A poignant letters initiative told through the BBC
From January to May 2015 I worked with the BBC on The Together Coalition’s VEMail campaign, a powerful initiative connecting WWII veterans with school children through an exchange of letters.
As part of the project, I interviewed several remarkable WWII veterans who came together to highlight the true horrors of their experiences and why people must learn from history. Their stories were raw, humbling and deeply urgent in a world where democratic values are increasingly under pressure.
We launched the campaign with WWII & VJ veteran, Tom Jones (pictured with his granddaughter and students), at a school in Manchester with the BBC in February. We returned to the same school in April for a moving moment, whereby a selection of students read their replies out to him (see video below).
Tom Jones was a VJ Day veteran who served in what became known as Britain’s “forgotten army” in Burma. Tom was still fighting in the jungle weeks after the war had officially ended, unaware that peace had been declared in Europe. At 103 years old, he was passionate about advocating on behalf of his comrades and the lengths they had gone to to get back home, and after month’s of sharing his story with the nation, he peacefully passed away the day before VJ Day.
Students listened to Tom’s heartfelt letter, learnt about his extraordinary journey and wrote their own responses, creating an honest and emotional exchange across generations.
Letters for Peace
As part of the VE Mail campaign, 258,000 schoolchildren across the UK put pen to paper, writing heartfelt letters to WWII veterans.
Impact
Tom’s daughter Eileen wrote,
“My father cried when he received the letters from the school children and is so happy about the fact that the story of the Second World War is finally being talked about to the younger generation. The VE mail gave my father the opportunity to be heard about a part of the war that is often forgotten”.
“This is simply a beautiful idea. This might be one of our last opportunities for our youngest generation to hear first hand from surviving veterans. I know from my work with the Gurkhas how many people played a role in our collective victory and how diverse these contributions were. This is a chance to ensure we don’t forget these stories”
-Joanna Lumley
