CBeebies star George Webster: ‘If we were all the same the world would be very boring’

George Webster was born in January 2001 in Toronto, Cananda. In 2021, he became the first presenter on CBeebies with Down’s Syndrome and the following year won the BAFTA for Best Children’s Presenter. He has also appeared on Strictly Come Dancing’s 2022 Christmas Special, Casualty, The Railway Children Return, World on Fire and short films Bebe A.I. and S.A.M – the latter won him the Best Actor Award at Oska Bright Festival.

In March 2023, George released his autobiography, This Is Me, and has recently followed it up with his second book, Why Not?

He is a member of the Separate Doors theatre company’s National Ensemble; and in the four year programme for the Performance Academy at Mind The Gap company in Bradford. He is also the founding officer of the National Down Syndrome Policy Group and an ambassador for Parkrun, Yorkshire Dance and Mencap, where he is a MythBuster.

Speaking to the Big Issue for his Letter to My Younger Self, George looks back on a musical youth, emphasises the importance of representation and embracing differences.

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I always wanted to perform, dance, act and sing on stage and screen. When I was a lot younger, I loved putting on mini performances with my sister Lauren in front of my parents, Rob and Jane.  

I joined a local musical theatre and music school called Stage Door at the age of eight. I did musical theatre, drama and singing. I always enjoyed singing and still do. I always say that I’m a great singer, but according to my family, my singing voice is so painful it’s like hearing a cat being strangled.  

I would dance along in front of the TV watching Strictly Come Dancing. When I was younger, Lauren and I joined a dance class on a Saturday afternoon. We’d do different styles of dance.  

When I was 11, I joined an inclusive contemporary dance company in Leeds called MeshDance with dancers that have Down’s syndrome and other disabilities. In 2017, we were picked as the first inclusive dance company to represent Yorkshire to perform at the National Finals of U.Dance in Birmingham. It was so much fun.  

When I was younger there wasn’t anyone with Down’s syndrome in the media, like books, films and television shows. This was one of the reasons I wanted to become an actor and dancer – to represent people with Down’s syndrome and other disabilities too.  

Before I spoke with words, I used a language called Makaton which uses signs and symbols to help communicate with people. My TV role models were Justin Fletcher (aka Mr Tumble) and Dave Benson Phillips. They really inspired me. They also inspired my sister Lauren, who doesn’t have Down’s syndrome, but she would join in doing Makaton with me and her favourite phrase was the same as mine: “more food please”.  

I would say to my younger self to keep going. You might be a role model for everyone with Down’s syndrome and other disabilities when you grow up. Representation will be important to you, and you’ll want more improvement for people with disabilities being represented. 

My professional career started when I joined a professional dance troupe called The Talent Hub with dancers that have Down’s syndrome and/or autism. We went on five residencies to create a dance piece to tour nationally around the UK. The tour got cut short due to the Covid outbreak. 

Because I do a lot of parkruns, Sky Sports Mix approached to ask if I wanted to make a documentary. I filmed at home, my Friday night class at MeshDance and my local parkrun, which is Woodhouse Moor at Hyde Park in Leeds. I had my friends involved as well: Jaz, Rowan, Alys, Tom, Bev, Francis, Pritti, Emily Kinghorn and Emily Kent. Also, my dance teachers Karen and Mia. 

After filming with Sky Sports, Mencap watched it and thought I would be a great ambassador. The first job I did was to lead the planning on the London Marathon as Virgin chose us as the main sponsor that year, but then it went virtual due to Covid.  

The big campaign now is Myth Busters. Mencap Myth Busters are all people with a learning disability representing the amazing things that can be achieved, and campaigning for change. Just after that was announced, a Mencap key worker called Neil Ely – who is in a filmmaking duo with Lloyd
Eyre-Morgan – asked if I wanted to be in a short film that they were writing. The film is called SAM and it’s about having a learning disability and sexuality. I worked with an actor called Sam Retford, of Ackley Bridge fame, and David Tag from Hollyoaks. 

From that, I got an agent and since then I’ve been super busy. I filmed a video with BBC Bitesize busting the myths on Down’s syndrome and it went viral. Claire Taylor, a producer on CBeebies, saw the video and thought I had the perfect attributes for a CBeebies presenter. I went to Salford, Media City and did a screen test, which is an audition. It was so much fun!  

A month later, I got a phone call from Claire saying I’d got the job as a CBeebies presenter. I was so excited that I squealed down the phone. The video of the phone call went viral worldwide.  

I’ve been having amazing feedback from parents and grandparents saying, “How inspiring and what an amazing role model for our kids.” I got a Bafta award for Best Presenter at the Bafta Children and Young Person’s Awards. I feel very honoured, privileged and super proud of this incredible achievement. 

In 2022, I was asked if I wanted to be a contestant on the Strictly Come Dancing Christmas special and I said, “YES, PLEASE!” I absolutely loved the whole experience, and it was a massive dream come true. Dancing with Amy Dowden was so much fun. Amy is a lovely and gorgeous human being inside and out, an incredibly talented dancer and I’m so glad that she has come through her cancer treatment. We became good friends, and still are now. 

I would tell my younger self to not ever change and to keep asking ‘why not?’ Being different isn’t a negative or scary thing. Being different is positive and a great thing to be. If we were all the same, the world would be very boring. 

George Webster’s books This Is Me! andWhy Not? are out now (Scholastic, £7.99 each). They are available to buy or preorder from The Big Issue shop on Bookshop.org, which helps to support The Big Issue and independent bookshops.

Find out more about Mencap MythBusters

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