Harry Styles’ former primary school teacher said she was ‘touched’ by the musician’s kind tribute after he dedicated a song to her at his Old Trafford show.
The 28-year-old musician, who recently released his new album Harry’s House, had returned to the North of England for an emotional comeback tour in front of 74,000 fans.
Speaking to the crowd during the show at Old Trafford Cricket Ground, Styles told fans that he’d heard that some of the teachers from his old primary school were in the audience that he wanted to find.
Styles then paid tribute to his teacher Ms Vernon as well as other staff at Hermitage Primary School in Holmes Chapel, Cheshire.
“I just want to thank you for everything in those formative years. Thank you so much,” he said.
“It means a lot to me that you’re here tonight, you were truly a wonderful teacher. Thank you from the bottom of my heart and it means a lot that you’re here and I’m dedicating this next song to you,” he said before launching into a rendition of Canyon Moon.
We love this video of @Harry_Styles thanking Mrs Vernon, his primary school teacher, at his concert in Manchester last night
— Department for Education (@educationgovuk) June 16, 2022
A great teacher can have a positive impact on a child that lasts a lifetime
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Unfortunately, Ms Vernon wasn’t actually in the audience. However, her colleague Ms Bailey was there and they flashed her face on-screen during the tribute.
Speaking about the kind gesture following the show, Vernon later appeared on the Zoe Ball Breakfast Show and reflected on her experiences teaching Styles.
“I taught him when he was four and five and he was adorable. He was a little bit of a monkey, cheeky, and he had lots of friends so a lot of his personality that you see now was quite evident from an early age,” Vernon explained.
She added: “But yeah, in everything he was amazing, all the teachers here are just so proud of him and so excited about this and everything that he’s achieved. Thank you Harry for that lovely message, I was very touched by it.”
Styles was a pupil at Hermitage Primary School in Holmes Chapel before going on to Holmes Chapel Comprehensive School. At 16, he auditioned for X Factor and sealed his fate, becoming the iconic pop star he is today.
During a high-energy show, Styles also spoke about his excitement at being so close to his home town.
“This is an absolute pleasure to be here at my home show, I cannot begin to tell you how much it means to me to play here tonight and all of you for coming,” he said.
He went on, “Some of the happiest times of my entire life have been making these last couple of albums, and some of the happiest times of my life have been right around the corner from here. So it feels pretty perfect to me playing these songs to you here tonight.”
