Bristol remembers Paul Stephenson

Broadcaster Trevor Phillips OBE, former cabinet minister Lord Paul Boateng and racial justice campaigner Lord Simon Woolley were among the hundreds who paid their respects to the late Paul Stephenson at Bristol Cathedral on Friday.

The civil rights pioneer, who died in November 2024 at the age of 87, was remembered at a celebration of life event at the cathedral.

The event also saw a written tribute from retired boxer Frank Bruno MBE shared in the service programme.

In his lengthy tribute, Frank Bruno said: “In the UK we are taught about Rosa Parks, Malcolm X and Martin Luther King – heroes from thousands of miles away in the USA. But how many UK students could tell you about Paul Stephenson and what he accomplished in UK history?”

Stephenson’s son Paul Jr attended the event while the former mayor of Bristol, Marvin Rees, read out a letter on behalf of Paul’s daughter Fumi.

Frank Bruno MBE’s tribute was shared in the service programme

Prior to the service, Lord Boateng, the UK’s first Black cabinet minister, told Bristol24/7 that Paul Stephenson was “first and foremost an activist”.

He said: “He knew and believed that to make a difference in our world, you have to be prepared to take a stand, a stand for racial justice. He did that.

“He worked together with people in Bristol and people from way beyond Bristol – in the United States, in Africa – to fight for freedom, to fight for justice. We must remember him for that but also, and importantly, we must rededicate ourselves to that cause at this time.”

Lord Boateng knew of Paul Stephenson while he was a student at the University of Bristol in the 1960s but got to know him personally when working as a solicitor in the 1970s.

Moments before the service Bristol Lord Lieutenant Peaches Golding OBE also shared with Bristol24/7 that Stephenson was a “great inspiring man. He inspired young children. out in the community, making sure he understood what their issues were”.

She added that she always loved being out in public with Stephenson because: “people would gather around him like bees around honey and he just loved it.

“He had a little twinkle in his eye, and if you look at almost any photograph of Paul you will see that little twinkle.”

Some attendees wore purple pins, seen here on Green councillor Mohamed Makawai, to commemorate Stephenson’s life

Paul Stephenson was born in Rochford, Essex, in 1937 to a mixed-heritage English mother and a West African father. He moved to Bristol in 1962 and later became the first Black social worker in the city.

In 1963, Stephenson played an essential role in the Bristol Bus Boycott, which culminated in the Bristol Omnibus Company finally hiring their first driver of colour after a four-month protest.

The following year, Stephenson staged a one man sit-in at the Bay Horse pub, on Lewis Mead, after he was a denied a pint because of the colour of his skin.

Although his 1964 charge for failing to leave a licensed premises was ultimately thrown out, the high-profile court case captured the attention of then prime minister Harold Wilson, whose government later introduced the 1965 Race Relations Act.

The Act, the first piece of legislation to target racial discrimination in Britain, banned racial discrimination in public places and was soon followed by the 1968 Race Relations Act, which banned discrimination in employment.

The celebration of life service was attended by hundreds of people

The celebration of life cathedral service, which started at 2pm on Friday, was attended by actors David Harewood and Patrick Robinson; former mayor of Bristol, George Ferguson; former lord mayor of Bristol, Cleo Lake; city council leader Tony Dyer; Green councillor Mohamed Makawi; Guy Bailey, who alongside Paul Stephenson played a critical role in the Bristol Bus Boycott, and Dawn Butler, a London-based Labour Party MP, among others.

Lord Boateng gave a tribute during the service in which he recognised Stephenson’s West African heritage before declaring, “In Africa when a great soul passes, you know what they say? A mighty tree has fallen.”

He credited Stephenson for helping Britain make strides in the battle for racial equality before adding: “It’s not every man, Black or white, who will get an obituary in the New York Times.”

The Renewal Choir, a Bristol-based gospel choir, sang Labi Siffre’s 1987 anti-apartheid hit (Something Inside) So Strong, after Boateng’s tribute.

Another favourite of Stephenson’s, Dottie Rambo’s 2003 song Tears Will Never Stain The Streets Of That City, was performed by Maxine Barclay, a local social care practitioner, later on in the service.

Lord Boateng said of Paul Stephenson that “a mighty tree has fallen”

Crossbench peer Lord Simon Woolley also shared a few words during the service.

Lord Woolley is the founder of Operation Black Vote (OBV), a non-profit founded in 1996 to increase ethnic minority engagement in politics. OBV counts former Bristol mayor Marvin Rees among its alumni.

Lord Woolley said that, when he first set up OBV, he came to Paul Stephenson for advice and Stephenson humbly replied: “Brother Simon, you need to do it your way.”

Woolley also called for a statute of Stephenson to be erected in the city. This suggestion was met with a round of applause.

Bristol Bus Boycott pioneer Guy Bailey was among the attendees

After Lord Woolley came broadcaster, and former head of the national Equality and Human Rights Commission, Trevor Phillips.

Phillips first met Paul Stephenson as a teenager, while at a conference for young Black people Stephenson had organised in London.

He later interviewed Stephenson for Windrush: 75 Years of Modern Britain, a book he co-authored with his brother Mike in 2003. Audio from that interview is available at the Bristol Archives.

In his speech, Phillips thanked Stephenson for “doing the most important thing that any of us can do with their life. You came into this world. You saw what it was not and you saw what it could be.

“You gave it the best of yourself and left it a better place.”

Broadcaster Sherrie Eugene Hart later performed a poem inspired by Stephenson’s activism before Peter Courtier MBE, a former director of the Bristol Racial Equality Council, brought the service to a close by sharing “all the other stuff” in his friend’s life beyond the Bus Boycott.

The service ended at around 3.30pm.

Former mayor Marvin Rees, who played a key role in organising the celebration of life event, shared a letter from Paul Stephenson’s daughter Fumi during the service

Stephenson died on November 2 2024.

A week prior to his death a plaque was unveiled at the Bay Horse pub to commemorate his 1964 sit-in.

Stephenson was due to appear at the unveiling but was too unwell to attend.

The unveiling, organised by Curiosity UnLtd, also saw the Bay Horse introduce a new beer called ‘The Sit In’ in recognition of his protest.

Paul Stephenson’s celebration of life service on Friday was officiated by The Very Rev’d Dr Mandy Ford, dean of Bristol, in the presence of  The Rt Rev’d Vivienne Faull, bishop of Bristol.

All photos: Seun Matiluko

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