Tony Green channels his actual experience at Camp Bastion into Abingdon Drama Club’s latest production Another Man’s Eden

Abingdon Drama Club has never shied away from a challenge and now they are pushing themselves again, this time with a new play set in the military hospital in Camp Bastion during the height of the combat in Afghanistan.

Another Man’s Eden is based on the experiences of those working in the Hospital Operations Room – a small office which was the centre of all activity at the facility. Those working there saw everything and everyone that passed through the main hospital doors, from the best of humanity to the most horrific realities of war.

The play is a study of the people working in such an environment, from the doctors and nurses of the medical teams to the soldiers who had to make the tea. It places the conversations and humour that were used to fill the long hours of inactivity next to the sudden and frantic action of those at work when lives were at risk and speed was crucial. Written by myself, a local writer, who served with a medical unit in Helmand in 2009, it is based on actual conversations, events and my own experiences. Although a work of fiction, the efforts of the writer, the director and the cast have been to make the production as authentic as possible.

This is not a play that preaches about the rights and wrongs of war, or the politics involved in what is fast becoming the recognised myth of the conflict. It is a play that tries to avoid these subjects.

Director Maria Crocker grew up with the armed forces. Her dad completed several tours in Ireland and was involved in the conflict in the Falklands. Her brother also served in the Royal Logistic Corps in Iraq and Afghanistan. She always knew her first full play would be something war related. So when I asked her to read my play she loved it. The rest, they say is history. It’s a humbling play, which moves me every time I watch the cast rehearse. I hope the audience will enjoy our vision of what it must be like for those unsung heroes.

* Another Man’s Eden is at Unicorn Theatre, Abingdon, from September 23-26. Call 0845 4636638 or visit abingdon-drama-club.com