Sculpture made of man who fought knifeman with tusk

A man who brandished a narwhal tusk to fend off a knifeman said the unveiling of his sculpture had made him "be honest about the things I've gone through" in the aftermath of the 2019 attack.

Former civil servant Darryn Frost, from Northampton, fought off Usman Khan at Fishmongers' Hall in London after he killed Jack Merritt and Saskia Jones at a prisoner rehabilitation conference.

Sculptor Nick Elphick was asked by BBC Extraordinary Portraits host Bill Bailey to create an artwork to honour Frost's bravery.

Frost said the sculpture represented "more than just my story, it's an international story - that incident affected us all, and we lost Jack and Saskia".

The sculpture, using a mix of materials, shows Frost with a pained expression, a weight on his shoulder and holding a separate and broken narwhal tusk - with the piece unveiled to his family on the BBC One programme.

"I did love the idea of the separation with the tusk because I don't want that to define me," Frost told BBC Breakfast.

"It was an important incident, but I've done so many other things since then.

"It's kind of the sculpture of me that I hide from everyone... I never let anyone know what I was going through.

"I don't want other people to suffer through my suffering... it made me have to be honest," he said of the sculpture.

He has suffered Post Traumatic Stress Disorder since the attack and said his memory and health had been badly affected.

Frost, who was attending the conference for work, tackled Khan with two ex-offenders - John Crilly, who used a fire extinguisher on the attacker, and Steven Gallant, who helped confront him until police arrived on London Bridge.

The trio were among those awarded gallantry medals by the late Queen.

Frost and Gallant have gone on to set up a social enterprise, called Own Merit in Northampton, which provides homes to people leaving prison.

It was named in memory of Cambridge graduate and charity volunteer Merritt, 25.

Frost said of the art project: "If we can share the struggles of prison leavers, and we can share some more of the story around this, it was worth doing."

In the episode, Elphick said he wanted the piece to enable Frost to "let go" and told how the pair had formed a "close relationship", with the sculptor sharing his own personal struggles.

Elphick said he worked 15-hour days for three months and wanted the sculpture to reflect a "human being with emotions".

It incorporates a traditional Japanese art form, called kintsugi, where objects are repaired with gold, silver or platinum strands to highlight breaks and repairs.

The sculptor said: "Darryn found it quite embarrassing and doesn't want to be portrayed as a hero but the fact is, he is a hero.

"I think it's important to be able to show the people that love [Frost] that he's been in pain and still is.

"Also, I wanted it to show what he's doing now today with his charity and helping others, and he's made his life more valuable from something that was so tragic."

Elphick added the sculpture was called Empathetic Protection, as Frost had "so much empathy he was willing to give his life for others... and it's an honour for me as an artist to try and freeze that in time".

The sculpture is to be put on display at the Royal Cambrian Academy of Art in Conwy, Wales, before going on show at the BBC Extraordinary Portraits exhibition in Bradford.

Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.