Lemn Sissay OBE, the poet and broadcaster, read a work from his 2013 bestselling collection Let the Light Pour In in honour of his friend Sarah Weir, with whom he worked as a poet for the 2012 London Olympics before she died of cancer. “She said to her partner, when I pass away, when I die, I want this poem to be read to me as if it’s from you, so her partner asked me to read it at her celebration,” he says. The short film, directed by Oliver Parker and shot at Dr Johnson’s House in London, is part of a series to commemorate Celebration Day – a nationwide movement that encourages Brits to take a moment and remember those we have lost who have shaped our lives. Curated by Allie Esiri, the films will be published exclusively on The Independent in the lead-up to Celebration Day on Monday 25 May
