The One Show delivered a heartfelt moment on Wednesday’s episode as the show surprised teacher Oli McVeigh with an award for his incredible contribution to education.
Roman Kemp, the show’s host, unveiled that Oli, who teaches English, ethics, and media at Ferndown Upper School, was being honoured with the Pearson National Teaching Awards for Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School.
The audience listened as glowing testimonials were shared by Oli’s students and colleagues, commending him not only for his dynamic teaching style but also for his dedication to assisting students to excel beyond expectations.
Oli, praised for stepping in to help with various subjects and initiating a mentor programme aimed at discussing positive masculinity and mental health matters, has made a significant impact on his community.
Roman Kemp revealed that teacher Oli McVeigh would be receiving the Pearson National Teaching Awards for Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School (Image: BBC)
Talking ahead of the surprise, Oli’s colleague, deputy head Deneen Kenchington, broke down in tears as they said: “I watch the impact he has on the students and there is nobody quite like him. He sees people for who they are and that makes me really emotional, everytime I enter his classroom I leave wanting to be a better teacher!”
Host Roman then revealed he would be surprising Oli by pretending to stage a radio documentary on boys’ education. However, Oli’s students and colleagues had secretly travelled to The One Show studio in London to surprise him with the Pearson National Teaching Awards for Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School.
The One Show aired an emotional surprise on Wednesday’s episode (Image: BBC)
After receiving the award, an astonished Oli confessed: “It’s just overwhelming, completely overwhelming, you don’t expect this sort of thing to happen to someone like me in a school like us! It doesn’t happen but yeah it’s amazing”, and he shared that the surprise was both “amazing” and “overwhelming”, reports .
But the surprises didn’t stop there, as The One Show had yet another treat up their sleeve – a special message from Dan Smith, the lead singer of Bastille, Oli’s most-loved band.
Taking to Twitter, now X, The One Show also shared the heartwarming moment. They penned: “Tonight, we’re celebrating @TeachingAwards winner Oli McVeigh. He’s been awarded Teacher of the Year in a Secondary School and we had @romankemp deliver the good news. Watch the full surprise on #TheOneShow #TeachingHeroes.”
The One Show continues every single weeknight at 7pm on both One and iPlayer.