Doc Brown Live!

Star rapper, comedian and actor, Doc Brown AKA Ben Bailey Smith, delighted children of all ages with his hilarious, high-energy, ridiculous yet deceptively educational, family show, Doc Brown’s Wordpower Hour, recently at the library.

The Doc’s previous gig was Glastonbury, so we felt particularly blessed when he said he wanted to give back to the community by performing at the library. His sister, author Zadie Smith, had studied at Kensal Rise Library as a girl and later supported the campaign to save the library.

Toddlers to teenagers in the 75-plus audience were completely enthralled. The Doc later admitted he thought it would be a real challenge to appeal to such a wide age range. But he needn’t have worried – see picture!

The Doc’s Wordpower Hour combines performance poetry, songs, brainteasers, jokes and live illustration to create a fully interactive experience for children aged 5 and up, celebrating the true power of words.

And he truly loves words. The Doc, as Ben Bailey Smith, is also a prolific children’s author, and Ben was extremely generous in giving his books as prizes during the show and afterwards for our shelves.

A huge thank you to the multi-talented artist and kindest of men, Ben Bailey Smith.

Library Image: Ana Hickey. Words: Stephanie Schonfield