Profiles
Adrian was born in 1980. From a very early age he showed a keen interest in music and at the age of seven made his treble solo debut standing in at a day's notice to sing the first treble part of Allegri's Miserere Mei. The following year he gained a choral scholarship to St. Paul's Cathedral where he was a chorister from 1988 -1990; whilst there, as well as the daily regular services, he was involved in, among many other things, the memorial service for Sir Peter Scott and an episode of Jim'll Fix It for BBC tv.
He subsequently transferred to Guildford Cathedral Choir where he became Head Chorister (decani) and regular soloist. In 1993, on an album of passiontide music (Crucifixus), he recorded Allegri's Miserere - again as first treble - for a commercial record label (Herald) and appeared as part of the choir in an episode of the Channel 4 series 'The Big Battalions.'
Outside his commitments for the cathedral choirs, he was a regular treble soloist in concerts and services across London and the Home Counties including Westminster Cathedral (in the presence of Cardinal Basil Hume) and Sandhurst Military Academy; he also did regular work for his father (Brian Brockless) at St. Barthlomew-the-Great.
In September 1993 Adrian left Guildford Cathedral Choir and attended George Abbot School until July 1998 when, having completed his A-levels, he spent two years working to save money for travelling and University. This work included an office job for the Ministry of Agriculture, Farming and Fisheries (MAFF, now DEFRA), bar work and supervisory work in retail. During this time he was also involved in the production of a CD - Songs of Heaven and Earth - released by Queen's College Cambridge in 2001 (Guild Label). Adrian's musical life since his choral days has continued in the direction of an ever developing interest in composition. (A few of his compositions can be heard on the Music/Performance page of his website: www.adrianbrockless.com)
In 2004 Adrian completed a single honours degree in philosophy at the University of Hertfordshire with a 2:1 also winning a University Humanities Prize for "An outstanding contribution to philosophy in the humanities programme" (Prof. Daniel Hutto). He continued his studies as a postgraduate philosophy student at Durham University completing a 50,000 word thesis under the supervision of Professor David Cooper. The external examiner's report on his thesis read: 'The author tackles some exceptionally difficult [ethical] issues in a way that shows a broad knowledge of the relevant literature and, more importantly, originality, insight and sensitivity.' (Prof. Raimond Gaita).
Since the completion of his MA in 2006, Adrian has been on the academic staff of Heythrop College, University of London and has presented a number of papers at academic research seminars. He has also been involved in successful outreach work, taking philosophy to London state schools.
A significant amount of Adrian's spare time has been (and is) dedicated to his lifelong passion for the natural world and conservation, primarily through involvement in voluntary conservation work. He has undertaken practical work such as scrub clearance and the construction of dry stone walls, fences and gates. Organisations for which he has volunteered include the RSPB, Fair Isle Bird Observatory, The British Trust for Ornithology and Surrey Wildlife Trust.