Edward Robin Upcott (born 29 December 1991) is a five times British

acrobatic gymnast Acrobatic gymnastics is a competitive discipline of gymnastics where partnerships of gymnasts work together and perform routines consisting of acrobatic skills, dance and tumbling, set to music. The sport is governed by the International Feder ...

champion who was world men's pairs champion in partnership with Doug Fordyce, winning the gold medal in July 2010 in Poland. Before his partnership with Fordyce, Upcott was in partnership with Mark Fyson, who retired in 2009 after the pair had won the bronze medal in the 2008 world championships in Glasgow. With his new partner Adam McAssey, Upcott was awarded the silver medal in the 2012 Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships. Upcott came to UK national public attention with his membership of the gymnastic group

Spelbound Spelbound are a Gymnastics, gymnastic troupe from the United Kingdom who rose to fame in 2010, winning Britain's Got Talent (series 4), the fourth series of ''Britain's Got Talent''. The prize was £100,000 and the opportunity to appear at the 20 ...

, who rose to fame in 2010, winning the fourth series of ''

Britain's Got Talent ''Britain's Got Talent'' (often abbreviated to ''BGT'') is a televised British talent show competition, and part of the global '' Got Talent'' franchise created by Simon Cowell. Presented by Anthony McPartlin and Declan Donnelly (colloquial ...

''. Part of their performance was a spectacular throw of Upcott over the heads of the judges, catching him in the main performance area. The prize was £100,000 and the opportunity to appear at the 2010

Royal Variety Performance The ''Royal Variety Performance'' is a televised variety show held annually in the United Kingdom to raise money for the Royal Variety Charity (of which King Charles III is life-patron). It is attended by senior members of the British royal ...

. With Spelbound, Upcott holds the world record for 'Highest throw and catch of a person', where he was the person thrown and caught. The successful record attempt was televised on the UK children's TV show ''

Blue Peter ''Blue Peter'' is a British children's television entertainment programme created by John Hunter Blair. It is the longest-running children's TV show in the world, having been broadcast since October 1958. It was broadcast primarily from BBC ...

''. Upcott left Spelbound in 2012 to pursue other avenues. While still a member, he was cast as a

stunt double In filmmaking, a double is a person who substitutes for another actor such that the person's face is not shown. There are various terms associated with a double based on the specific body part or ability they serve as a double for, such as stunt ...

for

Asa Butterfield Asa Bopp Farr Butterfield ( ; born 1 April 1997) is an English actor. Beginning his career as a child actor, Butterfield first achieved recognition as the lead of the historical drama film '' The Boy in the Striped Pyjamas'' (2008). He continued ...

in '' Hugo''. He works with Doug Fordyce as ''Brothers of Eden''. His stated ambition is to be part of

Cirque du Soleil Cirque du Soleil (, ; ) is a Canadian entertainment company and the largest contemporary circus producer in the world. Located in the inner-city area of Saint-Michel, Montreal, Saint-Michel, Montreal, it was founded in Baie-Saint-Paul on 16 Jun ...

Personal life

Upcott was educated at

The Magna Carta School The Magna Carta School is an 11–16 Academy (English school), academy school in Staines, England, which has been awarded specialisms in Technology and ICT. It is named after Magna Carta due to its proximity to Runnymede, where the document ...

Surrey Surrey () is a Ceremonial counties of England, ceremonial county in South East England. It is bordered by Greater London to the northeast, Kent to the east, East Sussex, East and West Sussex to the south, and Hampshire and Berkshire to the wes ...

. A long-term

asthma Asthma is a common long-term inflammatory disease of the airways of the lungs. It is characterized by variable and recurring symptoms, reversible airflow obstruction, and easily triggered bronchospasms. Symptoms include episodes of wh ...

tic, Upcott has learned how to control this such that it has no impact on his sporting endeavours. His official biography states that, as a child, he nearly died during his first asthma attack. His younger siblings,

Alice Alice may refer to: * Alice (name), most often a feminine given name, but also used as a surname Literature * Alice (''Alice's Adventures in Wonderland''), a character in books by Lewis Carroll * ''Alice'' series, children's and teen books by ...

and

Adam Adam is the name given in Genesis 1–5 to the first human. Adam is the first human-being aware of God, and features as such in various belief systems (including Judaism, Christianity, Gnosticism and Islam). According to Christianity, Adam ...

are also acrobatic gymnasts.

References

External links

* * * * {{DEFAULTSORT:Upcott, Edward British acrobatic gymnasts Male acrobatic gymnasts 1991 births Sportspeople from Surrey British stunt performers Britain's Got Talent winners Living people People educated at The Magna Carta School Medalists at the Acrobatic Gymnastics World Championships Sportspeople from Chertsey World Games bronze medalists for Great Britain World Games medalists in gymnastics 21st-century British sportsmen Medalists at the 2009 World Games