Bonnie Greer facts for kids
Quick facts for kids
Bonnie Greer
OBE FRSL
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Greer in 2017
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| Born | 16 November 1948 Chicago, Illinois, US |
| Occupation | Playwright, author, critic and broadcaster |
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| Spouse |
David Hutchins
(m. 1993) |
Bonnie Greer (born November 16, 1948) is a talented American and British writer, critic, and TV personality. She has lived in the United Kingdom since 1986. You might have seen her on TV shows like Newsnight Review and Question Time. She has also helped lead important arts groups, like the British Museum and the Royal Opera House. She is also a Vice President of the Shaw Society and was once the Chancellor of Kingston University in London. In 2022, she became a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature, which is a big honor for writers.
Contents
Life and Career Highlights
Growing Up and Early Dreams
Bonnie Greer grew up in Chicago, Illinois. She was the oldest of seven children. Her dad, Ben, worked in a factory, and her mom, Willie Mae, took care of their home. Bonnie's father came from a family of sharecroppers in Mississippi. He was in Britain during World War II and was part of the D-Day landings.
Bonnie started writing plays when she was only nine years old. She first thought about becoming a lawyer. However, she changed her mind when a professor told her women should not work in law. Instead, she decided to study theater in Chicago. She learned from famous people like David Mamet and Elia Kazan.
Moving to the UK and New Beginnings
In 1986, Bonnie Greer visited Scotland for the Edinburgh Festival. She liked it so much that she decided to stay in Britain. She became a British citizen in 1997. She has mostly worked in theater, helping women and people from different backgrounds. She was a writer-in-residence for the Arts Council at the Soho Theatre. She also worked with NitroBeat, a theater group. Bonnie even played Joan of Arc in a play in Paris!
Writing for Stage and Screen
Bonnie has written many plays for BBC Radio 3 and Radio 4. This includes a version of The Little Prince. Some of her plays are Munda Negra (1993), Dancing on Blackwater (1994), and Jitterbug (2001). She also wrote musicals called Solid and Marilyn and Ella.
The musical Marilyn and Ella started as a radio play in 2005. Bonnie learned that Marilyn Monroe helped jazz singer Ella Fitzgerald. At the time, racial segregation stopped Ella from performing in some places. Marilyn helped Ella get a show at the Mocambo nightclub. Bonnie's play was later performed at the Edinburgh Festival Fringe and the Theatre Royal Stratford East. It even played in London's West End at the Apollo Theatre.
Bonnie has also written two novels: Hanging by Her Teeth (1994) and Entropy (2009).
TV Appearances and Public Life
Bonnie Greer was a regular on BBC Two's Newsnight Review. She also appeared on the BBC's Question Time. In 2009, she was on an episode with Nick Griffin, who was the leader of the British National Party. Bonnie later called this experience "weird and creepy." This meeting inspired her opera, Yes, which was performed at the Royal Opera House in 2011.
She used to be a director for the Talawa Theatre Company. She also served on the boards of the Royal Opera House and the London Film School. For a time, she was a theater critic for Time Out magazine.
Books and Documentaries
In 2009, Bonnie's book Obama Music was published. It shares her musical memories and her experiences growing up in Chicago. Reviewers praised how she showed the challenges people faced and how music helped them fight for change.
Her book about Langston Hughes, a famous writer, came out in 2011. It is called Langston Hughes: The Value of Contradiction. Bonnie also helped make a documentary film called Reflecting Skin in 2004. It explored how black people are shown in Western art. Her memoir, A Parallel Life, was published in 2014. It tells the story of her brave journey in life.
Supporting Arts and Education
Bonnie Greer is a member of the Arts Emergency Service. This charity helps young people aged 16 to 19 from different backgrounds get into further education. She also supports the SI Leeds Literary Prize, which is for unpublished fiction by Black and Asian women in the UK. She is also on the board of the Authors' Licensing and Collecting Society (ALCS).
From 2005, she was a Trustee for the British Museum. She served two full terms and became Deputy Chairman in 2009. In 2011, she became President of the Brontë Society.
Bonnie also appears on the Sky Arts TV show Discovering Film. She is one of the main experts who talks about famous Hollywood stars. She also comments on the British Royal Family in documentaries.
In 2023, she appeared on TalkTV. She suggested that Manchester United and Manchester City football clubs should remove images of ships from their logos. She believed these images were racist and glorified slavery.
Honours and Awards
Bonnie Greer was given the Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE) award in 2010. This was for her great work in the Arts. Prince Charles presented her with this honor.
In July 2022, she was named a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature in London.
Selected Works
Books
- Hanging by Her Teeth (Serpent's Tail, 1994), novel. ISBN: 978-1852421854
- Entropy (Picnic Publishing, 2009), novel. ISBN: 978-0956037039
- Obama Music (Legend Press, 2009). ISBN: 978-1906558246
- Langston Hughes: The Value of Contradiction (2011) (Arcadia/BlackAmber Books). ISBN: 978-1906413767
- A Parallel Life (Arcadia Books, 2014). ISBN: 978-1909807624
Films
- White Men Are Cracking Up (1996), screenplay)
Musicals
- Solid
- Marilyn and Ella (2008)
Opera
- Yes (November 2011), Royal Opera House, Covent Garden
Plays
- Munda Negra (1993)
- Dancing on Blackwater (1994)
- Jitterbug (Arcola Theatre, 2001)
Radio Plays
- The Little Prince
- Marilyn and Ella Backstage at the Mocambo
- Ferguson (2016)
TV
- Siren Spirits, Episode 4 (1994)
