Jamie Brown has taken on the lead role in Val Laws’ tribute to South Shields’ hero John Simpson Kirkpatrick. Viv Hardwick finds out the tricky nature of this Arts Council England-funded play.

How did you get involved with this project?

THROUGH working at the Customs House I got to know the director Jackie Fielding. I understood this play was coming up and I put forward my interest.

Then I did research into the character because he’s such an iconic figure.

There’s still a fair amount of controversy about John Simpson Kirkpatrick’s recognition. What is your interpretation of his character?

I think he was a man led by instinct. He deserted from the merchant navy in Australia (before the war) because he was only given scraps to eat. It’s a tricky process to separate the man from the myth.

There is debate about how many soldiers he rescued. Some say that the figure of 300 can’t be true?

I think that’s part of the mystique of his whole character.

This was a human being who lived not even 100 years ago. He was a real, live Tynesider and it’s finding the human element. Whether it’s one man, ten men or 300 men, he was on the front line without a gun in the middle of a war zone, saving other people without regard for his own safety. The number is secondary.

Does the play touch on the subject of him deserting and going from the frying pan into the fire by joining the Australian army. It seems doubtful a deserter would head for Gallipoli?

No, it seems he felt he wasn’t going to survive in the conditions he was in. Originally, he thought joining the army would be a way back home, but once we got into the war zone the first thing in his mind was to save people fighting for the nation. There’s a lot been said about the VC and whether he deserved to be awarded that.

Do you think he deserves the honour?

There were good arguments both ways and that’s one of the primary things the play explores. It tries to stick to the facts whether it’s a positive or negative reflection on him. I don’t want necessarily to crown him in glory, but at the same time I don’t want to say that he didn’t deserve it. The last thing on his mind was becoming a hero.

Where did the donkey knowledge come from?

On Herd Sands, he used to run donkey rides for a gentleman called Mr George.

So what happened to this poor donkey when John was killed?

Well there are quite a few reports that it was the donkey who showed the area where John was shot.

There are other reports there were more than one donkey. Some say the donkey was killed in battle because it was kept on to do the job. It’s all quite sketchy.

Do you know if any of the Kirkpatrick family still lives in the area?

I haven’t come across any, because although he was one of eight he had three older brothers who died and his father died when he was a teenager. He used to deliver milk at one time and had a milk horse, so his affinity with animals seemed to be from every job he was in.

The point has to be stressed that he wasn’t a wartime deserter?

No, he wasn’t and I think he thrived in that wartime environment. He was a stoker on engineer’s left-overs and one of the big things that came through in his personal letters to his mother was that he was massively unhappy about lack of energy because the crew weren’t being fed properly. He couldn’t cope with the conditions.

Does the donkey in the pictures with you have a name?

The donkey we used was named Freddy. The donkey that John used was called Duffy. There’s a tough balance between this hard man stoker and this gentle animal handler and then someone who was rebellious and didn’t follow orders.

So how do you get round the need to portray a donkey on stage?

One of the things we’re quite proud of is that this is a stylised account, not a straight retelling of a World War One story. It’s theatrical in its essence so you’re not getting endless facts and figures. We do elements of puppetry but in no way are we emulating Warhorse. Director Jackie Fielding has great vision for creating the environment of chaos during the landings. Everyone is on stage all the time.

So would you have staged rescues with a donkey?

I think it takes a very special person to do that kind of job and that’s why he’s deserving of some kind of award. I’m 25. John was dead at 22.

* The Man and The Donkey, Customs House, South Shields, Thursday, Feb 3-Saturday, Feb 12.

Tickets: £15. Box Office: 0191-454-1234.

customshouse.co.uk

* John Simpson Kirkpatrick (born in South Shields, July 6, 1892) died on May 19, 1915, aged 22. He spent three and a half weeks rescuing wounded soldiers from the frontline after the allied landing at Anzac Cove. His exploits made him a national hero in Australia where there is a statue of Kirkpatrick and Duffy. Petitions to have the solider awarded a VC or the Australian VC have been unsuccessful.

Donkey work: Jamie Brown Jamie Brown has taken on the lead role in Val Laws’ tribute to South Shields’ hero John Simpson Kirkpatrick. Viv Hardwick finds out the tricky nature of this Arts Council England-funded play.

* John Simpson Kirkpatrick (born in South Shields, July 6, 1892) died on May 19, 1915, aged 22. He spent three and a half weeks rescuing wounded soldiers from the frontline after the allied landing at Anzac Cove. His exploits made him a national hero in Australia where there is a statue of Kirkpatrick and Duffy. Petitions to have the solider awarded a VC or the Australian VC have been unsuccessful.