Denholm Spurr expresses his GCSE pre-results worries.

Sixteen-year-olds across the country are nervously waiting for the release of their GCSE results.

As one of these 16-year-olds I know exactly what it feels like to be awaiting that little piece of paper that will determine the rest of my life.

It has been a long time since I put down my pen after finishing my last exam paper in June.

At first, the freedom from school life overcame any feelings of worry and I enjoyed a completely stress-free lifestyle. Now, however, I am feeling what every teenager my age is feeling anxiety.

Of course, this feeling varies in each person. Although the colleges I have applied for only require C grades all round, I have a personal desire to achieve the legendary straight A grades. The joy it would give me if I opened my envelope and found A grades across the board is more than I can describe.

However, on the other end of the scale, things can go horribly wrong.

This is what every student dreads as they open their envelopes.

Hopes of becoming Britain's next Prime Minister can be dashed in an instant.

It's not only the impending results that are having an effect on me. The thought of what comes after GCSEs is even more frightening than the GCSEs themselves.

I have a dream,' said Martin Luther King. We all have dreams. I would not feel content with my life if I had not at least tried to become the Hollywood actor I long to be.

But then some dreams are destined never to come true.

l See next week's Croydon Guardian to find out how former Woodcote High School student Denholm got on in his exams as well as a full round up of results from the borough's schools.