A forthcoming edition of the BBC programme Songs of Praise is to be filmed at a makeshift church built by migrants at a shantytown in Calais.
The Ethiopian Orthodox Church, the tallest building in the “New Jungle” settlement, was constructed by Christian migrants out of wood and tarpaulin.
The weekly magazine-style programme, hosted by Aled Jones, broadcasts hymns from churches around the UK as well as short films about religious issues.
The crew for Songs of Praise is expected to arrive in Calais this weekend. According to the Daily Mail Rev Giles Fraser, the former canon at St Paul’s Cathedral, is also involved.
The programme is expected to be filmed in the “New Jungle”, a shantytown in Calais that has become home to some of the 5,000 migrants from Eritrea, Libya and Syria. Many of them live in hope of to attempt to enter Britain via the Channel Tunnel.
Catholic charities are at the forefront of efforts to support to migrants in the Calais shanty towns. The Catholic charity Secours Catholique-Caritas France has pooled resources with Médecins du Monde, Solidarité Nationale and Secours Islamique to help migrants camped among the sand dunes.
In Kent, a local charity Seeking Sanctuary is collecting foods, cooking utensils, crockery, books, games, toiletries and footwear for Secours Catholique, while London Catholic Worker has sent blankets, food and bicycles.
The organisers of Seeking Sanctuary have appealed for parishes to collect goods for migrants. For more information, contact migrantsupport@aol.com.
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