A dancer renowned as Britain's first black professional ballerina has had her iconic pointe shoes restored on the television series, The Repair Shop.
Julie Felix, 67, gained prominence in the United States after experiencing exclusion from a ballet company in London during the 1970s, a situation she attributes to racial discrimination.
Following her time in the U.S., Felix returned to the UK, where she took on a teaching role at the Birmingham Royal Ballet. The restoration of her shoes comes four decades after her inaugural professional solo performance.
„It took my breath away, because it was something that I really never expected to happen,“ Felix remarked regarding the restoration.
She revealed that the idea to restore the shoes originated from her late mother: „It just turned out that life is busy as we all know it, and I never got the opportunity to get them fixed.“
The Repair Shop features various individuals having cherished items restored by skilled artisans in each episode.
„My idea was to have them mounted somehow, just slightly salvaged in some way, but Dean exceeded my expectations,“ Felix expressed.
Felix served as the Head of Dance at St Martin's Girls School in Solihull until her retirement and has since been honored with an MBE.
The episode of The Repair Shop featuring Felix is scheduled to air on April 8 at 20:00 BST on BBC1.
For more stories and updates, feel free to reach out regarding coverage in Birmingham and the Black Country.
Bildquelle: Bildquelle: Ralf Knüfer auf Unsplash
