BGT Post Office scandal choir 'waiting for redress'

Chris Attridge is the only current serving postmaster in the Hear Our Voice choir

A postmaster has said a performance by a choir made up of people affected by the Post Office scandal has been crucial in keeping the story alive.

Chris Attridge, who has run the post office in Crick, Northamptonshire, for 34 years, performed on Britain's Got Talent as part of the 40-strong Hear Our Voice choir comprising victims of the Horizon IT scandal.

The choir sang Falling Down, a song written and led by Will Rendle of rock group Will and the People, and earned a standing ovation on the ITV show for their emotional performance.

Mr Attridge said: "I've had shortages... but nothing to what the majority in that choir have had. They certainly need redress because it has dragged on and on."

Lead singer of Will and the People (left) and the Hear Our Voice choir sang on Britain's Got Talent

The Post Office/Horizon IT scandal has been described as the UK's most widespread miscarriage of justice.

More than 900 sub-postmasters were wrongfully prosecuted for theft and false accounting due to errors in the Post Office's faulty computer system.

Between 1999 and 2015, the Post Office took 700 cases to court, with other authorities, including the Crown Prosecution Service, prosecuting a further 283 people.

Many sub-postmasters were imprisoned and financially ruined, but over subsequent years the systemic problems within the IT system and a cover-up by the Post Office came to light.

There is an ongoing public Post Office IT Horizon Inquiry.

'The atmosphere was electric'

Reflecting on performing in front of 4,500 people in Blackpool, Mr Attridge said: "The atmosphere was electric. It was so emotional as well. It was so uplifting, it was magic, it really was.

"We'd never rehearsed together until the Saturday night before the Sunday audition. That was the first time we'd all met up together. It was such a lovely atmosphere.

"The positive comments from [people in Crick] were amazing. The village has been so supportive."

The choir is now awaiting news on whether it has progressed to the next round.

'Doing all we can'

In a statement, the Post Office said it was "deeply sorry for the suffering caused to so many people by Post Office's past actions".

It said it acknowledged that victims of the scandal needed answers, as well as justice and redress.

"The business failed to put postmasters first, did not listen to postmasters, and did not act on concerns postmasters raised with us," a spokesperson said.

"We are doing all we can to help get victims answers, including fully co-operating with police investigations to help try to put things right."

Fujitsu, which developed the software Horizon, said it offered its deepest apologies to the sub-postmasters and their families.

Its spokesperson added: "Fujitsu Europe's boss has previously said that the firm has a 'moral obligation' to contribute to compensation for sub-postmasters wrongly prosecuted as a result of its faulty IT software."