Black History Features

2EJ522N Claudette Colvin (b.1939). Portrait of the pioneer of the 1950s civil rights movement, taken in 1954. On March 2, 1955, she was arrested at the age of 15 in Montgomery, Alabama, for refusing to give up her seat to a white woman on a crowded, segregated bus. This occurred nine months before the more widely known incident in which Rosa Parks, helped spark the 1955 Montgomery bus boycott.

Claudette Colvin: The Teenage Revolutionary Who Ignited a Movement

In the spring of 1955, when the streets of Montgomery, Alabama, were still divided by the sharp lines…


MB65FY Foster mother Mrs Sybil Phoenix with some of her children in Lewisham in January 1973 the year she became the first black woman to receive an MBE.

The Inspiring Legacy of Reverend Sybil Phoenix OBE

In a world where the winds of history often blow harshly on those least able to protect themselves,…


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Black History Month

2026 LISTINGS

Camden Sunday 27th September 2026

Samba Touré

Samba Touré’s music is characterised by hypnotic guitar grooves radiating with the intensity of the desert sun. It…

Wandsworth Tuesday 29th September – Tuesday 27th October 2026

Pan Wandsworth – Steel Pan Workshops

Pan Wandsworth invites local residents to discover the history, sound and cultural significance of the steel pan through…

Richmond upon Thames Wednesday 30 September – Saturday 3 October 2026

The Brown Suite

Step into The Brown Suite, a bold, funk-fuelled dance production that pulses with rhythm, style and soul. Blending…

Oxfordshire Wednesday 30 September – Saturday 3 October 2026

August Wilson’s Fences

One of the greatest plays of the twentieth century returns to the stage in a powerful new production…

Leicester Thursday 1st October 2026

Black Classics Symposium

Classical music is often associated with the Western canon, yet its development has long been shaped by diverse…