Brinsley Forde facts for kids

Quick facts for kids Brinsley Forde MBE
Forde in 2009
Born	Brinsley Allan Forde (1953-10-16) 16 October 1953 (age 71) Islington, London, England
Years active	1970–present
Musical career
Instruments	Vocals, guitar

Brinsley Forde MBE was born on October 16, 1953. He is a British singer and actor. His parents were from Guyana.

Brinsley Forde is best known for two main things. He was a founder of the famous reggae band Aswad. He was also a child actor in the children's TV series Here Come the Double Deckers! from 1970 to 1971.

Brinsley Forde's Life

Acting Career

Brinsley Forde started acting at a young age. He played Herman in two episodes of the TV show Please Sir!. He also appeared as Wesley in the movie version of Please Sir! in 1971.

His first big movie role was in Leo the Last in 1970. He also had a part in the James Bond film Diamonds Are Forever. Later, in 1980, he starred in the drama film Babylon. In this movie, he played Blue, a young man who becomes a deejay for a South London reggae soundsystem. A soundsystem is a group of DJs and engineers who play music loudly, often at parties.

Music Career

Brinsley Forde is a talented musician and radio presenter. He hosted TV shows like VH1 Soul Vibrations. He also helped launch the BBC's first digital radio station, 6 Music. There, he had his own radio shows called Lively Up Yourself and Dub Bashment.

He also presented radio documentaries. These included Behind The Smile: The Real Life of Bob Marley. He also hosted Island Rock to celebrate 40 years of Jamaican independence.

Success with Aswad

Brinsley Forde was a key member of the reggae group Aswad. The band was nominated for a Grammy Award twice. In 1988, Aswad had a huge hit song called "Don't Turn Around". It reached number one on the British music charts.

They had another top 20 hit with "Give A Little Love". Their album Distant Thunder also did very well. Other popular songs included "On and On", "Next to You", and "Shine".

In 2009, Brinsley Forde performed with the artist Dizzee Rascal. They sang "Can't Tek No More" on the TV show Later... with Jools Holland. He performed with Dizzee Rascal again later that year.

Special Honours

Brinsley Forde was recognized for his contributions to the arts. In 2015, he was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE). This is a special award given by the British monarch.

Filmography

Movies

Television Shows

Discography

Albums with Aswad

Singles with Aswad