Couple who fled Ukraine as war broke out tell their story at Wigan borough gallery

Ukrainian Maria Romanenko and her Mancunian partner Jez Myers were just outside Kyiv when the war began in 2022.

Maria’s work as a journalist meant she was on a Russian “kill list” so the pair quickly made the decision to leave.

They will talk about their difficult journey to Manchester at the Turnpike Gallery in Leigh at 6pm on Wednesday, January 22.

The centre is hosting Open Eye Gallery’s Home: Ukrainian Photography, UK Words exhibition until Saturday, January 25.

Maria said: “On February 24, 2022, when Russia started its full-scale invasion of Ukraine, we were just outside Kyiv and caught in the war. We embarked on a journey to leave the country, because my partner didn’t want to be in Ukraine during the war.

"We had a terrible journey out, which took a long time. It took seven days to get from Ukraine to Manchester and we spent many days at the border with Poland. We saw some terrible things. We spent 23 hours on our feet without food, water and toilets facilities. We saw people being carried out on stretchers, some who were dead.”

Maria and Jez have already given their talk, named How Not To Flee A War, at festivals, to music bands, at universities and to various community groups.

She says they realised no-one else in the world was telling the story of what it was like to leave on the first day of the invasion.

"We wanted to show people what it’s like to flee a war. We thought it was easy to roll over the border and celebrate being safe, but it’s not like that at all,” she said.

"We hope people will get an understanding of the loss and trauma that we feel, because once you are physically safe, it doesn’t mean you have mental safety. We still see the news every day, see what’s been bombed and check if our family and friends are still alive.

"There’s also the mental health trauma. You can’t ever really heal yourself of what you saw and what you know, because it’s an ongoing situation. We want people to understand how that impacts Ukrainians.”

The couple will be joined at the event by Wigan-based photographer Harley Bainbridge, who will talk about the exhibition and his work with Ukrainian families in the borough.

He recently worked with Open Eye Gallery to publish his project (Re)Settled: Ukrainian Stories in Wigan and Yana, a Ukrainian living in Wigan who collaborated with him on the publication, will also be there.

The exhibition Home: Ukrainian Photography, UK Words was created in 2023 by Liverpool’s Open Eye Gallery to coincide with the city hosting the Eurovision Song Contest.

It brings together different generations of Ukrainian photographers who offer distinctive approaches to image creation and understandings of the word “home”.

Work by photography students at Wigan and Leigh College will also be on display.

The exhibition has been touring the country and its final stop after Leigh will be in Parliament.

Tickets to the event at the Turnpike Gallery are free and can be booked at www.eventbrite.co.uk/e/how-not-to-flee-a-war-tickets-1132838904659.