A GP who sang in the original version of a prize winning opera in 2014 is to sing in the new version next month – coming all the way from Australia to do so.

Dr Liz Whitelaw sang the part of May in WW1: a Village Opera which played to sell out audiences in November 2014 and went on to win a UK-wide award, Remember WW1 2016.

She and her family had already spent seven years in Australia after emigrating there but had decided to return to the UK to be near her mum in Pembrokeshire – where she discovered the Llangwm-based choir Village Voices.

“I had never sung before but the joy I experienced and the friendships I made were priceless”, she said.

Village Voices became the mainstay of the opera, written by Llangwm based composer Sam Howley and librettist Peter George from Newport.

Having taken part in the opera, the stress of working in the NHS as a GP began to take its toll and Liz and her husband and their two children returned to Perth, Western Australia 15 months ago.

But memories of choral singing and taking part in the opera refused to go away and Liz found what she terms ‘another singing family’.

“A Capella West is a large and amazing women’s barbershop chorus – now I’ve started I’ll never stop singing”, she said.

And like the opera, A Capella West turned out to be prize winners; having won a regional contest they, and Liz, will be representing Australia next year in an international competition in New Orleans.

But then she heard that the opera was about to be reprised in Pembrokeshire, as WW1: a Village at War, and saw the chance to relive old memories.

Composer and Musical Director Sam Howley was pleased to have her back, she was sent the music, and tweaked her plans to visit her mum in Burton to be able to take part.

“Just hearing the tracks and seeing the score once again is giving me goosebumps – I’m over the moon to be able to take part once again,” she said.

WW1: a Village at War will play for one night only at the Follies Theatre, Folly Farm on November 10. Tickets cost £12 (£6 for under 16) from the Torch Theatre (torchtheatre.co.uk) or from Cleddau Stores, Llangwm. The production is funded by The Armed Forces Covenant.

The opera is accompanied by an exhibition of WW1 memorabilia in Llangwm village hall which runs until November 3.