TRIBUTES have been paid to Portland Port director and decorated Royal Navy commander, Rupert Best, who has died at the age of 76. Commander Best, who was a director of Portland Port UK, commanded the nuclear-powered submarine HMS Courageous during the Falklands conflict in 1982. He retired from the Royal Navy during the 1990s and would be instrumental in persuading Langham Industries to privately take over Portland Port from the Ministry of Defence in 1996 - and the subsequent formation of the Portland Harbour Authority. Friend and Portland Port UK colleague, Bill Reeves, said: Rupert served as director of Portland Port from its formation right up until his death.
Rupert Best, who lived near Melplash, died last Wednesday aged 76. Mr Best had a distinguished career in the Royal Navy and commanded the nuclear-powered submarine HMS Courageous during the Falklands conflict. After retiring from the Royal Navy he went on to become a director of Portland Port. He was instrumental in persuading Langham Industries to privately take over Portland Port from the Ministry of Defence in 1996 - and the subsequent formation of the Portland Harbour Authority a couple of years later. Away from the office, Mr Best ran a cider farm which he took over after the death of his father - himself a distinguished naval officer - and was described as an energetic promoter of Dorset cider apples .
Rolling Stone Menu Music’s Road Crews Are Overwhelmingly White and Male. Meet the People Trying to Change That
Artists and roadies alike are stepping up to address a long-standing industry problem
By Batuhan Toker/Adobe Stock
By the time he signed on for Justin Bieber’s
Believe tour in 2012, Lance “K.C.” Jackson had more than 30 years under his belt as a stage manager and touring pro; he’d worked with Prince, Destiny’s Child, Luther Vandross, and Earth, Wind, and Fire, among others. Now, on a tour headlined by a white artist, he drew quizzical looks backstage whenever he went to help Bieber with a harness that allowed him to descend onto the stage sporting wings. “There aren’t a lot of black props workers out there, so people were looking at me like, ‘Who is this guy? Can he make it happen?’” Jackson recalls. “It was a prejudgment.”
By: Bill Reeves & Lance “KC” Jackson
Courtesy Lance K.C. Jackson
Roadies United: Bill Reeves and Lance “K.C.” Jackson at the first annual Roadies of Color United International, an organization with over a 1,000 members, in Atlanta this past February.
It would be safe to say that we’ll all be happy to see the end of 2020. The turmoil, chaos and economic devastation engendered by the pandemic, issues of racial equality and deep political divisiveness have made 2020 a year we would all like to forget. Or, alternatively, a year that we will never forget! However, as 2020 winds down and 2021 comes into view we can both look back and begin to assess the year just past as well look forward to what’s to come.