You might recognise him as the sharp-witted, marketing-savvy candidate from The Apprentice, but Reece Donnelly’s true passion project is unfolding right here in Scotland. As the founder and powerhouse behind the Theatre School of Scotland and Theatre College of Scotland, Reece has built a performing arts empire designed to give local kids a fighting chance in a London-centric industry.
You founded the Theatre School of Scotland at a relatively young age. What was the exact moment or gap in the Scottish performing arts industry that made you say, "I need to build this myself?"
I was working as an actor on a CBBC show and found myself helping some of the younger actors with their accents and scenes. The next season, I came back as an acting coach and chaperone, and I remember thinking, "There is no proper TV training for young people in Scotland."
There were loads of stage schools, but nobody was really focused on acting for screen. So, strangely enough, Theatre School of Scotland actually started as an acting-for-screen school (Make the name make sense Reece)
What really got me was seeing the young people succeed. I'd never felt that kind of excitement before, and instantly I knew there was something special in it.
At the same time, I was a working-class actor from Scotland and unless there was a role involving gangs, crime or a very specific Scottish stereotype, I'd often be waiting around for the next job. I've always been 100 miles per hour, so I needed something to keep me busy.
We basically started as an after-school drama club, and somehow over the years it's grown arms and legs into something much bigger than I ever imagined.
You expanded from the Theatre School to the Theatre College of Scotland. How does the strategy change when moving from youth training to delivering full-time, higher-education style qualifications?
The school is about helping young people fall in love with performing. The college is about getting them into the industry.
The harsh reality was that we were sending graduates off to colleges and universities across the country, only for many of them to come back to us in the evenings because they weren't getting the training they thought they were paying for. They wanted more industry insight, more acting for screen, more contact time, more honesty about what this business is actually like.
I remember thinking, "Why are we sending our young people elsewhere when we could build something better ourselves?"
So we did.
Theatre College of Scotland was born because we saw a gap and decided to do something about it. We've always been very focused on employability and making sure students leave ready for the real world, not just with a qualification and a great jazz square, but with the skills, confidence and industry knowledge to actually build a career.
For a young person in Scotland debating between moving to London for drama school or staying local, what is your ultimate elevator pitch for your college?
I'd say this: why spend three years and a small fortune moving away from home when you can receive world-class training right here in Scotland?
At Theatre College of Scotland, our students are taught by industry professionals, gain real-world experience and build connections that actually matter. We focus on creating employable performers, not just graduates.
The industry has changed. Self-tapes have levelled the playing field and opportunities are no longer confined to one postcode. Our students train in Scotland, work across the UK and graduate with the confidence, skills and experience to compete anywhere.
Plus, your mum still gets to do your washing. That's got to be worth something.
Going from the creative world of theatre to the corporate, cutthroat environment of The Apprentice boardroom is a massive shift. What was the biggest culture shock for you during filming?
The speed.
In theatre, you rehearse, refine, panic, rewrite, panic again and eventually open the show.
On The Apprentice, it's more like: "You've got 20 minutes, no sleep, three arguments, one disaster and Lord Sugar will see you shortly."
I quickly realised that business people and theatre people aren't actually that different. Both are running on caffeine, adrenaline and the hope that nobody notices they're making it up as they go along. I also realised that I love to be under pressure, maybe too much? I also think having no phone and contact with the outside world for 3 months was a complete culture shock, but I will NEVER use my phone the way I used too pre-filming.
Reality TV editing can sometimes paint a specific picture. What is one thing about your business acumen or personality that you feel didn't fully get shown on screen?
Probably how people-focused I am.
Viewers see tasks, negotiations and boardrooms, but they don't always see that my businesses are built around people. I genuinely believe great companies are created by great teams. I always say, people buy people.
I'm ambitious, absolutely. Competitive? Without question. But I spend far more time worrying about staff welfare, company culture and opportunities for young people than I do spreadsheets.
Although don't get me wrong, I do love a spreadsheet. Which is possibly the least rock-and-roll thing I've ever admitted.
What is the most valuable piece of business advice or insight you took away from Lord Sugar, Karren Brady, or Tim Campbell?
The biggest lesson I took from The Apprentice wasn't about sales, negotiation or business plans. It was that authenticity always wins.
What I love about Lord Sugar, Tim Campbell and Baroness Brady is that they're completely unapologetic about who they are. None of them walk into a room trying to be somebody else. They've built incredible careers by being themselves and backing their own instincts.
That's something I've always taken with me. I'm never going to soften my broad Glasgow accent to fit into a room where I don't feel like I belong. I love where I come from, I love being Scottish and I love being me.
For years, people from working-class backgrounds have been made to feel like they need to change the way they speak, dress or act to be taken seriously. I've never bought into that. If someone is going to do business with me, they're getting the real Reece.
I think authenticity is one of the most underrated qualities in business. People can spot a fake a mile away, and the older I get, the more I realise that being yourself is actually your biggest advantage.
You recently stepped into the health and wellness space by launching Skinny Coffee House. What sparked the transition from the performing arts industry into running a wellness, juice, and coffee bar?
To be honest, it came from my own health journey. I was constantly on the go and really struggled to find quick, healthy food and drinks that actually tasted good. I have lost about 22kg in 2 years.
I've always loved Joe & The Juice when travelling, and I remember thinking, "Why don't we have more of this in Scotland?"
The more I thought about it, the more it made sense. And if I'm honest, being up at 6am, popping into Skinny Coffee House before heading into Theatre School of Scotland is pretty much my dream day. Good coffee, good people and straight into doing what I love.
Instead of launching in the dead centre of Glasgow's Style Mile, you chose Uddingston train station. What was the data-driven or intuitive reason behind placing a high-end, viral health hub at a local commuter station?
Because everyone was looking one way, and I was looking the other. Honestly, it was much less complicated than people think. Uddingston is my hometown and I've always loved the area. The community is brilliant, people support local businesses and there's a real sense of pride in the town.
It's also just a lovely place to be. It's peaceful, it's friendly and, if I'm being honest, I felt like we needed something that wasn't deep fried.
Of course, the commuter traffic at the train station made business sense, but the decision was driven more by instinct than spreadsheets. I wanted to create something for the community I grew up in and prove that not every great business has to open in the middle of Glasgow.
You named the shop after your personal coffee order—a skinny latte—and built the menu around calorie-conscious options. In an era where some parts of the fitness industry are moving away from terms like "skinny," did you face any hesitation about using the word, or did you know exactly who your target demographic was?
Not really. I've always loved a bit of tongue-in-cheek marketing and, in today's world, you need to make noise if you want people to pay attention.
Not really. I've always loved a bit of tongue-in-cheek marketing and, in today's world, you need to make noise if you want people to pay attention.
The name came from my coffee order, but the reality is it got people talking. Skinny Coffee House went viral before we even opened, and we were effectively sold out for the first three months. That's the power of creating a conversation.
For me, it's not about telling people how to look or what to eat. It's about giving people options. Some people want a protein shake, some people want a coffee and a cake, and both are absolutely fine.
I knew exactly who our audience was, but I also knew that in business today you need to work smarter, not harder. The name did exactly what we wanted it to do, it got people through the door. The product is what keeps them coming back.
You also have launched Patter Productions (where do you find the time!) alongside Gayle Telfer Stevens. What is the ethos behind this and the work that you want to create?
Firstly, Patter Productions is really just about having a creative outlet with my best pal, Gayle. For years, people have looked at me through the lens of kids' theatre, which I absolutely love, but there's a whole other side to what we enjoy creating.
After dabbling in some professional directing together, we both caught the bug for writing and creating our own work. We're very rough-and-ready writers—we're not trying to be the next great playwrights. We write for working-class audiences, we write for people who want a laugh, and we write the kind of shows we'd buy tickets for ourselves.
Our adult panto was an absolute hoot. It was wild, chaotic, brilliantly Scottish and genuinely funny. The funny thing is, there isn't another Scottish-based adult panto company out there, so it felt like a real gap in the market. It's been nice to fill that space and create something that audiences clearly had an appetite for.
The first production was The Wizard Wae The Big Bawz—an explicitly 18+ adult panto. What made you want to pivot from the family-friendly, wholesome image of the Theatre School of Scotland into raw, unfiltered, adult comedy?
Because I like proving people wrong.
People tend to put you in boxes. "Reece runs a theatre school, therefore everything he does must be family-friendly." The reality is I've always loved comedy, entertainment and live theatre in all its forms.
The Theatre School of Scotland remains family-focused and always will be. But Patter Productions is a completely different business aimed at a completely different audience.
Scottish audiences have a wicked sense of humour and adult pantomime has become hugely popular. We wanted to create something that felt modern, chaotic, brilliantly Scottish and genuinely funny.
Also, after years of telling young performers not to swear on stage, there was something quite liberating about producing a show where the opposite was encouraged.
Many creatives struggle with the "business" side of the arts. How do you balance being a creative mentor with the harsh realities of running a profitable, scalable business?
I think pretending those two things are separate is where people go wrong.
The most creative thing I've ever done wasn't directing a show, it was figuring out how to keep the lights on during difficult periods and continue creating opportunities for young people.
The reality is that if a business isn't sustainable, it can't support creativity long-term.
I'm very honest with students. Talent is important, but professionalism, resilience, communication skills and understanding business are equally important. The industry isn't waiting for anyone, so I think it's our responsibility to prepare them for the real world while still encouraging them to dream big.
You can be creative and commercial. In fact, the most successful people usually are.
Scotland has a massive wealth of creative talent. Do you feel the UK entertainment industry as a whole is doing enough to look outside of London, or is there still a major disparity?
We're definitely moving in the right direction, but there's still a gap.
Scotland consistently produces world-class actors, presenters, writers and creatives. The talent isn't the issue. The opportunities and investment sometimes are.
For too long, people have viewed London as the centre of everything. Thankfully that's beginning to change with more productions filming across the UK and more regional commissioning.
But I'd still like to see more decision-makers spending time in Scotland and discovering the incredible talent that's already here. We've spent years exporting talent south. I'd love to see more of the industry coming north.
Through your talent agency, you've helped kids land roles on Netflix, Disney, and the BBC. When dealing with young talent—and perhaps more importantly, their parents—how do you manage expectations in an industry notorious for rejection?
By being brutally honest from day one. It can all end tomorrow and treat every job like its your last.
This industry is full of rejection. You can be absolutely perfect for a role and still not get it because somebody happened to be two inches taller, had a different accent or looked more like the actor playing your mum.
That's not failure, that's casting.
I always tell parents that success isn't measured by how many jobs their child books. Success is building confidence, developing skills and enjoying the process.
The irony is that the children who enjoy it the most often end up being the most successful because they're not carrying the pressure of needing every audition to change their life.
You started acting professionally at just six years old (on shows like Carrie & David's Popshop and Waterloo Road). Looking back, do you think being a child actor gave you a thicker skin for the business world, or did it make the corporate world harder to navigate?
Definitely thicker skin and to enjoy every opportunity.
If you've spent your childhood walking into auditions, being judged within 30 seconds and hearing the word "no" more times than you can count, boardrooms become a lot less intimidating.
Acting taught me resilience. It taught me how to communicate. It taught me how to handle rejection and bounce back quickly. But I genuinely love it, I love this industry, people talk about it so negatively, but honestly I have had the highest highs and the lowest lows but its been the thing that saved me, keeps me sane and has changed my life.
You've tackled acting, presenting, teaching, and reality TV. What is the next major milestone for the Reece Donnelly brand over the next five years?
I want to keep building businesses, but if I'm honest, the next chapter is television and growing the college now we have university partner, I want a new super campus and to make some noise I want people travelling from the UK to study in Scotland.
I've loved acting. I've loved business. I've loved building Theatre School of Scotland from an idea into a multi-million-pound organisation. But presenting combines everything I enjoy most, meeting people, telling stories, having conversations and occasionally sticking my nose into situations I probably shouldn't be in.
I'd love to front major entertainment formats, documentaries and factual programmes that put Scotland on the map while continuing to grow my businesses behind the scenes.
Ultimately, I don't want to be known as "the guy from The Apprentice" or "the theatre school guy" or "the coffee guy." I'd like to build a career where people struggle to put me in a box.
After all, every time someone tells me I can't do something, I usually end up adding it to my to-do list.
And at 28 years old, I feel like I'm only just getting started and doing it with the best team around me. I think for me its about the future of Scottish talent, I love Scottish people and everything they stand for.
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