The latest news and comment on American singer and social activist Harry Belafonte
March 2024
Matthew Perry, Richard Lewis, Glenda Jackson and Alexei Navalny remembered at Oscars
Annual sequence devoted to recently deceased figures in the film industry also recognised Tom Wilkinson and William Friedkin
January 2024
‘A sense of Ocean’s 11’: the fascinating true story behind We Are the World
In the Netflix documentary The Greatest Night in Pop, A-listers from Stevie Wonder to Michael Jackson come together for the recording of an iconic song
December 2023
The Observer's obituaries of 2023
Harry Belafonte remembered by David Lammy
Tottenham’s Labour MP remembers the singer, actor and activist as a pioneering figure who brought joy to his and his parents’ lives
Harry Belafonte, singer, actor and tireless activist, dies aged 96
3:11
'I did all that I could': A look back at the life and career of Harry Belafonte – video
Belafonte is gone, Poitier went before him. They were the titans who uplifted our world
Candace Allen
Harry Belafonte obituary
Steve McQueen on his hero Harry Belafonte: ‘He had everything – but his service was to his people’
Bans, bigots and surreal sci-fi love triangles: Harry Belafonte’s staggering screen career
Smash hits to civil rights: Harry Belafonte – a life in pictures
March 2023
Buck and the Preacher review – Poitier and Belafonte are a dream team in breezy western
Sidney Poitier’s terrifically enjoyable directorial debut from 1972, in which he stars opposite Harry Belafonte, is rereleased in all its galloping glory
June 2020
'I ain’t waiting': John Boyega shows movie stars what political engagement looks like
Peter Bradshaw
His Hyde Park speech is a teachable moment in the history of race, racism and celebrity. He’s part of a vigorous, distinguished tradition
June 2018
Readers recommend
Readers recommend playlist: songs about kings
A regal list this week includes songs from Richard Thompson, Gilbert and Sullivan, Boy George and the Proclaimers
April 2018
How Petula Clark and Harry Belafonte fought racism arm in arm
Petula Clark was an uncool 60s pop star on the rise when, 50 years ago today, she held on to Harry Belafonte’s arm on US television, and sparked a race relations furore
October 2017
Harry Belafonte tells crowd at likely last public appearance: 'We shall overcome'
Singer and civil rights activist, 90, holds Pittsburgh audience spellbound with tales of his life and denunciation of Trump as a national ‘mistake’
December 2016
Readers recommend
Readers recommend playlist: your songs about iron and steel
A reader forges a playlist of songs involving metal in their lyrics or title, with hits from Jethro Tull, Blondie and Bob Marley on the list
October 2016
Guy Lodge's streaming and DVDs
Notes on Blindness; Behemoth; The Boss; Gods of Egypt and more – review
Two documentaries play with form and evoke suffering on scales small and large, while Melissa McCarthy outshines her own film
August 2016
€10m fight to save James Baldwin’s Provençal home
The writer’s home was a regular haunt of African-American cultural giants
