Goodnight Mr Tom Set against the backdrop of the Second World War, this is the tale of two people who somehow found it changing their lives for the better.

Goodnight Mr Tom is predominantly a children’s book that has been studied on many a school syllabus.

Written in 1981, it was adapted for the stage and screen about 20 years later and is now coming to the Wallingford Corn Exchange.

Featuring a cast of 20 adults and 30 children, the Sinodun Players aim to put on a show that will touch the hearts of every generation watching.

Polly Gibson, who is the driving force behind the Players’ youth group Encore, signed up to direct after deciding it was high time they performed another musical – their last such show being Peter Pan in 2009.

She said: “I was looking for a musical to direct and I love the story. I first read it when I was 11 and it’s stuck with me since then.”

The tale follows child evacuee William Beech from London to Dorset, where he starts a new life and unlikely friendship with grumpy widower Tom Oakley. The young boy brings the old man out of his shell, while Tom shows him the parental love that he never had.

But all good things must come to an end. Just as William is adjusting to his new life, he is summoned back by his unstable and abusive mother.

Miss Gibson said: “It’s a huge undertaking. We have a cast of more than 50, though the children are double-cast. We’ve pooled together the talent from 11 schools in the area, from as far out as Banbury and Newbury.

“There’s a mix of children from private and state schools.

“To be honest, arranging the timetable was a nightmare but everyone’s been really good. A lot of the children are boarders and the parents have been doing a lot of ferrying around.”

A lot of work has been going on behind the scenes to bring the production to the stage, in a small way mirroring the blitz spirit often associated with that dark time in British history.

“I spoke with one of my grandparents who was alive at the time and she said the war brought communities together. “No matter how bad it got, people were there for each other.

“Everyone at the theatre is a volunteer and they really rallied round to put this on. We managed to beg, steal and borrow the period costumes – we contacted the Women’s Institute and the Methodists and asked them to get knitting for us. In terms of community spirit, it’s been great.”

She said the Sindodun Players had a reputation of putting on strong shows and it’s for this reason they took on Sue Ledger as their musical director. She leads Wallingford Parish Church Choir, which won Decca Record’s contest to find Britain’s best parish choir in year 2011 and was then given the opportunity to record its own album.

“I’ve known her for years but never had the chance to work with her,” said Miss Gibson. “The music is purposely written for the show and it’s challenging, particularly for the adults.

“I would say it reminds me very much of Les Mis. It’s very chatty.

“The children have a much softer melody and there are certain songs where they come together and it just works.

“Sue believes we’ve got a really good show on our hands and for her to say that, you know it must be true because she doesn’t give praise lightly.”

The show is also raising funds for the restoration of the Corn Exchange’s roof.

SEE IT Goodnight Mr Tom runs from July 10-13 and 17-20. Performances start at 7.30pm, with 2.30pm matinees on the Saturdays. Tickets cost £10 per adult, £8 per child, from cornexchange.org.uk and sinodunplayers.org.uk