The Willow Foundation
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The Willow Foundation
The Willow Foundation is a national charity established in 1999 by Arsenal footballer and BBC sports commentator Bob Wilson and his wife Megs as a lasting memorial to their daughter, Anna, who died of cancer aged 31. It is the only national charity to provide psychological and emotional support for seriously ill 16- to 40-year-olds through the provision of special day experiences. Every special day aims to provide beneficiaries and their loved ones with a break from the realities of their diagnosis and treatment and the inspiration to make the most out of life. At a time of uncertainty, spending quality time with family and friends can help restore a sense of normality, boost confidence and create precious memories for the future. To date, Willow has provided more than 15,000 special days for young adults living with life-threatening conditions including cancer, motor neurone disease, cystic fibrosis and Huntington's disease. 2013 saw the 10,000th Special Day Willow provided and 2 ...
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Arsenal F
An arsenal is a place where weapon, arms and ammunition are made, maintenance, repair, and operations, maintained and repaired, stored, or issued, in any combination, whether Private property, privately or state-owned, publicly owned. Arsenal and armoury (British English) or armory (American English) are mostly regarded as synonyms, although subtle differences in usage exist. A sub-armory is a place of temporary storage or carrying of weapons and ammunition, such as any temporary post or patrol vehicle that is only operational in certain times of the day. Etymology The term in English entered the language in the 16th century as a loanword from french: arsenal, itself deriving from the it, arsenale, which in turn is thought to be a corruption of ar, دار الصناعة, , meaning "manufacturing shop". Types A lower-class arsenal, which can furnish the materiel and equipment of a small army, may contain a laboratory, gun and carriage factories, small-arms ammunition, sm ...
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Bob Wilson (footballer Born 1941)
Robert Primrose Wilson (born 30 October 1941) is a former Scotland international football goalkeeper and later broadcaster. As a player, Wilson was most noted for his 11-year playing career at Arsenal where he made over 300 appearances. Wilson as well featured as a youth and senior international for Scotland. After retiring as a player, he turned to coaching and broadcasting, presenting football programmes on television for 28 years until 2002. Wilson has also gone on to create a charity organization known as the Willow Foundation. Early life Wilson was born on Ashgate Road, in Chesterfield, where his father William was the Borough Engineer and Surveyor, and his mother Catherine Wilson (nee Primrose) was a magistrate. Their Ashgate Road house was named "Threepwood" after the Galston, East Ayrshire farm where William Wilson was born. He was the youngest child of six and had much older brothers and an elder sister. Two of his brothers were killed in the Second World War, one a ...
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Pat Jennings
Patrick Anthony Jennings (born 12 June 1945) is a Northern Irish former professional footballer who played as a goalkeeper. He played 119 international matches for Northern Ireland in an international career which lasted for over 22 years. During his career, Jennings played for Newry Town, Watford and in the top division with Tottenham Hotspur and Arsenal, winning the FA Cup with both of the north London rivals. In total, Jennings made over 1,000 top level appearances, and despite being a goalkeeper he scored in the 1967 FA Charity Shield. Club career Newry Town & Watford After playing for Shamrock Rovers' under-18 side at the age of 11, Jennings concentrated on Gaelic football until he was sixteen years old, when he made his soccer comeback with his hometown side Newry Town. After impressing with the team he moved to English Third Division side Watford in May 1963. Jennings again impressed in his first season in England, playing every league game for his club, and mak ...
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Bob Finch
Robert 'Bob' Finch was Head of Coal Trading at leading energy trading company The Vitol Group until June 2015. He was born in the London suburb of Kingston-upon-Thames in 1954 as the son of an RAF fighter pilot. After leaving school at the age of 17, Finch started working as entry level junior at Petrofina. Over the years he worked his way up to the position of trader. Finch joined Vitol in 1979 as the Rotterdam-based trader began its international growth. Oil trading was in its infancy then. For many years, he was head of trading and served on its board for 15 years. Finch helped with establishing Vitol’s entry into the coal markets in 2007. In January 2012, Finch was involved in the agreement between Vitol Anker International BV and Vitol Mauritius Limitada (“Vitol”) and Grindrod Limited of South Africa (“Grindrod”) whereby Vitol gained a 35% interest in the company which owns the Maputo coal terminal concession. In addition Vitol and Grindrod entered into a partnershi ...
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Richard Attenborough
Richard Samuel Attenborough, Baron Attenborough, (; 29 August 192324 August 2014) was an English actor, filmmaker, and entrepreneur. He was the president of the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art (RADA) and the British Academy of Film and Television Arts (BAFTA), as well as the life president of Chelsea FC. He joined the Royal Air Force during the Second World War and served in the film unit, going on several bombing raids over Europe and filming the action from the rear gunner's position. He was the older brother of broadcaster Sir David Attenborough and motor executive John Attenborough. He was married to actress Sheila Sim from 1945 until his death. As an actor, he is best remembered for his film roles in '' Brighton Rock'' (1948), ''I'm All Right Jack'' (1959), '' The Great Escape'' (1963), ''The Sand Pebbles'' (1966), ''Doctor Dolittle'' (1967), '' 10 Rillington Place'' (1971), '' Jurassic Park'' (1993), and ''Miracle on 34th Street'' (1994). In 1952 he appeared on the West En ...
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John Hurt
Sir John Vincent Hurt (22 January 1940 – 25 January 2017) was an English actor whose career spanned over five decades. Hurt was regarded as one of Britain's finest actors. Director David Lynch described him as "simply the greatest actor in the world". He possessed what was described as the "most distinctive voice in Britain". He's received numerous accolades and honours including the BAFTA Outstanding British Contribution to Cinema Award in 2012 and was knighted by Queen Elizabeth II in 2015 for his services to drama. He came to prominence playing Richard Rich in the film '' A Man for All Seasons'' (1966) and won the British Academy Television Award for Best Actor for '' The Naked Civil Servant'' (1975). He played Caligula in the BBC TV series ''I, Claudius'' (1976). Hurt earned Academy Award nominations for Best Supporting Actor for '' Midnight Express'' (1978), and Best Actor for ''The Elephant Man'' (1980). Other films include ''Alien'' (1979), '' Heaven's Gate'' (1 ...
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Jude Law
David Jude Heyworth Law (born 29 December 1972) is an English actor. He received a British Academy Film Award, as well as nominations for two Academy Awards, two Tony Awards, and four Golden Globe Awards. In 2007, he received an Honorary César and was named a knight of the Order of Arts and Letters by the French government."French Honour for Jude Law"
, (UK), 2 March 2007. Retrieved 20 November 2007.
Born and raised in London, Law started acting in theatre. After finding small roles in feature films, Law gained recognition for his role in 's ...
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Peter Blake (artist)
Sir Peter Thomas Blake (born 25 June 1932) is an English pop artist. He co-created the sleeve design for the Beatles' album ''Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band''. His other works include the covers for two of The Who's albums, the cover of the Band Aid (band), Band Aid single "Do They Know It's Christmas?", and the Live Aid concert poster. Blake also designed the 2012 Brit Award statuette. Blake is a prominent figure in the pop art movement. Central to his paintings are his interest in images from popular culture which have infused his collages. In 2002 he was Orders, decorations, and medals of the United Kingdom, knighted at Buckingham Palace for his services to art. Early life Peter Blake was born in Dartford, Kent, on 25 June 1932. He was educated at the Gravesend Technical College school of art, and the Royal College of Art. Career From the late 1950s, Blake's paintings included imagery from advertisements, music hall entertainment, and wrestling, wrestlers, oft ...
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Michael "Atters" Attree
Michael "Atters" Attree (born 22 April 1965 in Colchester Military Hospital)'' The Argus'' Weekend (cover feature): A Bounder and a Cad. 25–26 August 2007. is a British humourist and performer. Early life Attree was born to British colonial parents who met in East Africa during the early 1950s. He was born in Colchester. He studied Fine Art & Film at Saint Martins School of Art.''Le Figaro'' magazine: Les Extravagants-Michael "Atters" Attree. 8 August 2009 Career Attree writes as the editor at large for the satirical magazine ''The Chap''. His feature interviews have included Leslie Phillips, Sir Patrick Moore, Brian Blessed, Alan Moore and Jilly Cooper, while his ongoing column "The Pentagram of Atters" contains information regarding the supernatural. Attree is a campaigner and activist within the "Chap movement". In his book ''London Calling: A Countercultural History of London since 1945'', Barry Miles recalls how Attree (along with two colleagues) climbed to the top of a ...
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Steve Coogan
Stephen John Coogan (; born 14 October 1965) is an English actor, comedian, producer and screenwriter. He is most known for creating original characters such as Alan Partridge, a socially inept and politically incorrect media personality, which he developed while working with Armando Iannucci on '' On the Hour'' and ''The Day Today''. Partridge has featured in several television series and the 2013 film '' Alan Partridge: Alpha Papa''. In 1999, he co-founded the production company Baby Cow Productions with Henry Normal. He began his career in the 1980s as a voice actor on the satirical puppet show ''Spitting Image'' and providing voice-overs for television advertisements. Coogan grew in prominence in the film industry in 2002, after starring in ''The Parole Officer'' and '' 24 Hour Party People''. He continued to appear in films such as ''Around the World in 80 Days'' (2004), ''Hamlet 2'' (2008), ''Tropic Thunder'' (2008), ''The Other Guys'' (2010), ''Ruby Sparks'' (2012), and ...
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Matt Lucas (comedian)
Matthew Richard Lucas (born 5 March 1974) is an English actor, comedian, writer, and television presenter. He is best known for his work with David Walliams on the BBC sketch comedy series '' Little Britain'' (2003–2006, 2020) and '' Come Fly With Me'' (2010–2011). From 2015 to 2017, Lucas portrayed the role of Nardole in the BBC series ''Doctor Who''. He has also appeared in films, including ''Alice in Wonderland'' (2010), ''Bridesmaids'' (2011), ''Small Apartments'' (2012), and ''Paddington'' (2014). Lucas presented ''The Great British Bake Off,'' alongside Noel Fielding from 2020 to 2022. Early life Matthew Richard Lucas was born on 5 March 1974 in the Paddington area of London, the son of Diana (née Williams; born 1945) and chauffeuring business owner John Stanley Lucas (1944–1996). His family was Jewish; some of his mother's family fled Nazi Germany just before the Second World War. He has had alopecia since childhood, before losing all of his hair at the age of 6 ...
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Catherine Tate
Catherine Jane Ford (born 5 December 1969), known professionally as Catherine Tate, is an English actress, comedian and writer. She has won numerous awards for her work on the BBC sketch comedy series ''The Catherine Tate Show'' (2004–2007), as well as being nominated for an International Emmy Award and seven BAFTAs. Tate played Donna Noble in the 2006 Christmas special of ''Doctor Who'', and later reprised her role, becoming the Tenth Doctor's regular companion for the fourth series in 2008.Tate to be Doctor's companion
. , 3 July 2007. Retrieved 4 July 2007.
Following the success of ''The Catherine Tate Show'', Tate starred as