Whilst not a boarding school, Lord Digby’s was an extraordinary place of learning that changed my mother’s, and by extension my own, life. Alicia continues to be the instigator of fun among the older girls, but now she is in the fourth form, she needs to step up and take responsibility. What we’re left with as the grown ups fade into the distance is an unlikely dynamic of a mini society created and maintained by young people – and there’s an inherent fascination with how young people might find their way through unchartered territory when left to their own devices. Most of our scenes were together, so we spent a lot of time with each other- I really enjoyed being with them because we have lots of inside jokes – it was great fun.

At the age of sixteen, I left my hometown in west Surrey for a school located in the middle of Farmsville, Hampshire. There is a romance this season, which completely took me by surprise – I think Gwen has, as always, learned a valuable lesson from that.The characters each reveal the strength wound through with vulnerability that makes them relatably comparable. This is so clearly based on the Laura Ellen Anderson’s version of the Five where they wear the same outfits regardless of the book’s setting or weather. In 2017, Ella made her professional theatre and West End debut in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child at the Palace Theatre as Lily Potter Jr. To dress up as the aggressively spoiled Veruca Salt from Charlie and the Chocolate Factory, your kid can put on any party dress or glitzy skirt and cardigan. It’s a trick that makes much of little, and allows the focus to remain firmly on the pupils, including gorgeous ‘Bill’ Robinson, played with swagger by Vinnie Heaven.

There was "prep" each evening during which we would do our homework, or sneak into each other's rooms (which was verboten), ears pricked for a patrolling housemistress, or whomever was on duty. The costumes are deceptively simple, comprising burgundy blazers and pleated tunics, boaters, virgin socks and patent leather t-bar shoes. But, by the end of the taster day, I had established that almost everybody else had arrived from independent schools and I did have a wobble. Catherine now gave rent to several racking sobs, followed by, “Oh Mary-Lou, whatever would the others think? Recently speaking with Ella, she answered our questions about booking her starring role of Darrell Rivers in Malory Towers, filming for the new screen adaptation and playing Lily Potter Jr.The main protagonist, Darrell Rivers, was not richly written but as a rather reserved child, I enjoyed her bluntness and trademark "hot temper". As with the Wise Children play, the power bolstering Malory Towers lies in the empathy the characters demand from us and from each other. You've no idea, Mary-Lou, just how hard it was to score those songs of yours just the right degree of pianissimo so that I didn't drown out your singing, but still carried the tune across the hall. There are scenes where they start to understand each other, but there are scenes where they’re glaring at each other in a bad way and plotting against each other to get the others in trouble – and it’s all because of Felicity.

As Artistic Director of Shakespeare’s Globe (2016/18), she directed Romantics Anonymous, Twelfth Night, A Midsummer Night’s Dream and The Little Matchgirl (and Other Happier Tales). It’s also a shame there’s so little choice for Blyton costumes, when the Roald Dahl bit has several costumes for boys, girls and adults. She hopes she’s conquered her terrible temper, but with the one person who really knows how to trigger it, she’s at risk of losing her self-control –her headship –and worst of all –her sister’s loyalty and love. I hope the audience will take away that you have to learn to balance making new friends, while learning that you can be role models for younger girls, even though you’re still learning yourself. Catherine occupied the bed next to her; had done so ever since Daphne Turner's departure had made room for the down-sliding fifth-former.If you've got any Spidey pyjamas lying around, you can use them to re-create Marvel's Spider-Man comic books. in Harry Potter and the Cursed Child, can you say about your time in the show and playing the character? I don’t get nervous usually but right before I went out on stage for the first time, I felt like I was going to faint. Anyway, as the days have passed, I’m now viewing WBD with about as much enthusiasm as I would an invitation to a cockroach convention. She learns a few life-lessons along the way when she has her romantic encounter, gets caught up in the birth of a child in the San and has a first-hand experience with a WWII grenade!

Bizarre", because I had grown up in co-educational schools, on a long leash, in a town that has occasionally claimed to have more pubs per capita than anywhere in the country (and several of those establishments didn't seem particularly interested in whether you were of legal drinking age).If the dress wasn’t such a clashing blue/red it might have been not so bad, but the stripy tights on top make it ridiculous. The show is officially licensed by Enid Blyton Entertainment, a division of Hachette Children’s Group (HCG). and I would happily pay you that and more if you could destroy all evidence this monstrosity ever existed. I got to wear really long hair extensions and there were lots of animals in the scene so that was fun.