weekly gleaner uk 60th anniversary

THE WEEKLY GLEANER www.jamaica-gleaner.com JUNE 30 - JULY 6, 2011• 15

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www.jamaica-gleaner.com THE WEEKLY GLEANER16 • JUNE 30 - JULY 6, 2011

Howard CampbellGleaner Writer

WHILE LIVING inLondon during the1960s, Alvin Brown

said it was difficult keepingtabs with the latest news backhome in Jamaica. The WeeklyGleaner newspaper was hismain source of information.

Brown joined the Britisharmy in 1961 and went toEngland the following year fortraining in Yorkshire. Heremembers making the weeklytrek to a Jamaican store inLadbroke Grove where helived to buy the WeeklyGleaner.

If it was not there, he hus-tled to the Jamaica HighCommission where it was alsosold.

"You would hear one ortwo things on the BBC (BritishBroadcasting Corporation) butnothing much. So, it was reallyimportant to get the Gleaner inLondon or Birmingham,"Brown said.

A Rastafarian, Brownrecalls reading about EthiopianEmperor Haile Selassie I's visitto Jamaica in The WeeklyGleaner of April, 1966. Hesaid Jamaicans in Britain wel-comed news from home in anyform

"Even the music bring newsto England them days. Whenwe hear 'bout Shanty Town(Desmond Dekker's hit song,007 Shanty Town) we knewright away what was takingplace," he said.

The Weekly Gleaner firstappeared in England in 1951,primarily to feed the growing

Jamaican population in thatcountry. Three years earlier,hundreds of Caribbean nation-als travelled to the MotherCountry on the EmpireWindrush, a former Britishwarship.

They went there lookingfor work and to help boost theBritish economy which hadtaken a battering in World WarII. The 1950s and 1960s wereexciting times in Jamaicawhich made it even moreimportant for its expatriatecommunity to keep abreast ofthe latest developments there.

The independence move-ment (from Britain) was gath-ering throughout the Caribbeanin the 1950s and the feats ofpoliticians like AlexanderBustamante and NormanManley made forgood reading.

The news picked up evenmore steam in the 1960s.Jamaica gained independencein 1962 and a new music (theska) which emerged fromKingston's clubs found favourwith white youth in London'sunderground.

Through The WeeklyGleaner, Jamaicans in Englandwere able to follow the politi-cal progress of the new nation,as well as leading ska artisteslike the Skatalites, Millie Smalland Prince Buster. When someof these acts eventually went toEngland, fans already had anintimate profile of them.

Ronald Getfield joined theGleaner's circulation depart-ment in 1973. At that time, hesaid demand for The WeeklyGleaner in England had out-grown its London base, asJamaican communities had alsosprung up in the Midlands inareas like Coventry andWolverhampton.

According to Getfield, seniormembers of the Gleaner's edi-torial department selected whatthey considered to be theweek's best stories and com-piled them for the British mar-ket. An important aspect of thepublication those days, wasresults of Senior Cup cricketwhich featured Jamaica's lead-ing cricketers.

"It was important to publishmatters relevant to theJamaican situation," Getfieldsaid.

Initially, the WeeklyGleaner was sent to Englandby boat. At the dawn of the1970s, it was produced on neg-atives and dispatched by air toLondon where it was publishedand distributed to agents.Myers, Fletcher & Gordon

SolicitorsUK Legal Advisors

MFG House

15 Cambridge Court

210 Shepherd’s Bush Road

Hammersmith

London W6 7NJ

Telephone: 020 7610 4433Fax: 020 7610 4455

Email: [email protected]: www.mfglon.co.uk

60th Anniversary

Congratulations

and best wishes

to The Gleaner on 60 years

of publication in the UK

Solicitors Regulation Authority Number: 00176368

The Weekly Gleaner

FFiilleeHis Imperial Majesty Emperor Haile Selassieinspects a guard of honour of the 1st Batallion,Jamaica Regiment at the Montego Bay airportshortly before his departure. Escorting him isMajor Leslie Lloyd.

Empire Windrush with the Jamaican immigrants on mass being welcomedJune 22, 1948 .

JAMAICAN PREMIER IN LONDON FOR TALKSWITH BRITISH GOVERMMENT: Sir AlexanderBustamante, Premier of Jamaica, is picturedat work in his Sovay Hotel suite during hisrecent visit to Britain. Sir Alexander met theColonial Secretary, Mr. Regional Maudlingand discussed the European CommonMarket with Britain’s Chief Negotiator, Mr.Edward Heath, Lord Privy Seal.

- Spreading the Jamaican

Excerpt from The Story ofthe Gleaner - Memoirs andReminiscences published 2000.

THE WEEKLY GLEANER www.jamaica-gleaner.com JUNE 30 - JULY 6, 2011 • 17

The late Lincoln Minott (aka) Lincoln‘Sugar Granulated’ Buga Minott was notonly a great singer, but also a gifted

record producer, songwriter, composer, andarranger. Lincoln was a father figure and mentorto numerous young Jamaican, British, Japaneseand American artists.

Sugar’s first major hit in Jamaica was Mr DCwhich was released on Studio 1.

He recorded and produced a host of Britishtalent, such as: Janet Kay, ‘You Bring The SunOut’, Carroll Thompson ‘Make It With You’,Trever Hartley, Selasie I, Junior Roots withNatty Dread times, These are just but a few ofthe names out of his vast catalogue. SugarMinott also hit the top 10 British Charts with thesong ‘Good Thing Going’, which is still a reg-gae party favourite.

RAISED THE BAR

Without a doubt Sugar raised the bar for reg-gae from his Jamaican based Black Roots studioproduction at 1 Robert Crescent, Kingston 5. Hecreated ‘Youth Promotion’, which was a move-ment to help the youths’ progress musically.

His studio was an open yard for every one.Black Roots studios in Jamaica paved the wayfor artists such as: Little John, Junior Reid, TenaSaw, Yamie Bolo, Colourman, Louis Lepkey,

Sammy Dread, Barry Brown, Tristan Palmer,Toney Rebel, and Garnet Silk and many more.He built his Black Roots label, to over 3,000 7”vinyl records and 80 albums, this is a fantasticachievement for an artist producer.

Josey Wales, Little John and Colourman goback a long way, they were part of the founda-tion and building blocks of Youth Promotionsound system. Sugar Minott mentored all threeartists and was influential in getting them theirfirst break in the music industry and his guid-ance brought success after success throughoutthe years.

This is why Lincoln ‘Sugar Granulated’ BugaMinott is known and respected as the ‘DancehallKing’. Similarly, Youth Promotion was seen asnot just a sound system- it was a university!Colourman had a massive hit with kick up rum-pus in 1985, Josey Wales and Sugar Minott setthe pace in the dance in a big way when theyworked together on other sounds system such asStur Gav.

We as family and friends of Sugar Minottrecognise the importance of his outstanding con-tribution to the reggae music industry. Out ofloving respect we are keen to honour his memo-ry, and play a musical tribute to keep Sugar’slegacy alive and invite you join us on tour, tocelebrate his musical achievements in style.

Tour Dates

8th July 2011 Black Swan Bristol

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Ticket info £15 or more at the Door

Ticket outlets: Blacka Dread Records, Brixton; Body Music, Seven Sisters Rd, Tottenham, Or call Info hotline:E.Minott: 079 5049 2687Kulture Black: 079 4477 6530Bertie Stama: 079 1684 9390Kaka: 075 0707 1933

VERSATILE STAR ENT. & YOUTH PROMOTIONInvites One and all in the Name Of His Majesty to a

Special Peace & Love

Colour ManJosey WalesLittle John

Sugar Minott

Saturday 16th July 2011

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SoundtrackTWENTY YEARS ago I moved to Jamaicaand founded the law firm Gifford Thompson& Bright. I have never regretted that move.Jamaica remains a land of much joy andbeauty and great opportunity. Since the eventsof May 2010 in West Kingston, the crime ratehas fallen. In spite of the economic situationworld wide, Jamaica’s true wealth is in itspeople situated on the Island and overseaswho have the spirit to teach any tolerant soci-ety the principle of Jamaica’s national motto‘out of many one people’.

Jamaica remains a democracy where lead-ers can be held to account and human rightsare protected by law.

Throughout the years The JamaicaGleaner has been staunch in its balanced andfearless reporting, and The Weekly GleanerUK has kept the UK Jamaican communityboth informed and entertained with all thingsCaribbean.

The press plays an important part in hold-ing governments to account, and for 60 yearsthe UK Jamaican Diaspora has been wellserved by The Weekly Gleaner. As long asthere are Jamaicans overseas in the UK, therewill be a need for the Weekly Gleaner UK,and I wish it continued success.

Lord Anthony Gifford Q.CSenior PartnerGifford Thompson & BrightAttorneys at Law

WE AT The GleanerCompany Limited areindeed privileged to be

celebrating the 60th year of publi-cation of The Weekly Gleaner(UK).

We have a strong tradition ofanticipating the information needs

of our readers and respondingappropriately. As Jamaicansmoved to the United Kingdom(UK) in the 1950s, The Gleaner

moved with them; provid-ing pertinent news cover-

age from Jamaica withgreater frequency thanthe twice monthlypostal correspon-dence available tothe Diaspora at thetime. Since then,The WeeklyGleaner, with itstailored content,backed by the cred-

ibility of its Jamaican daily counter-part, has been consistently satisfy-ing the needs of the overseasJamaican community.

Over the years, in response to therate of cultural integration in theUK, we have made further invest-ments in media through our acquisi-tion of The Voice publication andour recent launch of voice-online.co.uk, extending our reach toother Diaspora as well as nationally.

CONTINUED RESOLVE

This presence in the UK, support-ed by our jamaica-gleaner.comwebsite and our radio channelPower106 through go-jamaica.com,is an indication of our continuedresolve to adapt to changing readerhabits and technologies in order toremain your best news source at alltimes and the Jamaican news brandforemost in your minds. Ourachievements have only been possi-

ble through the great effort of ourteams of professionals who have,and continue to, take personal careto ensure that you have access tothe facts and important issues tomake informed decisions thatimpact your family, your local com-munity and the Jamaican Diasporaat large. We are thankful in thisregard.

As the West Indian Communityin the UK prepares to celebrateJamaica’s 50th Anniversary and theUK’s hosting of the Olympics in2012, we at The Gleaner, pledge tocontinue to be of great relevance toyou, delivered in the format thatbest suits your lifestyle. We hopethat you will also join us in cele-brating this milestone achievement.

Christopher BarnesManaging DirectorThe Gleaner Company Limited

MYERS, FLETCHER &Gordon are extremely delight-ed to congratulate The Gleaneron this milestone in its history:60 years of being published inthe UK. It is our pleasure toadvise and work with TheGleaner and its subsidiaries ontheir UK legal matters.

Like The Gleaner, our firmhas its origins in Jamaica. InLondon, we advise on UKlegal affairs including com-mercial litigation, commercialand residential property, estateplanning (wills and probate)and corporate commercial law.

Our team has recently beenexpanded as a result of themerger into us of Myers,Ebner & Deaner, a firm whichhas its roots in London to the1930s. As such we have 80years of UK legal experience.

In addition as we are a partof the Lex Mundi Associationof Independent Law Firms, weare able to instruct and adviseon matters throughout theworld.

We applaud The Gleaner.Here’s to many moreachievements.

Myers, Fletcher & Gordon

Toast tocelebrate atraditionNurturing rich traditional

values - now and beyond

Messages

Keeping thecommunityinformed

THE WEEKLY GLEANER www.jamaica-gleaner.com JUNE 23-29, 2011 • 19

By Clayton Goodwin

COUNT PRINCE Miller has regarded the Gleaner newspa-per as being his friend for as long as he can remember - notthat he can actually remember the founding of The Weekly

Gleaner (UK) in July 1951. At that time he was still a youngster“back home” in Jamaica and had no idea that he would come tospend the greater part of his life in this country. Then his attention- and that of all young people of his age - was on thingsAmerican. Above all, they listened avidly to the songs ofAmerican singers such as Louis Jordan and Billy Eckstine.

It is a time and, above all, a country for which Prince still hasgreater affection. As we huddled over our soup in a Chineserestaurant at Fulham, West London on a chilly English “summer”afternoon he mentioned that in a few days he would be back inJamaica which he visits as often as he can. “I have not seenJamaica for sixteen months - and that is a very long time”. And herecalled the memories of his early days and the role of the Gleanernewspaper in reporting them.

Pride of place, naturally, had to be given to “Muletrain”, thesong - no, the performance - by which his career is still defined.Miller attributes that to the comedian Bim (a.k.a Ed Lewis).Prince was a singer then with the Downbeats and when he turnedup for a performance wearing Bermuda shorts Bim told him thathe just had to do a comic number. They selected “Muletrain”, ahitherto rather static number by the American singer FrankieLaine.

“Just go out there and do it” Bim told him. And without anytraining, or idea of what to do, except his own intuition Prince did

just that. The wide mouth, the shake of his facial features and thewide eyes - it was all there, and has since become his trademark.The entertainer explained, too, how on a tour to - I think it was -Bermuda he took over the part of Bam in the comedy duo “Bimand Bam” when the real performer of that name was ill.

JAMES BOND STORY

It was the filming of the James Bond story “Dr No” in Jamaicathat sparked the interest of the England entertainment industry inthe music of the island. Miller’s life was changed, too. He wasworking on the set of the film as a chippy because, in spite ofbeing the island’s leading entertainer, he wasn’t paid all that much- well, hardly anything. As he worked he entertained the otheremployees so well that the film’s director decided that he had togo into the nightclub scene. After that he received offers of workin England, even though he wasn’t able to take them up at thetime. While he was still in Jamaica, Prince played to packed-out,enthusiastic audiences at the Carib Theatre in Kingston.

Eventually Count Prince Miller came to London with JimmyJames and the Vagabonds in the early 1960s. He maintains regularcontact with Jimmy and has spoken recently on the phone toMillie Small (“My Boy Lollipop”). We shared memories alsoof a mutual friend, the late Wilfred/Jackie Edwards. Thatreminded me to ask the unfair question - Who in hisopinion were the best Jamaican singers of his life-time? “The two Jimmys - James and Cliff” he replied“Boris Gardner and Winston Francis”.

During the 1960s the Vagabonds toured exten-sively in this country and throughout Europe.

Promoters who usually regarded Jamaican artistes with suspicionbecause of their poor record of punctuality were impressed by thegroup’s practice of arriving early. Among his many travels Princerecalled a tour of Hungary which was then under a Communist-regime behind the “Iron Curtain”. He was surprised that the coun-try was more lax in its social and moral attitudes than we hadbeen led to believe, but the musicians were followed by theauthorities wherever they went.

CAREER HIGHLIGHT

The highlight of Prince’s long career was his role in theCaribbean Music Festival at Wembley Arena in September 1969which was so successful that it was repeated the following year.There is a rather good piece of film on “Youtube” showing himperforming “Muletrain” at the event and the whole concert wasphotographed for Horace Ove’s film “Reggae”. Yet he was morethan just a performer. Miller was integral to setting up the conceptand was compere of a star-studded cast. And accidents do happen.The microphone broke down for a full half an hour during whichhe had to entertain the capacity audience of several thousands -just like the Caribbean Theatre - and he did it so well that thereporter of the Melody-Maker praised his professionalism asbeing akin to that of the world-renowned Apollo.

There is so much more that I could report on Prince’s career butspace is limited. We haven’t touched on his acting in which he hasachieved equal distinction. He started “treading the boards” pro-fessionally in a Mozart opera at the London Opera House, hasmade television advertisements, and has acted in both straight andcomic roles on stage and television. Readers will remember himparticularly as “Vince” in the series “Desmond’s”. Only last year

he dominated the second part of the stage-play “The JA Story”which enjoyed a short run in London and will open again in

Bristol for a tour of the regions.Count Prince Miller has well-merited the award of

Commander of the Order of Distinction which has beenconferred on him and of which he is justly proud.

Throughout our conversation Prince made repeatedreference to the support which the Gleaner had given tohim and other Jamaican artistes in all that they haveundertaken. What has made the Gleaner so special? “The

Gleaner tells the truth” he replied and indicatedthat the newspaper was interested in the

person behind the stardom. It is a rolewhich he foresees the newspaper con-tinuing to fill for many years to come.The entertainer and the newspaperseem to be so much made for eachother that I have jotted a note in

my diary to interview him againwhen The Weekly Gleaner cel-

ebrates its centenary.

Your Link WithLegal JamaicaBARBARA J. LEDGISTER

(ATTORNEY-AT-LAW)all property transactions, wills, intestate, land title,

020 8764 1555(offices in 3 parishes in Jamaica)

A long-time friend

Prince Miller



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London, England:FOR OVER 44 years TheWeekly Gleaner has provideda sense of closeness toJamaica for KennethO’sullivan in North WestLondon, since he bought hisfirst copy in 1967. O’sullivanleft Race Course in Clarendon,Jamaica in 1965 and keptinformed of happenings on theisland at his home in KensalRise, with a stock of TheSunday and The WeeklyGleaner.

“In those days the cost ofthe Gleaner here (UK) was

two and a half pence. It was in1967 that I first went in searchof The Gleaner newspaper, asthere was a postal strike inJamaica and we could not hearanything out of the island;someone told me that thepaper was available and I gotmy first copy from a newsagent in Park Parade inHarlesden North London,” the66 year old O’sullivan toldThe Weekly Gleaner.

“When it was not availablein my area I would walk to asfar as Cricklewood some threemiles away to get a copy.”

In the 1960’s, O’sullivan

said, Jamaicans who migratedto the United Kingdom wantedreliable information fromhome, which the Gleaner pro-vided.

“We wanted to see howJamaica was being developed,we wanted to be kept informedabout the new industries andfactories that were being built;we wanted to know the truth,”he said.

“It (The Gleaner) was ourmain link with Jamaica asthere wasn’t even the conceptof a mobile phone; we had towrite letters and that tookweeks before there was a reply,when a copy of the Gleanercame you know that you areholding a piece of Jamaica inyour hands; there were someregrettable news that you couldnot miss but there was a lot ofgood news showing Jamaicadeveloping as an independentnation,” he added.

For over 44 years, this avidreader has kept abreast of theGleaner’s publicationschanges. “When I first startedreading The Gleaner here therewas no stock exchange inJamaica, over the years thenewspaper has transformed inmany ways, with more newsand current issues put into it;interestingly in recent timesthere has been the inclusion ofsome stories from the sisterpaper (The Star) which hasgiven more dimension to thepaper,” O’sullivan noted.

O’sullivan attachment toThe Gleaner sees him sub-scribing to the SundayGleaner. For him, “When mySunday Gleaner don’t come Iam like a fish out of water andevery Thursday The WeeklyGleaner is a must.”

Life unfolding – through TheWeekly Gleaner’s eyes

A piece of Jamaica in your hands- Gleaner reader of 44 years recounts his experiences

CCoonnttrriibbuutteeddO’sullivan

By Hugh Muir

OURS WAS a house of rituals. Chores on aSaturday, church on Sunday; prayer meet-ings in the sitting room every Wednesday

evening. Dad would go to work and save forwhen she was away as part of her ministry, mumwould stay at home.

Dad would leave early each morning becausehe worked on the other side of London, but whenhe returned early evening he would have foldedin his duffle bag, a copy of the Daily Mirror.

I’d grab it as soon as he walked through thedoor. There began my long association withBritish newspapers. And once a week, alreadyappraised by the Mirror of everything he neededto know from a British perspective, Dad wouldthen seek to reconnect with the life he knew priorto his sojourn in east London. Usually at theweekend, he would arrive home with a copy ofThe Weekly Gleaner.

Back then, the weekly purchase didn’t seemparticularly significant. I knew that Jamaica waswhere my parents had come from. I had seen a

few grainy black and white photographs andknew I had relatives in the Caribbean - Aunt Netin Maypen; Uncle Walsie in Kingston. But theGleaner experience was different for my parents.It would set them off on all sorts of conversationsabout how Michael Manley was doing, the stateof the Jamaican dollar, the debates that werebeing had about public morality.

The ever present discussion about the effect ofreligion in public life. The doings and wrongdo-ings of the celebrities of the day. The appearanceof British figures would occasionally spark com-ment. Sometimes, if the person concerned was abigwig in the Pentecostal church, we would knowthem. That would be a bit of thrill for me.Occasionally it would be someone who had cometo our house after a Sunday service for dinner.

The Gleaner had a role for them. It remindedthem that they were on a journey in Britain butthat it was not the destination. The plan was cir-cular. It was always going to lead back to theCaribbean and so there was always an emotionaland a practical need to keep in touch with

Jamaica. The paper, with its weekly encapsu-lation of the joys and challenges of living onthe island, allowed them to do that.

But it had a role for me too. It seemsstrange these days to imagine a world whereno-one in authority was black. The people onthe television were white, the vast majority ofmy teachers were white.

The man who sold us West Indian fare;from yam to green bananas to shrimps andpigfoot, was white. He had picked up a bit ofthe lingo.

But he was still a ruddy faced Englishman.What I took from the Gleaner all those yearsago as a black boy born in the UK was theempowering knowledge that there is no limit towhat black people can do. I saw black politi-cians, black community leaders, black newspa-per columnists, black doctors; the soap opera oflife with a cast that looked like me. My Dadbrought back a lot more than news each weekwhen he pitched up with the WeeklyGleaner, for me at least.

Hugh Muir


| THE VOICE June 23-29, 2011 CLASSIFIED16

BORN ON THE4th JULY

BORN ON THEBORN ON THE

Make a note... our brand new website launches July 4th

www.voice-online.co.uk

www.jamaica-gleaner.com THE WEEKLY GLEANER24 • JUNE 30 - JULY 6, 2011 THE WEEKLY GLEANER www.jamaica-gleaner.com JUNE 30 - JULY 6, 2011 • 25

THE GLEANER was bornin a time of fundamentalchange: 1834, the begin-

ning of the end of slavery inthe British colonies.

At that time in Kingston agreat deal of business was doneby auction, which facilitatedthe disposal of crops of sugarand coffee. Two half-brothers,Jacob and Joshua deCordova,saw a business opportunity inthe buying and selling of goodsand published deCordova'sAdvertising Sheet. Then on 13September 1834 they launchedthe first issue of The Gleanerand Weekly Compendium ofNews, the predecessor to diecurrent Gleaner. The paper waspublished on Saturdays for asubscription of ten shillings perquarter for the city and thirteenshillings and four pence forrural areas.

The first issue included, onpage three, a lofty statement ofpurpose:

In commencing our Editorialcareer, we consider it neces-sary to state distinctly themode in which the "KingstonGleaner" will be conducted.

We are perfectly aware of thedifficulties of our presentundertaking; but we feelassured from the proverbialkindness of the JamaicaPublic, joined in our unremit-ting exertions to render ourpaper worthy of their support;that all difficulties will be sur-mounted, and a fair portion ofpatronage will crown ourattempt to please - to amuse -and to inform.

The privacies of Domesticlife shall ever be held sacred: itis therefore determination toexclude every attack on privatelife: no matter how high in sta-tion, or humble in circum-stances; Editorial squabbleswill be alike avoided; we shall

treat brother Editors withrespect, by which means wecommand respect from them.

Just three months later theychanged the billing TheGleaner: A Weekly FamilyNewspaper devoted toLiterature, Morality, the Artsand Sciences, andAmusements.

Two years later they mergeddeCordova's Advertising Sheetwith the Gleaner to produce afour-page paper publishedevery day except Sundays. Theadvertisements were printed ona separate sheet and distributedgratis by five o'clock everymorning and the whole paper

was ready for subscribers bysix o'clock in the morning.

GREW AND PROSPEREDJacob deCordova subse-

quently emigrated to theUnited States to seek his for-tune. He found it as a real-estate developer on the Texasfrontier. Under Joshua, theGleaner remained a familybusiness, and it grew and pros-

pered. After his death in 1850,his son Michael ran it until1869; after Michael's death,another son, Gabriel, took over.Michael's son Joshua joined thebusiness at the age of seven-teen in 1878.

In 1875 the paper was beingprinted on a steam- drivenpress. A fire destroyed theGleaner in 1882 and for twoweeks the paper had to beprinted at the GovernmentPrinting Office. Rebuildingafter the fire, the Gleanerremained "the Old Lady ofHarbour Street" for almost acentury until she moved to herpresent location on the corner

of North and East streets.Gabriel died in 1892, leaving

Joshua in control. On 10 June1897, Joshua transformed thebusiness into a public compa-ny. Ever since then, the familywho founded the Gleaner hasbeen represented on the boardof directors of the company bythe Ashenheirn family. Two ofthe promoters and foundingdirectors were J.L. Ashenheim

and his brother Sir NevilleAshenheirn. J.L. Ashenheimwas a cousin of Joshua and thegrandfather of former honorarychairman, the Hon LeslieAshenheim.

Sir Neville Ashenheim wasthe father of the current vice-chairman of the board of direc-tors, Richard G. Ashenheim.

The capital of the new com-pany was thirty thousandpounds sterling and the articlesof association included elabo-rate safeguards against any oneshareholder assuming control.An unusual provision regardingvoting power allotted one votefor every five shares up to two

thousand, an additional votefor every one hundred sharesthereafter up to three thousand;and, above this, only one votefor every five hundred one-hundred shares.

Joshua deCordova served assecretary and managing direc-tor until he retired in 1902,handing over to his nephew,Michael deCordova. UnderJoshua's stewardship, the

Gleaner identified with andpromoted Jamaican business,even promoting tourism as aguarantor of the JamaicaExhibition in 1891.

Michael deCordova hadjoined the paper in 1888, alsoat the age of seventeen. Hebecame managing directorwhen Joshua retired and isremembered as a "giant of anewspaper man".

Every morning he wouldappear in the newsroom hold-ing his Gleaner, seat himself atan empty desk, summon hiskey men, hold a post-mortemon that day's paper and issue

instructions for the next.

EARTHQUAKEThe devastating earthquake

of 14 January 1907 destroyedmost of the city of Kingston,including the Gleaner buildingon Harbour Street. It wouldtake two years of litigationbefore the English insurancecompanies finally paid earth-quake damage claims and anew, enlarged building couldbe erected.

Four days after the Gleanerbuilding had been entirelydestroyed by the earthquake,the newspaper was on thestreet again. An 'emergency'edition printed on foolscap atthe Government PrintingOffice, was headlined "TheEarthquake and the Future" andsold for threepence. The edito-rial read:

“The business centre ofKingston is today amass ofruins. On Monday evening we,were struck by an earthquakeand within forty seconds ourcapital had fallen and over1,000 persons lay dead anddying on the ground ... Theblow has been terrible (but) wewill not allow ourselves to beterrified. We will buildKingston again am God's helpwill build it better.

Four days later, the price ofthe emergency edition hadbeen reduced to one penny.

Publication ceased briefly inFebruary while new equipmentwas being installed alongsidethe restored press in a tempo-rary building erected on thesite of the Gleaner building. Adelay in the delivery of theelectric motor for the press wasovercome when Michael spied"a queer-looking object on fourwheels with a smoke stackwhich, on enquiry, I discoveredto be a steam engine". "PuffingBilly", as it was nicknamed,

kept the Gleaner's press rollingfor six weeks. The Gleanerresumed publication on 11February, price one penny.

LATEST TECHNOLOGYMichael deCordova kept up

with the latest technology. Hisinnovations included a radioroom, and in 1908 threeLinotype machines wereinstalled. Each machine wasable to do the work of eighthand-compositors and pro-duced cleaner, more legibletype. In this semi-automaticprocess the copy, as the newsmatter was called, was typed iithe Linotype machines wherethe characters were cast in analloy lead, tin and, antimony,then extruded on thin strips ofmetal in the required lengths.These strips, known as 'slugs',were then arranged by hand ina 'forme' to compose eachpage. A the time, the Linotypeprocess was the very latest inprinting technology and servedthe Gleaner well for over fiftyyears.

In 1912 a photoengravingdepartment began operation,and in 1917 a rotary press wasinstalled. The press, inventedby Richard M. Hoe {1812-86),replaced the old flatbed designand used several cylinders toapply type. The Hoe rotarypress was capable of producingeighteen thousand sheets anhour, printed on both sides. Itemployed a continuous roll orweb of paper.

Motor delivery routes wereestablished islandwide in 1920,and a special magazine section,known popularly as "The PinkSheet", as it was printed pinkpaper, was added to theSaturday Gleaner in 1925. Itfeatured highlights of localsocial events. In 1939, rightafter the outbreak of WorldWar II, the Sunday Gleanerwas introduced.

During the war, newsprintand gasoline became scarceand the size of The DailyGleaner had to be kept at eightor ten pages while the few gal-loons of rationed gas availablehad to be used mainly to trans-port reporters covering news.Papers were delivered by train,bicycle, donkey, mule, boys onfoot and anything else thatcould move without using gas.

THE GLEANER EXPANDS

OPERATIONSOn 11 June 1950, the

Children's Newspaper (nowChildren's Own) began to bepublished. In 1951, the yearSealy was formally appointededitor, two new publicationswere started: in July theOverseas Weekly Gleaner (nowthe Weekly Gleaner, NorthAmerica [NA] and UnitedKingdom [UK] editions) and,on 24 November, the eveningtabloid, The Star, was on thestreets. The editorial columnread: 'The Star seeks to serveyou in its own special field.The accent will be on brightnews, plain speaking, livelyentertainment, and a full fareof interest for all our readers."Subscription rates for the Starwere one and a half pence percopy. In 1955, The Farmer'sWeekly was started with theSaturday edition of TheGleaner.

The Overseas WeeklyGleaner grew out of the effortsto keep the public informedafter "the worst modern daystrike by a hurricane on theshore Jamaica" in August 1951.The press room was filled withwater and without electricity.Few staff were able to reachthe old Harbour Street build.However, within days atwelve-page issue with detailsof the destruction was pub-lished and arrangements madefor a small plane to drop copiesin remote areas that were inac-cessible by road.

In 1959 a new Crabtreerotary press was installed: TheGleaner went to nine columnsper page and the Star to six. In1960 the first branch officewas established in MontegoBay. In 1961, The WeekendStar was launched. It was anenlarged edition of the FridayStar, twenty-four pages withan eight-page entertainmentsection, priced at threepence.In 1963 The SundayMagazine (now Outlook) wasadded to the Sunday Gleaner.

In 1964 the capital of thecompany was increased to£550,000 sterling, and in thefollowing year the one poundsterling shares were dividedinto four shares of fiveshillings each. GleanerCompany shares were firstquoted on the new JamaicanStock Market in 1969 at twelve

shillings per five-shilling share.In 1969 'The Old Lady of

Harbour Street" moved to amodern five-storey plant onNorth Street where the newsix-unit Crabtree rotary presshad been installed. The transferof the Linotype machines tookplace over a weekend and sosmoothly that not one issuewas missed!

MAJOR CHANGESThe decade of the 1970s

brought major changes in bothproduction techniques and per-sonnel. The switch from hottype to cold type .in 1975,when Selectrix electronic type-setting machines were installedto replace the old Linotypes,was the first ripple of the waveof the future: the computer age.

Copy typed into the Selectrixmachines was scanned by acomputerised optical scannerand transformed by a photo-graphic process into strips oftypeset print which were then'pasted-up' to compose camera-ready pages. At the same time,the ball-metal method of cast-ing heavy semi-cylindricalmetal printing plates wasreplaced by the more modernphoto-polymer system thatemploys thin plastic platesattached to 'saddles' on the

press.In 1974, Christopher Roberts

succeeded Aston Cuthbert asfinancial director, always a keyrole in a successful business.Theodore Sealy, CBE, retiredas editor in 1976 and the HonHector Wynter was appointedto the post. Executive directorS.G. Fletcher had retired in1971, and five years later hissuccessor, Tom Sherman, alsoretired and was succeeded byOliver F. Clarke, formerlychairman and managing direc-tor of the Jamaica NationalBuilding Society.

Mr. Clarke initiated andpresided over a Gleaner mile-stone. A four-million-dollarmortgage debenture loan, thelargest stock issue ever placedon the Jamaican money mar-ket, was floated in July 1978and oversubscribed in fourweeks. The debenture was usedto refinance existing short-termhigh-interest loans and helpedto steer the company oncemore into a profit position.

Public response to thedebenture was overwhelming.The minimum target of $2.5million was reached in tendays, and on the day that theissue closed the Royal BankTrust Company was processingcompleted applications at therate of one per minute.Thousands ofJamaicans saw it as ameans of preserving afree and independentpress and 30 per centof the applicationsreceived were forthe lowestunit offifty dol-lars.Threehun-dred

Gleaner Company staff mem-bers were among the sub-scribers. Numerous applica-tions came from people whobought stock in their children'snames, while InternationalPaper Sales Company ofMontreal, Canada, providedsixty debentures for orphanedchildren in Kingston.

A feature of the loan was theopportunity to convert 25 percent of capital repayments intoGleaner shares. Two new direc-tors were appointed to theboard of the Gleaner Companyto represent the new stockhold-ers.

In 1977, the Gleaner over-came its reservations aboutparticipating in a predominate-ly state-owned organisationand boughtinto the

Caribbean News Agency(CANA), the regional newsagency founded in 1975.

CANA has its headquartersin Barbados and maintainsbureaus throughout theEnglish-speaking Caribbean.The agency merges Renter'sglobal news coverage withregional news, relaying to itssubscribers international newswith a high Caribbean content.Over a period the GleanerCompany acquired 14.3 per-cent of CANA shares. Since1981, CANA's Jamaicanbureau has operated out of theGleaner building on a rentalbasis.

The Gleaner was one of thefirst newspapers in theCaribbean to 'go computer',and the development of pagina-tion put it in the advance guardof newspaper publishers world-wide. However, that state-of-the-art system was married toletterpress printing presses thatwere fast becoming obsolete. Aseparate computer system han-dled almost all the accountingfunctions of the businessdepartment.

Excerpt from The Story ofthe Gleaner - Memoirs

and Reminiscencespublished

2000.

History of The Gleaner

GGlleeaanneerr PPhhoottooggrraapphhNewspaper history was made when the first copies of ìThe Miami Heraldî satellite edition, rolled off the Gleanerís press on 9 June 1997. Inspecting thepaper are Errol Knight and Karin Daley. While Courtney Burke and Alva Williams ensure that all is well.

FFiilleeOliver Clarke ... retains thetitle of chairman.

GGlleeaanneerr PPhhoottooggrraapphhComputer terminal operators in the Advertising Department assisting the public to place advertisements in theGleaner.”

FFIILLEEThe Gleaner Company headquarters as seenalong East Street, central Kingston.

GGlleeaanneerr PPhhoottooMr. Leslie Ashenheim (centre) chairman of the Board of Directors of the Gleaner Company, with recipients of LongService awards and other directors of the company, following a presentation ceremony in the Company’s BoardRoom on Thursday morning. From left are Col. Michael DeCordova, a director, Mr. H.K. Burke, 25 years service, Mr.Fitz Albert Andrade, also 25 years service and Mr. Mr. S.G. Fletcher, also a director.

Lewis Ashenheim

Hon. N.N. Ashenheim

‘Old Lady of HarbourStreet’ riding the

information superhighway


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Gifford Thompson & BrightAttorneys-at-law

BRITISH LAWYERS - Jamaican Law FirmAssociated with

HAMILTON DALEY - Solicitor & Attorney-at-law

By Clayton GoodwinMy first contributions to the Weekly Gleaner

back in 1961 were casual news items andreports relevant to a West Indian readershippicked up from my regular assignments withHayter’s Sports Agency. In those days beforeindependence the Weekly Gleaner was read pri-marily by people, often English, with businessinterests in Jamaica.

In early 1964 I interviewed Millie Small,then an unknown singer, at Bromley CourtHotel in South-east London. My prediction ofsuccess for her new record “My Boy Lollipop”was mocked because to be successful then itwas necessary to be male, white and a grouprather than female, black and solo. When“Lollipop” became an international hit TheoSealy, Group Editor of Gleaner Newspapers,asked me to send as much news, interviews andreports as I could find on Jamaicans, andindeed all West Indians, in the UnitedKingdom. That request changed the entiredirection of my life.

The Weekly Gleaner, too, had changed.(Incidentally, at that time the word “a gleaner”was generic for all newspapers so great was theesteem in which it was held). West Indians athome wanted to learn of the success of theircompatriots who had migrated to the UnitedKingdom, and those here wished to be kept intouch with the community in other parts of thecountry. It was impossible to keep pace withthe news and requests to be reported and inter-viewed by people in all walks of life.

HITS AND MISSES

It was not easy to achieve. The WeeklyGleaner did not have an editorial office - thatdid not come until 1977 - just an advertisingoffice with Colin Turner on ShaftesburyAvenue, London. Contributors sent theirreports “on spec” to head office in Kingstonand knew if they had been published only bybuying a copy of the paper. Articles had to be

typed and sent by regular mail which was oftenlong in delivery and items could go astray.Publication could be months after the piecewas sent. Often I have written about an“unbeaten” boxer only for the report to comeout after he had lost a fight. One beauty contestwas delayed for over a year - being publishedafter the winner’s successor was crowned.

It was very much hit and miss. People/eventswere reported only if they knew the writerspersonally - otherwise they went unrecorded. Iused to have a home “surgery” on Thursdayevening and Sunday afternoon for people tobring their stories. In the late-1960s photogra-pher Eddie Grant, who became the Gleaner’srepresentative in Toronto from 1970 until thepresent day, and myself used to cover some sixor so events on a Saturday evening.

WORTH IT

The effort was well worth it. A prominentboxer recalled his pride on learning that areporter (myself) was at ringside to writespecifically on him and not his opponent. Thememories are still strong. Recently I saw CountPrince Miller perform splendidly in the “JAStory”. Over forty years ago Prince, myself andother singers/musicians used to meet at thehouse of Wilfred (Jackie) Edwards inGaddesden Avenue, Wembley and exchange thelatest news.

The most productive source of information,gossip and making contacts were the manyhairdressing saloons such as that run byMadame Rose close by the Jubilee Clock atHarlesden. Information came from unexpectedsources. An anonymous beauty contestant, whoknew two of the victims, gave vital informationon the then unidentified Yorkshire Ripper - oneof several national stories in which the WeeklyGleaner was led the field.

Sorry, Mr Editor, that I have exceeded myquota of words .... but how can half-a-centuryof memories be limited to...... ah, that remindsme when ..........

Queen Elizabeth, The Queen mother, Her Majesty enters the arcade at theVictoria Crafts Market, accompanied by Lady Campbell. Behind are: Capt.Richard Langley, A.D.C (left) Lt. G. A. Mignon and Brigadier Paul Crook.

HEATHROW CHECK STOP: A groupof Jamaican journalists are beingshown through the newest sectionof London’s Heathrow Airport,Terminal Four, built at a cost ofJ$1.74 billion to house all facilitiesof British Airways. This is part of thetraining division, and shown in thebackground are chutes and inflatedcraft on which flight staff learn todeal with emergencies.

REMEBERING GARVEY: “Queen Mother” Moore (2nd left), assisted byMs. Delois Blakely, Deputy Mayor of Harlem, laying wreath yesterday atthe shrine of the Rt. Excellent Marcus Mosiah Garvey, Jamaica’s firstNational Hero, at National heroes’ Park, Kingston. Looking on at left isMrs. Clover Thompson, executive director of the Jamaica CulturalDevelopment Commission; and at right, Mr. Raphael Ferguson, presidentof the Kingston Chapter of the United Negro Improvement Association(UNIA); and Mr. Fitzroy Huntley, secretary of the UNIA, Kingston Chapter.Ms. Blakely said that steps were being taken in the United States to haveGarvey’s name cleared of criminal charges. She declared that the onlycharge which could be laid against the National Hero was that of “uplift-ing his own people.”

SLICES OF LIFE CAPTURED BY THE WEEKLY GLEANER LENS’

A walk down thememory lane

The West Indies cricket team which drew the first Test with Australia whichended at Sabina Park on Wednesday are (sitting from left) Maurice Foster, LaneGibbs, Rohan Kanhai (captain), Clyde Walcott (manager), Clive Lloyd and RoyFredericks; ostanding from left) Uton Dowe, Geoffrey Greenidge, VanburnHolder, Michael Findlay, Lawrence Rowe, Inshan Ali and Alvin Kallicharran.

GGllee

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Entry is ONLY by mail in after collecting all 4 tokens, num-bered 1-4. Entries with less than 4 tokens will not be accepted. After the 4th week entries should be sent in with ALL 4 tokens. Competition closes 31st July.

No photocopies accepted. Send your entries to:Weekly Gleaner UK 60th Anniversary Mega Competition c/o GV Media, 6th Floor, 4 Selsdon Way, London E14 9GL

Winners published on 4th August in Gleaner. One prize per winner.All prizes must be collected at GV Media Offi ce. Usual GV Media rules apply. This competition is open to residents of the UK, except GV Media Group staff and their relatives.By entering this competition you are agreeing that the details you provide may be used by GV Media Ltd for both operational and market-ing purposes.If you are not happy to receive future promo-tions and special offers please advise us by sending a letter to GV Media, 6th Floor, 4 Selsdon Way, London E14 9GLor email: [email protected]

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www.jamaica-gleaner.com VOLUME 3,109 32 PAGES


JUNE 16 - 22, 2011

Your Link WithLegal Jamaica

BARBARA J. LEDGISTER

(ATTORNEY-AT-LAW)

all property transactions,

wills, intestate, land title,

020 8764 1555

(offices in 3 parishes in Jamaica)

MALAHOO-FORTE: Assured communi-

ties that government’s proposal was

not a done deal.’

PHILLIP MASCOLL: ‘The board members

must be the choice of the people, not the

minister...’KEN BAUGH: ‘The Convention is the legiti-

mate arena in which to resolve outstanding

issues.’

PATRICK BECKFORD: “It not only opens things

up for manipulation but it also politicises the

board.”

FILE PHOTOS

CELIA GRANDISON-MARKEY: UK rejected

the gov’t’s suggestion

DIASPORADEMOCRACYUNDERTHREAT?

AT THIS week’s biennial

conference of the

Jamaican Diaspora in the

island’s north coast town of

Ocho Rios, a major point of con-

tention will be the process of

electing the persons who sit on

a board that advises the govern-

ment on issues relating to

Jamaicans who live abroad.

The Jamaica government’s suggestion that the com-

munities elect two persons and the appropriate minister

name one to the board - the other would be an alternate

- has angered some activists.

It is now, according to the foreign minister, a matter

for the conference, the lead up to which has been con-

tentious, with testy meetings in the United States,

Canada and the UK between Baugh’s deputy, Marlene

Malahoo-Forte and members of the Jamaican community.

More stories on pages 2 & 3

2 Large Rum Cakes

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Issue No. 1479 June 23 - 29, 2011

WINTICKETS

Should women learn to share a man?

Page 6Page 31

Pages 25-26

Pages 18-19

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Page 11


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By Clayton Goodwin

THE INTERVIEW with Sam King in theoffice of The Gleaner newspaper in Londonstarted late. No - this isn’t another of those

stories about Jamaicans’ lack of punctuality. Samarrived exactly on the appointed hour. Howeversuch is his fame that as soon as word got aroundthat he was in the building everybody wanted to bephotographed with him or speak with him. That, atleast, gave me a few minutes grace in trying towork out how to address our guest.

Sam, Mr King, Your Worship, Sir ..... every oneof them (and some more) fitted his character andsome aspect of his varied experience. Not that Ineeded to have worried. Sam is so adept now atspeaking of his life and achievements that he knewexactly what to say before the questions wereframed. All I had to do was to sit back and listen.He took us right from his early days in Portland,Jamaica where he was born in 1926 and throughhis arrival in England to the present day. He camehere first in 1944 as a volunteer for the RAF, inwhich he served as an engineer, in the SecondWorld War. King remembers well the devastationcaused by the bombing to the major cities, andknew that the country, and what was then theEmpire (soon to be the Commonwealth), wereinvolved in a war against a hideous ideology whichjust had to be won.

The bomb damage was still there in 1948 when,after returning to Jamaica for a couple of years atthe end of hostilities, Sam came back here on theEmpire Windrush. He described seeing the war-

time destruction around him when he arrived atLondon Bridge in Southwark - the borough whichwas to be his base for the rest of his life. Sam andthose many of his compatriots and contemporariesarriving at that time set about putting London, andthe country, back on its feet physically, sociallyand politically.

FOLK LORE

The Empire Windrush story has enteredthe folk-lore of more than just the WestIndian heritage community. And so hasthe famous Test Match against England atLord’s in 1950. Sam was there, as wereseveral of his fellow-passengers from theEmpire Windrush. Herecalled how everybodyjoined in with some ideasto help Lord Kitchenerput together the celebrat-ed calypso “Cricket,lovely cricket”.

The WeeklyGleaner made itsentrance shortly afterthen in July 1951. MrKing has no doubt asto the value of itscontribution toencouraging him andhis generation in theirendeavours. “TheGleaner is the Bible ofthe community” he

repeated several times. While on the subject ofnewspapers I reminded him that we had met last atan exhibition in memory of Claudia Jones, founderof the West Indian Gazette.

Sam said that he was associated closely withClaudia in her many endeavours - including theestablishment of a Carnival at the St Pancras TownHall and Seymour Hall which led to the setting upof the Notting Hill Carnival. He remembered, too,

the well-known visitors who called on Ms Jonesand he praised the prescience of Dr Martin

Luther King who, when Sam thought thatcommunity relations here were progress-ing smoothly, foresaw the disturbancesthat lay ahead.

It was a different world then. The “Nocoloureds. No Irish. No dogs” noticesdenying housing accommodation to thenewly-arrived immigrants were disheart-ening as well as insulting. Even so Mr

King believes that they were thestimulus to the subsequent

prosperity of the West Indianheritage community.These notices, and theattitude behind them,forced the new-arrivalsonto their own initia-tive and encouragedthe need and desireto own their ownproperty. He, him-self, was amongthe first blackfamilies to buytheir own home:there is now a “blue

plaque” (marking

association with an honoured citizen) at the houseon Warmington Road, Herne Hill.

On his return here in 1948 Sam re-enlisted in theRAF for four years, after which he was employedfor 34 years in the post office in which he rose toan executive position. At the same time he pursueda career in local politics culminating in his electionas the first black Mayor of Southwark in 1983.There were still many battles to be fought, but - hesaid - in his activities as politician, health council-lor and school governor he found a staunch ally inthe Gleaner. Although he had no criticism as to therole that the newspaper has fulfilled, and its editori-al content, Mr King offered the thought that maybethe scope could be extended into including articlesoffering advice about such important aspects ofcontemporary life as financial matters and the pur-chase and upkeep of property.

While his life has been one of challenge andachievement, it hasn’t been always easy. For exam-ple, there was a serious and much-publicised racistthreat on his life when he became mayor.Nevertheless Sam maintains a sense of optimism,independence of spirit, and commitment in whichhis political convictions and Christian belief con-tinue to shine through. In 1998 he was made aMember of the Order of the British Empire (MBE),of which he is proud but not boastful, for his out-standing services to the community.

All too soon the clock showed that it was timefor the interview to draw to a close - we both hadother appointments. I took the lift to the groundfloor and walked out ..... into the rain which forcedme back to shelter behind a pillar. A moment laterSam King joined me there. He had still some morememories to recall, and I was very happy to listen...... but maybe we should leave that story toanother time ..... perhaps to the 75th anniversarysupplement of The Weekly Gleaner.


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A legend in his own right

Sam King

Like the Gleaner I came tothe UK many, many moonsago with great expectationsand with an open mind inbeing part of the Jamaicancommunity living in the UK.

The Gleaner has made itsmark over the years; beforethe advent of the internetwhen one is now able to readthe daily publications fromhome. It was what kept usgrounded year after year.

For those of us who did nothave the opportunity of trav-elling home very often eachweek it was often the high-light of catching up with thevarious news items, recipes,letting the memories overtakeus when we went “Rovingwith Lalah”, the cartoonspoking fun at all and sundry,the various letters that justbrought home how diverseopinions can range for topicto topic, “Tell Me Pastor” to“Your Doctor Says”; anothermust read for many, just toname; the editorial ... somany topics to delve into and

feel a part of being at home.The News might be a few

days late... but hey, we didnot mind at all... after all itwas connection from home.

To work and survive in anenvironment such as the UKand representing clients fromthis jurisdiction with legalmatters in Jamaica with a dif-ferent mode of operating atthe Supreme Court, theStamp Commissioner’s officeand the Titles office has beenchallenging to say the least.

How often have Jamaicanstravelled to Jamaica with theintention - they believe - thattheir presence in the islandwill have their matter “sortedout” in record time, duringthe 3 to 4 weeks they mightbe visiting the island? Howoften have they returned tothe UK bitterly disappointedthat “nothing happened”?

To the Gleaner I say muchrespect that the home fireshave been kept burning -challenges aside - and thatthe tradition begun some 60years ago will endure.

Respect is due. Continue tostrive towards your goal ofenlightening Jamaicans andfriends of Jamaica about thebeauty that is our islandhome - flaws and all.

Barbara J. LedgisterAttorney-at-law


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Keep thefires

burning


60th Anniversary

Congratulations to The

For their service to the UK over the past 60 years from:

WINDRUSHFOUNDATIONExecutives:Verona Feurtado

Sam B King - MBE

Arthur Torrington - CBE

WEEKLY GLEANER

By Clayton Goodwin

The Weekly Gleaner has reflected thechanges in the life and character of bothJamaica and the United Kingdom over

sixty of the most eventful years in the history ofboth countries. It was launched in the same yearas the Festival of Britain illustrated that theUnited Kingdom and the Commonwealth wererecovering with some confidence from the rav-ages of the Second World War, and between thetriumphant cricket tour of 1950 and the athleticshonours in the 1952 Helsinki Olympic Games.The Gleaner was here even before long-reign-ing sovereign Queen Elizabeth II came to thethrone.

The first years were low-key. Jamaican inde-pendence was still over a decade away. TheGleaner served primarily to keep those inBritain with business interests in the Caribbeanaware of events in the region. The West Indianheritage community, the majority of whomexpected to be “home” again within a couple ofyears, tended to take their news direct from themain Gleaner in Jamaica second-hand fromcopies sent/brought by friends and relatives. TheNotting Hill riot of 1958 changed that percep-

tion. “Immigrants” realised that for better orworse they and their children needed to look onthemselves as “citizens” of their new country.They were here to stay and their press needed tobe shaped accordingly.

LAID BACK

The production of The Weekly Gleaner wascomparatively laid-back. Self-motivated free-lancers - Theo Campbell, Vivian Durham, SheilaBrown and, slightly later, photographer EddieGrant come to mind - sent reports on UK-basedevents and personalities ad hoc to the Editor inKingston. Some (an increasing number) werepublished, mixed with news from “home”.Advertisements, of which there were few at first,were collected by Colin Turner Ltd inShaftesbury Avenue, London. It did not appear tobe too onerous a task. Yet because the service wasimportant the Gleaner had an influence beyondthe immediate merits of its restricted circulation.

There was no cohesion in presentation.Contributors, who often did not know eachother, had a bi-lateral relationship with “headoffice”. From time to time while on a visit toLondon Theo Sealy, Group Editor and ManagingDirector, an august personage indeed, invited the

free-lancers to meet him for an hour of so indi-vidual chat over a day at his hotel. More imme-diate requests and information were sent bycable. Nevertheless these were momentous days.Readership - and activities - rose rapidly on thearrival of thousands of Jamaicans before theCommonwealth Immigration Act of 1962 closedthe door.

The Weekly Gleaner carried the communitythrough the politics of the racially-controversial1964 General Election and of Independence for

The Weekly Gleaner

A reflection through the years

Theo Campbell

VivianDurham

Please see REFLECTION, 32


Beautiful; aggressive; exuberant, talkative; humorous; resource-

ful; unpredictable – Jamaica brings many adjectives to mind, but boring is not one of them. No other country so young and so small has had such global cultural infl uence as the land of Marcus Garvey, Louis Bennett, Bob Marley and Usain Bolt. Jamaica Fi Real provides an in-depth look at Jamaica’s people, his-tory, music, sports, religion and culture, creating a vivid twenty-fi rst century portrait of perhaps the world’s most fas-cinating island.

Author of bestselling book Reg-gae Routes: The Story of Jamai-can Music and longstanding columnist with the Jamaica Ob-server and the Jamaica Gleaner newspapers, Kevin O’Brien Chang, paints a real and in-

sightful portrait of Jamaica look-ing at its music, culture, sports, religion, history and people. To the world at large Jamaica means sunny beaches, reggae and rum, but Jamaica Fi Real: Beauty, Vibes and Culture goes far beyond the surface exposing and exploring the unique things that make Jamaica, Jamaica; in some cases setting the record straight, and also highlighting some signifi cant achievements and little known facts about Jamaica. Did you know that in the 2008 Olympics Jamaica won more gold sprint medals than every other country put together?; that Ska – a mixture of rhythm and blues, mento, revival and rastafarian music – was born in poor west Kingston ghettos?; or that Martin Luther King Jr praised Jamaica as hav-ing felt more at home there than anywhere else in the world?

Lavishly illustrated with over 200 images featuring places to go, foods to eat, religious prac-tices and cultural and histori-cal icons, no other book on or about Jamaica provides such an in-depth, honest and crea-tive representation of Jamaica as Jamaica Fi Real. It will ap-peal to the Jamaican Diaspora, persons wanting to visit Ja-maica, and persons generally interested in Jamaican history, culture and lifestyle.

Thomas Thistlewood’s Remarkable Diaries 45

Three Finger Jack 49

Grandy Nanny of the Maroons 50

The Sam Sharpe Rebellion 51

Interview with a Modern Day Maroon 53

Mary Seacole: Black Woman Pioneer 54

Paul Bogle and Historical Memory 60

MODERN TIMESCharting a National Destiny: 65The Universal Negro Improvement Association 70

Liberty Hall 72

Tough Like Busta Backbone 76

Norman, Busta, Edna & Gladys 78

Mutty Perkins & John Maxwell: A Con�ict of Visions 91

MUSICHeartbeat of a Nation: 95Sound Systems 96

What is Reggae? 96

The Jamaican Roots of Rap 102

Bob Marley – Reggae Super Hero 105

Lady Saw – Kicking Down the Glass Door 109

Ramping Shop Slackness: Trying to Draw a Line 111

Street Dances: Urban Folk Culture 112

Foreword by Tony Rebel xi

Preface xiii

Introduction Twenty-First Century Jamaica xv

PEOPLEOut of Many, One of a Kind: 1 The Ghetto Reality of Slackness 8

A Woman We Name 14

The Rodney Riots and Black Power 20

Uptown vs Downtown: Country vs Town 22

EARLY YEARSThe Hands of Chance: 33Buccaneer Myth and Reality 36

The Reality of Slavery 39

Jonkannu 44

ECONOMYA History of Getting By: 169

FOODA Little Bit From Everywhere: 174The Birth of Jerk 176

Ackee and Salt �sh 177

Places to Eat 179

Best Jerk 182

SCENERYAround the Beautiful Isle: 184Not Even Trying 189

THE EXPERTS SPEAK Jamaica Top Ten: 192

Notes 219Bibliography 227Index 233

SPORTSGood at Most…Great at Some: 114The Fastest Country on Earth 118

A Day at Sabina Park 127

Knocking Bones 129

RELIGION Serious Business: 131William Knibb – Unacknowledged National Hero? 134

Going Home Jamaican Style 138

Dip Dem Bedward! 140

The Roots of Rastafari 141

ARTS+LITERATURERoots & Culture: 147Miss Lou – Mother of Jamaican Culture 155

The White Witch of Rose Hall 158

UnderstandingJamaica Fi Real

ADVERTISEMENT

Author: Kevin O’Brien Chang

Jamaica (and other former Caribbean colonies),the victorious cricket tours of 1963 and 1966,the rapid expansion of music hits in the wake of“My Boy Lollipop”, landmarks such as the firsttelevised inter-racial kiss in Emergency Ward10, and so much more. By 1967 the manage-ment in Kingston decided that a specific Londonoffice was necessary to meet the new challengeand opportunities, but it was delayed for adecade because, I understand, there was notenough advertising revenue from the UK to sup-port the venture and advertisers in Jamaica werenot enthusiastic about backing an initiative sofar from home.

With Enoch Powell’s “rivers of blood”speech, the rise of the Notting Hill Carnival,sports triumphs including the cricket World Cupvictory in 1975, greater political and socialinvolvement .... the demand for a more substan-tial “presence” in London could not be denied,especially as newspapers such as the UK-based“West Indian World” and “Caribbean Times”were making headway in the local circum-stances. In 1977 the Gleaner arranged to be rep-resented here by the Kent Messenger Group.

Although the main office and editorial officein Maidstone were considered to be a littleremote from the readership it served, theLondon office in the area of Fleet Street, thenthe centre of the newspaper industry, provided ahandy and effective advertising, circulation andeditorial focal-point. Regular weekly meetings

of contributors - including Chris Francis, HermaDiaz, Al Croasdaile, Al Hamilton and represen-tatives from the regions (such as Whit Stennett)- ensured that few stories were missed. Theenergetic and charismatic Hector Wynter, whohad succeeded Mr Sealy in his capacity asGroup Editor (while Oliver Clarke succeeded asChairman and Managing Director), kept a keeninterest in the Weekly Gleaner and participatedin editorial meetings on his frequent visits toLondon.

URBAN RIOTS

The Kent Messenger Group franchise between1977 and 1985 co-incided with a series of majorevents at home and abroad. The Weekly Gleanerwas ahead of its competitors in coverage of sto-ries such the rise of Reggae to an internationalphenomenon, and the passing of Bob Marley,the halcyon days of the “invincible” cricketteam, the New Cross Fire, the Yorkshire Ripper,the nation-wide urban riots, world-wide sportingsuccess especially in athletics and boxing (withfootball on the rise), the “golden age” of beautycontests, and the American-led intervention inGrenada.

With its unique position The Weekly Gleanercontinued to carry disproportionate clout.National radio stations - there were fewer localstations then - and television channels wererarely open to people of West Indian heritageand matters of West Indian interest. Nationalnewspapers were similarly not interested.Unlicensed (“pirate”) radio gave some competi-tion at neighbourhood level. The printed presswas pre-eminent to the extent that The WeeklyGleaner, West Indian World and Caribbean

Times were seen to be “grazing in the samefield” rather than competing for their own liveli-hood.

The “crash” came in early 1985. Theeconomies in both the United Kingdom andJamaica had gone through a lean time. Therewas less money in the “kitty” of private enter-prise for advertising. Several publications,including the West Indian World, went out ofexistence and even The Weekly Gleaner had tocut back its coverage. The surprise is not that theWeekly Gleaner had to reduce but that it wasable to survive at all in the adverse ambience.The rapport and “good name” built up with thereadership stood the newspaper in good stead.

The defeat dealt the Conservatives underMargaret Thatcher to the Labour Party in the1979 general election changed the nature of theindustry. Denied national influence for a genera-tion socialist and radical politicians becamemore involved in local activities. The increase in“equal opportunities” investment benefited thenumber of newly-launched radio/television out-lets. The enhanced profile of the West Indianheritage community in the established local andnational press reduced the capacity of the UKCaribbean press for being the “first point ofnews”. “The Voice” newspaper, which waslaunched just before the “crash”, came out ofthose of a younger age born here - “blackBritish” as opposed to “West Indian”.

GAINS MADE

On the ending of the Kent Messenger Groupfranchise The Weekly Gleaner had to movefrom Fleet Street to new premises in Brixton -first in the Bon Marche building and then offAcre Lane. George John, a Trinidadian and“giant” of Caribbean journalism in the mould ofTheo Sealy and Hector Wynter, was appointededitor. He could inspire contributors, but it wasnow a different age. Administrative skills, con-solidation of the gains made and a steady handwere as important as journalism - perhaps moreso.

The newspaper industry has changed beyondrecognition within the last 25 years. Fleet Streetis no longer the centre of the printed press.National titles have been dispersed throughoutLondon. Many have found their way to the new

Docklands, where The Weekly Gleaner hasnow settled. George Ruddock, who has been atthe helm during that quarter-century, first asEditor and then as Managing Director, has thedistinction of being the first Jamaican to edit theUK edition from the United Kingdom and oflearning his skills at head office in Kingston. Heis uniquely qualified to square the circle of seek-ing to provide news of Jamaica to compatriotshere and carrying UK news.

These were difficult times. In spite of the end-ing of Apartheid and of the Cold War bringingoptimism to international relations the economicsituation was harsh. After its own setback, a firein their premises at Brixton (which occurred,evocatively, during urban disturbance in thearea), The Weekly Gleaner moved to theElephant & Castle complex. Nevertheless theteam settled soon and within a few yearsbrought out the London Extra free distributionnewspaper. Although racial tension/discrimina-tion and a rise of individual acts of violenceremain a source of worry, the value and contri-bution of the Jamaican heritage community wasnow recognised nationally.

Coming into the present decade publicationsof shared commercial or editorial interest startedto come together. The Weekly Gleaner and TheVoice were no exception and joined up at theend of 2004 - though the London Extra wasclosed - in shared offices in Stockwell-Brixton,and relocated more recently to Docklands. Withso many sources of news, press releases/confer-ence and people of West Indian heritage beingreported more prominently in the nationalmedia, the present editorial task does more inthe presentation of features, interviews and thenews - presenting a “black point of view” as SydBurke used to introduce his radio show “Riceand Peas” - than, as formerly, in digging outnews that would not be reported otherwise.

So much has changed, and yet the parallelswith the past are poignant. The Weekly Gleanerwas initiated one year before and celebrates itssixtieth anniversary, one year before, the cele-bration of an Olympic Games (1952 and 2012).It came into an environment of developmentafter the Second World War and stands now inan area due for post-Olympic development. Andso much has happened in the years between.

www.jamaica-gleaner.com THE WEEKLY GLEANER32• JUNE 30 - JULY 6, 2011

Continued from 30REFLECTION

Theodore Sealy, editor emeritus of The Gleaner, listens keenly to Janet, wife of Guyana’s president Cheddi Jagan.The occasion was the Press Association of Jamaica’s annual awards banquet held at its Old Hope Road headquar-ters, Saturday night. Dr. Sealy used the occasion to present Mrs. Jagan with a copy of his book on Caribbean lead-ers. Mrs. Jagan who is the editor of the “Mirror” was the guest speaker at the function.


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www.jamaica-gleaner.com THE WEEKLY GLEANER • JUNE 23-29, 201134 CS3635_press_ad_350x262_P_en_v1_aw.indd 1 24/06/2011 12:22

weekly gleaner uk 60th anniversary

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