On Wednesday 10th November Junior girls received a visit from two ‘time travellers' from Ordsall Hall in Salford. Lady Margaret Radclyffe and her maid, Mary, spent much of the day with Lower II. Afterwards the girls wrote to the ladies to thank them for visiting.

Extracts from pupils' letters to the visitors

'Dear Lady Margaret and Mary

Thank you so much for coming to Withington Girls' School and explaining to us about your family and how things were different in Tudor times. I also want to thank you for showing us the interesting objects and toys. You made learning about the Tudors a great deal of fun!'

‘It really seemed as if you were real Tudors by the way you acted not knowing who Santa Claus was or what socks or hosepipe were. I learnt a lot of very interesting facts from your visit. Although I think it was quite peculiar to put cockroach's blood on your lips just to look good. I like the way you dressed all fancy and Tudor like. I really enjoyed your visit to School. I hope you come again in the future to take us back to the past.'

‘ I do hope you had a safe journey back to times without post-boxes and television! I learnt an awful lot when you came, but I hope you learnt a lot as well!'

‘It was really fun learning about the Tudor lifestyle, how they dressed and what toys the children played with. The fact that Tudor ladies used poisonous lead powder and mercury for make-up surprised me the most. The dances you taught us and the music you played made me feel as if I was a Tudor. It was funny to know that's when you and Alexander were young you dressed up as each other and played tricks on Mary. It sounded quite disgusting to know that people would throw their waste out of the window and I wonder what would have happened if it had landed on a passer-by's head!'

‘I am writing to thank you for giving your valuable time to the girls of Lower II, even though you were on the way to a fabulous banquet at Lyme Hall. Your visit brought the Tudor times back to life. I could almost imagine what it felt like for person from that time. It was something I could not have learned from a history book.'