The life and times of Captain Sir Tom Moore

Though Hollywood may give us images of hammer-wielding gods; tycoons in armoured suits, or super soldiers in star-spangled costumes, the real heroes are those who put their lives on the line every day, whether it’s fighting the invisible enemy or raising awareness and cash for those on the Covid-19 front line.

Real heroes are usually eclipsed by the Tinseltown hype machine, especially during spring and summer when superheroes and villains do battle in lucrative fantasy adventures.

Of course 2020 has been a year like no other. With cinemas shut for months, one man became a superhero just by walking. Not fast, or wearing a funny suit. Just walking, back and forth, which at 99, is a pretty impressive feat. And yes, he too had the power to generate millions of pounds.

If ever there was a story worthy of the big screen treatment, it’s a biopic of Captain Sir Tom Moore. Ahead of his 100th birthday, the humble ex-soldier from Yorkshire wanted to raise a few quid for the NHS just by walking laps of his garden. And as the news crews descended on his home to film the great man, that few quid eventually turned into more than £30million.

Given that achievement, there was little wonder he was recently knighted by the Queen in a ceremony which left countless viewers more than a little teary.

This documentary features the great man himself, telling for the first time his life story and the key events in his 100 years.

Born in April 1920, and educated at Keighley Grammar school, Captain Sir Tom speaks about those early years, and the impact his grandfather, father, and his uncle had while he was growing up.

The programme also tells how he headed off to the frontline of the Second World War in India, and then in the Burma campaign.

He also speaks about his business career after the war; the blossoming of his relationship with his wife Pamela, and social developments in Britain during his extraordinary century.

There’s a good bet we’ll also get an excerpt of his recent number one single with Michael Ball, You’ll Never Walk Alone. And yes, that stands a good chance of being the title of the pending movie.

It’s anyone’s guess when that film or TV drama sees the light of day, though inevitably the likes of Michael Caine and Anthony Hopkins have already been suggested for the part. Clint Eastwood and Dick Van Dyke might also be in the running, or rather walking for the role; given the latter’s legendary Cockney accent in Mary Poppins, it’ll be fascinating to see if he is signed up, or what DVD would make of the Keighley accent.

And DVD might be just the sort of format the film premieres on given the events of recent months. Either that or a video-on-demand premiere.

One thing is for sure: like this documentary, it’ll be worth having a large supply of tissues on stand-by.

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