BYPY- Where have you been all my life?! by Amelia Ladbrook

When everyone was telling me their BYPY stories and how fantastic the evening was going to be, I thought they were exaggerating. I could not have been more wrong and now that I am officially no longer a “BYPY virgin” I can say that it was a night I will definitely never forget.
Arriving at the ICC at 5.15pm (yes, I was walking through Birmingham in a floor length evening gown at this time) to meet the other finalists, sponsors and committee members I was greeted with champagne and a tour around the venue. I was speechless. Yes because the champagne was lovely and it kept coming, but also because I’d never seen anything like it. Walking through gorgeously decorated tables and being led to the stage for photos with the finalists was a bit of a pinch me moment- soon there would be 1,000 people all fabulously dressed to perfection mingling in this perfect homage to BPS Birmingham. I felt very lucky to be a part of it.
Seeing all the fantastic people in the room that evening made me feel even prouder to be a finalist. The winner of the Aspiring Talent category Magda Tulcaz is absolutely brilliant and it has been a pleasure getting to know her as we both embarked on our first BYPY experience.
Meeting all of the finalists it was clear that there is some amazing talent in Birmingham and each category held something special. To anyone that doubts Birmingham and what it has to offer I challenge them to attend BYPY 2015 and say that the talent isn’t here- BYPY defies this and shows off the amazing people we have in our city.
I can safely say I am already looking forward to next year, this time without the nerves, and cheering on what I know will be more fabulous finalists. As for me I will be singing BYPYs praises from now on telling everyone that I know to get involved and that I’m really not over exaggerating! The committee should be really proud of what they achieved as it made everyone feel like they were part of something important that evening. But the fun doesn’t stop there; I am really looking forward to being part of the BYPY Legacy Lounge (how cool does that sound) where I can meet and learn from some of Birmingham’s finest, what’s not to love about that?