Squidge follows Daisy as she navigates her new job in a South London state school. When she is assigned a young Irish traveller to help with his reading she finds hope in an unlikely friendship. It’s a nuanced, funny, and emotionally powerful story about platonic, redemptive love. Written and performed by Tiggy Bayley, the one-woman show was shortlisted for the BBC Popcorn Writing Award at the Edinburgh Fringe and went on to a sold-out run at Soho Theatre in London in 2025, a national tour, and now returns to London at Riverside Studios from March 24th – March 29th.
Here Tiggy sits down to talk about the inspiration behind the show.
How did your time working with SEND pupils in South London shape the story behind Squidge?
The show is very much inspired by my work with kids. I worked in education for five years, and the show was inspired by how much I learned from children. I’ve drawn on my teaching experiences and on lots of different magical kids who gave me the strength to carry on through hard times. Paddy was a way to represent what many kids did for me. I do think that helping others is often the best way to help ourselves. Showing up to school gave me life in hard times.
The text was based on observation – the observation of difference. Particularly at school and work, you’re there for a single purpose, but you don’t often know what’s going on in people’s lives. It’s about the importance of nuance in that way, which I think has been erased so much from modern life.
What realities of supporting SEND children in busy classrooms most influenced the play?
That it’s really underfunded. In the play, Daisy only has one pupil but in reality that doesn’t often happen. In reality, a lot of SEND pupils don’t have consistent help or the same figure each day. Often if they do have a TA they are share them with another pupil.
Were there particular moments from the classroom that stayed with you while writing Squidge?
Yes, absolutely. That’s where it all came from. I noted down bits of inspiration and things that made me laugh from school on Post-it notes. Like snippets of astonishingly boring conversation in the staffroom or moments of ridicule from the fire drill. I started to flesh those out and imagine characters, often drawing on real life experiences. Then I arranged them into a structure, a bit like they do in detective shows, thinking about what fit where. I know other writers who start with structure but I don’t do that. I’ve found there’s no right way to do it, it’s been about finding what works for me and building it into a daily routine.
What do you think people most misunderstand about SEND pupils in mainstream schools?
I think that there is nuance. We can learn so much from difference. And also I think theres a misconception about other kids’ reaction to SEND pupils. They don’t mind, they just get on with it. Misunderstanding comes from a lack of awareness of the nuance and complexity of these children’s lives. I think behaviours or challenges often reflect unmet needs rather than being a choice or just “bad behaviour”.
How did working as a teaching assistant change the way you see the education system?
It really opened my eyes to the disparity of wealth in London. In the same day, I may go from working in a foster home to working with children who have aquariums in their kitchens. And it made me see how poverty can affect confidence and self-esteem. So, it made me see the education system as systematically unfair.
But at the same time, I’ve seen that it’s full of hope, there are some incredible human beings that are teachers in London and that strive to make the world a better place every single day.
What conversations do you hope Squidge will start about supporting children with additional needs?
What I want people to take away from the show is that life is hard but we can make it better for each other.