On Wednesday 30th
April, BGS was treated to an exciting morning with the author Chris Bradford
who came to talk to year 6 and 7 about his Bodyguard series. Over the
course of the morning Mr Bradford spoke about what it is to be a bodyguard,
gave a reading of his new novel Ransom, and gave some bodyguard
training.
Before the talk began BGS
students were given first-hand experience of a bodyguard in action. Mr Huckle was up on stage in the Great Hall talking to years 6 and 7 when all of a sudden
Chris Bradford was informed of a threat to Mr Huckle and instantly grabbed Mr
Huckle and got him to safety. It was a very exciting start to the morning!
Bradford began his talk with the
question: “what does a bodyguard look like?” Students suggested that they wear
sunglasses all the time, that they are sometimes physically large and that they
blend into the crowd. The students were shown pictures and were asked to guess
who is a bodyguard and what would make them good at their job. Big Rob, a
famous bodyguard who protects celebrities such as
Britney Spears, couldn't run as he
would get out of breath but he definitely
could protect you from a nuclear bomb! A good bodyguard blends into the crowd,
they don’t stand out and some choose to wear sunglasses to protect their eyes
from camera flashes. In short, they look like Chris Bradford who spent the
morning with his sunglasses on at all times, wearing a black t-shirt.
Chris Bradford, as you might be aware, is the author of
the highly popular Young Samurai series. In order to write the Young
Samurai books he learnt different types of martial art including Aikido and
Shotokan Karate. As a self-described “method author” he took part in an
intensive bodyguard training course and learnt the necessary skills that are
employed by Connor in the Hostage and now in Ransom. To
show this he asked Rhiannon from Year 7 to
come up and help him in a reading from Hostage. This live action reading
had everything you could want to set the scene: a timed scream, assassin and a
water pistol!
Students were then asked the interesting question, who
makes a better bodyguard: girls or guys? We were shown a newsreel from America
about how female bodyguards are very in demand. People don't notice female
bodyguards as they are often mistaken for a friend or girlfriend. We were then
shown another video which had Chinese girls being trained by having a bottle
smashed over their heads! Ling, a female character who appears in the Bodyguard
series, is based on female bodyguards.
Students were then given a further insight into how a
bodyguard approaches their job. Connor in the novels uses the Cooper Colour
Code. This is a series of four different levels of awareness (which is
explained in chapter 10 of Hostage). Being
aware of your surroundings is important and students were asked to locate the
hidden camera in the Great Hall. After several guesses it was located in a can
of cola. Chris Bradford once caught students throwing stuff at each other and they've got in trouble with
their teachers but our audience was very well behaved. Students were also shown
different formations for bodyguard teams and a select few were then assembled
to be Chris Bradford’s bodyguards. After a bit of a slow start the BGS team
seemed to get the hang of things.
At the end of the talk Bradford gave a reading from Ransom.
In this scene bodyguards Connor and Ling are on a yacht when it encounters a
threat. At the end of the reading, when Connor is about to fire a flare
gun, Chris Bradford shot a confetti gun into the air
which was a brilliant ending to a fantastic talk (even if it did make Miss
Frude and Miss Kleiman jump!)
We have both the Young
Samurai and the Bodyguard series in the Library so if you want to
know what happens to Connor and Ling, come, borrow a book and find out!
Miss Frude and Miss Kleiman
Miss Frude and Miss Kleiman