As excitement builds for the release of ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ at the beginning of May, let’s reminisce about how Hurtwood’s own Emily Blunt became one of the biggest female movie stars of her generation.   

Emily featured in many Hurtwood productions alongside studying A Levels in Drama, French and Spanish. Her most notable roles were the leads in ‘Accidental Death of an Anarchist’ and the Hurtwood production of ‘Bliss’ written by ex-student Paul Sellar. Hurtwood took the production to the Edinburgh festival where Emily acted alongside her Hurtwood mentor and professional actor Adrian Rawlins, known affectionately at Hurtwood as ‘H’.  She was signed by H’s agent Ken McReddie and a mere six months after Hurtwood, Emily was sharing the stage with Judi Dench, Peter Bowles and Julia McKenzie in ‘The Royal Family’ directed by Trevor Nunn.  

Having won the Evening Standard British Film Award for ‘Most Promising Newcomer’ as Tamsin in the 2004 ‘My Summer of Love’ the awards flooded in including a Golden Globe for ‘Gideon’s Daughter’ with Bill Nighy and Miranda Richardson. Her role in ‘The Devil Wears Prada’ earnt her a BAFTA nomination and Emily has been unstoppable ever since. Whatever your favourite Emily Blunt film (‘Oppenheimer’, ‘Mary Poppins Returns’, ‘A Quiet Place’, ‘The Girl on the Train’ or ‘Sicario’ to name but a few) it will be wonderful to see her reunited with the dream team of Meryl Streep, Anne Hathaway and Stanley Tucci in this sequel. This film is eagerly anticipated and critics suggest that it will pull on the nostalgic heart strings, the Guardian saying that it will remind us of “a time before Brexit and Trump, when you could sit down in a comfy armchair and order a grande latte while leafing through an inch-thick copy of Vogue.” Look out for ‘The Devil Wears Prada 2’ - release date May 1st 2026.