“๐ ๐ฎ๐น๐๐ฎ๐๐ ๐ธ๐ป๐ฒ๐ ๐ณ๐ฟ๐ผ๐บ ๐ฎ ๐๐ผ๐๐ป๐ด ๐ฎ๐ด๐ฒ ๐๐ต๐ฎ๐ ๐บ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฎ๐๐ด๐ต๐๐ฒ๐ฟ ๐๐ฎ๐ ๐ฑ๐ฒ๐๐๐ถ๐ป๐ฒ๐ฑ ๐ณ๐ผ๐ฟ ๐๐๐ฎ๐ฟ๐ฑ๐ผ๐บ…”
Meet Melanie Thraves, mum of actress Sophie Melville, and Quadrant cleaner of 17 yearsโฆ
โIโve worked at the Quadrant for 17 years, since becoming a single mother, which is a long time, and every day is different.
โWe get to meet lovely people, like our regular customers and itโs like a little community here. We exchange Christmas presents, birthday presents, and Iโll get them an Easter egg. In the morning we see Len, and every afternoon thereโs a lady called Diane who lost her son last year and will walk around with me for a bit. We just look after them.
โAnd itโs not just me, itโs all the other cleaners as well. When itโs my day off, I know somebody else is in and they’ll speak to them and keep them company. Weโre not just cleaners, are we?
โBefore working here, I looked after my children who were still in school, and my eldest daughter, Sophie, was always into dance, she had loads of energy. During her time at school, they encouraged her to join the West Glamorgan Youth Theatre which she loved, before going to Gorseinon College to do performing arts, and the Royal Welsh College in Cardiff for her degree.
โShe was one of the lead actresses (Driscoll) in The Way with Michael Sheen, she was in Call the Midwife, The Pact, and does a lot of theatre as well. She even did a one-woman play in London which also went to Broadway.
โItโs all determination and hard work, youโve got to reach for them stars.
โIโve always told them that the world is your oyster and whatever you want to do, just go out and do it.
โSophieโs work is all in London. But it was really nice when she was filming The Way, she came back to stay with me, so I had her all summer, which was great. Sheโll be doing a film in Cardiff in May, so I’ll get to see her again while sheโs filming.
โI always knew from when she was a baby that there was something special.
โMy other daughter Mia has also done really well as a beauty therapist; and as a single parent, their successes make me so so proud.โ