Photo by Debbie Castro

Hello and welcome to the site!

I’m Anna Kucewicz, or to some Ania Kucewicz – it shows my dual heritage. I understand British culture well, but I don’t feel as if I fit the mould because at heart I’m very Polish. Increasingly so as I get older.  This site isn’t about politics or religion, although I may touch on them a little, but about the history and culture we ‘Poles’ love so much but don’t always know so well.

Born in the UK to polish parents, my Dad was deported to Siberia as a child, arriving in the UK with the families of the II Polish Corps in 1947. My Mum grew up in Wilno, Kraków, Warszawa and Częstochowa, arriving here with her mother in 1958 to join her father. He had been deported to Germany for forced labour. By some miracle he escaped to join the II Polish Corps in Italy, before coming to the UK, not knowing if his wife and child were still alive.

My early memories were tinged with the unspoken trauma of war. A favourite bedtime story from my Babcia (Granny) was about her house burning down during the Russian/German front crossing Wilno in 1944.  I have survived Polish Saturday School, many Akademie (shows), and am active in harcerstwo (Polish scouting).  I’ve always been interested in history, have a degree in it and have carried out research on Poles in the UK and in Poland. Somehow, I have even managed to receive an MBE for my labours in Polish scouting.

More than anything I love my freedom! Finding cafes with great vibes, reading newspapers (in print), exploring my family history, trying to understand Polish politics, visiting exhibitions and the theatre, being outdoors and waking up under canvas. I visit Poland every year. I’ve sailed out of Szczecin, canoed down its rivers, walked its mountains and the streets of many cities. Wife to an English husband and a Mum, I live in ‘God’s own country’ Yorkshire, though I have also lived and worked in London during my many years in communications and public relations.

I love all things beautiful. Cooking Polish food takes me back to my childhood and connects me with many friends with roots in Poland or who have arrived more recently.  I adore projects and this is one which I hope you will agree, links people of Polish heritage together. There’s something very special about having grown up with an identity that was on the whole, forged in the home.

Thank you for visiting this site and do comment on posts or write to me about any subjects you’d like to hear about.

Recent activities

  • Manchester Central Library 26 May 2026 “Mieczysław Fogg – Poland’s musical hero, from 1930’s cabaret to wartime resistance” organised tribute event with Katy Carr performing songs and Juliette Bretan presenting his life.
  • Manchester Central Library 21 May 2025 “VE Day: From Siberia to Bologna – a Polish Odyssey”, organised event with guest speaker Marek Mrozek of the Polish Institute and Sikorski Museum and song and dance from Młody Polonez Manchester
  • Commemoration Day December 2024, 80th anniversary of WWII battles and 40th anniversary of remembrance plaque at Sheffield St Marie’s RC Cathedral, organised event with exhibition about Sheffield Polish community.
  • Showroom Cinema Sheffield 18 October 2024 “Our Polish families’ long road to freedom and sanctuary”, part of a U3a presentation
  • Manchester Central Library – #MyPolishHeritage Exhibition 2 October – 31 December 2024
  • “Welcoming Cultures” part of “Migration Matters Festival 2024 “Roots of a mountain, roots of identity” talk and film presentation
  • ‘Ode to the fallen’ poem and the ‘Heroes of Monte Cassino’ 2024 – 2 film reels for 80th anniversary of the battle of Monte Cassino
  • Kresy Family World War II History Group Memorial Day 2023 – talk about “The Polish journey to the south of the USSR to freedom”
  • Michigan Genealogical Society 2022 – Presentation about my Polish family research

You can contact me at ak@polishatheart.com