Patrons
Jo Berry CBE
Jo Berry CBE is a UK-based international speaker, peacebuilder, and founder of the charity Building Bridges for Peace. Her work emerged from a deeply personal tragedy: in 1984, her father, Sir Anthony Berry MP, was killed in the IRA bombing of the Brighton hotel. Out of this loss, Jo embarked on an extraordinary journey of reconciliation that led her to meet Patrick Magee, the man responsible for planting the bomb. A trained Restorative Justice facilitator, Jo advocates nationally for restorative approaches as a foundation for healing and justice. In recognition of her exceptional contribution to peace and reconciliation, she was awarded a CBE in the King’s Honours.
‘As a Patron, I will use my story to advocate for the transformational power of Restorative Justice. Restorative Justice creates spaces where harm can be healed, and humanity can be rediscovered. And when we restore humanity on all sides, we do more than heal individuals – we help build a more compassionate, courageous, and connected world.’
Read our announcement and Jo’s first blog for Why me?
Mel Giedroyc
Why me? is proud to have Mel Giedroyc as our patron. Mel is a well-known actress, comedian, writer and television presenter who has presented popular TV shows like the Great British Bake Off and Eurovision 2023.
In 2015, Mel presented a BBC documentary called ‘The Gift’, with stories of individuals saying ‘sorry’ to people they’ve harmed. Why me? reached out to Mel, and she was incredibly enthusiastic about Restorative Justice. She has been involved in Why me?’s work since then, including speaking at our events, undertaking Restorative Justice practitioner training, and presenting our BBC Radio 4 Charity Appeal.
“I’ve been very inspired by the work of Why me?. I think Restorative Justice is the way forward for reducing crime rates, but also giving victims of crime that healing experience and closure that they so often desperately need.” Mel Giedroyc
Gillian Slovo
Gillian Slovo is a South African born writer and playwright who came to England as a child. She has published fifteen books including Every Secret Thing, her best-selling family memoir; her novel Ice Road which was shortlisted for the Orange Prize and her novel Red Dust which was about South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission and which won the French Temoin du Monde prize and was made into a film. Gillian has also had produced four verbatim plays, the last of which, Another World, was on at the National Theatre. Her award winning play about the Grenfell Tower fire played at both the National and Off-Broadway in New York. She was a trustee on the board of the writers organization, English PEN, for four years before becoming President of English PEN, a post she held between 2010 and 2013. She is a fellow of the Royal Society of Literature.
Gillian came to appreciate Restorative Justice following her own experiences through South Africa’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission. While she had serious concerns with the approach taken in South Africa, it helped her to appreciate the importance of victims of crime getting an understanding of why they were harmed, directly from the person who had harmed them. She is motivated to use her position at Why me? to help change the manner in which our society and our justice system deals with victims, and brings perpetrators to understand the harm that they have caused.