Amongst the other survivors from the boat was Bess’s brother, Louis, although they had become separated in the attack. It was only when Louis saw Bess’s dressing gown hanging up once they had been picked up by HMS Hurricane that he realised that she was still alive. As if as a testament to the central importance of this collective survival experience, it was not long afterwards that Beth and Louis were married.

Gill had never worked with a real-life story before and she was initially anxious about the responsibility. “We tried to make it true to life and represent them as accurately as possible. Obviously we had to make imaginative leaps with the story for dramatic effect.” Like what? “Well, one of the key things that brings them together in the play is a shared love of The Wizard of Oz. That’s how they meet on deck. In reality they hadn’t actually seen it.’

As for the staging issue, Robertson tells me that the audience are asked to use their imagination. “We’ve got a great sound track”, she tells me, “with some heavy duty wave noises.” All the rest is done with a kitchen table and the skill of the versatile cast of two. “They play all the parts including the parents and the stewards.” ER