Play 1: ‘War In Mind’ – John Bassett, Spaniel In The Works Theatre Company

This new powerful dramatic performance looks at the lives of real people affected by shell shock in the First World War.

  • Driver William Charles Phillips, a Tetbury man who though he never actively fought at the front, died in Gloucester Asylum from paralysis in 1917.
  • Doctor Harold Hills, a Stroud doctor, who worked with sufferers at the Front and prevented many men being shot for desertion through his testimonies.
  • Violet Hall, a wife and mother from a Gloucestershire village who lost her sons and was then cut off from the local community.

Based on archive records and thorough research War in Mind looks at the diagnosis, treatment for sufferers and the stigma attached to what is now known as PTSD.

Writer and actor John Bassett will perform excerpts the play, explain how the project came about and the different research that went into creating the drama.”

John Bassett is a writer and an actor with the theatre company Spaniel in the Works. The aim this company is to attract an audience who would not regularly go to the theatre, bringing quality theatrical entertainment to as wide an audience as possible.

http://www.spanielworks.co.uk/