Larchfield Estate in Lisburn, Northern Ireland – Christmas in the Barn, the popular annual event, will be taking place on 4th and 5th of November. Organized by Lucinda Kinnaird, this event brings people from all over the country to purchase beautiful crafts made by local artisans. This year, the fair has chosen to support the drug education charity, the Daniel Spargo-Mabbs (DSM) Foundation, by raising funds to produce a powerful verbatim play, ‘I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die’ by Mark Wheeller, which will tour schools across Northern Ireland in Spring 2025.
The DSM Foundation, established in 2014, aims to educate young people about drugs and their potential harm, following the loss of 16-year-old Dan Spargo-Mabbs from an accidental overdose of ecstasy. His parents started the charity in his name to prevent anyone else from suffering the same fate. The Foundation currently works with around 750 schools, colleges, and community organizations across England and Scotland, providing age-appropriate, evidence-based information about drugs through workshops for students, parents, and school staff.
For this year’s Christmas in the Barn event, the DSM Foundation has commissioned Ballymena and Coleraine-based educational theatre company, Ever Unique Productions, to create a new production based on the highly successful play performed by their youth theatres in 2023. The play, ‘I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die’, tells the true story of Dan’s life and tragic death from MDMA, and its impact on his family and friends. The play has been well-received and has had a profound effect on its young cast members and audiences, inspiring Ever Unique Productions co-founders and co-directors Hannah Reilly and Martina McAfee to bring it to more young people in Northern Ireland.
The DSM Foundation’s work has also been supported by Sandra Larmour from County Armagh, a fellow bereaved mother who lost her daughter Jeni on her first day at university after taking ketamine. Sandra has been working closely with Fiona Spargo-Mabbs, Director and Founder of the DSM Foundation, and Dan’s mother, to raise awareness and support for drug education in schools. They have engaged the support of PCSPs (Police and Community Safety Partnerships) and other public bodies.
The event will be attended by Minister for Education Paul Givan of the DUP, and Michelle Guy of the Alliance Party, both MLAs for Lagan Valley, who will be speaking with Fiona and Sandra to learn more about their stories and plans.
Sandra Larmour, mother of Jeni Larmour, said: “Whilst I will never condone drug use, I fully support and endorse this important work that Fiona and her team are doing in educating and supporting school children, giving them insight and knowledge that can only be of benefit to them in making future choices.”
Sarah Mackie, co-owner of the Larchfield Estate, said: “As parents, we feel the need to equip our children with the knowledge to make informed decisions in the life choices they will make as they grow up. When I came across Fiona’s book ‘I Wish I’d Known’, the tragedy of Dan’s death resonated, and we hope that the funds raised by the 2024 Larchfield Christmas Fair will both raise awareness of the sadly essential need for drug education in schools in Northern Ireland and provide funding to deliver this crucial education to protect children across the region.”
Martina McAfee, Ever Unique Productions co-founder, and co-director said: “Getting to perform the Irish premiere of the play was something our young people welcomed with open arms. They truly became invested in telling Dan’s story. Additionally, all the drug education workshops we did around the play inspired them to be more open and honest with their peers and parents about the topic of drugs.
We knew as soon as our project was over that we weren’t ready to finish shouting about Dan. He had found a place to live in our hearts, and he wasn’t going to be leaving anytime soon. We knew this story was not just one that needed to be heard by our young people but indeed, all young people across Northern Ireland.”
Fiona Spargo-Mabbs OBE, Director, Founder, and Dan’s mother said: “We’re so excited to have this opportunity to bring this new production of our play to schools across Northern Ireland, and so heartened by the warm response we’ve received as we explore the potential for our wider drug education program to support the work going on to equip young people in Northern Ireland to manage decisions about drugs and alcohol more safely. Sandra and I stand together as two mums who share the lived experience of that going badly wrong for our children, determined to do what we can to protect others better.”
The Christmas in the Barn event will be held on Monday, November 4th
Derick is an experienced reporter having held multiple senior roles for large publishers across Europe. Specialist subjects include small business and financial emerging markets.