CHANNEL 4 viewers were left “heartbroken” and “proper snot crying” after watching pianist Duncan perform an original piece dedicated to his wife, Fran.
Series 2 of the reality music series The Piano returned to screens last night. Claudia Winkleman fronts the series, alongside judges Mika and Lang Lang, who joined her on the search for the UK’s best amateur pianists.
Viewers fell in love with Duncan and Fran’s story
Episode 1 of The Piano kicked off in Manchester city centre, with a number of local performers stepping up to show off their talent on the piano. One of them was Duncan, a pianist who has recently been diagnosed with dementia.
Duncan fell in love with the piano as a child after discovering he could easily play music by ear.
While he later qualified as solicitor, his heart was never in it, as music was his first passion.
His wife Fran recognised this the moment she heard him play.
“I said to him, ‘there’s something rather special in your touch on the piano,’” Fran gushed about her husband.
Sharing details of their love story, Fran explained: “We first set eyes on each other in 1964. Duncan came into the room and when I looked at him, what went through my mind was ‘that’s exactly the sort of man I would like to marry.’
“But I was going out with somebody at the time — not happily, I have to say — who I ended up marrying.”
Eventually, things worked out for Duncan and Fran and the couple celebrated their 42nd wedding anniversary together this year.
But sadly, two years earlier, Duncan was diagnosed with dementia. When words fail him, he uses music to communicate with his wife.
Speaking about his diagnosis, Fran said: “There is a vulnerability there now that wasn’t there before and there is an awful lot more that I need to do… the future is unknown.
“Duncan is everything to me. I would have him in any situation rather than not have him.”
Duncan’s performance left viewers sobbing
Duncan and Fran’s love story had viewers reaching for tissues, especially after he played his piano piece, Theme for Fran, in honour of his wife.
One viewer commented on the performance on X, formerly Twitter, writing, “I was doing well until Duncan started playing and now I am in bits.”
Another viewer praised the performance. “Well done Duncan. Having lost my mum too early onset Alzheimer’s, music was one thing that lasted longest in her memory,” they wrote.
“No. Absolutely gone. Duncan and Fran have broken me,” admitted a third viewer, while a fourth said they were “proper snot crying” after watching Duncan’s performance.
A fourth agreed: “Wow, that was emotional. Duncan needs to get to the final of The Piano.”
Judges Mika and Lang were equally floored by the performance, admitting they felt like they were transported to another time through Duncan’s music.
Claudia was in complete agreement, telling the pair: “He is going to the concert. It is not a debate. It is important to have somebody like that and the fact he can speak through the piano.”
Who won series 1 of The Piano?
13-year-old Lucy was crowned the winner last season
- Lucy, who is blind and autistic, wowed Claudia, Mika and Lang when she showcased her talents at the train station in Leeds.
- She the went on to win first place in the final after stunning the audience with a flawless performance of Debussy’s Arabesque.
- The young pianist is from West Yorkshire. She was born with cancerous tumours in her eyes and is largely non-verbal, was described as a “genius” by Lang, while Mika credited her with “the performance of the evening”.
- Her mother Candice said: “I always knew she would be on a big stage one night. I said to the producers, ‘You have seen in my daughter what I have seen for years.’”
- She added: “I am beyond proud of my little girl, beyond proud.”
- The teen first began developing her skills through The Amber Trust, a musical charity, and, as she struggles to hold a conversation, music is a powerful way for her to communicate.
The Piano continues on Sunday at 9pm on Channel 4.