A singing family who found worldwide fame in lockdown performing parody songs from their living room have released a new musical video to raise awareness of prostate cancer.
The Marsh family, from Faversham, Kent, have recorded a cover version of Mack The Knife to encourage people to talk about the disease after mum Danielle’s father was diagnosed in 2018.
Mrs Marsh, 44, was joined on stage by husband Ben, 45, and their four children: Alfie, 15; Thomas, 13; Ella, 12; and Tess, nine, to perform the tongue-in-cheek song about the “facts of life” of prostate cancer.
The mother-of-four said her father, John Burn, a university professor from Newcastle, “nearly left his concerns too late” and hopes the song will encourage people to see their doctor with any worries.
Mr Burn, 69, was diagnosed with prostate cancer in 2018, and had a successful operation to remove his prostate last year.
Mrs Marsh said: “Recording ‘Mack the Knife (Prostate Cancer – Facts of Life)’ has been a fabulous way for us to do something to help raise awareness of a disease that will affect one in eight men in their lifetime.
“We were so lucky with my dad but even he nearly left his concerns too late.
“We hope the lyrics will make people smile but also make them start discussions with loved ones about actions that they may need to take.”
The Marsh family’s parody of One Day More, from the musical Les Miserables, satirising life during lockdown, gained more than seven million views in three days after they uploaded it in March 2020.
Their latest video version of Bobby Darin’s swing classic, with lyrics written by Mr Marsh, was filmed in the Moth Club, Hackney, and features grandparents John and Linda and staff from Prostate Cancer UK.
Mrs Marsh said: “It’s so easy to push worries and concerns to one side with a busy life and a pandemic overshadowing everything but if we can encourage people to make that GP appointment and gain peace of mind or an early diagnosis, then that would be amazing and feel like some of this attention and focus that we’ve had in the past 18 months has been put to good use.
“Plus it was lovely to be out of our living room for a while.”
Angela Culhane, chief executive at Prostate Cancer UK, said: “You can be sure that we too want to make a song and dance about the risks of prostate cancer.
“We want to see a world where men’s lives are not limited by this disease, and we know men and their loved ones feel the same.
“Together we can stop men dying, and we thank the Marsh family for playing such a brilliant role in supporting us.”
Ms Culhane added: “It’s fantastic how they have put a modern twist on such an iconic song, and the new lyrics mean so much, too, given the journey they and John have been on.”
To watch the video, visit https://prostatecanceruk.org/marshfamily and to download the song, go to https://orcd.co/marshfamilychristmas with all profits donated by the Marsh family to Prostate Cancer UK.
Comments: Our rules
We want our comments to be a lively and valuable part of our community - a place where readers can debate and engage with the most important local issues. The ability to comment on our stories is a privilege, not a right, however, and that privilege may be withdrawn if it is abused or misused.
Please report any comments that break our rules.
Read the rules here