Figen Murray, the mother of Martyn Hett, one of the 22 victims of the Manchester Arena bombing, has described the testimony of bereaved relatives at the trial of Hashem Abedi as “heart-breaking.” Writing on Twitter after the terrorist was sentenced to 55 years for his role in the bombing, Mrs Murray said: “The last two […]
Today, Arsenal take on Chelsea in the FA Cup Final, the climax of what has undoubtedly been the strangest football season in living memory, primarily due to the impact of the coronavirus pandemic. The two London sides will battle it out at Wembley Stadium without any fans in order to prevent the further spread of […]
The final game of the 2019-20 season had left Premier League promotion hopefuls Swansea with an uphill struggle to get into the play-offs. In seventh place, three points behind Cardiff and Nottingham Forest, Steve Cooper’s side needed a lots of results to go their way, and to score a bucketful of goals in their own […]
The parents of a 21-month-old baby have made a desperate plea to the British Turkish community to join the UK’s Blood Stem Cell Register. A single door match could help save their daughter Liya Gümüşöz, who has been diagnosed with acute myeloid leukaemia, a rare and aggressive type of cancer. Liya has just weeks to […]
Manchester’s Turkish Cypriot community was plunged into mourning after learning that one of their oldest members, Beyhayettin Ali Mentesh has died. Affectionately known as ‘Uncle Jimmy’, Mr Mentesh passed away peacefully in his sleep at Lefkoşa Dr. Burhan Nalbantoğlu State Hospital in North Cyprus on Wednesday, 24 June. He was admitted to hospital last weekend with […]
In 2018, the United Kingdom held its first Windrush Day to recognise the contribution of migrants to British society. The date – 22 June – now celebrated annually, marks the day in 1948 when the Empire Windrush, a passenger liner docked at Tilbury, East London, bringing the first big group of post-war migrants from the […]
The jessamine is odorous; so Maid lilies are, and clematis And where tall meadowsweet flowers grow A rare and subtle perfume is; – What can there be more choice than these? – A rose when it doth bud and blow.” By Christina Rosetti (1830-1894) When I began interviewing people about their memory of smell […]
For the past few weeks Turkish owned mosques in Northeast London, like many others across the British capital, have been calling the faithful to prayer (ezan in Turkish) from their roofs and minarets at sunset every day. Yet in these extraordinary times none have been able to visit Aziziye Mosque in Stoke Newington, Shacklewell Lane Mosque […]
The relatively high number of British Turks to die from COVID-19 has been sending shockwaves across the Turkish world. With an estimated population of 500,000, the UK’s Turkish community is the fourth largest Turkish diaspora in Europe, behind Germany (4 million), France (1.2 million), and the Netherlands (600,000). A comparison of the the deaths among […]
At least fifty-one people from the British Turkish community have died from coronavirus, the vast majority of Turkish Cypriot origin. The death of doner chef Yaşar Cevahir, formerly of Güzelyurt, North Cyprus, meant the virus has now claimed the lives of forty Turkish Cypriots in Britain. Nationally, a total of 5,373 patients have died in […]
