This Is Jersey

A GLEAMING smile and an infectious passion for the Battle of Flowers made Holly Fraser the perfect choice for the 2008 parade princess.

And being Miss Battle is something that the 20 year old has dreamed of all her life. ‘I’ve always wanted to be Miss Battle, and having been involved with the event for a number of years I thought it would be amazing to see the parade from that perspective,’ she said.

‘I really wanted to be able to represent the Battle in this way because I think it’s great. I’ve watched many of the girls come through while I’ve been helping on floats and I’ve always wanted to have the chance to see what the role involved.’

Jersey-born Holly is the daughter of Karen and Gavin Fraser and has one brother, Ben. She attended Beaulieu Convent School until the age of 12, when she went to Elmhurst Ballet School in Surrey.

At 16 she went to the London Studio Centre to take a foundation degree, specialising in musical theatre, returning to the Island after graduating last summer. She is now a junior administrator at the Royal Bank of Canada.

Growing up in Jersey, Holly attended singing lessons from a young age with both Amy Luce and Imogen Nicholls. She also went to Valerie Guy’s dancing school, where she had classes in ballet, tap, modern, jazz, national and even Greek dance.

‘All the teachers at Valerie Guy’s were role models to me while I was growing up. They were inspirational to my dancing,’ said Holly.

From a young age Holly was involved in a number of shows in Jersey, including The Snow Queen, Ali Baba and Aladdin. She also achieved success in the Jersey Eisteddfod and in 2000 her Thai princess national dance won the award for the outstanding performance at that year’s festival.

For many young girls, the idea of leaving home at the age of 12 to go to the UK would seem too scary to imagine, but Holly says there was never any question of her following her dream.

‘I was desperate to go to ballet school, and when one of my teachers suggested it, it all happened so fast,’ she said. ‘I made the decision to go and phoned the school, had an audition the next week and was accepted there and then. That was in the November. I went the following Easter. I knew I would miss my parents but I really wanted to do it and it was definitely the right decision.’

SO why did Holly make the choice not to embark on a dancing career, but rather begin her working life in the finance industry? ‘I always knew I wanted to come back to Jersey and settle here, although I didn’t plan to come back so soon,’ she said. ‘I always thought that I wanted a career in dancing, but then when push came to shove at the end of my course I just felt burnt out and wanted to come home.

‘London is really hard. It’s such a competitive career and it wasn’t for me in the end. I’m so glad I did the two courses, though, and I’ll always be involved in amateur dramatics.

‘After my time in dancing I was surprised to see how many opportunities were available in the finance industry, so who knows where my future might lead me. At the moment I’m really enjoying working in finance. I don’t really have any big ambitions for the future. Having had a lot of goals in the past, I’m now just really living life for the present and am taking each day as it comes.’

Despite being away at performance college for a number of years, on returning to the Island each summer Holly would always get stuck into preparing for the Battle straight away.

‘From a young age I’ve always been to the Battle – all my family have,’ said Holly. ‘I love the atmosphere and all the hard work that goes into it. You don’t realise until you actually take part how much effort is involved and what an amazing sense of achievement you feel on Battle day.’

Holly first became involved in the parade six summers ago, when she was asked to dance for the Grouville Juniors entry.

‘I went back the next year and got more and more involved with the design and the flowers,’ she said. ‘I did that float for three years, and when I was 18 I was too old to do that so I went to the Young Farmers Club. This is my third year supporting them.

‘I knew a few people at the club and I had already been involved with their tractor pull and their social events, so a load of us from Grouville moved up there. Since I’ve been helping with their floats I’ve become involved with ordering the flowers, the choreography, helping with design ideas and picking harestails – I even built the carrot for the float this year!

‘I remember admiring Miss Battle from afar when I was younger, and in recent years when she came around looking at the floats, that’s when I always though, ‘‘Oh wow!’’. That will definitely be a highlight for me, going round seeing everyone the night before.

‘With everything that I’ve done, I don’t think I’ve ever actually been quite as nervous and excited as I was waiting for the result. I was really shocked when I got it, but really chuffed. The other girls were all so nice, and they have all been genuinely really supportive.

‘Miss Battle is an important role model for young people and it is a brilliant chance to represent the Island as an ambassadress.’

As well as looking forward to sticking flowers on floats the night before Battle, Holly is excited about a number of aspects of her year ahead. ‘I’m obviously thrilled about the main day, as well as the Moonlight Parade, but I’m also looking forward to everything else over the year,’ she said.

‘Meeting Christopher Biggins [Mr Battle] will be a big moment, and I can’t wait to go to Alderney’s parade. I also believe there is a possibility of going to La Havre, and over the year there will also be various fete openings and other events. As I’m not away at university I am here for the year, so I can’t wait to get really stuck in.’

In between events, one of Holly’s main ambitions for the year ahead is to ignite a passion for the parade among young Islanders.

‘I want to try to get as many young people involved with Battle as possible over the year,’ said Holly. ‘It tends to be the same young people every year. They are the ones who carry on doing it through to adulthood. But there need to be more young people involved.

‘Maybe young people could start by getting involved with their parishes, and families could bring the even younger ones along to watch it. And maybe the schools should also get more involved, though it is difficult because the parade falls in the summer holidays.’

Although she opted not to embark on a career in show business, since returning to Jersey Holly has kept up her singing and recently joined the Holmchase Choir.

‘I went to see them perform with Lesley Garrett and thought they were fantastic, so I decided to join,’ she said. ‘I really enjoy it and it’s great to be able to keep up my singing.’

Another slightly more obscure interest is as trainee falconer, and she even owns her own Harris hawk, Sky, and barn owl called Dobsy.

‘That stemmed from when I saw an owl display in Kew Gardens and I saw these abused birds that they have raised,’ she said. ‘I have two aviaries in my garden so decided to apply to bring those two back.’

Over the years Holly has visited a number of places, but her favourite was a holiday to Tanzania in January. The place she would most like to visit is Venice.

Closer to home, her favourite place in the Island is White Rock. ‘It’s Jersey’s best-kept secret,’ she said. ‘You wouldn’t find it unless someone showed you, but I’ve been there a few times fishing. It’s gorgeous and has stunning views.’

In the 106 years since the Battle of Flowers first took place, Jersey has changed in so many ways. Why does the 56th Miss Battle think it still has a key role to play in Island life?

‘It’s just an amazing event,’ said Holly. ‘It’s brilliant for the spectators and for the exhibitors. It is an amazing atmosphere with everyone getting together to enjoy the same thing. It has such an importance because it is such a great community event and it’s a great way to bring Jersey people of all ages together. It’s unique.’

Miss Battle: My favourite things• Music: I love singers like Kate Nash and Katie Melua, songs from the musicals, and classics like Kenny Rogers and Neil Diamond,
• Film: The Notebook.
• TV programmes: American sitcoms, like Friends
• Musical: Miss Saigon.
• Authors: Lesley Pearse and Kathleen Windsor.
• Sport: I like watching ice-skating and I’m looking forward to watching Kyran Bracken’s Ice Party, but I don’t really play a lot of sports.