Alumni of the year EXCELLENCE IN SPORT OR THE ARTS
Catherine Tyldesley BA (Hons) Acting, 2006 Catherine Tyldesley is one of the most recognisable faces to have graduated from Birmingham School of Acting in recent years, having played Eva Price in top TV soap Coronation Street since June 2011. After graduating from Birmingham School of Acting, one of her first acting jobs was a guest role as a midwife in the same programme, as well as appearing in such popular TV series as Holby City, The Royal, Emmerdale and Shameless. She enjoyed her first starring role in the 1920s-set BBC drama Lilies and also showed she had an eye for comedy, appearing in sketch show Scallywagga and sitcoms Two Pints of Lager and a Packet of Crisps and Trollied. Having wanted to sing and act on stage from an early age, Catherine performed
with various theatre groups as a child and teenager but chose to get formal training before embarking on a professional career. She said: “I auditioned for a lot of schools and out of all of them, Birmingham School of Acting was the one that impressed me the most. I came down for the audition day and the tutors we met were all great, and it was the only place that gave feedback to everyone, regardless of whether they offered you a place or not. I learned so much on that day, I thought just imagine what I’d learn in three years. The tuition we received was absolutely outstanding – so many of our tutors had worked in the acting business all their lives and, so to have the benefit of their experience was amazing for all of us.
“I was absolutely ecstatic to get the part [of Eva] because I’m from Manchester, I had friends in the show already and most importantly I was a massive fan. I grew up with Coronation Street and to be part of such a legendary show is so amazing that I miss it when I’m not there. When I’m on holiday, I can’t wait to get back and I’m always looking forward to getting the scripts to see what’s happening next.”
COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT AND LEADERSHIP
Reena Jaisiah BA (Hons) Sociology, 2003 Reena Jaisiah is involved in a number of projects which help to bring diverse communities together, fitting the work around her full-time role as a curriculum support officer in an innercity school. She is a member of an ethnic group that has faced caste-based discrimination worldwide, joining Caste Watch UK in 2003 and is believed to have been the first person in the UK to speak out publically against caste discrimination. Reena formed a theatre company called Caste Away Arts, and co-wrote and directed sell-out play The Fifth Cup. She has worked with local charity Kairos running a drama voluntary course for
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women caught up in sex work, or at risk of prostitution. In 2009, she delivered arts to orphans and members of the Tamil community in Sri Lanka, and has supported waraffected young people through drama project Release UK. She is currently planning to deliver a series of drama taster sessions in a women’s prison with the support of Prison Link. She said: “I’m the kind of person that, if an issue affects me, or I see it affecting other people, I have to do something about it. Caste discrimination was something that had touched me and my community, and I wanted to be proactive
and bring the issue into the open. Being involved in schemes such as this have a positive effect on me as well – I get so much out of it.”