in Bristol by a cast of 300 drawn from the Bristol Free Churches. The storyline focused on important events in the development of nonconformity and went all the way from the trial of John Knox in the 1550s to the life of Elizabeth Fry in the early 19^th century. In a brief scene featuring the Pilgrim Fathers at Plymouth harbour in 1620, the narrator explained the persecution of the Separatists, their perilous journey and what they found when they arrived in New England.