Just An Ordinary Lawyer

Tayo Aluko - Just An Ordinary Lawyer seed commission support from BLACK THEATRE LIVE & THEATRE ROYAL BURY ST EDMUNDS.  Tayo Aluko produced in association with Liverpool Everyman & Playhouse and Theatre Royal Bury St Edmunds.

“The British Empire was trying desperately to hold on to its colonial possessions by any means … and the foul, it became clear to me, would often override the fair.”

Tunji Sowande arrived in London from Nigeria in 1945 to study law and pursue his interest in music. He rose to become a well respected barrister, becoming the first Black Head of Chambers, and finally the first (part-time) Black Judge in Britain.

He was an active solo concert performer as a baritone singer, giving concerts for charities and to entertain residents of old people’s homes. On top of it all, he was a great lover of cricket, and became a member of the Marylebone Cricket Club (MCC), the home of cricket.

In an undefined setting, Sowande muses on Imperialism, Colonialism and Black people’s struggles for freedom, justice and human rights, in Africa and the diaspora. He is however not a political man – he prefers to do his job and watch sports. He is however content to spread peace and love through the medium of music and song.

From the writer and performer of the international multi-award-winning hit, Call Mr. Robeson (**** First Rate, The Guardian) comes another “ brilliantly put together history lesson delivered as art”(Dirt & Candy)