Ben Hardie at the age of 11, is making an independent film documentary as part of his Year 6 school project, and he has chosen to focus on the Dunkirk evacuation (Operation Dynamo). He visited the museum and we took him through some things we had connected to the regiment’s part in the evacuation.
Ben has a very rare genetic condition, and is registered as Severely Visually Impaired with ASD. He has a high IQ and in mainstream school, he’s very interested in people, and History. Ben has been fascinated by learning about WW2 – especially Dunkirk. As a family, they have visited the London IWM and Duxford and spoken with their local Royal British Legion, where he has interviewed veterans and volunteers. They have been completely inspired.
Liz, Ben’s mother said “You made so much history alive and interesting, as well as so sensory for Ben. We all loved meeting and speaking with you and Ben is buzzing and so inspired! It was truly inspiring for all of us. Ben says a huge thank you and we’ll be back! He’s off to the British museum tomorrow on a school trip – I really think he is finding kindred spirits in museum volunteers, and it’s wonderful to see him so excited, enthusiastic and thoughtful about History, and wanting to keep passing on the incredible stories and history to next generations. We will never forget Saturday!”
Steve, our Researcher, said:
“It was a pleasure to welcome Ben and his family. He really put me on the spot with his questions! Ben has clearly thought about the campaign and its relevance to things like national identity and individual and collective resilience, we could have talked for hours. I can’t wait to see the film he’s making.”
Thank you for visiting Ben! We look forward to seeing your final project!