Oliver Foot
Encyclopedia
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
actor, philanthropist, charity worker and Christian.
Early life
The son of Hugh Foot, (later Baron Caradon, JamaicaJamaica
Jamaica is an island nation of the Greater Antilles, in length, up to in width and 10,990 square kilometres in area. It is situated in the Caribbean Sea, about south of Cuba, and west of Hispaniola, the island harbouring the nation-states Haiti and the Dominican Republic...
's last British Colonial Secretary), Oliver Foot was born on 19 September 1946. He was the younger brother of journalist
Journalist
A journalist collects and distributes news and other information. A journalist's work is referred to as journalism.A reporter is a type of journalist who researchs, writes, and reports on information to be presented in mass media, including print media , electronic media , and digital media A...
Paul Foot
Paul Foot
Paul Mackintosh Foot was a British investigative journalist, political campaigner, author, and long-time member of the Socialist Workers Party...
and nephew of the former leader of the British Labour Party
Labour Party (UK)
The Labour Party is a centre-left democratic socialist party in the United Kingdom. It surpassed the Liberal Party in general elections during the early 1920s, forming minority governments under Ramsay MacDonald in 1924 and 1929-1931. The party was in a wartime coalition from 1940 to 1945, after...
, Michael Foot
Michael Foot
Michael Mackintosh Foot, FRSL, PC was a British Labour Party politician, journalist and author, who was a Member of Parliament from 1945 to 1955 and from 1960 until 1992...
.
After leaving Leighton Park School
Leighton Park School
Leighton Park School is a co-educational Quaker independent school for both day and boarding pupils. It is situated in the large town of Reading in Berkshire, in South East England...
, he read English at Goddard College, Vermont
Goddard College
Goddard College is a private, liberal arts college located in Plainfield, Vermont, offering undergraduate and graduate degree programs. Goddard College currently operates on an intensive low-residency model...
before returning to England
England
England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental...
to attend a drama studio in Ealing
Ealing
Ealing is a suburban area of west London, England and the administrative centre of the London Borough of Ealing. It is located west of Charing Cross and around from the City of London. It is one of the major metropolitan centres identified in the London Plan. It was historically a rural village...
, west London
London
London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its...
.
Footsbarn Theatre
In 1971, Foot, with his wife Nancy and a group of other friends, set up the Footsbarn Theatre CompanyFootsbarn Theatre
Footsbarn Theatre is a touring theatre company renowned for its adaptations of classics such as Shakespeare and Molière.Footsbarn started life in Cornwall, in the United Kingdom in 1971 rehearsing in a barn owned by the Foot family, hence its name....
using a barn near Liskeard
Liskeard
Liskeard is an ancient stannary and market town and civil parish in south east Cornwall, England, United Kingdom.Liskeard is situated approximately 20 miles west of Plymouth, west of the River Tamar and the border with Devon, and 12 miles east of Bodmin...
for rehearsals — hence the name, 'Footsbarn'. The theatre bug also gripped his daughter Mary-Rachel who is based in Los Angeles where she is involved in acting, casting and performing stand-up.
Christian faith
In the mid-1970s, Foot became a born-again Christian while staying with the L'AbriL'Abri
L'Abri is an evangelical Christian organization founded by Francis Schaeffer and his wife Edith in Huémoz-sur-Ollon, Switzerland on June 5, 1955. They opened their alpine home as a ministry to curious travellers and as a forum to discuss philosophical and religious beliefs.- The development of...
Fellowship in Hampshire. His personal faith caused significant inner turmoil for him as he struggled with addiction for much of his life. However, he truly believed in the Bible and the message of redemption and forgiveness of sins. In his unpublished autobiography, he constantly refers to the 'demons of temptation' and his failure in living a life that reflected his beliefs. Foot was an active member of Grace Community Church in Morval, Near Looe in Cornwall
Cornwall
Cornwall is a unitary authority and ceremonial county of England, within the United Kingdom. It is bordered to the north and west by the Celtic Sea, to the south by the English Channel, and to the east by the county of Devon, over the River Tamar. Cornwall has a population of , and covers an area of...
where his portrayal of a cockney Doubting Thomas
Doubting Thomas
A Doubting Thomas is someone who will refuse to believe something without direct, physical, personal evidence; a skeptic.-Origin:The term is based on the Biblical account of Thomas the Apostle, a disciple of Jesus who doubted Jesus' resurrection and demanded to feel Jesus' wounds before being...
during a number of services is remembered well. His faith formed a core part of his identity and motivation.
Orbis
Foot was a long standing supporter of ORBIS InternationalORBIS International
Orbis International is an international non-profit non-governmental organization dedicated to saving sight worldwide. Orbis programs focus on the prevention of blindness and the treatment of blinding eye diseases in developing countries...
, the flying eye hospital, and was the Chief Executive from 1982 to 1987, becoming President from 1987 to 1995 and again from 2004 to his death in 2008.
Air Jamaica and Sandals
After his departure from Orbis, Foot worked for Air JamaicaAir Jamaica
Air Jamaica is the current national airline of Jamaica. It is has been owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines since 26 May 2011. The airline, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago also has administrative offices located in Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica...
and Sandals Resorts
Sandals Resorts
Sandals Resorts is an operator of all-inclusive resorts in the Caribbean and part of Sandals Resorts International , parent company of Sandals Resorts, Beaches Resorts, Grand Pineapple Beach Resorts and The Royal Plantation Collection. Sandals Resorts has a total of 15 couples-only properties,...
as a Vice-President of Public Affairs from 1996-2004. Splitting his time between Jamaica and the UK, Foot used his contacts in the press to significantly raise the profile of Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica is the current national airline of Jamaica. It is has been owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines since 26 May 2011. The airline, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago also has administrative offices located in Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica...
, Sandals and Jamaica at large to the people of the UK.
Jamaica Blue
During 1998, in partnership with the Jamaican Government, Foot started an upmarket chain of coffee shops called Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee Shops Limited (Jamaica Blue). The flagship location opened in Mayfair, London, in mid-January 1999. Jamaica Blue sold and used Jamaican Blue Mountain CoffeeJamaican Blue Mountain Coffee
Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee or Jamaica Blue Mountain Coffee is a classification of coffee grown in the Blue Mountains of Jamaica. The best lots of Blue Mountain coffee are noted for their mild flavour and lack of bitterness...
and served locally supplied Jamaican foods, cakes and crafts; Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica
Air Jamaica is the current national airline of Jamaica. It is has been owned and operated by Caribbean Airlines since 26 May 2011. The airline, headquartered in Piarco, Trinidad and Tobago also has administrative offices located in Norman Manley International Airport in Kingston, Jamaica...
transported all the coffee at a discount price and even flew shipments of Jamaica's own St Catherine's peak spring water. Most of the staff were of Jamaican descent or had a Jamaican connection. Many high profile customers frequented the location including the then Mayor of London Ken Livingston, Suggs
Suggs (singer)
Graham McPherson , better known as Suggs, is an English singer, actor, former radio DJ, TV personality, and most famous as the frontman of the band Madness.-Early life:...
, Ian Brown
Ian Brown
Ian George Brown is an English musician, best known as the lead singer of the alternative rock band The Stone Roses, which broke up in 1996 but are confirmed to reunite in 2012. Since the break-up of the Stone Roses he has pursued a solo career...
, Linton Kwesi Johnson
Linton Kwesi Johnson
Linton Kwesi Johnson is a UK-based dub poet. He became the second living poet, and the only black poet, to be published in the Penguin Classics series. His poetry involves the recitation of his own verse in Jamaican Patois over dub-reggae, usually written in collaboration with renowned British...
, Joe Strummer
Joe Strummer
John Graham Mellor , best remembered by his stage name Joe Strummer, was the co-founder, lyricist, rhythm guitarist and lead vocalist of the British punk rock band The Clash. His musical experience included his membership in The 101ers, Latino Rockabilly War, The Mescaleros and The Pogues, in...
and the rocksteady
Rocksteady
Rocksteady is a music genre that originated in Jamaica around 1966. A successor to ska and a precursor to reggae, rocksteady was performed by Jamaican vocal harmony groups such as The Gaylads, The Maytals and The Paragons. The term rocksteady comes from a dance style that was mentioned in the Alton...
musician Alton Ellis
Alton Ellis
Alton Nehemiah Ellis, OD, was a Jamaican musician best known as one of the innovators of rocksteady music and was often referred to as the "Godfather of Rocksteady". In 2006, he was inducted into the International Reggae And World Music Awards Hall Of Fame.-Biography:Ellis was born in 1938 and...
. Foot set up the shop not to make money but to help the small coffee farmers in Jamaica who were suffering due to a surplus of Blue Mountain coffee created by financial instability in Japan, the main purchaser of Jamaican Blue Mountain Coffee. In the end, the location was poorly chosen and the overheads were too high. Jamaica Blue closed its doors in late 2001.
Autobiography
Foot had been working on his autobiography which detailed his early life as the son of a diplomat, his struggle with addiction, his passionate faith, his immense love for his family and the worldwide adventures of his career.Death
Oliver Foot died of heart failure on February 6, 2008.He was survived by his children Mary-Rachel and Jesse, three grandchildren, his sister Sarah, brother Benjamin, and uncle, Michael Foot.