Ipswich great-grandad, Danny Davey, 73, a former roofer, went viral in August after passing his GCSE English, having left school at 14 with no qualifications. Here, he explains what it felt like...
It was GCSE results day – let me explain.
I left school at 14 without any qualifications. I went straight to work, exchanging a bright future for £4 a week.
After retirement, I was 73 and not having an education became one of my big regrets. So, I did a GCSE in maths eight years ago and gained a grade C that I was very proud of.
At the time, I thought never again. But, as we all know, never doesn’t always mean never.
As a child I used to read short stories in my mother’s magazines, and I always thought I would like to write some of my own.
Now retired – I thought it might be time to start.
But where to begin? I thought a metaphor was a Greek god and a semicolon was an internal body part.
I did some research and decided to go to Suffolk New College to do an English language GCSE, to learn the language I have spoken all my life. Who would have thought?
I really felt on the back foot as it was nearly 60 years since education and now it was like it was my first day at school again.
I was the oldest student in the college with the most to learn. But things went well, and the class were a really nice bunch of people.
Some months into the course, I won the annual college short story competition. Something was beginning to click, and I got a double page spread in the East Anglian Daily Times (EADT) about my success. Even my winning story was published.
Before long, the day of reckoning was fast approaching, and it was time for the exam.
As it was, I ran out of time on both papers and didn’t complete two questions. Surely, I was going to fail?
Fast forward to results day and imagine my horror when I was personally invited to the college to open my envelope.
I was praying I might scrape a four. I was met by press officer John Nice and Principal and CEO of the college, Alan Pease. Alan asked me if I would be happy with a four. He had no idea how happy.
I apprehensively opened the envelope and couldn’t believe my eyes. I managed to get a six. I came over quite emotional and actually had to hold back tears. The dam nearly burst but I held it back. Nobody knew what this meant to me. It was a personal achievement that was second to none.
As it was, this was the day I went viral. There were photos and questions along with many congratulations from staff and others. The college really made a fuss of me. I went home a happy man.
An hour later I got a phone call from John. Would I like to come back in as BBC Look East would like to put me on their programme. Everything blew up from there and the fall out was more publicity than I could imagine. Did I like the attention? Of course I did, I’m a bloke.
Suddenly I was in the EADT, The Sun, The Mirror, The Independent, The Mail and dozens of local papers throughout the UK, including Ireland.
And things didn’t stop there. I was on Radio Suffolk. I then had an interview with the Times who not only gave me a good write up but also interviewed me on Times Radio. One of my grandsons was excited to find over half a million hits of me on Tik Tok. Another found me on Instagram and then the youngest came in and said ‘Grandad, you are on YouTube’.
It kept going. The BBC called me up to have a spot on their international news program called The Context. And if all that wasn’t enough, a holiday company called HF Holidays heard that my goal was to learn to write short-stories and so they have kindly given my wife and me a creative writing and walking holiday in the Peak District - with all expenses paid.
Although the viral storm is over – almost every day someone says ‘saw you on the telly’ or ‘saw you in the paper” - and looking at some of the congratulation cards I received, I have a constant reminder of the day I went viral.
As for what’s next – I’d love to write a book of short stories – so who knows, I might go viral all over again?
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