‘You don’t see many Leiston people here.’

We’re enjoying the series of Friday lunchtime concerts at Aldeburgh’s Jubilee Hall. They’re performances by young musicians, often at the end of their week’s residency at Snape Maltings. Yesterday it was the Astatine Trio performing pieces by Brahms and Shostakovich. Waiting for the concert to begin, I got chatting with the guy in the next seat. What he said shocked me.

He’d come from Ipswich on the bus and asked if we were local. ‘Yes’, I replied, ‘we live in Leiston.’ ‘Oh’ he replied, ‘we don’t see many people from Leiston here; the people there are not educated.’ How could someone be so dismissive about a community of around 6,000 people?

Yes, I went to Leiston Secondary Modern School which I have to admit was then not the best, but I also have an MA, am a published author and rather enjoy classical concerts. I’m sure we’re not the only people in Leiston with both an education and good taste.