Fran Healey to visit Darfur region

Fran Healey and fiancee Nora Kryst are visiting the Darfur region of Sudan to raise awareness about the importance of the Band Aid 20 project.

The proceeds from the Band Aid 20 single are going to the devastated Darfur region of Sudan, torn apart by war. To critics of the single, Fran said to the Press Association: "When the record came out and went to radio, there was absolute fury it seemed – bile sprayed forth about how awful it is and how terrible it is and blah blah blah...

"The song was played so many times on the radio, and I bet you every single person who’s commented negatively on the record hadn’t been listening to the original.

"They were comparing it to a memory, to all their memories, not just of that song, but of their childhood and their whole history and if you’re re-recording a song and basically saying to people ’times have changed, we’ve moved on’, that is hard to take.

"I’d probably feel the same way had I not played on it.

"This is disgraceful. The clear message is that it’s not about the song – it never was in the beginning about the song – but it is what makes the song special and unlike any other."

Fran wants to do his bit to hammer home the purpose of Band Aid, which is to raise money and awareness of the problems in Sudan, not simply recreate a pop record from people's childhoods: "I’d seen the Band Aid story, and that (Midge Ure had) recently been out to Africa with Save The Children.

"On that TV programme where he was out in Ethiopia, it also showed 20 years ago when they were out there.

"And we were all kind of talking about the Band Aid thing and how creative it had been.

"And I thought it would be good to go out. Someone needs to go out to give the song a little bit of background, to say ‘This is why the song is coming out. It’s not all about nostalgia. It’s not a big nostalgia trip to remember our childhoods in the 80s’."

Healey and Kryst are heading out to Darfur on 10th December for six days.