Shappi Khorsandi

Shaparak "Shappi" Khorsandi (Persian: شاپرک خرسندی, born 8 June 1973) is an Iranian-born British comedian. In January 2016, she became president of the British Humanist Association.

Background and personal life

The daughter of Hadi Khorsandi, she and her family were forced to flee from Iran to London after the Islamic Revolution following the publication of a satirical poem her father composed. The poem was perceived as critical of the revolutionary regime. She was raised without any religion, and identifies as an atheist and a humanist. Khorsandi later became a Patron of the British Humanist Association, which appointed her as its President from January 2016, succeeding Jim Al-Khalili.

Khorsandi graduated from King Alfred's College, now the University of Winchester, in 1995, with a degree in Drama, Theatre and Television, then moving on to pursue a career in comedy. In 2010, the university awarded her an honorary doctorate.

Khorsandi was married to fellow comedian Christian Reilly, with whom she has a son, Cassius. They divorced in 2011. Khorsandi lives with her son in west London near Richmond Park. Her father and brother are also stand-up comedians. In November 2012, she announced on Twitter that she was expecting her second child, due in the summer of 2013. On 7 June 2013, Khorsandi gave birth to a baby girl, Genevieve. In a 2014 interview she said "I’m doing it all on my own, I have no contact with the father. But that’s fine, I’m not angry or bitter."

Lenny Henry

Sir Lenworth George Henry, CBE (born 29 August 1958), known as Lenny Henry, is a British stand-up comedian, actor, writer, and television presenter, best known for co-founding charity Comic Relief and presenting various television programmes, including The Magicians for BBC One.

Early life

Henry was born in Dudley, West Midlands, on 29 August 1958, the son of Jamaican immigrants. One of seven children, he was the first to be born in the United Kingdom. He attended St. John's Primary School and later The Blue Coat School in Dudley before completing his schooling at W.R. Tuson College in Preston, Lancashire.

Career

Early career

Henry's first manager was Robert Luff, who signed him in 1975 and gave him the opportunity to perform as part of the Luff-produced touring stage version of The Black and White Minstrel Show. In July 2009, Lenny Henry stated he was contractually obliged to perform and regretted his part in the show.

His earliest television appearance was on the New Faces talent show, which he won in 1975 with an impersonation of Stevie Wonder. The following year he appeared with Norman Beaton in LWT's sitcom The Fosters, Britain's first comedy series with predominantly black performers. His formative years were spent in working men's clubs, where he impersonated mainly white characters such as the Some Mothers Do 'Ave 'Em character Frank Spencer (whom he impersonated on New Faces). He also made guest appearances on television programmes including Celebrity Squares, Seaside Special and The Ronnie Corbett Show.