Sir Thomas Allen
Nominator:Julie Brookes    Category: Entertainment

 

Tom Allen, is an opera singer. He  is a Seaham lad who is now of  international reknown but has never forgetten his roots.
Tom was brought up in Benevente  Street, Seaham and was a pupil at Ryhope Grammar School. There's lots of information about Tom on the internet including singing venues, personal and promotional material.  


RECOLLECTIONS OF TOM ALLEN
I have one of those wide school photographs which was taken at Ryhope Grammar School in 1957.  We all looked very different then but you can still recognise Tom and Dennis Weatherley, a physics teacher at the school.  Dennis was, and still is I believe, a well-known Northern folk singer - he did a brilliant  "Cushy Butterfield".  Dennis was the man who spotted Tom's singing talent. I can remember he spent endless lunch-time and after-school sessions coaching Tom who was an excellent singer even then.
Ed Mason,25th,September 2002, mace@daltonet.com