John Bishop offers experience of a lifetime for Media Students

Sixth Form media students from Ormiston Bolingbroke Academy recently benefited from an all-expenses paid trip to London to see the rehearsals and filming of ‘The John Bishop Show’.

John, a former pupil of the academy’s predecessor school, recently contacted Principal, Mrs Evans to invite students down to the VERSA studios in London to watch the rehearsals and filming of his popular Saturday night show.

On arrival, OBA students and accompanying staff, had the opportunity to meet the popular comedian and chat with him in detail about his company, career and experiences to date.  John and his crew at So Television and Lola TV were all really welcoming and invested time talking to students about their respective job roles.  Producers, directors, Studio owner and ITV commissioner all took time to meet the group and discuss the importance of their own responsibilities within the production process. 

As part of the trip brief, students were given the chance to film their own TV show on the set. Using scripts and graphics they had created in their Sixth Form lessons the week prior, students were excited to put their theory into practice.

Mrs Abigail Fenner, Media Teacher at OBA, said:

“All the students were very nervous at first, but it was amazing to see them come out of their comfort zones. After a few takes it became more natural and the nerves wore off! The students that did not want to be on stage had the opportunity to work with the technical crew behind the scenes, using cameras, rigs, lights, sound, vision mixing and graphics. The studio sent over our TV shows and the students loved being able to watch how their vision came alive… with a few giggles at themselves as well!”

Students and staff watched the full rehearsal of The John Bishop Show and got to see first-hand how quickly the crew turn around the show to be filmed at 7pm. The group then sat in the audience to watch the show being recorded and were invited on stage by John at the end to meet his guests Aj Odudu, Stephen Mangan and Seann Walsh.

Mrs Fenner, said:

“Our sixth formers felt really honoured to be given all the opportunities they did throughout the day and have come away from the experience with a whole new perspective on Media and production. They have been able to see first-hand how they can succeed within the media sector, and some are now even thinking about changing university courses or careers paths as a result. Mr Fenner (Head of Sixth Form at OBA) and I were extremely proud of all the students and how they conducted themselves throughout the whole day. As an academy, we cannot thank John, Shanna and the whole team enough for being so accommodating and organising an amazing trip. The day was truly inspiring to be a part of.”