It might be the middle of the holidays but teachers and pupils of one Bristol comprehensive will be reminded of school this evening.

People connected with St Mary Redcliffe and Temple School will be tuning in to the second episode of the BBC Two series The Speaker.

They will check on the progress of seven students who are taking part in a nationwide hunt to find Britain's best young public speaker.

The youngsters – Joe Lewis, Hannah Dixon, Duncan Harrison, Joe Hensey, Irene Carter, Jack Chianese and Lewis Parker – were among 160 selected to take part in the eight-part programme, which began screening last week and is on every Tuesday and Wednesday evening at 8pm until the final on April 29.

The Speaker judges are comedienne Jo Brand, performance expert Jeremy Stockwell and ex-NBA basketball star and motivational speaker John Amaechi.

They auditioned the 14 to 18 year olds at four regional sessions to select the final 20 who would go on to work with mentors including Earl Spencer, broadcaster Kate Silverton, and former spin doctor Alastair Campbell.

The contestants that don't make the grade are being eliminated and, at the end of the series, the three best candidates will face a final showdown where they must make the speech of their lives.

St Mary Redcliffe and Temple head teacher Elisabeth Gilpin said: "I will be glued to my TV screen to see how these students do over the month of April. I am delighted with how well so many of St Mary Redcliffe and Temple students have done. We do encourage our students to be able to think for themselves and communicate."

Trevor Crocker, head of English, said: "Many members of the school community will be tuning in to BBC 2 to witness this evidence that the art of public speaking is still alive and well in our schools."