The Choir

Choirmaster Gareth Malone believes singing can help people through the most difficult times of their lives. Armed with his keyboard, Gareth has been invited to RMB Chivenor military base in north Devon, where the troops are about to deploy for a six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan. While the troops are away, Gareth hopes to start a choir with the wives and girlfriends left behind to help them through the worrying time. Gareth soon discovers that living on an isolated estate on the edge of the military base has left the wives longing to have a voice to express the difficulty of their lives. But can he inspire his fledgling choir to have the confidence to sing in public?

Choirmaster Gareth Malone has formed a new choir of military wives at RMB Chivenor in north Devon while their husbands deploy to Afghanistan for a six-month tour of duty. The choir's first public performance was a triumph, singing to the local community of Barnstaple, and now Gareth wants his choir to spread and help wives on other bases across the country. He heads to nearby Plymouth, whose troops are suffering fatalities out in Afghanistan. Though Gareth is concerned whether singing in a choir can really help at such a sensitive time, he's overwhelmed by eager new recruits and organises a joint performance for his choirs to sing on Armed Forces Day on the Plymouth seafront. Gareth must manage emotions that ride high as the two choirs struggle to combine, and then he has to persuade them they are good enough to spread their message further and sing together at Sandhurst Officer Training Academy to get the seal of approval from the military establishment's top brass.

Choirmaster Gareth Malone has formed a new choir of military wives at RMB Chivenor in north Devon while their husbands deploy to Afghanistan for a six-month tour of duty. Four months after their husbands' departure, the wives are finding it increasingly difficult to cope. Gareth sets them the biggest challenge of their lives: to perform at the Royal Albert Hall on Remembrance Sunday in just a few weeks' time. The women contribute letters and lyrics to a song that is specially composed for them by the Duchess of Cambridge's favourite composer Paul Mealor. After a six-month wait, and agonising reports of multiple injuries and fatalities on the frontline, the choir-members' husbands finally return, to joyous reunions. Now Gareth has to make sure his choir members give it their all, for the once-in-a-lifetime Royal Albert Hall performance.

Choirmaster Gareth Malone believes singing can help people through the most difficult times of their lives. Gareth has been invited to RMB Chivenor Military base in north Devon, where the troops are about to deploy for a six-month tour of duty in Afghanistan. While the troops are away, Gareth starts a choir with the wives and girlfriends who've been left behind. With the choir proving such a success at Chivenor, Gareth decides to start a new choir at a base in Plymouth, whose troops are suffering fatalities out in Afghanistan. Gareth has to manage emotions that ride high as the two choirs struggle to combine, and then he has to persuade them that they are good enough to sing together. Finally singing as one choir, Gareth sets the Chivenor and Plymouth military wives the biggest challenge of their lives: to perform at the Royal Albert Hall on Remembrance Sunday. The women contribute letters and lyrics to a song that is specially created for them by royal wedding composer Paul Mealor. After a six-month wait, and agonising reports of multiple injuries and fatalities on the frontline, the choir members' husbands finally return, to joyous reunions. Now Gareth has to make sure his choir members give it their all, for the once-in-a-lifetime Royal Albert Hall performance.

In February 2011 Gareth Malone went to the military base at Chivenor to set up a choir for the wives who are left at home alone while their men are on duty for months at a time. We hear from Gareth and key members of the choir as they reflect on their extraordinary journey culminating in their performance of a song specially written by Royal composer Paul Mealor at the Royal Albert Hall. This seemed like the pinnacle of their achievements - but the film shows how this was the beginning of something much bigger. We see the women as they embark upon launching what was to become a number one Christmas single, as they visit 10 Downing Street, perform at the Golden Jubilee and then win a Classical Brit. We also discover the legacy of the choir with the establishment of a charitable foundation that provides the support for a growing network of over 60 military wives choirs in bases across the UK, Europe and the Falkland Islands.