
Wellingborough Windrush events 'intergenerational' says organiser
One of the organisers of a series of events to mark Windrush Day said he wanted to make them as "intergenerational" as possible.Windrush Day has been held on 22 June since 2018 to celebrate the contribution Caribbean migrants and their families have made to the UK.HMT Empire Windrush docked in Tilbury, Essex, in 1948, bringing hundreds of passengers from the Caribbean to the UK.Glenroy Bell from the Windrush Innovation Society, in Wellingborough, Northamptonshire, said: "This year, the idea was different community groups come together and launch a series of events, not just on Windrush Day, but before and weeks after."
'Building Britain'
Travellers on HMT Empire Windrush - and those on other ships which came to the UK until 1971 - became known as the Windrush generation.Among them were Mr Bell's grandparents, who arrived in the UK in the early 1950s.He said this year's events started on 13 June with a talk from Prof Patrick Vernon OBE, who was one of the first to campaign for a Windrush Day.The following weekend, there was a storytelling event for children with stories from the Windrush generation."We really want to sort of capture [the Windrush generation's] stories and be reminding of our first generations as best as we can, but the next generation to keep it going," Mr Bell said.
Mr Bell said when the organisers of the town's Windrush Day events met last year, "one of the key things we wanted to make sure is that we have intergenerational activities".He added: "We wanted to make sure, as best as we can, it brings everybody together from every generation."It was really important because it's not just the founders, those who first came here, it's also those who are here now and building Britain as we go along."
One of the events is an art exhibition at Wellingborough's Swansgate Shopping Centre.It included "a Bob Marley walk" to commemorate what would have been Bob Marley's 80th birthday earlier this year.Mr Bell said: "It should be a four metre wide piece of art, which has got a [collage] of all the different images of Bob Marley."It's hopefully a nice big work of art for people to sort of see as part of the exhibition."
Follow Northamptonshire news on BBC Sounds, Facebook, Instagram and X.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


The Sun
19 minutes ago
- The Sun
Love Island ‘bully' row as Toni and Shakira turn on Emily in massive argument
LOVE Island fans have accused some of the stars of bullying after an explosive row in the Casa Amor villa. American Islander Toni and Emily clashed in fiery scenes with the former accusing her costar of being nosey on the ITV reality dating series. 4 4 Toni - who arrived as the first bombshell of the series - gets annoyed after hearing a conversation between Emily and Conor. The row then started after Emily accused Toni of talking behind her back and was warned by Meg that Toni had said she was being "nosey" and described her as "Little Miss Sunshine." Toni was also seen talking about Emily to Shakira, who agreed with Toni's views. Following their row, an exasperated Emily said she thought Toni was "just trying to cause a problem," and "she's f****g nuts." But viewers watching at home accused the Islanders of bullying due to the many instances of gossiping about Emily without her knowledge. "Toni wanted to be the IT girl so bad and is now just trying anything to stay relevant causing problems when Emily hasn't done anything wrong, when actually she just looks like a bully," wrote one Love Island fan on X, formerly Twitter. Another added: "You all love Toni but last year you all hated Jess saying she was a bully?!?!?!" A third wrote: "Toni is like a school ground bully, poor Emily her and Shakira are 2 b*****s." And a fourth posted: "How can you call Toni a bully for that when Emily happily begs it w the bully trio." Toni hasn't had the easiest ride in the villa, and on Wednesday night she was almost dumped from the villa. New islander Harrison was faced with choosing between Toni and Malisha, after they both found themselves single in the latest recoupling. They both then went on a date with Harrison, before he chose Toni, meaning Malisha went home. It was a shaky night all round for Shakira on Friday's episode as she chatted to Harry who admitted being unsure about his relationship with Helena. Love Island 2025 full lineup Harry Cooksley: A 30-year-old footballer with charm to spare. Shakira Khan: A 22-year-old Manchester-based model, ready to turn heads. Megan Moore: A payroll specialist from Southampton, looking for someone tall and stylish. Alima Gagigo: International business graduate with brains and ambition. Tommy Bradley: A gym enthusiast with a big heart. Helena Ford: A Londoner with celebrity connections, aiming to find someone funny or Northern. Ben Holbrough: A model ready to make waves. Megan Clarke: An Irish actress already drawing comparisons to Maura Higgins. Dejon Noel-Williams: A personal trainer and semi-pro footballer, following in his footballer father's footsteps. Aaron Buckett: A towering 6'5' personal trainer. Conor Phillips: A 25-year-old Irish rugby pro. Antonia Laites: Love Island's first bombshell revealed as sexy Las Vegas pool party waitress. Yasmin Pettet: The 24-year-old bombshell hails from London and works as a commercial banking executive. Malisha Jordan: A teaching assistant from Broxbourne, Hertfordshire, who entered Love Island 2025 as a bombshell. Emily Moran: Bombshell Welsh brunette from the same town as Love Island 2024 alumni Nicole Samuel. Shea Mannings: Works as a scaffolder day-to-day and plays semi-pro football on the side. Remell Mullins: Boasts over 18million likes and 500k followers on TikTok thanks to his sizzling body transformation videos. Harrison Solomon: Pro footballer and model entering Love Island 2025 as a bombshell. Departures: Kyle Ashman: Axed after an arrest over a machete attack emerged. He was released with no further action taken and denies any wrongdoing. Sophie Lee: A model and motivational speaker who has overcome adversity after suffering life-changing burns in an accident. Blu Chegini: A boxer with striking model looks, seeking love in the villa. Their chat might lead to a rekindling of their relationship with a preview of Sunday's episode showing the pair snogging enthusiastically. Love Island continues tonight at 9pm on ITV2 and ITVX. 4


Telegraph
20 minutes ago
- Telegraph
Prince of Wales plays with new puppies in birthday picture
Kensington Palace has released a picture of the Prince of Wales playing with his new puppies to mark his 43rd birthday. The photograph, taken in Windsor by the Princess of Wales earlier this month, will no doubt be appreciated by all animal lovers who have lost their own pets. The Prince and Princess of Wales were left deeply upset when their beloved cocker spaniel Lupo died unexpectedly in 2020. So there was reason to rejoice after the couple announced that Lupo's replacement, Orla, has now given birth to puppies. The Waleses have now posted a photograph of Orla and her tiny brood. The Prince and Princess of Wales were given Lupo as a wedding present by the Princess's brother, James Middleton.


Daily Mail
25 minutes ago
- Daily Mail
EXCLUSIVE Inside the secret tunnels under London where 'Ian Fleming dreamed up James Bond in WWII'
In central London, just off the bustle of High Holborn, there is a nondescript blue door. Commuters who walk past it on their way to Chancery Lane station will note the bright red and yellow signs adorned to it. The warning that 'trespassers will be prosecuted' is perhaps the giveaway that this is not your typical storeroom or building entrance. Instead, as MailOnline's exclusive pictures and video reveal, it is the gateway to a network of tunnels with a fascinating history. James Bond author Ian Fleming is believed to have worked in the sprawling complex in his role in naval intelligence during the Second World War. This labyrinth is thought to have inspired Fleming in his creation of the lair of gadget chief Q for his novels. After the war, the network - which lies around 100feet below the ground - was expanded to house a telephone exchange that routed calls between the Kremlin and the White House during the Cuban Missile Crisis in 1962. The complex was later sold to British Telecom (BT) and had a licensed bar installed for workers to relax in. Around 30 years after the site was mothballed, MailOnline was given a tour by current owners The London Tunnels Company, who are in the process of raising around £150million to re-develop the site as a tourist attraction. The development will include the re-opening of the bar, as well as a memorial to the victims of the Blitz and various displays paying homage to Fleming and the world's most famous fictional spy. James Loxton, director of investor relations at the London Tunnels, told MailOnline: 'We are going to create an attraction that is three things in one. 'Firstly, it is a huge immersive experience. Secondly, it will be a selection of permanent and temporary exhibition spaces. 'And thirdly, it will have the world's deepest bar under a capital city.' Planning permission for the project has been granted by Camden Council. The complex - officially known as the Kingsway Exchange Tunnels - was built between 1940 and 1942 and initially intended to be a deep level shelter for Londoners seeking refuge from Nazi bombs. But by the time the network was completed, the threat from bombing raids had largely subsided as Hitler gave up his ambition of forcing Britain to surrender. The initial footprint was two 1,250ft-long tunnels that were just over 18feet in diameter. Had they been used as a shelter, the Kingsway tunnels could have housed around 8,000 people. Instead, the Special Operations Executive (SOE) - created on the orders of Winston Churchill to 'set Europe ablaze' - moved personnel in. Fleming - who closely collaborated with the SOE and other clandestine units - was among the staff who worked down there, according to Mr Loxton. He said: 'He was working in these tunnels from 1944 to 1945 and this is where he came up with the idea of James Bond. 'So you know you see Q in all the Bond movies? He's always working in an underground lair? Well, this is where he got the inspiration.' Fleming's first Bond novel, Casino Royale, was published in 1953. The author is known to drawn significantly on his wartime experiences when writing his books, which were first adapted for the big screen in 1962 film Dr No. After the war, the Kingsway tunnels were used until 1949 by the Public Records Office to store documents on around 15 miles worth of shelving. The complex was then handed over to what was then the state-owned General Post Office, which turned it into a telecommunications hub. The expansion was carried out from 1952 and completed in 1954. Four additional tunnels were built in a north-south direction. Much bigger than the originals, they are around 280 feet long and 24 feet wide. The update means there is space makes to accommodate what is hoped will be nearly 50,000 visitors a week in the complex's new guise as a tourist attraction. As well as the bar area, which is still fitted with tables and chairs from when it was last operational, there is an infirmary and a well that could have provided fresh water had it been needed in the event of a nuclear attack. And occupants were protected by thick metal blast doors, including one that was - according to the stamp on it - repurposed from the Royal Mint. The first transatlantic telephone cable, known as TAT-1, ran between Oban in Argyll and Bute and Clarenville in Newfoundland. The sale to BT went through in 1981. As well as the bar, a canteen, kitchen and games room were installed for workers. The site had largely been mothballed by the early 1990s but was used as part of the Government's top secret Pindar bunker facility until the middle of the decade. In the years since they have been out of use, the tunnels have been broken into by urban explorers, a fact evidenced by graffiti that has been sprayed on walls. BT put the tunnels up for sale in 2007 and they were finally bought by the hedge fund-backed London Tunnels Company for around £10million in 2023. The re-development plans were approved by Camden Council last year.