Simon Woolley, crossbench peer

Desert Island Discs

BBC

Society & Culture, Music Commentary, Music, Personal Journals

4.4 • 13.7K Ratings

🗓️ 20 August 2023

⏱️ 36 minutes

🔗️ Recording | iTunes | RSS

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Summary

Simon Woolley, Lord Woolley of Woodford, is principal of Homerton College at Cambridge University. He is the first black man to head an Oxbridge college. He is a co-founder of Operation Black Vote, which campaigns for greater inclusivity in politics, and became a crossbench peer in 2019. Simon spent his early years in an orphanage in Leicester before being fostered and then adopted by a white couple who also adopted his brother Mick. He left school at 16 to work as a car mechanic and then moved to London where he embarked on a successful career in sales. In 1988 he completed a one year access course which provided the pathway to university and a degree in English and Spanish. In 1996 Simon was one of the co-founders of Operation Black Vote, a non-partisan organisation which encourages voter registration and community engagement, aiming to give a voice to all sections of society. He was awarded a knighthood for services to race equality in 2019 and took up his current role as principal of Homerton College in 2021. DISC ONE: I Want You Back - The Jackson 5 DISC TWO: Green Green Grass of Home - Tom Jones DISC THREE: Manhattan - Ella Fitzgerald DISC FOUR: Titanium (Morten Future Rave Mix) - David Guetta (feat Sia) DISC FIVE: Hagamos Lo Que Diga El Corazón - Grupo Niche DISC SIX: Dreamland – Composed and performed by Alexis Ffrench and Royal Liverpool Philharmonic Orchestra, conducted by James Morgan DISC SEVEN: Cowboy bebop tank! - Niyari DISC EIGHT: For Once in My Life - Stevie Wonder BOOK CHOICE: Football in Sun and Shadow by Eduardo Galeano LUXURY ITEM: A razor blade CASTAWAY'S FAVOURITE: For Once in My Life - Stevie Wonder Presenter Lauren Laverne Producer Paula McGinley

Transcript

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0:00.0	BBC Sounds, Music, Radio, Podcasts
0:04.9	Hello, I'm Lauren LeVern, and this is the Desert Island Disks podcast.
0:08.6	Every week I ask my guests to choose the eight tracks, book and luxury they'd want to take with them
0:13.9	if they were cast away to a desert island.
0:16.4	And for right reasons, the music is shorter than the original broadcast.
0:21.2	I hope you enjoy listening.
0:30.0	My cast away this week is Simon Wolley, Lord Wolley of Woodford.
0:47.6	He's principal of Hommerton College at Cambridge University,
0:51.0	where he is the first black man to head an Oxbridge College.
0:54.7	In 1996, he co-founded Operation Black Vote,
0:58.7	which campaigns for greater inclusivity and politics.
1:01.9	As its director for 25 years, he became known for an activism built on conversation rather than
1:08.0	confrontation. He's worked with three prime ministers and helped set up the UK's first race
1:13.6	disparity unit under Theresa May. He became a crossbench peer in 2019, shortly after being
1:19.6	knighted for services to race equality. All that pageantry and ermine is a far cry from his
1:25.6	early years. He was born to a young single mother and was fostered then adopted by a white family
1:31.2	and grew up on a lester counsellor's date. He credits the parents who raised him with instilling
1:36.3	the self-belief and resourcefulness that have taken him so far. He says, I often tell people,
1:42.4	it's not where you start, it's where you go. But even more importantly, how you go.
1:47.5	Simon Wolley, welcome to Desert Island Disks.
1:50.4	Thank you very much, it's a great privilege and an honour.
1:53.1	Well, it's an honour to have you. Tell me a little bit more about that, Simon, what you mean by
	...

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