The Wonderful Lives of Mary Seacole and Elizabeth Anionwu
Channel: British Library
Date: 2020-11-01

Emeritus nursing professor Elizabeth Anionwu grew up in care but went on to be named one of the most influential nurses in the history of the NHS. Her career was distinguished by her pioneering work in the understanding of sickle cell disease.

Following her retirement she spent nine years fundraising and campaigning for a statue to Mary Seacole.

Mary Seacole (1805 – 1881) was a British-Jamaican entrepreneur and nurse whose adventures are related in one of the earliest autobiographies by a mixed-heritage woman (featured in our Unfinished Business exhibition). The statue, unveiled in 2016, was the UK’s first statue to represent a named black woman.

Elizabeth Anionwu received a DBE in 2017, recently won the Pride of Britain Lifetime Awards, and appeared on Desert Island Discs. She will be in conversation with journalist and broadcaster Shyama Perera. Shyama left school at 16 and got a job in the London Transport typing pool to build the skills required in journalism. At 17 she got her first break as a trainee and at 23, became the youngest reporter to work for The Guardian. Now a freelance broadcaster, theatre reviewer, and manuscript editor, she has written four books and is a Fellow of the Royal Literary Fund. She is Chair of the South Asian Diaspora Arts Archive (SADAA).