How to be Brave – from page to stage

My debut novel, How to be Brave, was released nine years ago in September. How on earth can that be? NINE YEARS. Since then it has hit Number 4 on the overall Amazon chart, been a Guardian Readers’ Pick, and been called a ‘gentle book, full of emotion, suitable for young readers, and similar in tone to The Book Thief, a book that Rose reads with a torch under the bedclothes’ by the Irish Times.

But that special day in September 2015 when it was published wasn’t the start, not by any stretch. And it isn’t the end. Because the book that was inspired by two real-life stories has been explored in other formats – as a short story, also published by the Irish Times, and as a play, which will be staged later this year. The tale of my daughter’s Type 1 Diabetes diagnosis aged seven, and the difficulties we encountered, began as a short story in 2010. Back then, to help Katy cope with injections, I had begun sharing the true tale of Grandad Colin (Armitage)’s wartime sea survival aboard a cramped lifeboat in the middle of the South Atlantic Sea. When the merchant seaman’s ship sank he and thirteen other men made it to the vessel, and survived on tiny amounts of water in unbearable heat. By day fifty – when they were finally rescued – just two men remained; Colin and the ship’s carpenter, Ken.

Colin’s bravery helped Katy. It helped me too. Often has since. And I knew there was a bigger story here. One others might find inspirational. I scribbled words down in a notepad. A short story formed. It shortlisted for the Bridport Prize in 2011. This urged me on. I developed the story into a play. No one was interested in it though. So, I wrote the novel in 2013. And the rest, as they say, is history… In the real world, since the book was published, there have been many developments. I’ve met other relatives of the brave men who were aboard that lifeboat. We finally located Colin’s grave in North Ferriby, East Yorkshire, and a ceremony was held there in his honour in 2017. And last year, on the 80th anniversary of his rescue, a blue plaque in memory of Colin Armitage was unveiled on Hull Marina.

And now, at last, the play will come to the stage. It hasn’t quite sunk in. My grandad’s story will be shared yet again, in another form. On 22nd October Other Lives Productions will take it on a 22-date tour of North and East Yorkshire, including shows in York, Yarm and Bridlington, and concluding with two nights at Hull Truck Theatre and a week at the East Riding Theatre, Beverley. I’m sure this is going to be quite the experience, watching it take shape and witnessing rehearsals. There are going to be so many emotions, not just for me, but for the entire family. As soon as I have more details, I’ll share them, and hopefully I will see you at one of the shows.

Neil and Richard from Other Lives Productions had this to say about the play: ‘Our problem is that with a cast of five and a two-location set (a life raft and an interior) we are short of what we need in order to stage and tour the production. We are appealing by suggesting that donors might like to subscribe as what is known in theatre terms as an ‘angel’. That is, you subscribe money on the basis that it maybe no more than a donation, that if the show ends up in profit you get a proportion back, and may indeed receive back more than you subscribe, if it does really well. At the very least, we shall offer complimentary tickets to a performance.’ Other Lives Productions can be contacted at Toad Hall, 70 Lairgate, Beverley, HU17 8EU. Call 01482 862752 or 07772 189142.

Email otherlivesproductions@yahoo.co.uk or visit otherlives.org.uk for more information.