Nov 3, 2009

A Cool Find

Don't feel neglected RA Fan Blog readers.
It isn't you... it's me and my busy life. :)

The good news is tomorrow is November 4th, which means the premier of Spooks 8! 
(I'm counting on you, YouTube. Don't let us non-Brits down.)

Also, I have a fun surprise for everyone to enjoy!
Ever wondered what Richard Armitage looked like as a kid?
Well, see if you can spot School Boy Richard here:
Any luck?

I'll give you a hint... second row, 4th from the left.

I came across this picture thanks to a friend giving me a heads up about it
being posted on Facebook by one of RA's former classmates, Julie Miles.
Here is the un-cropped picture, with Julie's and Richard's names left visible:
I don't know how well you'll be able to read this, but Julie is in the first row,
furthest to the left. 
Wasn't Richard such a cute youngster? 
(If I were in his class, I would've been writing little love letters to him,
complete with hearts and stick-figure drawings of us holding hands.)

Curiosity always gets the better of me.
I contacted Ms. Miles, who granted permission to post this picture,
and even answered
several questions!  (I always feel like such a pest when asking favors
but most of the time am pleasantly surprised at how kind and generous
people are in return.  So thank you, J!) 

Julie discussing the class picture and going to school with Richard:
"The picture was taken in our last year at Brockington College, Enderby, Leicester - so we were about 14. We were in Mrs Chambers Tutor Group for 3 years from when we were 11 to 14.
He definitely wasnt a brooding loner!  He was very smart but not a swot & got on with mostly everybody - he wasnt a "rolling in mud fighting & footie-mad" lad - might have been a bit musical if I remember rightly. I was a giggler at school, especially at that age and in Mrs Fanthorpe's French Class, Richard was one of us making faces and jokes at each other to start us off laughing and not being able to stop - happy days :-)"
Julie realizing Richard was famous and thoughts on his work:
"I completely missed him until Robin Hood - riding out on a Sunday morning, my friend and I, two thirty-somethings discussing the previous evenings viewing - phew did we see Sir Guy in those leather trousers blah blah blah - he's called Richard Armitage - I was at school with a Richard Armitage says I - then it dawned on me - Guy of Gisbourne was in my Class, how cool was that?!  I watched The Vicar of Dibley (cos he was in it) . . . . to be honest had to hide behind a cushion - think because the character was more like him it made it a bit cringeworthy - cheesy, but in a good way if you know what I mean.  Came across North & South, loved it.  Dont watch Spooks - not for any reason its just not on my timetable.  Favourite Role - oooh - got be Sir Guy - leather trousers, riding horses, twinkle in the eye!"
Again, thank you Julie for sharing this picture!
I'm sure you've put a smile on the faces of many RA fans. :)

Happy "Spooks" watching, everyone!

18 comments:

phylly3 said...

[Sighing]***
I recognized him right away! This post is so special that I am a bit teary right now...
Thank you, thank you, thank you, to you, Nat and of course to Julie!
I don't know what else to say!
I am overcome!

bZirk said...

How sweet, and no, I'm not being sarcastic. I may get choked too.

But for now:

Natalie,

You are gooood. You are really good. :D

Oh, and you have a life outside this blog? Imagine that.

Avalon said...

Neat post! I love how you find all the goodies! No need to surf the fan sites, you have all the good stuff here.

loriBear said...

Wow how fun is that. I have to admit that I didn't pick him out though I thought that it was the best choice.

(hard to tell with the shot so small)

I also loved the little interview you had with his classmate. I can't imagine how that would feel to admire someone only to find out that you were a classmate!

jtmh said...

I second, third, fourth......what phylly3 said...

" [Sighing]***
This post is so special that I am a bit teary right now...
Thank you, thank you, thank you, to you, Nat and of course to Julie!
I don't know what else to say!
I am overcome!
"

You are such a wonder Nat! Please pass on our sincere thanks to Julie!

Nat at RA FanBlog said...

Glad you like!
I owe much credit to my friend D for alerting me to the facebook post in the first place. She is truely the best at finding RA stuff and always shares her plunders. :)
I wish I had a bigger pic, but this is all that was available.

Bzirk: Finding out that I'm not glued to the computer all the time must be a strange thing for you to imagine indeed... like when I was little and would run into my teachers at the grocery store and be amazed to discover they didn't live at the school and had a life outside the classroom. :) Let's just say I'll be glad when this VERY BUSY week is over!

Mulubinba said...

A scoop, Nat!! Great post ... thanks so much and thank your friend and Julie for sharing!!

endorwitch said...

haha - i guessed which one was Richard without cheating. YAY! It was the goofy smile.
and you are awesome. i would have been too shy to contact Julie to ask her stuff. And wasnt she lovely to share that info too? Thank you, both of you!

Sue said...

Gosh I always wondered what he was like as a kid! Love the fringe!

It sounds as though he was a little monkey! Certainly doesn't sound shy and backward at coming forward. He looks happy and carefree. Not the lanky lad with the big hooter, which is how he describes himself.

I wonder if he knows about this photo being in the public domain?

Thanks for sharing Nat and extracting all that info from Ms. Miles! Lucky devil. Don't know about writing him love letters I'd have been dragging him behind the bikesheds for a snog!

RAdored said...

Thanks to Nat and Julie for this and for sharing those thoughts. And yes you have answered a longtime puzzle as to what RA was like as a youngster. And boy was/is he cute. So sweet. One more piece of the RA jigsaw put in place without I hope compromising his respected right to privacy.

This blog has surpassed other longer term sites by being more open and posting pics in a respectful way that wouldn't be allowed so well done. Keep up the good work Nat.

Thanks to both ladies. Fantastic!

WitchyWoman said...

Awww thanks Julie for letting Nat show us the picture. Richard is a year younger than I so seeing that pic made me think of the 80's and my time at school..the hairstyles back then LOL.

Can I just say this week is dragging on because I'm missing update after update.
Its ashame you don't have a clone Nat who can fill in for you when real life takes you away from us.

Spooks tonight....squee.

Unknown said...

Nat - Awesome find! What a cute insight into RA!

Suzyq

Debra said...

Thanks Nat. The "school days" information and photo are so sweet.

You are a doll for posting (and sharing) your blog with us.


Sooo-o-o-o cute (Mr Armitage)!!

Cheers to you, Nat!!

Anonymous said...

If this was taken May/June ’84, RA would have been almost exactly the same age as my younger son (about 13¾), the last few months when nice teenage boys are sweet! This would also be a few months before he experienced the trauma of growing to 6’2”. Typically understated, he would have just won the scholarship to Pattison’s based on his musical and dance abilities and yet Julie remembers him as ‘might have been a bit musical’!

What’s not to like?

Anonymous said...

"I watched The Vicar of Dibley (cos he was in it) . . . . to be honest had to hide behind a cushion - think because the character was more like him it made it a bit cringeworthy - cheesy, but in a good way if you know what I mean."

I recall reading a similar comment from Richard in an interview; namely that Harry in VoD is most like him of all the characters he's played. Interesting that Julie confirms the same.

This is one of the best blog entries I've read. I'm green with envy at your coup! :)

Maria Grazia said...

I love his smile. Sweet, tender boy. Thanks Nat!

Traxy said...

Nat! You borderline stalker, you! :D Amazing find and thank you so much for sharing!

The resolution isn't very high so can't see that much but from what we can see, he's really cute! Him pulling faces in French class... aww. Fancy that Sunday conversation, "I used to go to school with an RA... ... ...OMG, it's HIM!!"

That he's most like Harry isn't cringeworthy at all, it just makes me a bit weak at the knees. <3

Shula Armitage said...

Thank you so much for this bonus!!! He's so cute, such a good suprise to hear from his former buddy ^^