title: Six Flags

text: On April 24, 2019, DXB Entertainments canceled Six Flags Dubai, stating that the development and establishment of a Six Flags theme park was not in the best interest of the company or its shareholders. Plans were made to direct the available proceeds to enhance the existing theme parks of Motiongate and Bollywood Parks. On October 2, 2019, Reuters reported that Six Flags Entertainment Corporation had approached competitor Cedar Fair with an acquisition offer. Sources said that Cedar Fair was considering Six Flags' cash-and-stock offer, but there was no certainty that a deal would be reached. On October 4, 2019, Cedar Fair rejected Six Flags' offer to purchase. On October 24, 2019, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation announced that Jim Reid-Anderson would retire and Mike Spanos would be president and CEO of the company on November 18, 2019.


title: Six Flags

text: On January 10, 2020, Six Flags indicated that its projects in China have not progressed as expected and could be canceled due to debt problems with its partner Riverside Investment Group. In January 2020, Six Flags finalized plans to move its corporate headquarters to the Centerfield Office Building at Globe Life Park in Arlington, Texas. The offices were remodeled over the summer and Six Flags personnel moved in during the last few months of the year. On March 13, 2020, with only a few parks already opened for the 2020 season, Six Flags announced that all its properties would suspend operations due to the COVID-19 pandemic. During the closure, parks donated supplies and food to their local communities.


title: Six Flags

text: As of August 2020, some Six Flags operations were still suspended. On May 13, Six Flags announced that when the parks reopen guests will be required to reserve their place online to enter the park, including purchasing their tickets to the park and parking. Six Flags Great Adventure opened its drive-through safari to the public on May 30. Frontier City became the first park of the company to reopen on June 5, with new health and safety protocols. Soon after Frontier City's announcement, several other parks in the company announced their reopening dates. Starting on February 19, 2021, Six Flags had started gradually re-opening their amusement parks to the public for the upcoming season due to reduced COVID-19 restrictions, and by May of that year, all parks had successfully re-opened to the public.


title: Six Flags

text: On March 22, 2021, Six Flags announced that Six Flags Great America's Hurricane Harbor park would be converted into a separate park, becoming Six Flags Hurricane Harbor Chicago. Since its opening in 2005, the park was a part of Great America, but in recent years had started charging a one-day ticket upgrade to access the park. The change into a separate park meant that Hurricane Harbor Chicago would become the twenty-seventh Six Flags park in the chain. On November 15, 2021, Six Flags Entertainment Corporation announced that Mike Spanos had stepped down and Selim Bassoul, the former chairman of the board, would become president and CEO of the company effective immediately. Ben Baldanza, a former airlines industry executive, was elected to replace Bassoul as the chairman of the board.


title: Six Flags

text: In 2004, although DC Comics and "Looney Tunes" as well as "Scooby-Doo" still had a major presence at the parks, Six Flags began a new series of commercials for the parks. The commercials introduced a new mascot: "Mr. Six", a seemingly feeble old man in a tuxedo and red bow tie. In many of the commercials, Mr. Six would slowly exit a multi-colored bus, only to start frenetically dancing to the Vengaboys' "We Like to Party". The commercials were an immediate hit and Mr. Six almost instantly became the de facto mascot and his presence was felt for years after the character was retired. These ads have become widely parodied on the Internet, with faces from other Internet memes being superimposed over Mr. Six's face.


title: Six Flags

text: From 2008 to 2010, Six Flags' TV ads consisted of a "Fun-O-Meter" in which the beginning of the ad showed something boring or embarrassing and a man's face judges it "One Flag!" or sometimes "Oh! Two Flags!". Then roller coasters and attractions of Six Flags are shown and says "Six Flags! More Flags, More Fun!" for Six Flags parks. However, the thick accent of the Asian man in the original commercials had drawn criticism for being an offensive caricature. In 2009, the Mr. Six character came back from retirement and replaced the Asian man in Six Flags' ads, still using the Fun-O-Meter. In 2011, Six Flags' TV ads got a brand-new slogan "Go Big! Go Six Flags!" for its theme parks.


title: Six Flags

text: As part of Six Flags' effort to reopen theme parks in 2021 following the COVID-19 pandemic, Six Flags brought in a new slogan for both its social media and TV ads, "The Thrill is Calling".


title: Six Flags

text: Six Flags has licensed its name and its theme park creations to other companies, who have used these assets to create licensed products. One notable example is the theme park simulation game "Roller Coaster Tycoon 2", which featured recreations of Six Flags parks and rides that could be expanded and operated at the player's discretion.


title: Six Flags

text: Six Flags has approximately 24 known current and past partners. These partners include Dole, Armitron, Mike and Ike, Barcel, Good Humor, Nathan's Famous, Coca-Cola, Icee, Ortega, Cold Stone Creamery, J&J Snack Foods, Red Gold, Coppertone, Johnny Rockets, Samsung, Dasani, Mars and Tyson Foods. These businesses help the park generate more income. Most importantly it provides more jobs for prospective employees. For example, Barcel USA expanded its partnership in 2013. This helps to import food and beverages to increase sponsorships within the United States.


title: Six Flags

text: In 2008, Six Flags partnered with Brash Entertainment to create a video game based on the Six Flags parks named "Six Flags Fun Park". The game was first released on the Nintendo DS on October 28, 2008. The Wii version was delayed while the PC and PlayStation 2 versions were canceled after Brash Entertainment went out of business. On February 24, 2009, the rights to the Wii version were taken over by Ubisoft, who released it on March 3, 2009. The game allows players to explore the themed areas and mini-games representative of a visit to a Six Flags park. In the game, players are tasked with quests that encourage them to explore the park's universe. After creating a unique custom character, Six Flags Fun Park patrons can win prizes and compete with other players in 40 mini-games. Although the video game is called "Six Flags Fun Park", it lacks any major reference of Six Flags outside of the names of the different areas. This caused some to speculate that the video game was created separately, then the rights to the name of the game were sold as a way to pay for the game's development. When the game was released, it eventually ended up getting abysmal ratings across the board. IGN gave the Wii version a 4.5 out of 10, saying "The quests are uninteresting and the game's '40 Thrilling Games' (as touted by the box) are far from entertaining."


title: Six Flags

text: In late 2010, Six Flags began the process of removing non-Warner Bros. licensed theming from attractions. They terminated licenses with Thomas the Tank Engine, The Wiggles, Tony Hawk, Evel Knievel, and "Terminator". However, since then there has been an expansion of licensing agreements with Warner Bros., with whom the company has had a long-standing relationship. The expansion lies specifically with Warner Bros.' DC Comics brand, where the two teamed up to create as well as many other roller coasters and other rides.


title: Six Flags

text: On May 18, 2017, Six Flags and Riverside Group signed an agreement with Paws, Inc. to use Garfield in children's areas in Six Flags-branded theme parks in China.


title: Six Flags

text: On June 19, 2007, Six Flags announced it had purchased 40% of Dick Clark Productions, which owns rights to "American Bandstand" and other shows and productions.


title: Six Flags

text: "These properties are listed in alphabetical order by the final name of the park while under Six Flags control."


title: Six Flags

text: The Flash Pass is an optional, pay-per-person virtual queue system offered at Six Flags amusement parks. The system, named after DC Comics character The Flash, allows guests to reserve places in line at participating attractions, and access must be purchased for a nominal fee in addition to the general park admission price. The first iteration, called Q-bot, was designed by Lo-Q and was first implemented at Six Flags Over Georgia in 2001. Guests are given handheld devices, which are then used to make reservations and receive notifications when it is their turn to ride. Another iteration is where guests can scan a QR code on in-park signs or through the mobile app, and guests can buy individual Flash Passes per ride or use their season pass or membership Flash Pass. This feature was adopted in 2021.


title: Six Flags

text: A water park version of the virtual system called Q-band was first tested at Six Flags White Water in 2011. Guests wear waterproof RFID wristbands that can be scanned at kiosks near participating water park attractions.


title: Lili Elbe

text: Lili Ilse Elvenes (28 December 1882 – 13 September 1931), better known as Lili Elbe, was a Danish painter and transgender woman, and among the early recipients of sex reassignment surgery. She was a successful painter under her birth name Einar Wegener. After transitioning in 1930, she changed her legal name to Lili Ilse Elvenes and stopped painting; she later adopted the surname Elbe. She died from complications following a uterus transplant. The UK and US versions of her semi-autobiographical narrative were published posthumously in 1933 under the title "Man into Woman: An Authentic Record of a Change of Sex".


title: Lili Elbe

text: It is generally believed that Elbe was born in 1882, in Vejle, Denmark, the child of Ane Marie Thomsen and spice merchant Mogens Wilhelm Wegener. Her year of birth is sometimes stated as 1886, which appears to be from a book about her which has some facts changed to protect the identities of the persons involved. Facts about the life of her wife Gerda Gottlieb suggest that the 1882 date is correct because they married while at college in 1904, when Elbe would have been just eighteen if the 1886 date were correct.


title: Lili Elbe

text: It is speculated that Elbe was intersex, although that has been disputed. Some reports indicate that she already had rudimentary ovaries in her abdomen and may have had Klinefelter syndrome.


title: Lili Elbe

text: Elbe met Gerda Gottlieb while they were students at the Royal Danish Academy of Fine Arts in Copenhagen, and they married in 1904 when Gottlieb was 19 and Elbe was 22. Gerda came from a conservative family as her father was a vicar in the Lutheran church.


title: Lili Elbe

text: They worked as illustrators, with Elbe specialising in landscape paintings while Gottlieb illustrated books and fashion magazines.


title: Lili Elbe

text: They travelled through Italy and France before settling in 1912 in Paris, where Elbe could live more openly as a woman by posing as Gottlieb's sister-in-law. Elbe received the in 1907 and exhibited at Kunstnernes Efterårsudstilling (the Artists' Fall Exhibition), at the Vejle Art Museum in Denmark, where she remains represented, and in the Saloon and Salon d'Automne in Paris.


title: Lili Elbe

text: Elbe started dressing in women's clothes after she found she enjoyed the stockings and heels she wore to fill in for Gottlieb's model, actress , who on one occasion was late for a sitting. Larssen suggested the name "Lili," and by the 1920s, Elbe regularly presented with that name as a woman, attending various festivities and entertaining guests in her house. Gottlieb became famous for her paintings of beautiful women with haunting, almond-shaped eyes, dressed in chic apparel. The model for these depictions of "petites femmes fatales" was Elbe. Elbe stopped painting after her transition.


title: Lili Elbe

text: In 1930, Elbe went to Germany for sex reassignment surgery, which was highly experimental at the time. A series of four operations were carried out over a period of two years. The first surgery, removal of the testicles, was performed by Erwin Gohrbandt, under the supervision of sexologist Magnus Hirschfeld in Berlin. The rest of her surgeries were carried out by Kurt Warnekros, a doctor at the Dresden Municipal Women's Clinic. (The clinic and its records were later destroyed in Allied bombing raids.) The second operation was to implant an ovary onto her abdominal musculature, the third to remove the penis and the scrotum.


title: Lili Elbe

text: By this time, her case was a sensation in Danish and German newspapers. A Danish court annulled the couple's marriage in October 1930, and Elbe was able to have her sex and name legally changed, including receiving a passport as "Lili Ilse Elvenes". The pseudonym "Lili Elbe" was first used in a Danish newspaper article written by Copenhagen journalist Louise "Loulou" Lassen for "Politiken" in February 1931. Elbe returned to Dresden and began a relationship with French art dealer Claude Lejeune, whom she wanted to marry and with whom she wished to have children.


title: Lili Elbe

text: In 1931, she had her fourth surgery, to transplant a uterus and construct a vaginal canal. This made her one of the earliest transgender women to undergo a vaginoplasty surgery, a few weeks after Erwin Gohrbandt performed the experimental procedure on Dora Richter.


title: Lili Elbe

text: Elbe's immune system rejected the transplanted uterus, and the operation and a subsequent surgical revision caused infection, which led to her death from cardiac arrest on 13 September 1931, three months after the surgery.


title: Lili Elbe

text: Elbe was buried in (Trinity Cemetery) in Dresden. The grave was levelled in the 1960s. In April 2016, a new tombstone was inaugurated, financed by Focus Features, the production company of "The Danish Girl". The tombstone does not record the date of Elbe's birth, just her name and places of birth and death.


title: Lili Elbe

text: In 2000, David Ebershoff wrote "The Danish Girl", a fictionalised account of Elbe's life. It was an international bestseller and was translated into a dozen languages. In 2015, it was made into a film, also called "The Danish Girl", produced by Gail Mutrux and Neil LaBute and starring Eddie Redmayne as Elbe. The film was well received at the Venice Film Festival in September 2015, although it has been criticised for its casting of an English cisgender man to play a Danish transgender woman. Both the novel and the film omitted topics including Gottlieb's sexuality, which is evidenced by the subjects in her erotic drawings, and the disintegration of Gottlieb and Elbe's relationship after their annulment.


title: Lili Elbe

text: Tobias Picker's forthcoming opera based-on Lili Elbe's life, featuring Lucia Lucas, will be premiered in 2023 at Theater St. Gallen.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Emile Smith Rowe (born 28 July 2000) is an English professional footballer who plays as an attacking midfielder or winger for club Arsenal and the England national team.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe began his senior club playing career with Arsenal in 2018, but sporadic playing time led to loans to Bundesliga's RB Leipzig and Huddersfield Town. He established himself as a key player at Arsenal in the following years.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe represented England's youth teams at international level, and won the FIFA U-17 World Cup. He made his senior England debut in November 2021.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe was born in Croydon, London. He relocated to north London with his parents and brother when he was signed by Arsenal in 2010.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe joined Arsenal's Hale End Academy in 2010 at the age of ten, after playing for South London-based team Glebe. He made his first appearance for the Under-23s in 2016–17, at the age of 16. He continued in the Under-23s during the 2017–18 season, making 10 appearances for the side, recorded 2 assists and 1 goal. He signed his first professional contract with the club on 31 July 2017.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe signed a new long-term professional contract with Arsenal on 31 July 2018, when he was described by head coach Unai Emery as having "lots of potential". The length of the contract was not disclosed by Arsenal, but it was reported to be five years.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe made his Arsenal first-team competitive debut on 20 September 2018 against Vorskla Poltava in the UEFA Europa League, coming on as a second-half substitute for Alex Iwobi. His appearance was the first Arsenal professional debut by a player born in the 2000s. He scored after starting the following Europa League match against Qarabağ in a 3–0 victory for Arsenal, becoming the youngest Arsenal goalscorer in a competitive match since Alex Oxlade-Chamberlain in 2011, and the first player born after 2000 to score for the London club. He scored his first goal at the Emirates in a 2–1 victory over Blackpool in the EFL Cup.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: On 31 January 2019, he joined RB Leipzig on loan until the end of the 2018–19 season. After signing, Leipzig discovered that Smith Rowe was not fully recovered from a groin injury. Leipzig manager Ralf Rangnick said: "He will not be fully training with us in the next two to three weeks". Due to his injury issue, he only played a total of 28 minutes in three substitute appearances during his time at Leipzig.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: On 10 January 2020, Smith Rowe joined EFL Championship club Huddersfield Town on loan until the end of the 2019–20 season. Huddersfield manager Danny Cowley responded to supporters' wishes for Smith Rowe to play more minutes by stating: "We have to be very protective of him which none of us like. I actually boo myself when I take him off, because it's not something I want to do." On 1 February, Smith Rowe scored his first goal for Huddersfield in a 3–2 league defeat to Fulham. Smith Rowe's performance at Huddersfield caught the eye of many. In particular, in his final home appearance for the club, he scored the winning goal at the 86th minute against West Brom that would eventually help Huddersfield to secure EFL Championship safety.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: On 29 August 2020, Smith Rowe was named an unused substitute in the 2020 FA Community Shield, in which Arsenal defeated Premier League winners Liverpool 5–4 on penalties after the match finished 1–1 in 90 minutes. Following his return to Arsenal, Smith Rowe struggled with injuries before returning to fitness in the autumn. Although he performed well in Arsenal's Europa League group fixtures, scoring or assisting in each of his matches, he did not start any of Arsenal's league matches in October or November. Following Arsenal's worst league start in decades, manager Mikel Arteta entrusted Smith Rowe with the number 10 role, replacing Willian on Boxing Day against London rivals Chelsea, to inspire a 3–1 home win to end the club's poor run of form. In his next five matches, Smith Rowe recorded three assists and scored a goal in a 2–0 FA Cup victory over Newcastle United. On 14 March 2021, Smith Rowe played in the North London derby for the first time and delivered a man of the match performance in a 2–1 win over Tottenham Hotspur. On 9 May, Smith Rowe scored his first Premier League goal in a 3–1 home win over West Bromwich Albion. On 12 May, Smith Rowe scored the only goal in a 1–0 away win over Chelsea, sealing the Gunners' first win at Stamford Bridge in nearly 10 years and Arsenal's first league double over the Blues since 2004.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: On 22 July 2021, Smith Rowe ended months of speculation by signing a long-term deal with the club, reported to be a five-year contract. He was also handed the number 10 shirt for the new season, previously vacated by Mesut Özil. On 26 September, Smith Rowe scored a goal and recorded an assist in a 3–1 win over rivals Tottenham. In November, Smith Rowe scored three goals in three consecutive league matches, scoring in Arsenal's 3–1 win over Aston Villa on 22 October, their 2–0 victory over Leicester City on 30 October, and the only goal in a 1–0 win over Watford on 7 November.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: On 5 December 2021, Smith Rowe would score his 5th league goal of the season in a 3–2 away defeat against Manchester United, later coming off injured with a tight groin which sidelined him for several matches. He would later make his return from injury with a substitute appearance against West Ham on 15 December, scoring in a 2–0 win at the Emirates. Smith Rowe would again go on to score as a substitute in the following league games against Leeds United and Norwich City.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: On 19 February 2022, Smith Rowe scored the opening goal against Brentford in a 2–1 home win. The goal, his tenth of the 2021–22 season, made him the first Hale End graduate since Cesc Fàbregas in 2009–10 to hit double figures in a season.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe has been capped by England at U16, U17, U18 and U19 level whilst progressing through the ranks at Arsenal's academy. In April 2017, Smith Rowe was included in the squad for the 2017 UEFA European Under-17 Championship. He came off the bench in the semi-final against Turkey but did not play in the final as England were defeated on penalties by Spain. In October, he was part of the squad that won the U-17 World Cup. He scored in the group stage against Iraq and provided an assist for Rhian Brewster to score against Brazil in the semi-final.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: In October 2018, Smith Rowe scored for the England under-19 team against Portugal. On 14 November 2019, Smith Rowe made a goalscoring debut for the England under-20 team during a 4–0 win away to Portugal in the Under 20 Elite League. On 15 March 2021, Smith Rowe received his first England U21 call up as part of the Young Lions squad for the 2021 UEFA European Under-21 Championship. He made his debut in the opening game of the tournament, a 1–0 loss to Switzerland on 25 March.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe received his first call up to the England senior team in November 2021 for the 2022 FIFA World Cup qualification matches against Albania and San Marino. He made his debut as a 77th minute substitute for Raheem Sterling in the 5–0 victory over Albania. Smith Rowe scored his first international goal in the 58th minute of England's 10–0 away win against San Marino on 15 November 2021.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Arsenal's former head of academy recruitment, Steve Morrow, described Smith Rowe to be "very direct, always looked forward, had a lovely touch, very clever in possession. He is always full of energy and work rate, and come alive on the ball." Mark Hudson, the former first-team coach at Huddersfield Town, was also impressed by Smith Rowe, "He drifts past people. He does not look quick but he is and it is with the ball which is brilliant. He naturally glides across the ground and he takes the ball in his stride. He has good vision and a good understanding of the game."


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: Smith Rowe was involved in the Amazon Original sports docuseries "", which documented the club by spending time with the coaching staff and players behind the scenes both on and off the field throughout their 2021–22 season.


title: Emile Smith Rowe

text: In one of his interviews, Smith Rowe revealed he is very close to his family. He talked about how much he appreciated the sacrifice his family made for him growing up. His footballing idol is former Manchester United and England midfielder David Beckham.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Alesha Anjanette Dixon (born 7 October 1978) is an English singer, rapper, dancer, television personality, and author. She gained recognition in the early 2000s as a member of the R&B, garage and hip hop group Mis-Teeq. The group disbanded in 2005 and Dixon then pursued a music career as a solo artist, signing a recording contract with Polydor Records. She recorded her debut solo studio album, "Fired Up" in 2006, releasing her debut single "Lipstick", followed by "Knockdown", after which her popularity as a singer declined and she was subsequently dropped from Polydor.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2007, Dixon won the fifth series of the BBC One dancing competition show "Strictly Come Dancing". Her television exposure led to a successful musical comeback, which included her signing to Asylum Records. In 2008, she released her second studio album, "The Alesha Show," which received platinum certification in the UK and spawned the successful singles "The Boy Does Nothing" and "Breathe Slow".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2009, Dixon became a judge on the seventh series of "Strictly Come Dancing," and the following year, she released her third studio album, "The Entertainer""." In 2012, shortly after judging on the ninth series of "Strictly Come Dancing", Dixon quit to become a judge on the ITV talent show competition "Britain's Got Talent". Her fourth studio album, "Do It for Love", was released in 2015. In 2020, Dixon was a judge on "," and in 2021, she was a judge on "Walk the Line". In 2022, she judged on the tenth season of "Australia's Got Talent".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: As a television presenter, Dixon has hosted "Alesha's Street Dance Stars" (2010), "Your Face Sounds Familiar" (2013), "Text Santa" (2014–2015), "Dance Dance Dance" (2017), "The Greatest Dancer" (2019–2020), and "Comic Relief" (2019–2022). She has also written a series of children's books titled "Lightning Girl".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Alesha Anjanette Dixon was born on 7th October 1978 in Welwyn Garden City to a Jamaican father, Marvin, and English mother, Beverly Harris. Dixon has six half-siblings.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: She was educated at Monk's Walk School, Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire. Dixon's parents separated when she was four and her father moved away, resulting in her later describing her family life as "very dysfunctional". Between the ages of eight and ten, Dixon witnessed her mother suffer domestic violence from her partner; she only spoke publicly about the issue 21 years later, in 2010. Dixon created a documentary for the BBC, "Don't Hit My Mum", regarding the issue of domestic abuse from a child's perspective, and remarked upon her own childhood: "When I think about that time, I don't remember living in harmony, I don't remember any fun times, I suppose because the negativity has clouded it. The negative times and the scary times have blocked anything that was good ... I believe that every child has the right to grow up in an environment where they feel secure and fearless going into the world, and I didn't really feel that".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon's first job was at Ladbrokes, although she aspired to become a PE teacher after leaving college. After completing a diploma course in sports studies, she had planned to take up a place at Loughborough University, but at dance classes in London she was approached by a talent scout from a production company. While travelling back home on the train she was approached by another scout who was forming a group and asked if she was interested.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon's career began in 1999 when she met Sabrina Washington as they both joined a dance school in Fulham, south west London. Together, they decided to form a group when Dixon and Washington, the two co-founders, spotted Su-Elise Nash, a girl auditioning for another group. Dixon and Washington proposed that Nash join the group and together they formed a trio. They were soon signed to Telstar Records with the addition of a new member, Zena McNally, and became the popular UK garage/R&B girl group, Mis-Teeq.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In October 2000, Dixon, then relatively unknown, featured on the single "Rumours" by Damage, which charted modestly at number 22 on the UK Singles Chart. The genre of the track departed from the group's R&B style, in favour of a garage-based sound, however, the tepid reaction from fans ensured Damage did not venture further into garage.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In January 2001, Mis-Teeq released their first single, "Why". The track remained commercially unnoticed until a garage remix was produced and the track charted at number 8 in January of that year. Two separate music videos for the song were filmed, accompanying the different versions of the song. The song's success coincided with Zena McNally's departure; McNally later alleged that friction between herself and Washington was a factor. Mis-Teeq, continuing as a trio, then released "All I Want", which charted even more successfully at number 2, behind Shaggy's "Angel". In October 2001, they released their debut album "Lickin' On Both Sides", featuring hits "One Night Stand", "B with Me" and double A-side single "Roll On/This Is How We Do It". In 2002, Mis-Teeq performed and received a nomination at the BRIT Awards in Earls Court, later in the year band won the MOBO Award for Best Garage Act. After the success of their debut album, 2003 saw Mis-Teeq becoming the faces of JD Sports stores nationwide.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2003, Mis-teeq released their second album "Eye Candy", which included the singles "Scandalous", "Can't Get It Back" and "Style". In 2004, Mis-Teeq toured the United States and released their debut single "Scandalous" from their American self-titled debut, a compilation of the albums "Lickin' On Both Sides" and "Eye Candy".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2004, Dixon went to feature in the N.E.R.D music video "She Wants to Move". In the video, she is shown dancing on a podium whilst the group circled her. It was also rumoured that she was dating Pharrell Williams around the time of the video. The last song Dixon recorded with Mis-Teeq was "Shoo Shoo Baby" for the Disney film "Valiant". In March 2005, their "Greatest Hits" compilation was released and it was announced that they were separating to pursue solo careers.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon married Michael Harvey Jr in June 2005. In November 2006, the couple divorced following Harvey's affair with singer Javine Hylton.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon launched her solo career after Mis-Teeq's break-up and signed a £500,000, three-album deal with Polydor Records. She spent a year writing and recording her solo debut album, "Fired Up", working with a wide range of producers including Richard X, Xenomania, Johnny Douglas, Brian Higgins, Estelle and Paul Epworth. During this period, Dixon performed mononymously, known simply as "Alesha". In June 2005, she announced her first solo single to be "Superficial". However, at the last minute, the song "Lipstick" was chosen as the first single. "Lipstick" was released on 14 August 2006, and charted at 14 on the UK Single Charts.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon released her second single "Knockdown" on 30 October 2006, which charted at 25 on the UK Download Chart. However, on the official UK Singles Charts, the single peaked at number 45, falling down to 68 the following week.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: On 6 November 2006, it was revealed that Dixon had been dropped by her label, Polydor Records. Polydor gave her full rights to her unreleased debut album, "Fired Up". Coinciding with her professional troubles was the collapse of her marriage to Harvey; Dixon filed for divorce just over a year after her wedding due to her husband's affair with Javine Hylton.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon took part in series 5 of TV show "Strictly Come Dancing" in 2007, partnered with professional dancer Matthew Cutler. Dixon was at first hesitant to join, fearing that snobbery within the music industry would damage her career. In a later interview, she said, "there's always this preconceived idea that people do reality TV shows because they want to kick-start their careers whereas I was actually worried that it would affect it." They had been the favourite from the third week, receiving the most points from the judges on numerous occasions. Dixon herself gained high appraisal from the judges, even being likened to a "young Josephine Baker" by Bruno Tonioli. They received 4.5 million votes in the final, beating actor Matt Di Angelo and professional dancer Flavia Cacace to win the glitter disco ball.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: After she won “strictly come dancing”, Dixon soon became the centre of a bidding war between record labels and even Polydor Records, the label that had dropped her months previously, put in an offer. Dixon, however, chose to sign a four-album contract with Asylum Records in 2008. Dixon's first new album as part of her contract, "The Alesha Show" was released in the UK on 24 November 2008 and 21 November in Ireland. The official first single from the album, "The Boy Does Nothing" became her first solo top ten hit on the UK Singles Chart, following a 76 spot jump from 84 to 8 on the UK Singles Chart on downloads alone; the single eventually peaked at number 5 and received Gold certification. The song also became a commercial success in continental Europe and peaked in the top ten on the Australian Singles Chart. The single sold 1,000,000 copies worldwide.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: The second single from "The Alesha Show" was "Breathe Slow" and entered the UK Singles Chart at number thirty-nine solely on download sales. The single rose for three weeks before breaking into the top ten at number six, giving Dixon her second top ten hit in the UK from downloads alone, and eventually peaked at number 3 on the Top 40 UK Charts, becoming Dixon's highest charting single on the UK Singles Chart. "Breathe Slow" was certified Silver in the UK for sales exceeding 200,000.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: The third single from "The Alesha Show", titled "Let's Get Excited" was physically released on 11 May and reached a peak position of 13 in the UK Singles Chart. "Let's Get Excited" became Dixon's first track from "The Alesha Show" not to chart inside the top 10 in the UK Singles Chart. The song's presence in the charts boosted album sales and "The Alesha Show" rebounded at a new peak of 11. The album received Platinum certification from BPI, indicating sales of over 300,000 in the UK alone. The fourth single from "The Alesha Show", called "To Love Again" was released on 15 November 2009. The track, a ballad penned by Dixon and Gary Barlow, was the first single taken from the deluxe version, entitled "The Alesha Show – Encore", released on 23 November. Dixon also embarked upon a 17-date national tour, named The Alesha Show, which began on 20 October 2009 in Nottingham.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: It was revealed in July 2009 that Dixon would be joining the "Strictly Come Dancing" judging panel in September 2009. She replaced Arlene Phillips, which led to the BBC being accused of ageism and sexism by the media. Dixon, having a conflicting schedule also had to rearrange three dates on her upcoming tour, The Alesha Show to do the show, which is broadcast live on Saturday nights. Dixon's judging debut was met by criticism by some viewers, and 272 complaints were received by the BBC, according to "The Guardian". Despite the complaints, the BBC stated they were "delighted" with Dixon.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In early 2010, Dixon began work on her third studio album, "The Entertainer", which she intended to release during the summer. On 15 March Dixon flew to Denmark to begin recording with Soulshock & Karlin, the producers of Dixon's "Breathe Slow". Dixon's fan site later reported that Dixon had secured a recording session with Rodney Jerkins, a record producer who has produced records for Michael Jackson's final studio album "Invincible" and most recently produced Lady Gaga and Beyoncé's "Telephone".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: On 16 June, Dixon revealed on a post on her fansite that the upcoming album would be called "Unleashed", and on 30 June her fansite president revealed the lead single is a track called "Drummer Boy", produced by Haitian-American producer, Shama Joseph, or "ShamRock". On 5 August it was revealed that Dixon had decided to change the album name from "Unleashed" to "The Entertainer". "Drummer Boy", released in August, charted moderately at 15 on the UK Singles Chart. On 16 September, it was announced that Dixon had collaborated with Roll Deep and featured in the band's single "Take Control". The track appeared on both Roll Deep's album—"Winner Stays On"—and "The Entertainer". "Radio", billed as "The Entertainer"s second single, charted poorly upon release in November 2010, failing to reach the Top 40. The single's release coincided with the release of the album, which too made little commercial impact; a year later it was noted that the album had sold 60,000 copies.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Acknowledging the album's lack of commercial success, Dixon said she would always prefer to "take a chance creatively" than release what she perceived to be stultifying records. She commented: "I knew the single 'Drummer Boy' was a risk. It was a very difficult record and so far removed from anything I'd done before. I get that ... I take full responsibility for that, but I'm glad I did it. I'd rather make a unique record like 'Drummer Boy' and have it fail than play it safe and release bland, generic music that doesn't excite me."


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon wrote and released a new track "Do It Our Way" for the New Year Weight Watchers campaign which featured in new advertisements for the organisation. The track was released onto iTunes on 1 January 2012, as a digital download. On 2 January, Dixon announced her departure from her judging role on "Strictly Come Dancing", to pursue other projects. It was later announced that she left the panel to join the judging panel of "Britain's Got Talent" replacing Michael McIntyre along with Simon Cowell, Amanda Holden and David Walliams (who replaced David Hasselhoff. Michael Hogan, of "The Daily Telegraph", pointed out that "if rumours are to be believed, Dixon has more than tripled her salary by defecting to the commercial channel", a point made by various other sources.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In September 2012 it was announced that Dixon would be collaborating with former So Solid Crew rapper Ashley Walters on his new song "Your Love". The single was released on 11 November.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: It was announced in June 2013 that Dixon was expecting her first child with her partner, former backing dancer Azuka Ononye, and on her 35th birthday, 7 October 2013, she stated on Twitter that she had given birth to her daughter, Azura Sienna, the previous week. Dixon said she would put her fourth album on hold and concentrate on motherhood.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In December 2014, Dixon announced that she would be releasing a new single in either March or May 2015. In March 2015, she confirmed that her new single "The Way We Are", would be released on 21 June via her own record label Precious Stone Records. It marked Dixon's first single release in over four years, following 2011's "Every Little Part of Me". The first live performance of the song took place on 23 May during one of "Britain's Got Talent" semi-finals. Dixon was criticised for forgetting the words to "God Save the Queen" when performing a solo at the July 2015 British Grand Prix.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Her fourth studio album titled "Do It for Love" was released on 9 October 2015. It peaked at number 81 on the UK Albums Chart. The album's second and third singles were, respectively, "Tallest Girl" and the new version of "People Need Love" reworked by Ash Rowes. In 2016, Dixon made a cameo appearance in the 2016 film "".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: On 24 June 2017, she stepped in for Nicole Scherzinger at "The X Factor UK" series 14 Manchester auditions for one day. It was later announced that due to Sharon Osbourne having health issues Dixon would once again step in to judge at the Edinburgh auditions. She stepped in for a third time at the second live show on 29 October 2017, this time replacing Cowell.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: It was announced that Dixon was expecting her second child with her husband during the first live semi-final of "Britain's Got Talent" in May 2019.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: On 26 September 2019, it was announced that Dixon would be joining the judging panel for season two of "".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: On 13 June 2021, it was announced that Dixon would be a judge on the tenth season of "Australia's Got Talent".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: On 4 November 2021, Dixon appeared as a guest judge on the third series of the BBC drag competition series, "RuPaul's Drag Race UK". Dixon’s appearance was met with widespread acclaim.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: When Dixon first emerged into the public spotlight with Mis-Teeq, she was primarily the group's MC, whilst Sabrina Washington usually sang lead vocals on the records. Washington encouraged her to rap from the group's inception, saying: "When she started she was a bit shy, but I always said that it adds something, an element of difference. It was the first time I'd ever heard a woman MC and I was like, 'Alesha, you have got to do that,' and she was like 'No Bri, don't make me look stupid'". However, when she began her solo career her first UK album, "The Alesha Show", saw Dixon undergo a genre-shift. The album featured no rapping and was primarily R&B and soul, unlike Mis-Teeq's music, which focused mainly on garage and hip hop. Dixon commented that the record consisted of "a lot more guitar-written songs with pop produced around it". Dixon's third album "The Entertainer" consists mainly of dance/pop tracks.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon, a songwriter and singer, often writes or co-writes her own records. Discussing the writing process of "The Alesha Show" she said, "I've written the majority of it and I co-write as well with a lot of people". Critics have suggested some of her songs are autobiographical, such as "To Love Again" (2009), co-written with Gary Barlow and John Shanks. Vocally, reviewer Andy Gill of "The Independent" suggested that Dixon's vocal strengths lie with more up-tempo songs, saying "the problem is that her bubbly personality (and voice) is simply not as well suited to ballads as to perky dancefloor anthems". However, "The Guardian"s Caroline Sullivan complimented her live vocals whilst reviewing her tour, The Alesha Show. She said, of her concert tour, that "it was her singing that made the impression: she's more powerful than you would imagine, and when pitted against her band at their most blaring, she more than held her own. While this was going on, she was being flung between two male hoofers, proving, if nothing else, that pop stars who claim they can't dance and sing simultaneously just aren't trying".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon has often cited Madonna as an influence, saying "Madonna is a big idol. I loved her when I was a young girl and I feel like I've been on a musical journey with her". Dixon's single "Let's Get Excited" namechecked the singer and her 1985 single "Into the Groove". Furthermore, the music video featured what Dixon described as "a Madonna tribute" featuring voguing throughout. Additionally, Dixon has described Kylie Minogue as her childhood idol. Growing up, the first record Dixon ever bought was "Push It" by the hip hop group Salt-n-Pepa; she remarked "I didn't understand what they were talking about at the time ... They were raw and did their own thing, and I loved that. I love artists who don't conform to what people expect of them".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Despite growing up in the predominantly white area of Welwyn Garden City, Hertfordshire, Dixon's father Melvin would take her to the Notting Hill Carnival in London to allow her to experience some of her Jamaican heritage. The music she would hear influenced her tastes, as she commented: "all the dancehall records I saved up to buy – Shabba Ranks, Buju Banton – I heard them at Notting Hill". When asked during an interview who her favourite songwriter was, Dixon replied: "Lauryn Hill. I love Lauryn Hill because she is not scared to talk about real life. She may say things that are slightly controversial but she gets people thinking and gets people talking". Dixon has also named Neneh Cherry as great influence upon her. Cherry, a mixed-race singer, inspired her from an early age, with Dixon saying, "I remember seeing Neneh Cherry on the TV when I was little and turning to my mum and saying, 'Mummy, she looks like me'".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon has described herself and other celebrities as having a "moral responsibility" to do good works, when asked by "The Observer"s Elizabeth Day. Speaking in August 2010 to "Blues & Soul" Dixon said: "Being in the entertainment industry I do feel I have a responsibility that comes with my fame".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2009, Dixon climbed Mount Kilimanjaro in Tanzania for Comic Relief with Girls Aloud members Cheryl Cole and Kimberley Walsh, Ben Shephard, Ronan Keating, Fearne Cotton, Denise Van Outen, Chris Moyles and Gary Barlow, who had spearheaded the project. Together they raised over £3,500,000 towards helping combat malaria in Tanzania. In June 2009 Dixon became an official ambassador for the charity Help a London Child, stating that she felt "very honoured" to be asked.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon is a patron of the African-Caribbean Leukaemia Trust (ACLT) which is a voluntary charity, whose main aim is to increase the number of Black and Mixed Parentage people on the UK Bone Marrow Register. The members of the ACLT freely volunteer their time in attempting to raise awareness in the Black community; enabling potential donors to come forward and be involved in the process of offering hope and a healthy future to someone whose disorder may otherwise prove fatal. Dixon has also backed Nickelodeon's See Something, Say Something campaign, a UK anti-bullying initiative.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon is engaged with various animal rights organisations and is also a pescetarian. She is Vice-President of the League Against Cruel Sports, a charity which works to end cruelty to animals in the name of sport and featured in a charity appeal due to concerns that the Hunting Act 2004 could be repealed. In 2012, Dixon travelled to Romania with World Animal Protection to rescue two brown bears from Onesti Zoo, which had closed years previously. The bears were moved to a nearby sanctuary. In 2014, Dixon encouraged her Twitter followers to sign an online petition calling for the ban of slaughtering animals without being stunned first. UK and EU law requires that animals must be stunned before slaughter, unless for religious purposes (Halal or Kosher meat). Dixon is also a supporter of the PetRetreat scheme launched by the Royal Society for the Prevention of Cruelty to Animals (RSPCA). The scheme fosters pets belonging to victims of domestic abuse, who often have to leave behind animals, as many refuges and safe houses do not allow pets. The pets are later reunited with their original owners when possible.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In addition to Dixon's commercial role as a model and representative for the cosmetics company Avon on International Women's Day 2012, Dixon launched the company's Pass It On campaign to highlight domestic abuse issues in the UK by encouraging the purchase of a necklace, described by her as "a symbol of women's empowerment, and infinite possibilities for women". All the proceeds from Avon's necklace campaign were donated to Refuge and Women's Aid. In March 2013 Dixon led a walk down Westminster Bridge to the Houses of Parliament to raise awareness of domestic violence. Regarding the walk, Dixon commented that "awareness of domestic violence is still shockingly low and that's why it's so important that we raise awareness about a subject that is too often ignored".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon has worked with several LGBT charities in the past, including Switchboard and RUComingOut. Dixon has spoken out in support of same-sex marriage, gender equality, as well as a need for greater support of trans individuals, and those questioning their gender identity. Dixon's popularity within the LGBT community has led to her performing at numerous gay pride parades across the UK, headlining both London Pride and Brighton Pride in 2016 alone.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: As well as a singer, Dixon has forayed into television presenting, created three documentaries, and has established herself as a businesswoman through various endorsement deals and lucrative contracts. In November 2009 Dixon announced the release of her jewellery line, and in January 2014 she launched her own fragrance, Rose Quartz. Dixon has represented various brands, including car manufacturers Ford, the Toblerone chocolate bar, cosmetics company Avon and airline Thomson Airways. Additionally, Dixon was creative director of gym chain LA Fitness, a role which she assumed in 2009. Dixon signed a four-year results-based deal with the gym chain, with her remuneration based on the success of the company. Dixon voiced the character of Bliss on the 2016 version of "Powerpuff Girls".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Dixon has presented shows in the UK, such as the "MOBO Awards", "", ITV2's coverage of "The Brit Awards" and presented the "Live From the Red Carpet" show at the 62nd British Academy Film Awards for E!. She has also been a guest on BBC One's current affairs programme "This Week" on two occasions, in November 2006 and December 2007. In 2008, Dixon presented her own mini-documentary entitled "Alesha: Look But Don't Touch", which aired on the BBC and featured a guest appearance from Cheryl Cole. The show explored "improvement" by digital technology in order to understand the impact all these "perfect" images have on society. In 2009, it was reported that Dixon was in talks with television companies about a possible chatshow. In 2008 and 2009, she co-presented Children in Need with Terry Wogan and Tess Daly. She returned to present the telethon in 2011 with Daly, Wogan and Fearne Cotton.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: Since 22 August 2011, Dixon presented a street-dance competition for CBBC called "Alesha's Street Dance Stars". She has also appeared in the CBBC series "12 Again". On 17 May 2013, Dixon was a guest presenter on ITV Breakfast magazine show "Lorraine".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In the summer of 2013, Dixon and Paddy McGuinness co-presented one series the ITV reality show "Your Face Sounds Familiar".


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2014 and 2015, Dixon co-presented segments of ITV's "Text Santa" telethon. In 2016, she co-presented "Sport Relief 2016" on BBC One with Greg James.


title: Alesha Dixon

text: In 2017, Dixon presented "Dance Dance Dance", a six-part reality series for ITV. Will Best co-presents the show.


title: Port and starboard

text: Port and starboard are nautical terms for watercraft and aircraft, referring respectively to the left and right sides of the vessel, when aboard and facing the bow (front).


title: Port and starboard

text: Vessels with bilateral symmetry have left and right halves which are mirror images of each other. One asymmetric feature is where access to a boat, ship, or aircraft is at the side, it is usually only on the port side (hence the name).


title: Port and starboard

text: Port and starboard unambiguously refer to the left and right side of the vessel, not the observer. That is, the port side of the vessel always refers to the same portion of the vessel's structure, and does not depend on which way the observer is facing.


title: Port and starboard

text: The port side is the side of the vessel which is to the left of an observer aboard the vessel and , that is, facing forward towards the direction the vehicle is heading when underway, and starboard side is to the right of such an observer.


title: Port and starboard

text: This convention allows orders and information to be given unambiguously, without needing to know which way any particular crew member is facing.


title: Port and starboard

text: The term "starboard" derives from the Old English "steorbord", meaning the side on which the ship is steered. Before ships had rudders on their centrelines, they were steered with a steering oar at the stern of the ship on the right hand side of the ship, because more people are right-handed. The "steer-board" etymology is shared by the German "Steuerbord," Dutch "stuurboord" and Swedish "styrbord", which gave rise to the French "tribord", Italian "tribordo," Catalan "estribord", Portuguese "estibordo", Spanish "estribor" and Estonian "tüürpoord".


title: Port and starboard

text: Since the steering oar was on the right side of the boat, it would tie up at the wharf on the other side. Hence the left side was called "port". The "Oxford English Dictionary" cites "port" in this usage since 1543.


title: Port and starboard

text: Formerly, "larboard" was often used instead of "port". This is from Middle English "ladebord" and the term "lade" is related to the modern "load". "Larboard" sounds similar to "starboard" and in 1844 the Royal Navy ordered that "port" be used instead. The United States Navy followed suit in 1846. "Larboard" continued to be used well into the 1850s by whalers. In chapter 12 of "Life on the Mississippi" (1883) Mark Twain writes "larboard" was used to refer to the left side of the ship (Mississippi River steamboat) in his days on the river – circa 1857–1861. Lewis Carroll rhymed "larboard" and "starboard" in "Fit the Second" of "The Hunting of the Snark" (1876).


title: Port and starboard

text: An Anglo-Saxon record of a voyage by Ohthere of Hålogaland used the word "bæcbord" ("back-board") for the left side of a ship. With the steering rudder on the starboard side the man on the rudder had his back to the bagbord (Nordic for portside) side of the ship. The words for "port side" in other European languages, such as German "Backbord", Dutch and Afrikaans "bakboord", Swedish "babord", Spanish "babor", Portuguese " bombordo", Italian "babordo", French "bâbord" and Estonian "pakpoord", are derived from the same root.


title: Port and starboard

text: The navigational treaty convention, the International Regulations for Preventing Collisions at Sea—for instance, as appears in the UK's Merchant Shipping (Distress Signals and Prevention of Collisions) Regulations 1996 (and comparable US documents from the US Coast Guard)—sets forth requirements for maritime vessels to avoid collisions, whether by sail or powered, and whether a vessel is overtaking, approaching head-on, or crossing. To set forth these navigational rules, the terms starboard and port are essential, and to aid in "in situ" decision-making, the two sides of each vessel are marked, dusk to dawn, by navigation lights, the vessel's starboard side by green and its port side by red. Aircraft are lit in the same way.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Michael Daniel Higgins (; born 18 April 1941) is an Irish politician, poet, sociologist, and broadcaster, who has served as the ninth president of Ireland since November 2011. Entering national politics through the Labour Party, he served as a senator from 1973 to 1977 having been nominated by the Taoiseach. Elected in 1981 as a Teachta Dála (TD), he represented the Galway West constituency from 1981 to 1982 and 1987 to 2011. Between these terms, he returned to Seanad Éireann from 1983 to 1987 as a senator for the National University. He served as Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht from 1993 to 1997 and mayor of Galway from 1981 to 1982 and 1990 to 1991. Higgins was the president of the Labour Party from 2003 to 2011, until he resigned following his election as president of Ireland.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins has used his time in office as president to address issues concerning justice, social equality, social inclusion, anti-sectarianism, anti-racism, and reconciliation. He made the first state visit by an Irish president to the United Kingdom in April 2014.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins ran for a second term as president of Ireland in 2018 and was re-elected in a landslide victory. Higgins attained the largest personal mandate in the history of the Republic of Ireland, with 822,566 first-preference votes. Higgins' second presidential inauguration took place on 11 November 2018.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins was born on 18 April 1941 in Limerick. His father, John Higgins, was from Ballycar, County Clare, and was a lieutenant with the Charleville Company, 3rd Battalion, 2nd Cork Brigade of the Irish Republican Army. John, along with his two brothers Peter and Michael, had been active participants in the Irish War of Independence.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: When John's father's health grew poor, with alcohol abuse as a contributing factor, John sent Michael, aged five, and his four-year-old brother to live on his unmarried uncle and aunt's farm near Newmarket-on-Fergus, County Clare. His elder twin sisters remained in Limerick. He was educated at Ballycar National School, County Clare and St. Flannan's College, Ennis.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: As an undergraduate at University College Galway (UCG), he served as vice-auditor of the college's Literary and Debating Society in 1963–64, and rose to the position of auditor in the 1964–65 academic year. He also served as president of UCG Students' Union in 1964–65. In 1967, Higgins graduated from the American Indiana University Bloomington with a Master of Arts degree in Sociology. He also briefly attended the University of Manchester.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In his academic career, he was a statutory lecturer in the Department of Political Science and Sociology at UCG and was a visiting professor at Southern Illinois University. He resigned his academic posts to concentrate fully on his political career.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: His wife, Sabina Higgins (née Coyne), is an actress and a native of Cloonrane, a townland in County Galway near Ballindine, County Mayo. She grew up on a farm there in a family of five girls and two boys.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins met Coyne in 1969, at a party in the family home of journalist Mary Kenny in Dublin. Higgins proposed over Christmas 1973, and they were married the year after. They have four children: Alice Mary, Daniel, and twins, John and Michael Jr.; Alice Mary was elected to Seanad Éireann in 2016. He has two Bernese Mountain Dogs named and (Pride and Courage); Another Bernese dog , died in 2020.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins originally joined Fianna Fáil in UCG while a mature student and was elected its branch chairman in 1966; he switched to the Labour Party shortly thereafter. He was a Labour candidate in the 1969 and 1973 general elections but was unsuccessful on both occasions. One of the people who canvassed for him was future leader of the Labour Party and Tánaiste, Eamon Gilmore, who was then a UCG student. Higgins was appointed in 1973 to the 13th Seanad Éireann by Taoiseach Liam Cosgrave. He was first elected to Dáil Éireann at the 1981 general election as a Labour Party TD. He was re-elected at the February 1982 election; he lost his seat at the November 1982 election (blaming his loss in part on his opposition to the Eighth Amendment), but returned to the Seanad when he was elected by the National University constituency. He served as Mayor of Galway on two occasions, 1982–1983 and 1991–1992. Within the Labour Party during the 1980s he was one of the main figures, along with Emmet Stagg, who opposed going into coalition.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins returned to the Dáil at the 1987 general election and held his seat until the 2011 general election. In 1993, he joined the Cabinet as Minister for Arts, Culture and the Gaeltacht. During his period as minister he scrapped the controversial of the Broadcasting Act, re-established the Irish Film Board and set up the Irish language television station, Teilifís na Gaeilge (later renamed TG4). He was appointed to the Labour Party front bench in 2000. In 2003, Higgins succeeded Proinsias De Rossa in the symbolic position of the President of the Labour Party, while continuing as the party's spokesman on foreign affairs.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins indicated his interest in contesting the 2004 presidential election for the Labour Party. The party decided on 16 September 2004 against running a candidate in the election, seeing Mary McAleese as unbeatable.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In October 2010, he announced he would not be standing at the 2011 general election. He had until this point been living in a modest two-bed apartment at Grattan Hall on Mount Street, Dublin. He also has a family home in Galway.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In September 2010, Higgins indicated that he was interested in receiving the Labour Party's nomination for the 2011 presidential election. He said prior to the election campaign, and repeated during it, that he would serve only one seven-year term as president, and would not seek a second term of office, despite being entitled to do so.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: He was selected as a candidate for the presidency at a special convention in Dublin on 19 June 2011, beating former senator Kathleen O'Meara and former party adviser Fergus Finlay. His candidacy was endorsed by Hollywood actor Martin Sheen, who described Higgins as a "dear friend". Higgins assisted his rival David Norris by urging his party colleagues on Dublin City Council not to obstruct Norris's attempts to get onto the ballot at the last moment "in the interests of democracy", adding that the nomination criteria were "outdated".


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins was confronted by former Tara mines workers while canvassing in Meath. The workers were upset about their pensions being cut. Higgins was also pursued by his past links to the Fianna Fáil party, and admitted on 13 October that he had been elected chairman of the UCG Fianna Fáil university cumann in 1966. He admitted that he had smoked marijuana while at university in the United States. However, media reports said he was "spared the intense grilling Miriam O'Callaghan meted out to some of the others" during the "Prime Time" debate. Higgins promised he would be a neutral president if elected and not be a "handmaiden" to the government. The Labour Party's budget for the campaign was within €320,000.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 29 October 2011, two days after the presidential election was held, Higgins was declared the winner with a total of 1,007,104 votes, far more than any Irish politician in the history of the republic. Thousands of people lined the streets of Galway to welcome him home the following day. International media coverage of his win reported his humble background, poetry and intellect, with "The Washington Post" noting "local satirists sometimes depict him as an elf, hobbit or leprechaun talking in riddles and verse". He is the first president of Ireland to have served in both Houses of the Oireachtas, having previously been a member of Dáil Éireann (Lower House) and Seanad Éireann (Upper House).


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Before his inauguration, Higgins and his family met his predecessor Mary McAleese and her husband Martin for lunch at Áras an Uachtaráin on 3 November. That night, he presented an award to Niall Tóibín, and received his own standing ovation as he entered the Irish Film Institute. On 5 November, he attended an important football game, featuring Galway United versus Monaghan United in the second leg in the League of Ireland promotion/relegation play-off at Terryland Park, wrapped in the scarf of his favourite team, and being greeted by a large banner hanging from a stand declaring "Welcome home to Galway, Mr President".


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins was inaugurated as president of Ireland at Dublin Castle on 11 November 2011. The ceremony had a humanist element, alongside Christian, Jewish and Muslim ones. He receives an annual salary of €250,000, having requested during his first term that the Department of Public Expenditure and Reform reduce his salary by 23.5% from €325,000.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins travelled to Derry to attend the final of the All-Ireland school choir of the year competition on 13 November 2011, for his first official presidential engagement in Northern Ireland. In December 2011, he hosted a children's tea party at Áras an Uachtaráin. He attended the Bon Secours Hospital in Galway on 13 December for surgery on the kneecap that was broken in a fall during a visit to Buenaventura, Colombia in 2010.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins made his first official trip abroad when he went to London on 21 February 2012. While there he was given a tour of the Olympic Stadium by Sebastian Coe, and attended a production of "Juno and the Paycock" at the Lyttelton Theatre. He made his first official visit to his "alma mater" NUI Galway on 24 February, where he opened an autism centre. On 21 March 2012, Higgins was announced as sole patron of the RTÉ National Symphony Orchestra. Addressing a conference organised by youth organisation Foróige on 24 March 2012, Higgins described homophobia and racism in Ireland as a "blight on society".


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In January 2012, Higgins agreed to become the patron of Clans of Ireland, including its Order of Merit. On the president's behalf, Minister for Transport, Tourism and Sport Leo Varadkar, awarded "Companionship" in this Order of Clans of Ireland to several nominees at a ceremony in the Mansion House, Dublin on 28 April 2012. On 11 May 2012, he became the 28th Freeman of Galway. In June 2012, nonprofit housing organisation Habitat for Humanity Ireland announced that Higgins would be their sole Patron. In October 2012, Higgins and his wife Sabina went to South America for a two-week trip, visiting Argentina, Brazil and Chile. Higgins rushed home from a visit to Rome, Italy, to sign the Irish Bank Resolution Corporation Bill 2013 into law at Áras an Uachtaráin early on 7 February 2013, on the urgent request of the Government of Ireland. On 29 July 2013, he convened a meeting of the Council of State, the first of his presidency, to consult on the Protection of Life During Pregnancy Bill 2013.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Special advisor to the president, Mary van Lieshout, who formed part of the management team in Áras an Uachtaráin under Secretary General Adrian O'Neill, resigned in November 2013. The departure raised criticism over presidential management of the team. The presidential Christmas messages delivered by Higgins from 2011 to 2013 did not mention Christianity or religion, which was criticised by the Defence Forces' chaplain in a homily on Christmas Eve 2013. The Chief of Staff expressed regret for any offence caused by the chaplain.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In April 2014, Higgins paid the first state visit to the United Kingdom by an Irish president. He stayed as a guest of Queen Elizabeth II at Windsor Castle and . He also met various people, including the British prime minister, David Cameron, and opposition party leaders at Westminster, and the lord mayor of London, Alan Yarrow. In December 2014, Higgins made a week-long state visit to China.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In November 2016, Higgins received criticism from some sections of the Irish media for praising Fidel Castro, saying in a statement that he learned of Castro's death with "great sadness".


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 25 August 2018, Higgins received Pope Francis at Áras an Uachtaráin during the Pope's visit to Ireland.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 10 July 2018, Higgins announced that he would stand for a second term as president in the 2018 Irish presidential election. Higgins won the 2018 presidential election with 56% of the vote on the first count (822,566). His nearest rival, Peter Casey, finished on 23% (342,727).


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 11 November 2018, Higgins was inaugurated as president of Ireland in St. Patrick's Hall, Dublin Castle, in a ceremony attended by Taoiseach Leo Varadkar, and former presidents Mary Robinson and Mary McAleese, as well as representatives of all political parties. The ceremony was held in the evening, so that Higgins could attend Armistice Day commemorations in the morning.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 3 July 2019, Higgins began a three-day state visit to Germany. While visiting Germany, Higgins met with German chancellor Angela Merkel and President of Germany Frank-Walter Steinmeier.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: In July 2021, Higgins sent a letter to the Oireachtas expressing concern that there had been a tendency in recent years for him to be sent a large volume of complex legislation to be signed in a short period.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 15 September 2021, Higgins declined an invitation to attend a church service with Britain's Queen Elizabeth in October to mark Northern Ireland's centenary. Two days later on 17 September, Higgins defended his decision not to attend the service and decided it would be "inappropriate to attend". Pope Francis described Higgins as a "wise man of today" during an audience in the Vatican.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins appointed his Council of State nominees on 6 January 2012 for this first term as president. The nominees were:


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: As well as having a successful political career Higgins has had a career as a poet and broadcaster and has produced works of non-fiction. He has contributed widely to political and philosophical journals on numerous subjects, among them ideology, the sociology of literature, clientelism in politics, regionalism and the politics of the media. He wrote and presented a television film on Montserrat, entitled "The Other Emerald Isle" for Channel 4 and his documentary on the life of Noel Browne, for RTÉ, has also been screened.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins has had poems published in a number of periodicals, as well as publishing four collections of his poetry, including "The Betrayal" (1990), his second book of poems "The Season of Fire" (1993) and his latest book "An Arid Season" (2004). His personal notes and work books reside at the National Library of Ireland.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: On 27 October 2016, Higgins visited Linen Hall Library. Being a poet himself, he was particularly interested in resources pertaining to local poet Sir Samuel Ferguson.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins has campaigned for human rights and written of conflict in many parts of the world, including such areas as Nicaragua, Chile, Cambodia, El Salvador, Iraq and Somalia. He spoke in the Dáil in defence of the 2010 Gaza Freedom Flotilla. In recognition of his work for peace with justice in many parts of the world, he became the first recipient of the Seán MacBride Peace Prize of the International Peace Bureau in Helsinki in 1992. He was a noted critic of U.S. foreign policy under the Ronald Reagan administration. In 2005, in response to a column for the "Irish Independent" by Kevin Myers about the riots then erupting across immigrant areas in France and Britain, he said "the contents of his column today go beyond his usually crafted cowardice, staying one step on the safe side of prosecution for incitement to hatred or racism."


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins has voiced his support for the Campaign for the Establishment of a United Nations Parliamentary Assembly, an organisation which campaigns for democratic reformation of the United Nations, and the creation of a more accountable international political system.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: Higgins's eclectic mix of interests also extends to sport; he is a regular at the Galway Races each summer. He has also previously served as president of Galway United F.C., is a well known football supporter and regularly attends League of Ireland games. In 2014 the Football Association of Ireland introduced a new association football super cup, the President's Cup, in his honour. On 25 February 2014, the cup itself was officially unveiled with a ceremony at Áras an Uachtaráin. Higgins subsequently attended the inaugural final at Richmond Park on 2 March 2014.


title: Michael D. Higgins

text: He is the subject of the song "Michael D. Rocking in the Dáil" by popular Tuam band The Saw Doctors. The song first appeared as a B-side on the 1994 single "Small Bit of Love" and is also on the 2002 compilation "Play It Again, Sham!".


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The Battle of Rorke's Drift (1879), also known as the Defence of Rorke's Drift, was an engagement in the Anglo-Zulu War. The successful British defence of the mission station of Rorke's Drift, under the command of Lieutenants John Chard of the Royal Engineers and Gonville Bromhead, 24th Regiment of Foot began when a large contingent of Zulu warriors broke off from their main force during the final hour of the British defeat at the day-long Battle of Isandlwana on 22 January 1879, diverting to attack Rorke's Drift later that day and continuing into the following day.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Just over 150 British and colonial troops defended the station against attacks by 3,000 to 4,000 Zulu warriors. The massive but piecemeal attacks by the Zulu on Rorke's Drift came very close to defeating the much smaller garrison, but were consistently repelled. Eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded among the defenders, along with a number of other decorations and honours.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Rorke's Drift, known as "kwaJimu" ("Jim's Land") in the Zulu language, was a mission station of the Church of Sweden, and the former trading post of James Rorke, a merchant from the eastern cape of Irish descent. It was located near a drift, or ford, on the Buffalo (Mzinyathi) River, which at the time formed the border between the British colony of Natal and the Zulu Kingdom. On 9 January 1879, the British No. 3 (Centre) Column, under Lord Chelmsford, arrived and encamped at the drift.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: On 11 January, the day after the British ultimatum to the Zulus expired, the column crossed the river and encamped on the Zulu bank. A small force consisting of B Company, 2nd Battalion, 24th (2nd Warwickshire) Regiment of Foot (2nd/24th) under Lieutenant Gonville Bromhead was detailed to garrison the post, which had been turned into a supply depot and hospital under the overall command of Brevet Major Henry Spalding, 104th Foot, a member of Chelmsford's staff.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: On 20 January, after reconnaissance patrolling and building of a track for its wagons, Chelmsford's column marched to Isandlwana, approximately to the east, leaving behind the small garrison. A large company of the 2nd/3rd Natal Native Contingent (NNC) under Captain William Stevenson was ordered to remain at the post to strengthen the garrison. This company numbered between 100 and 350 men.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Captain Thomas Rainforth's G Company of the 1st/24th Foot was ordered to move up from its station at Helpmekaar, to the southeast, after its own relief arrived, to further reinforce the position. Later that evening a portion of the No. 2 Column under Brevet Colonel Anthony Durnford, late of the Royal Engineers, arrived at the drift and camped on the Zulu bank, where it remained through the next day.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Late on the evening of 21 January, Durnford was ordered to Isandlwana, as was a small detachment of No. 5 Field Company, Royal Engineers, commanded by Lieutenant John Chard, which had arrived on the 19th to repair the pontoons that bridged the Buffalo. Chard rode ahead of his detachment to Isandlwana on the morning of 22 January to clarify his orders, but was sent back to Rorke's Drift with only his wagon and its driver to construct defensive positions for the expected reinforcement company, passing Durnford's column "en route" in the opposite direction.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Sometime around noon on the 22nd, Major Spalding left the station for Helpmekaar to ascertain the whereabouts of Rainforth's G Company, which was now overdue. He left Chard in temporary command. Chard rode down to the drift itself where the engineers' camp was located. Soon thereafter, two survivors from Isandlwana – Lieutenant Gert Adendorff of the 1st/3rd NNC and a trooper from the Natal Carbineers – arrived bearing the news of the defeat and that a part of the Zulu impi was approaching the station.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Upon hearing this news, Chard, Bromhead, and another of the station's officers, Acting Assistant Commissary James Dalton (of the Commissariat and Transport Department), held a quick meeting to decide the best course of action – whether to attempt a retreat to Helpmekaar or to defend their current position. Dalton pointed out that a small column, travelling in open country and burdened with carts full of hospital patients, would be easily overtaken and defeated by a numerically superior Zulu force, and so it was soon agreed that the only acceptable course was to remain and fight.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Once the British officers decided to stay, Chard and Bromhead directed their men to make preparations to defend the station. With the garrison's 400-odd men working diligently a defensive perimeter was quickly constructed out of mealie bags. This perimeter incorporated the storehouse, the hospital, and a stout stone kraal. The buildings were fortified, with loopholes (firing holes) knocked through the external walls and the external doors barricaded with furniture.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: At about 3:30 p.m., a mixed troop of about 100 Natal Native Horse (NNH) under Lieutenant Alfred Henderson arrived at the station after having retreated in good order from Isandlwana. They volunteered to picket the far side of the Oscarberg ("Shiyane"), the large hill that overlooked the station and from behind which the Zulus were expected to approach.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: With the defences nearing completion and battle approaching, Chard had several hundred men available to him: Bromhead's B Company, Stevenson's large NNC company, Henderson's NNH troop, and various others (most of them hospital patients, but 'walking wounded') drawn from various British and colonial units. Adendorff also stayed, while the trooper who had ridden in with him galloped on to warn the garrison at Helpmekaar.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The force was sufficient, in Chard's estimation, to fend off the Zulus. Chard posted the British soldiers around the perimeter, adding some of the more able patients, the 'casuals' and civilians, and those of the NNC who possessed firearms along the barricade. The rest of the NNC, armed only with spears, were posted outside the mealie bag and biscuit box barricade within the stone-walled cattle kraal.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The approaching Zulu force was vastly larger; the uDloko, uThulwana, inDlondo "amabutho" (regiments) of married men aged in their 30s and 40s and the inDlu-yengwe "ibutho" of young unmarried men mustered 3,000 to 4,000 warriors, none of them engaged during the battle at Isandlwana. This Zulu force was the 'loins' or reserve of the army at Isandlwana and is often referred to as the Undi Corps. It was directed to swing wide of the British left flank and pass west and south of Isandlwana hill itself, in order to position itself across the line of communication and retreat of the British and their colonial allies in order to prevent their escape back into Natal by way of the Buffalo River ford leading to Rorke's Drift.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: By the time the Undi Corps reached Rorke's Drift at 4:30 p.m., they had fast-marched some from the morning encampment they had left at around 8 a.m., then to spend some 11.5 hours continuously storming the British fortifications at Rorke's Drift.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Most Zulu warriors were armed with an "assegai" (short spear) and a "nguni shield" made of cowhide. The Zulu army drilled in the personal and tactical use and coordination of this weapon. Some Zulus also had old muskets, antiquated rifles, and some captured Martini-Henrys as used by the defenders, though their marksmanship training was poor, and the supply of powder and shot was low, and of poor quality. It has been reported that they believed that setting the slide on the rear sight of the Martini-Henry (graduated to 1,400 yards) as high as possible would make the shot more powerful, so that they actually fired high.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The Zulu attitude towards firearms was that: "The generality of Zulu warriors, however, would not have firearms – the arms of a coward, as they said, for they enable the poltroon to kill the brave without awaiting his attack." Even though their fire was not accurate, it was responsible for five of the 17 British deaths at Rorke's Drift.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: While the Undi Corps had been led by "inkhosi" kaMapitha at the Isandlwana battle, the command of the Undi Corps passed to Prince Dabulamanzi kaMpande (half-brother of Cetshwayo kaMpande, the Zulu king) when kaMapitha was wounded during the pursuit of British survivors from Isandlwana. Prince Dabulamanzi was considered rash and aggressive, and this characterisation was borne out by his violation of King Cetshwayo's order to act only in defence of Zululand against the invading British soldiers and not carry the war over the border into enemy territory. The Rorke's Drift attack was an unplanned raid rather than any organised counter-invasion, with many of the Undi Corps Zulus breaking off to raid other African kraals and homesteads while the main body advanced on Rorke's Drift.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: At about 4:00 p.m., Surgeon James Reynolds, Otto Witt – the Swedish missionary who ran the mission at Rorke's Drift – and army chaplain Reverend George Smith came down from the Oscarberg hillside with the news that a body of Zulus was fording the river to the southeast and was "no more than five minutes away". At this point, Witt decided to depart the station, as his family lived in an isolated farmhouse about away, and he wanted to be with them. Witt's native servant, Umkwelnantaba, left with him; so too did one of the hospital patients, Lieutenant Thomas Purvis of the 1st/3rd NNC.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: At about 4:20 p.m., the battle began with Lieutenant Henderson's NNH troopers, stationed behind the Oscarberg, briefly engaging the vanguard of the main Zulu force. However, tired from the battle at Isandlwana and retreat to Rorke's Drift as well as being short of carbine ammunition, Henderson's men departed for Helpmekaar. Henderson himself reported to Lieutenant Chard the enemy were close and that "his men would not obey his orders but were going off to Helpmekaar".


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Henderson then followed his departing men. Upon witnessing the withdrawal of Henderson's NNH troop, Captain Stevenson's NNC company abandoned the cattle kraal and fled, greatly reducing the strength of the defending garrison. Outraged that Stevenson and some of his colonial NCOs also fled from the barricades, a few British soldiers fired after them, killing Corporal William Anderson.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: With the Zulus nearly at the station, the garrison now numbered between 154 and 156 men. Of these, only Bromhead's company could be considered a cohesive unit. Additionally, up to 39 of his company were at the station as hospital patients, although only a handful of these were unable to take up arms. With fewer men, Chard realised the need to modify the defences, and gave orders that biscuit boxes be used to construct a wall through the middle of the post in order to make possible the abandonment of the hospital side of the station if the need arose.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: At 4:30 p.m., the Zulus rounded the Oscarberg and approached the south wall. Private Frederick Hitch, posted as lookout atop the storehouse, reported a large column of Zulus approaching. The Zulu vanguard, 600 men of the iNdluyengwe, attacked the south wall, which joined the hospital and the storehouse. The British opened fire when the Zulus were away.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The majority of the attacking Zulu force moved around to attack the north wall, while a few took cover and were either pinned down by continuing British fire or retreated to the terraces of Oscarberg. There they began a harassing fire of their own. As this occurred, another Zulu force continued to the hospital and northwestern wall.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Those British on the barricades – including Dalton and Bromhead – were soon engaged in fierce hand-to-hand fighting. The British wall was too high for the Zulus to scale, so they resorted to crouching under the wall, trying to get hold of the defenders' Martini–Henry rifles, slashing at British soldiers with assegais or firing their weapons through the wall. At places, they clambered over each other's bodies to drive the British off the walls but were driven back.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Zulu fire, both from those under the wall and around the Oscarberg, inflicted a few casualties, and five of the 17 defenders who were killed or mortally wounded in the action were struck while at the north wall.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Chard realised that the north wall, under near constant attack from the Zulus, could not be held. At 6:00 p.m., he pulled his men back into the yard, abandoning the front two rooms of the hospital in the process. The hospital was becoming untenable; the loopholes had become a liability, as rifles poking out were grabbed at by the Zulus, yet if the holes were left empty, the Zulu warriors stuck their own weapons through in order to fire into the rooms. Among the soldiers assigned to the hospital were Corporal William Wilson Allen and Privates Cole, Dunbar, Hitch, Horrigan, John Williams, Joseph Williams, Alfred Henry Hook, Robert Jones, and William Jones.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Privates Horrigan, John Williams, Joseph Williams and other patients tried to hold the hospital entrance with rifles and fixed bayonets. Joseph Williams defended a small window, and 14 dead Zulus were later found beneath that window. As it became clear the front of the building was being taken over by Zulus, John Williams began to hack a way of escape through the wall dividing the central room and a corner room in the back of the hospital. As he made a passable breach, the door into the central room came under furious attack from the Zulus, and he had time only to drag two bedridden patients out before the door gave way.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The corner room into which John Williams had pulled the two patients was occupied by Private Hook and another nine patients. John Williams hacked at the wall to the next room with his pick-axe, as Hook held off the Zulus. A firefight erupted as the Zulus fired through the door and Hook returned fire – an assegai striking his helmet and stunning him.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Williams made the hole big enough to get into the next room, occupied only by patient Private Waters, and dragged the patients through. The last man out was Hook, who killed some Zulus who had knocked down the door before he dived through the hole. John Williams once again went to work, spurred on by the fact that the roof was now ablaze, as Hook defended the hole and Waters continued to fire through a loophole.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: After 50 minutes, the hole was large enough to drag the patients through, and most of the men were now in the last room, defended by Privates Robert Jones and William Jones. From here, the patients clambered out through a window and then made their way across the yard to the barricade. Privates Waters and Beckett hid in the wardrobe, Waters was wounded and Beckett died of assegai wounds.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Of the 11 patients, nine survived the trip to the barricade, as did all the able-bodied men. According to James Henry Reynolds, four defenders were killed in the hospital: one was a member of the Natal Native Contingent with a broken leg; Sergeant Maxfield and Private Jenkins, who were ill with fever and refused to be moved were also killed. Reportedly, Jenkins was killed after being seized and stabbed, together with Private Adams who also refused to move. Private Cole, assigned to the hospital, was killed when he ran outside. Another hospital patient killed was Trooper Hunter of the Natal Mounted Police. Among the hospital patients who escaped were a Corporal Mayer of the NNC; Bombardier Lewis of the Royal Artillery, and Trooper Green of the Natal Mounted Police, who was wounded in the thigh by a bullet. Private Conley, with a broken leg, was pulled to safety by Hook, although Conley's leg was broken again in the process.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The evacuation of the burning hospital completed the shortening of the perimeter. As night fell, the Zulu attacks grew stronger. The cattle kraal came under renewed assault and was evacuated by 10:00 p.m., leaving the remaining men in a small bastion around the storehouse. Throughout the night, the Zulus kept up a constant assault against the British positions; Zulu attacks began to slacken only after midnight, ending by 2:00 a.m., and replaced by harassing fire from Zulu firearms until 4:00 a.m.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: By that time, the garrison had sustained 14 dead. Two more were mortally wounded and eight more – including Dalton – were seriously wounded. Almost every man had some kind of wound. They were all exhausted, having fought for the better part of 10 hours and were running low on ammunition. Of 20,000 rounds in reserve at the mission, only 900 remained.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: As dawn broke, the British could see that the Zulus were gone; all that remained were the dead and severely wounded. Patrols were dispatched to scout the battlefield, recover rifles, and look for survivors, many of whom were killed


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: when found. At roughly 7:00 a.m., an impi of Zulus suddenly appeared, and the British manned their positions again.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: No attack materialised, however, as the Zulus had been on the move for six days prior to the battle and had not eaten properly for two. In their ranks were hundreds of wounded, and they were several days' march from any supplies. Soon after their appearance, the Zulus left the way they had come.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Around 8:00 a.m., another force appeared, and the defenders left their breakfast to man their positions again. However, the force turned out to be the vanguard of Lord Chelmsford's relief column.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: After the battle 351 Zulu bodies were counted, but it has been estimated that at least 500 wounded and captured Zulus might have been massacred as well. Having witnessed the carnage at Isandlwana, the members of Chelmsford's relief force had no mercy for the captured, wounded Zulus they came across, nor did the station's defenders. Trooper William James Clarke of the Natal Mounted Police described in his diary that "altogether we buried 375 Zulus and some wounded were thrown into the grave. Seeing the manner in which our wounded had been mutilated after being dragged from the hospital ... we were very bitter and did not spare wounded Zulus". Laband, in his book "The Zulu Response to the British Invasion of 1879", accepts the estimate of 600 that Shepstone had from the Zulus.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Samuel Pitt, who served as a private in B Company during the battle, told "The Western Mail" in 1914 that the official enemy death toll was too low: "We reckon we had accounted for 875, but the books will tell you 400 or 500". Lieutenant Horace Smith-Dorrien, a member of Chelmsford's staff, wrote that the day after the battle an improvised gallows was used "for hanging Zulus who were supposed to have behaved treacherously."


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Eleven Victoria Crosses were awarded to the defenders of Rorke's Drift, seven of them to soldiers of the 2nd/24th Foot – the most ever received for a single action by one regiment. (The most awarded in a day is 16 for actions at the Battle of Inkerman, on 5 November 1854; in a single action, 28 were awarded as a result of the Second Relief of Lucknow, 14–22 November 1857). Four Distinguished Conduct Medals were also awarded.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: This high number of awards for bravery has been interpreted as a reaction to the earlier defeat at the Battle of Isandlwana – the extolling of the victory at Rorke's Drift drawing the public's attention away from the great defeat at Isandlwana and the fact that Lord Chelmsford and Henry Bartle Frere had instigated the war without the approval of Her Majesty's Government.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Sir Garnet Wolseley, taking over as commander-in-chief from Lord Chelmsford later that year, was unimpressed with the awards made to the defenders of Rorke's Drift, saying "it is monstrous making heroes of those who, shut up in buildings at Rorke's Drift, could not bolt and fought like rats for their lives, which they could not otherwise save".


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Several historians have challenged this assertion and pointed out that the victory stands on its own merits, regardless of other concerns. Victor Davis Hanson responded to it directly in "Carnage and Culture" (also published as "Why the West Has Won"), saying, "Modern critics suggest such lavishness in commendation was designed to assuage the disaster at Isandhlwana and to reassure a skeptical Victorian public that the fighting ability of the British soldier remained unquestioned. Maybe, maybe not, but in the long annals of military history, it is difficult to find anything quite like Rorke's Drift, where a beleaguered force, outnumbered 40 to one, survived and killed 20 men for every defender lost".


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: In 1879 there was no provision for the posthumous granting of the Victoria Cross, and so it could not be awarded to anyone who had died in performing an act of bravery. Private Joseph Williams, B Coy, 2nd/24th Foot, was killed during the fight in the hospital and was mentioned in despatches that "had he lived he would have been recommended for the Victoria Cross."


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: On 15 January 1880, a submission for a DCM was also made for Private Michael McMahon (Army Hospital Corps). The submission was cancelled on 29 January 1880 for absence without leave and theft.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The events surrounding the assault on Rorke's Drift were first dramatised by military painters, notably Elizabeth Butler (in "The Defence of Rorke's Drift" (1880)) and Alphonse de Neuville (also titled "The Defence of Rorke's Drift" (1880)). Their work was vastly popular in their day among the citizens of the British empire.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: H. Rider Haggard's true account, "The Tale of Isandhlwana and Rorke's Drift", published in Andrew Lang's "True Story Book" (1894), names many important figures but omits Surgeon Reynolds, who played a crucial role in the defence.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: In 1914, a touring English Northern Union rugby league team defeated Australia 14–6 to win the Ashes in the final test match. Depleted by injuries and fielding only ten men for much of the second half, the English outclassed and outfought the Australians in what quickly became known as the "Rorke's Drift Test".


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The Edison Company made a two-reel silent film titled "Rorke's Drift" (1914) starring Richard Tucker.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The film "Zulu" (1964), produced by Stanley Baker, portrays the Battle of Rorke's Drift. The film received generally positive reviews from the critics. Some details of the film's account are, however, historically inaccurate (for example, in the movie the regiment is called the South Wales Borderers, but the unit was not in fact called that until two years after the battle, although the regiment had been based at Brecon in South Wales since 1873). While most of the men of the 1st Battalion, 24th Regiment of Foot (1/24) were recruited from the industrial towns and agricultural classes of England, principally from Birmingham and adjacent southwest counties, only 10 soldiers of the 1/24 that fought in the battle were Welsh. Many of the soldiers of the junior battalion, the 2/24, were Welshmen. Of the 122 soldiers of the 24th Regiment present at the Battle of Rorke's Drift, 49 are known to have been of English nationality, 32 were Welsh, 16 were Irish, one was a Scot, and three were born overseas. The nationalities of the remaining 21 are unknown.


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: Swedish power metal band Sabaton wrote the song "Rorke's Drift" about the battle for their 2016 album "The Last Stand".


title: Battle of Rorke's Drift

text: The solitaire tabletop war-game "Zulus on the Ramparts!: The Battle of Rorke's Drift, 22–23 January 1879" is based on the event.


title: The Book Thief

text: The Book Thief is a historical fiction novel by the Australian author Markus Zusak, and is his most popular book. Published in 2005, "The Book Thief" became an international bestseller and was translated into 63 languages and sold 16 million copies. It was adapted into the 2013 feature film, "The Book Thief".


title: The Book Thief

text: The novel is about the adventures of Liesel Meminger in Nazi Germany during World War II. By personifying "Death" as a tangible thing, the novel narrates a unique perspective into the world of the victims of the war. There are many tangible themes throughout the entire story.