Inspiring young Sheffield actor relives her life-changing brain injury in one-woman show, Subdural Hematoma

A young Sheffield actor and director has turned a traumatic time in her life into a one-woman show dealing with her brain injury.
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Ellie May Blackburn, aged 24, from Chapeltown, Sheffield, suffered terrible injuries in an accident while she was away studying drama at university in Falmouth, Cornwall.

She managed to turn the whole experience into a 60-minute show, Subdural Hematoma, which is coming to Sheffield in March. She charts what happened to her and how her parents Lucy and Simon coped, as well as using the words of other people who live with brain injuries.

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Ellie said about what happened to her in 2015: “I was in my first year at Falmouth University. I’d only been there a couple of months. I was coming home from uni on one evening, it was a bit dark and it was shadowy.

Sheffield actor, writer and director Ellie May Blackburn has created a one-woman show, Subdural Hematoma, telling the story of her brain injury and recoverySheffield actor, writer and director Ellie May Blackburn has created a one-woman show, Subdural Hematoma, telling the story of her brain injury and recovery
Sheffield actor, writer and director Ellie May Blackburn has created a one-woman show, Subdural Hematoma, telling the story of her brain injury and recovery

“I was crossing the road to get to my student accommodation and got hit by a pushbike coming downhill. I got a severe bleed on the brain and that caused a stroke as well.”

Ellie was initially taken to hospital in Truro then transferred to a specialist unit in Derriford, Plymouth, for a month. She said: "My parents had to stop everything. They lived in an apartment for a month while I was in Plymouth. I was told I probably wouldn’t make it home then they got me home.

“They flew me in a private air ambulance. I’ve never been so uncomfortable in my life, it was so hard to breathe.”

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She returned to Sheffield in time for Christmas so that she could be close to her family.

Ellie May Blackburn from Sheffield on stage in her one-woman show Subdural Hematoma, talking about her brain injuryEllie May Blackburn from Sheffield on stage in her one-woman show Subdural Hematoma, talking about her brain injury
Ellie May Blackburn from Sheffield on stage in her one-woman show Subdural Hematoma, talking about her brain injury

‘I didn’t want to give up what I’d started’

Ellie then had to learn how to eat, walk and talk again. She used a computer system like scientist Stephen Hawking had to be able to talk for a while. Her right hand was affected as well, so she could not write.

When Ellie was finally released from hospital in June 2016, the house had been modified to help her get around and bathe. She then underwent physio, occupational and hydrotherapy. “That was a lot of fun, the water was really warm and we played games,” she said.

“The nurse who treated me said that my hand would probably never be the same. It’s still not the same but it’s getting a lot better.”

Ellie May Blackburn from Sheffield appears in her one-woman show Subdural Hematoma, talking about her brain injury. This picture shows how she struggled to write - it says "I didn't realise how poorly I was"Ellie May Blackburn from Sheffield appears in her one-woman show Subdural Hematoma, talking about her brain injury. This picture shows how she struggled to write - it says "I didn't realise how poorly I was"
Ellie May Blackburn from Sheffield appears in her one-woman show Subdural Hematoma, talking about her brain injury. This picture shows how she struggled to write - it says "I didn't realise how poorly I was"
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Ellie managed to return to university a year after her accident. “I was determined to go back to the same place. I didn’t want to give up what I’d started,” she said.

“I was still in recovery. They made a corner of the library with a comfy seat and blankets. I could come out of class if I was feeling a bit tired. The main effect was being really tired all the time.

“I used to go for naps in the middle of class which was hilarious!”

Ellie also used computer software to record her lectures so that they could be read back to her.

Part of a poster for Sheffield performer Ellie May Blackburn's one-woman show, Subdural HematomaPart of a poster for Sheffield performer Ellie May Blackburn's one-woman show, Subdural Hematoma
Part of a poster for Sheffield performer Ellie May Blackburn's one-woman show, Subdural Hematoma

She left university with a first-class degree in 2019.

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Ellie said: “I made a very good recovery and in my last year we did a module called ‘show in a bag’ to make a show you can take anywhere. I wrote some spoken word about my accident and read it back to the class and they all laughed! I thought, ‘this is funny?’.

‘People say ‘poor you’ but don’t feel bad for me, feel bad for them’

“That encouraged me to write more and I started to write my solo show about my accident. I received such wonderful commendations, people were so amazing.

“I thought why not make this into a full-length play?”

Ellie said that when she got feedback for her work, people wanted to hear more about her parents and how they coped.

She turned to her mum’s diary which she made when Ellie was first injured. It helped her to fill in the gaps of what happened when she was in a coma.

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“They’re a big part of this piece. My dad read stories to me, I remember being read them. I have him reading three extracts (in the show),” she said.

“In the early days of my injury I do vaguely remember drifting in and out of consciousness and hearing dad’s voice.

“My mum kept a diary at the time. I found that really useful to look back and and see where the story progressed. I was in a coma for two weeks.

“All the details she kept in the early days, she didn’t know what else to do. It is really interesting to read what happened, her experience and what she was going through.

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“People say ‘poor you’ but don’t feel bad for me, feel bad for them, they’re the ones that have had it to deal with.”

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In developing the 60-minute show, Ellie did a call-out to other performers who have been through something similar to share their experiences and has incorporated the words of two other people in the show.

Ellie said: “Two lovely people got back to me. They make up part of the piece. I ask some questions of the speakers, I view their responses and add my own in.”

‘It’s so good it resonates with other people’

She’s had a good response from members of the brain injuries group Headway. "People are saying it’s so great telling your story, I’ve been through a similar situation. It’s so good it resonates with other people,” she said.

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Ellie said of the show: “It has been a bit of a whirlwind, it has been a lot of fun.”

However, the process also reduced her to tears for days at a time. “Since then it’s been a bit of a therapy session for me. I can laugh about it now which I love.

“I can look back fondly on the funny things that happened in the hospital like one nurse saying when I was in the shower ‘you can’t have hairy legs, we’ll have to shave them’. It was the last thing I was thinking about!" she said.

Ellie is taking on a lot of different projects and jobs as well as Subdural Hematoma. She is currently developing a show called Does My Fanny Look Big In This?

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She said: “It’s about sexuality and sex education. I think that’s going to be really interesting. It’s less autobiographical!”

How can you see Subdural Hematoma?

Ellie’s work was shortlisted for a development programme at the Crucible Theatre and, while she didn’t get chosen, she has worked with the theatres since and been supported in developing her work. She is also working with theatre company Northern Broadsides and has made some short films.

She is a member of the Crucible People’s Theatre Young Company and was in a production at the Crucible Studio called The Golden Fleece last year.

Ellie has also just played Lady Macbeth with Breakout Productions in Rotherham and works with children at Camelot Play Castle in the town.

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Her amazing list of current work even includes acting at York Dungeons, admitting: “I’ve made people cry! Lots of people have been like ‘I have to leave’. We let them out of there and say ‘don’t come back’!”

You can see Subdural Hematoma at The Montgomery on Surrey Street, Sheffield on March 16 and 17, as well as at the Kings Arms Pub in Salford on March 10 and 11. Montgomery box office: themontgomery.org.uk or call 0114 327 3456.

The performance on March 16 will be BSL interpreted and there will be a Q and A session following the performance on the 17th with Ellie and her dad, Simon.

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