From the hundreds of thousands of children who fought for Britain, to the millions of horses and other animals who lost their lives, there is no shortage of forgotten heroes from the First World War.
Now a children’s author is to commemorate the figures who supported Britain during the conflict with a stage show performed by almost 3,000 young people.
Lest We Forget by Ron Dawson, creator of the Scary Bones the Skeleton series, will combine live performance and music with footage from the trenches shown on large LED screens in the Genting Arena, Birmingham, in November 2018. It will tell the story of Sidney Lewis, a 12-year-old schoolboy who lied about his age to join the army and was the youngest soldier to fight in the First World War, as well as those of the conscientious objectors and women who fought in the conflict.
A choir of about 2,500 children, the Birmingham Youth Orchestra and a young brass band and swing band will take part in the show in memory of the 250,000 boys who went to fight despite being under 18. Young guitarists will commemorate the 16 million animals that helped to secure victory with a performance of Cavatina, the theme from The Deer Hunter that was written by the British composer Stanley Myers.
“A remembrance event should be for children and by children,” Dr Dawson, 77, said. “Remembrance for adults is almost an ongoing thing, but we need to inform the current generation of children because the future of remembrance depends entirely on them. Otherwise it will just die on the vine.”
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Dr Dawson described his show as “akin to” Danny Boyle’s opening ceremony for the London 2012 Olympics. Unlike Boyle, however, Dr Dawson has a budget of £90,000 — the 2012 opening ceremony cost £27 million. Dr Dawson was awarded the funding by the Department for Communities and Local Government after writing to David Cameron with his idea.
Lord Bourne of Aberystwyth, minister for faith, said: “When a campaign for volunteers was launched in August 1914 thousands answered the call to fight. Among them were 250,000 boys and young men under the age of 18. The concert will remember their stories and they will be given a voice by those just a year or two younger.
“It is vitally important that each new generation is encouraged to remember the enormous sacrifices made in defending the liberties we take for granted today. The stories of individual bravery and the terrible losses experienced by countless families must never be forgotten.”