World's longest Covid sufferer Dave Smith takes West End stage

The world's longest Covid-19 sufferer has fulfilled a dream by performing on the West End stage.

Pub and club performer Dave Smith, from Bristol, never thought he would sing again after being infected with the condition for more than 10 months.

However, with help from the English National Opera (ENO), he became part of a 70-strong choir of Covid sufferers to perform at the Coliseum in London.

Mr Smith said the experience was "absolute magic."

Dave Smith only had 51% of his lung capacity after suffering with Covid for 10 months

"From a performance point of view it doesn't get any better than this," he said.

The largest theatre in the West End, the Coliseum has played host to The Who, Bjork and Genesis, as well as a variety of different musicals.

It's a stage that 74-year-old Mr Smith never thought he'd perform on, especially for a man who was hospitalised seven times and had previously resigned himself to dying.

Mr Smith, who had undergone cancer treatment before contracting Covid, said: "I lost 10 stone. I went from a size 44 trousers, I went down to nearly a 28."

"It's like somebody pulled the plug and everything in your life is just drained out of your body."

The 70-strong choir was made up of people who are living with the effects of Covid

But Mr Smith was referred by the NHS for the six-week ENO Breathe Programme, an initiative developed by the company's Suzie Zumpe in partnership with Imperial College London.

Aimed at people recovering from Covid-19, more than 2,500 have taken part, getting help with breathlessness and well-being.

During the free programme attendees also took part in singing and writing sessions, eventually writing three lullabies together and performing them at the theatre.

Mr Smith, who is used to singing alongside his band in Bristol pubs and clubs, said: "We have an orchestra. Proper musicians as well."

The choir sang three lullabies written together during their six-week ENO Breathe Programme

Dave Smith. The showman is back!

By Jon Kay, BBC Breakfast presenter

Cancer and chemo destroyed his immune system, so when he caught Covid at the start of the pandemic, he wasn't able to get rid of it.

The virus stayed active in his body for 10 months - the longest recorded case in the world. When I first met Dave in 2021 to film a report for BBC Breakfast, he was thrilled to be alive but also desperately sad that his Covid-scarred lungs meant he would probably never sing again.

After decades of performing in Bristol's pubs and clubs, this was heartbreaking for Dave. He felt lost. Bereft. But the progress he made on the ENO Breathe course last year meant he was finally able to rebuild his lung capacity and find his voice again.

Against the odds, at Christmas he performed with his old bandmates in the local pub.

And now, as I watched from the wings as he took part in the ENO Breathe choir, another remarkable moment... Dave clearly couldn't believe it as he looked out into the historic auditorium of the Coliseum.

He admits his voice will never be as strong as it once was - "I'm no Pavarotti," he jokes - but the pleasure he gets from singing and being part of a musical community again has renewed his sense of confidence and showmanship.

His trip to London was exhausting but he didn't stop smiling or joking for a minute. Dave the showman is back!

"The last couple of years, this journey to get here, with the Breathe people helping me has been absolutely brilliant," he said.

"It's definitely a new experience but it's one I shall cherish.

"Everybody on the stage has got the same problems I've had over the last couple of years, but we're all in this together."

Dave Smith did online breath training with Suzi Zumpe of the English National Opera

Dr Hannah King, who also took part in the choir after suffering long Covid, said: "I never thought I'd ever do anything like that.

"For at least eight months, I hardly left my bedroom. I was just in bed, able to make it to the bathroom and that would be it really."

Jenny Mollica, ENO's director of engagement, said the performance was really special and extraordinary

Another chorister Marj Levy, from Bristol, said the virus had left her "very, very breathless".

"I couldn't hold a conversation," she said. "Now, just by doing the exercises and really connecting with my body, the transformation has been good."

Jenny Mollica, ENO's director of engagement, says the project started as a trial, with 12 attendees in London, but it is now being implemented in 86 NHS trusts across the country.

She said the performance was "a really special and extraordinary moment to come together and celebrate the connection people feel on this programme".