Renowned thriller writer Frederick Forsyth has turned his pen to writing lyrics in commemoration of all the fallen soldiers across time and place.

The acclaimed author who lives in Seer Green in Buckinghamshire was born in 1938 in Ashford, Kent and remained there for the duration of World War Two.

He says: “I wasn’t evacuated and there was an awful lot of soldiers. We thought we were invading from Kent, it was actually Portsmouth, but to fool the Germans it was packed full of soldiers.”

As a boy he was always interested in flying and military planes, therefore when he came of national service age he joined the Royal Air Force.

On completion of his two years’ service and after being told he wouldn’t immediately be flying bomber planes for Britain he decided to become a journalist so he could travel the world. He then worked as a foreign correspondent for Reuters and the BBC during the 1960s.

Frederick used this skillset to research and write spy novels such as The Day of the Jackal, The Fourth Protocol and The Kill List, all of which were adapted into films.

Writing Fallen Soldier was a process very new to him, he says: “Nearly two years ago I was in my car listening to the radio, some commemoration on the war, and I began to think that in the enormous canon of British music we have no lament about our fallen soldiers and I thought there should be one.

“I just thought that it was about time; we’ve given so many young men to combat for good causes.

“I came up with 16 lines that more or less said what I wanted to say but thought, what about the music?

“I hunted for public domain music but I couldn’t find anything that matched the words so I looked through modern musicians and composers but couldn’t find anything so I thought that might be the end of it.”

However, in his local church there was a soprano voice among the choir that stood out and it was that of Melissa Alder, who also lives in Seer Green.

Melissa, a mum of two, is a singer for the Royal Opera House. She grew up the area and sang in the church choir as a child. When returning to the area with her family and discovering that there was no longer a choir she volunteered to run one.

Frederick says: “I showed her the words and she said I’d like to sing that, what’s the music? I said I don’t have any.

“She introduced me to her friend, composer Gareth Williams. He heard the words and liked them and two or three weeks later produced an extraordinary tune.”

Melissa sings and features in the song’s music video, the majority of which was recorded locally.

She says: “It’s very cleverly written. The way he’s written it is suitable for any soldier anywhere in the world.

“The tragic thing about war is that so many people can relate to it so I hope it will hit a chord with a lot of people.”

Of Frederick she says: “He is just so lovely, a true, true gentleman. He is so funny and has had such an amazing life.”

Just last year Frederick revealed in his memoir that his time abroad led to him working with British Intelligence. He explains: “Back then it was normal for people who travelled to keep their eyes and ears open and when returning home have a debriefing.”

This may not sound like much, but his work and travel has led to some extraordinary tales: “During the course of my life, I've barely escaped the wrath of an arms dealer in Hamburg, been strafed by a MiG during the Nigerian civil war, and landed during a bloody coup in Guinea-Bissau.

“The Stasi arrested me, the Israelis regaled me, the IRA prompted a quick move from Ireland to England, and a certain attractive Czech secret police agent - well, her actions were a bit more intimate. And that's just for starters.”

“It was a terrific cover to say you’re researching a new book.

“My writing usually came from newspapers or TV, I’d see something and think I wonder what would happen if… and what would we do if… It was always based on reality or possible realities.

“Then I would start researching, talk to experts, read material, do a lot of travel and finally come home with a lot of research and sit down and start to write.”

Pilot, journalist, spy, novelist and now songwriter, Frederick has one thing left on his bucket list and that is snorkelling in the coral reef in Australia which, as luck would have it, he is going to do in September this year.

The single Fallen Soldier was released on February 12, all proceeds will be going to military charities of which Frederick is yet to decide upon.

Details: www.frederickforsyth.co.uk