Kieran White

From 2000 to 2004, I was a Chorister at Wells Cathedral, starting at the age of 10. I sang under Malcolm Archer, who was the Director of Music at the time. I served as Head Chorister for two years, largely due to older choristers' voices changing.

During my time at Wells, we went on tour to Brugge, sang with the Three Choirs Festival in Truro, performed in Ampleforth and York, and recorded a CD of Britten’s Missa Brevis. We also sang at the Bath Festival, with one performance broadcast live on the radio. During those years, I gained invaluable experience in leadership and responsibility that has shaped the way I approach my professional life today.

Being part of the Cathedral choir gave me social confidence at a young age. Thanks to my time at Wells, I can walk into any room and make friends without hesitation. As a child, you don’t really know what nerves are; you’re given so much praise and nurturing that you begin to trust yourself completely. Whether it was singing a solo I had learned that day, leading the choir while sight-reading, or setting an example for the younger Choristers, I was constantly pushed to rise to the occasion. We were gifted with the confidence to be our best selves in everything we did.

My career is now primarily based in Europe, with performances at venues such as the Opéra Royal de Versailles (France), Konzerthaus Vienna and Innsbruck Festival of Early Music (Austria), the Monteverdi Festival in Cremona (Italy), and the Warsaw Chamber Opera (Poland). In the United States, I made my debut with the New York Philharmonic, singing solos in Messiah across four sold-out concerts at David Geffen Hall in Manhattan. I’ll return to the U.S. this December for a Messiah performance in Washington.

The aural training we received at Wells has continued to serve me throughout my career. I once stepped into the lead role of a 2.5-hour opera in Italian.With just three days’ notice. I managed to learn the part off-copy. That kind of rapid preparation is only possible because of the musical grounding I had as a chorister.

I still feel deeply connected to choral music. A vivid example is Byrd’s Civitas Sancti Tui specifically the moment when the boys sing “Jerusalem” for the first time. That feeling never leaves you. The sound, the setting, and the emotion tied to making music in sacred spaces stay with you for life.

Kieran says:

“I would have never reached my musical potential if I wasn’t a Wells Cathedral Chorister. I’m eternally thankful to Wells.”

September 2025

Hugh Goodgame

I was a Chorister at Wells Cathedral between 1975 and 1978. I sang under Anthony Crossland, with David Cooper as assistant organist. During that time, we toured Cornwall, singing in Truro Cathedral and other venues across the county. We performed in many concerts throughout the Southwest. One highlight was singing in the Three Choirs Festival, performing alongside other exceptional cathedral choirs whose distinctive sounds added to the excitement.

My father was one of the Vicars Choral and an organist, as well as teaching at the school so music and cathedral life were central to my childhood. The year I left the choir I was given the opportunity to accompany the choir and orchestra choir on a tour to Germany and Holland. A particularly special experience for me as I had just started learning German. Over time, I’ve come to understand just how deeply those years shaped me.

After school, I was given the opportunity to study in Germany and enrolled at the University of Erlangen – Nuremberg where I fostered my interest in language and linguistics. I then returned to the UK and read German and Scandinavian languages at University College London. After 2 more years working across multiple sectors in London, foreign climes beckoned again and I moved to Spain to teach English before returning to the UK to earn my PGCE in Modern Languages. Further study a few years later involved an MA in Translation Studies at Surrey before a return to teaching.

Today, I work with people who have communication and learning difficulties, particularly those on the autistic spectrum. I teach them how to communicate effectively, manage pressures, and explore career or further study opportunities. My focus is on helping them build communication skills and feel truly understood. That early musical training gave me a sharp ear for rhythm, tone, and nuance. Qualities that translated seamlessly into language and communication work.

Music has always remained part of my life. I still listen to everything — from Glenn Gould’s classical piano to the hard rock of Ozzy Osbourne — and approach it with the same depth and appreciation I developed as a chorister. Singing not only trained my ear but also shaped my mind and values. Our house is always full of music as my fiancé Emma, another OW singer and clarinettist trains choristers and quiristers here in Winchester

In recent years, I had the extraordinary opportunity to return to Wells and sing once again in the very place where it all began — this time alongside fellow alumni and current choristers. My father was in the audience along with my stepmother and Emma. It was a profoundly emotional experience that brought everything full circle. The sound was amazing and we all left thinking, yes, they’re pretty damn good, those Wells guys!

Hugh says:
“Being a Chorister has given me the confidence to walk into any room, with anyone, and hold my own. The proof of handling pressure and high standards from a young age instilled that social ability to connect with people.”

September 2025

Frances Henderson

I was a Chorister at Wells Cathedral for eight years, leaving in 2007. I served as Deputy Head and Head Girl Chorister, singing under Malcolm Archer, Rupert Gough, and Matthew Owens. Highlights included tours to France, the Low Countries, and Paris, performing at iconic venues like Sacré-Cœur and Notre-Dame, singing with Dame Emma Kirkby and Jools Holland, and recording CDs each summer.

After studying Criminology at De Montfort University, I worked six years as a Legal Secretary in Bristol and sang with Exultate Singers, touring Portugal, Sicily, and the Balkans. In 2017, I moved to Weston-super-Mare and joined the police as a Special Constable in 2019, becoming a full-time officer in 2020. Following a CID placement, I am currently an Acting Sergeant with a Response Team. I serve as the first-line manager for a team of constables, acting as the primary liaison between officers and senior leadership teams.

Choral music is still a huge part of my life today. Returning to the Cathedral and singing Evensong feels like coming home, and my chorister years remain one of my most treasured and formative experiences. “it was an incredible, historical, and wonderful thing to have been part of. I'm extremely proud and honoured to have been a Wells Cathedral Chorister.”

Being a Chorister is one of the best musical educations you could hope for. Being so disciplined at such a young age is such a key skill for your future career. My time as a chorister instilled a strong work ethic and time management skills.

Roddy Downes

Roddy Downes was a chorister at Wells Cathedral from 1960 to 1964, with choirmaster Denys Pouncey. Highlights include recording a Christmas album in 1964 and taking part in special Easter services.

He fondly remembers day trips to Weymouth on Ascension Day, where he would take a bag of pennies to spend at the fair. They visited Christmas Steps in Bristol, home to a joke shop where they could buy stink bombs and play pranks on other Choristers.

He joined the Crown Estate as an Executive Officer dealing with Foreshore and Seabed interests, then with Agricultural estates in Somerset and Wiltshire, and finally London residential and commercial properties in Regent’s Park and Kensington Palace Gardens.

Now retired, he maintains a lifelong love of choral music.” I listen to Carols at Christmas and follow the live services. At the recent chorister reunion, the choir alongside twenty ex-choristers sang Dyson in D which was marvellous.”

He says: “To join Wells, you do not need the voice of an angel. With the right pitch and a positive outlook, the choir will train you. I see no downside whatsoever in being a chorister.”

Meeta Raval

Meeta Raval (pictured above) was one of the first girl choristers at Wells in 1994 (Wells Cathedral was only the second in the country to admit girl choristers into its Cathedral Choir). Meeta left the choir in 1996 but the singing bug had bitten and she went on to study singing, gaining an place at the Guildhall School of Music and Drama, and then the Royal Academy of Music, before joining the prestigious National Opera Studio in 2009.

In 2012, Meeta took to the stage as Cio Cio San in Anthony Minghella’s production of Madama Butterfly at the English National Opera and sang Donna Anna in Opera North’s Don Giovanni. In 2013, Meeta performed the solo soprano in Verdi’s Requiem at the Sage Gateshead, Newcastle. This same year, she made her recital debut at London’s Barbican Hall with a Puccini Gala and sang at the Royal Festival Hall, Birmingham Symphony Hall and Manchester Bridgewater Hall in a series of ‘Simply Gershwin’ recitals with the London and Manchester Concert Orchestras.

Meeta’s many accolades include becoming a world finalist at the BBC Cardiff Singer of the World 2011 (pictured above), and winning the Dame Eva Turner Prize for “a soprano with dramatic potential”. She was the inaugural prize-winner of the Royal Academy of Music Pavarotti Prize. She was also the recipient of the Independent Opera Award.

Jeremy Lloyd

Jeremy Lloyd (chorister 1999-2004) recently made his West End debut in the box office smashing hit The Comedy About A Bank Robbery at the Criterion Theatre.

On leaving Wells Cathedral School, Jeremy (here pictured on the far right as his character, the hapless Office Randall Shuck) won a place at LAMDA (the prestigious London Academy of Music and Dramatic Art) having been awarded the Boris Karloff Charitable Foundation Scholarship.

Jeremy's theatre credits include Princess Ida (Finborough Theatre), How Many Miles to Babylon? (Lyric Theatre Belfast), Springs Eternal, The Breadwinner, The Man Who Pays the Piper (Orange Tree Theatre), The Busy Body (Southwark Playhouse), Angry Young Man Angry Young Woman (Arcola Theatre), A Christmas Carol Suite (NYJO at Ronnie Scott’s), Giant Leap (Pleasance Edinburgh), and Unearthed (Arcola Theatre/Brewhouse Theatre/West Country Tour). He starred in the black comedy horror film The Hatching (Sabre Films) and played the role of Benjamin Britten's school friend, David Layton, in Benjamin Britten: Peace and Conflict (Capriol Films).

About his performance at the Criterion, the Official Theatre review said: 'The pure inventiveness and innovation behind this play is what makes it such a blinding success ... with newcomer Jeremy Lloyd absolutely stealing the show as the overworked, distressed Officer Randal Shuck’.