My family and I recorded this video 4 years ago. I just had to play it back after watching the new released movie Michael. The movie was amazing and brought tears to my eyes!
April - A Special Month in Clovis’ life Story:
🕊️ 99th Heavenly Birthday
🕊️ OBE Honours
👊🏾 Brixton Uprising Footage
👊🏾 In His Words.
👊🏾 His Legacy. His Work.
‘Happy Heavenly Birthday to my father Clovis Salmon OBE ESQ. We all miss you so much and there is not a day we don’t have you in our mind. 💔’ - Valerie Hammond, Daughter
Today, on Clovis Salmon OBE’s 99th birthday, we remember him with love, honour and gratitude.
Despite his age, he was as strong as they come — upright, a fast walker, an avid reader, mentally sharp, and always health-conscious. He loved his long chats with clients outside his home and was, as they say, “as strong as an ox”. His passing was a deep shock to us all. As his mother lived to 104, we truly thought Clovis would make it to 100 or more, and meet the King again, which was something he had hoped for. 👑💔
April holds so much significance in relation to Clovis’ legacy. It marks the month he received his OBE on 7 April 2024, in recognition of his outstanding contribution to Black culture and the community through his powerful documentation of Black British life and church culture on film. That same year, further national award recognition followed, affirming what so many already knew: Clovis’ work mattered, and so does his legacy.
April also marks 45 years since the Brixton uprising, a pivotal moment in British history which Clovis courageously filmed when others feared to tread. He understood the importance of bearing witness and ensuring our stories were truthfully preserved for future generations.
As we remember him following his passing on 18 June 2025, we reflect on how deeply he believed in his work and how much he loved his community.
We are sharing some of his footage here. You can see more in his reels on his this page, make an appointment to view his digitised films at @198_cal Gallery on Railton Road, or contact us via the link in bio. A life well-lived.🙏🏽
Videos:At the Legacies Uncovered Human History- LCF/Carol Wilson-Frith event (2006)
-OBE reflection at his home - filmed by Carol Wilson-Frith ( 2024)
#ClovisSalmonOBE #legaciescovered #BlackBritishHistory #BrixtonUprising
A LIFE WELL LIVED - Clovis Salmon OBE, ‘Sam The Wheels’
Clovis’ work spans decades and generations. Through film, he documented African Caribbean life as it was lived - from within, not from the outside looking in.
At a time when visibility was limited, when representation and the Black narrative were rarely shaped from within, his work asserted presence, dignity, and self-definition. Long before wellbeing and mental health entered everyday language, that visibility mattered. It steadied people. It affirmed them.
5 February marks UK Time to Talk Day. In a recent interview, Clovis said, …’If you want to do something, then do it. Set your mind on it and try…’ Taking time to talk often takes nurturing and courage - the courage to share what sits beneath the surface and to be heard. For Clovis, conversation was never separate from wellbeing. It was part of how people connected, reflected, and moved forward.
For earlier generations, his work opened space for those conversations when few platforms existed. For newer generations, it offers reassurance - that their stories matter, their voices carry weight, and that taking time to talk is not a weakness.
This work brought Clovis deep pride. Not for recognition alone, but because it meant something to people, to community, and to history.
Take a moment to listen to some of his journey in ‘Untold Stories’, organised by Ros Griffiths and the Empathy Museum, and photographed by Amit Lennon.
#ClovisSalmonobe
#Sam The Wheels
#TimeToTalkDay #blackbritishhistory brixtonuprising
✨ A SPECIAL NIGHT — 4/10/2024 ✨
At 97 years young, Clovis Salmon OBE Esq. was honoured with the Lifetime Achiever Award at the 2024 National Diversity Awards — a moment that filled all his family & friends with pride, gratitude, and joy beyond words. 🏆
Behind the scenes, Clovis had developed a slight cold and chesty cough, which understandably concerned us given his age. Yet he never once complained, and the care and attention shown both prior to and throughout the evening was exemplary. We are truly grateful. 🙏🏾
As the night drew towards midnight, believing he hadn’t won, Clovis was already content — proudly holding his framed certificate, having celebrated the winners and enjoyed the evening. Hat and coat on, he was content and ready for the wonderful evening to draw to a close.☺️
Encouraging him to remain hopeful, and then — on hearing the winner’s biography being read and cheers and applause building — Carol helped him gently remove his hat and coat just moments before his name was announced, and as he mounted the stage to rapturous applause and a standing ovation.🤩We were simply amazed. 🥹
Just before going on stage, unbeknown to us, Clovis had misplaced his hearing aid and, being 98% deaf, was unable to hear the usual cues or timings — something we only realised once he began speaking. What a professional trooper he was! 👏🏾
He spoke from the heart, lifted his trophy high, and made us immensely proud. With a gentle prompt from Carol — and our own brief panic about timings (not the NDAs! 😅) — the microphone was carefully withdrawn, ensuring his moment remained joyful and dignified. He truly loved his time the team, press, finalists and with all who celebrated with him that evening! 🙏🏾👌🏽
As Clovis himself reflected:
‘Winning the National Diversity Lifetime Achiever Award is an incredible honour, but the real reward has always been seeing how my work has helped bring people closer and created conversations’
Thank you @ndawards and @itvnews for honouring Clovis’ extraordinary contribution to diversity. ✨
#ClovisSalmonOBE #SamTheWheels NationalDiversityAwards
[Excerpts: NDA Awards / ITV — used by permission for social media purposes only
