#38 A Genre Defying Sci-Fi Writer & A Forgotten Music Hall Star (Octavia Butler & Kitty Lord)

Welcome back to Mostly Unsung, the comedy history podcast uncovering the incredible true stories history forgot. Same two women of a certain age, same lesser-known historical biographies you’ve definitely never heard of… but with a brand-new release day! New episodes every Wednesday, wherever you get your podcasts.This week, we’re sharing two inspiring, surprising stories about working-class women who rewrote their futures, even when the odds were stacked firmly against them.First, Annie takes us across the pond to America, where a working-class African American family is just trying to get by. Urged to choose a “sensible” career, a lonely, bullied young girl instead finds her voice through imagination, writing about the world she knows, shaped by the science fiction stories she loves. It’s a powerful, eye-opening tale of creativity, resilience, and an amazing figure in literary history.Then Andrea heads to London, where opportunities for working class girls are just as limited. Kate reinvents herself as Kitty, becoming a hugely popular stage performer known worldwide as an “eccentric Englishwoman.” Beloved by audiences and celebrated in her time, she quietly retires as film and television take over, her remarkable career fading from memory… until a chance museum visit by a friend brings her story back into the spotlight.If you love funny history podcasts, mostly forgotten people in history, and stories of people who refused to stay in their lane, Mostly Unsung is the podcast for you.Andrea used these sources:https://www.londonmuseum.org.uk/collections/london-stories/kitty-lord-eccentric-dancer-who-travelled-the-world/https://intothelimelight.org/2015/04/04/154/https://jvc.oup.com/2021/04/01/kitty-lords-padded-symmetricals/Annie used these sources:https://www.britannica.com/biography/Octavia-E-Butlerhttps://dyslexia.yale.edu/story/octavia-butler/https://www.huntington.org/exhibition/octavia-e-butler-telling-my-storiesWhere you can find us:https://www.instagram.com/mostlyunsung/https://www.facebook.com/share/16J4vuMy1h/https://www.tiktok.com/@[email protected] you next Wednesday!