No more heroes?
Like much of my writing ‘The Storm’ was inspired by music, people and community. My fascination with ‘Big’ Philip Jefferson began with a musical project ‘Haalin’ the Lines.’ Funded by BAIT in South-East Northumberland, the project was led by the remarkable performer and singer-songwriter, Tim Dalling. Tim was commissioned by BAIT to take historical accounts being gathered by the Newbiggin Genealogy Project and put some of the stories to music. The aim was to bring back to life the tales and oral histories of local heroes in the village. One of those heroes was ‘Big’ Phil, the first Newbiggin Lifeboat Coxswain who was awarded a clasp to his silver medal for an attempted service to the brig 'Embla' in 1854.
As well as Tim and the Genealogy Project team, led by Hilton Dawson, the project also involved local choir, 20,000 Voices, Newbiggin soprano singer, Susan Robertson, musical arrangers Ken Patterson and Richard Scott, and members of Jayess Newbiggin Brass Band, for which I play solo horn. We delivered a number of acclaimed performances all expertly conducted by 20,000 Voices Musical Director, Graham Coatman. We even featured on Robson Green’s ‘Tales from Northumberland.’ A clip from the show can be seen here:
The project and stories it revealed inspired me, but mostly the story of Philip and that night of remarkable heroism. I was humbled when I thought of the terror they must have faced, yet still they acted, still they risked their lives. It raised an important question: who are the real heroes?
History is filled with tales of kings and queens, leaders and generals. This is the history they teach us at school. Is it an act of heroism for a general to give the order to send young men to their deaths? Is it heroic for a king or a politician to make decisions that impact on the lives of the people they serve? Does a hero direct or does a hero act? It stuck me the true heroes aren’t the ones I was told about at school, but that they all around us. They are the people who built our communities, who lived and died for our families, friends, and neighbours. They are the people who struggled in the face of deprivation and suffering to create everything that we are.
As we played and sang in front of the community we celebrated and came from, it struck me how all of us are alive today thanks to the heroism of those people communities of the past. None of us would have been performing that day, if it wasn’t for them. In celebrating their acts we were celebrating life itself. We owe everything to them. What remains of those heroes is love and memories, and I realised how vital it is we keep those alive. Heritage is the best of history. It is not about harking back to the glory days of the past, and wishing things were as they were. It is about seeking out the lessons of the past, understanding what made us who we are, what brought us here, the acts that shaped us. Why? So we can be the best of humanity, and ensure our actions shape a better future for our communities and children.
Writers, historians, musicians, artists and all creatives play an important role in keeping our heroes alive. They can raise issues, stimulate debate, and provoke challenging questions. I tell stories, I always have. Now I put them into books. I hope my books are more than just stories, but help people think and reflect on the world. Love is a key theme that underpins ‘The Storm.’ Love of family and community, and the lengths people will go to in order to protect that love. However, it is about something else, it is about love and strangers, how we view and treat them, especially when we think the people and things we love are being threatened. Philip Jefferson and those young men didn’t face the storm and risk their lives on that night to save their own. They, and the women who hauled the lifeboat to the water, risked their lives for people they had never met, for strangers. To risk everything for those you love is an act of heroism. To risk it to save those that others love and you have never know strikes me as the noblest of all acts. It is an example of the best that we can be, it truly is the best of humanity.
My aim in writing ‘The Storm’ is to help Philip’s legacy carry on. It is a tale of selfless heroism, an inspiration not only to the people of Newbiggin, but to us all. Phil and his crew of young men attempted to save the ‘Embla’ that stormy night in 1854. This much we know. Their valiant rescue failed. The crew of the ‘Embla’ all perished, and were buried in the graveyard of St Mary the Virgin Church at Woodhorn. The rest of ‘The Storm’ is just a story, a folk tale, words conjured from the dark chambers of my mind, and sprinkled with my wild and fanciful imagination. I hope that in writing it I have captured some of the spirit of Philip Jefferson, and helped ensure he lives on in all who read it.
