How Prof Brian Cox inspired York actress to retrain as a physics teacher

Lara Stafford hated physics at school. It was while watching a documentary with Professor Brian Cox that she became fascinated with the subject.

So much so that the actress from York decided to retrain as a physics teacher.

And during lockdown she combined her two great loves – acting and physics to create the Theatre of Science – free online interactive shows all about physics which has just won a lockdown award.

“I always wanted to be an actress and got a first class drama degree at Manchester,” explains the mum of two.

“I worked at York Dungeon for a bit and even spent time in India making Bollywood movies, but I never really felt satisfied. I had been quite academic at school and I started to question the world around me and wanted to know more. But it was Brian Cox that really inspired me.”

She embarked on an Open University science degree before training to become a physics teacher.

“The problem with a lot of physics that is taught in schools that it doesn’t really relate to the world we live in and people who enjoy it are nerds. Whereas in reality physics is in everything around us and the key is to engage young people.”

She taught in a London school before moving back up north with her young family.

Theatre of Science came about when she had the idea to run a Science Tour of York for York University’s Festival of Ideas in 2019.

“I had this idea of doing a science tour around York,” explains Lara. “I really love the city and I thought it would be good to combine a tour with science demonstrations such as how sparklers are made and gunpowder to tie in with Guy Fawkes. We also went to a haunted house and I showed people how a box of mirrors was used to make it look like ghosts were appearing. It all went down really well.”

She also got some funding from the Institute of Physics to create entertaining science stage shows for families, often touring libraries in Yorkshire, combining fun fairy tales with the laws of physics.

Lara was taking a career break to raise her own children, aged four and two, when lockdown started in March.

To help home schooling parents structure their days, she decided to start streaming free science shows for under 14s from her Facebook page, Theatre of Science.

“It’s live so it’s quite daunting, but it is also a lot of fun and very interactive.”

Hundreds of children started tuning in for the weekly lessons. Using different household objects participants conduct a live experiment and enjoy a science-themed story time.

“I say it is aimed at up to 14-year-olds but I know quite a lot of adults watch me as well as children as young as three. Even my own two-year-old loves to do experiments,” says Lara who has even brought out a physics magazine to reward those who support her though a Patreon page.

With ambitions to grow her virtual classroom even more once lockdown is over, the Patreon page enables people to support her monetarily. This has funded Lara’s work after the first lockdown. She’s very thankful to her audience and plans “to keep it up while people keep watching!”

Now fans have voted her lockdown lessons the Best Online Class/Activity in the Ways to Teach Awards 2020.

The awards celebrate resources that help children learn at home. One happy parent commented that her child had “never been so interested in science and school work” with another adding high praise for Lara. “Your sessions have been amazing. My son always asks if it is a Theatre of Science day.”

Lara explains the secret to her success.

“The idea is that the show appeals to adults and children; people of all ages see the world a bit differently after a show.

“We’ve covered big subjects like volcanoes and black holes, but also things like spider webs, woodlice and poo – which proved popular, as you can imagine.

“It’s been quite strange to receive photos on social media of kids doing the activities with my head on the TV in the background.

“I’ve never met the people I’m performing to but there’s a real community feel now. I love it.”

The award is now a badge of honour proudly displayed on Lara’s website www.theatreofscience.co.uk and she is hopeful it will help to connect new audiences to the show. Following the long lockdown Lara now has a wealth of video content available online which she is keen to share with even more people.

She would like to create a more formal GCSE-based physics resource. She also does a home education lesson.

“It’s really important to me that the show is free to watch. Physics needs more girls and minority groups choosing it as a career so it needs to be as accessible as possible.”

The award has also been a huge confidence boost.

“I’d performed on stage before but never gone live online. The idea made me cringe. It’s been a massive learning curve but everyone’s been really supportive and this is the icing on the cake. I’m going to write ‘award winning’ before every mention of my name now.”

You can find details about the weekly shows and home school lessons on the Theatre of Science Facebook page or website, simply search ‘Theatre of Science’.

Theatre of Science provide interactive science lessons and shows, for free, online via the Facebook page https://www.facebook.com/theatreofscience

www.theatreofscience.co.uk/