A SHORT film raising awareness of a charity which cares for those with life-limiting illnesses will be premiered in North Yorkshire later this month.

The five-minute production, made by Herriot Hospice Homecare, will get its first screening at the volunteer-run Ritz cinema in Thirsk on February 22.

And the hospice is offering free tickets to anybody interested in seeing the film, which features the story of a North Yorkshire farmer and racehorse trainer, David Barker.

Mr Barker, from Scorton near Richmond, was cared for by the charity before his death from cancer in February last year at the age of 44.

With a soundtrack from up-and-coming Scottish artist Rachel Sermanni, the film also features spectacular aerial footage of some of the area’s beauty spots, including Swaledale, Grinton Moor, Scugdale and Roseberry Topping.

The screening will be followed by a special showing the new British film Testament of Youth – partly filmed on the North York Moors – based on the First World War memoir of Vera Brittain.

The charity’s chief executive, Karen Wilkinson-Bell, said: “As a ‘hospice without walls’ we take care into people’s homes across 1,000 square miles of North Yorkshire.

“One of our biggest challenges is to show people what we actually do so we are hoping this film will tell people about our important work and encourage more of them to get involved, perhaps by making a donation or volunteering with us.

“We’re also keen to raise awareness amongst families who might need our help”.

One of the people who appear in the film is 83-year-old Joyce Clifford, from Stokesley, who works as a volunteer in the charity’s local shop.

She said “Volunteering with Herriot has allowed me to put something back into my local community and I am really pleased to have been involved.”

The chairman of the Ritz, John Potter, added: “We are delighted and privileged to be able to give Herriot’s new film the big screen treatment, and we look forward to welcoming existing and new customers to the cinema.”

Anyone interested in free tickets for the afternoon screening should contact Christine Robinson at Herriot Hospice on 01609-777413 or via email on christine.robinson@herriothh.org.uk

*Testament of Youth tells the story of a young English woman who postpones her studies at Oxford University to serve as a Voluntary Aid Detachment nurse during the First World War. It stars Alicia Vikander in the role of Vera and Games of Thrones actor Kit Harington, who plays her fiancé.