Blake Aldridge (born 4 August 1982) is a British synchronised diver, who dives for The Crystal Palace Diving Club. During the Beijing 2008 Summer Olympics he took part in the Men's 10m Synchronised event.^[1] Aldridge and his 14-year-old diving partner, Tom Daley, finished in eighth position in the final in an event dominated by the Chinese who claimed the gold. He criticised Tom Daley during the competition, which subsequently resulted in Aldridge himself being criticised.

Aldridge's original synchro partner Gavin Brown was killed in a hit-and-run collision in Southampton on 28 April 2007.^[2]

In February 2009, Daley's father, Rob, told BBC Devon, "If it was up to me, Tom would get a new partner".^[3] Shortly afterwards it was announced that Daley would be diving with Max Brick.

In May 2009 Aldridge paid an £80 police fixed penalty for shoplifting at B&Q.^[4]

On 19 February 2010, Aldridge was arrested on suspicion of shoplifting wine and causing actual bodily harm to a male security guard at a Tesco store in Croydon, Greater London. In August 2010 the case against him was dismissed.^[5]

In July 2010, Aldridge won the European Cliff Diving Championships for the second year running, scoring 136.475 points, 38 points ahead of the next highest scoring dive.^[6]

References[link]

External links[link]

• Aldridge's Website

This biographical article relating to a United Kingdom sportsperson is a stub. You can help Wikipedia by expanding it. v t e

Coordinates: 52°36′22″N 1°55′04″W / 52.606°N 1.91787°W / 52.606; -1.91787

Aldridge
Aldridge  Aldridge shown within the West Midlands
OS grid reference	SK056009
Metropolitan borough	Walsall
Metropolitan county	West Midlands
Region	West Midlands
Country	England
Sovereign state	United Kingdom
Post town	WALSALL
Postcode district	WS9
Police	West Midlands
Fire	West Midlands
Ambulance	West Midlands
EU Parliament	West Midlands
UK Parliament	Aldridge-Brownhills
List of places: UK • England • West Midlands

Aldridge is a town within the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall, in the West Midlands, England. Historically it was part of the county of Staffordshire, but in 1974 it was incorporated into the Walsall borough as well as the West Midlands county.

History[link]

Aldridge was recorded as a settlement in the Domesday Book of 1086, though the now much larger settlement of Walsall was not.^[1] It was valued at 15 shillings under the name of "Alrewic", which may have originated from an abundance of Alder trees in the area.^[2]

Aldridge began as a small agricultural settlement, with farming being the most common occupation up until the 19th century.

In the 1800s, Aldridge became an industrial town with coal mines and lime kilns. The coal and clay in the area prompted many to set up collieries and brickworks. Aldridge clay is especially useful in the manufacture of blue bricks. The 1881 census shows that the mines and brick works were major employers. Because the coal and clay beneath the eastern side of Aldridge (towards Stonnall) is located much deeper under the surface, extraction of this coal and clay would not have been economically viable. As a result farms continued to dominate the eastern part, though a sand quarry was set up and still remains on Birch Lane.^[3]

During the 20th century modern shops were built in the centre of Aldridge, as well as council buildings. After the Second World War Aldridge became a dormitory town, or suburb, of Birmingham. A small airport called Walsall Aldridge Airport was used during the Second World War and after was used for passenger services.

Aldridge became an urban district in Staffordshire in 1894. Other villages within the district included Pelsall, Walsall Wood, Clayhanger and Streetly. This merged with Brownhills in 1966 to form Aldridge-Brownhills, and then became part of the Metropolitan Borough of Walsall in 1974.

Today, Aldridge is a relatively affluent area of Walsall that consists of mostly private homes that have been built since the 1920s. It is a pleasant suburban area contrasting with the more centralised rundown parts of Walsall such as Moxley, Darlaston, Leamore, Blakenall Heath, Harden and Goscote.

Demography[link]

The recorded population in the 2001 Census was 16,862.^[4]

Politics[link]

Since 1979, Aldridge's MP has been Richard Shepherd (Conservative), the MP for Aldridge-Brownhills.^[5][6]

Aldridge is made up of two council wards: Aldridge Central & South, Aldridge North & Walsall Wood. There are currently three Conservative councillors for Aldridge Central & South: John O'Hare, Tom Ansell and John Rochelle. Aldridge North & Walsall Wood is also covered by three Conservative councillors: Keith Sears, Anthony Harris and Mike Flower.^[7]

Education[link]

Aldridge has a number of primary and secondary schools. The primary schools are Cooper and Jordan (CE), Leighswood, St Mary of the Angels (Catholic) and Whetstone Field (Redhouse primary school was closed in the summer of 2006.^[8]). The secondary schools are Aldridge School and St Francis of Assisi Catholic Technology College.

Industry and commerce[link]

In Aldridge there are a large number of factories, mostly located on the Redhouse industrial estate, but also heading up towards Walsall Wood along the main road, Northgate. Some of the most notable factories are the large Ibstock brick works, Harold Bird Golf and the GKN Driveshafts factory, although both of these companies have due to relocation and cheaper foreign imports closed in recent years. Aldridge Plastics Ltd, a plastics injection moulder, was set up in the town in 1968 and continued trading for almost 40 years before ceasing production in 2007. From January 2011, GFP Engineering Ltd, a Glass Reinforced Plastic (GRP) moulding company, will commence trading after relocating from nearby Lichfield.

Most of the town's shops are located either on High Street, Anchor Road, or in the shopping area known as "The Parade". Well-known shops here include WH Smith, Iceland supermarket, Home Bargains, and Boots The Chemist. There are also a number of independent shops, an indoor market and a large Morrisons supermarket just outside the town centre. The village is covered by three main firms of solicitors. Lloyds TSB, NatWest, Barclays and HSBC all have branches in the town. The oldest independent insurance broker in the area R.H.N. Riley Ltd were established in 1958. There are many take-aways in Aldridge, including two Chinese take-aways, two Indian take-aways, a Greek take-away, a pizza take-away and two fish and chip shops. Many Restaurants both European and Asian can be found here too.

Transport[link]

Aldridge is served by a local bus service. Many of the buses in Aldridge were renumbered in April 2010 as part of National Express West Midlands' attempt to simplify bus services in and around the Walsall area. Buses to Walsall run frequently several times an hour during the day, namely the 6, 7, 7A, 81 (formerly 381) and 997. The 6, a half hourly service, can also be used to commute to Sutton Coldfield. This service (under its previous number, 366) used to run all the way from Walsall, via Aldridge and Sutton Coldfield to Birmingham Airport. The 381 travels to Lichfield, going via Shenstone, and runs every two hours. There are also two routes that run into Birmingham City Centre from Aldridge: the X56, 56 & 56A and the 997, 997A, 997E & 997B.

Aldridge used to have a platform on the Sutton Park Line running to Walsall that operated services for passengers, though the station was closed in 1966 and since then the line has only been used for freight trains. Recently, there has been talk of re-opening this line for passengers and in the late 1990s/early 2000s, plans were drawn up for a modern station to be built on the site of the old one.^[9] The site of the old station lies behind the new doctor's surgery at the bottom of Portland Road, and part of the old platform is still visible. Should the station be re-opened, it has potential to become a park & ride station and could offer services to Birmingham via Sutton Coldfield, or the short journey into Walsall. Despite the plans that have been drawn up, nothing has yet happened. This is mainly because there are too many freight trains and currently no other route to which to move freight traffic.

There are also speculative plans to use the closed South Staffordshire Line as a single track freight line, which would be a quicker route from Stourbridge to Bescot, and this would also clear the way to re-introduce passenger services to Aldridge. This section of line was last used in 1984, and the entire trackbed remains intact, even though the track itself is long gone. There is no timescale for when (or if) the re-opening of this railway through Aldridge will take place, although Network Rail hopes that the bulk of the line between Walsall and Brierley Hill will re-open to goods trains by 2012.

Sports, recreation and entertainment[link]

Aldridge has a cricket and hockey club called "The Stick and Wicket", located on the green behind The Parish Church and the Masonic Hall. Aldridge Hockey Club merged with Walsall Hockey Club in 2011; it is now known as Aldridge & Walsall Hockey Club. More information for the hockey can be found through www.awhockey.co.uk

Aldridge Rugby Football Club was formed in 1998 from an amalgamation of two established rugby clubs based in Birmingham: Witton and Old Centrals. The club is based on the former Old Centrals sports ground at Bourne Vale in Aldridge and currently plays in Midlands 5 West (North) fielding three senior sides.

Aldridge Compass Suites (based at the Masonic Hall on the Green) is a venue for wedding receptions, christenings and other functions.

There are many pubs in the area around Aldridge and multiple restaurants located in the town centre, although the number is decreasing, among those closing being the Red Lion.

There is also the Aldridge Youth Theatre, which was officially opened by the actor Bernard Hepton and is located on Noddy Park Road by the Croft. It is run by a group of volunteers and puts on a variety of plays throughout the year. A pantomime is usually staged in January.

Air Cadets: 425 (Aldridge) Squadron, part of Staffordshire Wing of the Air Training Corps was formed in 1941 and currently occupies a purpose-built HQ close to the village centre. The aims of the Air Training Corps is to promote and encourage in young men and women a practical interest in aviation and the Royal Air Force, to provide training which will be useful both in the Services and in civil life, to foster the spirit of adventure and to develop the qualities of leadership and good citizenship. New cadets (both male and female) can join the Sqn between 13 and ideally 16 years of age and can stay as a cadet up to their 20th birthday. The Squadron is run by uniformed RAFVR(T) officers and ATC SNCO adult staff, assisted by Civilian Instructors and a Padre, and is open on two evenings a week for training. Additional activities also take place most weekends. These include flying, gliding, target shooting, competitions, first aid, Duke of Edinburgh award schemes, sport, fieldcraft, camps, radio communications, band, plastic modelling and many others. As well as making new friends and enjoying the numerous activities cadets can obtain a number of qualifications including BTECs.

The 36th Walsall 1st Aldridge scout group is located on Middlemore Lane, opposite Anchor Meadow, and runs Beaver, Cub, Scout and Explorer sections for boys aged 6 and upwards. The beavers are aged 6–8, cubs are aged 8–10/11, scouts are aged 11–14 and explorers are aged 14–18; network and fellowship follow.

The Methodist Church, located besides the large Morrisons branch, plays host to 1st Aldridge Girl guides, as well as two brownie groups and a rainbow group. The rainbows group is for girls aged 5-7, the brownies for girls aged 7-10, and guides aged 10-14. Older girls do take part, and are known as the senior section.

St. Mary's Parish Church has one of the largest church youth groups in the area. Around 90 young people, between the ages of 13 and 18, attend the group, which meets on Friday nights. The group also hosts an annual summer camp in Wales (in recent years attracting over 100 teenagers), as well as a weekend away in February.

The 33rd Walsall Scout group is based at Aldridge Methodist Church and holds Beavers, Cubs and scouts for boys and girls aged 6–14. They go on annual scout camps and have been to Beaudesert Campsite and Blackwell Adventure.

The 49th Walsall Scout Group is the third Scout Group in Aldridge based at St. Thomas's Church in Churchside Way on the estate just off Lazy Hill Road and Greenwood Road, it also caters for boys between the ages of 6 and 18, it is a thriving Group holding family camps as well as Scout, Cub and Beaver Camps each year.

Famous people[link]

Actors and actresses[link]

Richard Sinnott - Actor attended Leighswood School, then Aldridge Comprehensive. He has appeared in Coronation Street, Emmerdale, Where the Heart Is and Life on Mars. He is the older brother of Lee Sinnott (below).

Isabel Dean (1918–1997) film, stage and television actress was born in Aldridge.

Authors[link]

Brigadier (Edward) Richard Holmes (1946-2011). Military historian, author, television presenter, Cranfield professor, and Territorial Army soldier.

Military honours[link]

Charles George Bonner VC, DSC (29 December 1884-7 February 1951), born in Aldridge, was an English recipient of the Victoria Cross, the highest and most prestigious award for gallantry in the face of the enemy that can be awarded to British and Commonwealth forces. Bonner Grove is a well-maintained neighbourhood of council flats and privately-owned houses in Aldridge that remembers his name.

Sports men and women[link]

Charles Holland (cyclist) - a British road bicycle racer. He was one of the first two Britons to ride the Tour de France. Rode in Olympic Games: Los Angeles 1932 and Berlin 1936.^{[citation needed]}

Dr. V. E. Milne - Had a doctor's surgery in Portland rd Aldridge played soccer for Aston Villa and played cricket for Scotland.^{[citation needed]}

Charles Harold Ward (16 September 1911 – August 2001) was a prominent English golfer of the 1940s, winner of the British Order of Merit in both 1948 and 1949, and twice finishing third in The Open Championship, in 1948 and 1951.^{[citation needed]}

Johnny Bullock - Jockey-won the Grand National in 1951 on Nickel Coin. She was the 12th mare to win the Grand National and none has triumphed since.^{[citation needed]}

Lee Sinnott - Footballer (born July 12, 1965 in Aldridge, Walsall, England) is an English ex-professional footballer and was the manager of Farsley Celtic, whom he led to promotion three times in four years. He went on to manage Port Vale for a short period. He began his career at Walsall as an apprentice, and played in the 1984 FA Cup final for his next club Watford in 1984. He captained Huddersfield Town to Division Two playoff glory in 1995.

Colin Charvis - former captain of the Wales national rugby union team went to the Redhouse School in Aldridge.^[10]

Eleanor Simmonds MBE - Olympic Swimmer (born in Aldridge, Walsall, England) representing Great Britain in the Olympics. Eleanor won two gold medals and broke the world record in the Women's 400 m freestyle S6 with a time of 5 minutes 46 seconds. She attended Cooper and Jordan Primary School, then Aldridge School, but now attends school in Swansea.^[11]

See also[link]

• Brownhills
• Pelsall
• Walsall

References[link]

External links[link]

• Walsall council local history
• Even more local history
• GENUKI entry
• Aldridge in the Domesday Book

Gary Hunt (sometimes listed as Roger Gary Hunt, born 11 June 1984) is a former Olympic hopeful and Commonwealth diver who has a number of medals at Great Britain National Diving championships^[1] and placed 3rd in the 10m Synchro event at the 2006 Commonwealth Games.^[2] He chose to focus his diving career in the niche area of Cliff Diving, and has enjoyed an extremely rapid rise to the top of the sport. In 2010 he won the Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, the premier championship within the sport, showing complete domination throughout the series and is thus considered to be the current reigning World Champion.^[3][4][5][6] He has a reputation for being a daredevil, pushing the sport to new extremes and inventing spectacular new moves to stay ahead of his competition.

Cliff diving career[link]

2009 season[link]

2009 marked the beginning of Gary's professional career in the sport after several years of training and competing in high diving events to build up his confidence and technique. He was quick to impress and finished 3rd, 3rd, 2nd and 2nd in the first 4 events of the series in France (La Rochelle), Netherlands (Rotterdam), Croatia (Dubrovnik) and Italy (Polignano A Mare).^{[7][8][9][10]}

His impressive start to the season meant he was in 2nd place in the overall championship at the halfway stage, 18 points behind 9-time World Champion Orlando Duque who had been dominating the 2009 season once again.

At the 5th event of the series in Turkey (Antalya), Gary introduced his first new dive - a previously unattemped back piked 3 somersaults with 4 twists.^[11] The dive has a difficulty rating of 6.2 and is the most difficult dive to be performed in any form of competitive diving. Although he was only able to finished 3rd at this event,^[12] the new dive got a huge amount of attention, opened the eyes of the cliff diving community and began to cement Gary's reputation as a fearless daredevil who was going to push the sport to new levels.^[13]

At the 6th event in Germany (Hamburg), Gary achieved his first win, again using the triple quad. With Orlando Duque suffering from minor injuries and finishing 4th, Gary closed the gap in the overall championship to 12 points.^[14]

At the 7th event in Switzerland (Sisikon), Gary came 2nd by the narrowest of margins but was again able to stay ahead of Orlando Duque who finished 3rd. Gary closed the gap in the championship to 9 points and was the only diver that could potentially beat Orlando going into the final event.^[15]

At the 8th and final event in Greece (Athens), Gary introduced his 2nd new dive, another very technical dive with a very high difficulty rating - a forward piked 4 somersaults with 1.5 twists. With his second win of the series, and with Orlando finishing 4th, Gary tied Orlando on points in the overall championship. However, Orlando was awarded the overall championship due to the fact that he had won more individual events over the year.^[16]

2010 season[link]

After finishing joint 1st in 2009, Gary immediately resumed his rise to the top in 2010. Now confident with his 2 extreme dives,^[17] Gary dominated the first event of the year in France (La Rochelle) and won comfortably, achieving scores of 10,10,10,9,9 for his final dive.^[18][19]

At the second event of the year in Mexico (Ik Kil), Gary extended his lead on the series with another win. Once again his extreme dives with their high degree of difficulty were credited as the reason for his success.^[20][21]

With a good lead in the overall championship, Gary began to think about how he could do something new and daring once again. He planned to introduce another first in the world of cliff diving - a running take off, hoping that the extra momentum would allow him to change his front piked 4 somersaults 1.5 twists into 4 somersaults 2.5 twists.^[22]

At the third event of the year in Norway (Kragerø) Gary made it three wins out of three events.^[23][24]

Gary felt that the fourth event in Italy (Polignano A Mare) was the right time to unveil his new move - the running take off into front piked 4 somersaults 2.5 twists.^[25] As a requirement of the series, any diver wishing to use a new or unconventional dive must demonstrate the dive to the judges in practice sessions prior to the main competition in order to prove that they are capable of executing the dive. The judges have the power to stop an athlete using a particular dive in competition if they feel it is likely to be dangerous, and there was a lot of talk of this nature surrounding Gary's new dive. Gary was able to execute the dive during this practice session, finishing a little short but doing enough to convince the judges and once again made history in the sport with the first ever running take off.^[26] Unfortunately during the main competition Gary performed the dive during the 3rd round of dives and received the most serious injury of the 2010 world series, when his entry point into the water coincided with the crest of a wave, meaning that he finished very short and took a large impact to his chest and head. He was taken to hospital with minor concussion but released later the same day with no further injuries or symptoms.^[27] Despite this, he was still able to finish 3rd at the event, due to a near-perfect triple quad during the 2nd round of dives.^[28]

Following the accident in Italy, Gary chose to shelve the running take off dive for the time being, and returned to winning ways at the fifth event of the year in Switzerland (Sisikon) with another dominating performance, and another first for the series - Gary achieved a points total of 417.50, the highest ever and the only score above 400 of the series.^[29][30]

At the sixth and final event in Hawaii (Hilo), Gary finished second to Orlando Duque but only needed one point from the event to win the series, and was crowned World Champion on 12 September 2010.^[31]

2011 Season[link]

Gary will defend his title during the 2011 Red Bull Cliff Diving World Series, which begins on 12 March 2011 in Rapa Nui, Chile (Easter Island). On Saturday 18th June, he won the second etap of Cliff Diving in La Rochelle thanks to an impressionant jump! The jury gave him 10/10!

References[link]

This article includes a list of references, but its sources remain unclear because it has insufficient inline citations. Please help to improve this article by introducing more precise citations. (August 2011)

Jo Brand
Jo Brand at the BBC Magazines Awards for Excellence.
Birth name	Josephine Grace Brand
Born	(1957-07-23) 23 July 1957 (age 54) London, United Kingdom
Medium	Stand-up, television, film
Nationality	British
Years active	1986–present
Genres	Observational comedy
Subject(s)	Marriage, Politics
Spouse	Bernie Bourke (1997–present)
Notable works and roles	Getting On

Josephine Grace "Jo" Brand (born 23 July 1957)^[1] is a BAFTA winning British comedienne, writer, and actress. Commencing her entertainment career with a move from psychiatric nursing to the alternative comedy stand up scene and early performances on Saturday Live, she went on to appearances on The Brain Drain, Channel 4's Jo Brand Through the Cakehole, Getting On and various television appearances including as a regular guest on QI. In 2003, she was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy.

Early life[link]

Jo Brand was born 23 July 1957^[2] in Wandsworth, London.^[3] Her mother was a social worker. Brand is the middle of three children, with two brothers.^[4] When she was about four, the family moved to the village of St Mary's Platt near Sevenoaks in Kent,^[5] and a year later to Benenden.^[5] Brand was educated at Helenswood School, Hastings, Tunbridge Wells Girls' Grammar School^[5] and Bexhill College. She worked as a psychiatric nurse for ten years, at the South London Bethlem, Cefn Coed Hospital in Swansea and Maudsley Hospital in South London.^[6][7]

Comedy career[link]

Brand was persuaded by agent Malcolm Hardee to begin a career in stand-up comedy, where she acquired the stage name "The Sea Monster". She was part of the British alternative comedy movement, working in London alternative comedy clubs, and appearing initially on the Saturday Live television show.

Brand's early style involved her delivering jokes in a bored monotone, one line at a time, with pauses in between. It drew heavily from pop culture and the media, with many jokes containing references to well-known celebrities and public figures. With her Doc Marten boots, her large size, and her short hair, her image remained the same for most of the 1980s and 1990s. Her appearance and material led to false rumours that she was a lesbian.^[8]

Jo Brand in 1994 in Belfast

In 1993 she became a resident panellist, along with Tony Hawks, on BBC monologue show The Brain Drain. Her transition into mainstream television continued when she obtained her own series on Channel 4, Jo Brand Through the Cakehole, co-written with comedy writer Jim Miller, who was already her main stand-up writer. She has had several solo television series, and presented shows such as Jo Brand's Commercial Breakdown. She had a cameo appearance in the 1994 episode of Absolutely Fabulous, "New Best Friend", and also appeared on Star Spell, a spin off from Hard Spell in 2004. Her television success continued with guest appearances on shows such as Have I Got News for You and QI. As a fan of Countdown, she achieved an ambition when she was invited to appear in the show's "Dictionary Corner" as the celebrity guest. She later became a friend of the host, Richard Whiteley, and after his death in 2005 attended his memorial service at York Minster. She has since appeared on Countdown several more times.

In 2007, Brand narrated Laughter & Tears: The Les Dawson Story, a documentary tribute to Les Dawson, which was broadcast on BBC Radio 2 in October 2007.

Brand took part in the first celebrity version of Comic Relief does Fame Academy. In 2007, she appeared as a celebrity contestant on Comic Relief Does The Apprentice, again to raise money for Comic Relief. In 2009 she participated in Let's Dance for Comic Relief, another Comic Relief fundraiser, dancing as Britney Spears, reaching the final. She has more recently been a judge on the show.

Brand appeared as a judge in the BBC2 series The Speaker in April 2009. She offered advice, along with John Amaechi and Jeremy Stockwell, in the eight-part series charting the search for "Britain's Best Young Speaker".^[9]

Brand co-wrote and starred in the BBC Four sitcom Getting On alongside Joanna Scanlan and Vicki Pepperdine, for which she won the 2011 Best TV Comedy Actress BAFTA award. The series was directed by Peter Capaldi and is a gritty and realistic satire on the current state of the NHS, set in an old person's ward.

In 2010, Brand took part in Channel 4's Comedy Gala, a benefit show held in aid of Great Ormond Street Children's Hospital, filmed live at the O2 Arena in London on 30 March.

In 2011, Brand presented Jo Brand's Big Splash, a television programme where she performs a stand-up routine and visits people with a love of water.

She played the Demon Dinner Lady in the 2011 British live-action 3D family comedy film Horrid Henry: The Movie. Jo provided a voiceover for the Lyric Hammersmith Theatre's 2011 Pantomime Aladdin.

Other work[link]

In 2003, she was listed in The Observer as one of the 50 funniest acts in British comedy. In 2004, Brand appeared in a special episode of What Not to Wear, where fashion gurus Trinny Woodall and Susannah Constantine gave her a makeover. In March 2006, Jo appeared on Parkinson with Daniel Day-Lewis and Jane Fonda. Brand is known to be a big fan of Crystal Palace Football Club, and has sponsored the match ball for games in the past.^{[citation needed]}

Brand appeared on the 25 March 2007 episode of Play It Again where she was required to learn how to play the organ in just four months. This was in preparation to perform Johann Sebastian Bach's Toccata and Fugue in D Minor for an audience of 8,000 people at London's Royal Albert Hall on the second largest pipe organ in the United Kingdom. In order to practise her performance, she played at a church wedding, and accompanied dancers at Blackpool Tower. Prior to this, her only experiences with musical instruments had been childhood piano and violin lessons.^[10]

Books[link]

Brand has written a number of commercially successful books:

• A Load of Old Balls: Men in History (London: Simon & Schuster, 1994). ISBN 0-671-71385-X
• A Load of Old Ball Crunchers: Women in History (London: Simon & Schuster, 1996). ISBN 0-684-81695-4
• Mental (with Helen Griffin. HTV Sherman Plays series. Cardiff: Drama Association of Wales, 1996). ISBN 1-898740-41-0
• Sorting Out Billie (novel. London: Review, 2004). ISBN 0-7553-2336-X
• It's Different for Girls (novel. London: Headline Review, 2005). ISBN 0-7553-2229-0
• The More You Ignore Me (novel. London: Headline Review, 2009). ISBN 0-7553-2231-2
• Look Back in Hunger. The Autobiography (London: Headline Review, 2009). ISBN 0-7553-5525-3
• Can't Stand Up For Sitting Down. The Autobiography – Part 2 (London: Headline Review, 2010). ISBN 978-0-7553-5526-6

Sorting Out Billie and The More You Ignore Me deal with socially dysfunctional behaviour and draw on her experience in psychiatric nursing. It's Different for Girls looks at growing up in a one-horse seaside town.^[11]

Personal life[link]

Brand married Bernie Bourke, a psychiatric nurse, in 1997^[3] in Shropshire.

Jo Brand at Bonkers Fest 2007

Brand delivered a guest lecture on the subject of psychiatric nursing for the University of Derby Psychology Society in 1997 in return for a donation to Derby Rape Crisis. Also in 1997 she opened, at Lambeth Hospital in South London, the first major exhibition of The Adamson Collection since the death of Edward Adamson, the pioneer of Art Therapy, in 1996.

On July 17, 2007, Brand was awarded an honorary doctorate for her former work as a psychiatric nurse from the University of Glamorgan. Professor Donna Mead, Dean of the School of Health, Sport and Science at the University of Glamorgan who read Brand up for the award commented, “Jo incorporates much of her experience working in the field of mental health into her current work as a comedian. This has increased awareness of the work done by nurses in the mental health field. She has also used her experiences of working with individuals with conditions such as Alzheimer’s to promote awareness of and raise funds for the Alzheimer’s Society.” ^[12]

In February 2009, Brand was among a group of British entertainers who wrote an open letter to The Times of London in support of the Bahá'í leaders then on trial in Iran.^[13]

She is a supporter of the charity ActionAid and has taken part in fundraising events for the organisation.^[14]

Politics[link]

Brand is a staunch supporter of the Labour Party.^[15] She was still a contributor to and supporter of the party in 2010.^[16] She is a patron of International Animal Rescue and the Prader-Willi Syndrome Association, as well as the National Self Harm Network, otherwise known as NSHN, and London Nightline. She is the president of The Ectopic Pregnancy Trust.^[17] Brand introduced and spoke at the celebration of Michael Foot's life at the Lyric Theatre, Shaftesbury Avenue, on 8 November 2010.^[18] She is also a republican. In January 2012 she gave the Annual South Shields annual lecture at Harton Technology College alongside the MP of the town, David Miliband.

Awards and nominations[link]

• British Comedy Award 2011: Best TV Comedy Actress
• BAFTA: Best Female Performance in a Comedy Role.

Stand-up DVDs[link]

• Barely Live (24 November 2003)

References[link]

External links[link]

Wikimedia Commons has media related to: Jo Brand

• Jo Brand at the Internet Movie Database
• Jo Brand: Me? Singing? I couldn't get arrested? Interview by Jasper Rees, The Telegraph, 30 January 2008.
• Keep on running: Jo Brand Interview by Tarquin Cooper, The Telegraph, 9 April 2005.
• Article about Brand's career for TV show The Speaker, BBC website
• BBC Interview by Matt Stadlen – Five Minutes With: Jo Brand (2009–08–14)