Roger is a writer and educator who has taught and performed worldwide and is an experienced workshop leader and lecturer on poetry. He was chosen by Decibel as one of 50 writers who have influenced the black-British writing canon. He received commissions from The National Trust, London Open House, BBC, The National Portrait Gallery, V&A, INIVA, MK Gallery and Theatre Royal Stratford East where he also was associate artist. He is an alumni of The Complete Works.
His workshops have been part of a shortlist for the Gulbenkian Prize for Museums and Galleries and were also a part of the Webby Award winning Barbican’s Can I Have A Word. He was shortlisted for The OCM Bocas Poetry Prize, The Oxford Brookes Poetry Prize and highly commended by the Forward Poetry Prize 2013. He has toured extensively with the British Council and is a co-founder of both Spoke Lab and the international writing collective Malika’s Kitchen. He is the lead vocalist and lyricist for King Midas Sound and has also recorded solo albums with Jahtari Records
Saturday 16th October was #RestartAHeart Day, an international campaign to raise awareness of Basic Life Support (BLS) training.
Bradford4Better (B4B) launched an ambitious new project called BRADFORD LIFESAVERS and will be delivering Free Basic Life Support training across all parts of Bradford.
BLS is a vital life skill that everyone should be trained in and can make the difference between life and death in an emergency.
We need your help to get this training in all communities across Bradford.
If you would like to join the team to help or host a training event:
Atim Annette Oton is a Nigerian-born, American and British educated designer turned art curator who grew up in Nigeria with her mother collecting and buying contemporary art.
She is the Curator and founder of Harlem based Calabar Gallery. She is the African Art Curator for Amref Health Africa ArtBall for the past 4 years which honored Wangechi Mutu, El Anatsui, Toyin Ojih Odutola and Zanele Muholi.
Atim has been an advisor to the David Prize, and is an advisor to PUBLIC SQUARE and Haiti Cultural Exchange.
In 2016, she launched Calabar Gallery in Harlem to focus on contemporary African Artists and African Diaspora artists globally whose work is inspired and influenced by black and global African culture globally investigating dynamic ideas about art, culture and society.
Bradford is through to the next stage of the competition to host UK City of Culture in 2025.
The Secretary of State for the Department of Digital, Culture, Media and Sport (DCMS), Nadine Dorries, has announced that the district is one of eight longlisted places selected from a highly competitive and far-reaching field of 20 locations from across the UK.
Culture Secretary Nadine Dorries said: “Culture is for everyone, regardless of their background and I’m delighted that the bids from our eight longlisted places will help areas across the UK level up by increasing access to culture.
“I wish all our successful bids luck in the next phase of the competition. Bradford’s bid showed huge promise and I look forward to seeing what they have in store.”
This marks a major milestone for Bradford which has committed to embedding culture in the district’s inclusive growth as part of a 10-year cultural strategy, ‘Culture is Our Plan’.
Responding to the longlist announcement, presenter and artist Shanaz Gulzar – Chair of Bradford 2025 said: “We’re thrilled to have made the longlist for UK City of Culture 2025. The competition is about to ramp up and we are completely focused on creating the best possible bid – a winning bid – with and for the district. Bradford district is changing fast and we want to use our rich cultural heritage, our storytellers, our innovators and our diverse young population to create a bid that is both recognisably Bradford and a new story written on our own terms. We’re in this to win.”
Cllr Susan Hinchcliffe – Leader of Bradford Council said: “Thousands of people across Bradford, Keighley, Ilkley, Shipley and Bingley have been involved in getting the district to this point. To be selected for the longlist of eight is a massive show of confidence in all that we’ve done together.”
Winning the UK City of Culture title will be a game-changer for Bradford, putting the district firmly on the national and international stage. A City of Culture designation brings considerable long-term benefits including increased employment, new investment, enhanced skills, renewed pride, greater cultural capacity and more opportunities to participate in arts and cultural activities.
Preparations for Bradford 2025 to date already have generated a new confidence in the area’s creative sector which has secured £2 million for The Leap, the city’s Creative People and Places programme, and £1.5 million for Bradford Producing Hub – one of only two pilot projects in the UK receiving funds to develop local talent.
The district is also set to benefit from a number of major cultural capital projects currently underway including a new 4,000 capacity music venue, Bradford Live, due to open next year; the £23 million flagship Darley Street Market including a 750-capacity venue; the National Science and Media Museum’s new galleries and the Transforming Cities £50 million public realm enhancement programme.
Beyond the cultural sector, Bradford 2025 already has created new partnerships between the public and private sectors, with more than 35 businesses across the district including The Broadway, Morrisons, Jinnah Group, Rushbond PLC and Yorkshire Building Society coming on board to champion the bid. The campaign also has seen new levels of collaboration between University of Bradford and Bradford Council.
David Potts, CEO of Morrisons said: “People are increasingly aware of Bradford’s potential and that’s good for residents, good for businesses and good for visitors. Local people will benefit hugely from the opportunities, not to mention the incredible experiences, of a year-long City of Culture celebration. We are looking forward to supporting the bid over the coming months and creating awareness of the campaign amongst our thousands of customers as well as our colleagues across the district”.
Bradford 2025 Bid Director, Richard Shaw, said: “Our focus now, alongside creating a winning bid, is to ensure that everyone – all local people from every corner of the district – joins us to make ours the most inclusive, most imaginative bid.
Now that we’re officially on our way to creating ‘BD25’ – an extraordinary and dynamic destination where great things can happen, we need the help of everyone in the district. We want to create a programme that is unique to Bradford, to build ‘BD25’, a new place and time where difference is celebrated, where we relish diverse views, where creativity can flourish and thrive.”
The longlisted places must now submit their final bids in January 2022. Local people can get involved in shaping the themes and cultural activities for Bradford 2025’s final bid submission and everyone is encouraged to attend one of the community events that are now taking place in every ward across the district.
The winner of the UK City of Culture 2025 competition will be announced in May 2022.
Ends – For press and media enquiries contact Debbie Bradley or Olivia Rhodes at Anita Morris Associates on debbie@anitmorrisassociates.co.uk / Olivia@anitamorrisassociates.co.uk / 01943 603311 Notes to Editors Twitter: @Bradford2025 Facebook: /bradford2025 Website: http://www.bradford2025.co.uk Bradford 2025 is the district’s bid to be UK City of Culture 2025. Awarded every four years by Government the UK City of Culture title has had a transformational impact on previous host cities, securing millions of pounds of investment and acting as a catalyst for creative place-making and culture-led regeneration. Bradford district’s bid is backed by Bradford Metropolitan District Council with the University of Bradford as a strategic partner. Bradford 2025 is driven by the Cultural Place Partnership which includes Bradford Council, University of Bradford and other representatives of the cultural sector and national funders. The bid forms part of Culture is Our Plan – Bradford Council’s cultural strategy until 2031.
In July 2021, Bradford district was officially named as one of 20 UK locations bidding for the title, the highest number of entries in the competition’s history and a resounding show of confidence in the transformational impact the designation can afford. Eight longlisted locations were announced by the DCMS in October 2021 and include Armagh City, Banbridge and Craigavon, Bradford, Cornwall, County Durham, Derby, Southampton, Stirling and Wrexham County Borough. Up to four places will be shortlisted in March 2022 ahead of the winning location being announced in spring 2022.
Corporate partners for Bradford UK City of Culture 2025 bid include:
FOUNDING PARTNERS
● Emerald Group Publishing ● Telegraph & Argus (LOCALiQ) ● Rushbond PLC ● Morrisons PLC ● The Broadway, Bradford ● Bradford Bulls ● Jinnah Group
BID CHAMPIONS ● ITC
● Platinum Partnership Solicitors ● Bombay Stores ● Regency Hall
BID PARTNERS ● CityFibre ● Exa Networks ● Schofield Sweeney ● Bradford City Football Club ● My Lahore ● Muse Developments ● Arup ● Bradford BID ● Welcome to Yorkshire ● Naylor Wintersgill ● Expect Distribution ● Great Victoria Hotel ● Yorkshire Building Society
Balfour Beatty ● Faithful+Gould ● Sovereign Health Care
Dr. Christopher A. Johnson was born in Guyana (former British Guiana), South America into a poly-ethnic family. He is an award- winning journalist, editor, publisher and business management consultant since the 1980s. Former Commonwealth/Nuffield Cambridge Press Fellow, Management Science Fellow, holder of a Diploma in Journalism & Professional Writing, a certified Commonwealth Youth Worker, with an MBA in Marketing Management and a Doctorate in Business Management.
A visiting lecturer/tutor in Marketing, Leadership-Management and Enterprise Research among others. He is a Founder/Director of Global Entrepreneurial Development Services Limited (www.geds.center) and Chair of Community Education Academy of Leadership (www.ceal.org.uk). A highly successful bid writer having contributed over £3 million worth of funding for SMEs and charities in London, the South East and the Midland Counties especially. Keen to support economic and social initiatives in Africa, Caribbean, MENA Region and South Asia.
Dr Johnson’s most recent publications are The Anatomy of British South Asian Enterprise (2016) and British Caribbean British Caribbean Enterprises (2009) for which he received the ‘Obama Shield’. Currently, he is working on a new book on British African Entrepreneurship. He is a stirring advocate of inclusive policies for the advancement of the ethnic/migrant firm sector in Britain. Past- President of the Lions Club of London Hornsey (2004-2005), being a recipient of the Melvin Jones Fellowship (M.J.F) for leading the recruitment of female members into the organisation. His motto is `Excellence is the Fulfilment of the Human Spirit’.
The soul of any community lives within the heart of its people as we continue to be the CHANGE we want to see in society The truth is, even though this is my 23rd award – it simply feels like the first.
Jacqui Defoe, who will be sharing her experience of purchasing properties, the legalities you need to be aware of plus possible pitfalls and much more…..Tune in to Supreme FM Saturday 9th October 2021From: 8am-10am (GMT) 9am-11am (CEST) 8am-10am (WAT)Www.supremefmlive.ning.com Radio Garden: Supreme FM Tunein: http://tun.in/seSJw
A SUCCESFUL BLACK HISTORY MONTH EVENT IN THE HEART OF WEST YORKSHIRE The soul of any community lives in the heart of its people. On Monday the 4th of October,
We organized The BLACK HISTORY MONTH CELEBRATIONS which took place at The City Library in Central Bradford. Many thanks to the amazing Dionne V Hood and team for providing us with the venue.
The theme of this years event was THE IMPORTANCE OF BEING THE CHANGE YOU WANT TO SEE IN SOCIETY AS BLACK PEOPLE. We were humbled to have THE DEPUTY MAYOR OF BRADFORD – Concillor Bev Mullaney in attendance, it was great to meet her for the first time
They conducted some amazing interviews and provided professional video footage which will soon be available. Watch this space for more updates on Bradford4Better on my International Blog
SPECIAL THANKS ALSO TO OUR AMAZING KEY SPEAKERS WHO HAVE NOT ONLY MADE PROFOUND CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE SPIRIT OF BLACK HISTORY, BUT WHO CONTINUE TO MAKE GREAT CONTRIBUTIONS TO THE CITY OF BRADFORD
