A taste of Spain comes to the East End

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Those strolling through the streets of Poplar last Monday could be forgiven a double take as a crew from Seville descended on Tower Hamlets College to film a feature for Spanish television. The television crew were in town to film and interview Magdalena Torres, a Maths teacher at the college, as part of a programme focussing on Spanish citizens living abroad and the contrasts and similarities of their environments when compared with the Spanish system.

The crew began by filming the exterior of the college and the surrounding streets before heading into Canary Wharf to experience the contrast between the areas for themselves. They later filmed Magdalena in action in one of her classes and were given a guided tour of departments including Hair and Beauty, the Motor Vehicle Workshop and the Learning Resource Centre.
Magdalena, originally from Andalusia, enjoyed the experience but said it was not something she would want to do regularly. “I didn’t realise how stressful it would be to organise the day and have a film crew there while I taught a lesson. It was fun as a one off and I think the crew were genuinely impressed by the practical nature of education in this country. Spanish schools and even some universities have nothing like the equipment available in departments like Hair and Beauty and the Motor Vehicle Workshop, so it was a real eye opener for them and it should make for a good TV programme.”

The crew will also be filming Spaniards in other professions as part of the programme, including an architect, a doctor and a Spanish retailer. The story will form part of the highly regarded ‘Europa Abierta’ (Open Europe) political programme on the regional Spanish television network Canal Sur, which covers Seville and the whole Andalusian region. Clips from the programme will be available online at www.canalsur.es at the end of November.