Dragon’s Den star Theo Paphitis was the latest celebrity to enjoy a performance from Blackpool and The Fylde College’s choir.

The choir, who last year impressed Arlene Phillips when they performed at VQ Day, had another taste of national success when they were asked to sing for 500 guests at the National Training Awards 2011, held at Excel.

The group sang an arrangement of ‘Let the Sunshine In’ from the musical Hair, featuring solo performances from Perry Hanson, Ollie Yank, Craig Colley, Fran Meaby and Shauna Waugh.

A selection of 48 first and second year BA (Hons)Musical Theatre students made the trip to London, where they also performed a 30 minute set on the performance showcase stage at WorldSKills London 2011, the largest ever international skills Competition and careers event.

Musical Director David Scott-Thomas said:

“The students did a brilliant job. They were great ambassadors for the College. This is only the fourth year we’ve been running the BA (Hons) in Musical Theatre and already we’ve sung all over the country in front of some high profile people. It’s great for building the reputation of our degree and the College.”

Third year student Adam Lofthouse, 21, from Thornton received personal thanks from Theo after tweeting him on the night. Adam said:

“I sent Theo a tweet saying ‘just sang our socks off with you glaring at us in the front :) Thankyou’ and he replied saying well done to us all and that he really enjoyed our performance.

“It’s great to get recognition for our performance, and I had a great time in London.”