What a brave, brave girl.

Marillion – from left to right: Mark Kelly, Ian Mosley, Steve Hogarth, Steve Rothery, and Pete Trewavas.

Marillion are a British rock band, formed in Aylesbury, Buckinghamshire, England in 1979. The present band members are:

Steve Hogarth (also known as “H“) – Lead Vocals,

Pete Trawavas – Bass,

Ian Mosley – Drums,

Mark Kelly – Keyboards,

Steve Rothery – Guitars.

Their recorded studio output is composed of a total of sixteen Albums generally regarded in two distinct eras, delineated by the departure of original vocalist and frontman Fish in the latter part of 1988, and the subsequent arrival of replacement Steve Hogarth in early 1989.

While the Fish era was more commercially successful, the band has enjoyed Top 10 Albums and Singles in the U.K. under the leadership of both singers. The band continue to Tour internationally, and were ranked 38th in Classic Rocks’ “50 Best Live Acts Of All Time” in 2008.

One of their albums is called Brave, back in the mid 1980’s, Steve Hogarth heard an appeal on behalf of the Police on a local radio broadcast about a teenaged girl with red hair found wandering alone on the Severn Bridge in England.

When she was found, she was either incapable of, or possibly decided not to talk to anyone who asked her questions. After a while, the Police took the decision to make an appeal via the radio to see if anyone could identify her.

Eventually, the girl was reunited with her family and taken back home. Steve Hogarth made a note of this incident and kept this aside for many years until Marillion began working on what would later become their Brave Album.

The Album Cover for Brave.

The Band had written two songs called Living With The Big Lie and Runaway when he was reminded of the girl on the bridge and the shape of the Album began to happen in his mind. 

Living With The Big Lie is a song about how people seem to get used to things to the point of being totally desensitised, and Runaway catalogues the plight of a young girl attempting to escape a dysfunctional home.

Steve Hogarth told the story to the band and suggested how the songs could come together in a fictitious tale of a life that has possibly undergone problems and horrors such as sexual abuse, which was increasingly reported in the media at the time.

The songs could also come together with isolation, drug addiction, breakdown, to the point of possibly considering suicide and possibly attempting suicide. Why was she all alone on the bridge? This was then the onset of one of Marillion’s deepest and one of their most emotional epics, the Album entitled, Brave.

I have seen Marillion perform four times in concert, these men are incredible geniuses, each in their own individual right, and I have listened to Brave many times. They are a fantastic, truly talented rock band that have graced more then one generation, and it is a great shame that they are not recognised more for their talents and work, I hope by my writing this Article about them would entice and encourage more people to enjoy and appreciate their music.

This is a video of Marillion performing the song Brave live at Marillion Weekend, in Minehead, England, on the 13th March 2005.

The Video is Courtesy of ariedeelen and I extend my Courtesy and Thank You’s for the sharing of the video via YouTube , it is greatly appreciated.

I have always wondered what happened to that girl, and I have spent a long, long time not knowing what happened to her. Where she is I sadly do not know, but I sincerely hope that she is safe and well, and God Bless her, and God Bless you all for reading and watching.

Thank you for reading my Article,

Sincerely

Chris Bailie.

(Thank you to All Concerned for the Pictures).