“The human race has only one really effective weapon and that is laughter.” – Mark Twain
Command performances come in all shapes and sizes, but admissions to Comedy Night at London’s newest theatre on Monday (20th January 2014) will be strictly limited and ‘by invitation’ only.
When the St James in Victoria opens for business at 7pm it will be admitting a selected audience, from the charity Veterans Aid – and they won’t be paying a penny to get in. “It’s going to be an unforgettable evening,” said CEO Dr. Hugh Milroy “and quite a surreal experience for some of the guests who have overcome – and in some cases are still dealing with – significant life crises.”
Several members of this eclectic ex-service audience will be more familiar with the hard streets of Victoria than the comfortable seats of its theatres. Many will recall a time when they had little or nothing to laugh about, but for one evening they will be royally entertained, courtesy of The British Forces Foundation and St James Theatre. Director of Development at the theatre is Lady Lucy French (pictured), no stranger to the worlds of fundraising, the arts or veterans affairs.
Her pedigree in all three is remarkable and, in the year that marks the centenary of the outbreak of the First World War, her involvement in ‘Operation Laughter’ has particular resonance.
“My Great Grandfather was Field Marshall Sir John French, who led the British Expeditionary Force at the start of the Great War, so 2014 to 18, the Centenary, is very important to us as a family” she explains.
“As far back as December 2012 I decided I really wanted to do something to mark the Centenary. We started off wanting to do just one evening event to raise money for lesser-known military charities; ones that are really ‘hands on’ and do vital work. Veterans Aid was the first charity we considered, and we’re delighted to be supporting it in our first year.” Although neighbours, the new theatre and the 82-year-old charity normally cater for very different clientele. Lucy explains how they came to meet.
“The St James is the first theatre to be built in London for 30 years and was very much a building-site when we moved in. At that stage I got involved with the Victoria BID (Business Improvement District) whose Chair, Tom Foulkes, put me in touch with Veterans Aid and introduced me to Hugh. I was astounded when I found out about the incredible work that Veterans Aid does. It’s tremendous.”
Soon after that meeting VA held its first public exhibition of veterans art at the SWI Gallery in Cardinal Place, opened by Turner Prize nominee Spartacus Chetwynd and marking another confluence of interest between the theatre and the charity. Lucy recalls, “It was wonderful to see their work – quite inspiring.”
“Further meetings explored ways of doing something, through the theatre, to support the work of the charity that helps veterans in crisis with immediate, practical help regardless of age, gender, background or length of service. The idea of Comedy Night was born.”
“We were delighted to be able to provide the venue,” said Lucy who is clearly looking forward to the event as much as the past and present residents of VA’s New Belvedere House hostel and staff. “Artistic content of the evening is a closely guarded secret but thanks to the efforts of its co-facilitator, the British Forces Foundation, an excellent evening’s entertainment is guaranteed. Director Mark Cann said,” We’ve gone for four well known acts, all who have appeared on TV; they’ll present full on stand-up, some slightly more intellectual humour, musical comedy and something visual. Some of them have entertained troops in Iraq and Afghanistan. They were all on my ‘wish list’ of acts to get so I’m very pleased with the line-up.”
“BFF is an Armed Forces charity with expertise in entertainment and we think its great that other charities in the sector are starting to get on board. When Hugh first mentioned the idea of a comedy night I agreed immediately and just said ‘find us a venue! I was expecting maybe a village hall!”
This partnership between a frontline charity, a top London theatre and a major forces entertainment provider is a first, but then much of what Veterans Aid does is groundbreaking!
“I wish there were less homeless charities but the ones that do exist were more like Veterans Aid,” says Mark.
The idea of having a bespoke show staged for them at top London theatre is something that many beneficiaries of VA’s help are finding hard to grasp. But it’s only the first of many initiatives that the energetic Lady Lucy has set in motion. She is working towards the establishment of a charity called Never Such Innocence that will produce a series of landmark events to mark the Centenary. In addition to Veterans Aid it will help four other military charities – Give us Time, Step Short, Combat Stress and the Australian charity, Legacy.
“We teamed up with The Australian High Commission and The Commonwealth War Graves Commission – which has been fantastic, absolutely brilliant. There’s a very ‘Commonwealth feel’ to the project that we’re working on. We have a very supportive committee who has really carried the project forward and the Duke of Westminster is our President. This will be no short-term London-focused venture as Lucy explains, “Gradually it evolved from one evening to four years of activities and education projects. On the one hand we are raising money for five military charities per year, over the four years, but we are also creating an educational legacy, going out to young people in primary and secondary schools across the country trying to make them really feel part of the Centenary commemorations, get engaged and take a bit of ownership of it.
“We’re holding poetry and art competitions and staging a production called ‘Never Such Innocence’ which is being written by Dr Martin Steven the former headmaster at St Paul’s and we’ll take that, with workshops, into the schools so young people can feel that they are really doing their bit.”
Art and combat are words that have been linked since Chinese General Sun Tzu produced his famous treatise The Art of War in the sixth century BC; to many people the First World War is both epitomised and immortalised by the writings of men like Rupert Brooke, Siegfried Sassoon and Wilfred Owen. As the descendant of someone so closely associated with the Great War Lucy knows this, and her passion is contagious. “Bringing the arts into it is really important and Dr Martin Stephen has put together the definitive anthology of war poetry – hence the name of our charity, Never Such Innocence.” 2014 will cause many people to reflect sombrely on the implications of war. It will cause few to laugh; but for more recent veterans who have suffered, through combat or simply the problems of everyday life, it will be good to have something to smile about. And ‘Op Laughter’ certainly intends to provide that!
Lady Lucy French picture (c) Stuart Blakley.
