Aston Villa post tribute to lifelong fan Benjamin Zephaniah following the poet’s death aged 65 after brain tumour diagnosis
Aston Villa and the Aston Villa Foundation have published a moving tribute to poet Benjamin Zephaniah after the 65-year-old poet passed away today.
Born in Birmingham in 1958, Zephaniah suffered from dyslexia and was kicked out of school when she was just 13 and unable to read or write.
But that didn’t stop him as he rose to prominence by writing poetry about social injustice and the consequences of empire. He could even be seen in the BBC series Peaky Blinders.
His birthplace led to Zephaniah becoming an Aston Villa fan as he attended matches with his brother and uncle Simpson.
He also believes former West Ham striker Clyde Best was his hero growing up, seeing him play live.
Benjamin Zephaniah was born in north Birmingham, making the poet an Aston Villa fan.
In a statement posted on social media, his family paid tribute to his legacy.
Following confirmation of his passing from the poet’s family, Aston Villa took to X, formerly known as Twitter. post your tribute.
The club wrote: “Everyone at Aston Villa is deeply saddened by the news of the passing of legendary writer and poet Benjamin Zephaniah.
“In 2008, Benjamin was named one of Britain’s 50 best post-war writers. He was a lifelong Aston Villa fan and an ambassador for the @AstonVillaFoundation.
“The thoughts and condolences of everyone at the club go out to his family and friends at this time.”
In response to a message from the club Added Aston Villa Foundation: “Everyone at the Aston Villa Foundation is saddened to hear of the passing of Benjamin Zephaniah.
Through his writing, Benjamin has been an inspirational figure to many, working closely with our youth as our ambassador. Our thoughts are with his family and friends at this time.”
Zephaniah was a big football fan throughout his life and In talking to the Premier League his love for sports showed clearly.
He said: “My dad didn’t take me and my brother to watch football matches, but our uncle Simpson did. Uncle Simpson was a factory worker and union representative.
“He was born in Jamaica but came to Britain in the mid-sixties. This made him a member of the Windrush Generation, but it wasn’t called that then.
“He was then simply a Jamaican-born British citizen with a keen sense of justice and a love of football.”
But his visits to the stadium were not all happy memories, as he detailed the racist abuse he and his family endured when they attended matches.
“I was born north of Birmingham, so our team was Aston Villa. It was no big deal for us little kids when Uncle Simpson took us to see Villa.
“But traveling to Villa Park can be difficult and dangerous.” Often, when we came down to the ground holding our uncle’s hand, we were verbally abused with racist comments.”
“When we were out there supporting the team we loved, the comments kept getting bigger and bigger, and they were people supporting the same team as us.
“I used to be very afraid, but Uncle Simpson didn’t tolerate it. He always told us: “We remain Villa until we die, no matter what others say.”
Many may have recognized Zephaniah as Jimmy Jesus from the BBC series Peaky Blinders.
Benjamin Zephaniah often attended West Ham matches with his brother and uncle Simpson.
Even though Benjamin Zephaniah was an Aston Villa fan, he considered West Ham’s Clyde Best to be his football hero.
Despite his love for Aston Villa, his hero played for West Ham: “We were watching Aston Villa play West Ham one day and I was mesmerized by one player.
“Clyde Best. Black man. I had seen him on TV, but seeing him play in front of me left me in amazement, and I mean complete amazement.
“He was the only black footballer I saw play in England.
“Pelé was really popular at the time and I remember the great Portuguese player Eusebio making headlines, but they came from afar.
“Clyde Best was one of us. I felt a little like a traitor. Aston Villa were my team and I wanted them to win, but I wanted Clyde Best to shine.
“He was my hero. I just thought if he can do it for West Ham, I can do it for Aston Villa.