RAMSBOTTOM electro-folk storytelling trio Harp and a Monkey have created a new show to mark the centenary of The Great War.

The production includes both original songs and re-workings of some long forgotten Lancashire folk songs, and recordings of people who lived through the war and the poignant, tragic and sometimes humorous anecdotes of a First World War expert, Martin Purdy.

Purdy, the band’s leader, is a historian who has acted as a World War One researcher and advisor for the BBC’s Who Do You Think Your Are? series, as well as co-authoring several Great War books.

Purdy questions whether our perception and understanding of World War One and beyond is shaped by a handful of poets like Wilfred Owen and Rupert Brooke.

“It’s easy to assume that Owen’s powerful words captured the true experience of the Great War, but is that assumption right?” said Purdy, who will debut Harp and a Monkey’s new production at Clitheroe’s Grand Theatre the day before Remembrance Sunday.

“Most of the war poetry from World War One, I believe, was not reflective of what happened to the majority of men and has distorted our view of the conflict.

“Many of them had very difficult experiences, some lost their lives and many were terribly injured, but nine out of 10 soldiers came home and we have this ingrained perception about most soldiers being killed.

“There is a pre-existing narrative and stereotype about the Great War, but there is a much bigger story to tell than that.”

Purdy added: “We commemorate the fallen on Remembrance Day, and quite rightly because they were an incredibly brave generation.

“However, what about the people who came back and shaped the future of the country and fought for a better world and a greater say in the development of the Welfare State, literature and medicine.”

Purdy said there were poets who wrote about everyday concerns such as where the next rum or soap ration was coming from.

There were also female writers from the period who observed the impact of the war from the Home Front and its impact on them individually and on the society that they lived in.

“We hear those awful stories about soldiers being gassed and them going over the top of the trenches in a hail of bullets, but many men never saw action, they were building roads, cooking meals and providing the logistics of war.”

Harp and a Monkey can never be accused of writing songs that could be termed party favourites, but there’s plenty of tongue-in-cheek humour.

Their songs tell of mole catchers, care in the community and men digging holes.

A glockenspiel, mouth organ, banjo, viola and, of course a harp, all feature in the performance.

Harp and a Monkey. The Great War: New Songs and Stories. Clitheroe Grand Theatre, November 8.

Call 01200 421599 for tickets, which cost £8.