Clark Denmark is a British activist, lecturer and interpreter. He is deaf and a

British Sign Language British Sign Language (BSL) is a sign language used in the United Kingdom (UK), and is the first or preferred language among the Deaf community in the UK. Based on the percentage of people who reported 'using British Sign Language at home' on ...

(BSL) user, and he is widely recognised within the Deaf community for his role in advancing the recognition and wider understanding of BSL.

Activity

Born and educated in Scotland, Denmark worked at

Durham University , mottoeng = Her foundations are upon the holy hills (Psalm 87:1) , established = (university status) , type = Public , academic_staff = 1,830 (2020) , administrative_staff = 2,640 (2018/19) , chancellor = Sir Thomas Allen , vice_chan ...

, where he joined a task force between the BDA and University to develop a sign language training course, which provided teachers with a formal qualification. He also joined the editorial team of the British Sign Language Dictionary. The Dictionary collects over 1,800 pictures of signs, as well as their definition and explanations, and was published in 1992. He then joined the

University of Bristol , mottoeng = earningpromotes one's innate power (from Horace, ''Ode 4.4'') , established = 1595 – Merchant Venturers School1876 – University College, Bristol1909 – received royal charter , type ...

's Centre for Deaf Studies when the first degree in Deaf Studies was established in 1992. He taught sign language and deafness-related subjects there for the following 15 years. He then worked at

UCLan , mottoeng = "From the Earth to the Sun" , established = as Institution for the Diffusion of Useful Knowledgere-established 1992 (University status granted) , type = Public , chancellor ...

on the BSL QED, a project funded by the British Government aimed at bringing British Sign Language in line with the European Language framework, in order to draw a national higher education curriculum for teaching BSL and to create teaching materials to support teachers of BSL. The linguistic resources were made available online. While at UCLan, Denmark achieved an MA on Deaf studies with a thesis on teaching English to Indian signers through e-learning. In 1988 he met

Princess Diana Diana, Princess of Wales (born Diana Frances Spencer; 1 July 1961 – 31 August 1997) was a member of the British royal family. She was the first wife of King Charles III (then Prince of Wales) and mother of Princes William and Harry. Her ac ...

, who had become a patron of the BDA and was keen to learn more sign language. She was privately tutored by Denmark, and she wrote the foreword of the British Sign Language Dictionary and delivered an address at the BDA's centenary celebrations in 1990. Well known within the Deaf community, Denmark currently appears often as a television Deaf interpreter on the BBC working for

Red Bee Media Red Bee Media, formerly Ericsson Broadcast and Media Services (EBMS), is an international broadcasting and media services company and the largest access provider in Europe. Red Bee has its headquarters in London, England, with branch offices in ...

, translating the news live from spoken English into Sign Language, and as a presenter on the BBC programme

See Hear ''See Hear'' is a monthly magazine programme for deaf and hard-of-hearing people in the United Kingdom, broadcast on Wednesday mornings at 8.00am. The programme focuses on the British and the worldwide deaf community and covers a broad range of ...

. In 2017 Denmark became the first Deaf person to interpret BBC news live into British Sign Language.

References

Added extra references in support to the article

{{DEFAULTSORT:Denmark, Clark English deaf people BSL users Year of birth missing (living people) Living people Scottish deaf people