Roughyeds fans were among the millions across the UK who listened to Oldhamer Stuart Beech singing brilliantly on TV last night as part of the BBC’s Michael McIntyre’s Big Show.
A British Airways captain, Stuart was MC and star vocalist at Oldham RLFC’s 20th birthday celebrations in the Queen Elizabeth Hall this time last year.
Emotions ran high in the QE Hall when Stuart employed his rich tenor voice to sing ‘Bring Him Home’ from Les Misérables and dedicated it to the memory of Nigel Marland, his close friend and his former teacher and mentor at Hathershaw College. Nigel, a lifelong Roughyeds fan, died in 2014, aged 66, and Stuart sang the same piece, Nigel’s favourite, at his funeral service at Oldham Crematorium.
As part of last night’s TV show Stuart was hoodwinked into believing he was doing a talk on flying before a door opened and he was confronted by a full-house Theatre Royal, London where he was invited to fulfil an ambition by singing solo on that famous stage.
He beat his nerves to bring the house down with a stunning performance ― one of which the whole of Oldham could be proud, but especially those Roughyeds fans who were privileged to meet him and hear him at their club’s 20th birthday party.
