Barbara Speake Stage School
 | Some of this article's listed sources may not be reliable. (November 2013) |
| Barbara Speake Stage School | |
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| Address | |
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East Acton Lane East Acton, London , W3 7EG England | |
| Coordinates | 51°30′44″N 0°15′19″W / 51.51234°N 0.25517°WCoordinates: 51°30′44″N 0°15′19″W / 51.51234°N 0.25517°W |
| Information | |
| Type | Independent school Day school Co-educational school |
| Established | 10 February 1945 |
| Founder | Barbara Speake |
| Closed | 15 July 2020 |
| Local authority | Ealing Council |
| Department for Education URN | 101948 Tables |
| Principal | Shereen Boucher[1] |
| Headteacher | David Speake |
| Gender | Co-educational |
| Age | 4 to 16 |
| Campus | Urban campus |
The Barbara Speake Stage School was opened on 10 February 1945 as an independent school, and was initially set up as a dancing school, by the founding principal Miss Barbara Speake, MBE,[2] and was located in East Acton, London. The school was fee-paying but non-selective in its admissions.[3]
The school closed in 2020.[1]
History[]
In 1961, June Collins (mother of drummer/singer Phil Collins) joined forces with Barbara Speake to become the school's agent. Collins supplied the entertainment industry with children for every major production in the West End, TV and Theatre. Due to the success of both the agency and dancing school, in 1963 the decision was made to turn their successes in to a full-time educational establishment for the performing arts. Collins discovered Jack Wild playing football and decided that he was a child with potential, and persuaded his family to let him attend the full-time school. Wild went on to receive an Academy Award nomination for his portrayal of "The Artful Dodger" in Oliver![4][5] Collins died in November 2011.[6]
Barbara Speake, received an MBE from Queen Elizabeth II in the New Years Honours list of 2007, for her services to the arts.[7]
The School received an Inadequate Ofsted rating at its last inspection (30 April 2019).[8] The decline from a Satisfactory rating began with an emergency inspection on 4 July 2014 which found that the welfare, health and safety of pupils was at risk following the installation of CCTV without appropriate changing facilities being provided. The inspection found that there were no changing facilities for female pupils.[9]
Alumni[]
Over the years, Collins had an eye for talent, and with Speake, the school has helped to develop some notable performers in the entertainment industry, including:
- Drummer, lead singer of Genesis, solo artist, music producer, actor (and June Collins' son) Phil Collins[5][10]
- British child-actor Jack Wild, known for playing the Artful Dodger in Oliver!, (1968) and Jimmy in the NBC children's television series HR Pufnstuf (1969) and accompanying 1970 feature film[11]
- Actress Julie Dawn Cole, known for playing Veruca Salt in the 1971 film Willie Wonka And The Chocolate Factory[12]
- Child actor and TV presenter Keith Chegwin[13]
- Grange Hill cast members Lindy Brill (Cathy),[14] Paul McCarthy (Tommy), Mark Baxter (Duane),[15] Mark Savage (Gripper), Gary Love (Jimmy), Ian Congdon-Lee (Ted),[16] Darren Cudjoe (Clarke)
- Actress/singer Kim Goody
- Writer/director/actress Sara Sugarman[17]
- Actress Sylvestra Le Touzel[18]
- Actress Alison Dowling, longtime character Elizabeth Pargetter in The Archers[19]
- Film producer David Parfitt[20]
- Casting director Mark Summers[21]
- Actor Keith Jayne, star of Murphy's Mob and Stig of the Dump[22]
- Comedian, actor, singer and TV presenter Brian Conley[3]
- Comedian Jeff Stevenson[23]
- Singer Denise Gyngell of 1980s pop group Tight Fit
- Actor Paul J. Medford
- Supermodel Naomi Campbell[24]
- British screenwriter, film director and former actress Amma Asante[25]
- Actor and playwright Kwame Kwei-Armah[26][27]
- Actress and singer Michelle Gayle[28]
- Pop star Lindy Layton, lead vocalist of Beats International and 1989 number one single Dub Be Good to Me[29]
- Musician Paul Varney of 1980s pop duo Yell![30]
- Nick Grant, member of 1990s boyband Ultimate Kaos
- Noel Simpson and Rahsaan Bromfield of the 1990s pop group Damage
- Actor Kedar Williams-Stirling
- Actor Aml Ameen
- Comedian Angie Le Mar
- Singer Demi Holborn
References[]
- ^ Jump up to: a b Osborne, Bridget. "ArtsEd school 'over-subscribed' despite crisis in performing arts". The Chiswick Calender. The Chiswick Calendar. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ Speake, Barbara M. "Angels in the Wings". AuthorHouse. Retrieved 23 March 2017.
- ^ Jump up to: a b Elkin, Susan (7 February 2005). "Speake up for drama – Barbara Speake". The Stage. Archived from the original on 25 December 2013. Retrieved 29 June 2014.
- ^ "Wichita Eagle: Search Results". NewsLibrary. Newsbank. Archived from the original on 7 November 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ Jump up to: a b "Jack Wild". The Telegraph. 3 March 2006. Retrieved 7 November 2014. (subscription required)
- ^ "June Collins (I)". IMDB. IMDb.com, Inc. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ "The Gazette" (58196). Her Majesty's Stationery Office. The Stationery Office. 30 December 2006. Retrieved 31 January 2021.
- ^ "Barbara Speake Stage School". Ofsted. May 2019. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
- ^ "Barbara Speake Stage School". Ofsted. 4 July 2014. Retrieved 27 November 2020.
- ^ "Past Students and Success Stories". Barbara Speake Stage School & Agency. Archived from the original on 7 November 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ https://www.independent.co.uk/news/obituaries/jack-wild-6107855.html
- ^ "Julie Dawn Cole". IMDb.
- ^ Millar, Paul (20 November 2011). "Keith Chegwin: 'Phil Collins let me sing his first song'". Digital Spy. Retrieved 15 June 2014.
- ^ http://www.squareone.org/evita/loncast22.html
- ^ https://grangehillgold.wordpress.com/interviews/1872-2/
- ^ https://grangehill.tumblr.com/post/50237301751/interview-with-ian-congdon-lee
- ^ https://jwa.org/encyclopedia/article/sugarman-sara
- ^ http://www.moviemakersguide.com/data/b/barst0757/barst0757b.htm
- ^ https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/profiles/5S0q4RG3NW9bzRZJM0bFY5Q/elizabeth-pargetter
- ^ "David Parfitt". IMDb. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ "About Mark Summers". Move like Michael Jackson. BBC Three. Archived from the original on 28 July 2011. Retrieved 19 June 2012.
- ^ https://issuu.com/rhythmandbooze/docs/issue03/6
- ^ "Jeff Stevenson, Actor, Greater London". www.mandy.com. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ "Naomi Campbell". Vogue. Archived from the original on 9 August 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ Kellaway, Kate (18 May 2014). "Amma Asante: 'I'm bi-cultural, I walk the division that Belle walked every day'". the Guardian. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
- ^ "Kwame Kwei-Armah". IMDb. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ "Queen's birthday honours list 2012: OBE". The Guardian. 16 June 2012. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ "Michelle Gayle". MTV Artists. Archived from the original on 27 November 2014. Retrieved 7 November 2014.
- ^ http://www.moviemakersguide.com/data/b/barst0757/barst0757b.htm
- ^ "Bio". Paul Varney. Retrieved 24 July 2021.
External links[]
- "Miss Barbara Speake, MBE..." Official website. Barbara Speake Stage School. Archived from the original on 8 February 2012. Retrieved 27 November 2020. - Official biography of Barbara Speake
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- 1945 establishments in England
- Educational institutions established in 1945
- Acton, London
- Drama schools in the United Kingdom
- Defunct schools in the London Borough of Ealing
- 2020 disestablishments in England
- Educational institutions disestablished in 2020