Blind choir sings in Wales

The choir is made up of 35 pupils from the Milton Margai School

A blind children's choir from Sierra Leone has staged its first concert in Wales as part of a tour of Britain.

The pupils from Milton Margai School for the Blind have been in the UK for the last three weeks and performed in Llantwit Major on Wednesday evening.

The 35 blind or partially-sighted children from the school in Freetown will also perform to a sold-out audience at Cardiff's Sherman Theatre on Thursday night.

The Milton Margai School for the Blind was founded in 1956 when Sierra Leone was still run by the British and named after its first independent Prime Minister Sir Milton Margai.

It began with three pupils and now has over 80, and has become renowned for its musical ability in its own country.

The tour has been brought to the UK as a way of thanking the British troops who helped to end the conflict in Sierra Leone.

Bernie and Jane Latham have helped co-ordinate the tour

The pupils hope it will be a way of showing the world how their country is moving on.

Jane Latham and her husband Bernie, who is an actor in the television drama Hollyoaks, are the Welsh co-ordinators of the tour.

Mr Latham said: "We are here to support them. We are giving them the chance and the opportunity of being able to go on stage and perform.

"It's all about changing the opinion about Sierra Leone and showing people that there is something good coming out of the country.

"It's a goodwill tour and a way of the children being able to thank the British troops who have helped the school.

The choir will perform a variety of songs as part of their concert

"It's an emotional ride. I'm not one for concerts usually, but I could quite happily sit and listen to the children for two hours.

"They all have sight problems. Some of them are victims of war, some of them have congenital eye conditions, others are as the result of measles and river fly," he added.

The choir is being followed by Charles Davies, the editor of Sierra Leone's only Christian newspaper - the Christian Monitor.

"This concert is a big thing," he said.

"We have followed the children from their rehearsals but this is the first time I have ever seen them sing in public to an audience.

"They are beautiful. Everyone in Sierra Leone supports them.

"They are known for their musical talent and this is a good way of promoting Sierra Leone.

"We are seen as ambassadors of Sierra Leone and we hope people will see us and see that there are good things coming out of our country," he added.