Bhaichung Bhutia (born 15 December 1976), also spelled as Baichung Bhutia, is an Indian former professional footballer who played as a striker. Bhutia is considered as the torchbearer of Indian football in the international arena. He is often nicknamed the Sikkimese Sniper because of his shooting skills in football. Three-time Indian Player of the Year I. M. Vijayan described Bhutia as "God's gift to Indian football".

Bhutia has had four spells at then I-League side East Bengal Club, the club where he started his career. When he joined English club Bury in 1999, he became the first Indian footballer to sign a contract with a European club and only the second to play professionally in Europe, after Mohammed Salim. Afterwards he had a short loan spell at the Malaysian football club Perak FA. As well as this he has played for JCT Mills, which won the league once during his tenure; and Mohun Bagan, which failed to win the league once during his two spells, in his native India. His international footballing honours include winning the Nehru Cup, LG Cup, SAFF Championship three times and the AFC Challenge Cup. He is also India's second most capped player, with 80 international caps to his name. He is also India's second youngest international goal scorer after Jerry Zirsanga when he scored his first goal against Uzbekistan in 1995 Nehru cup at the age of 18 years 90 days.

Off the field, Bhutia is known for winning the reality television programme Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, which caused much controversy with his then-club Mohun Bagan, and for being the first Indian athlete to boycott the Olympic torch relay in support of the Tibetan independence movement. Bhutia, who has a football stadium named after him in honour of his contribution to Indian football (first player to have such honour while he is still playing), has also won many awards, such as the Arjuna Award and the Padma Shri.

In October 2010, he founded Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools in Delhi in partnership with football by Carlos Queiroz and Nike. In August 2011, Bhutia announced his retirement from international football. His farewell match was with the India national team on 10 January 2012 against Bayern Munich at the Jawaharlal Nehru Stadium, Delhi.

Bhutia contested in the general election of All India Football Federation (AIFF) for the president post; lost 33–1 to Kalyan Chaubey. He also served as president of the Sikkim Football Association.

Early life
Bhaichung Bhutia was born in an agricultural family. Both of his parents were farmers in Sikkim and were originally not keen on Bhutia's interest in sports. His father died in his childhood but after encouragement from his uncle, Karma Bhutia, he started his education in St. Xaviers School, Pakyong, East Sikkim. At the age of nine he won a football scholarship from SAI to attend the Tashi Namgyal Academy in Gangtok.

He went on to play for several schools and local clubs in his home state of Sikkim, including the Gangtok-based Boys Club, which was managed by Karma. His performance at the 1992 Subroto Cup, where he won the "Best Player" award, brought him to the notice of the football establishment. Former India goalkeeper, Bhaskar Ganguly spotted his talent and helped him make the transition to Calcutta football. In addition to football, Bhutia also represented his school at badminton, basketball and athletics.

Club career

East Bengal and JCT

In 1993, at the age of sixteen, Bhutia left school to join the professional East Bengal F.C. in Kolkata. Two years later, he transferred to JCT Mills in Phagwara, which went on to win the India National Football League in the 1996–97 season. Bhutia was the top goalscorer in the league, and was chosen to make his international debut in the Nehru Cup. He was named "1996 Indian Player of the Year".

In 1997, Bhutia returned to East Bengal. He has the distinction of scoring the first hat-trick in the local derby between East Bengal and Mohun Bagan, when he registered one in East Bengal's 4–1 victory in the 1997 Federation Cup semi-final. He became team captain in the 1998–99 season, during which East Bengal finished second behind Salgaocar in the league. Furthermore, he became the 19th footballer to receive the Arjuna Award in 1999, which the Government of India gives out to athletes to recognise their "outstanding achievements" in national sports.

Bury

Bhutia has had limited opportunities in playing overseas. On 30 September 1999, he travelled overseas to play for Bury in Greater Manchester, England. He became only the second Indian footballer to play professionally in Europe after Mohammed Salim. By penning a three-year contract he also became the first Indian footballer to sign for a European club. This followed unsuccessful trials for Bhutia with Fulham, West Bromwich Albion and Aston Villa. He had difficulty in obtaining a visa and could not make his debut, until 3 October 1999 against Cardiff City. In that match, he came on as a substitute for Ian Lawson and played a part in Bury's second goal, which was scored by Darren Bullock after Bhutia's volley was deflected into his path. On 15 April 2000, he scored his first goal in the English league in the game against Chesterfield. A recurring knee injury limited him to only three games in his final season at Bury, and he was released after the club was placed in administration. His final appearance was a 3–0 defeat to Swindon Town on 27 August 2001.

Return to India
In 2002, Bhutia returned to India and played for Mohun Bagan for a year. However, this was largely unsuccessful as he was injured early in the season and failed to play again that season, missing Mohun Bagan's only trophy win; the All Airlines Gold Cup.

Afterwards, Bhutia again returned to the East Bengal Club, helping them to win the ASEAN Club Championship.

He scored a goal in the final, a 3–1 win over Tero Sasana, and was named the "man of the match". He finished as the top scorer of the Championship with nine goals. He also scored in the 1–1 draw against Petrokimia Putra and scored five goals in a 6–0 win against Philippine Army in the same tournament.

Bhutia signed up to play for Perak FA, the Malaysian championship club, from August to October 2003 on loan and returned to East Bengal Club for the regular season. However, his stint at Perak FA ended in a 3–1 defeat against Sabah FA in the Malaysia Cup semi-finals, after which Bhutia described himself as the "villain of the piece".

In the 2003–04 season, Bhutia scored 12 goals as East Bengal won the league by four points from second-placed Dempo. During the 2004–05 season, Bhutia scored nine goals for East Bengal, which finished in third place behind SC Goa and champions Dempo. He continued to play for East Bengal until the end of the 2005–06 season. In his final season there he was awarded the "Player of the National Football League" by the All India Football Federation (AIFF) in a season where he scored 12 goals. Despite this, East Bengal finished runners-up to Mahindra United in the league.

Back to Malaysia
In 2005, Bhutia signed for another Malaysian club, Selangor MK Land. He made five appearances only, scoring one goal, as the club had monetary problems. Before, he received an offer from then Home United manager Steve Darby, but rejected the offer. Darby later revealed that he failed to sign Bhutia because the offer he made was less than what he was getting in India that time.

Mohun Bagan

On 15 June 2006, he joined Mohun Bagan and formed an attacking partnership with Jose Ramirez Barreto. However, the 2006–07 season was a poor one for Bhutia and Mohun Bagan as they finished eighth in the league, just one position above relegation. During the 2007–08 season (the league was now known as the I-League), Bhutia scored 10 goals in 18 matches, and Mohun Bagan finished slightly higher in the league in fourth place. Bhutia won the Indian Player of the Year for the second time in 2008. In winning the award, he became only the second footballer to win it more than once; the other was I. M. Vijayan. In the 2008–09 season, despite a 10-match winning streak, Mohun Bagan finished in second place behind Churchill Brothers because of a final day loss to Mahindra United. Bhutia finished the season with six goals.

On 18 May 2009, Bhutia announced he would quit Mohun Bagan, due to the questioning of his footballing commitment by the club's officials. As a result of the Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa incident, he was suspended for six months by Mohun Bagan. Bhutia was quoted saying "It is just a ploy to keep me at Mohun Bagan for another season. But I will not play for them any more."

East Bengal (IV)

Bhutia was reported to have officially signed for East Bengal on 22 June 2009, on a one-year contract, announcing that he would end his playing career at the club. Upon signing for East Bengal, Bhutia declared it to be his homecoming, "This is really my homecoming. This is the club from where it all started and it is here where it is going to end." The situation was further complicated, however, as Mohun Bagan's general secretary Anjan Mitra said "Our contract with Bhaichung is perfectly legal and he has one more year left with us." Bhutia's lawyer Usha Nath Banerjee countered this, "I doubt the legality of Bagan's contract. In any case, according to FIFA and AIFF rules, a player who is above 28 years of age is free to make a choice of club in the third year of his contract". Bhutia and Mohun Bagan were set to meet on 17 August in the AIFF headquarters to settle their differences with AIFF general secretary Alberto Colaco. On 29 August, it was announced that the issue had not been resolved yet and the outbound Colaco was set to meet Bhutia on 30 August. No compromise was reached, however, and on 5 September former additional solicitor general Amrendra Sharan was appointed to look into the dispute. On 10 September, Bhutia filed defamation charges, claiming damages of 10 million, against Mohun Bagan for "trying to tarnish his reputation". Bhutia was granted interim relief on 26 September, but the case between Mohun Bagan and Bhutia is set to continue until a final verdict is reached. On 4 November, it was revealed that Mohun Bagan had approached football's governing body FIFA to intervene in the dispute with Bhutia.

The start of the 2010–11 season would be without Bhutia until the end of January as the India national team prepared and participated in the Asian Cup from November to January. Though laid low by injuries in recent months, Bhutia believes he would return next season after taking a three-month break and if he ever decides to quit, he would do it from East Bengal.

United Sikkim
In 2011, Bhutia joined United Sikkim as a player-coach.

Final stint at East Bengal
On 12 February 2015, it was announced that Bhutia would return to East Bengal for the final time on a half-season contract, after which he would retire from professional football. Having retired from India colours in 2011 against South Korea in the AFC Asian Cup, Bhutia last season said he wished to retire donning red and gold colours "one last time".

"But I don't see that happening. I am really struggling with my knee injury and not in a shape to play the top-tier I-League for East Bengal. You can say that I am not going to play club again," Bhutia told reporters at the launch of East Bengal's residential academy in BA-CA ground in Salt Lake.

International career

Bhaichung made his senior international debut in the Nehru Cup against Thailand at the age of 19 on 10 March 1995. Bhutia scored for India against Uzbekistan in the 1995 Nehru Cup becoming India's youngest ever goalscorer, at 19. In the 1997 SAFF Championship, India beat the Maldives 5–1 in the final, Bhutia was responsible for one goal. Two years later, the tournament was held in Goa and India successfully defended their title by beating Bangladesh 2–0 in the final. Bhutia scored the second goal for India after Bruno Coutinho opened the scoring and Bhutia was named as the tournament's most valuable player.

He also netted two goals in the final of the 2002 LG Cup held in Vietnam, in which India beat the host nation 3–2, Bhutia's goals came either side of half-time. The football tournament of the 2003 Afro-Asian Games saw India finish as runners-up behind Uzbekistan. Bhutia scored two goals in the tournament, both of which came in the 5–3 semi-final win over Zimbabwe. In the 2007 Nehru Cup, Bhutia scored a penalty in a 6–0 victory over Cambodia in the opening match of the tournament. He also scored in a 1–0 win over Bangladesh and a 3–0 win over Kyrgyzstan. Bhutia played a significant part in the final as he was involved in the build-up to N. P. Pradeep's winning goal against Syria during which India won 1–0 to become champions.

The next successful SAFF Championship was in 2005 where Bhutia was captain, in the group stages he scored a goal in a 3–0 victory over Bhutan but did not score in the other two matches. India progressed to the semi-finals during which Bhutia played in the 1–0 win over the Maldives. The final was a repeat of the 1999 final, as Bangladesh were the opposition, and once again India triumphed 2–0 during which Bhutia scored the second goal in the 81st minute from close range after Mehrajuddin Wadoo's 33rd-minute opener. He received the award for the Most Valuable Player and also the Fair Play trophy. The 2008 SAFF Championship started with a 4–0 win over neighbouring Nepal, Bhutia scored the second goal in the 34th minute. It turned out to be Bhutia's only goal of the tournament, however, he did have several chances to score in the semi-final against Bhutan which saw India win 2–1 to reach the final. In the final, India failed to defend their title after losing 1–0 to the Maldives.

He scored twice in a 2–1 victory in the 2008 AFC Challenge Cup against Turkmenistan to reach the semi-finals. The Sikkimese Sniper scored a goal in the final against Tajikistan, during which India won 4–1 thanks to a Sunil Chhetri hat-trick; the victory also allowed them to automatically qualify for the 2011 AFC Asian Cup. He was also selected as the most valuable player of the tournament, finishing with three goals.

The 2009 Nehru Cup was significant for Bhutia, as he earned his 100th cap for India in a 2–1 win over Kyrgyzstan, becoming the first Indian player to reach this milestone. He also scored the first goal in this match to help the team recover from their opening day defeat to Lebanon. In the match against Sri Lanka, Bhutia again scored an opening goal which helped India to win 3–1 and solidified their chances of reaching the final. He was adjudged as the "man of the match" for his performance. Bhutia missed the final match of the round-robin, as India were already guaranteed a spot in the deciding match. He was also adjudged as "Player of the Tournament" for his stellar performances in all of the matches, including the decider where they beat Syria in a penalty shootout.

At the 2011 AFC Asian Cup in Qatar, Bhutia was injured for their first two games against Australia and Bahrain, but he came on as a second-half substitute against South Korea, but failed to save India, losing 4–1 as they were eliminated. Shortly after the Asian Cup, he announced his retirement for India on 24 August 2011 with a record of 40 goals in 104 appearances.

Farewell match

Managerial career
On 13 November 2012, Bhutia was named the interim manager of United Sikkim to replace Belgian Philippe De Ridder, after the club's heavy 1–10 defeat in an I-League match against Prayag United on 10 November 2012 at the Salt Lake Stadium. In January 2018, leading up to the Santosh Trophy, he was appointed the manager of Sikkim.

Other careers

Entertainment

Jhalak Dikhlaa Jaa
In 2009, partnering with choreographer Sonia Jaffer, he won the third season of Jhalak Dikhhla Jaa, the Indian version of the international series Dancing with the Stars. Bhutia earned Rs. 4 million for winning the competition, beating Karan Singh Grover and Gauahar Khan in the final. Bhutia donated half of the prize money to charity and the other half was shared with his choreographer; he also said some money would go towards areas hit by Cyclone Aila. It was reported that an "SMS Voting Frenzy" allowed him to win after many organisations in Sikkim conducted mass voting events (this involved participants buying mobile cash cards so they could vote via SMS) to increase Bhutia's chance of winning the trophy. This performance put Bhutia's relationship with his club Mohun Bagan in jeopardy, as he missed a friendly, as well as practice sessions, due to his participation in the reality show.

Politics
In 2014, Bhutia joined the All India Trinamool Congress and unsuccessfully contested the 2014 Indian general election from Darjeeling constituency. In 2021 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election he supported Left Front in favor of Veteran Communist Party of India (Marxist) leader Ashok Bhattacharya.

Other
Bhutia comes from a buddhist background, although he is, by conviction, not religious - in fact an atheist. The name "Bhaichung" literally means "little brother". He married his longtime girlfriend Madhuri Tipnis, a hotel professional, on 30 December 2004 in his native village of Tinkitam in South Sikkim. They filed for divorce by mutual consent in Bandra court on in February 2015. His fictional hero is Howard Roark, a character from Ayn Rand's novel The Fountainhead, and he has a tattoo of a footballer on his arm. The Sikkimese government has built a stadium, the Bhaichung Stadium in Namchi, the district headquarters, in honour of Bhutia. He is one of the most popular figures in the state and is considered as a role model to many Sikkimese as well to people from other states of India. On 23 January 2008, Bhutia was nominated for the Padma Shri, the fourth highest civilian award, for his contribution to Indian football. Three days later on 26 January, India's Republic Day, he was chosen for the Padma Shri along with national swimming champion Bula Choudhury.

He played in the Goal 4 Africa match held in the Allianz Arena, Munich, on 12 July 2008, for the Edu team, led by Clarence Seedorf, and scored twice. In 2009, Bhutia started a foundation called the "Indian Sports Foundation" to help footballers overcome serious injuries. He is also the president of the Football Players' Association of India (FPAI), an organisation that promises "fair treatment" of Indian footballers by dealing with financial aspects such as pension plans. He formed FPAI after seeing the Professional Footballers' Association in England.

He signed an endorsement deal with Adidas India Marketing Pvt. Ltd in November 2003. Currently he is endorsing Nike India. After completing the deal to become the brand's ambassador for India, Bhutia said "I am confident that Nike will help elevate the sport in the country."

In 2008, Bhutia was solicited to run with the Olympic torch in India, but he refused to carry the torch to show support for the Tibetan independence movement. "I sympathise with the Tibetan cause. I'm against violence but I thought I should stand by the Tibetan people in their fight," Bhutia said. He was the first Indian sportsman to refuse to carry the Olympic torch. His actions have won him little praise from his colleagues in India however, who criticised him for mixing sports with politics.

In 2011, Bhutia was caught in the Sikkim earthquake. Although he was not injured, his United Sikkim offices were completely destroyed. In the aftermath, he joined with several Bollywood actors like Neha Dhupia and Rahul Bose to raise money for earthquake victims.

In 2018, after the break up with All India Trinamool Congress, he established a new party on 31 May. The name of the party is "Hamro Sikkim Party".

Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools
On 28 October 2010, he started Bhaichung Bhutia Football Schools in Delhi in partnership with Carlos Queiroz. BBFS also entered into partnership with United Sikkim and Garhwal FC for opening up coaching camps with grassroot framework in hilly areas of Sikkim and West Bengal in 2013.

Sportstar jury
Bhutia was elected as member of the "Sportstar Aces 2023" jury.

Personal life
Bhutia's parents were farmers. He has two elder brothers and one elder sister. Bhutia was married to Madhuri Tipnis since 2004. They filed their divorce in 2015. He is a father to three children, two girls and one boy.

Career statistics

Honours

East Bengal
 ASEAN Club Championship: 2003
 National Football League: 2003–04
 Federation Cup: 2009–10, 2010
 Indian Super Cup: 2011
 Calcutta Football League: 1993, 1995, 1998, 1999, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2010, 2011
 IFA Shield: 1994, 1995, 1997
 Wai Wai Cup: 1993
 San Miguel International Cup: 2004

Mohun Bagan
 Calcutta Football League: 2007, 2008, 2009
 IFA Shield: 2003
 Federation Cup: 2006, 2008

Bengal
 Santosh Trophy: 1995, 1998–99

India
 AFC Challenge Cup: 2008
 SAFF Championship: 1997, 1999, 2005; runner-up: 1995, 2008
 Nehru Cup: 2007, 2009
 South Asian Games gold medal: 1995
 Afro-Asian Games silver medal: 2003

India U23
 LG Cup: 2002

Individual
 AIFF Player of the Year: 1995, 2008
 Arjuna Award: 1998
  Padma Shri: 2008
 AFC Challenge Cup Most Valuable Player: 2008
 Banga Bhushan: 2014
 Asian Football Hall of Fame: 2014
 IFFHS 48 Football Legend Players: 2016
 ASEAN Club Championship Top Scorer: 2003
 Sportskeeda All time Indian Football XI

Notes

Electoral records
 West Bengal Legislative Assembly election

 Sikkim Legislative Assembly election

 Indian general election

See also
 AIFF Player of the Year
 Asian Football Hall of Fame inductees
 List of India national football team captains
 Bhaichung Stadium
 Politics and sports
 List of Indian football players in foreign leagues

References

Further reading

External links

 Bhaichung Bhutia Interview

1976 births
Recipients of the Arjuna Award
Expatriate men's footballers in England
Expatriate men's footballers in Malaysia
Men's association football forwards
India men's international footballers
India men's youth international footballers
Indian atheists
Indian expatriate sportspeople in Malaysia
Indian expatriate men's footballers
Indian men's footballers
Footballers from Sikkim
Living people
East Bengal Club players
Tibet freedom activists
Recipients of the Padma Shri in sports
Bury F.C. players
2011 AFC Asian Cup players
Calcutta Football League players
I-League players
National Football League (India) players
United Sikkim FC players
Mohun Bagan SG players
Perak F.C. players
Indian football managers
United Sikkim FC managers
Dancing with the Stars winners
People from Namchi district
Trinamool Congress politicians from West Bengal
Candidates in the 2014 Indian general election
Footballers at the 1998 Asian Games
Footballers at the 2002 Asian Games
Footballers at the 2006 Asian Games
Founders of Indian schools and colleges
Asian Games competitors for India
Indian expatriate sportspeople in England
South Asian Games medalists in football
South Asian Games gold medalists for India

Bhaichung Bhutia


Mark Talbott is an American squash coach and former professional squash player. He is known as one of the all-time great players of hardball squash.

Talbott was inducted into the United States Squash Hall of Fame in 2000. He was the World Professional Squash Association Player of the Year eight times and an Olympic Athlete of the Year in 1991, `92, and `95. In addition, he captained the first USA Team to compete in the Pan American Games in 1995, earned the Sharif Khan Award for Sportsmanship in 1991, and won the United States Squash Racquets Association (USSRA) President's Cup in 1989.

Playing career
Raised in Dayton, Ohio, Talbott graduated from the Mercersburg Academy in 1978. He joined the World Professional Squash Association hardball tour in 1980 and was ranked as the World No. 1 hardball squash player for 13 years, from 1983–95. He won 70% of the tournaments he entered during that period.

Talbott is considered the most dominant American squash player in history. His strongest international rival is Sharif Khan, a Pakistani-born player who emigrated to Canada in the late-1960s, and who retired shortly before Talbott emerged on the scene. The most significant factor which militates against Talbott being the greatest hardball squash player of all-time is his record against Sharif's distant cousin Jahangir Khan. In the mid-1980s, Talbott had begun to establish himself as the most dominant player in the hardball squash game, while Jahangir was the clear leading player on the international softball squash circuit. During 1983-86, Jahangir decided to test his ability on the North American hardball circuit. Talbott and Jahangir faced each other on 11 occasions in hardball tournaments during this period (all in tournament finals), and Jahangir won 10 of their encounters. Talbott did however manage to beat Jahangir once, in the final of the Boston Open in 1984, a feat which no player on the international softball circuit managed in the 1981-86 period when Jahangir compiled a five-year winning streak.

In response to the challenge from Jahangir, Talbott acquired a personal coach, Ken Binns, who helped him develop a much sharper array of shots. As the rivalry developed, their matches became very competitive and drew considerable attention. After 1986, Jahangir stopped playing on the hardball circuit to focus more on the softball game. Whether Talbott would have been able to turn the tide had the rivalry continued will therefore never be known. But the experience of playing against Jahangir undoubtedly helped spur Talbott's game to new heights in the later part of the 1980s, when he dominated the hardball circuit. He also represented the United States at the 1983 & 1985 World Team Squash Championships. Doubles partners have included US Squash Hall of Famer Peter Briggs with whom he was partnered in 1984  and 1985.

Coaching career
Since retiring as a player, Talbott has worked as a squash coach. The Talbott Squash Academy, a well-respected summer camp for juniors and adults, was established in 1991, and is currently held at St George's School, Middletown, Rhode Island, and at Stanford University. In 1998, he was appointed the head coach of the Yale University women's team, joining his brother, David Talbott, who had been the men's coach at Yale for fifteen years. After being ranked sixth upon Mark's arrival, the Yale women unseated the reigning champions, Trinity College, in 2004. Later that year, Talbott resigned from his position at Yale and moved to California to become the Director of Squash at Stanford University, where he is working to help expand squash on the West Coast.

Talbott is the grandson of Bud Talbott, the former head coach of the Dayton Triangles and, the brother-in-law of the celebrity chef Ming Tsai, who played squash at Yale, and was one of the top players in the US in the late 1980s and early 1990s.

Talbott currently resides in Palo Alto, California, with his wife and two children.

References

External links

Year of birth missing (living people)
Living people
Sportspeople from Dayton, Ohio
American male squash players
Stanford Cardinal women's squash coaches
Yale Bulldogs women's squash coaches

Mark Talbott


Chinbrook Meadows (sometimes Chinbrook Meadow) is a park in southeast London, England, one of Lewisham's public open spaces. It is located between Chinbrook and Grove Park in the London Borough of Lewisham adjacent to the boundary with the London Borough of Bromley. The park is within the  postcode district, next to the border of the  postcode district.

The majority of the park is maintained short grass with paved footpaths and lined with tall trees and bisected by the River Quaggy which flows northward through the park. The grass often has markings for football pitches, a cricket ground and other sports and is used by local schools for sports days. Chinbrook Meadows contains public toilets, a concrete ball court, a café, a cycle route, a dog exercise area, a football pitch, tennis courts and a children's play area with climbing frames and a sandpit. The numerous footpaths crossing the park form part of The Green Chain Walk and Capital Ring.

The park is around half a mile long north to south, about half as wide east to west and is surrounded by and has entrances on Chinbrook Road and Amblecote Road to the north, Mayeswood Road to the east, a railway line and Portland Road to the south and west, and Elmstead Wood to the south. Under the railway line there is a pedestrian subway tunnel that crosses the borough boundary into Bromley and links the park to a much smaller green area southwest of the main park. There is no gate separating the two, but the smaller area, being under the authority of another borough the London Borough of Bromley, is sometimes not considered part of the same park, the map on the website does not show it, but shows the park entrance to be the pedestrian subway. The footpath that leaves the southeast corner of Chinbrook Meadows is part of the Green Chain Walk passes some allotments then Grove Park Cemetery before entering Elmstead Wood.

Pedestrian gates to the park remain open throughout the night, whilst the car park gates are opened at 08:00 every morning and closed near dusk, with times ranging from 16:30 to 21:00 in the evening depending on the time of year.

History

The area was previously occupied by Chinbrook Farm, a dairy farm. The park was first formally opened to the public in 1929 and was then a children's play area  in size, on the edge of the recently built Grove Park Estate; London County Council purchased a further  acres and the larger area was opened to the public in June 1937.

A church was built by the Shaftesbury Society as a 'mission hall' on the border of the park in Mayeswood Road in the Grove Park Estate, and dedicated in May 1935. This mission hall was used as a Baptist church until recently when it was taken over by City of Faith Church in 2005 and then by Word of Life Church in 2015.

The southern corner of Chinbrook Meadows became allotments, but many were in disuse in the early 1990s and a government grant paid for trees to be planted on some of the area.  After 2000 some allotments have come back in use and some of the orchard re-claimed as allotments.

The Meadows also host the annual Grove Park Carnival & Chinbrook Dog Show .

River Quaggy

In the 1960s the River Quaggy within Chinbrook Meadows and other parks was channelized into long straight concrete culverts to alleviate flooding and was closed off behind tall hedges and iron fences, this cut the park in two with the larger part to the east of the river. In the early 2000s however the concrete channel with its fences and hedges was demolished and river was remodeled to give a natural, meandering appearance with a small flood plain; this was to encourage wild plants and animals back to the area and to be more pleasant and attractive for the public. There are several wooden foot bridges  over the river, that replaced the concrete ones with iron fences. The regeneration was completed on 1 October 2002 and cost a reported £1.1million. Since the restoration Chinbrook Meadows has won the Green Flag Award in three years in a row, from 2005-07 Shortly After the regeneration was completed the same river was given a similar regeneration further down stream within Sutcliffe Park, a mile and a half to the north.

Transport links
There are bus stops by the northern entrance on Chinbrook Road which London Buses 124, 126, 273 and school bus 638 serve. Grove Park centre is less than half a mile to the west of this entrance and is also served by these buses plus four more, 136, 181, 261 and night bus N136 as well as Grove Park railway station and the A2212 road. The 284 bus serves Chinbrook which is a similar distance east from the same entrance. The park is also on both the Green Chain Walk and the Capital Ring.

External links
Chinbrook Meadows at Lewisham Council Website Chinbrook Meadows map
QWAG - Chinbrook Meadows, public parks on the River Quaggy - River Quaggy restoration in Chinbrook Meadows
Chinbrook Meadows at environment-agency.gov.uk
Chinbrook Meadows at The River Restoration Centre
Chinbrook Meadows at Green Flag Award
Transport for London bus map
Grove Park Carnival & Chinbrook Dog Show

References

Parks and open spaces in the London Borough of Lewisham
Meadows in Greater London
Grove Park, Lewisham
1929 establishments in England

Chinbrook Meadows


Mission Creek Township is a township in Pine County, Minnesota, United States. The population was 590 at the 2000 census.

History
Mission Creek Township was organized in 1880, and named after Mission Creek. It was destroyed in the Great Hinckley Fire of 1894.

Geography
According to the United States Census Bureau, the township has a total area of 31.8 square miles (82.3 km), of which 31.7 square miles (82.0 km) is land and 0.1 square mile (0.3 km) (0.35%) is water.

Demographics
As of the census of 2000, there were 590 people, 216 households, and 166 families residing in the township.  The population density was 18.6 people per square mile (7.2/km).  There were 241 housing units at an average density of 7.6/sq mi (2.9/km).  The racial makeup of the township was 97.12% White, 0.17% African American, 0.17% Native American, and 2.54% from two or more races. Hispanic or Latino of any race were 1.02% of the population.

There were 216 households, out of which 35.2% had children under the age of 18 living with them, 63.9% were married couples living together, 9.7% had a female householder with no husband present, and 23.1% were non-families. 16.7% of all households were made up of individuals, and 6.9% had someone living alone who was 65 years of age or older.  The average household size was 2.73 and the average family size was 3.07.

In the township the population was spread out, with 29.3% under the age of 18, 9.0% from 18 to 24, 27.8% from 25 to 44, 22.5% from 45 to 64, and 11.4% who were 65 years of age or older.  The median age was 36 years. For every 100 females, there were 98.7 males.  For every 100 females age 18 and over, there were 104.4 males.

The median income for a household in the township was $38,194, and the median income for a family was $45,500. Males had a median income of $30,781 versus $23,182 for females. The per capita income for the township was $16,448.  About 6.3% of families and 10.6% of the population were below the poverty line, including 16.8% of those under age 18 and 12.2% of those age 65 or over.

References

Townships in Pine County, Minnesota
Townships in Minnesota
Populated places established in 1880
1880 establishments in Minnesota

Mission Creek Township, Pine County, Minnesota


Gerard James Butler (born 13 November 1969) is a Scots actor wha haes appeared on film, stage, an telly. Efter studyin law, Butler turned tae actin in the mid-1990s wi smaw roles in productions sic as Mrs Brown (1997), the James Bond film Tomorrow Never Dies (1997), an Tale of the Mummy (1998). In 2000, he starned as Dracula in the horror film Dracula 2000 wi Christopher Plummer an Jonny Lee Miller. The follaein year, he played Attila the Hun in the miniseries Attila (2001).

In the 2000s, Butler co-starned in the films Reign of Fire wi Christian Bale (2002), an Lara Croft Tomb Raider: The Cradle of Life wi Angelina Jolie (2003), afore playin André Marek in the adaptation o Michael Crichton's science feection adventur Timeline (2003). He then wis cast as the role o Erik, The Phantom in Joel Schumacher's 2004 film adaptation o the muisical The Phantom of the Opera alangside Emmy Rossum. That role earned him a Satellite Awaird nomination for Best Actor. In 2007, Butler gained recogneetion for his portrayal o Keeng Leonidas in Zack Snyder's fantasy war film 300. That role earned him nominations for an Empire Awaird for Best Actor an a Saturn Awaird for Best Actor an a win for MTV Movie Awaird for Best Fight. That same year, he starned in the romantic drama film P.S. I Love You wi Hilary Swank. He wis then cast in the 2008 films Nim's Island wi Jodie Foster an RocknRolla wi Idris Elba. In 2009, he starned in several films includin the romantic comedy The Ugly Truth wi Katherine Heigl an the thriller Law Abiding Citizen wi Jamie Foxx.

In the 2010s, he vyced the role o Stoick the Vast in the animatit action-fantasy film How to Train Your Dragon, a role he later reprised in Legend of the Boneknapper Dragon (2010), Gift of the Night Fury (2011) an How to Train Your Dragon 2 (2014). He played militar leader Tullus Aufidius in the 2011 film Coriolanus, the modrenised adaptation o Shakespeare's tragedy o the same name. He an aa played Sam Childers in the 2011 action biopic Machine Gun Preacher. In 2012, he co-starned in the biographical drama surf film Chasing Mavericks wi Jonny Weston, an the romantic comedy film Playing for Keeps wi Jessica Biel. A year later, he starned as Mike Banning in the action thriller film Olympus Has Fallen opposite Morgan Freeman. He haed a smaw pairt in the 2014 film 300: Rise of an Empire whaur he reprised his role as Keeng Leonidas in flashback.

References

1969 births
20t-century Scots male actors
21st-century Scots male actors
Alumni o the Varsity o Glesga
Livin fowk
Male actors frae Glesga
Male actors frae Paisley, Renfrewshire
Scots expatriates in the Unitit States
Scots male film actors
Scots film producers
Scots lawers
Scots fowk o Erse strynd
Scots male stage actors
Scots male televeesion actors
Scots Roman Catholics

Gerard Butler


Hervé Novelli (born 6 March 1949 in Paris) is a French politician of Italian origin, and a past member of the UDF group. He was a deputé in the Assemblée Nationale for the Indre-et-Loire département from 2002 to 2007, having previously been a député from 1993–1997.  He has also served as a member of the European Parliament from 1999 to 2002 and as vice-president of the Indre et Loire local government (conseil général) from 1998 to 2001. He is also mayor of Richelieu since 2001. In June 2007, he became a member of the cabinet of Nicolas Sarkozy as an undersecretary for business and foreign trade (secrétaire d'Etat chargé des Entreprises et du Commerce extérieur). He was from March 2008 to 13 November 2010 an undersecretary for commerce, craftsmanship, small and medium businesses, tourism and services (secrétaire d'Etat chargé du commerce, de l'artisanat, des petites et moyennes entreprises, du tourisme et des services) in the cabinet of Nicolas Sarkozy. In March 2006, he has created the association Les Réformateurs.

His political history is that of a conservative politician moving to the center ground. He was, from the 1960s to 1980s a member of various extreme right parties including Occident, the Parti des forces nouvelles, the National Front, etc., before joining the conservative National Centre of Independents and Peasants and then the centrist Parti Républicain, a component of UDF. He was general secretary from 1990 to 1993, then member of the  bureau exécutif of the Parti Républicain.

Professionally, he was CEO of établissements Janton, from 1982 to 2006, and chargé de mission for the French steel industry (Chargé de mission pour la chambre syndicale de la sidérurgie française)
from 1977 to 1986.

Political career

Governmental functions

Secretary of State for Trade, Crafts, Small and Medium Enterprises, Tourism, Services and Consumer : 2009–2010.

Secretary of State for Business and Foreign Trade : 2007–2009.

Electoral mandates

European Parliament

Member of European Parliament : 1999–2002 (Resignation, reelected in the National Assembly in 2002).

National Assembly of France

Member of the National Assembly of France for Indre-et-Loire (4th constituency) : 1993–1997 / 2002–2007 (Became secretary of State in 2007) / 2010–2012 (He losts his reelection). Elected in 1993, reelected in 2002, 2007.

Regional Council

Regional councillor of Centre (région) : 2004–2007 (Resignation) / Since 2010. Reelected in 2010.

General Council

Vice-president of the General Council of Indre-et-Loire : 1998–2001 (Resignation).

General councillor of Indre-et-Loire : 1997–2001 (Resignation).

Municipal Council

Mayor of Richelieu, Indre-et-Loire : Since 2008.

Deputy-mayor of Richelieu, Indre-et-Loire : 2001–2008.

Municipal councillor of Richelieu, Indre-et-Loire : Since 2001. Reelected in 2008.

Municipal councillor of Joué-lès-Tours : 1995–2001.

Community of communes Council

President of Communauté de communes du pays de Richelieu : Since 2001. Reelected in 2008.

Member of Communauté de communes du pays de Richelieu : Since 2001. Reelected in 2008.

Bibliography
 Frédéric Charpier, Génération Occident (Paris: Le Seuil, 2005)

External links
 Web site of Hervé Novelli (in French)
 Hervé Novelli's page at Assemblée Nationale (in French)
 Biography on the Web site of the French Government

1949 births
Living people
Politicians from Paris
French people of Italian descent
National Rally (France) politicians
Party of New Forces politicians
National Centre of Independents and Peasants politicians
Union for French Democracy politicians
Republican Party (France) politicians
Liberal Democracy (France) politicians
Union for a Popular Movement politicians
MEPs for France 1999–2004
Republican Party (France) MEPs
Paris Dauphine University alumni
Deputies of the 12th National Assembly of the French Fifth Republic
Deputies of the 13th National Assembly of the French Fifth Republic

Hervé Novelli


John Hodgdon (October 1800 – August 27, 1883) was an American politician and farmer. The Hodgdon family were primarily farmers; his grandfather owned a significant tract of land in then disputed Aroostook County. John Hodgdon's grandfather died in 1819 and left his grandson the land, which eventually became the town of Hodgdon. His inheritance helped him attend Phillips Exeter Academy  and Bowdoin College, from which he graduated in 1827. After Bowdoin, he moved to Bangor, Maine to study law under prominent area lawyer Allen Gilman. In 1833, he was a member of the Executive Council of Maine and from 1834 to 1838 he was a Land Agent for the state.

In 1846, he was elected to the Maine State Senate and served as Senate President in 1847. He was re-elected in 1848 but resigned after unsuccessfully challenging incumbent Democrat John W. Dana his party's nomination for governor. In 1849, Hodgdon was named Bank Commissioner and in 1853, he was offered the position of US consul in Rome by President Franklin Pierce, which he declined.

In 1853, he left Maine for Dubuque, Iowa, where he became mayor in 1859.

References

1800 births
1883 deaths
Presidents of the Maine Senate
Democratic Party Maine state senators
People from Hillsborough County, New Hampshire
People from Hodgdon, Maine
Politicians from Bangor, Maine
Iowa Democrats
Mayors of Dubuque, Iowa
Bowdoin College alumni
Businesspeople from Maine
Members of the Executive Council of Maine
Phillips Exeter Academy alumni

John Hodgdon


Fin Fang Foom is a supervillain that first appeared in 1961 in the #89 issue of Strange Tales. He was created by Stan Lee and Jack Kirby. He has the power to super strength, the ability to fly with his wings at supersonic speeds, and can also spew combustible acid mist from his mouth. Fin Fang Foom also made multiple appearances in the Iron Man comics.

Other websites
Fin Fang Foom at Marvel.com

Marvel Comics supervillains
Marvel Comics superheroes

Fin Fang Foom


Stuart Taylor Jr. is an American journalist, author, and lawyer. He has served as a fellow at the Brookings Institution. He was a reporter for the Baltimore Sun from 1971 to 1974; The New York Times from 1980 to 1988, covering legal affairs and then primarily the Supreme Court; wrote commentaries and long features for The American Lawyer, Legal Times and their affiliates from 1989 to 1997, and for National Journal and Newsweek from 1998 through 2010. He has coauthored two books.

Career
Taylor graduated in 1970 from Princeton University and in 1977 from Harvard Law School, magna cum laude. He was an associate from 1977 to 1980 at the D.C. law firm of WilmerHale. Taylor comments on legal affairs and political issues and often focuses on the Supreme Court, appearing frequently in other publications such as The Atlantic, Slate, The New Republic, and The Wall Street Journal.

Books
He is the co-author, with Professor KC Johnson of Brooklyn College, of Until Proven Innocent: Political Correctness and the Shameful Injustice of the Duke Lacrosse Case (). It was published in September 2007. In the book, Johnson and Taylor recount in detail the entire story of the Duke lacrosse case, and explore some of its lessons as regards, for example, the reliability of prosecutors, the trustworthiness of the media, and the role of extreme political ideology in the academy.  Jeffrey Rosen in the New York Times Sunday Book Review''' referred to the book as a "riveting narrative" and stated that "Taylor and Johnson have made a gripping contribution to the literature of the wrongly accused. They remind us of the importance of constitutional checks on prosecutorial abuse. And they emphasize the lesson that Duke callously advised its own students to ignore: if you're unjustly suspected of any crime, immediately call the best lawyer you can afford."

In 2012, Richard Sander and Taylor coauthored Mismatch: How Affirmative Action Hurts Students It's Intended to Help, and Why Universities Won't Admit It.''  Judge Richard A. Posner wrote: "This lucid, data-rich book is simply the best researched and most convincing analysis ever done of affirmative action in higher education, a work at once impeccably scholarly and entirely accessible to anyone interested in the social and legal ramifications of well-intentioned policies that, as the authors show, have a boomerang effect on the intended beneficiaries."

References

External links
Stuart Taylor Jr. Official Website Archive of Stuart's writings dating back to the early 1980s

American male journalists
Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr associates
Princeton University alumni
Harvard Law School alumni
Living people
Year of birth missing (living people)

Stuart Taylor Jr.


Outlaw Posse was a British hip hop group formed by Bello B (real name Isaac Bello) and K-Gee (real name Karl Gordon). They also recorded together as Outlaw and Brothers Like Outlaw, before the group finally split in 1992.

Biography
K-Gee started out as a drummer in the school band, but soon had a residency as a DJ in the Fringe in London. Together with his school friend Bello B, K-Gee used to rap over beats and basslines and record their efforts onto tape. The duo called themselves the Outlaw Posse, and the tapes they recorded came to the attention of DJ Richie Rich, who was making his name as both a club DJ and a recording artist in his own right. He was also the owner of Gee Street Records, and was impressed enough with the group to offer them some time in a recording studio. The tunes the group put together became their successful debut album, My Afro's On Fire (Gee Street, 1990), an album that was dedicated to Bello B's late brother, Bentil Bello.

Tours with Arrested Development and the Brand New Heavies followed, as the group went through their first change of name, releasing the singles "Party Time" and "Good Vibrations", both featuring the singer and songwriter Alison Evelyn (Gee Street, 1992) as Outlaw. The name did not last until the end of the year, and by the release of their final album the name had changed again to Brothers Like Outlaw. The album was well received amongst the fans and the music press, but the dissatisfaction with their name echoed the group's growing dissatisfaction with each other - their final album's title The Oneness of Two Minds In Unison (Gee Street, 1992) clearly intended to be ironic. Citing musical differences, the group split and went their separate ways in 1992 - although more recently K-Gee has stated that the group were actually recording a third album and split because of Gee Street's delays in putting out new material.

K-Gee went on to gain respect as a bootleg remixer, which eventually led to more official work coming his way. He is now most well known as the co-producer of several of the pop group All Saints' biggest hits, including their debut single, "I Know Where It's At" (London Records, 1997). Bello B went on to have a career as a solo artist, guesting on tracks by artists such as Dodge City Productions and rapping on The KLF's hit single "America: What Time Is Love?" (KLF Communications, 1992). He also released the single "Daddy on the Run"  (Amber Records, 1994) as Mistah Bello, which featured remixes by his old colleague K-Gee. Nowadays, the duo have put their differences behind them and remain good friends.

Discography
 My Afro's on Fire (1990), Gee Street
 The Oneness of Two Minds in Unison (1992), Gee Street

References

External links
 Discog's Outlaw Posse page
 Discog's K-Gee page
 Discog's Bello B page
 Heroes of UK Hip Hop's Outlaw Posse page
 Biography of K-Gee
 K-Gee's website

English hip hop groups
Gee Street Records artists

Outlaw Posse


Chintamoni Kar (19 April 1915 – 3 October 2005) was a renowned Indian sculptor. He received civilian awards from the Indian and French governments and won an Olympic silver medal on behalf of Great Britain.

Personal life and studies
Born on 19 April 1915 in Kharagpur, West Bengal, Kar trained at the Indian Society of Oriental Art run by Abanindranath Tagore. He was taught to sculpt by Giridhari Mahapatra and Victor Giovanelli.

Kar moved to Paris in 1938 where he studied at the Académie de la Grande Chaumière before moving back to India.

Chintamoni Kar was married to Amina Ahmed Kar, who was herself an artist, and her works were largely non-figurative and abstract. The couple had one child. Both members of his family died before Chintamoni, who died on 3 October 2005 in a private hospital at the age of 90.

Style and career
Kar sculpted with a variety a materials including wood, terracotta, stone, and metal. He was initially trained in an academic and representational style but also produced work of a more abstract nature.

Kar taught at the University of Calcutta and the Delhi Polytechnic and then, in 1946, moved to London where he became a member of the Royal Society of British Sculptors. He returned to West Bengal in 1956 and was then elected as Principal of the Government College of Art & Craft.

Honours and awards
In 1974 he was awarded the Padma Bhushan, the third highest civilian award in the Republic of India. He was also decorated with France's highest civilian honour in 2000.

Chintamoni Kar Bird Sanctuary was named after the sculptor after he and other people from the local area fought for it to receive wildlife sanctuary status.

At the 1948 Summer Olympics Kar, entered as a competitor for India, won the silver medal for his work entitled The Stag. Held in London, the 1948 Games were the final ones to include art competitions and the International Olympic Committee no longer recognise the medals.

Bhaskar Bhavan Administration & Maintenance Trust
Shortly before his death in 2005 Kar instituted the Bhaskar Bhavan Administration & Maintenance Trust at his residential campus in Narendrapur, Kolkata. It became a public museum on 19 April 2006, what would have been his 91st birthday, and houses the artist's works as well as those of his wife. The trust is active in the verification and documentation of his works along with his collection of books. It also aids poor students in the local area and holds the annual Chintamoni Kar Memorial lecture.

References

External links
Past Auction Results for Chintamoni Kar at ArtNet

1915 births
2005 deaths
Indian male sculptors
People from Paschim Medinipur district
People from Kharagpur
Recipients of the Padma Bhushan in arts
Alumni of the Académie de la Grande Chaumière
Academic staff of the University of Calcutta
Indian arts administrators
20th-century Indian sculptors
Medalists at the 1948 Summer Olympics
Olympic silver medalists for India
Olympic competitors in art competitions
20th-century Indian male artists
Artists from Kolkata

Chintamoni Kar


Arseny Ivanovich Vvedensky (; 7 November 1844 – 30 October 1909) was a Russian literary critic and historian, essayist and author of feuilletons, which he published in Golos, using the pseudonym Aristarkhov.

Vvedensky debuted as a literary critic in 1876 and, contributing mostly to Slovo, Severny Vestnik, Vestnik Evropy, Delo, Niva and Istorichesky Vestnik, published numerous reviews and analytical surveys on Nikolai Leskov, Nikolai Leykin, Evgeny Salias De Tournemire, Vsevolod Krestovsky, Vladimir Korolenko, Fyodor Dostoyevsky and Vsevolod Garshin, among others.

In 1891—1893 he compiled and edited the works of Alexander Griboyedov, Ivan Kozlov, Alexey Koltsov, Alexander Polezhayev, Mikhail Lomonosov, Denis Fonvizin and Catherine the Great, all of which came out as Niva literary supplements. In 1891 he edited the first academic-type edition of the Complete M.Y. Lermontov in 4 volumes.

References

Russian literary critics
Russian male journalists
People from Tver Governorate
1844 births
1909 deaths

Arseny Vvedensky


In a monastery, the porter is the monk (or portress for a nun) appointed to be the one who interacts with the public. It is considered an important office, as the porter is the representative of the community to the outside world. The person is stationed at the front door and responsible for greeting visitors to the Monastery.

The Rule of Saint Benedict, in chapter 66, gives specific advice as to the qualifications of the person chosen to serve in this post.At the door of the monastery, place a sensible old man who knows how to take a message and deliver a reply, and whose age keeps him from roaming about. As soon as anyone knocks, or a poor man calls out, he replies, 'Thanks be to God' or 'Your blessing, please'; then, with all the gentleness that comes from the fear of God, he provides a prompt answer with the warmth of love.

The porter needs to be someone with a gift for dealing humanely with visitors. The poor must be treated gently because they are specially loved by God. Since they have no natural prestige and are often devoid of polish and manners, the temptation is to handle them roughly. "Visitors are Christ-bearers – we must hurry to them." In keeping with this advice, the porter is usually given private quarters right at the entrance to the monastery, which can lie some distance from the cloister, thus the need for a very responsible person to fill this position.

Among Franciscan communities, a large portion of the lay brothers who have achieved sainthood had spent their lives in the office of porter of the community, such as Paschal Baylon, Didacus of Alcalá, and Felix of Cantalice. There is also an American candidate for canonization, Solanus Casey, who was a Catholic priest, but, due to the limitations of his academic capabilities, served as a porter in both Detroit and New York City for over 30 years. The Jesuits have their own holy porters in the persons of Alphonsus Rodriguez and Francisco Gárate Aranguren, as do the Congregation of Holy Cross in André Bessette (Frère André) of Montreal.

See also
 Conrad of Parzham

References

Christian monasticism

Porter (monastery)


Florence and the Machine (styled as Florence + the Machine) are an English indie rock band that formed in London in 2007, consisting of lead vocalist Florence Welch, keyboardist Isabella Summers, guitarist Rob Ackroyd, harpist Tom Monger, and a collaboration of other musicians. The band's music has received acclaim across the media, especially from the BBC, which played a large part in their rise to prominence by promoting Florence and the Machine as part of BBC Music Introducing. At the 2009 Brit Awards they received the Brit Awards "Critics' Choice" award. The band's music is renowned for its dramatic, eccentric production and Welch's powerful vocals.

The band's debut studio album, Lungs, was released on 3 July 2009, and held the number-two position for its first five weeks on the UK Albums Chart. On 17 January 2010, the album reached the top position, after being on the chart for twenty-eight consecutive weeks. As of October 2010, the album had been in the top forty in the United Kingdom for sixty-five consecutive weeks, making it one of the best-selling albums of 2009 and 2010. The group's second studio album, Ceremonials, released in October 2011, entered the charts at number one in the UK and number six in the US. The band's third studio album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, was released on 2 June 2015. It topped the UK charts, and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, their first to do so. The album reached number one in a total of eight countries and the top ten of twenty. Also in 2015, the band was the headlining act at Glastonbury Festival, making Welch the first British female headliner of the 21st century.

Florence and the Machine's sound has been described as a combination of various genres, including rock and soul. Lungs (2009) won the Brit Award for Best British Album in 2010. Florence and the Machine have been nominated for six Grammy Awards including Best New Artist and Best Pop Vocal Album. Additionally, the band performed at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards and the 2010 Nobel Peace Prize Concert.

History

2007–2008: Formation
The name of Florence and the Machine is attributed to Florence Welch's teenage collaboration with Isabella "Machine" Summers. Welch and Summers performed together for a time under the name Florence Robot/Isa Machine. According to Welch, "The name Florence and the Machine started off as a private joke that got out of hand. I made music with my friend, who we called Isabella Machine to which I was Florence Robot. When I was about an hour away from my first gig, I still didn't have a name, so I thought 'Okay, I'll be Florence Robot Is A Machine', before realising that name was so long it'd drive me mad."

In addition to Summers (keyboards and backing vocals), the current band members include musicians Robert Ackroyd (guitar and backing vocals), Chris Hayden (drums, percussion and backing vocals), Mark Saunders (bass guitar and backing vocals) and Tom Monger (harp). In the past, Welch has praised her band for understanding her creative process, claiming, "I've worked with most of them for a long time and they know my style, know the way I write, they know what I want."

In 2007, Welch recorded with a band named Ashok, who released an album titled Plans on the Filthy Lucre/About Records label. This album included the earliest version of her later hit "Kiss with a Fist", which at this point was titled "Happy Slap".

2008–2010: Lungs

Florence and the Machine released their first album Lungs in the Netherlands and Ireland on 3 July 2009. The album was produced by James Ford, Paul Epworth, Steve Mackey, Isabella Summers and Charlie Hugall. The album was officially launched with a set at the Rivoli Ballroom in Brockley, south-east London. It peaked at number one in the UK and number two in Ireland. As of 6 August 2009, the album had sold over 100,000 copies in the UK and by 10 August it had been at number two for five consecutive weeks. Following its 25 July 2009 release for download in the United States, the album entered the charts at number seventeen on the Billboard Heatseekers Albums chart, ultimately peaking at number one. The album was released physically in the US on 20 October by Universal Republic.

"Kiss with a Fist" was released as the album's lead single on 9 June 2008. The track was featured on the soundtrack to the films Wild Child (2008), Jennifer's Body (2009), and St Trinian's 2: The Legend of Fritton's Gold (2009), as well as in the television series 90210, Community and Saving Grace. Follow-up single "Dog Days Are Over", released on 1 December 2008, was recorded with no instruments in a studio the "size of a loo". The song was used in the American television series Gossip Girl, Covert Affairs, in the British television series Skins, and in the theatrical trailer for the 2010 comedy-drama film Eat Pray Love, starring Julia Roberts. "Dog Days Are Over" was also featured in the Glee episode "Special Education", where it was covered by Jenna Ushkowitz and Amber Riley. "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)" was released on 22 June 2009 as the third single from the album.

After the release of Lungs, "Drumming Song" and a cover of the Source and Candi Staton's 1986 song "You've Got the Love" were released as singles.

"Cosmic Love" was released on 5 July 2010 as the sixth and final single from Lungs, with a music video having already been shot. The song was featured in several American television shows, including Grey's Anatomy, The Vampire Diaries, V, Nikita and So You Think You Can Dance. The band also made a guest appearance on 7 February 2011 episode of Gossip Girl, titled "Panic Roommate", where they performed an acoustic rendition of "Cosmic Love". On 12 May 2010, it was announced that Florence and the Machine would provide a track called "Heavy in Your Arms" for the soundtrack to The Twilight Saga: Eclipse, the third film of The Twilight Saga. Eclipse was released in cinemas on 30 June 2010, with "Heavy in Your Arms" playing during the end credits. The music video followed on 7 July 2010. An exclusive remix of "I'm Not Calling You a Liar" is featured in the 2011 video game Dragon Age II as "I'm Not Calling You a Liar (Dragon Age II: Varric's Theme)", produced by the game's composer Inon Zur.

2011–2013: Ceremonials

The first demo session occurred in January 2010 with Welch and Paul Epworth at a small London studio. Numerous producers expressed an interest in working on the album but Welch rejected the offers because she wanted Ceremonials to be a better version of Lungs with a "more dark, more heavy, bigger drum sounds, bigger bass, but with more of a whole sound". For the rest of the year work on the album continued only intermittently as the band concentrated on an extensive tour of the US, where Lungs had become popular. The majority of the writing for the album was done between January and April 2011, with recording taking place in April at Abbey Road Studios. Refinement took place at Epworth's own London studios while Welch recorded vocal tracks in various US studios, during days off from touring. The final recording session took place in July at Epworth's studio. Epworth co-wrote seven tracks. Several other British writers share credits on the album, including Summers, Kid Harpoon, James Ford and composer Eg White.

In June 2011, a cover of the Buddy Holly song "Not Fade Away", which Florence and the Machine recorded for the tribute album Rave On Buddy Holly tied to Holly's seventy-fifth birthday year, was released and they performed Ceremonials setup track "What the Water Gave Me" at the Greek Theatre in Berkeley, California. In August 2011, the single "What the Water Gave Me" was released on iTunes along with an accompanying video on the band's website and YouTube channel. The video drew 1.5 million YouTube views in two days and the track received play on US alternative radio with strong support from Los Angeles radio station KROQ. The single "Shake It Out" was released over the internet in September 2011, with standard release 11 October. In Australia, the song was playlisted at Triple J and Nova radio networks and received strong airplay in Scandinavia, Italy and Canada.

The band's second studio album, Ceremonials, was released on the 28 October 2011. It reached number one on the UK Albums Chart and number six on the US Billboard 200. On 12 January 2012, Florence and the Machine were nominated for two Brit Awards, Best British Female Artist and British Album of the Year, with the awards ceremony taking place on 21 February 2012 at the O2 Arena, London. On 26 April 2012, the band released "Breath of Life", a song which was recorded as the official theme song for the film Snow White and the Huntsman. On 5 July 2012, a remix of "Spectrum (Say My Name)" by Scottish musician Calvin Harris was released as the fourth single from Ceremonials, becoming the band's first UK number-one hit. Welch expressed excitement about putting new material together for a third studio album after the band finishes touring at the end of September 2012. Welch collaborated for a second time with Harris on the song "Sweet Nothing", released on 12 October 2012 as a single from Harris's third studio album 18 Months (2012). The song entered at number one on the UK Singles Chart, becoming their second collaborative number-one single.

In mid-2012, it was announced that Universal Republic Records was going defunct, moving all artists including Florence and the Machine to Republic Records making the label itself revived. In late August 2012, Welch told Style magazine that she plans to take a twelve-month hiatus before starting work on the band's next studio album, stating, "There's a big 'take a year off' plan. The record company have put no pressure on me for the next album. They've said I can have as long as I want."

In December 2012, Florence and the Machine were nominated for Best Pop Vocal Album for Ceremonials and Best Pop Duo/Group Performance for "Shake It Out" at the 54th Annual Grammy Awards. On 4 April 2013, it was announced that Florence and the Machine had written a song for Baz Luhrmann's film rendition of The Great Gatsby (2013), titled "Over the Love", which was released on 17 April 2013 on SoundCloud.

2014–2016: How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful

On 4 June 2014, Welch told NME that the band's third studio album was in the works. In January 2015, a fansite posted a photo showing Florence and the Machine's upcoming album being mixed in a recording studio. On 9 February, the band played all the songs from the new album in full, amongst them "Ship to Wreck", "Caught", "Delilah" and the album's first single, "What Kind of Man" in a private London show.
The next day, on 10 February, the band released a short music video for the title track of their studio album, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful, which also acted as the official album teaser, directed by Tabitha Denholm and Vincent Haycock and shot in Mexico. The single and album were available to pre-order subsequently on all popular online music stores. The music video is just under three minutes as compared to the five minute album version of the track. On 12 February, the album's lead single "What Kind of Man" was revealed on Zane Lowe's BBC Radio 1 show, followed by the release of music video later that day on band's Vevo channel via YouTube.

The band released a music video of another track called "St. Jude" on 23 March, choreographed by Ryan Heffington and directed by Vincent Haycock, continuing the narrative from the previous video of "What Kind of Man". On 8 April the album's second single titled "Ship to Wreck" premiered on Huw Stephens' show on BBC Radio 1. The accompanying music video was released a week later on 13 April, continuing the storyline of past two videos.
On 19 May, DJ Annie Mac revealed another new song from the record on her BBC radio show in name "Delilah".

The album was released on 29 May in Germany, 1 June in the UK and 2 June in the US. A deluxe version of the album containing 5 additional tracks was released on 13 May 2015. The album became their third number one on the UK Albums Chart, and debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200. The album earned five nominations in the 58th Annual Grammy Awards

The band were confirmed for numerous European festivals in summer 2015 including Way Out West in Sweden, Super Bock Super Rock in Portugal and Rock Werchter in Belgium, among others. In June 2015, it was announced that the band would headline the Glastonbury Festival in Pilton, Somerset due to the withdrawal of previous headliners Foo Fighters, after lead vocalist Dave Grohl fractured his leg on stage in Sweden. Florence and the Machine's Glastonbury set was critically acclaimed by numerous outlets. Welch thanked Grohl for his support following their choice as a replacement and wished him a speedy recovery, before performing a cover of the Foo Fighters' "Times Like These".

On 7 December 2015, the band received five nominations for the 58th Annual Grammy Awards to be held in 2016. These nominations included "Ship to Wreck" for Best Pop Duo/Group Performance, How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful for Best Pop Vocal Album and Best Recording Package, and "What Kind of Man" for Best Rock Performance and Best Rock Song.

In 2016 Florence and the Machine recorded a classical cover of Ben E. King's 1961 song "Stand by Me", which was featured as the main theme to the video game Final Fantasy XV. It was premiered during the "Uncovered: Final Fantasy XV" event on 30 March 2016, and the full version was released on 12 August 2016. Alongside their "Stand by Me" cover, they also composed two original songs for Final Fantasy XV, entitled "I Will Be" and "Too Much Is Never Enough", which were also released on 12 August 2016.

In April 2016, the band released The Odyssey, a short film by Vincent Haycock and Welch which consisted of all music videos shot within the How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (2015) era, together with some interconnecting sung and spoken scenes. The premiere took place at London's Rio Cinema on 20 April 2016, and was followed by an unrecorded Q&A. The online world premiere on 21 April 2016 was delayed to the 24th due to Prince's death. The band contributed a song to the 2016 Tim Burton film Miss Peregrine's Home for Peculiar Children titled "Wish That You Were Here", released as a single on 25 August 2016.

2017–2021: High as Hope

Welch confirmed on 27 May 2017 that a new studio album was in the works. On 28 February 2018, the band's drummer, Christopher Hayden, announced that he had left the band. The first single from the album, "Sky Full of Song", was released on 12 April 2018, followed by "Hunger" in May. Titled High as Hope, the band's fourth studio album was released on 29 June 2018. A third single, "Patricia", was released on 10 August 2018. On 24 January 2019, Florence and the Machine released a new single, "Moderation", which had been previously performed live during the Australian leg of the High as Hope Tour. It was accompanied by a B-side, "Haunted House".

On 21 April 2019, Florence and the Machine had a song featured in the Game of Thrones episode "A Knight of the Seven Kingdoms" which was composed by Ramin Djawadi. The song is entitled "Jenny of Oldstones".

On 17 April 2020, Florence and the Machine released the song "Light of Love" in response to the COVID-19 pandemic. The band announced that all proceeds from the song, which was originally recorded for High as Hope (2018), would go to the Intensive Care Society.

2022–present: Dance Fever

In early 2022, Florence and the Machine were confirmed to be headlining a series of summer music festivals, including the Madrid's Mad Cool.

Towards the end of February 2022, fans of the band started to receive letters with a print titled, "King - Chapter 1", as well as a billboard in London displaying the visual of the work. Speculation indicating that a new single was about to be released were confirmed on 22 February by Welch herself through her Instagram account. The single, titled "King" was digitally released the next day along with its accompanying music video. Soon after, the single "Heaven Is Here" was released on 7 March.

On 9 March 2022, Welch announced Dance Fever, the band's fifth studio album in a post to her Instagram account also revealing the album cover and pre-order date. She described the album as "a fairytale in 14 songs" in the same post. The announcement was followed up with the release of the third single "My Love" on 10 March. On 20 April, the fourth single "Free" was released. The album was released on 13 May. It debuted at number one in the UK and number two in Australia.

In 2022, keyboardist Hazel Mills and drummer Loren Humphrey left the band. On 16 March 2022, Sam Doyle (drummer from the Maccabees) was confirmed as joining the band on tour for this era. However, Humphrey rejoined the band in summer of 2022.

Isabella Summers, a founding member of the band and a long-time songwriting contributor for the band's previous records, did not participate in writing or producing Dance Fever. She also did not join the band for the Dance Fever Tour.

Performances

Florence and the Machine started off by playing a handful of gigs in and around London. In November 2008 Florence played a legendarily intimate show for Get It Loud In Libraries at Lancaster Library. https://www.nme.com/news/music/florence-and-the-machine-232-1324430  In May 2008, they supported MGMT on tour in Europe. The BBC played a large part in Florence and the Machine's rise to prominence by promoting her as part of BBC Introducing. This led to them playing music festivals in 2008, including Glastonbury, Reading and Leeds and Bestival. Florence and the Machine were also part of the Shockwaves NME Awards Tour 2009 in January and February.

The group has supported the UK Teenage Cancer Trust, performing at a concert for the charity at London's Royal Albert Hall in March 2009. Florence and the Machine supported Blur for their 26 June comeback performance at the Manchester Arena. They played at the Lovebox Festival on 18 and 19 July. In July 2009, the group supported Duran Duran. During summer 2009, Florence and the Machine performed at a number of major festivals in the UK and Ireland, including the Glastonbury Festival 2009, Reading and Leeds 2009, Electric Picnic 2009 and T in the Park 2009.

Florence and the Machine played at Australia's Splendour in the Grass music festival in July 2010. The group drew one of the biggest crowds of the three-day festival. They performed in the natural open-air amphitheatre, which had to be closed off by security due to safety concerns as an unprecedented number of festival-goers rushed to see the performance. It is estimated that 28,000 people of the 33,000 people who attended the festival crammed in to see Florence and the Machine. The amphitheatre was reopened shortly after the start, once the safety concerns were allayed. In October 2009, the band's equipment and instruments were caught in a trailer fire during their European tour, forcing the band to use rented instruments to complete their remaining shows. Welch stated, "You could hear the harp's strings ping in the fire. Strange sound. We recorded it and I want to use it in a song."

On 27 October 2009, Florence and the Machine played their first official New York City gig at the Bowery Ballroom, and performed "Kiss with a Fist" on the Late Show with David Letterman. On 5 November, the band performed "Rabbit Heart (Raise It Up)" on Jimmy Kimmel Live!.

After the success of Lungs (2009) topping the UK Albums Chart in January 2010, seven months after the album was released, Florence and the Machine announced an eleven-date UK and Ireland tour called The Cosmic Love Tour in May 2010. Florence and the Machine performed at Oxegen 2010, T in the Park 2010, the Isle of Wight Festival 2010, Roskilde Festival 2010, V Festival 2010, and the San Miguel Primavera Sound 2010. In March 2010, it was that confirmed that the band's first headlining festival would be Latitude 2010, having been booked the previous September before achieving mainstream success.

The Cosmic Love Tour kicked off at Dublin's Olympia Theatre on 2 May 2010 where the group performed a new song called "Strangeness and Charm" and ended at London's Hammersmith Apollo on 15 May 2010. On 25 June, the group played the Glastonbury Festival 2010, where they performed "Strangeness and Charm" and a cover of Fleetwood Mac's "The Chain" during their ten-song set. Their performance drew one of the biggest crowds of the day and one of the biggest in the Other Stage's history.

Florence and the Machine opened for U2 on the North American leg of their U2 360° Tour in June and July 2011.

International appearances: Solo and as a group
In an interview with New York Posts PopWrap, Welch revealed that in the weeks and months prior to her performance of 12 September at the 2010 MTV Video Music Awards, she was so nervous she lost sleep and cried. In addition, she struggled during the pre-show rehearsal with a move that required her to stand up on a rotating platform. It was described as "both ethereal and downright joyous". After the performance, Lungs (2009) rose to number two on the iTunes albums chart and "Dog Days Are Over" rose to number nine on the iTunes singles chart. In addition, Florence and the Machine became the number-one search on Google and received 1,700 tweets per minute on Twitter. Florence and the Machine performed "Dog Days Are Over" on The Ellen DeGeneres Show on 15 October 2010. On 20 November 2010, the band performed "Dog Days Are Over" and "You've Got the Love" on Saturday Night Live. They performed an online-only concert at New York City's Ed Sullivan Theater on 16 December 2010 as part of the Live on Letterman concert series. Welch and a number of other female singers opened the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards on 13 February 2011 with a tribute to an ailing Aretha Franklin. On 27 February 2011, Welch replaced pregnant Dido and sang her portion of Best Original Song nominee "If I Rise" (from 127 Hours) with A. R. Rahman at the 83rd Academy Awards. Two years of worldwide touring had been scheduled to promote Ceremonials.  Welch and guitarist Rob Ackroyd held a private performance for a terminally ill 15-year-old fan, Karinya Chen, in Austin, Texas on 23 May 2016. On the 29th September 2019,
the band finished their High as Hope tour at the Acropolis.

Style and influences

Florence Welch has been compared to other female singers such as Kate Bush, Siouxsie Sioux of Siouxsie and the Banshees, PJ Harvey, Tori Amos and Björk. During an interview, Welch cited Grace Slick of Jefferson Airplane as her influence and "hero". Florence and the Machine's style has been described as "dark, robust and romantic". Their music is a mix of "classic soul and midnight-on-the-moors English art rock". Welch stated that her lyrics related to Renaissance artists: "We're dealing with all of the same things they did—love and death, time and pain, heaven and hell." Commenting her success, she said: "I'm lucky that there seems to be a massive revival in female performers. My icons were always women like Kate Bush, Stevie Nicks and Siouxsie Sioux. Who wouldn't be proud to carry on that tradition?".

The group's musical style has been described as indie rock, indie pop, baroque pop, chamber pop, art rock, art pop, neo soul, and folk.

Response

Florence and the Machine won the Critic's Choice Award at the 2009 Brit Awards after coming third in the BBC's Sound of 2009 poll. As well as attention from the BBC, the band received significant support from NME magazine, who included them on their annual Shockwaves NME Awards Tour for 2009, along with Glasvegas, Friendly Fires and White Lies.

The Sunday Times described Welch as "the most peculiar and most highly acclaimed female singer of the moment" and "the latest in a line of great English pop eccentrics". AllMusic referred to Lungs as "one of the most musically mature and emotionally mesmerising albums of 2009". Spin magazine rated Lungs (2009) eight out of ten and wrote, "You've gotta hand it to the girl: She always makes you feel something." The magazine named it the eighth best album of 2009. In December 2010, Florence and the Machine appeared on one of Spins three holiday issue covers as Artist of the Year.

Florence and the Machine won the Mastercard British Album award for Lungs at the 2010 Brit Awards, having also been nominated for British Female Solo Artist and British Breakthrough Act. On 19 February 2010, Florence and the Machine won Best International Band at the 2010 Meteor Awards. The group led the nominations for the 2010 MOJO Awards, with four nods. They received a nomination for Best New Artist at the 53rd Annual Grammy Awards. In April 2011, Florence and the Machine were ranked 50 in the 2011 Time 100 poll, which annually lists the 100 most influential people in the world. American recording artist Beyoncé cited Florence and the Machine as an influence for her 2011 album 4.

Band members
Current
 Florence Welch – lead vocals, percussion (2007–present)
 Isabella Summers – keyboards, backing vocals (2007–present)
 Robert Ackroyd – lead guitar, backing vocals, bass (2007–present)
 Tom Monger – harp, xylophone, percussion, backing vocals (2007–present)
 Cyrus Bayandor – bass (2018–present)
 Aku Orraca-Tetteh – percussion, backing vocals, keyboards (2018–present)
 Dionne Douglas – violin, backing vocals, guitar (2018–present)
 Loren Humphrey – drums (2018–2022, 2022–present)

Former
 Christopher Lloyd Hayden – drums, percussion, backing vocals, guitar (2007–2018)
 Mark Saunders – bass, backing vocals (2009–2018)
 Rusty Bradshaw – keyboards, rhythm guitar, backing vocals (2011–2018)
 Hazel Mills – keyboards, backing vocals (2018–2022)
 Sam Doyle – drums (2022)

Timeline

Discography

 Lungs (2009)
 Ceremonials (2011)
 How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful (2015)
 High as Hope (2018)
 Dance Fever (2022)

Concert tours
 Lungs Tour (2008–2011)
 Ceremonials Tour (2011–2013)
 How Big, How Blue, How Beautiful Tour (2015–2016)
 High as Hope Tour (2018–2019)
 Dance Fever Tour (2022–2023)

Awards and nominations

References

External links

 Music by Florence and the Machine

2007 establishments in England
Brit Award winners
English art rock groups
English indie pop groups
English folk rock groups
Island Records artists
MTV Video Music Award winners
Musical groups established in 2007
Musical groups from London
NME Awards winners
Moshi Moshi Records artists
Republic Records artists
Iamsound Records artists
Female-fronted musical groups
Musical octets
Musical nonets

Florence and the Machine


The Four Boxes Gallery is a modern art gallery in the grounds of Krabbesholm Højskole near Skive, Denmark. The gallery was designed by the Japanese architects Atelier Bow-Wow, and is a three-storey building conceived as four stacked boxes used to exhibit work by both students of the Krabbesholm Højskole and invited artists.
The school arranges 6-8 exhibitions each year featuring the work of artists, architects and designers from Denmark and abroad.

The 250 square meter gallery is set on the green lawn of the school between the Craftsmen's School and the red brick Idé-Pro factory.
The modern concrete structure is designed as four stacked boxes. The lower two boxes form outdoor galleries and an indoor gallery.
The box in the middle is a smaller exhibition room, and the box at the top is a private workshop and living space for the artist in residence.
The building has been described as "quintessentially Japanese, yet also strangely oversized and villa-like, as it extends the built vocabulary of the school with its clear-cut concrete edges".
According to Momoyo Kaijima, one of the architects, "We tried to obtain a fusion between space and light, in a way to create 'gap spaces', that is the leftover spaces in between the four boxes which bring light into the building".

References

Atelier Bow-Wow buildings
Art museums and galleries in Denmark
Tourist attractions in the Central Denmark Region
Buildings and structures in the Central Denmark Region
Museums in the Central Denmark Region
Skive, Denmark

Four Boxes Gallery


Enele Sosene Sopoaga PC (born 10 February 1956) is a Tuvaluan diplomat and politician who was Prime Minister of Tuvalu from 2013 to 2019.

Sopoaga was elected to Parliament in the 2010 general election. He served as Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Environment and Labour in Prime Minister Maatia Toafa's short-lived government from September to December 2010. Following an unsuccessful bid for the premiership in December 2010 (with Toafa's support), he became leader of the Opposition to prime minister Willy Telavi's government. He became caretaker prime minister on 1 August 2013 following Telavi's removal by the Governor General, in the context of a political crisis. A day later, on 2 August 2013, the opposition successfully voted out Telavi's government in a no confidence vote. Following this, a ballot was held to elect the new prime minister of Tuvalu and Sopoaga won with 8 votes to 4. He was sworn in on 5 August 2013, and created his ministry the same day.

Personal life and education

Sopoaga received a Certificate in Diplomatic Studies from Oxford University in 1990, and a master's degree from the University of Sussex in 1994.  Sopoaga and his wife, Salilo Enele, have three children.

He is the younger brother of Saufatu Sopoaga, who was prime minister from 2002 to 2004.

Career in administration and diplomacy

From 1980 until 1986, Sopoaga served as an Education Administrator within the Ministry of Social Services. He became the Assistant Secretary of the Ministry of Social Services in 1986. He was the Assistant Secretary and European Union National Authorizing Officer, Department of Foreign Affairs (three years), and Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Economic Planning (two years), both between 1986 and 1991.  Sopoaga was the acting officer within the Minister of Foreign Affairs and Economic Planning from 1991 until 1992. He then served as the Permanent Secretary (the highest civil service position) and European Union National Authorizing Officer within the Tuvaluan Ministry of Foreign Affairs and Economic Planning from 1992 to 1995. Additionally, Sopoaga served as Tuvalu's High Commissioner to Fiji. He also simultaneously served as the Tuvaluan High Commissioner to both Papua New Guinea and Samoa. From 1995 to 1996, he was the Permanent Secretary in the Ministry of Health, Sports and Human Resource Development.

He subsequently served as his country's Permanent Representative to the United Nations from 2001 (when the Permanent Mission of Tuvalu was established) to 2006. He also served as the vice-chairman of the Alliance of Small Island States (AOSIS) from January 2002. He has been described as "Tuvalu's climate change negotiator", tasked with raising the profile of the dangers posed by climate change in Tuvalu and other small island nations.

Political career

In 2010, he decided to go into politics, and stood for Parliament in the general election on 16 September 2010. Sopoaga, who was elected to parliament for the Nukufetau constituency was expected to pose a strong challenge to Ielemia for the office of prime minister during the formation of a new government. In the event, however, neither Ielemia nor Sopoaga stood for the premiership, and Maatia Toafa was elected prime minister. Toafa formed a cabinet composed largely of first time MPs who had given him their support, and appointed Sopoaga as deputy prime minister and Minister for Foreign Affairs, the Environment and Labour.

Leader of the Opposition
Maatia Toafa's government was brought down on 21 December 2010 by a motion of no confidence in Parliament, by eight votes to seven. The motion was reportedly due to MPs' concerns about the budget, and in particular possible restrictions on the government's funding of Tuvaluans' medical costs abroad. With a new prime minister due to be chosen on 24 December, Toafa announced that he would not be standing for the job, but that he hoped Sopoaga would be chosen by parliament in his place. Sopoaga stood for the premiership, but lost to Willy Telavi by seven votes to eight.

Sopoaga thus became the Leader of the Opposition. He continued to call for international initiatives to tackle climate change, including "adaptation techniques", a transfer of affordable sustainable technologies to vulnerable developing nations. This would enable sustainable living, he said, and address the issue of Tuvalu's dependence on donor countries. He told Radio Australia that Tuvalu was now suffering from "long, serious" periods of drought, affecting crops. (See: 2011 Tuvalu drought.) He has also stated that, to respond to the overcrowding of Funafuti, Tuvaluans on the outer islands should be given the economic means to live on their home island rather than move to the capital. One other issue he raised during a talk on Radio Australia was the need for independent media in Tuvalu, presenting news in an accurate rather than "rosy", 'pro-government' manner. He stated that Tuvaluans' "right to correct information is curtailed by censorship".

The latter concern led him to set up, with two other people, the Tala o Matagi newspaper company (meaning "Story of the Wind") in June 2011. Emphasising the people's right to "reliable information" on politics and other issues, for the betterment of themselves and of the nation, he explained that the newspaper would begin as a short, bilingual weekly newsletter in Tuvaluan and English, issued in one or two hundred copies.

In early 2012, he criticised the Telavi government's decision to establish formal diplomatic relations with "countries that have unsettled political issues of concern to the international community" – namely, Abkhazia, South Ossetia, and Armenia (the latter in the context of its territorial dispute with Azerbaijan). Sopoaga suggested that the establishing of diplomatic relations with specific foreign countries should be decided by Parliament, not solely by the Cabinet.

Prime Minister

Sopoaga became prime minister in a caretaker capacity following the dismissal of incumbent Willy Telavi by Governor-General Iakoba Italeli on 1 August 2013.  In a secret ballot held during an extra session of parliament three days later, Sopoaga was elect as Prime Minister of Tuvalu by 8 votes to 4. He was sworn in by Italeli on 5 August 2013, and created his ministry the same day. A day after being sworn into office, Sopoaga said he was 'confident' of retaining office in the next general election, and he would ensure the country had a strong voice in the fight against climate change. He promoted a number of high-profile Tuvaluan politicians back to cabinet, including Vete Sakaio who was appointed the Deputy Prime Minister and Minister for Public Utilities; and Maatia Toafa, who was appointed Finance and Economic Development' Maatia Toafa was previously the prime minister of Tuvalu from 2004 to 2006 and again in 2010.

Following the 2015 general election, Enele Sopoaga was sworn in as prime minister on 10 April. Enele Sopoaga said his administration will focus on working to make Tuvalu less vulnerable to climate change and global economic forces.

Enele Sopoaga as Minister for Public Utilities and Infrastructures launched Tuvalu Atoll Science Technology Training Institute (TASTTI) on 20 December 2017.

He was re-elected as a member of parliament in the 2019 general election.
Following the general election, on 19 September 2019, the members of parliament elected Kausea Natano from Funafuti as prime minister with a 10-6 majority.

Commitment to address the effects of climate change on Tuvalu

2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP15)

Enele Sopoaga served as the main spokesman for the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS) at the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen, and was one of the chief negotiators for global action on climate change, with Tuvalu receiving attention for its strong advocacy on the issue. He proposed amending the draft climate treaty so as to require all countries to limit the rise in global air temperatures to 1.5 degrees Celsius above pre-industrial levels. This proposal was subsequently rejected.

2010 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP16)

Sopoaga, who had described the outcome of the 2009 United Nations Climate Change Conference in Copenhagen as unsatisfactory, led Tuvalu's delegation at the 2010 Conference in Cancun in December, and said of it that he had been "[s]ort of encouraged by the turn around of things. It could have been worse, but I think goodwill prevailed [...] despite a lot of issues still sticking out".

2013 Majuro Declaration

As prime minister, Enele Sopoaga has worked on international effects to address the problems resulting from global warming in Tuvalu. In September 2013 Sopoaga said that relocating Tuvaluans to avoid the impact of sea level rise "should never be an option because it is self defeating in itself. For Tuvalu I think we really need to mobilise public opinion in the Pacific as well as in the [rest of] world to really talk to their lawmakers to please have some sort of moral obligation and things like that to do the right thing."

Sopoaga made a commitment under the Majuro Declaration, which was signed on 5 September 2013, to implement power generation of 100% renewable energy (between 2013 and 2020). This commitment is proposed to be implemented using Solar PV (95% of demand) and biodiesel (5% of demand). The feasibility of wind power generation will be considered.

Establishing Tuvalu's National Advisory Council on Climate Change
On 16 January 2014 prime minister Enele Sopoaga established the National Advisory Council on Climate Change, which functions are "to identify actions or strategies: to achieve energy efficiencies; to increase the use of renewable energy; to encourage the private sector and NGOs to reduce greenhouse gas emissions; to ensure a whole of government response to adaptation and climate change related disaster risk reduction; and to encourage the private sector and NGOs to develop locally appropriate technologies for adaptation and climate change mitigation (reductions in [greenhouse gas])."

2014 UN Framework Convention on Climate Change at Lima

At the 20th Conference of Parties to the UN Framework Convention on Climate Change in December 2014 at Lima, Peru, Sopoaga said "Climate change is the single greatest challenge facing my country. It is threatening the livelihood, security and wellbeing of all Tuvaluans."

2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21)

Prime minister Enele Sopoaga said at the 2015 United Nations Climate Change Conference (COP21) that the goal for COP21 should be a global temperature rise of below 1.5 degrees Celsius relative to pre-industrial levels, which is the position of the Alliance of Small Island States. Sopoaga was appointed the lead spokesperson for the Pacific Small Island Developing States (PSIDS) at COP21.
Prime minister Sopoaga said in his speech to the meeting of heads of state and government:

His speech concluded with the plea:

Enele Sopoaga described the important outcomes of COP21 as including the stand-alone provision for assistance to small island states and some of the least developed countries for loss and damage resulting from climate change and the ambition of limiting temperature rise to 1.5 degrees by the end of the century.

Published works
 Enele Sopoaga, 'Post War Development', Chapter 19 of Tuvalu: A History (1983) Larcy, Hugh (eds.), Institute of Pacific Studies, University of the South Pacific and Government of Tuvalu

References

See also
 Politics of Tuvalu
 Sopoaga Ministry

1956 births
Living people
Prime Ministers of Tuvalu
Foreign Ministers of Tuvalu
Deputy Prime Ministers of Tuvalu
Government ministers of Tuvalu
Permanent Representatives of Tuvalu to the United Nations
High Commissioners of Tuvalu to Fiji
High Commissioners of Tuvalu to Papua New Guinea
High Commissioners of Tuvalu to Samoa
Members of the Parliament of Tuvalu
Members of the Privy Council of the United Kingdom
People from Nukufetau
Alumni of the University of Sussex
Alumni of the University of Oxford

Enele Sopoaga


Hugo Valentin (1888–1963) was a Swedish historian, scholar and leading Zionist. He received his PhD from Uppsala University in 1916 and took up teaching at the Teachers Training College in Uppsala and at a high school. In 1930 he was appointed lecturer at the high school in Uppsala (Uppsala Högre Allmänna Läroverk). In 1930 he was also awarded the title of Docent by the university, and, some years later, in 1948, the government awarded him the honorary title of professor.

He is known, to scholars of Antisemitism and the history of Jews in Sweden, for his significant work, part of which  has been translated into English.

In October 1942 he wrote a well-documented article on the Holocaust in the respected and influential daily newspaper Göteborgs Handels- och Sjöfartstidning. Based on available data he claimed that the Nazis had murdered 700,000 Jews in Poland. The article was widely quoted in Sweden. From 1951 Valentin edited a cultural magazine entitled Judisk Tidskrift.

The Hugo Valentin Centre is named after the Swedish historian and is an inter-disciplinary forum at Uppsala University with research as its prime task. Research is carried out within two prioritized areas: on the one hand cultural and social phenomena and processes of change related to the ethnic dimension in human life, on the other hand the Holocaust and other cases of genocide and severe crimes against human rights. To these subject fields belong minority studies and Holocaust and genocide studies as well as related and adjacent subjects where the Centre has a marked specialisation: Holocaust history, massive violence, discrimination, multilingualism, migration and integration. Conditions in the Nordic countries and in the Balkans have a special position, and culture, language, history and religion are natural points of departure for the Centre's work.

The Centre's activities encompass research, education at post-graduate level, documentation and information. In addition to its own research, the Centre also is explicitly charged with the task of stimulating and initiating studies of its subject areas within Uppsala University. The Centre also has the task of disseminating knowledge about the areas' research problems and research results in the light of international and global perspectives, discussions and conditions. Against the backdrop of its tasks and focus, the Centre should constitute a resource for education at Uppsala University, primarily on the higher levels.

The Hugo Valentin Centre was established at Uppsala University's Faculty of Arts in November 2009 through a merging of two previous units, the Centre for Multiethnic Research and The Uppsala Programme for Holocaust and Genocide Studies. The new unit started its work under the new name on 1 January 2010.

Works
Antisemitism i historisk och kritisk belysning (1936)
Antisemitism Historically and Critically Examined
trans. from Swedish by A. G. Chater
(New York: The Viking Press, 1937)
(Freeport, NY: Books for Libraries Press, 1971)

References

External links
Sweden-Israel Friendship Association

20th-century Swedish historians
1888 births
1963 deaths
Academic staff of the University of Gothenburg
Swedish Jews
Swedish magazine editors
Uppsala University alumni

Hugo Valentin