Drake Music / Manchester Histories commission

I was given the slightly daunting task of writing a song in response to an act of government legislation - and one that is very close to my heart and is entwined with my life as a disabled person - the Chronically Sick and Disabled Persons Act of 1970. It may not be the typical subject matter I'd usually respond to but I felt it was important to include a personal aspect and highlight the impact the Bill has had on disabled people through my own experience (more i

nfo on the song below if you're interested). Special thanks go to Manchester Histories & Drake Music for commissioning me to write this piece and I'm very proud to be featured among some wonderful creatives

I researched the Hansard online archive and went through the whole script of the Act reading - I was really inspired by Alf Morris’ (and the other MPs) words and I thought one of the crucial points, and themes, of the bill was to give disabled people their own independence. A lot of the words in the song are picked from phrases from the speech in 1969, as is the title of the song. I wanted to get this point across of the changes the Bill brought about and convey that through the words and music - you’ll notice in the first half it is much slower and I sing about feeling trapped and in a cage, and then towards the second half I sing about being liberated and freedom in general.