This award recognises an outstanding contribution made by a public figure towards raising awareness of living with serious illness, dying, death or bereavement.
Janey Godley is a Scottish stand-up comedian, actress and writer from Glasgow. She won the Scots Language Awards Speaker of the Year Award in 2020, and in 2023 won the Spirit of Glasgow Comedy Award, chosen by Billy Connolly. She has published three books, and is well known in Scotland for her series of ‘Frank Gets the Door’ voiceovers shared on Twitter during the covid pandemic.
In November 2021, Janey announced via Twitter the cancellation of the last weekend of her tour, explaining that she had been diagnosed with ovarian cancer and was being treated in hospital. She had a full hysterectomy in January 2022 and announced in June that she was cancer-free. On 13 December 2022, she announced that her cancer had returned and that she would need further chemotherapy.
The fact that all of the above is common knowledge via Janey’s Wikipedia page is illustrative of the openness with which she has shared (and continues to share) her cancer journey on Twitter. Through this, Janey has demonstrated that it is not taboo to talk about illness, cancer, or cancer treatment, providing some solace to others going through similar experiences.
By modelling an open approach, Godley has helped to increase awareness that cancer journeys can be unpredictable, and that people continue to work and live and achieve while living with serious incurable illness. She continues to share updates on her cancer journey on Twitter, and her reach extends far beyond her followers, with her story appearing for example in the Independent, the Daily Record and the Guardian.
Janey Godley is currently part way through her Not Dead Yet Tour.
Greg Wise is a British actor and writer. He has appeared in numerous British television programmes and feature films.
He was the main carer for his sister Clare when she was dying of cancer, and together they wrote a blog which later became the book Not that kind of love.
Greg has talked openly about some of the privileges and difficulties faced by informal carers and by people living with and dying from incurable illness. As someone with a high profile, this has helped raise awareness and understanding among new audiences, with his words appearing (for example) in the Guardian, the Daily Telegraph, the Daily Mail, the Sun, Lorraine, Loose Women and Hello Magazine.
In 2021, Greg appeared on Strictly Come Dancing, which receives viewing figures of around 7 million. He openly shared his and Clare’s experiences, dedicating a dance to her, and openly modelling that grief is part of life and that it is ok to talk about this.
As well as sharing personal experiences of caring for his sister, Greg has also raised important issues such as the UK’s reliance on unpaid carers, the importance of the NHS and need to ensure appropriate support for people at the end of life.
Cariad Lloyd is a British comedian, actor, writer, and podcaster. She works on a range of radio, TV and live shows, and is a member of the improvisational comedy group Austentatious.
Lloyd created and hosts the podcast Griefcast, a series of conversations about death, bereavement, and coping with the loss of a loved one. It has won several awards, including: "Best Entertainment Podcast", "Best Interview Podcast" and "Podcast of the Year" at the British Podcast Awards[23] and an ARIA Award for "Podcast of the Year".
Lloyd has written You are not alone, a book that deals with personal grief. The Times's review has described her book as, "A blackly funny, honest, thought-provoking and compassionate book that will be of comfort to all who know loss".
Cariad has used her profile to increase understanding of grief and bereavement and of the support that people need. For example, she has taken part in the Good Grief Festival, a Marie Curie podcast, presented a documentary What we’ve learnt about grief on Radio 4, and her words have appeared in the Independent, the Daily Mail, Glamour Magazine and the Guardian: https://www.theguardian.com/society/2023/jan/07/ways-to-talk-to-people-grieving-cariad-lloyd-griefcast
Photo: Matt Crockett
