Winner at the 2022 Parlimentary Book Awards
Baroness Floella Benjamin is an inspiration, an actress and much-loved children's television presenter who is a member of the House of Lords. But how did the girl from Trinidad end up lunching with the Queen?
In What Are You Doing Here? Floella describes arriving in London as a child, part of the Windrush generation, and the pain caused by the racism she encountered every day. It was offset by the love of her parents, who gave her the pride in her heritage, self-belief and confidence that have carried her through life. From winning a role in groundbreaking musical Hair (while clearly stating she would not take her clothes off) to breaking down barriers on Play School, from refusing to be typecast in roles to speaking out for diversity at the BBC and BAFTA, she has remained true to herself.
She also reveals how she met husband Keith, became a mother of two, was befriended by Kenneth Williams, hugged President Obama, and found a purpose that would underpin everything she did - campaigning for the needs of children. Sharing the lessons she has learned, imbued with her joy and positivity, this autobiography is the moving testimony of a remarkable woman.
Autorentext
Floella Benjamin
Klappentext
Floella Benjamin was the little girl from the Caribbean who became a British household name, and along the way received some of the highest accolades around - including a BAFTA Special Lifetime Achievement Award and a Damehood - and became a Peer in the House of Lords. A natural storyteller, What Are You Doing Here? is her incredibly moving and honest account of her remarkable life and her refusal to be defined by others.
Born in Trinidad, she came to England in 1960 with her family as part of the Windrush generation. She was shocked to find a cold and unwelcoming Britain, her first and by no means her last experience of racism. Benjamin quickly realized that if she was going to survive, she had to learn how to live in two cultures. Forced to leave school at sixteen, she resolved to become Britain's first Black woman bank manager, but a successful audition for a national musical put her on the path to a decades-spanning career in entertainment.
From Play School to pantomime, television documentaries and singing with orchestras all over the world, Floella's entertainment work was only one string to her bow. Over the last thirty years, she has dedicated herself to charitable causes, lobbying prime ministers on behalf of children, building her Touching Success foundation, and advocating for more representation across the media.
Benjamin also set up her own television company, was the Chancellor of the University of Exeter for a decade, and ran ten London Marathons for Barnardos.