Daisy Stephens

BBC News, Berkshire

Many of us can point to an inspiring teacher we had at some point in our life - but how many of us were taught by a Eurovision performer?

That is what students at Artemis College in Bracknell can say.

Charlotte Steele was a founding staff member of the performing arts sixth form, and would go onto be deputy head teacher - and now, she is representing the UK in Eurovision as part of country-pop girl group Remember Monday.

Her students told the BBC her success was inspiring.

The students at Artemis College had just began preparing for a performance of We Will Rock you when, all of a sudden, their coach got "whisked away to the big wide world of Eurovision", according to student Jemma.

"It had started to get leaked to the press slightly before the official announcement so we had quite a few students coming and saying 'is Charlotte doing Eurovision?' and we all had to go 'oh, we don't know, maybe'," said Rosie Hill, Artemis College principal and a good friend of Steele's.

"The reaction when it was officially announced, the buzz in the building, still to this day is amazing."

Student Logan said it was "crazy" seeing his teacher go from someone he knew locally to someone who "the entire world" recognises.

Another pupil, Ruby, agreed.

"It's crazy to think that someone who is on Eurovision and is that talented and is meeting all these people actually taught us," she said.

"It's really incredible."

Another pupil, Katie, said seeing her teacher "living her best life" at Eurovision made her and her classmates "feel like that could be us".

"If Charlotte can do it, we can do it," she said.

"She is the most amazing teacher... we're so proud of her."

The music trio - Steele, Lauren Byrne and Holly-Anne Hull - formed at Farnborough Sixth Form college over a decade ago.

Steele's friend, Brad Clapson, said Eurovision was a result of "years of grafting" by the band - and Ms Hill said it was that perseverance in particular that set a good example to students.

"It's about teaching our students that you can work for something," she said.

"They've been working at this for 10 years and plenty of people at some point in those 10 years would have gone 'do you know what, maybe this isn't going to work'.

"But the fact after 10 years they are doing Eurovision, it's just a testament that actually if you've got that ambition, got that drive and that talent, it's all worth it."

She said the school was like a family, and everyone was rooting for Steele, who helped found the college in 2018.

"She's just the most caring, loyal person and that transfers across friendships, across her teaching style, and has made a really big impact on the college," she said.

"It's just the most incredible feeling watching someone that has made such a drastic impact here having the time of their life."