The Barbara Speake Stage School was opened on 10 February 1945 as an

independent school An independent school is independent in its finances and governance. Also known as private schools, non-governmental, privately funded, or non-state schools, they are not administered by local, state or national governments. In British Eng ...

, and was initially set up as a dancing school, by the founding principal Miss Barbara Speake, MBE, and was located in

East Acton East Acton is an area in Acton in London, England, west of Charing Cross. It is partly in the London Borough of Hammersmith and Fulham and partly in the London Borough of Ealing. It is served by East Acton Underground station, on the Central ...

London London is the capital and largest city of England and the United Kingdom, with a population of just under 9 million. It stands on the River Thames in south-east England at the head of a estuary down to the North Sea, and has been a majo ...

. The school was fee-paying but non-selective in its admissions. The school closed in 2020.

History

In 1961, June Collins (mother of drummer/singer

Phil Collins Philip David Charles Collins (born 30 January 1951) is an English singer, musician, songwriter, record producer and actor. He was the drummer and lead singer of the rock band Genesis and also has a career as a solo performer. Between 1982 and ...

) 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 Jack Wild (30 September 1952 – 1 March 2006) was an English actor and singer. He is best known for his role as the Artful Dodger in the film ''Oliver!'' (1968), for which he received an Academy Award nomination for Best Supporting Actor at t ...

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 The Academy Awards, better known as the Oscars, are awards for artistic and technical merit for the American and international film industry. The awards are regarded by many as the most prestigious, significant awards in the entertainment ind ...

nomination for his portrayal of "

The Artful Dodger Jack Dawkins, better known as the Artful Dodger, is a character in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist''. The Dodger is a pickpocket, so called for his skill and cunning in that occupation. He is the leader of the gang of child criminals ...

" in ''

Oliver! ''Oliver!'' is a coming-of-age stage musical, with book, music and lyrics by Lionel Bart. The musical is based upon the 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist'' by Charles Dickens. It premiered at the Wimbledon Theatre, southwest London in 1960 before op ...

'' Collins died in November 2011. Barbara Speake, received an MBE from Queen Elizabeth II in the New Years Honours list of 2007, for her services to the arts. The School received an Inadequate Ofsted rating at its last inspection (30 April 2019). 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.

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 Genesis may refer to: Bible * Book of Genesis, the first book of the biblical scriptures of both Judaism and Christianity, describing the creation of the Earth and of mankind * Genesis creation narrative, the first several chapters of the Book of ...

, solo artist, music producer, actor (and June Collins' son)

* British child-actor

, known for playing the

Artful Dodger Jack Dawkins, better known as the Artful Dodger, is a character in Charles Dickens's 1838 novel '' Oliver Twist''. The Dodger is a pickpocket, so called for his skill and cunning in that occupation. He is the leader of the gang of child criminals ...

in ''

,'' (1968) and Jimmy in the

NBC The National Broadcasting Company (NBC) is an Television in the United States, American English-language Commercial broadcasting, commercial television network, broadcast television and radio network. The flagship property of the NBC Enterta ...

children's television series '' HR Pufnstuf'' (1969) and accompanying 1970 feature film * Actress

Julie Dawn Cole Julie Dawn Cole (born 26 October 1957) is an English actress. She began her career as a child performer in the 1971 film ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory'', playing Veruca Salt. Career ''Willy Wonka and the Chocolate Factory'' Raised in ...

, known for playing Veruca Salt in the 1971 film

Willie Wonka And The Chocolate Factory ''Willy Wonka & the Chocolate Factory'' is a 1971 American musical fantasy film directed by Mel Stuart and starring Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka. It is an adaptation of the 1964 novel ''Charlie and the Chocolate Factory'' by Roald Dahl. The fi ...

* Child actor and TV presenter

Keith Chegwin Keith Chegwin (17 January 1957 – 11 December 2017) was an English television presenter and actor, appearing in several children's entertainment shows in the 1970s and 1980s, including ''Multi-Coloured Swap Shop'' and ''Cheggers Plays Pop''. ...

Grange Hill ''Grange Hill'' is a British Children's television series, children's television drama series, originally produced by the BBC and portraying life in a typical Comprehensive school (England and Wales), comprehensive school. The show began its ru ...

cast members

Lindy Brill Lyndy Brill (also known as Lindy Brill; born 30 July 1963) is a former actress and singer. She was a pupil at the Barbara Speake Stage School. She is best known for playing Cathy Hargreaves in the BBC school drama, ''Grange Hill'' (1979–82), an ...

(Cathy), Paul McCarthy (Tommy), Mark Baxter (Duane), Mark Savage (Gripper),

Gary Love Gary Joseph Love (born 26 November 1964) is a British actor and film director. He is best known for playing the role of Sergeant Tony Wilton in the British Army inspired award-winning series ''Soldier Soldier'', and as Jimmy McClaren in Grange ...

(Jimmy), Ian Congdon-Lee (Ted), Darren Cudjoe (Clarke) * Actress/singer

Kim Goody Kim Goody (born 19 February 1960, London, England) is an English actress, composer, singer and songwriter. One of her earliest stints as a singer was providing backing vocals on Dave Davies' 1983 album ''Chosen People''. She has appeared in telev ...

* Writer/director/actress

Sara Sugarman Sara Sugarman (born 13 October 1962) is a Welsh actress and filmmaker whose work includes Disney's ''Confessions of a Teenage Drama Queen'' (2004) and ''Very Annie Mary'' (2001). She has also appeared in films including '' Dealers'' (1989) and ' ...

* Actress

Sylvestra Le Touzel Sylvestra Le Touzel (born 1958) is a British television, film and stage actor. She was born and raised in Kensington, London, to a prominent family from Saint Helier, Jersey, Channel Islands. She attended school in East Acton. Television Beginn ...

* Actress Alison Dowling, longtime character Elizabeth Pargetter in

The Archers ''The Archers'' is a BBC radio drama on BBC Radio 4, the corporation's main spoken-word channel. Broadcast since 1951, it was famously billed as "an everyday story of country folk" and is now promoted as "a contemporary drama in a rural settin ...

* Film producer

David Parfitt David Parfitt (born 8 July 1958) is an English film producer, actor, and co-founder of Trademark Films. He won the Academy Award for Best Picture at the 71st Academy Awards for ''Shakespeare in Love'' (1998). Early life Parfitt was born in Sunder ...

* Casting director

Mark Summers Mark Summers is the English CEO, sound engineer and music producer of Scorccio, a music production company founded in the UK in 1996. A London DJ since 1979, he is a guest lecturer and masterclass presenter on sample replay production, sound e ...

* Actor

Keith Jayne Keith Jayne (born 10 December 1960) is a British actor, known for playing the title role in the 1981 television adaptation ''Stig of the Dump''. A slow growth rate, due to a pituitary gland problem, made Keith a target of bullies at grammar ...

, star of

Murphy's Mob ''Murphy's Mob'' is a British children's television series, created and written by Brian Finch which was produced and directed by David Foster for Central Independent Television, and screened in the UK on ITV for four series between 1 March 1982 ...

and

Stig of the Dump ''Stig of the Dump'' is a children's novel by Clive King which was first published in the United Kingdom in 1963. It is regarded as a modern children's classic and is often read in schools. It was illustrated by Edward Ardizzone and has been ...

* Comedian, actor, singer and TV presenter

Brian Conley Brian Paul Conley (born 7 August 1961) is an English actor, comedian, singer and television presenter. Conley has been the host of ''The Brian Conley Show'', as well as presenting the Royal Variety Performance on eight occasions. In his 40-ye ...

* Comedian Jeff Stevenson * Singer

Denise Gyngell Denise Gyngell (born 30 August 1961) is a Welsh singer, actress and model. She is most famous as a member of the early 80s pop group, Tight Fit. She later married record producer Pete Waterman. Biography Denise Gyngell was born in Porth, Rhond ...

of 1980s pop group

Tight Fit Tight Fit is an English pop group which had several hits in the early 1980s, including a UK No.1 for three weeks with their cover version of "The Lion Sleeps Tonight" in 1982. History In 1981, record producer Ken Gold came up with the idea ...

* Actor

Paul J. Medford Paul J. Medford is a British actor and performer of Barbados, Barbadian descent. He is best known for playing the role of Kelvin Carpenter in the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'' from the show's inception in 1985 to 1987. He has since appeared in num ...

* Supermodel

Naomi Campbell Naomi Elaine Campbell (born 22 May 1970) is an English model, actress, singer, and businesswoman. She began her career at the age of 15, and established herself amongst the most recognisable and in-demand models of the past four decades. Cam ...

* British screenwriter, film director and former actress

Amma Asante Amma Asante (born 13 September 1969) is a British filmmaker, screenwriter, former actress, and Chancellor at Norwich University of the Arts, who was born in London to parents from Ghana. Her love for the film industry started when she received ...

* Actor and playwright

Kwame Kwei-Armah Kwame Kwei-Armah (born Ian Roberts; 24 March 1967 in Hillingdon, London) is a British actor, playwright, director, singer and broadcaster. He is best known for playing paramedic Finlay Newton in the BBC medical drama ''Casualty'' from 1999 unti ...

* Actress and singer

Michelle Gayle Michelle Patricia Gayle (born 2 February 1971) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and writer. Gayle had success as a soul and R&B singer in the 1990s, having achieved seven top 40 singles in the UK Singles Chart. These include "Sweetness" ...

* Pop star

Lindy Layton Belinda Kimberly "Lindy" Layton (born 7 December 1970) is an English singer. She was a founding member of and vocalist for dance music band Beats International. She has released a number of solo albums and singles and worked with other musicians ...

, lead vocalist of

Beats International Beats International were a British dance music band and hip-hop collective, formed in the late 1980s by Norman Cook (later in his career known as Fatboy Slim) based in Brighton, East Sussex, England, after his departure from the Housemartins. A ...

and 1989 number one single

Dub Be Good to Me "Dub Be Good to Me" is a song by British dub group Beats International featuring singer Lindy Layton, released on 24 January 1990 as the first single from their debut album, '' Let Them Eat Bingo'' (1990). It was written by frontman Norman Cook ...

* Musician Paul Varney of 1980s pop duo

Yell! Yell! was a British pop duo who had a hit single in 1990 with a cover of "Instant Replay". Overview Yell! consisted of singers Daniel James and Paul Varney. In 1989, they both met manager Jeff Chegwin and decided to form the group. They w ...

* Nick Grant, member of 1990s boyband

Ultimate Kaos Ultimate Kaos (stylised as Ultimate KAOS) were a British boyband from the 1990s, who were formed by Simon Cowell. Its original members comprised Jomo Baxter, Jayde Spence, Ryan Elliott, Nick Grant and the then 9 years old Haydon Eshun. Career ...

* Noel Simpson and Rahsaan Bromfield of the 1990s pop group

Damage Damage is any change in a thing, often a physical object, that degrades it away from its initial state. It can broadly be defined as "changes introduced into a system that adversely affect its current or future performance".Farrar, C.R., Sohn, H., ...

Aml Ameen Aml Eysan Ameen (; born 30 July 1985) is a British actor. He is best known for his roles as Trevor (Trife) in ''Kidulthood'' (2006), Lewis Hardy in the ITV television series ''The Bill'', Capheus in the first season of the Netflix original seri ...

(born 1985), Actor *

Demi Holborn Demi Ann-Marie Holborn is a Welsh professional singer, one of the UK's youngest female solo artists to hit the Top 40 of the UK Singles Chart. Singing career The youngest of four children, Holborn began her career in the music business at the age ...

(born 1992), singer *

Kedar Williams-Stirling Kedar Williams-Stirling (; born 14 December 1994) is an English actor. His film roles include the action dramas ''Shank'' (2010) and ''Montana'' (2014). On television, he has appeared as a series regular on the CBBC teen fantasy ''Wolfblood'' ...

(born 1994), Actor * Rachel Brennock actress, singer and songwriter. *

Angie Le Mar Angie Le Mar (born 27 October 1965) is a British comedian, actor, writer, director, presenter and producer. Le Mar is married with three children. Early life Born in Lewisham, London, of Jamaican parentage, she grew up with four older brother ...

,Comedian

References

External links

* - Official biography of Barbara Speake {{authority control 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