From star turn ... to security guard
LAST NIGHT she sang an operatic rendition of the National Anthem in front of Prince Charles at the Commonwealth Games opening ceremony.
Tomorrow Samantha Oxborough will be at the Games again – donning her overalls to work as a security guard.
The 28-year- old mezzosoprano was the main singer of the anthem at Birmingham’s Alexander Stadium.
In her other role, she will be keeping the public safe.
‘It is the biggest thing I’ve done,’ said Miss Oxborough, whose name was put forward to organisers by her lecturer at the Royal Birmingham Conservatoire, Paul Wingfield.
‘They contacted me and said, “We would love you to be the main singer for the national anthem”,’ she said.
Miss Oxborough began singing aged six at Sabden primary school near Clitheroe in Lancashire, where her talents were spotted by choirmaster David Wilkinson, who trained with one of Luciano Pavarotti’s singing teachers.
And it’s not the first time Miss Oxborough has performed in front of the Prince of Wales – a decade ago she sang at a Prince’s Trust charity evening.
Miss Oxborough undertook training for a Security Industry Authority licence during lockdown, having been a steward since 2014, a job she did alongside her musical training.
‘It’s pretty cool,’ Miss Oxborough said. ‘It is interesting going from one to another, but [security] is what I know and what I do. I am very professional.’