Queen’s funeral choirboy, 11, is son of actress and won praise for role in Oscar Wilde stage show
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A choirboy who earned a legion of fans with his “serious” performance at the Queen’s funeral is the son of an actress and has previously won acclaim for his role in an Oscar Wilde stage show, it was revealed today.
The animated vocals of 11-year-old Westminster Abbey singer Barnaby Scholes and the unruly head of red hair captured the imagination of social media users.
His aunt, Catherine Scholes, also tweeted her support from her home 3,500 miles away in Ontario, Canada, saying, “So proud of you, Barnaby!”
And it’s not the first time Barnaby has been picked for his talents, MailOnline can reveal, after the treble played The Child in a Youth Opera production of The Selfish Giant last year.
A review in The Times singled him out for praise, saying: ‘While I wish the child’s part could be even bigger, as it’s a family show, Barnaby Scholes sings with a wonderful purity.’
Barnaby, the eldest of two brothers, lives with his parents, Peter and Catherine – an actress by the stage name Cathy Burke – near Henley, Oxfordshire.
Social media users praise the chestnut choirboy pictured singing his heart out at the Queen’s state funeral
Young Barnaby Scholes (second from right) was swung back and forth as he sang passionately
Users online noted how the little singer put his ‘heart and soul’ into the performance
During the moving service to celebrate the life of Queen Elizabeth II, the boys from the Westminster Abbey Choir School sang hymns and psalms, as well as the national anthem.
While the queen’s coffin was carried into the 753-year-old abbey in central London, the young choristers sang lines, known as The Sentences, from Revelation 14:13, which have been used at every state funeral since the early 1700s. .
And while many praised the choir’s performance during the service, social media users mostly singled out Barnaby.
You could see him singing during the service during Psalm 42:1-7, moving expressively as the choral music filled the abbey.
One social media user said: ‘The little redhead choirboy stole my heart with his seriousness.’
Another described the chorister as a “superstar,” while others praised his “theatrical performance.”
One user tweeted that they’re not a fan of prayer and choirs, but that the “ginger kid” was “living his best life.”
The Westminster Abbey choir is known worldwide and consists of up to thirty boys and twelve professional adult singers, known as Lay Vicars.
Barnaby’s mother Catherine – an actress by the stage name Cathy Burke – appeared in the local paper last year and described her patrolling the woods near their home and cleaning up litter.
“Really, I’m doing it for my kids,” she told the Henley Standard. “You want to think you left the planet in good shape and not completely destroyed it. We are only custodians.
“I just think it’s everyone’s responsibility to help, even in a small way or just by being a responsible citizen in the first place. When everyone plays a small role, together it makes a big difference.
‘We are lucky enough to live in such a beautiful place and it is so sad to see other countries manage litter much better than we do.’
Barnaby, the eldest of two brothers, lives with his parents, Peter and Catherine, near Henley, Oxon, where his mother, an actress by the stage name Cathy Burke, appeared in the local paper last year describing her patrolling. pick up litter from the forest near their house
Many praised the choir’s performance during the service, but social media users were particularly impressed by the chestnut choirboy
Mr Scholes, business giant Invesco’s head of tax affairs for Europe, the Middle East and Africa, said: ‘I am amazed at the amount of litter she has picked up.’
The couple have been married since 2007 and Barnaby’s brother Edward, eight, also attends Abbey Choir School.
Before having her children, Ms. Burke spent 12 years as a singer and actress.
She appeared in pantomimes, portrayed Grace Farrell in a production of Annie and performed with Mid Wales Opera.
During the lockdown in 2020, the family grew vegetables and sold saplings to neighbors, raising £100 for the Friends of Kipkelion, a charity that supports people in Kenya by funding clean water, sanitation and health projects.
Mr. Scholes was a founding member of the trustee when the charity was established in 2010.
Author and music critic Jessica Duchen, who wrote the libretto for The Selfish Giant and Barnaby reprized his role as The Child in August 2022 with Opera North in Leeds, also praised his “incredible performance.”
She told MailOnline: ‘He is so confident and the complete professional, despite being only 11 years old.
“He’s a really nice guy too – observant and obviously very smart. It was great to see him appear at such a great occasion yesterday.
‘I have no idea what his future holds, but many of the boys from the Westminster Abbey Choir School become professional musicians and singers.
“I saw him sing the same part in The Selfish Giant last year and it was remarkable how much he performed in just 12 months or so.
‘Barnaby’s younger brother, Edward, is now also in the choir at Westminster Abbey. He was in an opera project in Garsington this summer ‘Dalia’ by Roxanna Panufnik and me.’
Westminster Abbey Choir School has been contacted by MailOnline.