NHS staff at Royal London hospital record charity single to spread Christmas cheer

Staff at the Royal London in Whitechapel sang and performed the music to Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas
Staff nurse Daylyn Briones on the helipad at the Royal London
NHS
Ross Lydall @RossLydall18 December 2020

Staff at London’s biggest hospital have been dancing on the helipad and in the corridors as they recorded a Christmas charity single.

About 65 staff at the Royal London in Whitechapel sang and performed the music to Have Yourself a Merry Little Christmas to raise spirits and funds for Barts Charity.

The recording will be available for download on Spotify and Apple Music from Friday and a video will be published on YouTube. It can be bought here and donations can be made via JustGiving here

The project was devised by anaesthetist Dr Duncan Mitchell, who persuaded sound and visual engineers and a choreographer to give their time for free. Staff came in on their days off or recorded their parts at home.

Hitting the high notes: anaesthetist Dr Davina Ross-Anderson
NHS

The hospital, whose staff helped to run the Nightingale field hospital, has been running wellbeing projects for staff since the start of the pandemic.

Another string to her bow: Alexandra Lawrence, consultant in gynaecological oncology
NHS

It came as Olivia Colman and Kenneth Branagh headed a cast list of actors to record an audio-adaptation of Peter Pan to raise funds for Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Helipad dance: on the top of the Royal London

JM Barrie granted GOSH the performance rights of Peter Pan in 1929, but the hospital’s charity has missed out on annual royalties this year due to the restrictions on live performances.

Liz Tait, director of fundraising at GOSH Charity, said: “We are so grateful to the many stars who lent their voices to this creative audio adaptation of the timeless story of Peter Pan, alongside children and young people from the hospital whose contribution helped bring this tale to life.”

The new recording of Peter Pan can be downloaded for £3 from Sunday at www.listentopeterpan.com

Xmas dancers at the Royal London
NHS

In addition, West End stars and musicians have released a Christmas charity single to generate awareness of heart failure and raise funds for the Pumping Marvellous Foundation, the UK's only patient-led heart failure charity.

The song, Music will live in our Hearts, features Alice Fearn, who starred in Wicked, and the winner of Britain's Got Talent, Jai McDowall.

The song, inspired by a film of a patient living with heart failure, aims to challenge the misconceptions about heart failure. It is on Amazon Music and on Apple music.

Nick Hartshorne-Evans, chief executive of Pumping Marvellous, said: "We have a community of over one million heart failure patients all over the UK who are living with heart failure. This year has been so tough, for so many, living with the condition. Our goal as a charity is to deliver hope to its recipients and help them to live a full life with improved intervention and better outcomes.  

"It has also been a catastrophic year for musical theatre in the West End. The fact that people have the inclination and the energy to support less fortunate people is amazing."

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