Parallel Lives

SYNOPSIS

Suzie is born into squalor in 1950's Gateshead, her childhood marked by illness, homelessness and sustained violent sexual abuse. Tuberculosis robs her of education, dyslexia becomes yet another obstacle in a world already stacked against her. Passed between a fragile mother, children's homes, and the violent man she calls the 'Demon', Suzie survives what should have destroyed her. At eleven, she ensures her abuser is imprisoned for ten years. At seventeen, she escapes England altogether, becoming an au pair in rural Sweden – her first taste of safety, family life and hope. When her contract ends, she makes a promise to herself: never go back. She heads to London to build a better life on her terms.

Mikey, the youngest son of a devoted army family, grows up moving from Cyprus to Yemen, on to Malaysia and finally cold war West Berlin, each posting a new adventure. Educated at a military boarding school, his future seems mapped out for Sandhurst and a successful military career. Mikey longs for something else – long hair, rock music, girls and a better life on his terms.

Suzie's story is stark and unflinching, reminiscent of Caterine Cookson in its grit and emotional honesty. Mikey's unfolds with the warmth and colour of The Durrells – adventurous, humorous yet edged with melancholy. Together they form a single, compelling true story of resilience, re-invention and reflection of what might happen when two completely different worlds collide.