East

Josh Huckett is one of them

Josh: doesn't want to mess up the chance

"I got in the wrong crowd when I was younger, I got into drugs, fighting, violence and making a nuisance of myself.

"I've got once chance left. This could go quite far.

"I don’t want to mess that up like I messed school up."

London Bus

The London Bus Theatre Company was given funding from a number of sources, including the Arts Council, to train six lads from Prospects College in Essex, over a period of six weeks in all aspects of stage acting.

On stage demonstrating their new skills

Musician and actor, Chris Turner, is the principal of London Bus.

He knows that time is tight and he finds that sometimes the lads aren’t very good at listening or taking instruction.

But as time goes on - he believes he is seeing a real change in them.

"A couple of them have even opened doors for people!" he jokes.

"Nutter"

The culmination of the training  is the performance of the anti-bullying play "Nutter" at the Towngate Theatre in Southend.

Time to find out if the six young men dismissed as virtual no-hopers really can have their lives changed by drama.

The boys had a great time and in the audience was Angela Grosvenor, the casting agent for Talkback Thames which produces the police drama, "The Bill".

Could this be the start of a new career?

"Considering they’ve been together for such a short while it's pretty impressive.

"Next time I see a script these boys can fulfill I’ll bring them down to the Bill and audition them."

And two of the lads are employed as actors on a part-time basis by London Bus, acting regularly in schools.

No mean achievement for boys who thought they had no chance!