Fownhope’s Heart of Oak Society traces its roots to the age of friendly societies, when communities provided their own safety net. Its anniversary celebrations reveal a tradition still very much alive, says MARK SEDDON
IT’S April and the weather is mostly awful — so it must be the start of the cricket season.
When I was growing up, I had just two small ambitions for my future. One was to play football for Aston Villa in the winter, and the other was to come in at first or second wicket down for the West Indies cricket team in the summer.
Sadly I was never good enough at either to succeed, although at times over the years, I still felt I could do a job for Villa given some of the rubbish being served up — thankfully now, under Unai Emery, things appear to have turned the corner.
The pioneering activist understood that freedom could only be won through solidarity across communities. Her legacy offers vital lessons at a time when progressive politics risks losing that shared purpose
The Morning Star republishes PRAGNA PATEL’s speech at the annual commemoration of Claudia Jones on February 22 2026
Gisele Pelicot said ‘shame must change sides.’ We may think we agree, but, argues LOUISE RAW, society still has some way to go
ROGER MCKENZIE argues that it was correct to ban the notorious Israeli side who were likely to cause trouble in Muslim areas of Birmingham, but asks, given the occupation and slaughter in Palestine, why any Israeli team is being hosted anywhere


