I am a retired teacher who wrote 7 photocopiable books for Teachers and one book for children Union Jack Colouring Book.
The 7books covered Geography, History (Medieval/ Tudor/ Stuart), Travel and Transport, Myself and Events (this included diaries), Race Against Time Stories (SATS based), Church Dates for Children plus Nature and Seasons (including Sport). These 7 books have been mainly broken into a number of segments.
Challenging the Physical Elements, my Geography book, is complete.
I am a retired teacher who wrote 7 photocopiable books for Teachers and one book for children Union Jack Colouring Book.
The 7books covered Geography, History (Medieval/ Tudor/ Stuart), Travel and Transport, Myself and Events (this included diaries), Race Against Time Stories (SATS based), Church Dates for Children plus Nature and Seasons (including Sport). These 7 books have been mainly broken into a number of segments.
Challenging the Physical Elements, my Geography book, is complete.
Anthony -born Fernando Martins de Bulhoes, was raised by a wealthy family in Lisbon… He died in Padua ).
He joined the Augustine canons at an early age.
Aged 25 he joined the Franciscan friars. He adopted the name Anthony from the name of the chapel located there, dedicated to Anthony the Great.
He was sent to work work among the Muslims in Morocco. Ill health forced to return within the year to Assisi.
His exceptional teaching and preaching talents were then discovered. St. Francis of Assisi chose him to teach Theology to the friars at Padua and Bologna.
in southern France.
He then preached against the Albigensian heretics in Southern France.
Between 1227-30 he ruled the Franciscan province in northern Italy.
He then retired to Padua and Pope Gregory 1X commissioned him to write a series of sermons for Feast days
He died at the age of just 35 in 1231. he was canonized the next year ( one of the most quickly canonized saints in church history).
He is the patron saint of lost property The story is that a novice borrowed his written psalter without his permission and was compelled to return it by a terrifying apparition.
During his lifetime he gained a major reputation as a worker of wonders and miracles. He was noted by his contemporaries for his powerful preaching, expert knowledge of scriptures and undying love and devotion to the poor and the sick.
On 16th January 1946 Anthony was proclaimed a* Doctor of the Church* by Pope Pius X11.
Sources
Wikipedia
Saints Over 150 Patron Saints for Today editor Elizabeth Hallam
Saint Genevieve was a consecrated virgin and is the patron saint of Paris in the Catholic and Orthodox traditions. She was recognized as the patron saint of Paris in the 14th century.
She was recognized for her religious devotion at a young age. Miracles and healings happened around her from an early age.
Her prayers saved Paris from being destroyed by Attila the Hun in 451 and other wars. Her organisation of the city’s women was called a ‘prayer marathon’ and her ‘most famous feat’.
She was involved with two major constructions - a basilica for Saint Denis of Paris in 475 and the basilica dedicated to the Holy Apostles Saint Peter and Paul around c500.
Between 885 and 1791 Genevieve was publicaly invoked 153 times during emergencies,
Genevieve performed miracles both before and after her death.
Sources
Wikipedia
Saints Over 150 Patron Saints for Today Editor Elizabeth Hallam
Inua Marc Mohammed Onore de Ellams was given a MBE in 2023 in the Birthday honours for serviced to the Arts.
He rubs his palms into poetry and plays, dusting the mix of his experiences in Nigeria and London into various award winning pagesSophia Thakur.
He has written for the Royal Shakespeare Company, Royal National Theatre and the BBC.
He has written 3 poetry books * ** Thirteen Fairy Negro Tales, Candy Coasted Unicorns and ** Converse All Stars**.
He has seasoned the scene with award winning sold-out plays that tell tales of identity. Sophia Thakur
His plays/performances are The 14th Tale, Untitled, Barber Shop Chronicles, The half God of Rainfall, Three Sisters and An Evening with an Immigrant( For more detail read the notes)
In 2018 he was elected as a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature as part of its 40 Under 40 initiative.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur pages 46/7
Saint Vincent de Paul was an Occitan French Catholic priest who dedicated himself to serving the poor.I
In 1601 he was ordained as a priest and became the chaplain at court for
Henry 1V of France. He became the tutor for an aristocratic until he was accused of theft. He remained silent for 6 months until his innocence was proved. Conversion dated from this date.
For the rest of his life he combined his working with the rich and fashionable and with looking after outcasts, the sick and poverty stricken, galley slaves and abandoned children.
He founded the* Cgngregation of the Mission or the Vincentians. He was zealous in conducting retreats for clergy for when the local clergy’s .morals were flagging. He was a pioneer in seminary education.
He founded the* Daughters of Charity of Saint Vincent of Paul
He was renown for his compassion, humility and generosity.
He is the namesake of the Vincentian Family of organisations.
Vincent was beatified in 1729 and canonized in 1737.
In 1883 Pope Leo X11 named patron of all charitable societies.
He is now venerated as a saint by both the Catholic Church and Anglican Communion.
Note ‘occitan’ is a romance language spoken in Southern France
Sources
Wikipedia
The Encyclopedia of Saints by Howard Loxton
*Saints Over 150 Patron Saints for Today * editor Elizabeth Hallam
Temitope Titillola ‘Temi’ Fagbenie had 11 siblings
Her family moved to the UK when she was 2 years old and began to play basketball at the Haringey Angels club.
Aged 15 she returned to the USA to study at the Blair Academy in New Jersey. She then attended Harvard University before transferring to the University of Southern California for her final year of NCAA basketball.
In 2012 she was 1.93 metres (6ft.4in) tall : she weighed 79.5 kilogrammes (175lbs.
She represented Great Britain at the under 16, 18 and 20 levels. She was named in the British team for the 2012 Olympics,
Temi has won national championships in Spain, Italy and Great Britain as well as the EuroCup in 2024 with the London Lions.
In 2024 she was signed by WNBA team Indiana Fever to a training camp contract She is now suffering from an undisclosed left foot injury.
Lets hope she soon fully recovers.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Reni’s primary focus is on feminism and exposing structural racism. As a freelance journalist she has written for a number of publications including The New York Times, The Guardian, The Independent, The Daily Telegraph, The Voice, Buzzfeed, Vice. ID, & Dazed and Confused.
In 2017 she completed her debut book Why I’m No Longer Talking to White People About Race. In 2020 her book rose 155 places in the official Bookseller chart. This happened in the wake of the murder of George Floyd. This meant that she became the first back British woman to top the non-fiction book-selling charts at number 1.She stated that she was dismayed by the tragic circumstances in which this achievement came about. On 16 June 2020 she became the first British black woman to be No1 overall in the British book charts.
In 2020 and 2021 editions of the Powerlist Reni was listed in the top 100 of the most influential people in the UK of African/African-Caribbean descent.
See list of Awards and Recognitions
Reggie (Reginald) Yates has had a career in television and radio lasting 3 decades. (See 2 pages of notes)
He made his first television appearance in Desmond aged just 8.
He has worked for the BBC in radio and television presenting various shows for BBC Radio 1 as well as hosting BBC1 singing show* The Voice UK*, hosting the first 2 series with Holly Willoughby.
He has been a lead voice actor for CBeebies animated cartoon series Rastamouse.
In 2021 he released his first feature film Pirates.
Michael, born to Ghanaian immigrants in Croydon, is best known for portraying the fictional rapper Big Shaq (also known as Roadman Shaq).
His parents wanted him to become a doctor: he was more interested in acting and comedy. He studied film, acting and theatre at Brunel University and took a course from the National Youth Theatre.
He began his career by collecting a social following among the British-African community with brief comedic parts in shows likeMeet the Adebanjos which deals with a Nigerian family in London.
in May 2017, with Mary Brown, he launched a mockumentary series on You Tube title SW11 (Somewhere in London) which amassed 1 million views in its first series.In this series he created MC Quakez and Big Shaq.
His comedic rap Man’s Not Hot developed into a viral meme. and a studio track version of the song was released on 22 September 2017. The song’s music video was released by Michael on 26th October 2017.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Omari’s older brother filmed him cooking and put it on You Tube!
That’s how it all started.
He created his own company - Dipalicious making dips.
He ran a pop-up restaurant in Boxpark, London for a week.
He has his CBBC show What’s cooking Omani?
He has written 2 cook books ** Omari McQueen’s Best Bites* and*** Vegan Family Cookbook***. He found this difficult because he is dyslexic
He wants people to realise that vegans do not sit down and eat grass and salad.
How does he veganise a recipe? On a Friday he asks his father to pick something that is not vegan. He then takes out all of the animal products and replaces them.
His new book encourages people to eat together with a vegan twist.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Musa is a writer, broadcaster and the co-host of the Stadio football podcast.
His parents, both medical students, fled Uganda under Idi Amin’s dictatorship and settled in the UK.
He attended Eton College (1992-8) with a scholarship towards his fees and read Juisprudence for 3 years at St. John’s College, Oxford.
He then qualified as a lawyer before leaving the profession to pursue a career as a performance poet and musician.
Musa now writes fiction and non-fiction for children and adults on the subjects of politics, sport, race, music and culture.
He has written 7 books. A cultured left foot in 2008 was nominated for the William Hill Sports Book of the Year.
In 2021 he wrote a children’s book* Striking out* based on the life of footballer Ian Wright who collaborated with him.
Since 2014 Musa has lived in Berlin.
Sources
wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Saint Brigid of Kildare or Saint Brigid of Ireland is the patroness saint (mother saint) of Ireland. She is one of the three national saints with Patrick and Columba.
According to medieval Irish hagiographies she was the abbess who founded the important abbey of Kildare (Cill Dara).
It is said that she was buried at the high altar of the original Kildare Cathedral and a tomb raised over her adorned with gems and precious stones and crowns of gold and silver.
On February 1st Brigid Crosses are weaved ( see picture).
In 2023 it became a public holiday in the Republic of Ireland.The feast is shared with Dar Lugdach who tradition says was her student, close companion and successor.
(There is a debate whether Brigid was a real person- read the notes.)
Source
Wikipedia
Temi’s heart was broken when her good friend Marvin was murdered. The need for justice erupted inside her.
She developed her strongest weapon - knowledge. She studied law, the streets, the system, pollticians, and the culture of youth.
In 2012 she founded The 4Front Project.
Between 2014 -2018 she won 6 awards for her efforts.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes* by Sophia Thakur (pages 92-3)
William is a British-Ghanaian entrepreneur. In 2016 selected by Richard Branson to be a Virgin StartUp ambassador.
His watch company has been sold in over 30 countries and he has distributed over 2,000 items of school uniform to children across Ghana, South Africa and Uganda.
In 2017 nominated for 2 awards
GUBA Business StartUp of the year
Black British Entertainment Award - Best Fashion Designer
Sources
Wikipedia
*Superheroes *by Sophia Thakur
Mo is a British stand-up comedian, television presenter and content creator.
His full birth name is Mosiah Bikila Gilligan.
His parent are of Jamaican and St. Lucian descent. They separated when he was 5 but shared custody.
He became interested in comedy whilst attending a performing arts school in Pimlico.
While working in retail he began uploading comedy videos. on his social media accounts.His videos became popular.
In 2017 he was spotted by Canadian rapper Drake who quoted some of Mo’s comedy on hi sown Instagram account.
Between 2018 and 2022 he co-hosted The Big Narstie Show with rapper Big Narstie… The show received a mixed reception but in 2021 won Best Comedy Entertainment Programme.
In 2019 he began hosting The Lateish Show with Mo Gilligan.
Since 2020 he has been a regular panellist on both The Masked Singer and The Masked Dancer.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Therese’s second full-length play play Girls won the Alfred Fagon Award for the best new play in 2015. The play was about three girls abduction by terrorists in northern Nigeria.
In 2016 she received the George Devine Award for most promising playwright.
Theresa gained nationwide recognition in 2019 for Rocks - a feature length coming-of-age drama which she co-wrote with Clarie Wilson. For this she received a BAFTA Award nomination.
In 2021 the film was nominated for 7 awards -including Outstanding British film and Best Actress in a leading Role won by 19 year Old Bukky Bakay.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Jumpoke and Kym joined forces and created a platform to increase the visibility and highlight the narratives of the ‘invisible population within an invisible population’ -Tripple Cripples
For breakfast they eat skin colour on a plate of racism, for lunch they eat gender and for dinner they eat a plate of disability.
They don’t swallow and wallow in the face of difficulty, they smile and wave.
*Tripple Cripples was created by two disabled black women, for women, femmes and Non-Binary POC living with disablities, each and every day, where stories remain hidden from view.
Jumpoke, contracted polio before her first birthday. She is a travel addict and her travel blog Jayonlife highlights both the accessible and inaccessible of her chosen
destinations. She is a writer, speaker, lecturer and consultant.
Kym has Multtiple Sclerosis. She is dedicated to illuminating her ’ lived experience’ with this long tern condition. She is a writer, speaker and a lecturer at Oxford University.
Sources used
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Dr Mark Richards research centred around the spectroscopic study of nitric acid vapour for atmospheric remote sensing retrieval.
He has since co-founded Duvas Technologies which specialises in wireless air sensing networks for real-time pollution mapping.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Liam fist came to public attention as a contestant on The Great British Bake-off in 2017. He came fifth.
Since then he has written 2 books Cheeky Treats: 70 Brilliant Bakes and Cakes and Second Helpings. He also writes a column for* The Guardian*
He was a judge on the Platinum Pudding Competition in 2022 to discover a new pudding recipe dedicated to Queen Elizabeth ll on her 70th anniversary accession to the throne.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Jordan has had a prosthetic leg since he was 18 months old.
‘He channelled and trained the powerful threads that pulsated through his body to play wheelchair basket’ .He played for 20 years at club and national level.
His speed and precision impressed everyone on and off the court.
He became captain of the Men’s Great Britain Junior Wheelchair basketball team which won 2 European championships.
When he retired he picked up the microphone and took up sports reporting.
At the 2012 Summer Paralympics he was the sports commentator for the games on Chanel 4.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheroes by Sophia Thakur
Lhoni is currently the youngest weather broadcasters at the BBC. She presents the BBC weather for the North of England.
She is also a highly accomplished keynote and motivational speaker.
She was the first of her immediate family to go to university. She completed an undergraduate degree in Broadcast Journalism (now BA Journalism) at Leeds University in 2016.
Sources
Wikipedia
Superheros by Sophia Thakur