With its home in Coventry, its roots in reggae and its multiracial bands, 2-Tone was a British musical phenomenon. As part of Black History Month, this Your Local Arena special screens Rudies Come Back, the energetic 1980 BBC Arena film made at the moment of 2-Tone’s emergence, capturing its unique blend of 1960s blue beat and ska with 1970s reggae, soul and punk.
After the film, the accompanying panel discussion includes legendary singer Pauline Black, who features in the film and whose band The Selecter was one of the first to develop the 2-Tone sound, Rhoda Dakar, former lead singer of The Bodysnatchers and chaired by music journalist Kevin Le Gendre. Christian ‘Cubs the Poet’ and Helen Thomas will provide poetic reflections on the evening’s conversation. It promises to be an unforgettable evening highlighting Black British music history.
Your Local Arena is a unique project featuring iconic films from the archives of BBC TV’s Arena, the pioneering cultural documentary series. It includes new poems inspired by the Arena films and panel talks to explore the continuing relevance of the Arena archives today. The Your Local Arena concept was developed by Lucy Hannah and Speaking Volumes, with Arena’s award-winning director/editor Anthony Wall as creative consultant and funded by Arts Council England.
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