The BRIT School is a British performing and creative arts school located in

Selhurst Selhurst is an area in the London Borough of Croydon south-south-east of Charing Cross. Historically it lay in Surrey. The area is bounded to the west and south by Thornton Heath and Croydon and to the east and south by South Norwood and Woodsid ...

, Croydon, England, with a mandate to provide education and vocational training for the performing arts, music, music technology, theatre, musical theatre, dance, applied theatre, production arts and the creative arts film and media production (FMP), interactive digital design (IDD), visual arts and design (VAD). Selective in its intake, the school is notable for its celebrity alumni. Opened on 22 October 1991 under the CTC programme, the school is funded by the British Government with support from the British Record Industry Trust and other charity partners and donations and maintains 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 ...

status from the

local education authority Local education authorities (LEAs) were local councils in England that are responsible for education within their jurisdiction. The term was used to identify which council (district or county) is locally responsible for education in a system wit ...

History

Mark Featherstone-Witty Mark Featherstone-Witty OBE (born 2 June 1946 in London) is an educator and entrepreneur. He is the Founding Principal and Chief Executive of the Liverpool Institute for Performing Arts (LIPA) which he founded, with Paul McCartney, in the mid- ...

had been inspired by

Alan Parker Sir Alan William Parker (14 February 1944 – 31 July 2020) was an English filmmaker. His early career, beginning in his late teens, was spent as a copywriter and director of television advertisements. After about ten years of filming adverts ...

's 1980s film '' Fame'' to create a secondary school specialising in the performing arts. By the time he started trying to raise money through the School for Performing Arts Trust (SPA), he had refined a novel integrated curriculum. He approached Sir

Richard Branson Sir Richard Charles Nicholas Branson (born 18 July 1950) is a British billionaire, entrepreneur, and business magnate. In the 1970s he founded the Virgin Group, which today controls more than 400 companies in various fields. Branson expressed ...

to be the project champion who agreed, on the condition that other record companies chipped in. As it happened, the

British Phonographic Industry British Phonographic Industry (BPI) is the British recorded music industry's Trade association. It runs the BRIT Awards, the Classic BRIT Awards, National Album Day, is home to the Mercury Prize, and co-owns the Official Charts Company with th ...

(BPI) were concerned with home taping and realised they had no political influence to bring the necessary pressure to bear. The then Conservative government needed to give impetus to their flagging City Technology College scheme. For over 30 years, the BRIT School has been the beneficiary of funding from the British record industry, with a substantial annual contribution from the proceeds of the

Brit Awards The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

, administered via the record industry's charity, the BRIT Trust.The BRIT School Celebrates Twenty Years of Success, 22 September 2011
BPI. Retrieved 5 February 2012 In 2012, the school expanded acquiring part of the former

Selhurst High School Selhurst High School for Boys is a name that has been given to two separate schools in England that existed at different times, but occupied the same site. The former school had been a grammar school that closed in 1988, the latter was the relaun ...

building next door. Three new courses, Production Arts, Interactive Digital Design and Community Arts Practise were introduced to coincide with this. There are currently 1352 Students on roll. The school's former principal Sir Nick Williams was knighted in the New Years Honours List 2013 for services to education. In 2021/2022 The school celebrated its 30th birthday and was awarded a PRS Music heritage awar
shaping UK Art and culture for 30 years

Educational focus

The school was founded in 1991 under the auspices of the

City Technology College In England, a City Technology College (CTC) is an urban all-ability specialist schoolWalter (2007), p. 6 for students aged 11 to 18 specialising in science, technology and mathematics. They charge no fees and are independent of local authority ...

s (CTC) initiative with sponsorship from the British Record Industry Trust (BRIT). Each year the

BRIT Awards The BRIT Awards (often simply called the BRITs) are the British Phonographic Industry's annual popular music awards. The name was originally a shortened form of "British", "Britain", or "Britannia" (in the early days the awards were sponsored ...

Music Ceremony raises money, some of which is used to help the continuing sponsorship of the school along with other music charities. The school recognises that most of its students intend to make a career in the arts, entertainment and communications industries, but the school expects all to follow full-time courses to completion. It has two professional theatres, the Obie Theatre, which can seat audiences of up to 324 and standing audiences up to 500; and the BRIT Theatre, which opened in January 2012 and seats audiences of up to 280. There are also various dance studios, musical theatre studios, and TV and radio studios.

YouTube Music YouTube Music is a music streaming service developed by YouTube, a subsidiary of Google. It provides a tailored interface for the service, oriented towards music streaming, allowing users to browse through songs and music videos on YouTube based ...

funded a new Television Studio that opened in 2019 for Film & Media Production students. This was in response to the student-run show "The BRIT Live" which airs on the BRIT School's YouTube channel, giving the students their own studio and control room to broadcast from.

Entry requirements

Entry to any of the school's courses is initially by application. If applicants meet the initial entry criteria, they may then be invited to interview or audition in their chosen focus (strand) (either Film and Media Production (FMP), Applied Theatre,

Dance Dance is a performing art form consisting of sequences of movement, either improvised or purposefully selected. This movement has aesthetic and often symbolic value. Dance can be categorized and described by its choreography, by its repertoir ...

, Interactive Digital Design,

Music Music is generally defined as the art of arranging sound to create some combination of form, harmony, melody, rhythm or otherwise expressive content. Exact definitions of music vary considerably around the world, though it is an aspect ...

Music Technology Music technology is the study or the use of any device, mechanism, machine or tool by a musician or composer to make or perform music; to compose, notate, playback or record songs or pieces; or to analyze or edit music. History The earlies ...

Musical Theatre Musical theatre is a form of theatrical performance that combines songs, spoken dialogue, acting and dance. The story and emotional content of a musical – humor, pathos, love, anger – are communicated through words, music, movemen ...

, Production Arts,

Theatre Theatre or theater is a collaborative form of performing art that uses live performers, usually actors or actresses, to present the experience of a real or imagined event before a live audience in a specific place, often a stage. The perform ...

and Visual Arts & Design, for sixth-form entry students), plus a meeting with relevant tutors. Entry to the Music course also includes aural and music theory tests and an audition, with entry to the Dance, Theatre, Visual Art & Design and Musical Theatre courses also including audition rounds. The school has a wide catchment for students, whom often live away from school. Several students in foreign countries are accepted and move to London to attend the school. A 2011

BBC News BBC News is an operational business division of the British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) responsible for the gathering and broadcasting of news and current affairs in the UK and around the world. The department is the world's largest broadca ...

article discussed whether students who are accepted by the school get an unfair advantage in creative arts industries over those who did not.

Curriculum

The school teaches the following course:

Notable alumni

Ace and Vis Ace and Vis, The Troublemakers of Radio, are radio DJs and television presenters from south-east London. They met whilst studying at the BRIT School in London. Career Known as Ace and Invisible (Vis), after winning a gold Sony Radio Academy Awar ...

(TV/radio presenters) *

Adele Adele Laurie Blue Adkins (, ; born 5 May 1988), professionally known by the mononym Adele, is an English singer and songwriter. After graduating in arts from the BRIT School in 2006, Adele signed a reco ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Amy Winehouse Amy Jade Winehouse (14 September 1983 – 23 July 2011) was an English singer and songwriter. She was known for her deep, expressive contralto vocals and her eclectic mix of musical genres, including soul, rhythm and blues and jazz. A membe ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Ashley Madekwe Ashley Madekwe (; born 6 December 1983) is a British actress. She is well known for her roles as call girl Bambi in the ITV2 series ''Secret Diary of a Call Girl'', social climber Ashley Davenport on the ABC drama series ''Revenge'' and the wi ...

(actor) * Bashy (rapper/actor) * Billie Black (singer) *

Black Midi Black MIDI is a music genre consisting of compositions that use MIDI files to create a song or a remix containing a large number of notes. People who make black MIDIs are known as blackers. However, there are no specific criteria of what is cons ...

(band) *

Blake Harrison Blake Harrison is an English actor, comedian and dancer. He is best known for playing Neil Sutherland in the BAFTA-winning E4 comedy ''The Inbetweeners'' and more recently as 'Medium' Dan, in the ITV sitcom Kate & Koji since 2020. Career H ...

(actor) * Breakage (musician) *

Cat Burns "Go" is a song by English singer Cat Burns. It was released as a single on 31 July 2020, through Since 93 and RCA Records. Written by Burns, Tannergard, George Morgan and Jonah Stevens, the song rose to popularity in early 2022, eventually peaking ...

(singer) * Cash Carraway (screenwriter/showrunner) *

Cat Sandion Catherine "Cat" Sandion (born 8 September 1985) is a British television presenter. She is of Mauritian heritage. She began presenting in 2008, starting a television career as a member of the cast of '' Hi-5'', the British version of the Austra ...

(presenter) *

Charlene Soraia Charlene Soraia Santaniello Jones, known as Charlene Soraia, is an English singer-songwriter. She first became known with a cover of The Calling's "Wherever You Will Go", which peaked at number 3 in the UK Singles Chart. She released her debu ...

(singer) * Cormac Hyde-Corrin (actor, filmmaker) *

Cush Jumbo Cush Jumbo (born 23 September 1985) is a British actress and writer. She is best known for her leading role as attorney Lucca Quinn in the CBS drama series '' The Good Wife'' (2015–16) and the CBS All Access spin-off series ''The Good Figh ...

(actor) *

Dan Gillespie Sells Daniel Giles Gillespie Sells (; born 20 September 1978) is an English singer-songwriter and guitarist, best known as being the lead vocalist and frontman for the rock group The Feeling. Biography Sells and his brother James were co-parente ...

of the band

The Feeling ''The'' () is a grammatical article in English, denoting persons or things already mentioned, under discussion, implied or otherwise presumed familiar to listeners, readers, or speakers. It is the definite article in English. ''The'' is the m ...

Dane Bowers Dane Leon Bowers is a British singer, songwriter, DJ and producer. He was a part of pop boy band Another Level between 1997 and 2000 when he performed on seven Top 10 singles, before taking up solo projects with True Steppers and Victoria Beckh ...

(singer-songwriter and former member of Another Level) *

Ella Eyre Ella McMahon (born 1 April 1994), known professionally as Ella Eyre, is a British singer and songwriter. She is known for her collaborations with Rudimental on their UK number-one single "Waiting All Night" (2013), which won the 2014 Brit Awar ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Eman Kellam Emmanuel Kellam Olaniyan (born 27 November 1997) is a Nigerian British actor, rapper, television presenter and YouTube personality better known as Eman Kellam. He is best known for his appearances on The CBBC Channel and his YouTube web show Br ...

(presenter/YouTuber) *

Emily Head Emily Head (born 15 December 1988) is an English actress. Her breakout role was as Carli D'Amato in E4's sitcom ''The Inbetweeners'' and she later played Rebecca White in the ITV soap opera ''Emmerdale'' and Colette Andrews in BBC drama, '' ...

(actor) *

FKA Twigs Tahliah Debrett Barnett (born 17 January 1988), known professionally as FKA Twigs (stylized as FKA twigs), is an English singer, songwriter, and dancer. Born and raised in Cheltenham, she became a backup dancer for numerous famous musicians aft ...

(singer-songwriter and dancer) *

Freya Ridings Freya Ridings (born 19 April 1994) is an English singer, songwriter and multi-instrumentalist. Ridings rose to prominence in 2017 with her ballad, " Lost Without You", which became a top ten hit on the UK Singles Chart. She followed this with ...

(singer) *

Gemma Cairney Gemma Cairney (born 19 March 1985) is an English television and radio presenter best known for her work on BBC Radio 1 and BBC Radio 6 Music. She most recently presented '' The Leisure Society'' on BBC Radio 6 Music where she interviewed cultura ...

(radio presenter) *

Harris J Harris may refer to: Places Canada * Harris, Ontario * Northland Pyrite Mine (also known as Harris Mine) * Harris, Saskatchewan * Rural Municipality of Harris No. 316, Saskatchewan Scotland * Harris, Outer Hebrides (sometimes called the Isle ...

(singer-songwriter) * Harrison Osterfield (actor and model) *

Imogen Heap Imogen Jennifer Heap (born 9 December 1977) is a British musician, singer, songwriter and record producer. Her work has been considered pioneering in pop and electropop music. Heap classically trained in piano, cello and clarinet starting at a ...

(singer) *

Jade Bird Jade Elizabeth Bird (born 1 October 1997) is an English singer, songwriter and musician. Bird's music has been influenced by many folk and Americana artists. The media, when describing Bird's music, have drawn comparisons with pop, Americana, ...

(singer) *

Jamie Isaac Tom Cully, professionally known as Jamie Isaac, is an English singer, songwriter and producer, born and raised in Croydon Signed to House Anxiety /Marathon Artists, Isaac's debut EP, ''I Will Be Cold Soon'', attracted attention for its near-c ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Jamie Woon Jamie Woon (born 29 March 1983) is a British singer, songwriter, and record producer signed to PMR Records. He gained widespread acclaim in 2010 for his single " Night Air", which was co-produced by Burial, following his previous independent re ...

(singer) * Jessica Morgan (singer) *

Jessie J Jessica Ellen Cornish (born 27 March 1988), known professionally as Jessie J, is an English singer. Born and raised in London, she began her career on stage, aged 11, with a role in the West End musical '' Whistle Down the Wind''. She studied ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Joel Pott Joel Laslett Pott (born 20 January 1979 in Spilsby, Lincolnshire, England) is an English musician. He was the lead vocalist and guitarist of the indie band Athlete between 2000 and their split in 2013 and a songwriter. Biography While a chil ...

(singer/frontman of

Athlete An athlete (also sportsman or sportswoman) is a person who competes in one or more sports that involve physical strength, speed, or endurance. Athletes may be professionals or amateurs. Most professional athletes have particularly well-devel ...

) *

Joivan Wade Joivan Wade ( ; born 23 July 1993) is an English actor known for playing Manyou in the BBC comedy television series '' Big School'', Jordan Johnson on the BBC soap opera ''EastEnders'', and Cyborg (comics), Victor Stone/Cyborg in the HBO Max se ...

(actor) *

Kae Tempest Kae Tempest (formerly Kate Tempest; born 22 December 1985) is an English spoken word performer, poet, recording artist, novelist and playwright. At the age of 16, Tempest was accepted into the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in ...

(spoken word performer, poet, recording artist, novelist and playwright) *

Kate Nash Kate Marie Nash (born 6 July 1987) is an English singer-songwriter and actress. Nash launched her music career in 2005. Her 2007 single " Foundations" became a hit and brought her to public attention in the UK. Her debut album, '' Made of Bricks ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Katie Melua Ketevan Katie Melua (; ka, ქეთევან "ქეთი" მელუა, ; born 16 September 1984) is a Georgian and British singer and songwriter. She was born in Kutaisi and raised in Belfast and London. Under the management of comp ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Katy B Kathleen Anne Brien (born 8 May 1989), better known as Katy B, is an English singer and songwriter. She released her debut studio album, '' On a Mission'', in 2011, which spawned two top five hits, "Katy on a Mission" and " Lights On". In 2014 ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Kellie Shirley Kelly Jane Shirley (born 11 July 1981), known professionally as Kellie Shirley is an English actress who works in film, television, theatre and radio. She hails from Croydon via a large Northern Irish family. She has also co-presented programme ...

(actor) *

King Krule Archy Ivan Marshall (born 24 August 1994), also known by his stage name King Krule, among other names, is an English singer, songwriter, musician, rapper and record producer. He began recording music in 2010 under the moniker Zoo Kid. The fol ...

(singer) *

Laura Angela Collins Laura Angela Collins is a London-based Irish Traveller activist and author. Early life Collins was born and raised in Bermondsey, London to Irish parents and attended the BRIT School for performing arts and technology. Her grandmother, Angel ...

(poet, producer, author) *

Laura Dockrill Laura Lee Dockrill (born 28 May 1986) is an English author and performance poet. Personal life Dockrill is married to musician Hugo White (from The Maccabees); they have a son, after whose birth Dockrill suffered severe postpartum depression. ...

(poet, author and illustrator) *

Leona Lewis Leona Louise Lewis (born 3 April 1985) is a British singer, songwriter, actress and activist. Born and raised in the London Borough of Islington, she attended the BRIT School for Performing Arts and Technology in Croydon. Lewis achieved nationa ...

(singer-songwriter) * Benjamin Coyle-Larner (rapper, under the stage name Loyle Carner) *

Luke Pritchard The Kooks () are an English pop-rock band formed in 2004 in Brighton. The band consists of Luke Pritchard (vocals/rhythm guitar), Hugh Harris (lead guitar/synthesizer/bass) and Alexis Nunez (drums). Their music is primarily influenced by the ...

(singer) *

Lynden David Hall Lynden David Hall (7 May 1974 – 14 February 2006) was an English singer, songwriter, arranger, and record producer who emerged during the late 1990s as part of the neo soul movement. In 1999, he was the first UK performer ever voted "Best Male ...

(singer) *

Marsha Ambrosius Marsha Ambrosius-Billups (born 8 August 1977) is an English singer and songwriter from Liverpool, England. She embarked on her musical career as a member of Floetry. Ambrosius released her debut solo album '' Late Nights & Early Mornings'' in M ...

(singer-songwriter and member of

Floetry Floetry were an English R&B duo comprising Marsha Ambrosius ("The Songstress") and Natalie Stewart ("The Floacist"). The group recorded two studio albums and one live album and sold over 1,500,000 records worldwide. Formed in 1997 Floetry star ...

) * Maya Delilah (singer-songwriter and guitarist) * Nancy Sullivan (actress) *

Natalie Stewart Natalie "the Floacist" Stewart (born 13 February 1979) is an English rapper, singer, songwriter, spoken word artist, poet, and actress. Born in Germany and raised in London, she performed in various singing and dancing competitions as a child, a ...

(singer and member of

) *

Nathan Stewart-Jarrett Nathan Lloyd Stewart-Jarrett (born 4 December 1985) is a British actor, best known for starring as Curtis Donovan in the E4 series ''Misfits'' and as Ian in the Channel 4 series ''Utopia''. Early life Stewart-Jarrett was born in Wandsworth, ...

(actor) *

Octavian Caesar Augustus (born Gaius Octavius; 23 September 63 BC – 19 August AD 14), also known as Octavian, was the first Roman emperor; he reigned from 27 BC until his death in AD 14. He is known for being the founder of the Roman Pri ...

(rapper) * Olivia Dean (singer) *

Percelle Ascott Percelle Ascott (born 10 June 1993) is a Zimbabwean-English actor and writer. He is known for his roles in the CBBC (TV channel), CBBC series ''Wizards vs Aliens'' (2012–2014) and the Netflix series ''The Innocents (TV series), The Innocents'' ...

(actor) *

Polly Scattergood Polly Scattergood (born 18 October 1986) is an English singer and songwriter. She has been described as ethereal, dark, intense and quirky, while her musical style has been described as "early 21st century electro-dance-pop of London proper". ...

(singer) *

Raye Raye may refer to: * Raye (singer) (born 1997), British singer and songwriter *Raye, English dub name of anime character Sailor Mars Given name *Raye Hartmann (born 1990), Canadian footballer *Raye Birk (born 1943), American film and television ...

(singer-songwriter) *

Rex Orange County Alexander James O'Connor (born 4 May 1998), known professionally as Rex Orange County, is an English singer, multi-instrumentalist and songwriter. O'Connor rose to prominence in 2017 following multiple features on Tyler, the Creator's Grammy-n ...

(singer-songwriter/producer) *

Rhianne Barreto Rhianne Gabrielle H Barreto (born 25 March 1998) is an English actress. Her work includes the film '' Share'' (2019), the ITV drama ''Honour'' (2020), and the BBC One series '' The Outlaws'' (2021–). Early life Barreto is one of nine sibling ...

(actress) * Richard Jones of the band

Rickie Haywood Williams Richard Haywood-Williams is a British radio DJ and television presenter best known for his work with Melvin Odoom and Charlie Hedges on Kiss FM, later BBC Radio 1 and the 2016 TV series '' Bang on the Money'' on ITV. Early life He attende ...

(presenter,

Kiss FM Kiss FM, Kiss Radio or variants may refer to: Asia-Oceania * Various Kiss FM-branded stations in the Philippines ** 95.1 Kiss FM, Lucena, Quezon ** 102.3 Kiss FM, Tagbilaran, Bohol * Kiss92 FM, Singapore * KISS 969, Sri Lanka * Kiss Radio Taiwan ...

) *

Rizzle Kicks Rizzle Kicks are a British hip hop duo from Brighton, England, consisting of Jordan "Rizzle" Stephens (born 25 January 1992) and Harley "Sylvester" Alexander-Sule (born 1991). Their debut album, '' Stereo Typical'', was released in 2011. As o ...

(hip hop duo) *

Robert Emms Robert Emms (born Robert James MacPherson; 20 May 1986) is an English film, stage and television actor, known for portraying Pythagoras in the BBC One fantasy-adventure series ''Atlantis'', and Leonid Toptunov in HBO's Miniseries ''Chernobyl'' ...

(actor) * Róisín Mullins, (dancer and presenter) *

Shawn Emanuel Shawn Emanuel is a British R&B, soul, and pop singer-songwriter and record producer from West London's Notting Hill Gate. Biography Early years Emanuel was born in London's borough of Lambeth on 5 January. Although he was born in South Londo ...

(singer) *

Shelby Logan Warne Shelby Logan Warne (formerly Adam Warne; born 30 August 1993) is a British music producer, audio engineer, multi-instrumentalist, songwriter, visual artist, video producer and frontwoman of the alternative and progressive rock group, Kyros. ...

(singer and multi-instrumentalist) *

Shingai Shoniwa Shingai Elizabeth Maria Shoniwa ( ; born 1 September 1981), known professionally as Shingai is a Zimbabwean-British singer, songwriter and musician, best known as the vocalist and bassist for the English indie rock band Noisettes. In 2017, she ...

of the band

Noisettes Noisettes are an English indie rock band from London, currently composed of singer and bassist Shingai Shoniwa and guitarist Dan Smith. The band first achieved commercial success and nationwide recognition with the second single of their se ...

(singer) *

Stuart Matthew Price Matthew Price (born 6 August 1983 in Kidderminster, England) is a British actor, dancer and West End stage and concert singer known for playing Riff Raff in three European tours of ''The Rocky Horror Show''. He is also a composer, having writt ...

(singer) *

Tania Foster Tania Foster is an English singer-songwriter. Foster has achieved one number one single, in the UK, after featuring on Roll Deep's single " Green Light". Tania is currently working with hit writer and producer Fraser T Smith, and also features o ...

(singer) *

Talia Mar Natalia Margaret Haddock (born 6 November 1996), better known as Talia Mar, is a British singer-songwriter and Internet celebrity, internet personality. Her collaboration with Sigala on "Stay the Night" charted at No. 11 on the UK Singles Chart. ...

(singer and Internet personality) *

Tara McDonald Tara Jane McDonald (born September 9, 1986) is an English singer-songwriter. She is signed to Play Two/Warner Records. McDonald achieved success working and co-writing with Armand van Helden and Axwell on the chart hits " My My My" and " Feel ...

(singer) *

Tom Holland Thomas Stanley Holland (born 1 June 1996) is an English actor. His accolades include a British Academy Film Award, three Saturn Awards, a Guinness World Record and an appearance on the ''Forbes'' 30 Under 30 Europe list. Some publications h ...

(actor) * Twist and Pulse (performers) *

Will Bayley William John Bayley (born 17 January 1988) is a British professional Paralympic table tennis player, ranked world number 1. He is the 2016 Summer Paralympics Games gold medallist and the 2014 World Champion. From September 2019 Bayley partic ...

(Paralympian)

References

External links

Official website

The BRIT Trust
{{authority control City technology colleges in England Educational institutions established in 1991 Secondary schools in the London Borough of Croydon Educational charities based in the United Kingdom Schools of the performing arts in the United Kingdom Dance schools in the United Kingdom Science and technology in London 1991 establishments in England