BBC1 Small Axe Alex Wheatle To Know Your Future You Must Know Your Past

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Small Axe - Alex Wheatle-

BBC 1 Small Axe series directed by Oscar winning Steve McQueen has captured pivotal moments from Black British history very well. The fourth episode covering the award-winning writer Alex Wheatle highlights the quote “To know your future you must know your past”.

Alex Wheatle spent his childhood in a mostly white institutional care home with no love or family, he finally found a sense of community for the first time in Brixton, where he developed a passion for music and DJing. When thrown in prison during the Brixton uprising of 1981, he confronts his past and sees a path to healing and guidance from Simeon a Rastafarian.

Small Axe  Alex Wheatle

Growing up Alex’s heroes were Pele, Muhammad Ali, Viv Richards and Bruce Lee and a massive reggae fan. In his mid-teens a founder member of the Crucial Rocker sound system where he wrote lyrics for performances in community halls, youth clubs, house parties and blues dances.

Book Selection

q? encoding=UTF8&ASIN=9124024848&Format= SL160 &ID=AsinImage&MarketPlace=GB&ServiceVersion=20070822&WS=1&tag=reggae revellers 21&language=en GBir?t=reggae revellers 21&language=en GB&l=li2&o=2&a=9124024848  Alex Wheatle Crongton Series 4 Books Collection Set (Liccle Bit, Crongton Knights, Straight Outta Crongton, Home Girl) Paperback 

ir?t=reggae revellers 21&language=en GB&l=li2&o=2&a=9124024848

Awards

2020 –  Shorlisted for the NSK Neustadt Prize for Children’s Literature 

2017 – Winner of the Renaissance Quiz Writers’ Choice Award for Crongton Knights.
2016 – Winner of the Guardian’s Children’s Fiction Award for Crongton Knights.

2008 – MBE for services to literature.

1999 – London Arts Board New Writers Award for Brixton Rock.

Alex’s story stands for hope, faith and self-belief a great performance from the cast and a special Big Up to Robbie Gee (Semeon) resonating the words to know your future you must know your past.  

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The sound of Reggae is widely recognised because of its acoustically formed bass and drum downbeat, and its offbeat rhythm section. With such a diversity in style it is also considered complex enough to attract progressively minded musicians. A music that has a strong association with dance covering a variety of styles while also offering a background beat for those sharing Biblical chants of Zion. It is hard to ignore Reggae’s influence and how it interacts with our day-to-day lives. Shared as background music for films and advertising driving its heavy bass lines literally felt wherever rock and pop are played. Reggae has an affinity with mainstream British pop; recognised within the hip-hop culture and considered “cool” by those with no connection to Jamaica. As lovers of reggae my aim is to build a community of reggae followers that can share thoughts, news, events as listeners, artists, DJ’s and hosts.