Posted 30 September 2020 - 09:37
Posted 30 September 2020 - 09:37
News
Mary Seacole among black Britons honoured with special post boxes
Special edition post boxes to mark Black History Month honour contributions of black Britons
Special edition post boxes to mark Black History Month honour contributions of black Britons
Four of the UK’s landmark red post boxes have been painted black to honour black Britons past and present, including nursing pioneer Mary Seacole.
The four post boxes – in Belfast, Cardiff, Glasgow and London – sport the new colour with a gold trim as part of Black History Month in October.
Celebrating the contributions black people have made over generations
Mary Seacole, who nursed wounded British soldiers back to health during the 1853-56 Crimean War and built a dedicated place for them to recuperate known as the British Hotel, appears on the Cardiff post box in the city’s King Edward VII Avenue.
Royal Mail head of diversity and inclusion Peter De Norville said: ‘Black History Month is a great opportunity to celebrate the contributions that black people have made to this country over many generations.
‘We are also using it as an opportunity to celebrate the vital work that our black employees do throughout the nation.’
A QR code on the black post boxes can be scanned to bring up a list of black Britons who have appeared on special stamps over the years, linking to a gallery of them on the Royal Mail website.
Others honoured include comedian Sir Lenny Henry
The other black people honoured include comedian Sir Lenny Henry, co-founder of the charity Comic Relief, who appears on a post box in Bedford Street, Belfast.
Walter Tull, who became the first black player for Rangers Football Club, appears on a post box in Glasgow’s Byres Road.
London’s black post box is in Acre Lane, Brixton, which is near the Black Cultural Archives, a museum dedicated to the histories of African and Caribbean people in Britain.
This post box features the image Queuing at the RA by Yinka Shonibare, an artist commissioned by Royal Mail to produce original artworks for a set of special stamps.
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