''The Choir'' is a BAFTA award-winning TV series following

Gareth Malone Gareth Edmund Malone (born 9 November 1975) is an English choirmaster and broadcaster, self-described as an "animateur, presenter and populariser of choral singing". He is best known for his television appearances in programmes such as '' The ...

as he tackles the task of teaching choral singing to people who have never had the chance, or experience to sing before. The first series aired on 4 December 2006, the third series, ''The Choir: Unsung Town'', which involved the creation of a choir in

South Oxhey South Oxhey is a suburb of Watford in the Watford Rural parish of the Three Rivers district of Hertfordshire, England. It is located in the south western corner of Hertfordshire and close to the boundary with Greater London. At the 2011 Census S ...

, Hertfordshire began on BBC Two on 1 September 2009, whilst the fourth series, ''The Choir: Military Wives'' was aired in November 2011. The series began to air on

BBC America BBC America is an American basic cable network that is jointly owned by BBC Studios and AMC Networks. The channel primarily airs sci-fi and action series and films, as well as selected programs from the BBC (such as its nature documentary ser ...

in the summer of 2010.

Transmissions

The Choir

The original series of ''The Choir'', aired in three episodes in 2006, followed Gareth Malone's attempts to start a choir from scratch in Northolt High School, a comprehensive school in

Middlesex Middlesex (; abbreviation: Middx) is a Historic counties of England, historic county in South East England, southeast England. Its area is almost entirely within the wider urbanised area of London and mostly within the Ceremonial counties of ...

that has never previously had a school choir. In the programme he auditions 160 pupils for his 30-strong choir. After only nine months' training, take them to China to compete in the 2006 World Choir Games. This observational documentary series focuses on the emotional journey of the choir members as they overcome their initial reluctance and try to meet Malone's challenge of performing competitively.

The Choir: Revisited

This one-off documentary was filmed as a follow-up to the first series of ''The Choir'' and features a return visit to the pupils of Northolt as Malone finds out how the young singers' live have changed in the two years since the first programme.

The Choir: Boys Don't Sing

In the second series, originally aired in 2008, Malone takes his choral mission to the

Lancaster School Lancaster Academy is a co-educational secondary school located in Knighton, Leicester, England. History On 1 September 2000 Lancaster School acquired specialist sports college status one of only four schools in the East Midlands to have achie ...

, an all-boys school in

Leicester Leicester ( ) is a city status in the United Kingdom, city, Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority and the county town of Leicestershire in the East Midlands of England. It is the largest settlement in the East Midlands. The city l ...

which, like the school in the first series, has no previous singing tradition. The

single-sex education Single-sex education, also known as single-gender education and gender-isolated education, is the practice of conducting education with male and female students attending separate classes, perhaps in separate buildings or schools. The practice of ...

setting focuses the programme on issues of

gender Gender is the range of characteristics pertaining to femininity and masculinity and differentiating between them. Depending on the context, this may include sex-based social structures (i.e. gender roles) and gender identity. Most cultures u ...

as Malone tackles the perception that "boys don’t sing". Malone joins the teaching staff and has to work to gain the trust of fellow teachers. His ambition is to form a 100-strong, all-boys choir performing out on the stage alongside the best school choirs in the country as part of the Schools Prom concert at the

Royal Albert Hall The Royal Albert Hall is a concert hall on the northern edge of South Kensington, London. One of the UK's most treasured and distinctive buildings, it is held in trust for the nation and managed by a registered charity which receives no govern ...

. As he tries to drive through his ambitious plans, he also has to spend time in classroom teaching, deal with the daily bureaucracy of being a teacher, and coping with staff politics.

The Choir: Boys Don't Sing – Revisited

This is a one-off documentary follow-up to the second series, in which Gareth Malone returns to the Lancaster School to catch up with the former choir members and find out if he has made a lasting impact on their lives.

The Choir: Unsung Town

The third series of ''The Choir'', broadcast in September 2009, focuses on a town rather than an education setting. Gareth Malone takes his choral challenge to the community of

Watford Watford () is a town and borough in Hertfordshire, England, 15 miles northwest of Central London, on the River Colne. Initially a small market town, the Grand Junction Canal encouraged the construction of paper-making mills, print works, a ...

, a

housing estate A housing estate (or sometimes housing complex or housing development) is a group of homes and other buildings built together as a single development. The exact form may vary from country to country. Popular throughout the United States a ...

area where

working class culture Working-class culture is a range of cultures created by or popular among working-class people. The cultures can be contrasted with high culture and folk culture, and are often equated with popular culture and low culture (the counterpart of high ...

is strong and there is no tradition of choral singing. Malone's challenge is to break through preconceptions about choirs and motivate local people to sing together, and he succeeds in creating a community choir and staging a choral festival at South Oxhey playing fields. The legacy of the programme was the creation of the South Oxhey Community Choir and the South Oxhey Youth Choir. During the filming of ''The Choir'', the choirs performed at venues including the

Watford Colosseum Watford Colosseum is an entertainment venue in Watford, Hertfordshire, England. Established in 1938, as the Assembly Rooms for Watford Town Hall, the complex was extended in 2011 with improvements which included new meeting spaces, a new restauran ...

in December 2008,

St Albans Abbey St Albans Cathedral, officially the Cathedral and Abbey Church of St Alban but often referred to locally as "the Abbey", is a Church of England cathedral in St Albans, England. Much of its architecture dates from Norman times. It ceased to be ...

in February 2009, and headlining at

Sox Fest '09 The Sox Fest was a community festival which took place in 2009 in South Oxhey, in the borough of Watford, United Kingdom. It was created by choirmaster Gareth Malone Gareth Edmund Malone (born 9 November 1975) is an English choirmaster and ...

in May 2009. In April 2009, the Community Choir made their debut recording at

Abbey Road Studios Abbey Road Studios (formerly EMI Recording Studios) is a recording studio at 3 Abbey Road, St John's Wood, City of Westminster, London, England. It was established in November 1931 by the Gramophone Company, a predecessor of British music c ...

Gareth Malone continued as choirmaster for two years following the conclusion of the TV recording and now maintains his support as patron. The choir continues to perform regularly with their current musical director, Simon Wookey.

The Choir: Unsung Town – Revisited

This is a one-off documentary follow-up to the third series, in which Gareth Malone returns to South Oxhey to catch up with the choir members both past and present; in order to see if the community is continuing to be united through the use of song.

The Choir does Sport Relief

Aired on 19 March 2010 as part of Sport Relief 2010; Gareth Malone gathered and trained Olympic and Paralympic athletes to form The Sport Relief Choir.

The Choir does Comic Relief

Gareth Malone took part in the BBC's charity fundraising show Comic Relief 2011, which was aired on 18 March 2011. He formed a choir of

celebrity chef A celebrity chef is a kitchen chef who has become a celebrity. Today, chefs often become celebrities by presenting cookery advice and demonstrations, usually through the media of television and radio, or in printed publications. While television ...

s (including

Ainsley Harriott Ainsley Denzil Dubriel Harriott (born 28 February 1957) is an English chef and television presenter. He is known for his BBC cooking game shows '' Can't Cook, Won't Cook'' and '' Ready Steady Cook''. Early life Harriott was born in Paddin ...

Antony Worrall Thompson Henry Antony Cardew Worrall Thompson (born 1 May 1951) is an English restaurateur and celebrity chef, television presenter and radio broadcaster. Early life Worrall Thompson was born in Stratford-upon-Avon, Warwickshire. His parents, Michae ...

Nancy Lam Nancy Lam (born in Singapore in 1948) is a Singaporean celebrity chef famous for her Southeast Asian cuisine and television appearances. Beginnings Nancy Lam moved to London, United Kingdom from Singapore at the age of 22. After originally tra ...

Rosemary Shrager Rosemary Jacqueline Shrager (; born 21 January 1951) is a British chef and TV presenter, best known for being an haute cuisine teacher on the reality television programme ''Ladette to Lady'', and as a judge on ''Soapstar Superchef''. She also ...

Gary Rhodes Gary Rhodes (22 April 1960 – 26 November 2019) was an English restaurateur and television chef, known for his love of English cuisine and ingredients and for his distinctive spiked hair style. He fronted shows such as ''MasterChef'', ''Mast ...

Rusty Lee Rustie Lee (born 22 May 1949) is a Jamaican television personality, television chef, actress and singer. She participated on the Channel 5 reality-television show ''Celebrity Super Spa'' in 2013; ITV's ''Who's Doing the Dishes?'', hosted by Bria ...

and others) and trained them to sing a choral arrangement of

Rick Astley Richard Paul Astley (born 6 February 1966) is an English singer, songwriter and radio personality, who has been active in music for several decades. He gained worldwide fame in the 1980s, having multiple hits including his signature song "Ne ...

's 1987 song "

Never Gonna Give You Up "Never Gonna Give You Up" is the debut single recorded by English singer and songwriter Rick Astley, released on 27 July 1987. It is one of Astley's most famous songs. It was written and produced by Stock Aitken Waterman, and was released as ...

". During rehearsals, Astley appeared in person. The song was performed live on television as part of the fundraiser show.

The Choir: Military Wives

The fourth series, ''The Choir: Military Wives'', began airing on Monday, 7 November 2011 and followed the three-episode format of the previous series. The situation is different from previous series; the setting is on two

British Army The British Army is the principal land warfare force of the United Kingdom, a part of the British Armed Forces along with the Royal Navy and the Royal Air Force. , the British Army comprises 79,380 regular full-time personnel, 4,090 Gurk ...

bases in

Devon Devon ( , historically known as Devonshire , ) is a ceremonial and non-metropolitan county in South West England. The most populous settlement in Devon is the city of Plymouth, followed by Devon's county town, the city of Exeter. Devon is ...

( Chivenor Barracks and

Royal Citadel, Plymouth The Royal Citadel in Plymouth, Devon, England, was built in the late 1660s to the design of Sir Bernard de Gomme. It is at the eastern end of Plymouth Hoe overlooking Plymouth Sound, and encompasses the site of the earlier fort that had been buil ...

), and Malone seeks to enlist voices for an all-women choir - the wives and girlfriends of military personnel deployed to

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

. The programme explores the vulnerability of the women while their partners are away on active service, and Malone's aim is to strengthen their morale and raise their profile in the public perception. The culmination of the programme is a performance by the Military Wives Choir in

The Royal British Legion The Royal British Legion (RBL), formerly the British Legion, is a British charity providing financial, social and emotional support to members and veterans of the British Armed Forces, their families and dependants, as well as all others in ne ...

's Remembrance service at the

on 12 November 2011. As a spin-off of the Military Wives series, the Military Wives Choir recorded a CD single of the song '' Wherever You Are'' specially composed for the programme by

Paul Mealor Paul Mealor OStJ CLJ OSS FRSA (born 25 November 1975) is a Welsh composer. A large proportion of his output is for chorus, both a cappella and accompanied. He came to wider notice when his motet ''Ubi Caritas et Amor'' was performed at the w ...

. The song became the

Christmas number-one single In the United Kingdom, Christmas number ones are singles that top the UK Singles Chart in the week in which Christmas Day falls. The singles have often been novelty songs, charity songs or songs with a Christmas theme. Historically, the volume ...

. The DVD of the series was released in June 2012 by

Acorn Media UK RLJE International Ltd, d/b/a Acorn DVD, a British company that publishes and distributes DVDs, as well as selling home-video products and streaming videos with a particular focus on British television. History Launched in 1997, Acorn Media U. ...

The Choir does Children in Need

Aired on 18 November 2011 as part of

Children in Need 2011 ''Children in Need 2011'' was a campaign held in the United Kingdom to raise money for Children in Need. 2011 marked the 31st anniversary of the appeal which culminated in a live broadcast on BBC One which began on the evening of Friday 18 Novemb ...

. Over 2000 children performed via video link-up from across the UK for the Children in Need 2011 appeal night singing

Avril Lavigne Avril Ramona Lavigne ( ; born September 27, 1984) is a Canadian singer and songwriter. At age 16, she signed a two-album recording contract with Arista Records. Her debut studio album, ''Let Go (Avril Lavigne album), Let Go'' (2002), is the ...

's "

Keep Holding On "Keep Holding On" is a power ballad by Canadian singer-songwriter Avril Lavigne, appearing as the last track on Lavigne's third studio album, ''The Best Damn Thing'' (2007), which was released on April 17, 2007. Lavigne has described the rest ...

The Choir: Sing while you work

Series 1

In the 2012 series, Gareth Malone takes his choral mission into places of work, travelling to Lewisham NHS Trust, the Bristol branch of

Royal Mail , kw, Postya Riel, ga, An Post Ríoga , logo = Royal Mail.svg , logo_size = 250px , type = Public limited company , traded_as = , foundation = , founder = Henry VIII , location = London, England, UK , key_people = * Keith Williams ...

Manchester Airport Manchester Airport is an international airport in Ringway, Manchester, England, south-west of Manchester city centre. In 2019, it was the third busiest airport in the United Kingdom in terms of passenger numbers and the busiest of those n ...

and the offices of

Severn Trent Water Severn Trent plc is a water company based in Coventry, England. It supplies 4.6 million households and business across the Midlands and Wales. It is traded on the London Stock Exchange and a constituent of the FTSE 100 Index. Severn Trent, the ...

. He sets up a choir of employees in each organisation who then rehearse music with the aim of competing in a singing competition in front of a judging panel consisting of the music director of the

John Lewis Partnership The John Lewis Partnership plc (JLP) is a British company which operates John Lewis & Partners department stores, Waitrose & Partners supermarkets, its banking and financial services, and other retail-related activities. The privately-held publ ...

, Manvinder Rattan; soul singer

Ruby Turner Francella Ruby Turner MBE (born 22 June 1958) is a British Jamaican R&B and soul singer, songwriter, and actress. In a music career spanning more than 30 years, Turner is best known for her album and single releases in Europe and North Americ ...

; and choral conductor

Ralph Allwood Ralph Allwood (born 30 April 1950) is a British choral conductor, composer and teacher, who currently holds the appointment of Fellow Commoner advising in Music at Queens' College, Cambridge. He was previously the Precentor and Director of Mus ...

. The winning group is to be judged the best workplace choir. Manchester airport choir were eliminated at the semi final stage. Of the three remaining groups, Severn Trent Water choir won the final.

Series 2

For the second series of Sing While You Work, staff choirs from five organisations are created.

Gareth's All-Star Choir

Gareth forms an All-Star choir, bringing together a group of celebrities from television, sport and theatre with the aim to record and release the official 2014 Children in Need single Wake Me Up (Originally by

Avicii Tim Bergling (; 8 September 1989 – 20 April 2018), known professionally as Avicii (, ), was a Swedish DJ, remixer and music producer. At the age of 16, Bergling began posting his remixes on electronic music forums, which led to his first rec ...

). The choir consists of 12 celebrities;

Mel Giedroyc Melanie Clare Sophie Giedroyc (; , born 5 June 1968) is a British actress, comedian and television presenter. With Sue Perkins, she has co-hosted series including ''Light Lunch'' for Channel 4, ''The Great British Bake Off'' for the BBC and cha ...

Alison Steadman Alison Steadman (born 26 August 1946) is an English actress. She received the 1991 National Society of Film Critics Award for Best Actress for the Mike Leigh film '' Life Is Sweet'' and the 1993 Olivier Award for Best Actress for her role as Ma ...

Alice Levine Alice Esme Levine (born 8 July 1986) is an English radio and television presenter, narrator, and comedian. Early life and education Levine was born in Beeston, Nottinghamshire. Her father is a retired lecturer at the University of Nottingham. H ...

Jo Brand Josephine Grace Brand (born 23 July 1957) is an English comedian, writer, presenter and actress. Starting her entertainment career with a move from psychiatric nursing to the alternative comedy stand-up scene and early performances on '' Saturd ...

Linda Robson Linda Patricia Mary Dunford ( Robson; born 13 March 1958) is an English actress and television presenter. She is best known for playing Tracey Stubbs in the sitcom '' Birds of a Feather'' (1989–1998, 2014–2020) and her appearances as a weekl ...

Maggie Alphonsi Margaret Alphonsi (born 20 December 1983) is an English former women's rugby union, rugby union player who played as a Flanker (rugby union), flanker for Saracens W.R.F.C. and England women's national rugby union team, England before retiring i ...

Craig Revel Horwood Craig Revel Horwood (born 4 January 1965) is an Australian-British author, dancer, choreographer, conductor, theatre director, and former drag queen in the United Kingdom. He is also a patron of the Royal Osteoporosis Society. Horwood is best k ...

John Craven John Raymond Craven, (born 16 August 1940) is an English journalist and television presenter, best known for presenting the BBC programmes '' Newsround'', ''Countryfile'' and '' Beat the Brain''. Early life Craven was born in Leeds, West Rid ...

Larry Lamb Lawrence Douglas Lamb (born 1 October 1947) is an English actor and radio presenter. He played Archie Mitchell in the BBC soap opera '' EastEnders'', Mick Shipman in the BBC comedy series ''Gavin & Stacey'' and Ted Case in the final series of ...

Fabrice Muamba Fabrice Ndala Muamba (born 6 April 1988) is an English former professional footballer who played for Arsenal, Birmingham City and Bolton Wanderers as a central midfielder. Born in Zaire, Muamba moved to England at the age of 11 and subsequently ...

Nitin Ganatra Nitin Chandra Ganatra (born 30 June 1967) is a Kenyan-born British actor. He is known for portraying Masood Ahmed in the BBC soap opera, ''EastEnders''. Early and personal life Ganatra was born on 30 June 1967 in Kenya. Both sides of Ganatra's ...

and

Radzi Chinyanganya Munyaradzi Thomas Kingsley "Radzi" Chinyanganya (born 12 September 1986) is a British presenter and broadcaster. He co-presented the BBC children's TV programme ''Blue Peter'' from 2013 until 2019, and the ITV game show ''Cannonball'' in 2017 ...

Ratings

DVD releases

Awards and nominations

''The Choir'' was awarded a BAFTA at the

British Academy Television Awards 2007 The 2007 British Academy Television Awards were held on Sunday 20 May at the London Palladium Theatre in London. They were broadcast live on BBC One in the UK. The nominations were announced on 11 April 2007. Winners and nominees Winners in bold. ...

for Best Feature. ''The Choir: Boys Don't Sing'' won several awards in 2009, including a BAFTA at the

British Academy Television Awards 2009 The 2009 British Academy Television Awards were held on 26 April at the Royal Festival Hall in London. The event was broadcast live on BBC One and was hosted by Graham Norton. The nominations were announced on 24 March. Winners in bold. Nominat ...

for Best Feature of 2008, the 2009 Broadcast Award of Best Popular Factual Programme, the

Royal Television Society The Royal Television Society (RTS) is a British-based educational charity for the discussion, and analysis of television in all its forms, past, present, and future. It is the oldest television society in the world. It currently has fourteen r ...

2009 for best Constructed Factual Series, and Best Programme Series in the 2009 VLV Awards ''The Choir: Unsung Town'' was the winner of the Best Factual Programme of 2009 category at the 2010 Broadcasting Press Guild Awards, and was nominated for a BAFTA as best Television Feature of 2009 for the

British Academy Television Awards 2010 The 2010 British Academy Television Awards were held on 6 June 2010. The nominations were announced on 10 May. This year new awards were added including the award for Best Actor/Actress in a Supporting Role. Graham Norton hosted the ceremony. Winn ...

United States version

The

USA Network USA Network (simply USA) is an American basic cable television channel owned by the NBCUniversal Television and Streaming division of Comcast's NBCUniversal through NBCUniversal Cable Entertainment. It was originally launched in 1977 as Madison ...

planned to air ''It Takes a Choir'' starting in October 2014. Episodes had been taped two years earlier. The premiere date was delayed several times, and late in November 2014, the network announced that it would air all eight episodes on the afternoon and evening of 29 December.

References

External links

* {{DEFAULTSORT:Choir, The BBC Television shows BAFTA winners (television series) 2006 British television series debuts 2000s British music television series 2010s British music television series BBC television documentaries Television shows set in England Choral music 2000s British reality television series 2010s British reality television series 2000s British documentary television series 2010s British documentary television series English-language television shows Warner Bros. Television Studios franchises