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THE ROSE BOWL AWARDS
at a glance...

The Rose Bowl Awards aim to encourage excellent in amateur theatre within the South West of England.  The Awards, presented annually since 1963, are open to any amateur dramatic or operatic club in Bristol and the surrounding area, including Devon, Gloucestershire, Somerset and Wiltshire.  Award winners are nominated by a panel of adjudicators who are chosen for their extensive qualifications and experience in the amateur and professional theatre, either through performing or teaching.

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Newsletter

Our latest update, including details of an increase in the entry fee, is available by clicking HERE

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Please feel free to browse our previous newsletters

Winter 2023 Newsletter

Winter 2022 Newsletter

Spring 2022 Newsletter

Autumn 2021 Newsletter

Autumn Newsletter

Christmas Newsletter

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The Nominations

Nominations for the Award categories are announced in the Autumn each year.  The winners are presented with an engraved Bristol Blue Glass Bowl at the Awards Ceremony which is attended by some 400 representatives of Clubs entering for an Award. 

 

We published the nominations on this website on 20th September 2026.​ The ceremony will again take place at the Delta Marriott, near Castle Park, Bristol on Sunday 15th November 2026 when we will announce the winners. Please make sure our secretary has up to date contact details for your society if you have entered this year so as to ensure that you receive the relevant information relating to the Awards Ceremony.

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The Adjudicators

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MIKE CLARKE

Michael has been involved with the theatre, in one way or another, for nearly 50 years. He started at Sally Noble's Bristol Youth Theatre at the age of 10 and went onto graduate from The Webber Douglas Academy of Dramatic Art in the mid-1980s. Thereafter he worked as a professional actor for a couple of decades. In the 2000s until 2016 Michael worked as a full-time drama teacher, teaching all age groups from year 3 to year 11. In 2012 he gained a first-class honours degree in Theatre Studies from the University of Manchester. Michael currently works full time as a site manager in the construction industry.

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NICK GOODALL

Nick started learning the piano at the age of five and attended the Central Oxford Music School for six years, learning piano with Vernon Jones and playing the violin in the Oxfordshire County Youth Orchestra. He has recently retired from a long and successful career in education. He was Director of Music at Stonar School in Wiltshire for the last 28 years. Throughout his teaching career, he continued to perform regularly as a pianist and bass player and has written several instrumental compositions. He works closely with a number of local musical groups.

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ROSS HARVEY

Ross Harvey is a professional actor trained at the Bristol Old Vic Theatre School. He has worked in theatre, television and radio drama. Theatre includes seasons with The Royal Shakespeare Company, Basingstoke and several major productions for the Bristol Old Vic. He has toured extensively with Bristol’s Ministry Of Entertainment since 1999. He works extensively as a corporate actor in the UK, South America, Far East and India.

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CHRIS HOWLAND-HARRIS FRPharmS, IPresc

Chris worked in NHS primary care which he combined with being a writer, and for many years wrote an anonymous satirical column for a national pharmacy magazine. In addition, he has appeared in amateur drama and theatre sketches, been employed for corporate presentation and voice-over work, and recently has written and directed a number of amateur productions. Now semi-retired, Chris also performs with a sea shanty group that tours regularly around the South West.

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CAROLINE JOY BA Hons, ATCL

Caroline has been involved in television, radio, theatre and performance for the past seventeen years, including touring with a theatre company. She is now a full-time Speech and Drama Teacher.

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DAVE MASTERS 

Dave spent his early 20s trying to become a full time musician and song writer, and is currently involved in an occasional funk and pop covers band. He has been a radio presenter Thornbury FM/ GLOSS FM co-writing a variety of sketches and has been employed for voice over work. He has played in amateur Pantomime, ‘Whodunits’, Farces and Musicals with several local companies  

 

Dave has worked on original pieces, including a World War One period dialogue, a play about Brexit, Morris dancing, and relationships called ‘Folk’, a short two handed play called ‘Right Moves’, and an original production based on ‘A Christmas Carol’

Dave is retired from corporate life and is a frequenter of theatre, for large and small productions both amateur and professional.

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TASH MOORE

Tash studied Musical Theatre at Guildford School of Acting and since graduating in 2004 has worked as an actor, mostly in theatre and often in 'actor-musician' productions. She has also worked freelance across the Film and Television industries in production and crew roles, and in-house for a major UK broadcaster

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CLAIRE MORRIS BEd

Claire studied English and Drama at Leicester University.  During this time she worked in a Parisian recording studio, her voice being used in the production of French/English learning material. She worked as a Drama teacher before moving to the South West where she has been an active member of three different amateur dramatic groups.

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GERRY PARKER - Drama Critic

A journalist and broadcaster with wide experience as an actor and director, Gerry has contributed theatre and music reviews to The Bristol Evening Post (now the Bristol Post), Western Daily Press and other journals since 1970. For many years he has written a weekly column on local theatre for the Bristol Post newspaper.

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ANGIE SISSONS

Angie has been involved with amateur theatre for over 40 years. She has always loved visits to the cinema and theatres especially to see musicals which her mother introduced her to at a very young age. When Angie moved to Failand in 1978, she joined the local drama group. From then until it closed in 2020, Angie was always involved in one capacity or another in the many and varied shows they presented.

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Angie has always enjoyed reading despite being, as she now knows, dyslexic. From Enid Blyton to Shakespeare, Angie would read it all and loves seeing stories brought to live on the stage.

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CLARE TOGHILL BA Hons, FAETC

After qualifying, Clare Toghill taught, directed and choreographed in the Far East, The Middle East and Europe for a number of years. She was responsible for creating theatre-based curricular programmes for schools in Asia and for staging large-scale productions in several countries. She was an in-house Choreographer for a Singapore-based touring Theatre Company during her time there. Clare still teaches Drama and English in schools, lectures in colleges and tutors privately.

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HELEN TOMPSON

With experience in theatre, radio, and film, and a Masters in Scriptwriting, Helen brings a strong understanding of storytelling to her role as an adjudicator. Helen has written and script-edited original works and her passion for community theatre has led her to adjudicate for several years. Helen values creativity and performance over budget, aiming to offer thoughtful, constructive feedback. Helen's understanding of script analysis and storytelling helps her appreciate each production's unique strengths and artistic vision.

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CAROLINE WHITEHEAD - Senior Adjudicator

Caroline trained as a classical singer and pianist. She has performed opera, light opera, classical concerts and musicals for more than 30 years with both amateur and professional ensembles. Caroline works as a vocal coach and has been a musical director for numerous productions in the South West. She also conducts mixed choirs, as well as playing the piano and the cello. As the widow of David Whitehead, Founder of Stage Electrics, Caroline retains a particular interest in lighting, sound and stage management aspects of performance.

The Committee

The Rose Bowl Awards are managed by a Committee comprising family representatives of the founders, Walter Hawkins and John Coe, and other officers and committee members.

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Founding Patrons: Joan Hawkins, Peter Coe, Eleanor Murphy

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President:  Gerry Parker

Chair:  Caroline Whitehead​

Secretary:  Liz-Anne Hendy​

Treasurer:  Rob McDonald

Brian Fisher (Chair of the Awards Ceremony Sub-Committee)

Helen Moss OBE

Veronica Northam

©2025 by The Rose Bowl Awards. 

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