Briana Corrigan facts for kids

Briana Corrigan, born on May 30, 1965, is a talented singer from Northern Ireland. Many people know her as a former member of the popular band The Beautiful South. She sang with them from 1988 to 1992.

Growing Up in Northern Ireland

Briana Corrigan was born in Northern Ireland. When she was 11 years old, her family moved from Belfast to Portstewart, a town in County Londonderry. There, she went to Dominican College, Portstewart, which was also where her mother taught.

At 18, Briana moved to Newcastle upon Tyne in England. She went to college there to study creative and performing arts. This helped her prepare for a career in music.

Singing with The Beautiful South

While studying in Newcastle upon Tyne, Briana started singing with a band called The Anthill Runaways. A record company, Go! Discs Records, noticed her talent. They asked her to travel to Hull to sing with Paul Heaton and Dave Hemingway. These two musicians were forming a new band called The Beautiful South.

Soon after, Briana was asked to join the band in Milan. She helped them record their very first album, Welcome to the Beautiful South. Briana sang alongside Dave Hemingway on the band's only song to reach number 1 in the UK Singles Chart. This famous song was called "A Little Time".

Briana sang on three of The Beautiful South's albums. However, in 1992, she decided to leave the band. She wanted to start her own solo career and record her own songs. She also had some disagreements with the meaning of certain lyrics written by Paul Heaton. For example, she felt uncomfortable with songs like "36D", which talked about British glamour models. Dave Hemingway later said that the band should have criticized the media for being sexist, instead of focusing on the models.

Her time with the band ended after they released Carry on up the Charts: The Best of the Beautiful South. This album quickly became one of the fastest-selling British albums ever.

Briana's Solo Music Career

After leaving The Beautiful South, Briana Corrigan worked again with Mike Hedges. He was the producer for the first two Beautiful South albums. In 1996, she released her own album called When My Arms Wrap You Round. This album was well-received by music critics.

The first song released from the album was "Love Me Now". It reached number 48 on the UK Singles Chart. This was the only song released as a single. A few months later, Briana and her record company decided to go their separate ways.

Until October 2022, Briana taught singing at The British School – Al Khubairat.

Briana Corrigan's Albums

Here are the studio albums Briana Corrigan has released:

• When My Arms Wrap You Round (1996)
• Red Bird (2012)