Shop
Donate

'I Love You, Mum - I Promise I Won't Die'
Theatre in Education tour 2025/26 - Northern Ireland

Northern Ireland school tour March 2025/26

We are delighted to commence our second tour of Northern Ireland with the Theatre in Education drug awareness play ‘I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die’, in collaboration with Ever Unique Productions. 

In spring of 2025, our inaugural tour of Northern Ireland visited numerous schools, engaging with nearly 4,500 students. It came about with the support of Sandra Larmour from County Armagh, whose 18 year old daughter Jeni sadly died after taking on her first day at Newcastle University. Sandra has worked closely with Fiona, director and founder of the DSM Foundation and mum of Dan for whom the drug education charity is named,  sharing a determination to prevent the harm that befell their own children from happening to anyone else’s. 

The previous tour was funded by the Christmas in the Barn event at Larchfield Estate and by local Police and Community Safety Partnerships (PCSPs) across Northern Ireland. Ballymena and Coleraine-based educational theatre company Ever Unique Productions created a new production of ‘I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won’t Die’ by award-winning playwright Mark Wheeller for Northern Ireland schools, based on the highly successful production their two youth theatres performed in 2023. The incredibly positive response of schools to the offer of performances for pupils saw the tour rapidly booked out, with additional days needing to be added to meet demand

I Love You, Mum – play book

Tour summary

Tour Period: Wednesday 4th March 2025 – Friday 27th March 2025

Performance Details:The performance is approximately 1 hour 15 minutes, this includes the play performance of 45 mins, followed by a drug education workshop of 30 mins.

Suitability: Appropriate for students in year 10 and up.

FAQs for Teachers 

Please download the Information for Teachers sheet for details about: 

  • What is ILYM?
  • How does each performance work?
  • What will the students learn?
  • What do I need to do on the day?
Download Information for Teachers (PDF)

To make an enquiry

To book a performance or for more information please email: 

play@dsmfoundation.org.uk 

Early booking is recommended to secure your preferred dates. 

We are excited to share a short film about the ‘I Love You, Mum – I Promise I Won't Die’ NI Tour. Watch the film here.
“You could have heard a pin drop throughout the entire performance, it very much resonated with our students.”
Teacher, Nov 2023 (Scotland tour)
“It was all really sensitively done, well-paced, hard to forget… the fact that the words were the actual words spoken by real people is what made is particularly powerful.”
Teacher, Dec 2023 (Scotland tour)
“Not one single person could say they did not identify with any of the characters… it was their everyday experiences lived out on stage… I genuinely believe that watching this will save lives.”
Teacher, Dec 2023 (Scotland tour):
“Clear, loud, message very clear, not talking down to the students… very important to note that Daniel was not the typical person one might associate with drugs - made students think 'it could be me' rather than 'I'm not like that'.”
Teacher, March 2024 (London tour)
“The play was genuinely incredible, the actors were phenomenal… I liked that the script was based off the exact words of those involved, rather than twisting the story into fiction… Seeing the photos of Dan was also very impactful, as you could put into perspective what really happened.”
Student, Nov 23 (Scotland tour)
“Thank you very much for coming – I thought this was an amazing piece of theatre that really had me captivated and is still on my mind, even a week after.”
Student, Nov 23 (Scotland tour):
“The play was absolutely brilliant… for me as a 14 year old girl, it showed me how actions and decisions can have a huge impact… not only how things can impact yourself but your friends and family too. I think it was an important life lesson and I will carry the messages with me.”
Student, March 24 (London tour)
“I have been in situations similar or friends have, but not realised how lucky we’ve been since now. Learnt about the risk more than I have before… Messages and conversations being real were really impactful because it’s not a made up scenario, it literally happened.”
Student, March 24 (London tour)
"It is sensational - so moving and well done. I was blown away and speechless."
Beth Willan, Drama Teacher
"Incredibly powerful and moving piece of theatre. An important piece for young people and adults alike to see."
Drama teacher, Oldham school
"Real, relevant and impactful Young people will respond to this "it could happen to me!".
School nurse, Oldham school

Acknowledgements

We extend our heartfelt gratitude to our 25/26 tour funders and partners. Your support is instrumental in making this tour possible.

 If you would like to contribute financially to the tour, please see our donation page or contact admin@dsmfoundation.org.uk 

  • Armagh, Banbridge & Craigavon PCSP
  • Belfast PCSP
  • Mid Ulster PCSP
  • Larchfield Estate 
  • Newry, Mourne and Down District Council
  • Londonderry/ Derry City & Strabane PCSP
  • Antrim & Newtownabbey PCSP

You may also be interested in...

I Love You, Mum - I Promise I Won't Die
Reviews
What is good drug education?
Who do we work with?
Latest news

Fundraising Regulator badge with validation link

Registered Charity no. 1158921 (CCEW) and SC052164 (OSCR)

The Daniel Spargo-Mabbs Foundation is a company limited by guarantee Reg. No. 08863937

All rights reserved. Material published by DSMF must be appropriately credited, may not be adapted, and may not be used for commercial purposes.