2000 Winner Chad Varah The Reverend Chad Varah was a newly-ordained vicar working in London’s East End when the story of a young girl’s suicide moved him to set up a telephone helpline for people who had lost all hope. In November 1953 his small group of volunteers started to answer calls from desperate people […]
Year: 2021
Special Award
2000 Winner Tim Berners-Lee Tim Berners-Lee is one of the most influential men in the world but although millions of people use his invention every day, few have even heard of him. If 1999 was the year of the Internet revolution then Tim, 44, truly deserves recognition — because he invented the WorldWideWeb. And what’s […]
Special Award
2000 Winner The Heroes of Paddington The Paddington rail disaster was the accident that should never have happened. When two packed commuter trains collided on October 5, 1999, close to Ladbroke Grove in London, 31 people lost their lives and many more were badly injured. Amid the chaos and confusion of a major tragedy, it […]
Special Award
2000 Winner Mike and Fiona Thornewill, Catherine Hartley, Caroline Hamilton, Ann Daniels, Rosie Stancer, Zoe Hudson, Pom Oliver In temperatures of minus 50cel, during “white out” blizzards and faced with an ocean of ice, their dreams were of simple things such as the colour of trees or a comfortable chair to sit on. But the […]
Outstanding Bravery
2000 Winner Jamie Blackhall A freak accident pitched fishermen Jamie Blackhall, Alex Beck and John Gilbert into the freezing waters of a remote Scottish Loch. When their boat capsized without warning, the men decided that Jamie, who was the fittest of the three, should swim to shore, about three-quarters of a mile away, to raise […]
Outstanding Bravery
2000 Winner Mark Taylor Mark Taylor’s mum used to think he was “a bit of a wimp”. Not any more. When a bomb was discovered in the Admiral Duncan pub in Soho, where Mark is the manager, he acted as a human shield, taking the full impact of the blast as he ushered customers to […]