King Richard is a film about a man with a mission: Richard Williams, who decided two years before his daughter Venus was born, that he would have two daughters destined to become tennis champions. This would seem a pretty wild ambition even if Williams had been from a tennis-playing background. However, that couldn’t have been … Continue reading “King Richard”
Damon Galgut had been shortlisted twice before but 2021 was third time lucky. His novel The Promise mixes the history of a family and his country over four decades. The titular promise shows up power, class and racial divisions in South Africa. Galgut, who was born in 1963, explicitly connects the novel to the political … Continue reading “A South African Author Wins the 2021 Booker Prize”
On 21 October, the Caribbean nation of Barbados took the first step towards becoming a republic when the joint houses of Parliament chose Dame Sandra Mason as the country’s first president, to replace Queen Elizabeth II as head of state. Ms Mason, a trained lawyer and former magistrate, has been the Governor-General of Barbados since … Continue reading “Barbados Elects its First President”
This inspiring documentary features teen activists around the world who see a problem and try to fix it. From Malawi to Colorado they are fighting pollution, opposing child marriage, supporting education, freedom of speech and sustainable agriculture and demanding rights for the planet and indigenous people. Melati Wijsen and her sister founded Bye Bye Plastic … Continue reading “Bigger Than Us”
Just ahead of the COP26 summit in Glasgow at the end of October, a cinema release for the documentary I am Greta. The young environmental activist who started School Strike for the Climate in 2018 is still only 18, but has had a profound effect on environmentalists young and old. The documentary was made almost … Continue reading “She is Greta”
A new biopic of soul diva Aretha Franklin takes its title from one of her most famous songs, “Respect”. This resource will introduce pupils first to the song, which became an anthem for the women’s movement and the civil-rights movement. Then they can discover the biopic. Jennifer Hudson was chosen by Franklin herself before her … Continue reading “Respect: Aretha Franklin Biopic”
If you find yourself close to Belgium this summer, it’s worth heading to Brussels for the Aboriginalités exhibition: more than 250 paintings by First Australian artists who innovate using traditional techniques and subject matter and modern materials. Art is a very important part of Aboriginal spiritual and cultural life, part of a vast system of … Continue reading “Aboriginalities”
Ireland has a rich literary heritage and is fond of honouring it. On 16 June every year, it is author James Joyce who is remembered, as Joyce fans all over Ireland and the world celebrate Bloomsday in honour of his novel Ulysses. Ulysses, published in 1922, consists of 18 episodes mirroring Homer’s Odyssey and takes … Continue reading “James Joyce and Bloomsday”
Jazz singer Billie Holiday’s 1939 recording of “Strange Fruit” has become one of the most potent protest songs in U.S. history. Its images of lynched African Americans accompanied the civil-rights movement but still evoke uncomfortable truths today. The song was written by a Jewish Communist high-school teacher, Abel Meeropol. It was originally a poem, written … Continue reading ““Strange Fruit”: a Searing Protest Song”
Australia started the new year with a change in its national anthem designed to be more inclusive of all Australians. On 31 December, Conservative Prime Minister Scott Morrison announced the change of a single word that is heavy with significance. The words of “Advance Australia Fair” included the line “For we are young and free”. … Continue reading “Change in Australia’s National Anthem to Reflect Indigenous Heritage”