Poetic Temple x The Africa Centre Archives (The Lyrical Pugilists)

EXHIBITION CLOSES MAY 10TH

The Lyrical Pugilists

A night dedicated to wizardry wordplay and the dangerous dexterity of the Spoken Word Tongue!

Inspired by the ARCHIVES currently on display at the Africa Centre and as a part of our Empowerment Events.

We invite you to surrender to the splendour found only at our legendary nights.

Be dazzled by the Live Art by Artist and Host Stella B

Enjoy Our Unique Poetic Temple Playlist

Open mic

Our Surprise Feature

And MORE!!!

This night will be in honour of the pioneering black British athletes who achieved outstanding results and are hardly known.

Such as the great Tom Molineaux

Absolutely — here is a version shortened by roughly 20%, while keeping the pan-African literary voice and the historical depth:

Tom Molineaux: The Science of Survival in the Ring

In the long shadow of empire, before gloved boxing and codified rules, there stood Tom Molineaux, a man whose fists wrote counter-history into the Atlantic world.

Born in 1784 in Virginia, in slavery, Molineaux emerged from the brutal plantation culture where enslaved men were forced into prize fights for the amusement and profit of others. According to enduring oral tradition, he won one such contest and secured both money and his freedom.

Freedom became movement. He traveled to New York and then crossed the Atlantic to England in 1809—not as cargo, but as a fighter. There, under the guidance of Bill Richmond, another formerly enslaved Black master of the ring, Molineaux refined what was then called the science of pugilism: timing, rhythm, endurance, and strategic counterpunching.

Contemporaries were struck not only by his power but by his intellect in the ring. He fought with discipline and calculation, conserving strength over punishing bare-knuckle rounds in a style that anticipated modern boxing craft.

In 1810 he faced Tom Cribb, champion of England, in a legendary bout that became about far more than sport. Molineaux came close to victory, and some accounts even speak of interference from the crowd when the tide turned in his favor. Though he lost the rematch in 1811, he had already shaken the racial hierarchy of the age.

Beyond these famous contests, Molineaux fought across Britain and Ireland, including exhibition matches and even Cornish wrestling, revealing a versatile athleticism rarely noted in conventional histories.

His later life was marked by illness and financial hardship. He died in Galway in 1818, likely of tuberculosis, and was buried in an unmarked grave—his memory nearly lost to history.

Yet his legacy endured through the Black pugilists who followed: Bill Richmond, George Godfrey, Peter Jackson, Jack Johnson, and Sam Langford—fighters who carried forward the science, artistry, and resistance he helped define.

Tom Molineaux was more than a boxer. He was one of the first Black international sporting figures of the modern age, a man who fought empire with both body and mind.

Tickets Available Here:

Poetic Temple is back at The Africa Centre exploring the themes of the Africa Centre’s current exhibition as a creative impetus. We are delighted to be a part of the Africa Centre’s 60+ years story, adding to a rich legacy by providing regular Spoken Word nights every 3rd Wednesday of the Month.

2024 to 2025 was outstanding! We committed to raising £6000 for the Africa Centres campaign through our ticket sales and merchandise. We are yet to hit our target and determined that 2026 will be the year that we succeed.

To mark their 60th anniversary (2024), The Africa Centre has a landmark exhibition celebrating six decades of African presence, creativity and cultural influence in Britain.

Curated by Leon Robinson (Positive Steps Associates), the exhibition draws on Before The Africa Centre, tracing the deep and often overlooked history of Africans in Britain, The Africa Centre Through the Decades, a chronological exploration of the Centre’s impact across arts, culture, education, and community life. The Next Chapter, featuring the premiere of a new short documentary by award-winning filmmaker Curtis Essel, reflecting on the Centre’s future in a new era of African creativity.

From April 15th we will invite you to our Poetic Temple curated evenings of Open Mic, Featured Poets and Musicians , Live art and more. Culminating in a live Auction of the exciting Artworks produced by Stella B since 2024 in August where we will have a live Art Auction alongside Special Poetry Performances.

Put the dates in you diary!

April 15th- Sons of Africa

May 20th- The Lyrical Pugilists

June 18th- Windrush

July 22nd- Re-Membering

August 21st- The Auction

Earlybird Tickets Available NOW!!!

ALL SALES GIVE %20 TOWARDS THE FUNDRAISER

POETRY. OPEN MIC. MUSIC. ARCHIVES. LIVE ART

Nat Nye the Lyrical Alkhemist has wowed crowds since his early days as a Roundhouse poet performing at the Roundhouse, to performing at the likes of Wilderness Festival, Royal Reception for Princess Anne at Olympic Park, The British Museum, Camp Bestival, U.S Embassy, Edinburgh Fringe Festival, H Club, V&A Museum, Black Cultural Archives, Tate Britain, Tate Modern, Ronnie Scotts, Battersea Arts Centre, UCL University, SOAS University and BBC London Radio's The Scene & Dotun Adebayo Sunday Show. Nat Nye established the Mansa HArts company in 2021 to assist artists who want to create work to enhance thier world. Stella B, is a multi-disciplinarian artist, Pan Africanist, Community Champion and Custodian of Culture. Co-Founding Mansa HArts alongside Nat Nye in 2020 as an advocate for Art with Consciousness.

Stella B works as a singer-songwriter, spoken word artist, Creative Director, visual artists (using film, contemporary arts, photography and digital art). Interchanging her roles seemingly effortlessly from events management, curation, project management to live performances, she has blessed events at prestigious venues such as The British Museum, UK Parliament, Sadler's Wells, Tate Modern, Wilderness Festival, ALSO Festival, The H Club, UCL University, Poetry Cafe, Brixton Rizty, Bronze Women Statue Opening, Natwest London HQ and on BBC London Radio's The Scene, Hello Love, Flo Vortex and The Africa Centre.

Info: Stella B creates a masterpiece in the company of the Poetic Temple Audience. The work is then turned into wearable Art that contributes to the £6000 target of the event at The Africa Centre

Info: Poets or People of ExtraTerrestrial Substance sign up for the Open Mic

Info: A great way to end the night with Legendary Poetry Performances from our friends.

Event Venue & Nearby Stays

The Africa Centre, 66 Great Suffolk Street, London, United Kingdom

Concerts, fests, parties, meetups - all the happenings, one place.

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