Singing sensation, model, brand ambassador and rugby player. Miranda Jessop meets Laura Wright, the soprano who helps to sing the England team to victory
It’s not every day you meet someone who is as happy singing in a posh frock in front of 80,000 rugby fans as running around on the pitch in a pair of muddy boots and a gum shield. Yet here I am, in a Putney cafe, sitting opposite just that person – soprano Laura Wright – who, at the tender age of 25, is the Rugby Football Union’s official anthem singer as well as fullback for Rosslyn Park’s ladies team.
On September 5 Laura will be rousing the crowds before the warm-up match between England and Ireland, a few days later she will join Take That at the O2 for the official team send-off and come September 18, as England gear up for the opening match of the World Cup against Fiji she will be there to wish them well.
Born and brought up in Suffolk, Laura is the youngest of four children. Her father is a financial advisor and her mum a performance artist. Music was definitely part of her childhood.
“My mum’s side of the family was very musical. My grandfather played jazz and is still amazing on the piano. Mum can sing really well although she will never admit to it.”
Growing up with three older brothers also meant that sport and competition were constants in her formative years.
“It is a big part of who I am now and why I am so competitive and stubborn. I loved being the only girl and having three older brothers to look out for me. I’ve never been a ‘girly girl’ and we were all very sporty and driven.”
The four siblings all won scholarships to the exclusive Framlingham College, where they were expected to work hard.
“Our parents said that to send all of us to such a great school, we had to try for scholarships. I won a music and all-rounder scholarship. I boarded at first but then became a day girl when my parents moved closer. It was a great school and I loved it there.”
However, it was only aged 13 that she discovered a real passion for singing.
“I was in the car with my eldest brother who had just passed his driving test. We were driving along and singing and I just started harmonising. I didn’t know what I was doing but it was just a natural instinct to do it. From that point I was obsessed with music and singing.”
Two years later her teacher encouraged her to enter BBC Radio 2’s Chorister of the Year (“I really didn’t want to do it but luckily my teacher persuaded me and I won the award for best female voice. I was amazed.”) and following her win, she was invited to join three other girls in forming All Angels, a quartet of young classical singers.
“We had a record deal but at the time I didn’t realise what a big thing it was. I was with the group for four years and, although I enjoyed it, I had to miss a lot of school and it was quite a stressful time. I was young to be in the industry and it made me grow up quickly.”
Laura left the quartet when she won a scholarship to the Royal College of Music at 19 and while she was studying was offered her own record deal. Her debut album The Last Rose was nominated for a Classical Brit Award in 2012.
“For four years it was pretty tough studying as well as making music but I still managed to graduate with a First. I was so chuffed and relieved.”
Since then Laura’s solo career has taken off, singing at numerous prestigious venues and events.
“One of my favourite moments was singing from the pit at the Royal Opera House in Covent Garden while the Royal Ballet danced behind me on the stage. I was one of the youngest ever singers to perform there as a soloist and it was like a dream. I had my own dressing room with champagne and flowers from my mum and dad and the whole family came to watch. I thought to myself, ‘Life can’t get much better than this.’”
But it clearly could and, in recent years, she has performed several times in front of Her Majesty the Queen.
“I sang at the Queen’s Diamond Jubilee Commonwealth Lunch. There were just 80 people there and the Queen was sitting right in front of me. I was presented to her afterwards and she was very complimentary about my voice. It was definitely one of those ‘pinch yourself’ moments,” she remembers.
Music and sport first came together for Laura when she was invited to perform at Sir Bobby Robson’s memorial football game at Ipswich Town’s Portman Road, which was broadcast on BBC1 (“They told me just before I walked out onto the pitch!). And it was following that knock-out performance, that Laura was asked to sing at a couple of games for the RFU. In 2012 she became their first official anthem singer, supporting the England rugby team at their home games.
“I usually start with Jerusalem, followed by God Save The Queen and then another uplifting song such as Chariots of Fire or perhaps one of my own tracks at half time.”
As a keen rugby player herself, Laura was an inspired choice.
“Growing up in a family where sport and especially rugby is so important, for me to bring my singing into that, it feels so special. But even more importantly, the fans have really accepted me as their anthem singer and I feel like we’ve made each other into this enormous choir.”
Laura is kicking off the World Cup tournament by singing at the warm up matches at Twickenham and, earlier in the summer, she spent an afternoon at Stadium MK in Milton Keynes, teaching the Pack of 6,000 World Cup volunteers how to sing Jerusalem.
“I feel so passionate about the words and I told them that they had to sing it with all their heart and soul. They were just brilliant.”
I wonder whether she gets nervous before she takes her position in the middle of the Twickenham turf.
“I always feel petrified and go completely silent five minutes before. I make sure I have my lucky charm with me, a brooch given to me by my mum. As I’m walking out, I worry about the uncontrollables like my microphone not working or the rain.”
Even with her increasing work load, Laura still manages to find time to play for the Rosslyn Park ladies rugby team known as ‘The Slingbacks’. Does she worry about injuries?
“You can’t wrap yourself up in cotton wool but, if I had a big performance coming up, I would certainly be careful.”
And are the nerves worse before singing or playing?.
“I am definitely more nervous before performing, but I love it. When I’m singing, I am on my own but when I’m playing sport, I’m in a team and for me it’s really nice to share the pressure as well as the enjoyment and fun.”
Laura’s latest album, Sound of Strength, combines her twin passions of singing and sport, resulting in a unique sound which emphasises the physical power of music. This is enhanced by the accompanying video which features an unexpected amount of nudity for a classical singer.
“I wanted to show how I use my body as an instrument and how strong a body can be. There is definitely more pressure on sportswomen to look good but I believe that women should be fit and healthy and not too concerned about the way they look. That’s why women’s rugby is so brilliant, whatever size you are there is a position for you,” she adds.
As a true England rugby fan, Laura cannot wait for the World Cup to begin.
“I really hope I am singing the boys home to a win,” she says passionately.
And, as I live just moments away from the stadium, I hope too that, on those match days, the wind will be blowing in my direction and I will be able to open my windows and hear Laura’s magnificent voice leading her enthusiastic thousands strong choir.
Laura has become so synonymous with English Rugby that she was chosen by The London Silver Company to model its official Wear The Rose memorabilia, including the brooch pinned to her dress, above – check out our special offer on their items
If you'd like to belt out your own rugby anthems, try the Kempton Park Come and Sing
