0:00:02 > 0:00:05Years of conflict mean that Britain is home to
0:00:05 > 0:00:07an army of the wounded and battle-scarred.
0:00:07 > 0:00:09My right eye was down here somewhere,
0:00:09 > 0:00:12- and the left eye was damaged. - I was found in a ditch with
0:00:12 > 0:00:14a radio antenna embedded in the back of my skull.
0:00:14 > 0:00:16Let's get that right, come on!
0:00:16 > 0:00:20Now, choirmaster Gareth Malone is putting himself on the front line.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23I want to give a voice to the people who have served our country
0:00:23 > 0:00:27and come back with shattered lives, who deserve to be heard
0:00:27 > 0:00:29and who deserve to tell their stories.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31He's joined forces with Prince Harry,
0:00:31 > 0:00:34founder of the Invictus Games,
0:00:34 > 0:00:37an international sports event for wounded veterans.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40I think it's about providing new opportunities in their lives.
0:00:40 > 0:00:44- So Gareth's formed an Invictus choir...- Hello.
0:00:44 > 0:00:46The goal is to inspire the world.
0:00:46 > 0:00:48HE SINGS
0:00:48 > 0:00:52- Whoa! Easy, tiger. - ..to help heal old wounds.
0:00:52 > 0:00:54My best friend, who died in my arms.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57I was sleeping in disused stairwells by choice,
0:00:57 > 0:01:01- whilst my youngest was learning to crawl.- Over the past three weeks...
0:01:01 > 0:01:03- ALL:- # Nobody, nobody. # - Smooth.
0:01:03 > 0:01:06..Gareth's grappled with troops who've never sung before...
0:01:06 > 0:01:10# Twinkle, twinkle, little star... #
0:01:10 > 0:01:11Not the greatest singer.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13THEY SING
0:01:13 > 0:01:16Yeah, it sounds like an accident at the moment.
0:01:16 > 0:01:18..and helped them overcome huge hurdles.
0:01:18 > 0:01:21This is shrapnel that was taken out of the back of my brain.
0:01:21 > 0:01:23- Nearly killed me.- Yes.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25I'm not listening to what you're saying because it's painful
0:01:25 > 0:01:27- in my head.- I don't deal very well
0:01:27 > 0:01:29with crowded places and lots of people.
0:01:29 > 0:01:31- This will be full.- OK.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36- OK.- There are so many things that are difficult about this.
0:01:36 > 0:01:38So I'm feeling the pressure.
0:01:38 > 0:01:41- ALL:- # I've got a river for a soul... #
0:01:41 > 0:01:45- But despite their difficulties... - # Baby, you're my only reason... #
0:01:45 > 0:01:48..the choir gave its first-ever public performance.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51It wasn't perfect, but I'm very proud of them.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55- That's a big achievement. - # Nobody can drag me down. #
0:01:55 > 0:01:56CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:01:56 > 0:02:00In just four weeks' time, they'll travel to America
0:02:00 > 0:02:03to perform for a global audience at the opening ceremony
0:02:03 > 0:02:07of the 2016 Invictus Games.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09We are Invictus.
0:02:16 > 0:02:18With the Games on the horizon,
0:02:18 > 0:02:21Gareth needs to find the choir something to sing.
0:02:21 > 0:02:23It has to be a great song.
0:02:23 > 0:02:28It's going out live on television in America, so...
0:02:28 > 0:02:30it's got to be big.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33MUSIC: The Pretender by Foo Fighters
0:02:37 > 0:02:41I can see people in Afghanistan in a tent, in Bastion,
0:02:41 > 0:02:44listening to that kind of music.
0:02:44 > 0:02:46I don't know that that will appeal to everyone.
0:02:46 > 0:02:51I want the song to have a flavour of my guys and what they went through.
0:02:51 > 0:02:53This Invictus Games is going to be huge.
0:02:53 > 0:02:56There'll be flyovers, there'll be thousands
0:02:56 > 0:03:00and thousands of people. Prince Harry and Michelle Obama.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03It's grand. I don't want it to be them just standing there
0:03:03 > 0:03:06and singing Jerusalem with an orchestra in the background.
0:03:06 > 0:03:07That's not right.
0:03:07 > 0:03:09MUSIC: The Climb by Miley Cyrus
0:03:09 > 0:03:12Choosing a song for this group, that's difficult.
0:03:14 > 0:03:18I'm not sure I've quite got it yet.
0:03:18 > 0:03:19I need to keep looking.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22For Gareth, a long night of deliberation.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29The next day, his troops gather for the big reveal.
0:03:31 > 0:03:32Good morning, Captain!
0:03:32 > 0:03:37- How are we?- Fine!- Firstly, congratulations on your performance.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40It was fantastic to come together as a unit.
0:03:40 > 0:03:44This is Somerset House, they have lots of performances in this
0:03:44 > 0:03:46very space that you're standing in.
0:03:46 > 0:03:50When you next perform, it will be five times this space.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53- Bloody hell.- Try to imagine how many people that is.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55It's a huge number of people.
0:03:55 > 0:03:57And I want you to think very carefully about that because
0:03:57 > 0:04:00I want to consider what song
0:04:00 > 0:04:03can possibly do justice to your story.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05# There ain't no mountain... #
0:04:05 > 0:04:07Ain't No Mountain High Enough? OK, that's a great song.
0:04:07 > 0:04:11But honestly, there's no song that absolutely, specifically
0:04:11 > 0:04:13speaks about your stories,
0:04:13 > 0:04:17so what I would like you to do is write your own song.
0:04:17 > 0:04:19SHE LAUGHS
0:04:19 > 0:04:20- Really?- Yes.
0:04:23 > 0:04:24That's what we're going to do.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27- Should we do that now, then? - As in including music?
0:04:27 > 0:04:30Including music and words, it's going to be your song.
0:04:30 > 0:04:34So we're going to come up with a song worthy of the occasion.
0:04:34 > 0:04:35Follow me.
0:04:37 > 0:04:39Time for a crash course in songwriting.
0:04:39 > 0:04:41First thing, we're going to play some games.
0:04:41 > 0:04:45Say our name and do an action.
0:04:45 > 0:04:47Gaaaareth! And...
0:04:47 > 0:04:48- ALL:- Gaaaareth!
0:04:48 > 0:04:50THEY MAKE BLUBBERING NOISES
0:04:50 > 0:04:51THEY LAUGH
0:04:51 > 0:04:55Frightening. Absolutely frightening. I've never written poetry.
0:04:55 > 0:04:57Andy!
0:04:57 > 0:04:59'I've never written words for a song,'
0:04:59 > 0:05:01and it'll be interesting to see how we get that together.
0:05:01 > 0:05:06OK, next thing we're going to do is tell Goldilocks And The Three Bears
0:05:06 > 0:05:08through sound alone.
0:05:08 > 0:05:12Their creativity isn't explored by the military in the way
0:05:12 > 0:05:14I'm going to do it, but of course they're creative.
0:05:14 > 0:05:16They just perhaps don't realise it.
0:05:16 > 0:05:18HE MUTTERS
0:05:18 > 0:05:19HE MUTTERS IN A HIGH-PITCHED VOICE
0:05:19 > 0:05:21Jesus Christ!
0:05:21 > 0:05:25- Oh, dear, he's having a moment. - HE LAUGHS
0:05:25 > 0:05:29No musical writing ability at all, so I'm quite worried at the moment.
0:05:29 > 0:05:32Trained to keep their emotions in check,
0:05:32 > 0:05:35these wounded warriors will need to dig deep.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37What things do you remember from your life
0:05:37 > 0:05:40that tell me about the journey?
0:05:40 > 0:05:41Images, please.
0:05:41 > 0:05:45- Just little photographs of something from along the way.- A dark room.
0:05:45 > 0:05:47Dark room.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50- Medals gathering dust. - Lovely.
0:05:50 > 0:05:53What's great is we don't have anything, it's a
0:05:53 > 0:05:56- really exciting place to be. - Lost love.- Lost love.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59We don't have a song, but we've got this amazing opportunity
0:05:59 > 0:06:01and we've got the most incredible group of people.
0:06:01 > 0:06:05Hanging on by your fingertips, that kind of crevasse,
0:06:05 > 0:06:07and you kind of being at the top, sliding down.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10What's the difference between a crevice and a crevasse?
0:06:10 > 0:06:13A crevice is between your bum cheeks and a crevasse is on a mountainside.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15LAUGHTER
0:06:15 > 0:06:19- OK, next, yeah. - Pink mist.- Pink mist.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23It's a reference that soldiers use to describe a body being blown up.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26We have something powerful,
0:06:26 > 0:06:30and so if we can put that into a song, I think it will be terrific.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32It's all very sombre, I think,
0:06:32 > 0:06:36the whole business of defining all this...
0:06:36 > 0:06:38misery that we've been through.
0:06:38 > 0:06:42- Let's get on with our lives.- Yes. So there's a kind of...- Hope.- Hope.
0:06:42 > 0:06:46Oh, I love "hope". Shall we try and be positive now?
0:06:46 > 0:06:49The holding of hands, you know, and knowing that that power,
0:06:49 > 0:06:51that love's there, do you know what I mean?
0:06:51 > 0:06:54Even the men would cuddle each other for reassurance, you know?
0:06:54 > 0:06:56That's lovely. Because holding of hands
0:06:56 > 0:06:58is a beautiful way of expressing
0:06:58 > 0:07:01- the word love, but without saying... - "Love".
0:07:01 > 0:07:04While writing lyrics is new to most of the choir,
0:07:04 > 0:07:08putting war into words is something ex-rifleman Paul has tried before.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10Yeah, I've done some poetry.
0:07:10 > 0:07:14The way that I do it, I create a story that flows into a poem and
0:07:14 > 0:07:18it's about my time in Afghanistan and about the men that I lost.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21Walking out of the gate of the FOB, forward operation base,
0:07:21 > 0:07:24and going down Pharmacy Road, where I lost so many men.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27- We may have some of your poems. - You bastard!
0:07:27 > 0:07:29Would you mind me reading it out?
0:07:29 > 0:07:32OK, if you do it nice and clear in a bit of a man's voice.
0:07:32 > 0:07:36THEY LAUGH
0:07:36 > 0:07:38I'm just going to go look for my man's voice.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42As I walk through the gates of hell on Devils Road
0:07:42 > 0:07:44I look down this lonely, dusty track
0:07:44 > 0:07:47Where so many lives have changed
0:07:47 > 0:07:51Physically, or mentally, the damage is done...
0:07:51 > 0:07:56We think of the Army as, you know, very tough, macho men in the Army.
0:07:56 > 0:08:01Well, it's not all about that. And I write poetry.
0:08:01 > 0:08:04We're all taught to be machines in the forces.
0:08:04 > 0:08:07We've still got to find who we are as individuals.
0:08:07 > 0:08:12After a youth spent in children's homes, Paul joined the Army at 17.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15I found that it was my world.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18I was born to be a green soldier and
0:08:18 > 0:08:21I embarked on it and embraced it.
0:08:21 > 0:08:25But his career was cut short by an explosive device in Afghanistan.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27I can still taste the blood in my mouth.
0:08:29 > 0:08:32I can still smell the gunfire.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37I can still hear the screams.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41One minute, I'm this soldier serving on the front line, I'm with my pals.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44The next thing, I'm stuck in a hospital bed
0:08:44 > 0:08:46and I can't see what's happening around me.
0:08:46 > 0:08:48They had to remove shrapnel from my brain.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51My right eye was surgically removed, my left eye,
0:08:51 > 0:08:56they tried to save it as best they can. That was when I was scared.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58To help him come to terms with his situation,
0:08:58 > 0:09:00Paul began writing poetry.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05On the day that I was injured, two chaps died.
0:09:05 > 0:09:08I question it pretty much every other day.
0:09:10 > 0:09:14You know, why did I survive with the injuries I sustained, you know?
0:09:14 > 0:09:16And I've got to take that and do good with it.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22Their spirits and souls flow across the sea, back to Blighty,
0:09:22 > 0:09:24Where the country will salute them
0:09:24 > 0:09:28And where the men who stood beside them will cry a tear
0:09:28 > 0:09:29And never forget.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31Rest in peace, my brothers.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36I tell you what, Gareth, them words were spot on, mate.
0:09:36 > 0:09:40For somebody who is the perpetual joker of the group, it is
0:09:40 > 0:09:43very heartfelt and beautiful and sincere.
0:09:43 > 0:09:45That is what we have to do, we have to create a song that now
0:09:45 > 0:09:47speaks about all your personal experience.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51Does anyone have something? Is there a tune?
0:09:51 > 0:09:54# Don't turn your eyes away... #
0:09:54 > 0:09:56I don't know what the song is, I'm trying to think.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00There's something there, isn't it? # Don't turn your eyes away... #
0:10:00 > 0:10:02Let's all sing that.
0:10:02 > 0:10:06# Don't turn your eyes away. #
0:10:06 > 0:10:08It's a thought, isn't it?
0:10:08 > 0:10:12I quite like the idea because, if I'm brutally honest, I think
0:10:12 > 0:10:16for a lot of people, there's a level of being uncomfortable with
0:10:16 > 0:10:19disability or mental health, that you don't want to
0:10:19 > 0:10:21look at it in the eye, you don't want to face up to it.
0:10:21 > 0:10:23That's really poignant.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27"Don't turn your eyes away and leave me in the dark."
0:10:27 > 0:10:30# Don't turn your eyes away
0:10:30 > 0:10:33# And leave me in the dark. #
0:10:33 > 0:10:35That's nice. Let's leave that.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38That's one nugget. Let's find another nugget.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42- Gareth's troops are becoming songwriters.- Someone else.
0:10:42 > 0:10:45We've had Paul come up with one tune.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47Gem, you've got a good voice.
0:10:47 > 0:10:48I can't sing.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51But not everyone is comfortable opening up.
0:10:54 > 0:10:56GARETH SINGS
0:10:56 > 0:11:01I'm really struggling to jump in with both feet.
0:11:03 > 0:11:08It feels like a step too far to engage in that type of expression.
0:11:10 > 0:11:15Music was once a passion for former army captain Gemma.
0:11:15 > 0:11:19Music was huge. I mean, I studied music.
0:11:19 > 0:11:23I perform, I used to write...
0:11:23 > 0:11:25songs, fairly dreadful ones.
0:11:25 > 0:11:27During her six years of service,
0:11:27 > 0:11:30Gemma witnessed war crimes in Kosovo.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34Since then, she's battled with post-traumatic stress.
0:11:34 > 0:11:37We were observing the most horrendous ethnic cleansing,
0:11:37 > 0:11:39wanting to help and yet being
0:11:39 > 0:11:41utterly powerless to do anything that,
0:11:41 > 0:11:44I believed, really made a difference.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48The emotional baggage when you come home is exhausting.
0:11:48 > 0:11:49The overwhelming guilt.
0:11:49 > 0:11:54I struggled to readjust to life back here, reality back here,
0:11:54 > 0:11:55walking around Tesco's, you know?
0:11:55 > 0:11:59And in order to carry on, and in order to be a mum to three kids,
0:11:59 > 0:12:04I've chosen to shut down that expressive part of me.
0:12:07 > 0:12:09I sense that you're finding this more difficult than perhaps
0:12:09 > 0:12:12- just singing a song.- Yeah.
0:12:12 > 0:12:17I've been quite surprised at how much pent-up emotion there is there.
0:12:17 > 0:12:23- Yeah.- I feel, in a way, I've held on so flipping tight for such
0:12:23 > 0:12:26a long period of time just to keep going and to keep moving
0:12:26 > 0:12:29forward and to kind of create some semblance of normality.
0:12:29 > 0:12:35Are you fearful that somehow this process might just unlock
0:12:35 > 0:12:38the wrong door or something you've shut off?
0:12:39 > 0:12:43- I am fearful of it, and yet I want it.- Yeah, it's interesting.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45I wouldn't be here if I didn't want it.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49Group sessions can sometimes be difficult, so maybe for you,
0:12:49 > 0:12:52you need to go off and scribble away and I come to your house or
0:12:52 > 0:12:55something and we just sit around the piano and do it more privately.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57I think I'm going to have to hold Gemma's hand,
0:12:57 > 0:12:59but I think she is ready.
0:12:59 > 0:13:03She's ready to dig deep and find something, something personal
0:13:03 > 0:13:08and something revealing. OK, thank you, this is excellent first steps.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11Next week, for me, is about gathering your ideas.
0:13:11 > 0:13:12Send me your thoughts.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16This is what this is all about, them telling their story.
0:13:16 > 0:13:17We have made a start.
0:13:21 > 0:13:25The notebook pages are filling up slowly but surely.
0:13:25 > 0:13:29Over the next few days, the choir put pen to paper.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32"Hope is my inner, inner voice of towering strength."
0:13:32 > 0:13:35I don't even actually know whether that makes sense.
0:13:35 > 0:13:38"I woke up rather shorter than I used to be
0:13:38 > 0:13:41"Best foot forward, stiff upper lip
0:13:41 > 0:13:44"Carry on walking from the hip."
0:13:44 > 0:13:48Ex-military police officer Andy was the victim of an IRA car bomb.
0:13:50 > 0:13:54In those first few days in hospital, it was dark.
0:13:54 > 0:13:55I'd lost both legs.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00They were grotesque.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04"I have moved from a spiral of blackness to shades of colour."
0:14:05 > 0:14:10The IRA nearly got me but they didn't, so I think it was my duty,
0:14:10 > 0:14:15in a way, to just continue and get on, so I've got on ever since.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20I've had ideas from everyone.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23You read these words, there's anger and there's pain
0:14:23 > 0:14:28and there's fear and there's a spiral of blackness, there's...
0:14:30 > 0:14:31These are very, very moving.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36It's the real, first-hand experience of people who've been
0:14:36 > 0:14:41traumatised by war. It's all there, with all of them, it's all there.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44It's just getting it out that's the difficult thing.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48They're just not used to expressing themselves in this way.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54Never written a song before.
0:14:55 > 0:14:59I threw some ideas together and it reminded me of some poetry
0:14:59 > 0:15:03that I'd written when I was in the combat stress treatment centre.
0:15:04 > 0:15:06Will I ever
0:15:06 > 0:15:08Laugh again, hope again
0:15:08 > 0:15:10Dream again, play again
0:15:10 > 0:15:11Smile again...
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Desire again, joke again
0:15:14 > 0:15:16Fly again, climb again?
0:15:16 > 0:15:18This is Steve's poem.
0:15:18 > 0:15:24I just think it's great and the rhythm of it, it feels like a song.
0:15:24 > 0:15:27It feels like there's music in it.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33I actually ended up painting one of these for real and, typical me,
0:15:33 > 0:15:36I ended up down the medical centre cos I got paint in my eye.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39Tours of Iraq, Kuwait and Bosnia
0:15:39 > 0:15:43left ex-naval engineer Steve traumatised.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46I was targeted by a sniper rifle.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48The laser sight was..
0:15:49 > 0:15:53..through the Land Rover windscreen and onto my chest.
0:15:55 > 0:15:59The Croatian snipers would practise their skills.
0:16:02 > 0:16:05Sometimes they would shoot, sometimes they wouldn't.
0:16:05 > 0:16:07It got into my head.
0:16:08 > 0:16:12After 15 years of service, he returned to civilian life
0:16:12 > 0:16:16and things began to spiral out of control.
0:16:16 > 0:16:18It would come back to me in nightmares.
0:16:18 > 0:16:21I found myself withdrawing from everything
0:16:21 > 0:16:24and everyone to the point where, a year later,
0:16:24 > 0:16:28my house was repossessed and I ended up living on my sister's sofa.
0:16:28 > 0:16:33Steve's relationship with his daughter Ellie suffered, too.
0:16:33 > 0:16:36As I got worse and worse, she wanted to see me less.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38I didn't understand what was wrong with me
0:16:38 > 0:16:41and so I couldn't explain that to Ellie and I didn't...
0:16:41 > 0:16:46I couldn't try to explain. It drove Ellie away from me for a while.
0:16:46 > 0:16:47Hello!
0:16:47 > 0:16:51But after being diagnosed with post-traumatic stress disorder,
0:16:51 > 0:16:54Steve has started to rebuild his life.
0:16:54 > 0:16:57- How have you been?- Oh, good. Better.
0:16:57 > 0:16:58One of the best things
0:16:58 > 0:17:01about when I was at the combat stress treatment centre
0:17:01 > 0:17:02was Ellie came along.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06It was nice to have her look at me in an understanding way
0:17:06 > 0:17:09rather than being scared or confused by me
0:17:09 > 0:17:15and she's been the focus in my wanting to get better and be better.
0:17:15 > 0:17:17- I'll speak to you soon.- OK.
0:17:17 > 0:17:21- If you can't be good, be careful. - Always.- Bye!
0:17:23 > 0:17:25Will I ever live again
0:17:25 > 0:17:28Feel again, love again?
0:17:28 > 0:17:31It's quite emotional. It's been a while since I read it.
0:17:31 > 0:17:33And I look at that now
0:17:33 > 0:17:39and I can see that the answer to virtually all of that is yes.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45The Invictus Games are just three weeks away,
0:17:45 > 0:17:48but the choir still don't have a song.
0:17:48 > 0:17:51I'm going to go and see Gemma to start writing with her.
0:17:51 > 0:17:54She's generally musically switched on
0:17:54 > 0:18:00and yet has been musically switched off for years because of her PTSD.
0:18:01 > 0:18:07# Don't turn your eyes away
0:18:07 > 0:18:10# Don't leave me in the dark... #
0:18:10 > 0:18:15Being part of the choir for Gemma has been hugely beneficial.
0:18:17 > 0:18:21'I was a little bit apprehensive
0:18:21 > 0:18:24'that opening up Pandora's box of PTSD
0:18:24 > 0:18:26'could have been a negative experience.'
0:18:26 > 0:18:30# Unstoppable
0:18:30 > 0:18:32# And we shall break free... #
0:18:32 > 0:18:36'But now the music is coming back and it's nice to see something'
0:18:36 > 0:18:38she's so passionate about and so talented with
0:18:38 > 0:18:40and making the most of her talent
0:18:40 > 0:18:42and being able to share that with other people.
0:18:42 > 0:18:47# And we shall break free. #
0:18:49 > 0:18:53- Hi, how are you? - Yeah, really good. Are you well?
0:18:53 > 0:18:54- Feeling a bit more ready today? - Yeah.
0:18:54 > 0:18:58On Monday and Tuesday, Beth, my daughter,
0:18:58 > 0:19:02- we just sat at the piano. - Oh, great.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06"Mum, you're singing," she went, "but just SING!"
0:19:06 > 0:19:07I'm glad she's on my team.
0:19:07 > 0:19:08She is on your team.
0:19:08 > 0:19:11# Don't turn your eyes away
0:19:11 > 0:19:14# And leave me in the dark... #
0:19:14 > 0:19:17"I am not strong" cos that, to me, implicitly says "and that's OK".
0:19:17 > 0:19:18That's great.
0:19:18 > 0:19:24- BOTH:- # I am not strong, da-da, da-da... #
0:19:24 > 0:19:25You know, it's like "I have been weak".
0:19:25 > 0:19:27- Can we have that instead? - Yeah, yeah.
0:19:27 > 0:19:29It's good.
0:19:29 > 0:19:31'I think Gareth's right.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34'To get a song that really reflects our stories and how we feel,
0:19:34 > 0:19:36'we need to write it ourselves.'
0:19:36 > 0:19:40I think, for me, that "hope" is a really fundamental word
0:19:40 > 0:19:44- in all of this because without hope, there is no recovery.- Yeah.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50But for retired lieutenant colonel Stewart,
0:19:50 > 0:19:51the song shouldn't shy away
0:19:51 > 0:19:54from the realities of life as a wounded veteran.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58What's happened to me, I don't want that reduced and trivialised
0:19:58 > 0:20:01into a three-minute song that doesn't actually reflect...
0:20:01 > 0:20:02- The hardship?- The hardship.
0:20:02 > 0:20:06We haven't overcome adversity, stop -
0:20:06 > 0:20:09the problems are still there. That will never change.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11- It's not the end of the journey. - Yeah.
0:20:11 > 0:20:13I want everyone to have a line in there.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16I want to make sure that everyone can sign up to it.
0:20:16 > 0:20:21But how do we articulate all of what we want to say in a small song?
0:20:21 > 0:20:23This is risky,
0:20:23 > 0:20:27but I want this song to be about your collective identity.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29I think it will be so much more powerful
0:20:29 > 0:20:31if we get a song that you all feel,
0:20:31 > 0:20:33"Actually, yeah, that's me. It feels personal."
0:20:35 > 0:20:38I think Stewart's concerns are legitimate.
0:20:38 > 0:20:40This doesn't want to be a trite,
0:20:40 > 0:20:44Disney kind of version of their story.
0:20:44 > 0:20:47It wants to be something that takes into account the fact
0:20:47 > 0:20:50that they are still struggling and they've still got difficulties.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54I didn't quite anticipate how difficult this would be for me,
0:20:54 > 0:20:57just taking on board everyone's perspectives.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04I've got various bits of the song
0:21:04 > 0:21:07and I've got "hope" really well covered.
0:21:07 > 0:21:09I think I've got a great idea for the end,
0:21:09 > 0:21:11but what I don't want to do
0:21:11 > 0:21:15is make it washed out and over-saccharine and nice.
0:21:15 > 0:21:17It needs a bit of blood of guts.
0:21:17 > 0:21:19It needs the truth and I'm going to go and see Paul.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22He really went through it in Afghanistan
0:21:22 > 0:21:24so I think he'll be the man to give me that.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31So Paul's made the short train journey to meet Gareth in London.
0:21:34 > 0:21:38Victoria train station for me has quite a significant feeling
0:21:38 > 0:21:42because the last time I was here, with my two brothers,
0:21:42 > 0:21:44Jamie and Joe, and that was the last time
0:21:44 > 0:21:48I had sight in the United Kingdom. And, from my civvies,
0:21:48 > 0:21:51I got into my combats and then went on the Underground
0:21:51 > 0:21:54and got on my train to wherever I was going and flew out
0:21:54 > 0:21:58to Afghanistan, never to come back as an able-bodied person.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01# I am a warrior
0:22:01 > 0:22:03# This is my song
0:22:05 > 0:22:07# My brothers and sisters
0:22:07 > 0:22:10# Hold on... #
0:22:10 > 0:22:12It's become Dire Straits.
0:22:12 > 0:22:15- Are you a Dire Straits fan?- No.
0:22:15 > 0:22:17We want people to be inspired by what you've achieved -
0:22:17 > 0:22:22being blind and having to step out into the street with a white stick.
0:22:22 > 0:22:23The way that you use a stick
0:22:23 > 0:22:25is the same way that you use a thing called a Vallon,
0:22:25 > 0:22:27which is a mine detector,
0:22:27 > 0:22:28and that's what I did out in Afghanistan.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30- I used to find IEDs.- Oh, really?
0:22:30 > 0:22:33I obviously wasn't very good!
0:22:33 > 0:22:36I'd always lead. The man with the Vallon leads.
0:22:39 > 0:22:42OK, I feel like I've got a great first line
0:22:42 > 0:22:44about your experience of being blind.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47# Stepping out to lead the line
0:22:49 > 0:22:53# Sweeping sands, the men behind
0:22:53 > 0:22:56# Ohh-ohh-ohh... #
0:22:56 > 0:22:59And then it needs to be the poetic equivalent of a bomb.
0:22:59 > 0:23:02It would be easy to take the blood out of this song
0:23:02 > 0:23:05- and make it quite sanitised and nice.- Yeah, yeah.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08- And I think it wants to have a bit of...- Guts and glory.
0:23:08 > 0:23:10Guts and glory, exactly.
0:23:10 > 0:23:12Was there a defining moment?
0:23:16 > 0:23:18My best friend died in my arms.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22You know, the shrapnel hit him in the brain,
0:23:22 > 0:23:24but he was walking wounded.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26I remember walking with him cos I was really upset,
0:23:26 > 0:23:28do you know what I mean?
0:23:28 > 0:23:31I'm holding him, sort of clutching him to my chest as you do
0:23:31 > 0:23:34and, yeah, then there was a secondary device
0:23:34 > 0:23:36and I got blown straight onto my face.
0:23:36 > 0:23:38It's weird cos an explosion, it lifts you off your feet
0:23:38 > 0:23:40and I remember skidding across
0:23:40 > 0:23:42and I thought, "Oh, bloody hell, here we go," you know what I mean?
0:23:42 > 0:23:44I managed to block myself in a position
0:23:44 > 0:23:47and everybody else was in this firefight and I wasn't interested.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50All I wanted to do was cradle him because I knew he didn't have long.
0:23:50 > 0:23:54He just looked at me and I remember seeing them eyes, them blue eyes.
0:23:54 > 0:23:55Once it was too late,
0:23:55 > 0:23:59I left his body and carried on with the firefight.
0:23:59 > 0:24:01That boy would have raised.
0:24:01 > 0:24:02He was, yeah...
0:24:05 > 0:24:10It's a big responsibility. I feel it very, very keenly.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15Paul has shared with me something about the moment
0:24:15 > 0:24:19when his friend died and he held him in his arms in Afghanistan.
0:24:19 > 0:24:22That's what I care about.
0:24:22 > 0:24:26And I feel a duty, frankly,
0:24:26 > 0:24:30to do something that works...
0:24:31 > 0:24:35..and that does the job that I think it needs to.
0:24:35 > 0:24:36Oh, God.
0:24:44 > 0:24:48Central London. After a long week for Gareth,
0:24:48 > 0:24:52the choir assemble to hear their song for the first time.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56- I'm expecting some sort of magic. - We'll get the lift.
0:24:58 > 0:25:02This song, just for us here today in this veterans' choir, is going
0:25:02 > 0:25:03to mean something.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07A bit of trepidation. I hope it is emotional.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10I just don't want it to sound naff.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15I'd like this song to say who we are, to show how we've
0:25:15 > 0:25:20progressed and if it can represent our emotions, I'll be really happy.
0:25:20 > 0:25:23It's from Gemma, it's direct from her experience,
0:25:23 > 0:25:25it's direct from Paul's,
0:25:25 > 0:25:28it's direct from Stewart's, it's direct from Bernie's,
0:25:28 > 0:25:29it's their song.
0:25:29 > 0:25:32My worry for today is that I haven't done justice to
0:25:32 > 0:25:33all of their stories.
0:25:33 > 0:25:39If the song isn't right, Stewart will rethink his place in the choir.
0:25:39 > 0:25:40If he creates a song
0:25:40 > 0:25:45and delivers what I think we all perhaps are after, then great.
0:25:45 > 0:25:48If he doesn't, I would have to really consider
0:25:48 > 0:25:51whether this is the right thing.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54It could be a showstopper for me.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57It needs to reflect that this is not over.
0:25:57 > 0:26:02That leg will never grow back again. My brain won't improve.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04Paul's eyesight won't get better.
0:26:06 > 0:26:08I think this song really works.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14I just don't know. I don't know what they are going to make of it.
0:26:14 > 0:26:19- Hello.- Morning. Lovely to see you, Gareth.- Nice hair, sir.
0:26:19 > 0:26:23Thank you, I've had a little... Slightly military.
0:26:23 > 0:26:24LAUGHTER
0:26:24 > 0:26:29- Welcome. Hello.- ALL: Hello. - It is very good to see you.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31- Are you itching to hear it? - ALL: Yes.
0:26:31 > 0:26:36I want to start by thanking you all for your emotional honesty.
0:26:36 > 0:26:41I have put my heart into this, so if you hate it, you can all...
0:26:41 > 0:26:44Here we go. This is your song.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46- This is OUR song?- Our song.
0:26:46 > 0:26:49This is our song. OK, here it is.
0:26:51 > 0:26:55# Stepping out to lead the line
0:26:57 > 0:27:01# Stared into my brother's eyes
0:27:02 > 0:27:06# Sweeping sands, the men behind
0:27:08 > 0:27:11# We are made of flesh and blood
0:27:13 > 0:27:19# Frozen in the morning light
0:27:19 > 0:27:22# An image I don't recognise
0:27:24 > 0:27:28# Mirror shows me broken, bound
0:27:29 > 0:27:33# But I will learn to run again
0:27:35 > 0:27:40# Don't turn your eyes away and leave me in the dark
0:27:40 > 0:27:45# Don't turn your eyes away
0:27:45 > 0:27:50# I have been strong I have been weak
0:27:50 > 0:27:55# And I've had days I could not breathe
0:27:55 > 0:28:00# But from the dust and through the snow
0:28:00 > 0:28:05# We come together now
0:28:05 > 0:28:09# I will learn to love again
0:28:09 > 0:28:12# To dream again
0:28:12 > 0:28:15# To hope again
0:28:15 > 0:28:20# I will learn to walk again
0:28:20 > 0:28:25# To run again, to fly again
0:28:25 > 0:28:31# And from the dust and through the snow
0:28:31 > 0:28:38# We come together to love again. #
0:28:42 > 0:28:47- It's amazing, honestly. It's amazing.- You get two thumbs.
0:28:47 > 0:28:50- I've got to admit, I was worried. - You and me both.
0:28:50 > 0:28:5599% of songs for this sort of thing, they are normally crap.
0:28:57 > 0:29:00- But that stands up as a song.- Good.
0:29:00 > 0:29:03That was quite something. It dawned on me,
0:29:03 > 0:29:05that's kind of familiar.
0:29:05 > 0:29:10Steve? I was really powerfully struck by your poem.
0:29:10 > 0:29:12For me, it was an absolute eureka moment.
0:29:12 > 0:29:16I wrote that four years ago when I was really low and dark
0:29:16 > 0:29:19and you've made it, "Yeah, I will, I can."
0:29:19 > 0:29:22I felt that was so right for Invictus Games,
0:29:22 > 0:29:23so I hope you are OK with that.
0:29:23 > 0:29:25Yeah.
0:29:25 > 0:29:29It's been a long time since I felt proud of myself.
0:29:29 > 0:29:32- Yeah, I do feel proud.- I was well impressed with that, mate.
0:29:34 > 0:29:38Now I've had a chance to take it in and understand it,
0:29:38 > 0:29:44this is something that I know I will be very proud to sing.
0:29:46 > 0:29:48Gareth, you've bloody done it.
0:29:51 > 0:29:55The song has received the choir's seal of approval.
0:29:55 > 0:30:00- Now Gareth's thoughts turn to the big event.- Wow.
0:30:01 > 0:30:06This is the last Invictus Games.
0:30:06 > 0:30:09It's just huge. Oh, dear.
0:30:09 > 0:30:12It's going to be broadcast around the world.
0:30:12 > 0:30:16There's going to be a big stage, 12,000 people in the audience.
0:30:16 > 0:30:18I don't want to get swallowed up by that.
0:30:18 > 0:30:22Can this unlikely band of brothers come up with something that is
0:30:22 > 0:30:25weighty enough to stand on that stage and make an impact
0:30:25 > 0:30:28when there's only ten of them?
0:30:28 > 0:30:33The difficulty is I've got three basses, a load of tenors,
0:30:33 > 0:30:35and three women.
0:30:35 > 0:30:38It's just not balanced at all.
0:30:38 > 0:30:41That's my biggest worry.
0:30:41 > 0:30:45So Gareth casts around for new recruits.
0:30:45 > 0:30:48# I want it that way... #
0:30:51 > 0:30:55He's not amazing, but I think he'll be fine.
0:30:55 > 0:30:58# Ain't no sunshine when she's gone
0:30:58 > 0:31:01# Any time she goes away. #
0:31:01 > 0:31:04Great. She's an alto, which is perfect.
0:31:04 > 0:31:07Two extra people is going to make a big difference,
0:31:07 > 0:31:12but it still leaves me with the slight feeling that it's not enough.
0:31:14 > 0:31:16We are going to America in two weeks
0:31:16 > 0:31:20and we're singing a song that splits into lots of different parts.
0:31:20 > 0:31:25So, I would like to introduce you to two more wounded, injured
0:31:25 > 0:31:27and sick veterans.
0:31:27 > 0:31:29Drumroll, please.
0:31:29 > 0:31:32Here they are. This is Charlie and James.
0:31:32 > 0:31:35I was a trainee pilot, I had an injury that's going to
0:31:35 > 0:31:37result in me being discharged from the Naval Service.
0:31:37 > 0:31:40I used to be in the Household Cavalry mounted regiment.
0:31:40 > 0:31:42I was medically discharged for testicular cancer.
0:31:42 > 0:31:46That's not the reason I can sing high, but...
0:31:46 > 0:31:48LAUGHTER
0:31:48 > 0:31:49He's in. He's definitely in.
0:31:49 > 0:31:51Up to now, I've been the friendly choirmaster,
0:31:51 > 0:31:54but it's time to be a field marshal.
0:31:54 > 0:31:56One, two, three and...
0:31:56 > 0:31:59# I have been strong
0:31:59 > 0:32:00# Ooh-ooh... #
0:32:00 > 0:32:05I will be giving orders. And they will be obeying.
0:32:05 > 0:32:07# Learn to run again. #
0:32:07 > 0:32:08That's six notes there.
0:32:08 > 0:32:12- I think you're making an assumption that we can all read music.- Fine.
0:32:12 > 0:32:16- I agree with him, I'm the same. - It's an imperfect choir.
0:32:16 > 0:32:19We have people, some of whom really struggle to learn music.
0:32:19 > 0:32:23Which bits are humming and which bits are singing? I'm just...
0:32:23 > 0:32:25Cos you're obviously flapping your hands around.
0:32:25 > 0:32:28We've got people that can't see, people with emotional problems
0:32:28 > 0:32:32and people that can't learn and remember because of a brain problem.
0:32:32 > 0:32:34But I know that they can do it.
0:32:34 > 0:32:36# I have been strong
0:32:36 > 0:32:39# We come together now... #
0:32:39 > 0:32:41Get in there, Stevie, my lad.
0:32:41 > 0:32:43We've all come on a journey all bonded together.
0:32:43 > 0:32:46We've all come from different levels of the Armed Forces,
0:32:46 > 0:32:48from different ranks.
0:32:48 > 0:32:49We are a team.
0:32:49 > 0:32:51# We come together now... #
0:32:51 > 0:32:53We are feeding off each other,
0:32:53 > 0:32:56so if you are low, everyone else is there to kind of pick you up.
0:32:56 > 0:33:00- # Oh-oh. #- Do that bit one more time.- Christ, yeah.
0:33:00 > 0:33:02I know all the other choir members have got my back.
0:33:02 > 0:33:05# Come together to love... #
0:33:05 > 0:33:08We're not professional singers.
0:33:08 > 0:33:13And yet, collectively, I think it's a really extraordinary bunch.
0:33:13 > 0:33:18I think this could be a catalyst. I'm feeling ready to step forward.
0:33:18 > 0:33:19Shall we echo each other?
0:33:19 > 0:33:22- # Ah-ah- Ah-ah - Ah-ah. #
0:33:22 > 0:33:26- I don't know how else to do this. - Slap him.
0:33:26 > 0:33:28At the age of 18, when I joined the Army,
0:33:28 > 0:33:30they told me to read and write.
0:33:30 > 0:33:35Looking at all this music, it's been hard for me to grasp.
0:33:35 > 0:33:38But everybody has been there to help.
0:33:38 > 0:33:40# But from the dust... #
0:33:40 > 0:33:43Ah, Geoffrey. I could kiss you!
0:33:43 > 0:33:45This has just cheered me up, you know.
0:33:45 > 0:33:48I've got all the banter back, met a great bunch of people.
0:33:48 > 0:33:50We're all a team, aren't we?
0:33:50 > 0:33:55For Dave, the company of fellow soldiers is something he has missed.
0:33:55 > 0:33:59When I left the Army, I distanced myself from the regiment.
0:33:59 > 0:34:04For some strange reason, I had this notion in my head that
0:34:04 > 0:34:06no-one in the regiment would want to know me anyway.
0:34:09 > 0:34:12Because I feel I cocked up in some way.
0:34:15 > 0:34:20I was almost 18 when I joined, young and stupid. No sense.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22I look at photos of myself now
0:34:22 > 0:34:24and I think, "What were they thinking of
0:34:24 > 0:34:26"giving that child a rifle?"
0:34:27 > 0:34:29I did two tours of Belfast.
0:34:29 > 0:34:31This particular day,
0:34:31 > 0:34:35two gunman opened up with Armalite rifles on automatic.
0:34:37 > 0:34:42The corporal, my mate, I thought he'd dived down, but he'd been shot.
0:34:42 > 0:34:45I dragged him out the way.
0:34:45 > 0:34:50Unfortunately, he died about three days later, I think. Lovely bloke.
0:34:50 > 0:34:53Every day, I still think about him.
0:34:53 > 0:34:56Despite being deeply affected by the incident,
0:34:56 > 0:35:00it was 34 years before Dave was diagnosed with PTSD.
0:35:01 > 0:35:06I didn't get shot and I almost feel like I have to justify myself.
0:35:06 > 0:35:10It's not my fault I'm still here, you know what I mean?
0:35:12 > 0:35:16But the choir coming along, it's given me a kick in the pants
0:35:16 > 0:35:21and connecting with people and the camaraderie.
0:35:21 > 0:35:23No-one has to say if they're not well
0:35:23 > 0:35:26or if they don't want to speak to you. We understand.
0:35:26 > 0:35:29It's done me a power of good.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31You wouldn't believe the good it's done me.
0:35:31 > 0:35:35I sat down the other day and I actually felt cheerful.
0:35:35 > 0:35:37That hasn't happened for over 30 years.
0:35:37 > 0:35:39I sat there and felt cheerful. Great.
0:35:45 > 0:35:47# Again... #
0:35:47 > 0:35:51The choir travel to the United States in 14 days' time.
0:35:51 > 0:35:56# To feel again, to love again. #
0:35:56 > 0:35:59- Morning, troops. - Good morning.- How are you?
0:35:59 > 0:36:02I love that you are already rehearsing.
0:36:02 > 0:36:05It is the sound of people who are afraid.
0:36:05 > 0:36:07Hello, good morning.
0:36:07 > 0:36:10- ALL: Good morning.- How are we all feeling?- Anxious.- Anxious?
0:36:10 > 0:36:14- Are you, why? - To get this right.- Good.
0:36:14 > 0:36:19I love to see a choir under pressure. Let's talk about solos.
0:36:19 > 0:36:23Who fancies a solo? It's a big thing.
0:36:23 > 0:36:26- Gemma, you didn't put your hand up. - Yeah, I was...- Was it a tiny hand?
0:36:26 > 0:36:28It was like that.
0:36:28 > 0:36:32Choosing the right soloist, for me, is about choosing the person
0:36:32 > 0:36:35whose sentiment and personality matches the lyric.
0:36:35 > 0:36:40# Sweeping sands, the men behind
0:36:40 > 0:36:45# We are made of flesh and blood. #
0:36:45 > 0:36:48You have a lovely way of drawing people to you.
0:36:48 > 0:36:53- Are you up for the challenge?- Yeah, absolutely.- Good. That's yours.
0:36:53 > 0:36:55CHEERING
0:36:57 > 0:37:04To sing Steve's lyrics, Gareth needs a second soloist.
0:37:04 > 0:37:08# To hope again... #
0:37:08 > 0:37:16- Yeah. It's the Boyzone version. - It's the Irish way.
0:37:16 > 0:37:20# I will learn to love again
0:37:20 > 0:37:25# To dream again, to hope again. #
0:37:28 > 0:37:31Maurillia, how do you feel about doing a solo?
0:37:31 > 0:37:35- Whatever pleases you, Mr Gareth. - Your voice pleases me.
0:37:35 > 0:37:37It would be my honour.
0:37:37 > 0:37:39CHEERING
0:37:41 > 0:37:45# You take me up, you make me strong... #
0:37:45 > 0:37:48Maurillia began singing with her sisters as a girl
0:37:48 > 0:37:50in her native Trinidad & Tobago.
0:37:52 > 0:37:56My mum realised that we had been given a gift.
0:37:56 > 0:37:59And from three, she got us together
0:37:59 > 0:38:02and taught us how to hold a tune.
0:38:02 > 0:38:07All she said was, "Just sing after Mummy." And we did.
0:38:07 > 0:38:10And it just stayed with me all my life.
0:38:10 > 0:38:14A visit to the islands by the Queen made a lasting impression.
0:38:14 > 0:38:18I was seven years old, she waved at all the students,
0:38:18 > 0:38:20but I thought she was waving at me.
0:38:21 > 0:38:24Seeing all the soldiers march behind her,
0:38:24 > 0:38:27I knew straight away what I wanted to do.
0:38:27 > 0:38:31So I moved to England and I became a soldier.
0:38:32 > 0:38:36Maurillia spent 13 years in the British Army.
0:38:36 > 0:38:40While serving in Iraq, she was buried alive by a mortar attack.
0:38:40 > 0:38:41I just heard the whistle,
0:38:41 > 0:38:45saw it and all I had the time to say was "incoming".
0:38:45 > 0:38:49And I hit the floor. It was so dark where I was.
0:38:49 > 0:38:51I honestly thought I was dead.
0:38:53 > 0:38:5720 years ago, my mum gave me a song
0:38:57 > 0:39:01and she said no matter what happens,
0:39:01 > 0:39:03just remember His Eye Is On The Sparrow
0:39:03 > 0:39:04and He's going to look after you.
0:39:06 > 0:39:12I was underneath this rubble and the only song I could remember
0:39:12 > 0:39:16was His Eye Is On The Sparrow.
0:39:16 > 0:39:17And that got me through it.
0:39:24 > 0:39:29So far, the choir has only performed to 150 people.
0:39:29 > 0:39:33This is Queens Park Rangers, who are, I believe, a football team!
0:39:33 > 0:39:36Now Gareth wants to prepare them for a much bigger stage.
0:39:36 > 0:39:40When we get to Orlando, we will be performing to 12,000 people.
0:39:40 > 0:39:44Everyone will be excited backstage, everyone will be high-fiving you.
0:39:44 > 0:39:48Then you get that stomach-churning moment of someone saying,
0:39:48 > 0:39:52"And now, all the way from the UK, it is the Invictus Choir!"
0:39:52 > 0:39:54And we walk out.
0:39:54 > 0:39:58That is sickening always.
0:39:58 > 0:40:00It is trying to turn that in your head
0:40:00 > 0:40:02from something to fear into something to relish.
0:40:02 > 0:40:05This is the psychological preparation,
0:40:05 > 0:40:08getting them match-ready so they are ready to walk out
0:40:08 > 0:40:10into a place like this full of people.
0:40:10 > 0:40:13# But from the dust, ah-ah
0:40:13 > 0:40:15# And through the snow
0:40:15 > 0:40:19# We come together now
0:40:21 > 0:40:24# I will learn to live... #
0:40:24 > 0:40:27Suddenly, I was there having a real lurch of nerves,
0:40:27 > 0:40:30but that was quite useful to try and get that cracked
0:40:30 > 0:40:32and dealt with before it happens on the day.
0:40:34 > 0:40:36The tenors definitely need to practise.
0:40:36 > 0:40:39It isn't second nature yet. But it will be.
0:40:39 > 0:40:42# I will be strong... #
0:40:42 > 0:40:44I was a bit lost for words.
0:40:44 > 0:40:45It didn't come out.
0:40:45 > 0:40:47It was like stage fright.
0:40:50 > 0:40:51The space, it's a stadium,
0:40:51 > 0:40:56it's realising that we are only 11 or 12 people.
0:40:56 > 0:41:01Some of them really struggled just going to a train station.
0:41:01 > 0:41:04This is a much more intimidating environment to go into.
0:41:04 > 0:41:06I would like them
0:41:06 > 0:41:09to actually engage with just how scary this is going to be.
0:41:09 > 0:41:13It will be frightening. They need to face up to that.
0:41:13 > 0:41:21# We come together to love again
0:41:21 > 0:41:24# Ah-ah-ah. #
0:41:24 > 0:41:25Paul, that's the first time
0:41:25 > 0:41:28you've got the whole of the first half of the phrase right,
0:41:28 > 0:41:31then you've just descended and were tempted by the tenors.
0:41:31 > 0:41:33It's the hardest part of singing in a choir,
0:41:33 > 0:41:34is to just stick to your guns.
0:41:34 > 0:41:37Last time I stuck to a gun, I got blown up.
0:41:38 > 0:41:40That doesn't generally happen in choirs!
0:41:42 > 0:41:44Fingers crossed.
0:41:44 > 0:41:46Rehearsals continue with earnest.
0:41:46 > 0:41:48But from the dust.
0:41:48 > 0:41:49# Ah. #
0:41:49 > 0:41:51HE GASPS
0:41:53 > 0:41:55But one person is missing.
0:41:56 > 0:41:58Ex-private, Dave.
0:41:59 > 0:42:02I had to go to the American Embassy to sort out a visa
0:42:02 > 0:42:07and unfortunately I have a police caution going back eight years
0:42:07 > 0:42:09and due to this, it would take six months
0:42:09 > 0:42:11for the paperwork to come through.
0:42:11 > 0:42:15- So effectively, I couldn't go. - Oh, you're kidding!- I'm not kidding.
0:42:15 > 0:42:18- Oh...- No!
0:42:18 > 0:42:20- I'm gutted.- Got to make it happen.
0:42:20 > 0:42:23I'm more gutted about leaving you guys.
0:42:23 > 0:42:24You're still here.
0:42:24 > 0:42:28- Yeah, you're still here. - Sit down and get singing.- Shall I?
0:42:28 > 0:42:30Please, yes.
0:42:30 > 0:42:32As far as I'm concerned, you are a part of this choir
0:42:32 > 0:42:35and you shall remain so. You helped create this song.
0:42:35 > 0:42:38Let's keep a little bit of hope. But please stick with us.
0:42:38 > 0:42:41- That's lovely, thank you. - No, not at all.
0:42:41 > 0:42:44OK, let's move forward. So...
0:42:44 > 0:42:46I'm feeling extremely down about it.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48But I'm part of the team,
0:42:48 > 0:42:50I know they will carry on and do a great job.
0:42:50 > 0:42:52I just feel gutted that I won't be with them.
0:42:52 > 0:42:56You know, it's been great, I've really bonded with these guys.
0:42:56 > 0:42:59# Oooh-ooh-ooh... #
0:42:59 > 0:43:01Frankly, I will be slightly lost without him.
0:43:01 > 0:43:06If he's not able to be there, that is a real loss to the choir
0:43:06 > 0:43:08and to me personally.
0:43:08 > 0:43:12# Ooh-ooh-aah. #
0:43:14 > 0:43:17There's got to be something we can do. He must be there.
0:43:21 > 0:43:24With just eight days until the choir flies to America,
0:43:24 > 0:43:26the show must go on.
0:43:27 > 0:43:29# I have been strong. #
0:43:29 > 0:43:32# Ooh-ooh. #
0:43:32 > 0:43:34# Ooh-ooh-ooh. #
0:43:34 > 0:43:36To prepare for a stadium performance,
0:43:36 > 0:43:39Gareth needs to add some finishing touches.
0:43:39 > 0:43:42So, today we are recording the backing track for
0:43:42 > 0:43:44when we get to Florida so that
0:43:44 > 0:43:49when we get there, we are riding on the wave of that sound.
0:43:49 > 0:43:52# Oh-oh-oh-oh-oh
0:43:52 > 0:43:54# Again. #
0:43:54 > 0:43:57He has also secured the services of award-winning
0:43:57 > 0:43:59classical singer Laura Wright.
0:43:59 > 0:44:00- Hello.- Hi.
0:44:00 > 0:44:03Laura is a wonderful soprano and she sang at the last Invictus Games
0:44:03 > 0:44:06so I thought it would be great if she came and sang
0:44:06 > 0:44:09on the end section of our song as a little high, floating soprano.
0:44:09 > 0:44:13- A little?- Yeah, we were never going to get there.
0:44:13 > 0:44:17LAURA SINGS SOPRANO
0:44:17 > 0:44:20That classical sound that Laura has got will just give us
0:44:20 > 0:44:22something otherworldly.
0:44:23 > 0:44:27Wow, it's going to add a little something, a little finesse.
0:44:27 > 0:44:29# I have been strong
0:44:30 > 0:44:32# I have been weak... #
0:44:32 > 0:44:36It feels like the whole thing is coming together now. I can hear it.
0:44:45 > 0:44:49Today, Gareth's wounded warriors start their tour of duty.
0:44:49 > 0:44:52Hello, everyone, show me your passports.
0:44:54 > 0:44:56And no man is left behind.
0:45:06 > 0:45:09- What are you doing here?! - Come here, you big bugger!
0:45:14 > 0:45:17- You're legal, you're literally...? - Yeah!- Yes!
0:45:17 > 0:45:19Show me your passport.
0:45:19 > 0:45:20Yes!
0:45:20 > 0:45:22THEY CHEER
0:45:22 > 0:45:26It's brilliant, I got my visa through. I feel amazing.
0:45:26 > 0:45:27I'm back with the gang!
0:45:27 > 0:45:31Can you not do anything like this ever again, please?
0:45:31 > 0:45:35Good news. Really happy that Dave is coming because he is a great singer
0:45:35 > 0:45:37and he's one of the team.
0:45:37 > 0:45:40Brilliant, well done. When did you know?
0:45:40 > 0:45:42- Late last night.- Seriously?- Yeah.
0:45:42 > 0:45:45I'm so chuffed David has made it. We're buddies -
0:45:45 > 0:45:47it would have been totally wrong to leave that man behind.
0:45:47 > 0:45:50- Shall we go to America? - ALL: Yeah!- Come on.
0:45:50 > 0:45:54Buzzing because we've actually got the full team together.
0:46:01 > 0:46:03Orlando, Florida.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08The Champion Stadium.
0:46:08 > 0:46:11- Wow, look at this.- Wow! My goodness.
0:46:11 > 0:46:13In just 48 hours,
0:46:13 > 0:46:17the choir will take to the stage at the opening ceremony
0:46:17 > 0:46:20of the 2016 Invictus Games
0:46:20 > 0:46:24in front of 12,000 athletes and spectators.
0:46:24 > 0:46:26- Are you excited?- Yeah.
0:46:26 > 0:46:28Pretty impressive.
0:46:28 > 0:46:30But first, a well-wisher.
0:46:30 > 0:46:32- Oh, my God.- Hello!
0:46:32 > 0:46:35How are you doing, sir? Are you all right?
0:46:35 > 0:46:37How are you guys?
0:46:37 > 0:46:39- We're in the zone.- In the zone. - Are we in the zone?
0:46:39 > 0:46:42- Totally. - This is the opening of the Games.
0:46:42 > 0:46:44Don't underestimate it, it's going to be...
0:46:44 > 0:46:47It's a big thing, and blow everybody else out of the water.
0:46:47 > 0:46:49That's actually my plan.
0:46:49 > 0:46:52Right, I'm going to leave you to it. Cheers, guys.
0:46:52 > 0:46:55I hope now you feel massively part of this. Let's go and do it.
0:46:57 > 0:47:01Gareth has one last-minute tweak to the performance.
0:47:01 > 0:47:03This is an international event.
0:47:03 > 0:47:06This needs to be a performance that packs a punch.
0:47:06 > 0:47:07So, with your permission,
0:47:07 > 0:47:13I would like to invite in a group of US veterans and serving personnel
0:47:13 > 0:47:16to come and sing the finale with us and the last section.
0:47:18 > 0:47:19Is that OK with you?
0:47:19 > 0:47:21- ALL: Yeah.- They are outside.
0:47:21 > 0:47:22Hey, guys.
0:47:24 > 0:47:27Come and say hi, come and introduce yourselves.
0:47:27 > 0:47:30- We are here to back you up.- Well, I'll tell you what, we need it.
0:47:30 > 0:47:35As a veteran, as an injured soldier, I have been in their shoes.
0:47:35 > 0:47:38Your cue is going to be "we come together now".
0:47:38 > 0:47:40What I'm really looking for is that feeling of
0:47:40 > 0:47:44everyone coming together. This is one of the big themes of the song.
0:47:44 > 0:47:47- And Britain's going to win. - And Britain's going to win!
0:47:48 > 0:47:51Let's not get into rivalry just yet.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53Sorry, friends.
0:47:53 > 0:47:55You can take a guy out of the Army...
0:47:56 > 0:47:57Let's try that.
0:47:57 > 0:48:02# I will learn to walk again
0:48:02 > 0:48:05# To fly again
0:48:05 > 0:48:08- # I have been strong - I will learn to live again
0:48:08 > 0:48:12- # I have been weak - To feel again
0:48:12 > 0:48:14# And I've had days I could not breathe
0:48:14 > 0:48:17- # To love again - Oh. #
0:48:17 > 0:48:20There's a little bit of "it's our song".
0:48:20 > 0:48:24But then the song's for all of us, all veterans,
0:48:24 > 0:48:27and we are all coming together just like the song.
0:48:27 > 0:48:29# But from the dust... #
0:48:29 > 0:48:32I just feel that it was that big punch that we just needed,
0:48:32 > 0:48:34the brother in arms, sister in arms. It works, it works.
0:48:34 > 0:48:38# Come together now. #
0:48:38 > 0:48:39Off!
0:48:39 > 0:48:41OK. Well done.
0:48:41 > 0:48:43- Do you want to have a little cry? - Sorry, guys.
0:48:43 > 0:48:46Don't worry, it's fine.
0:48:46 > 0:48:49It's so beautiful and...
0:48:51 > 0:48:54I have been through this struggle that you have been through.
0:48:54 > 0:48:55You guys are representing...
0:48:57 > 0:48:58..us.
0:49:08 > 0:49:11Wonderful that we have been joined by the Americans
0:49:11 > 0:49:14and my goodness, the outpouring of emotion from them is something
0:49:14 > 0:49:16that frankly we are just not used to.
0:49:16 > 0:49:20It was a whole lot of, "What's this going on in my chest? I can't..."
0:49:21 > 0:49:24There was a beautiful connection there today.
0:49:24 > 0:49:27It took me back. It was a really strange moment.
0:49:27 > 0:49:30After spending all this time with British veterans who are all
0:49:30 > 0:49:33zipped up, and it just poured out of them all.
0:49:33 > 0:49:35What I would say is don't underestimate how
0:49:35 > 0:49:38powerful it's going to be, having you sing these words.
0:49:38 > 0:49:39TRY and get a grip.
0:49:41 > 0:49:43Yeah? Try and...
0:49:43 > 0:49:46It's a really difficult balance but I think we've done really
0:49:46 > 0:49:50good work here today in just sort of preparing ourselves.
0:49:50 > 0:49:53One Brit has been taken by surprise.
0:49:53 > 0:49:58Andy lost both legs in an IRA car bomb back in the '80s.
0:49:58 > 0:50:01I've probably bottled things up for a long time
0:50:01 > 0:50:05and this has just brought a few things out that I thought
0:50:05 > 0:50:08I had parked away and accepted.
0:50:10 > 0:50:14But it's... It's brought it out, it's brought it out.
0:50:15 > 0:50:16I'm not just slightly injured,
0:50:16 > 0:50:20I'm disabled and I'm in a bloody wheelchair all the time and it's...
0:50:22 > 0:50:23It's not going to change.
0:50:26 > 0:50:27You OK?
0:50:30 > 0:50:34Even after 26 years, recovery is ongoing.
0:50:34 > 0:50:37This singing is making me recover.
0:50:39 > 0:50:42I don't know, it's just the power of music and...
0:50:42 > 0:50:44It's extraordinary, isn't it?
0:50:44 > 0:50:47It's joy but it's bloody tears and it's...
0:50:47 > 0:50:51You know, everybody is going to come together, it's going to be great.
0:50:51 > 0:50:52But...
0:50:53 > 0:50:56..it just takes you back through so much, really.
0:51:06 > 0:51:08The big day has arrived.
0:51:08 > 0:51:10'Do you feel confident about it?'
0:51:10 > 0:51:11Yeah, yeah.
0:51:11 > 0:51:15I'm going to stand up there, chest out, sing my heart out.
0:51:15 > 0:51:17'Good luck and I'll be thinking of you.'
0:51:17 > 0:51:18I'm really nervous.
0:51:18 > 0:51:21I'll just sing it like I did when we were round the piano.
0:51:21 > 0:51:23- 'Just let it all out.' - All right, darling.
0:51:24 > 0:51:27I thought I should tidy myself up a bit.
0:51:27 > 0:51:30I was looking a bit frayed round the edges.
0:51:30 > 0:51:33When we get on the stage tonight, I think it's going to go well.
0:51:33 > 0:51:36I shouldn't say that. I shouldn't tempt fate, really, should I?
0:51:36 > 0:51:38You know, I'll get up there
0:51:38 > 0:51:40and my pants will fall down or something.
0:51:46 > 0:51:52The opening ceremony to the 2016 Invictus Games is about to begin.
0:51:52 > 0:51:55It's happening, the game is afoot.
0:51:55 > 0:51:58Look at that - 12,000 people.
0:51:58 > 0:52:01I've seen the crowds outside. They're massive.
0:52:06 > 0:52:10You have faced so much worse, all of you, than this.
0:52:10 > 0:52:12So go for it, let it all out.
0:52:12 > 0:52:14- I'd like to say something, if that's all right.- Of course.
0:52:14 > 0:52:16I haven't cried personally in seven years.
0:52:16 > 0:52:19I haven't cried since I lost my best friend on the battlefield
0:52:19 > 0:52:21and I can feel myself choking up already
0:52:21 > 0:52:23because I know it's going to happen out there. To me it is
0:52:23 > 0:52:26quite an emotional day, so we must remember why we are here.
0:52:26 > 0:52:29It's for our country, it's for our fallen, it's for our wounded,
0:52:29 > 0:52:30So go out there and feel proud.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36- ANNOUNCER:- Please welcome the First Lady of the United States,
0:52:36 > 0:52:37Michelle Obama.
0:52:39 > 0:52:40I'm petrified.
0:52:42 > 0:52:44Absolutely petrified.
0:52:44 > 0:52:47A little bit ahead of schedule so as soon as you're ready,
0:52:47 > 0:52:50let's get into line and get ready to head down.
0:52:53 > 0:52:56- ANNOUNCER:- Ladies and gentlemen, please welcome Prince Harry.
0:52:59 > 0:53:02I had to create the Invictus Games to build a platform
0:53:02 > 0:53:05for all those who have served.
0:53:05 > 0:53:10This choir of wounded warriors has been together for just seven weeks.
0:53:10 > 0:53:12Over the next four days,
0:53:12 > 0:53:16you will see people who by rights should have died on the battlefield.
0:53:16 > 0:53:20Now they perform for a global audience.
0:53:20 > 0:53:23It all comes down to a three-minute song.
0:53:23 > 0:53:27They've got this one moment to make a very, very bold statement.
0:53:27 > 0:53:31Let's put on a hell of a show in memory of all of our fallen comrades
0:53:31 > 0:53:32who didn't make it.
0:53:32 > 0:53:35We are Invictus.
0:53:35 > 0:53:37CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:53:52 > 0:53:58# Stepping out to lead the line
0:53:58 > 0:54:02# I stare into my brother's eyes
0:54:03 > 0:54:09# Sweeping sands, the men behind
0:54:09 > 0:54:14# We are made of flesh and blood
0:54:15 > 0:54:19# Frozen in the morning light
0:54:20 > 0:54:24# An image I don't recognise
0:54:26 > 0:54:31# The mirror shows me broken, bound
0:54:31 > 0:54:35# But I will learn to run again
0:54:37 > 0:54:42# Don't turn your eyes away and leave me in the dark
0:54:42 > 0:54:47# Don't turn your eyes away
0:54:47 > 0:54:50# I have been strong
0:54:50 > 0:54:53# I have been weak
0:54:53 > 0:54:57# And I've had days I could not breathe
0:54:59 > 0:55:01# But from the dust
0:55:02 > 0:55:05# And through the snow
0:55:05 > 0:55:09# We come together now
0:55:11 > 0:55:16# Now the walls are closing in
0:55:17 > 0:55:20# I can hear the cries begin
0:55:22 > 0:55:27# Will I ever make it through?
0:55:28 > 0:55:31# You take me by the hand again
0:55:34 > 0:55:39# I will live to laugh again
0:55:39 > 0:55:42# To dream again
0:55:42 > 0:55:45# To hope again
0:55:45 > 0:55:50# I will learn to live again
0:55:50 > 0:55:53# To feel again
0:55:53 > 0:55:56# To love again
0:55:56 > 0:56:01# I will learn to live again
0:56:01 > 0:56:04# To feel again
0:56:04 > 0:56:08# To love again
0:56:08 > 0:56:11- # I have been strong - I will learn to live again
0:56:11 > 0:56:14- # I have been weak - To feel again
0:56:14 > 0:56:16# And there were days I could not breathe
0:56:16 > 0:56:19- # To love again - Oh
0:56:19 > 0:56:22- # But from the dust - I will learn to live again
0:56:22 > 0:56:25- # And through the snow - To feel
0:56:25 > 0:56:31# We come together to love again. #
0:56:33 > 0:56:36CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:57:01 > 0:57:02Great solo.
0:57:04 > 0:57:07- We did it! - THEY CHEER
0:57:07 > 0:57:09- Sweet as a nut.- Well done, boss. - Well done.
0:57:09 > 0:57:12I had to hold back the tears. Oh...
0:57:12 > 0:57:13It was brilliant, mate. Thank you.
0:57:13 > 0:57:16It has done so much for us all, it really has.
0:57:19 > 0:57:22I thought Gareth was a bit of a maniac, deciding to write a song
0:57:22 > 0:57:26just weeks before needing to deliver it to an audience of that size.
0:57:26 > 0:57:29I'm massively proud of what we have done
0:57:29 > 0:57:31and I think it is a really good song.
0:57:31 > 0:57:34I hope that in the Invictus Games to come that this song will live on.
0:57:34 > 0:57:38It deserves to be heard, so we are going to release it as a single.
0:57:38 > 0:57:40Any proceeds will go to Invictus.
0:57:42 > 0:57:45I just feel so proud of having stood up there with everybody
0:57:45 > 0:57:47and told that story.
0:57:47 > 0:57:49- I am a singer.- Yes, you are!
0:57:50 > 0:57:54Those three minutes I can remember for the rest of my life
0:57:54 > 0:58:00and they are three minutes of being incredibly proud of what I've done.
0:58:00 > 0:58:02Incredibly proud of who I now am.
0:58:07 > 0:58:10It's what we have built up for and it was over
0:58:10 > 0:58:13and done in the blink of an eye.
0:58:16 > 0:58:19I'm going to miss this. I am going to miss this.
0:58:26 > 0:58:30MUSIC: Clair De Lune by Claude Debussy