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{{Multiple issues|
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{{Short description|British writer, film and social historian (born 1957)}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=June 2015}}
{{Infobox writer <!-- for more information see [[:Template:Infobox writer/doc]] -->
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| website = {{website|https://www.stephenbourne.co.uk}}
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'''Stephen Bourne''' (born 31 October 1957) is a British writer, film and social historian specialising in Black heritage and gay culture. As noted by the [[BBC]] among others, Bourne "has discovered many stories that have remained untold for years".<ref>Dominic Casciani, [http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/2295559.stm "Hidden tales of the black home front"], BBC News, 5 October 2002.</ref>
 
In October 2019 [[Booker Prize]] winner [[Bernardine Evaristo]] voted Bourne for her [[Black History Month#United Kingdom (1987)|Black History Month]] hero on [[Facebook]]. She said: "Stephen Bourne is a hero of our history, who has published countless books, always accessible to all, on the hidden stories of our presence on these shores. Let's honour Stephen for quietly shining a light on our history."<ref>Stephen Bourne, [https://www.amazon.co.uk/Under-Fire-Britain-Wartime-1939-45/dp/0750994355 "Under Fire: Black Britain in Wartime 1939–45"], via Amazon.</ref>
 
In 2019 the acclaimed writer [[Russell T Davies]] (''[[Queer as Folk (British TV series)|Queer as Folk]]'', ''[[It's a Sin (TV series)|It's a Sin]]'') described Bourne in his foreword to ''Playing Gay in the Golden Age of British Television'' as "one of the soldiers, gatekeepers and champions of our community. I am in awe of his diligence and insight."
 
==Early life and education==
 
Bourne was born in [[Camberwell]], south-east London, and raised in [[Peckham]]. He attended Oliver Goldsmith Primary School from 1962 to 1969 (a future pupil was [[John Boyega]] who made his acting debut there) and St. Michael and All Angels Secondary Modern School from 1969 to 1974. He left school educationally disadvantaged in 1974 but was encouraged to join the sixth form of Archbishop Temple's, a Comprehensive school in Lambeth from 1974 to 1975. When Temple's closed, he transferred to the sixth form of Archbishop Michael Ramsey Comprehensive School in Camberwell.
 
Though Bourne did not do well enough to go to university, he later graduated from the [[London College of Printing]] (now known as the [[London College of Communication]]) with a [[bachelor's degree]] in [[filmmaking|film]] and television in 1988, and in 2006 received a [[Master of Philosophy]] degree at [[De Montfort University]] on the subject of the representation of gay men in British Television Drama 1936–79.<ref name="HP">[http://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/index.php/first-world-war-books/stephen-bourne.html Stephen Bourne page] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20160304083755/http://www.thehistorypress.co.uk/index.php/first-world-war-books/stephen-bourne.html |date=4 March 2016 }} at The History Press.</ref>
 
==Career==
 
After graduating in 1988, heHe was a research officer at the [[British Film Institute]] on a ground-breaking project that documented the history of Black people in British television.<ref>Stephen Bourne, [https://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/bbchistoryresearch/entries/bc5860b8-d910-43ef-b456-a5d6a88c0f80 " Black History Hidden Treasures"], BBC Blogs, 8 October 2019.</ref> The result was a two-part television documentary called ''Black and White in Colour'' (BBC 1992), directed by [[Isaac Julien]].<ref>[http://www.nationalarchives.gov.uk/events/black-in-british-frame.htm "Black in the British Frame"], The National Archives.</ref>
 
In 1991, Bourne co-authored ''The Sun Shone on Our Side of the Street: Aunt Esther's Story'' with Esther Bruce (his adopted aunt), which was published by the Ethnic Communities Oral History Project (ECOHP). He has written books about significant Black personalities such as [[Elisabeth Welch]], [[Ethel Waters]], [[Evelyn Dove]] and [[Harold Moody (physician)|Harold Moody]], as well as about different aspects of the historical Black presence in Britain. [[File:Stephen Bourne, writer.jpg|thumb|left|Bourne with his book ''Black Poppies'']] In 2014, Bourne's book ''Black Poppies: Britain's Black Community and the Great War''<ref>Sonia Brown, [http://nbwn.org/?p=1518 "Why Stephen Bourne is talking Black Communities, the Great War and Black Poppies as we Commemorate the 100th Anniversary of WW1"], National Black Women's Network, 4 August 2014.</ref> was published by [[The History Press]].<ref>[http://blogs.iwm.org.uk/research/2014/08/guest-post-black-poppies-britains-black-community-and-the-great-war/ "Guest Post: Black Poppies – Britain’s Black Community and the Great War"], Imperial War Museum Research Blog, 2014.</ref> Reviewing it in ''[[The Independent]]'', [[Bernardine Evaristo]] said: "Until historians and cultural map-makers stop ignoring the historical presence of people of colour, books such as this one provide a powerful, revelatory counterbalance to the whitewashing of British history."<ref>Bernardine Evaristo, [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/black-poppies-britains-black-community-and-the-great-war-by-stephen-bourne-book-review-9724986.html "Black Poppies: Britain's Black Community and the Great War by Stephen Bourne, book review – A fascinating history lesson full of pride and prejudice"], ''The Independent'', 11 September 2014.</ref>▼
In 1991 Bourne was a founder member of the [[Black and Asian Studies Association]] with, amongst others, [[Hakim Adi]] and [[Marika Sherwood]]. Since 2004 he has written more than fifty entries for the ''[[Oxford Dictionary of National Biography]]''. In 1999 he undertook pioneering work with [[Southwark Council]] and the [[Metropolitan Police]] as a voluntary independent adviser to the police. In 2008 he researched ''Keep Smiling Through – Black Londoners on the Home Front 1939–1945'', an exhibition for the [[Cuming Museum]] in the [[London Borough of Southwark]] and that same year he worked as a historical consultant on the [[Imperial War Museum]]'s ''War to Windrush'' exhibition.
 
[[Bonnie Greer]], playwright and critic, has said: "Stephen Bourne brings great natural scholarship and passion to a largely hidden story. He is highly accessible, accurate and surprising. You always walk away from his work knowing something that you didn't know, that you didn't even suspect".
 
▲In 1991, Bourne co-authored ''The Sun Shone on Our Side of the Street: Aunt Esther's Story'' with Esther Bruce (his adopted aunt), which was published by the Ethnic Communities Oral History Project (ECOHP). He has written books about significant Black personalities such as [[Elisabeth Welch]], [[Ethel Waters]], [[Evelyn Dove]] and [[Harold Moody (physician)|Harold Moody]], as well as about different aspects of the historical Black presence in Britain. [[File:Stephen Bourne, writer.jpg|thumb|left|Bourne with his book ''Black Poppies'']] In 2014, Bourne's book ''Black Poppies: Britain's Black Community and the Great War''<ref>Sonia Brown, [http://nbwn.org/?p=1518 "Why Stephen Bourne is talking Black Communities, the Great War and Black Poppies as we Commemorate the 100th Anniversary of WW1"], National Black Women's Network, 4 August 2014.</ref> was published by [[The History Press]].<ref>[http://blogs.iwm.org.uk/research/2014/08/guest-post-black-poppies-britains-black-community-and-the-great-war/ "Guest Post: Black Poppies – Britain’s Black Community and the Great War"], Imperial War Museum Research Blog, 2014.</ref> Reviewing it in ''[[The Independent]]'', [[Bernardine Evaristo]] said: "Until historians and cultural map-makers stop ignoring the historical presence of people of colour, books such as this one provide a powerful, revelatory counterbalance to the whitewashing of British history."<ref>Bernardine Evaristo, [https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/books/reviews/black-poppies-britains-black-community-and-the-great-war-by-stephen-bourne-book-review-9724986.html "Black Poppies: Britain's Black Community and the Great War by Stephen Bourne, book review – A fascinating history lesson full of pride and prejudice"], ''The Independent'', 11 September 2014.</ref>
 
A contributor to the gay press for many years, Bourne was the film critic for ''[[Gay Times]]'' in the early 1990s, and in 1996 his acclaimed book ''Brief Encounters'', a survey of gay cinema in Britain, was published. In 1992 he curated ''Out of the Archives'', the first of many successful LGBT television retrospectives for [[BFI Southbank]].
 
In 1995, in the London Borough of Southwark, Bourne was instrumental in setting up one of the first locally-based multi-agency forums to combat homophobic crime. Since 1999 he has been active in his community as an independent adviser to the Metropolitan Police.
 
From 1998 to 2005, Bourne was a regular contributor to ''Black Filmmaker Magazine'' (''bfm''), the first Black film publication aimed at the global black filmmaking industry. It was founded and edited by the film-maker [[Menelik Shabazz]].
 
Following the publication of the [[Commission on Race and Ethnic Disparities]] in March 2021, Bourne revealed he was listed as a contributor to the report without his knowledge, stating that he felt manipulated.<ref>Charlie Moloney, [https://www.thetimes.co.uk/article/i-was-manipulated-to-help-with-race-report-says-historian-stephen-bourne-9xx8z9pff "I was manipulated to help with race report, says historian Stephen Bourne"], ''[[The Times]]'', 1 April 2021.</ref><ref>Harrison Jones, [https://metro.co.uk/2021/04/01/participants-in-racism-report-deny-being-involved-as-backlash-intensifies-14345688 "Participants in racism report deny being involved as backlash intensifies"], ''The Metro'', 1 April 2021.</ref><ref>Aamna Mohdin, [https://www.theguardian.com/world/2021/apr/01/experts-cited-in-no-10s-race-report-claim-they-were-not-properly-consulted "Experts cited in No 10’s race report claim they were not properly consulted"], ''The Guardian'', 1 April 2021.</ref>
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==Awards==
 
In 2002 Bourne received the Metropolitan Police Volunteer Award for his work as independent adviser on critical incidents. It was presented to him by Police Commissioner [[Sir John Stevens]] at [[City Hall, Southwark|City Hall, London]]. In 2013 Bourne was nominated for a Southwark Heritage [[Blue Plaque]] for his work as a community historian and Southwark Police independent adviser.<ref>Joseph Patrick McCormick, [http://www.pinknews.co.uk/2013/09/17/gay-historian-and-police-advisor-stephen-bourne-nominated-for-blue-plaque/ "Gay historian and police advisor Stephen Bourne nominated for blue plaque"], ''[[Pink News]]'', 17 September 2013.</ref> He came second with 1,025 votes.{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}
 
In June 2015, at Southwark's [[Unicorn Theatre]], the Southwark Arts Forum presented Bourne with their Literature Award for ''Black Poppies''. In May 2017, he was honoured at the 12th [[Screen Nation Awards]] with a special award for his years of work documentingon the liveshistory of Black Britons in film and television.<ref>{{cite news|title=Historian Stephen Bourne receives Screen Nation Award|url=http://www.voice-online.co.uk/article/historian-stephen-bourne-receives-screen-nation-award|accessdate=10 June 2017|work=[[The Voice (British newspaper)|The Voice]]|date=9 May 2017|language=en}}</ref> In 2017 he received an Honorary Fellowship from [[London South Bank University]] for his contribution to diversity.<ref>[https://www.lsbu.ac.uk/about-us/news/honorary-graduates-2017 "LSBU awards six honorary graduates and fellows"], London South Bank University, 10 November 2017.</ref><ref>[https://www.lsbu.ac.uk/stories/stephen-bourne-honorary-fellow "Stephen Bourne, Honorary Fellow"], London South Bank University.</ref> In 2022 Bourne was shortlisted for The Society for Theatre Research book prize for ''Deep Are the Roots: Trailblazers Who Changed Black British Theatre''. On 21 May 2022 at a Civic Award ceremony in Southwark Cathedral Bourne was awarded the Freedom of Southwark.
 
==TV and radio==
 
Bourne's radio[[BBC Radio 4]] appearances have included ''Miss Lou at RADA'' (2005) with [[Yvonne Brewster]], ''Raising the Bar'' (2015) with Sir [[Lenny Henry]], ''From Shame to Pride'' (2017), ''[[The Film Programme]]'' (2018), ''[[Last Word]]'' (2019 and 2022), ''The Secret History of a School'' (2019), ''[[Great Lives]]'' (Ira Aldridge) (2022) and ''[[Front Row (radio programme)|Front Row]]'' (2019) and 2024). He has also appeared in ''Four Thought'' (2020) all for [[BBC Radio 4]];and ''Free Thinking'' (2021) for [[BBC Radio 3]]; ''The Raw Pearl Bailey'' (2018) for [[BBC Radio 2]]; and ''Robert Elms Show'' (2019 and 2023) for [[BBC Radio London]]. His television appearances include ''Black Divas'' ([[Channel 4]], 1996); ''American Masters – Paul Robeson: Here I Stand'' (1999); ''[[The One Show]]'' ([[BBC1]], 2013 and in 2020 (a Black History Month special)); ''[[The Culture Show]]: Swingin' into the Blitz'' ([[BBC2]], 2016) and ''Home Front Heroes'' (More4, 2016).{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}
 
In 2018, Bourne was interviewed about his Evelyn Dove photograph collection for BBC1's ''[[Antiques Roadshow]]''. In 2021, he was interviewed about [[Evelyn Dove]], [[Adelaide Hall]] and [[Ken '"Snakehips'" Johnson]] in the series ''The Definitive History of Jazz in Britain'', presented by [[Clive Myrie]] for [[Jazz FM (UK)|Jazz FM]]. In 2022, Bourne paid tribute to [[Sidney Poitier]] in BBC Radio 4's ''Last Word'', was interviewed about [[Samuel Coleridge-Taylor]]'s daughter, the composer and conductor [[Avril Coleridge-Taylor]] in BBC Radio 3's ''Hidden Women and Silenced Scores'' and contributed to BBC Radio 4's ''[[Great Lives]]'' profile of [[Ira Aldridge]].{{citation needed|date=April 2023}}
 
In 1993, for ''Salutations'', Bourne received a Race in the Media Award for Best Radio Documentary from the [[Commission for Racial Equality]] (CRE). ''Salutations'' was a nine-part series whichthat Bourne conceived and scripted for Ladbroke Radio/BBC Radio 2, that celebratedcelebrating the achievements of Black African, Caribbean and British singers and musicians from the 1930s to the 1960s. Subjects included [[Leslie "Hutch" Hutchinson]], [[EdricReginald ConnorForesythe]], [[WinifredEvelyn AtwellDove]], [[ReginaldLeslie ForesytheThompson (musician)|Leslie Thompson]], [[EvelynLeslie Dove"Jiver" Hutchinson]], [[Ken "Snakehips" Johnson]], [[Cyril Blake]], [[Rudolph Dunbar]], [[Fela Sowande]], [[Edric Connor]], [[Winifred Atwell]], [[Ray Ellington]], [[Cy Grant]], [[Geoff Love]] and [[Shirley Bassey]]. The following year, Bourne received a second CRE award in the same category for ''Black in the West End'', a celebration of Black musical theatre in London's [[West End of London|West End]].{{citation needed|date=JulyApril 20202023}}
 
==Black British theatre==
 
Bourne has beenwas the recipient of two research grants for Black British theatre from The Society for Theatre Research (1999) and a Wingate Scholarship (in 2011).<ref>[http://www.wingate.org.uk/pdf/complete_record_of_wingate_scholars.pdf "Economics, History, Law, Political Science"], ''Record of Wingate Scholars 1988 – 2011'', p. 2.</ref> He compiled a database of "Key Black Productions to 1975" for the [[Theatre Museum]]'s publication ''Black and Asian Performance at the Theatre Museum: A User's Guide'' (2003).
 
Bourne participated in [[Warwick University]]'s Shakespeare symposium with the presentation "Beyond Paul Robeson...Black British Actors and Shakespeare 1930–1965" (July 2013) and the [[Royal National Theatre]]'s ''Palimpsest Talk: Symposium – A Celebration of Black Women in Theatre'' (December 2017). Bourne was interviewed in the documentary ''Margins to Mainstream: The Story of Black Theatre in Britain'' (2012). Bourne's ''Deep Are the Roots - Trailblazers Who Changed Black British Theatre'' was published by The History Press in 2021.
 
==Publications==
* ''The Sun Shone on Our Side of the Street: Aunt Esther's Story'', with [[Esther Bruce]], ECOHP, 1991, {{ISBN|1871338077}}
* ''Brief Encounters: Lesbians and Gays in British Cinema 1930–71'', Cassell, 1996, {{ISBN|0304332860}}
* ''Aunt Esther's Story'', with [[Esther Bruce]], ECOHP, 1996, {{ISBN|1871338123}}
* ''Black in the British Frame: Black People in British Film and Television 1896-1996'', Cassell, 1998, {{ISBN|9780304333752}}
* ''A Ship and a Prayer: The Black Presence in Hammersmith and Fulham'', with Sav Kyriacou, ECOHP, 1999, {{ISBN|187133814X}}
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* ''Nina Mae McKinney: The Black Garbo'', BearManor Media, 2011, {{ISBN|9781593936587}}
* ''The Motherland Calls: Britain's Black Servicemen and Women 1939–1945'', [[The History Press]], 2012, {{ISBN|978-0-7524-6585-2}}
* ''Esther Bruce: A Black London Seamstress'', with [[Esther Bruce]], History and Social Action Publications, 2012, {{ISBN|978-0-9548943-7-5}}
* ''Black Poppies: Britain's Black Community and the Great War'', [[The History Press]], 2014, {{ISBN|075249760X}}
* ''Evelyn Dove: Britain's Black Cabaret Queen'', [[Jacaranda Books]], 2016, {{ISBN|9781909762350}}
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* ''Black Poppies: Britain's Black Community and the Great War'' (2nd edition, revised and updated), [[The History Press]], 2019, {{ISBN|978-0-7509-9082-0}}
* ''Playing Gay in the Golden Age of British Television'', [[The History Press]], 2019, {{ISBN|978-0-7509-9013-4}}
* ''Under Fire: Black Britain in Wartime 1939-45'', [[The History Press]], 2020, {{ISBN|978-0-7509-9435-4}} <ref>Stephen Bourne, [https://books.google.co.ukcom/books/about/Under_Fire.html?id=cdFUzQEACAAJ&redir_esc=y "Under Fire: Black Britain in Wartime 1939-45"] at Google Books.</ref>
* ''Deep Are the Roots: Trailblazers Who Changed Black British Theatre'', [[The History Press]], 2021, {{ISBN|978-0-7509-9629-7}}
* ''Black Poppies: The Story of Britain's Black Community in the First World War'', (Young Readers Edition), [[The History Press]], 2022, {{ISBN|978-0-7509-9963-2}}
* ''Lena Horne: The MGM Years'' [[BearManor Media]], 2023, {{ISBN|979-8887712369}}
* ''Amanda Ira Aldridge and Avril Coleridge-Taylor: Getting the Tempo Right'' [[Historycal Roots]], 2024, {{ISBN|979-8877958043}}
 
==Contributor==
* "Denying Her Place: Hattie McDaniel's Surprising Acts", in P. Cook and P. Dodd (eds), ''Women and Film: A Sight and Sound Reader'', [[Scarlet Press]], 1993, {{ISBN|1-85727-081-9}}
* "Secrets and Lies: Black Histories and British Historical Films", in C. Monk and A. Sargeant (eds), ''British Historical Cinema'', [[Routledge]], 2002, {{ISBN|0-415-23810-2}}
* "Behind the Masks: Anthony Asquith and Brian Desmond Hurst", in R. Griffiths (ed.), ''British Queer Cinema'', [[Routledge]], 2006, {{ISBN|0-415-30779-1}}
* [[David Dabydeen|D. Dabydeen]], J. Gilmore and C. Jones (eds), ''The Oxford Companion to Black British History'', [[Oxford University Press]], 2007, {{ISBN|978-0-19-280439-6}}
* "Colour Balance: Black British Television Stars", in J. Bell (ed), "Black Star: A BFI Compendium", [[BFI]], 2016, {{ISBN|978-1844579716}}
* "Snakehips Swing" and "Sophisticated Ladies", in P. Bradshaw (ed), ''Beyond the Bassline: 500 Years of Black British Music'', [[British Library]], 2024, {{ISBN|978-0712354899}}
 
==References==
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==External links==
* [https://www.stephenbourne.co.uk StephenOfficial Bournewebsite] official website.
* [http://www.historytoday.com/author/stephen-bourne "Stephen Bourne"] at ''[[History Today]]''
* {{IMDb name|1042658}}
 
{{Authority control}}
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{{DEFAULTSORT:Bourne, Stephen}}
[[Category:1957 births]]
[[Category:British gay writers]]
[[Category:Living people]]
[[Category:People from Camberwell]]
[[Category:British writers]]
[[Category:Alumni of De Montfort University]]
[[Category:Alumni of the London College of Printing]]
[[Category:British film historians]]
[[Category:LGBTEnglish peoplegay from Englandwriters]]
[[Category:British LGBT historians]]
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