'We can't let Rory's death be his legacy'

A couple whose baby son died after being diagnosed with a brain tumour are to perform on the West End stage in aid of a cancer charity.

Amy and Matt Hall found music "too painful" to listen to or perform after seven-month-old Rory's death in January 2020.

But the pair, from Keswick, Cumbria, hope their appearance in a drama, comedy and music line-up headlined by Ted Lasso actor Phil Dunster will provide "hope for other children".

The event at London's Victoria Palace Theatre is being staged to raise money for the Young Lives vs Cancer organisation.

Rory was taken to see a GP at the age of four months when his parents noticed a squint in his eye.

Referred to an eye specialist in Bristol where they lived at the time, he was diagnosed with medulloblastoma and died three months later after undergoing chemotherapy.

Mrs Hall said: "Rory was our first child. He was everything you'd want your first child to be.

"We used music a lot during his treatment. It was always playing in his room."

The couple worked in theatre at the time but left the industry for a spell following their son's death.

"Our 2020 after he'd died was pretty silent," Mrs Hall said. "Music was too painful. We'd played our little Rory stuff on the piano, but to sit at the piano once he had gone felt wrong."

Mr Hall said: "It took a long time for us to feel like we could make music again without it breaking our hearts. It took friends and family to help us dig up the courage to literally face the music.

"It's been the same across our grieving - friends and family nudging us along with little motivations and big, beautiful hearts."

Young Lives vs Cancer has provided support including emotional help, a social worker and grants to cover lost earnings.

Mr Hall's cousin, actor Phil Dunster, became a Young Lives vs Cancer ambassador after seeing the support given to the family.

Sunday night's event will feature comedian Aisling Bea, actress, singer and dancer Zizi Strallen and singer-songwriters Alex Vargas and BEKA.

Mrs Hall will also be singing, accompanied by her husband on the piano, after overcoming fears it would be "far too scary".

"A few friends invited us to perform at local events, but we thought we just couldn't do it," she explained. "We wouldn't be able to get through songs without crying.

"Then we thought we've faced so much already that we can definitely do this for Rory.

"We've been through a lot of trauma, but we can't let that be Rory's legacy. We can't let him be his illness.

"We need to find something positive and some hope for other children as well."

Since Rory's death, the Halls, who now have a daughter and another son, have raised more than £65,000 for charities.

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