On Tuesday 16 April, Stephen signed a letter to the Prime Minister urging him to provide funding for a memorial to Dame Vera Lynn CH DBE OStJ. Dame Vera Lynn was born in East Ham in 1917 and famously sang “We’ll Meet Again” and “The White Cliffs of Dover”, raising morale in World War Two.
Dame Vera Lynn was born in East Ham in 1917 and lived with her parents on Ladysmith Avenue from 1921 to 1938. She bought her parents a house in Barking after her musical success, and stayed in touch with Brampton Primary School, where she was a pupil, until she died in 2020 aged 103.
During the Second World War, Dame Vera Lynn recorded several morale boosting songs, including “The White Cliffs of Dover”, bringing her to fame. After the war, Dame Vera Lynn contributed tirelessly to charitable causes, helping ex-servicemen and disabled children, and combatting breast cancer. She was voted the Briton who best exemplified the spirit of the twentieth century in 2000.
Speaking about the campaign for a memorial to Dame Vera Lynn, Stephen said, "Vera Lynn was born and bred in East Ham, and played a unique role in Britain's history - lifting morale at one of our darkest points. Her long and fruitful life richly deserves to be commemorated with a statue, and I hope the campaign is successful."