Georgia Glynn-Smith

The various professional creative hats that Georgia-Glynn Smith has worn, and continues to wear, over the course of 35 years clearly entitle her to be described as a one-woman media empire, even though she is far too modest to accept such a description.

Georgia’s creative eye was shaped and refined by mentors such as David Butcher (staff, 1963-92) at Bedales, where her popularity saw her become an active and engaged Head Girl. Here she joins the dots between a childhood that was at times traumatic, the oasis of stability that was Bedales and her fascinating professional life.

In some respects, Georgia Glynn-Smith was older than her years by the time she arrived at Bedales. “My sister, Julia Glynn-Smith (1976-81), went to Bedales; my brother was also at boarding school but it was for me to keep my mother company at home, which meant day school at Godolphin & Latymer, just down the road from where we lived in London”, Georgia recalls. “A lot of our local neighbours were there and I didn’t mind the place exactly but the fact was always that I was someone with a creative streak who was stuck in a school with a largely academic focus." 

Georgia recalls that, clutching her art portfolio, her mother drove her down to Bedales for her first visit but otherwise, her initial impressions of the school remain somewhat hazy in the memory. “I do know that when I started as a student there were plenty of confused emotions swirling around my head”, she says. “I was excited, I guess, but also worried about leaving home, my mother and our menagerie of animals.”

Showing the adaptability of nature that has always been an essential element of her character, Georgia settled quickly into life as a boarder at Bedales, although her early specific memories are limited. “I do recall going off on a school camping trip – was it to Dartmoor? – but not too much else of my first year or two”, she reflects. “One thing of which I was always certain was that design was what I wanted to do with my life and so it’s natural that David Butcher remains a source of so many positive thoughts for me. He was the most gentle, kind soul, generous on every level and always had time for us, whether that was early in the morning or on the weekends. Whenever you wanted his help, David was there but he also had clearly marked boundaries that we all respected.”

Other Bedales mentors, scattered across a range of pursuits, are gratefully acknowledged by Georgia. “Music was and is a great love of mine, so Jonathan Willcocks (staff, 1978-89) was definitely a big influence”, she says. “He was brilliant, a genius really, who was obsessed with music and the quest for a perfect sound. I remember one fantastic tour he led to Bruges, where we sang, had the odd drink and then played tunes on empty Belgian beer bottles! Alastair Langlands (staff, 1973-2001), although I don’t remember him actually teaching me in the classroom, was someone else whose kindness was something I greatly appreciated.”

The classroom itself was not always the easiest place for Georgia for reasons that became apparent only with the passage of time. “It was obvious to me and everyone else that I was struggling with English, History and Geography and only gradually did I discover that I was very dyslexic”, she says. “It was tough but I saw it as another thing to battle through. And there was an English teacher who did something very important for me – Graham Banks (staff, 1980-2013). My mother had died out in Italy and when I returned to school a few days later, I do remember walking into the Lupton Hall and feeling this absolute silence when I appeared. Everyone was sympathetic, of course, but no-one quite knew how to express it; a day or two later, Graham had me write a piece about my mother’s death, which was a huge help as I tried to come to terms with it.”

Georgia’s ability to empathise with others was unimpaired, perhaps even accentuated by some of the difficulties that she was able to overcome as a child. Her popularity within the school was undoubted and confirmed by her appointment as Head Girl in her final years. Some Heads of School may once have regarded the role as a relatively undemanding sinecure – Georgia, by contrast, was determined that her tenure would have a positive effect on her fellow students.

“I saw it as my main job to take on as many caring roles as I possibly could”, she says. “I went out of my way to learn people’s names and backgrounds from the beginning of my time as Head Girl, tried to make sure that they felt properly looked after and that they knew my door was always open to them. I wasn’t the most academic student out there but in some ways that gave me more time to be there for the younger ones when they needed that."

Although Georgia knew with great clarity that design would be her focus after Bedales, she remained simultaneously unsure about how her future would unfold. “I was slightly confused about how everything would pan out,” she reflects. “And I was obviously sad to be leaving a school that had been my happy place and distraught when some misbehaviour by someone in our year – I can’t remember exactly what it was – meant that we couldn’t do the traditional leaves-taking handshake. The key for me was to stay positive, be open to everything and crack on with life and I’m sure it was Bedales that had given me the confidence to do that.”

As luck would have it, Georgia went to St Martin’s School of Art in London for a year’s art foundation course after leaving Bedales at precisely the right time for her. “That was when it was still on Tottenham Court Road, before it merged with Central School of Art,” she says. “I was so lucky to be there and I still remember virtually every lesson I had – I took to it like a duck to water.” 

Outside her classes, Georgia’s entrepreneurial spirit and extremely Bedalian egalitarian instincts were given free rein through running a nightclub. “That was huge fun and it also earned me a bit of money on the side”, she says. “Everyone was equal who came through the doors of the club – from George Michael, who popped in occasionally, to anyone else it was a pound to get in and have a good evening.”

From St Martin’s it was on to Kingston Polytechnic, where Georgia studied 3D Design, specialising in Interiors. “That was a tough course for which you needed a massive work ethic and it taught me a whole lot”, she says. “I knew that I had a good eye, which is hugely important in any sort of creative pursuit and has been at the heart of everything I’ve done since.”

Georgia was at this point sharing a London flat with her brother, who was a professional photographer, a skill that she had also acquired over the years. Although she had not trained in the art, it was here that, after a spell as a designer, she established herself as a photography director and freelancer, a career choice that eventually led to the discipline for which she is most renowned but which has been just one strand of an extraordinary multi-media career. “Food photography came about a bit by accident”, she says. “At the time, I was doing a lot of architecture photography (I even had a column in the Independent) but there were also other things, including shots of the chef Fergus Henderson for publications such as Elle Decoration and it was there that Nigel Slater saw some of my work, liked it and asked me along for a chat. We got on well and I just started taking photos of his food while we were chatting."

It was also the start of a vertiginously speedy journey to the apex of the food photography mountain for Georgia; over the years, there has scarcely been a renowned chef who has not sought her unrivalled eye for presenting their food in its most attractive setting. However, as we have already noted, it is only one of the strings to Georgia’s bow. She has also directed numerous commercials, set up her own production company, worked as a creative director for a wide variety of well-known people and latterly turned her hand to motivational speaking, something that would doubtless not surprise any younger Bedalians who had cause to seek her help and advice when she was their Head Girl . It is amazing that she has time for any recreation at all.

“I could never complain about being busy because I know how fragile success can be”, she says. “Covid, for example, was extremely tough and you’re always going to worry when so many streams of business evaporate almost overnight. Still, we came through that and I like having lots of different plates to keep spinning. I guess I’m just a natural creative – that’s what makes me happy. I’ve also got my eye on the wine world now and I want to make big changes in the same way as I did with food. There is a product I’ve designed that will hopefully change the way wine is consumed, considered, bought and sold. You can find out more on Instagram – Georgia Glynn-Smith @ggmith, @insidestorymarketing.” 

It was that creativity that was polished at Bedales by people such as David Butcher and Georgia remains eternally grateful for the opportunities that the school afforded her. “I did most of the organisation for my year’s 25th reunion but since then, I haven’t had much chance to get back to Bedales”, she says. “That doesn’t mean I don’t think about my school days. Bedales was the making of me and one of my few regrets was that we couldn’t quite afford to send our children there. It was, and is, special.”

Georgia was interviewed by James Fairweather in Summer 2024