We had the honour of welcoming back Abbey alumna Jenni Falconer (class of ‘94) on Wednesday night. It was a pleasure to hear her describe her time at The Abbey as “amazing” which gave her “such happy memories, adventures, focus, the chance to study a wider variety of subjects and friends for life”.
Jenni shared her story of how she came to be such a successful broadcaster and household name on TV and radio. We even discovered how she got her big break right here in Reading, after a day at The Abbey!
In a bustling Richards Hall, Jenni was ‘In Conversation With’ Andrew Peach, BBC presenter and Abbey governor. As an ARCH event, it was wonderful to welcome students from over six surrounding schools to our audience, as well as members of the Abbey community, to gain such a valuable insight into the broadcasting industry.
As Jenni was a proud Paget House Captain, it was a very fitting moment when current captain Sophie welcomed her onto the stage. Andrew then guided Jenni through a thoroughly engaging, insightful and entertaining conversation.
To kick off, we had the pleasure of listening to Jenni talk about her time at The Abbey. She described her teachers as “amazing and so supportive”, including Miss Laverack and her Spanish teacher, Mrs Giblin, who nurtured her passion for languages. As well as being hockey captain for five years, she also gained her rowing colours. Jenni reflected on fantastic ski holidays, school drama productions and queuing to use the payphone, in what is now Hardcastle Hall, at lunchtimes!
She said that she believes The Abbey is getting students “ready for life” and “this school gives you the confidence to make the chances to shape your career along the way”. Jenni referred to The Abbey as where you’re able to learn “manners, social etiquette and how to be confident in a room when you don’t know anyone and the ability to speak to everyone”.
A brilliant story then came out, of how Jenni’s ‘big break’ links back to one afternoon after a school day here at The Abbey during her final term. She had decided to go into Reading centre, along with some classmates, to audition for the legendary TV show ‘Blind Date’. Later that summer she got the call to say that she’d been selected to take part – and it was during filming that she realised she would love to work in the media.
After filming, Jenni went back to Leeds University, where she was studying languages, and arranged work experience at BBC Radio Leeds, Look North and wherever else she could. Her Blind Date episode aired in December 1994 and she did an interview on BBC radio about being on the show, in which she said that she’d like to work in TV. In what Jenni describes as ‘like a sliding doors moment’ someone from BBC Scotland happened to be listening to that interview and offered her an audition. Jenni went up to Glasgow, got the job, and has worked in media ever since!
Jenni shared the excitement and adrenaline rush of working on live TV shows such as This Morning and GMTV. She talked about flying all over the world to interview celebrities such as Leonardo DiCaprio, Meryl Streep, Ben Affleck and Arnold Schwarzenegger. It was then interesting to hear the comparison between working on TV and radio, and the determination she had to be able to move into audio.
Jenni’s hard work ethic was palpable. She shared how she always “has the appetite to do something, try something new and look for the positive in everything”. It was very clear how much Jenni embodies her own advice of “be very proactive, if you want something to happen, you have to work at it … don’t give up, don’t take no for an answer and just keep going”. This is how she moved into radio. Not afraid to work her way up again, she “put in the hours” hosting a Sunday morning show on Heart, moved to weekday early breakfast and now hosts her own breakfast show on Smooth FM.
It was Jenni who pitched the idea of a running Podcast and her hard work that has made ‘RunPod’ into the success it is today. It was inspiring hearing Jenni talk about how everyone has a specialism, even if you haven’t realised what it is yet. She realised hers was running and turned her passion project into a whole new chapter in her career.
As an accomplished podcast host, we were delighted that Jenni accepted our request to be a guest on The Abbey’s very own ‘Podcast with a Cake’. After a Q&A, the audience in the Richards Hall were invited to head upstairs to our Sixth Form Centre for refreshments and to listen to a live recording of a very special episode. Student podcast presenters, Nia and Sophie, were joined by Jenni and Andrew as they delved deeper into Jenni’s time at the Abbey and offered advice for students.
Jenni gave some wonderful practical tips around confidence and public speaking, as someone who has addressed live audiences of over 40,000. “Take a breath, look around, get out your first words, and then begin – always take a moment”. Sophie commented how reassuring it was that Jenni said that nerves are a good thing, you just need to channel them in the right way. It was heartwarming to see the impact Jenni had on students, including Sophie who shared that she’d “found a new role model” and that it was “truly magical to see this is where we could be in the future”.
Listen or watch the full podcast episode here:
We love to welcome back alumnae to The Abbey School and learn more about your life story. It was a joy to hear Jenni’s fabulous endorsement that this school develops “confident, ambitious, women” and she was a glowing example of just that. Jenni’s clear enjoyment at being back at The Abbey was infectious and it was very special to watch how warm and encouraging she was with our students.
Let us leave you with Jenni’s empowering advice to “Be yourself, unique, different and be proud of yourself”. We are proud that Jenni is part of our Abbey Community and so grateful that she took the time to inspire those following in her footsteps.
