At the age of 18 and speaking barely a word of English, Izabella Brodzinska arrived in Edinburgh in 1957 to live with the father she had never met. Having fought with the British during World War Two, he was unable to return to their home in Poland.

In the third of a series of conversations featuring women who have created a new life in the UK and younger female members in their community, Izabella chats with 24-year-old student Magda Greszczuk and 56-year-old Violeta Ilendo who has spent many years working in local government in London and Scotland. Aasmah Mir hosts this intimate and revealing discussion in which the women talk about how the Polish community in Britain has grown and flourished and how the experiences of immigrants, such as Izabella, have influenced the lives of following generations. Young Polish pianist – Edyta Mydlowska – plays Chopin.

(Photo: A factory worker checking freshly-made honey cakes on the production line at the Torun Confectionery Works, central Poland in 1976. Credit: Keystone/Getty Images) Show less