Bates Day 2016

Last week was the week of the Bates, or the Alan Bates Award, to give it the full correct name.

I've been involved with this for the past five years and every year the team at the Actors Centre have managed to up the stakes, the level and the profile of the event. this one has to have been the best yet and on Thursday last week, the building was positively buzzing.

Finalists, three girls and three boys this year much to the relief of the gender police, arrive in the building early. It's the first chance they have had to meet and work with their duologue partner, and I get a quick chance to pop in and look at the work of each pair. I don;t direct, but I may just offer a few words of guidance. After all, I want them to look at their very best when they play the dialogue in front of the judges that afternoon.

They are nervous, yet excited - experiencing for the first time probably just what it feels like to be waiting to interview for a job that you really want.

Our judges, Agent Deborah Willey, BBC Casting Head and AC board member Julia Crampsie, and my old school friend and fine actor, Alex Jennings. They are genuinely thrilled to be here and very on side for the finalists.

It's an entertaining afternoon and the judges are on good form. Friendly, and welcoming. Always worth remembering that the people on the other side of the table always want you to be right.

It's decision time so I leave them alone and go to check on how the finalists are feeling. Frocks are going on for the ceremony and they all scrub up well. Some of our mentors are arriving. Others are away working. One is in La, one is St Lucia and one in Manchester. (No short straw there then!), but three of them are present.

I get to speak at length in the ceremony - financial pleas, lots of praise for the whole award and a couple of gags. All seem to work. Then it's time to welcome Juliet Stevenson for a very personal and empowering address before opening the envelopes. Runners up are Maanuv Thiara and George Naylor, but yes...we do ....we have a female winner and a very worthy one in Shauna Mclean who is moved to tears by her win, and so are many of the audience. It's all been worth it.

Upstairs to the John Curry for some warm wine and a section of Marks and Spencers finest party food, and time to talk about our mentoring scheme and, this year, launch my book. Elliot Barnes- Worrell does a brilliant job of that and he and I and the actress Kazia Pelka, are paired with our mentees. The other three get a video from their far flung mentors who they make contact with over the weekend.

It's been a hugly successful day for the Actors Centre and for all involved and hopefully a good launch for my book which I hope covers an awful lot of stuff that we look at when mentoring.

And as a final reward my partner takes me out for a very special dinner - now that's what I call mentoring!

Juliet Stevenson and Bates Winner 2016 Shauna Mclean from Italia Conti