Pauline Black was adopted by a white middle-aged couple and given the name Pauline Vickers.
15 Facts About Pauline Black
2.
Pauline Black's biological father, Gordon Adenle, had come to London from Nigeria to study engineering and was a Yoruba omoba.
3.
Pauline Black was unaware of her Jewish heritage until the age of 42 when she traced her birth mother.
4.
Pauline Black studied science at Lanchester Polytechnic before training as a radiographer in Coventry.
5.
Pauline Black was a founding member of 2 Tone ska band The Selecter who were formed in Coventry in 1979.
6.
Pauline Black adopted a stage name in order to conceal her involvement in the band from her employer, choosing the surname Black partly in reaction to her upbringing - her adoptive family had always referred to her as "coloured" rather than black.
7.
In 2014, a portrait of Pauline Black was exhibited as part of the Return of the Rudeboy exhibition by Dean Chalkley and Harris Elliott at Somerset House, London.
8.
Pauline Black was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in the 2022 New Year Honours for services to entertainment.
9.
Pauline Black was appointed as a Deputy Lieutenant of the West Midlands in May 2022.
10.
Pauline Black developed an acting career in television and theatre, appearing in dramas such as The Vice, The Bill, Hearts and Minds and Two Thousand Acres of Sky.
11.
Pauline Black appeared in soap opera Hollyoaks for four episodes as Diane Valentine, until her character was killed off.
12.
Pauline Black won the 1991 Time Out award for Best Actress for her portrayal of Billie Holiday in the play All or Nothing at All.
13.
Pauline Black starred alongside Christopher Lee in the horror film Funny Man.
14.
In 2007, Pauline Black narrated the BBC Four documentary Soul Britannia, which chronicles the history of British soul music.
15.
Pauline Black later appeared in the follow-up Reggae Britannia as an interviewee, and as a member of the Selecter.