Book now to attend "What's Happening in Black British History? VII"! #WHBBH7 is the seventh in the Institute of Commonwealth Studies series that I co-convene with Michael Ohajuru exploring the history of peoples of African origin and descent in Britain. 

The day will feature a keynote speech by broadcaster, historian and author David Olusoga, author of Black and British: A Forgotten History. This will be part of a great line-up of engaging, informed speakers, with sessions on:  Broadcasting Black British History; What do young people see happening in Black British History? and Imagination and Reality: Africans in Sixteenth Century Britain.  

WHBBH7 will be held at Senate House, London on Thursday 26th October, 10.30am-6.30pm. The full programme and event details are available on the Institute of Commonwealth Studies website. You can book your place here. 

​I'm beyond excited to present the finished cover for my forthcoming book, Black Tudors: The Untold Story which will be published in the UK on 5th October 2017 and in the USA on 14th November 2017.

And truly honoured by this review:

‘Intricately researched and brilliantly written… alive with human details and warmth. Black Tudors is a critical book that allows us to better understand an era of our national past that fascinates us like no other.’ - DAVID OLUSOGA 

It's already available for pre-order on Amazon, and some kind friends say they have already bought their copies!

You can read more about the book here, or meet the ten African men and women featured here.

I'm taking a break over the summer, but will be back in force in the autumn to promote the book, so watch this space for details of my talks –I'm already booked to speak at the BBC History Weekends in Winchester (Sun 8 October) and York (Saturday 25 November)– or get in touch if you'd like to invite me to speak about my work at your local venue.

Less than a month to go now until our next What’s Happening in Black British History? workshop, which will be held at The Institute for Black Atlantic Research, University of Central Lancashire, Preston on Thursday 16th March, 11am-6pm. 

I'm really looking forward to the keynote from historian and author Professor Gretchen Gerzina on Why Black British History Matters: An American Perspective. You may have heard her recent BBC Radio 4 series, Britain's Black Past- still available to listen to on iPlayer. 

We've got an action packed programme as usual, with sessions on: Beyond the Margins: Diverse Black Histories in Britain;  Fathers’ Migration Stories and Black British Experiences of War.

Have a read of what's on offer and then book your place here. 

Looking forward to seeing you there!


WHBBH6 Programme
10.30- 11.00    Registration: tea & coffee
11.00-12.30     Session One: Beyond the Margins: Diverse Black Histories in Britain

            Chair: Alan Rice (IBAR)

Alan Rice (IBAR), Vagrant Presences and Reparative Histories: Lost Children, The Black Atlantic and Northern Britain

Corinne Fowler (University of Leicester), How Writers Can Public Raise Awareness of the Black Histories of Britain's Countryside and Why It Matters

Theresa Saxon (IBAR), Ira Aldridge in Britain

Raphael Hoermann (IBAR), “The fate of St. Domingo awaits you”: The Haitian Revolution and the Haitian Gothic with White and Black British Radicals, 1804-1819
12.30-1.30 Session Two: Fathers’ Migration Stories

           Chair: Miranda Kaufmann

Hannah Lowe (Kingston University) Ormonde: Post-War Caribbean Migration through Poetry

SuAndi and Jackie Ould (AfroSolo UK) My Father Always Wore A Dunhill Hat

1.30- 2.30                    Lunch

2.30- 4.00 Session Three: Black British Experiences of War

           Chair: Sean Creighton

John Siblon (Birkbeck College), First World War Memorials of African, Asian and Caribbean Colonial servicemen in Britain

Melissa Bennett (University of Warwick), Deciphering photographs of black military bodies prior to World War One

Lauren Darwin (African Stories in Hull and East Yorkshire), “You black men are not wanted in this country”: Exploring the dichotomy between the experience of Black sailors before, during and after World War One in Hull.

4.00-4.30                     Tea/coffee

4.30- 5.30        Keynote address: Professor Gretchen Gerzina ((University of Massachusetts, Amherst) Why Black British History Matters: An American Perspective

5.30- 6.30                   Final Thoughts and Conclusions

             Chair: Michael Ohajuru

Panel: Alan Rice, Elizabeth Burke, Gretchen Gerzina 

 6.30 -7.30                    Reception

On Monday morning I headed to Broadcasting House to talk about 'Black Tudor and Stuart Seafarers', which was the title of the talk I was giving to the Maritime History Seminar run by the National Maritime Museum at the Institute of Historical Research the following evening.

I was interviewed by Robert Elms on his BBC Radio London 94.9FM show! 

Hopefully I'll get to go back in October when my book, Black Tudors, comes out...

Following the success of our previous events in London, Liverpool, and Bristol, we would like to invite you to the sixth of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies’ What’s Happening  in Black British History Workshops (WHBBH6) at The Institute for Black Atlantic Research, University of Central Lancashire, on Thursday 16th March 2017.

The Keynote Speaker will be Professor Gretchen Gerzina (University of Massachusetts, Amherst), author of Black England: Life Before Emancipation (1995) and presenter of the recent BBC Radio 4 series, Britain’s Black Past.

The aim of the series is to foster a creative dialogue between researchers, educationalists (mainstream and supplementary), artists and writers, archivists and curators, and policy makers. It seeks to identify and promote innovative new research into the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK, and facilitate discussion of the latest developments in the dissemination of Black British history in a wide variety of settings including the media, the classroom and lecture hall, and museums and galleries, thus providing an opportunity to share good practice.

We welcome proposals for papers and presentations on a wide variety of themes relating to the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK. For WHBBH6, we would be particularly interested to receive papers which explore the local histories of the Black people in Britain outside London; are related to the histories of World War One and World War Two; or reflect the artistic and cultural focus of the Institute for Black Atlantic Research.
We would be delighted to hear from researchers, educationalists, archivists and curators or others interested in offering a presentation, lasting for 15-20 minutes. Please submit a title and a brief description of your presentation either in writing (in which case, of no more than 300 words) or in some other form (for example a clip or podcast) to Dr. Miranda Kaufmann at miranda.kaufmann@sas.ac.uk by 31st January 2017.

In addition, we would be happy to consider proposals for a complete panel. The panel should have a coherent unifying theme, and the proposal should include the abstracts of three related presentations and the names and affiliations of the presenters. We would also be interested in providing A-level students, undergraduates or graduate students with an opportunity to give presentations on projects relating to Black British History.

The day will run from 11am to 6.00pm, followed by a Reception. There will be a registration fee of £20 (£10 for students/unwaged) to cover the costs of lunch and refreshments. A limited number of travel bursaries will be available to independent speakers on application. Requests to register should be sent to Olga Jimenez at olga.jimenez@sas.ac.uk.

Download WHBBH6 CFP

Really looking forward to the fifth in our series of Black British History workshops!

It will be held on Thursday 27th October 2016, from 10.00-7.15 in the Wolfson Room,  at the Institute of Historical Research, Senate House.

Our keynote speaker will be Kehinde Andrews, a lead member of the team delivering the UK's first BA course in Black Studies at Birmingham City University. 

We've got some great panels too. The first Beyond Mary Prince: Black Women in Dialogue will be delivered by students from  the MA course in Black British Writing at Goldsmiths, University of London. Then we've got Recovering and Engaging the Public with Black British Histories- where we'll hear from those who are finding histories to bring to the public, in exhibitions at the Black Cultural Archives and Epping Forest, and in novels and interactive presentations for young people. The third session, Identity and Involvement in Doing Justice to Black British History in Schools will be brought to us by a group of teachers involved with the excellent Justice2History project, who some of you might remember from WHBBH1. 

It's going to be great. You can read the full agenda below, and Register here.

Hope to see you there!


WHBBH5 Agenda

Thursday 27th October

Wolfson Room, Institute of Historical Research, Senate House.

10.00- 10.30 Registration: tea & coffee

10.30-11.00 Keynote address: Professor Kehinde Andrews (Birmingham City University)

11.00-12.30 Session One: Beyond Mary Prince: Black Women in Dialogue
Chair: Deirdre Osborne (Reader in English Literature and Drama, Goldsmiths, University of London)
Kareena Chin (MA Student, Goldsmiths), Mary Prince, Censorship and Publication
Heather Marks (MA Student, Goldsmiths), Women and Windrush
Heather Goodman (MA Student, Goldsmiths), Millennial Voices Janet Sebastian
Vanessa Igho (MA Students, Goldsmiths) The MA in Black British Writing: From Fiction to Fact

12.30-1.15 Lunch

1.15-3.00 Session Two: Recovering and Engaging the Public with Black British Histories
Chair: Professor Philip Murphy (Director of the Institute of Commonwealth )
Munira Mohamed (Learning Manager, Black Cultural Archives) and Monique Baptiste-Brown (Communications and Marketing Manager,Black Cultural Archives), Reclaiming heritage: Black Cultural Archives’ methodology for curating living heritage and evaluating the recent co-curated exhibition, Rastafari in Motion
Kate Morrison (Writer & Visiting Scholar, Book, Text and Place 1500 – 1750 Research Centre, Bath Spa University) ‘Go back & fetch what you forgot': building a fictional character from the archives
Grace Quansah (Director, WAPPY: Writing, Acting & Publishing Project for Youngsters)Empowering Young Voices to Explore Heritage
Sophie Lillington (Museum & Heritage Manager, Epping Forest, City of London Corporation),Down in the Forest: a first foray into Black History

3.00-3.30 Tea/coffee

3.30-5.00 Session Three: Identity and Involvement in Doing Justice to Black British History in Schools
Chairs: Abdul Mohamud and Robin Whitburn (Justice2History)
Sharon Aninakwa, (Head of History at the Convent of Jesus and Mary Language College, Harlesden) Black Women in History and the School
Thabo Stuck (History teacher, The BRIT School for performing arts, Croydon). Becoming a ‘Choreographer’: challenges to doing justice to history
André Burton (PGCE student, Institute of Education, UCL) The importance of Black British History and the struggle for education in 21st century London

5. 15-6.15 Final Thoughts and Conclusions Panel 
Chair: Dr Miranda Kaufmann (Senior Research Fellow, Institute of Commonwealth Studies)

6.15-7.15 Reception
​
Registration is now open Register here

Following the success of our previous events in London, Liverpool, and Bristol, we would like to invite you to the fifth of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies’ Black British History Workshops (WHBBH5) at Senate House, London, on Thursday 27 October 2016.
Keynote Speaker
For What’s Happening in Black British History? V we are delighted to have associate professor of sociology at Birmingham University Kehinde Andrews as our key note speaker, he is the course convenor of the very first undergraduate honours course in Black Studies at a British university
New Research and Panel Sessions
The aim of the series is to foster a creative dialogue between researchers (academic and independent), educationalists (mainstream and supplementary), artists and writers, archivists and curators, and policy makers. It seeks to identify and promote innovative new research into the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK, and facilitate discussion of the latest developments in the dissemination of Black British history in a wide variety of settings including the media, the classroom and lecture hall, and museums and galleries, thus providing an opportunity to share good practice.
We welcome proposals for papers and presentations on a wide variety of themes relating to the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK. These might cover subjects such as new approaches to teaching Black British History; the silencing/exclusion of Black British voices; the history of political/community activism; Black people in cultural and sporting history of Britain; and issues around gender including the role of women and members of the LGBT communities.
The workshop will be divided into three panels, followed by a round-table discussion. Each panel will consist of three presentations lasting for 15-20 minutes.
In addition, we would be happy to consider proposals for a complete panel. The panel should have a coherent unifying theme, and the proposal should include the abstracts of three related presentations and the names and affiliations of the presenters. We would also be interested in providing A-level students, undergraduates or graduate students with an opportunity to give presentations on projects relating to Black British History.
Deadline
We would be delighted to hear from researchers, educationalists, archivists and curators or others interested in offering a presentation. Please submit a title and a brief description of your presentation either in writing (in which case, of no more than 300 words) or in some other form (for example a clip or podcast) with an indication of which panel you envisage contributing to, to Dr. Miranda Kaufmann at miranda.kaufmann@sas.ac.uk by 15th July 2016.
The day will run from 11am to 6.00pm, followed by a Reception. There will be a registration fee of £20 (£10 for students/unwaged) to cover the costs of lunch and refreshments. A limited number of travel bursaries will be available to independent speakers on application. Requests to register should be sent to Olga Jimenez at olga.jimenez@sas.ac.uk.

Now that we've got the agenda confirmed, I'm looking forward to What's Happening in Black British History? IV (#WHBBH4) all the more!

It's going to be at Watershed, Bristol on Thursday 7th April. A whole day talking about Black British History! We've got sessions on:
1. Engaging with Archives: from the personal to the political, resistance and healing. 
 
2. Women in Black British History: artists, abolitionists and Black Power activists.

3.Local Black British Histories: exploring the Black British Histories of the South West, from Bristol and Bath, to Devon, Dorset and South Wales. 

You can read the full programme on the Black British History website here, or below. 

I really hope you want to join us! If you do, please register for your place online here. Tickets are £20/ £10 concessions.

Hope to see you next month! 

Plenty is happening in Black British History- according to the Mail on Sunday, the OCR GCSE course ‘Migration To Britain c. 1000 to c. 2010’ which we heralded at WHBBH3 has been condemned as ‘pro-immigration propaganda’. The #RhodesMustFall campaign in Oxford is provoking widespread debate about Britain’s colonial legacy, as well as the significance of our public monuments; and a new BBC Two History series ‘A Black History of Britain’, presented by David Olusoga, is planning to erect over twenty specially designed ‘BBC Black History plaques’ to record and celebrate people and events that are pivotal to this history.
 
Following the success of our previous events in London and Liverpool, we would like to invite you to the fourth of the Institute of Commonwealth Studies’ Black British History Workshops at Watershed, Bristol, on Thursday 7th April 2016. The Bristol workshop will be co-sponsored by the University of the West of England (UWE) and the Institute of Commonwealth Studies.
 
The aim of the series is to foster a creative dialogue between researchers, educationalists (mainstream and supplementary), artists and writers, archivists and curators, and policy makers. It seeks to identify and promote innovative new research into the history of people of African origin or descent in the UK, and facilitate discussion of the latest developments in the dissemination of Black British history in a wide variety of settings including the media, the classroom and lecture hall, and museums and galleries, thus providing an opportunity to share good practice.

​At this fourth workshop, we would like to open the floor to presentations on any aspect of Black British History. As we will be in Bristol, local and regional or family histories from Bristol and the South-West would also be welcome.
 
The workshop will be divided into three panels, followed by a round-table discussion. Each panel will consist of three presentations lasting for 15-20 minutes.

We would be delighted to hear from researchers, educationalists, artists, writers, archivists and curators or others interested in offering a presentation. Please submit a title and a brief description of your presentation either in writing (in which case, of no more than 300 words) or in some other form (for example a clip or podcast) to Dr. Miranda Kaufmann at miranda.kaufmann@sas.ac.uk by 26th February 2016.
 
In addition, we would be happy to consider proposals for a complete panel. The panel should have a coherent unifying theme, and the proposal should include the abstracts of three related presentations and the names and affiliations of the presenters. We would also be interested in providing A-level students, undergraduates or graduate students with an opportunity to give presentations on projects relating to Black British History.
 
The day will run from 11am to 6.00pm, followed by a Reception. There will be a registration fee of £20 (£10 for students/unwaged) to cover the costs of lunch and refreshments. A limited number of travel bursaries will be available to independent speakers on application. Requests to register should be sent to olga.jimenez@sas.ac.uk.

If you only go to one event this Black History Month, make it #WHBBH3! We've got an great line-up of engaging, informed speakers who will spend the day discussing how to challenge the conventional narratives, the practicalities of teaching Black British History, and giving us some new perspectives on the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries. Then, our expert panel will provide an opportunity to reflect on the day's discussions, before we finish off the day with a Drinks Reception. 

Just to whet your appetite a little more, here's a preview of what's in store:

We're delighted that pioneering activist and publisher Eric Huntley has agreed to deliver our keynote speech! The contribution he and his late wife Jessica have made to Black British culture is currently being celebrated in an acclaimed exhibition at the Guildhall Art Gallery, London - No Colour Bar: Black British Art in Action 1960-1990.

We'll begin by challenging some conventional narratives. What stories do we tell our children about the past? Novelist Catherine Johnson will talk about how her fiction tells the greater truth that black people 'have always been here'. Ryan Hanley will take us beyond Equiano to explore the work of some of his lesser-known contemporaries. Then David Killingray will make some suggestions as to how the latest research can inform a new narrative of Black British History. 

A new GCSE course on migration will provide fresh opportunities for Teaching Black British History. Martin Spafford, who helped develop the course, will report on what's on offer. Then we'll hear from Dema Wonga, of Narrative Eye and Abdul Mohamud & Robin Whitburn of Justice2History about their experiences of bringing Black British History into the classroom, and the importance of an inclusive curriculum. 

Discover some new perspectives on the eighteenth and nineteenth centuries! Jeffrey Green will chronicle and critique the lives of some Victorian Africans: a servant, an aristocrat, and a murderer.  Jan Marsh of the National Portrait Gallery will provide a visual perspective on Black British History, and comment on the ways museums and galleries have sought to present it. Advolly Richmond will explore the botanical legacy of  Anglo-African missionary Thomas Birch Freeman.

Speakers Abdul Mohamud and Martin Spafford will be joined on the final panel by historian Sean Creighton, Paul Reid, Director of the Black Cultural Archives, and, well, me. I'm sure we'll have a lot to talk about.

If you like the sound of all that, then book your place now!

​The full programme and event details are available on the Institute of Commonwealth Studies website. 

Hope to see you there!