Serbs of Corby

Ljiljana Beric

In this interview, Ljiljana talks about her early life in Croatia and details the traumatic journey, not only of her family but also of the majority of the town where she was born, across to Serbia in the early years of the breakup of Yugoslavia. Ljiljana then relates her experience of coming to Corby and adapting to the education system here in the UK. The remainder of the interview explore aspects of Serbian arts and culture as well as traditional cuisine. 

Daniellja Bastajic

Danijella talks about the importance of maintaining one's cultural roots and the difficulties for people in Serbia and Croatia during the post-Tito period.  She goes on to talk about the life, traditions and customs of Serbian religious communities in the UK and sings a few lines from a couple of traditional Serbian songs  - "Christos Voskrese"  and "Bozic Je" - associated with Easter and Christmas respectively. The interview finishes with a short discussion on Serbian food and drink.

Nikolina Trkulja

Nikolina talks about leaving Croatia when she was 15 and the Serbian community she grew up in and moving the UK, eventually settling in Corby. She recounts the difficulties in adjusting to life in the UK and the school system. She goes on to talk about the climate in Croatia, religion, traditional cuisine, and Serbia St Eliah, the Serbian dance troupe she helps run in Corby.