FROM CLASS CLOWN TO CLASS ACT

Former secondary-school teacher Margaret Magee, 56. always dreamed of being a comedian

- VERONIQUE HAWKS WORTH

As I scribbled a funny doodle on the whiteboard, my class erupted in laughter. It was 2017 and, as an English teacher,  I knew how to read a room full of teenagers. ‘All right, settle down,’ I chuckled. I loved being a teacher – but the best part was making the kids laugh.

It was always my nature to be the class clown, ever since my own school days – even if playing the comedian did result in me getting expelled when I was 15 for my ‘disruptive behaviour’! I wondered if one day I might be a comedian, telling jokes on stage. But after leaving school, life took hold and my comedy dreams were pushed aside.

QUIET AMBITIONS

I gave birth to my first son in December 1987, shortly after graduating from university. I moved to London, and in 1994 married my first husband. Two more children followed – another son in March 1995, then a daughter in May 1998. I loved being a mum, but when the kids were all in school, in 2004, I started work as an English teacher.