Academy’s award: Oscar bravo over TV’s Educating Yorkshire

The final episode of the Channel 4 series showed assistant headteacher Matthew Burton take inspiration from the film The King’s Speech to help a GCSE pupil overcome a stammer to achieve exam success.

Now the producer of the film is to visit the school with his Oscar after being so moved by the show.

Viewers watched as Thornhill Community Academy pupil Musharaf Asghar listened to music on headphones to help unlock his voice – an idea Mr Burton had taken from seeing Colin Firth playing King George VI in the movie he had watched just days earlier.

Among the audience for the last episode was Gareth Unwin, who won an Oscar for producing The King’s Speech. He was so impressed he contacted the school the next day to offer to bring in his Oscar and talk to students about the film.

That visit takes place today with Musharaf, who left the school to go to college in the summer, also returning.

Educating Yorkshire was edited together from footage captured by 64 fixed cameras set up inside the school earlier this year.

The last episode of the series shows Musharaf overcoming his stammer as he speaks with headphones on. He then went on to get the C grade he needed in English, secure a place in college and deliver an emotional speech in front of the school.