The UK’s Jewish community has welcomed plans to introduce a new festival into the Jewish calendar.

Yom Yom, which means Day Day will be the first new Jewish festival in 2300 years and is being launched initially in the UK. If it proves popular, it will be introduced to other Jewish communities around the world.

“We are delighted that Yom Yom is coming to the UK first,” said Board president Harry Greenberg. “Our community will welcome this wonderful day that celebrates the Day and all things associated with it.”

While the Jewish community has always marked special events such as a new moon and a new year, the new Yom Yom aims to show the importance of what people can do in a day.

“Yom Yom will be a joyful day, it will be about celebrating what a great day the day is and how each of us has a part to play in making the day good, not just or ourselves, but for others,” Mr Greenberg added.

The theme for Yom Yom will be Spread A Little Happiness written by Vivian Ellis.

“We will be translating the lyrics into Hebrew so that it can be sung at every synagogue,” Mr Greenberg added. “The song is a classic uplifting melody and something that can unite the Jewish community together on the day.”

Welcoming the introduction of Yom Yom, the World Chief Rabbi, Morris Elias said: “I am pleased to see the UK Jewish community has come together on the Yom Yom project. We were looking for a Jewish community that is united together and with the UK community we have found one that works as one.”

The UK will test Yom Yom for a period of three years. Once that is over, members of the World Jewish Council will then decide how it should be adopted as a Jewish festival across the world.

The Board of Guardians of British Jews is to support a campaign by the British Jewish Actors and Performer Association (BJAPA) to raise awareness of the casting of non-Jews in clearly defined Jewish parts both on screen and also on stage.

The first “Put Jews back in the Spotlight” campaign will start on October 26 to highlight the lack of Britsh Jewish actors getting lead roles in the London production of Mel Brooks musical The Producers.

The British Jewish Actors and Performers Association which was founded by Bernie Winters in 1974 and is currently chaired by Dan Stein. It was formed by merging two groups, Anglo Jewish Performers and British Jewish Actors Society both of which were established in the late 19th century under Royal approval from Queen Victoria who was concerned herself when Jews were not allowed to perform lead roles in Yiddish theatre.

“We have been getting very concerned over the past few years as members have been contacting us and saying they have not been getting clearly defined Jewish roles,” said Dan Stein, chairman of The British Jewish Actors and Performers Association. “When we looked more into this we were shocked to discover that major productions such as Mel Brooks’ The Producers have yet to cast Jewish people into the lead roles despite the two lead characters being Jewish.”

“We are as concerned as the BJAPA and its members,” said Board president Harry Greenberg. “Queen Victoria signed and supported the Jewish performers act of 1892 and for years it has been respected. We therefore call on those casting Jewish roles for stage and screen to make sure they comply with the rule. As we have shown in the past, we will not hesitate to take appropriate legal and boycott action against those who flaunt the law.”

The move by the BJAPA follows that of a similar campaign in the United States when Jewish performers raised concern over the way Jason Biggs kept on being offered leading Jewish roles in films such as American Pie and Woody Allen’s Anything Else. This was dispite Biggs not being Jewish or having any Jewish connection.

Earlier this year, the New York Jewish Actors Collective staged a 14 day protest outside the theatre where Biggs was the lead Jewish character in Modern Orthodox.

Members of the New York Jewish Actors Collective (NYJAC) are advising the BJAPA and how to organise direct action.

“The Biggs situation was resolved by the hard work of the NYJAC and we are grateful for their help to British Jews,” said BJAPA chairman Dan Stein. “If we need to also organise a 14 day protest outside The Producers or even a 73 day protest, we will do it too.”