The Big Issue - John Bird

-John Bird had a very rough childhood, from being homeless at age 5, placed in an orphanage at age 7 until age 10, and he was often excluded from school. At age 10, he was on probation. 13 in a remand home. 15 in a boys' reformatory where he learned how to read and write. He supplemented his income by stealing. During his time in prison, he learnt the basics of printing, which led to him setting up a small printing and publishing business in London.

-Bird said he had got into the House of Lords by 'lying, cheating and stealing' His first speech in the House of Lords as a cross bench peer included him saying how he wouldn't be in the position he was in if he had not gone through the hardships in his early life.

-Anita Roddick, founder of The Body Shop alongside her husband Gordon, was a human rights activist and an environmental campaigner. She helped raise awareness of African American prisoners who had been held in prison for decades and raised funds to aid in their appeal in court. Anita was known for doing charity work in places such as orphanages and prisons.

-Gordon helped Bird found The Big Issue in 1991 after he met a homeless man selling magazines in New York due to a drug habit he wanted to feed. Roddick did a feasibility study, where homeless charities had said there was no point giving money to homeless people because they will use it to turn to drugs or alcohol.