TV presenter Jean Johansson had an emotional reunion with the dance teacher who set her on the road to stardom while filming a new STV documentary.
The Place in the Sun star dropped in on inspirational Lorraine Morgan while making a show about role models and mentors ahead of STV’s annual Children’s Appeal.
Jean, 42, revealed how the no-nonsense teacher inspired her career in show business when she was a pupil at the Lorraine Blue Dance Company in Greenock in the 1990s.
The mum-of-one, who grew up in Port Glasgow, said big-hearted Lorraine would overlook the one pound a lesson fee for her and her sister when her family were short.
Jean, who is married to Finnish ex-Rangers star Jonatan, 47, said: “It was so lovely to get back and see Lorraine. It was full circle moment. We’ve kept in touch over the years as she had such a huge influence on my life.
“I was 13 when I started at the dance school and it kept me out of trouble throughout my teenage years as I was too busy dancing to get up to the usual teenage mischief.
“Lorraine taught me so many life skills which set me on the path where I am now. She was old school when it came to discipline, punctuality and time keeping and I learned so much from her.
“She has no idea the impact she had on me and all the other children who have passed through her doors and is always humble about her achievements.”
Jean, who is mum to Junior, 14, added: “There where times when my sister and I did not have the pound for our lesson and she would turn a blind eye. She did that with quite a few of the dancers and I will never forget that about her.
“It was the same with costumes – if you couldn’t afford to buy them they would just magically appear. Port Glasgow was a tough shipbuilding town and families didn’t have a lot of spare money.
“Every time my mum and late dad would run into Lorraine in recent years they would thank her and tell her there is no way I would have ended up with a career in television without her. They are right – I owe her so much.”
Jean’s heartwarming reunion with her dance teacher is just one of the incredible mentor stories to features on The Game Changers which goes out on STV on Friday, November 1 at 7pm.
In the documentary, Jean also meets the team at wheelchair sports club Dundee Dragons, Paisley-based hairdresser Haus of Seisay, and Scran Academy, a youth-led catering organisation based in Edinburgh.
All of the projects have benefitted from funds from the STV Children’s Appeal which has raised more than £32 million since it started in 2011.
Jean, who will be presenting this year’s STV Hogmanay show with Grado, said: “Visiting these amazing projects was an emotional experience. It was great to be able to showcase just how many good people there are out there doing extraordinary things for our young people.
“These amazing role models are doing things because they want to, and they don’t realise how positively they’re affecting people. It’s so important for young people to have people to inspire them who they can look up to.”
The former Animal Park presenter added: “From the Scran Academy which teaches young people catering skills and the Dundee Dragons who create sporting opportunities for wheelchair users to the Haus of Seisay which gives care experienced young people the chance to gain hairdressing qualifications – I was completely blown away by the projects I visited.
“Donating to the STV Children’s Appeal is changing lives on our doorstep and giving young people the help and support they deserve at times when they need it the most.”
* The Game Changers is on STV on Friday, November 1 at 7pm.
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