Here At Last

On Wednesday 30^th March, GMS hosted a visiting group called, ‘Here at Last’. Every group from Year 7 to Year 11 had an hour in the hall with them. Mr Chapman sums up the triumph that it turned out to be.

“As if there was any doubt that Here At Last’s visit to GMS would be a success, we hadn’t bargained for quite how much of a success it would be.

Don’t get me wrong – the group was not about shaking the foundations of the school, and the anticipated hi-energy shenanigans that one might come to expect of a boyband’s performance were pleasingly (it turns out) absent. I’d expected a lightshow and was initially disappointed by the fact that there wasn’t going to be one. What we had instead was a much quieter, stripped back show of five 18-20 year olds, talking and singing to their audience, each sat on one of our blue plastic chairs with not much more than a mic and the small sound desk behind them for decoration.

Anyone who might have entered the hall with just a touch of cynicism about what was soon to unfold – myself included – was quickly turned around by the fact that these guys can SING. In between covers of songs by other artists including Justin Bieber, Adele and Ed Sheeran, the band members each talked about their experiences of cyber-bullying and mental health issues that affected them and, in one case, an older sibling. Considering they were barely older than those sitting in the audience, they were incredibly eloquent and handled some occasionally-challenging questions with great aplomb. The talks were sometimes very moving and you felt that they were delivering an important message. With Here At Last’s personal and musical credibility now clearly visible, it was quite poignant to see a significant number of our students realise that these guys were just doing what they do, and doing it well. Respect was quickly earned.

In contrast with the quieter nature of the show, the excitement post-performances reverberated through the school. That there were very long queues afterwards for autographs and selfies – I’m talking both students and staff – was testament to just how well it all went down.

A truly memorable event. Who needed a light show anyway?”

Many thanks to Mr Chapman for organising this unforgettable event.