Lichfield Tuneless sets itself apart by insisting that “singing should be joyful, not judged”.
Sarah Jane Spare has borrowed Orwell’s quote about how all animals are equal for the world of performance, saying that “everybody can sing, and some can sing better than others”. And who’s to say that those not covered by the second half of this line can’t have, and be as much – if not more – fun than those who are “better”?
The Lichfield Tuneless Choir is largely made up of people who at one time or another – most likely at school – have been told “you can’t sing”. But now they are singing, and are having a blast.
Sarah, who directs the choir, told the Echo that many have “carried” this initial dismissal with them “since being very young”. So it is no wonder that some were a little “shy and timid” – and, perhaps worst of all, “very well-behaved” – when they turned up for their first sing-along.
But once the realisation struck that Lichfield Tuneless is not your typical – as Sarah puts it, “fa la la” – choir, it didn’t take long for them to “really grow and create their own personalities”, not least because they had mainly turned up to “be a part of a community”.
Lichfield Tuneless sets itself apart by insisting that “singing should be joyful, not judged”. One major difference is that aside from a handful of favourites, the group doesn’t rehearse the same songs from one Wednesday to the next. In fact, “we barely get through the 14” chosen for each new session: “We just laugh our way through, come in at the wrong time then move straight onto the next. We just enjoy it.”
This flexibility is important, since members aren’t demanded to turn up every week. Around 25 people were involved when the group launched in June 2022. Sarah now has around 300 names on her Lichfield Tuneless mailing list and regularly directs 40 singers a week! The “whole appeal”, she says, is that members are able to consider coming along each Wednesday without feeling any pressure, and can simply rock up to 14 new songs, a quiz and even a chocolate biscuit.
The idea wasn’t initially to perform publicly, but Lichfield Tuneless is now regularly out spreading joy, especially around Christmas. The choir also graces the airwaves of Lichfield Radio every Friday morning – and has done so since its January 2026 launch – during the Snoozy Breakfast Show (7-9am), as I discovered during my first wacky visit to the station.
Lichfield Tuneless sings all sorts of music. “Everything,” says Sarah, “from ABBA to Zappa,” although she admits that the choir is yet to tackle anything by Frank. That’s one to come back to!
Just as varied is the membership itself. Some of the singers are retired or semi-retired, while others are still working. They include the leader of a Brownies group, financial directors of “very important” businesses, a cardiology physiotherapist, a lady awarded an OBE in education and some therapists, as well as, on occasion, their clients!
Some members are married and enjoy going on a couple’s night out that doesn’t just involve a restaurant or a bar. Others have lost their spouse and are delighted that Lichfield Tuneless is a place where they can “feel safe”.
If you’d like to join, it’s as simple as “literally just rocking up on a Wednesday night at Wade Street Church”.
“The hardest part,” Sarah stresses, “is stepping through the door the first time.”
The night before we talked, five newbies had shown up, and all of them expressed a desire to come back.
With the help of these, and others, the Lichfield Tuneless Choir is bound to continue going “from strength to strength”.
For more details, visit www.tunelesschoir.com/lichfield