Think Science! Think Disability! Stephen Hawking For The New £50 Note

The Bank of England have opened nominations today for the person who will feature on the new £50 note. They have called their campaign Think Science! and are asking the public to nominate scientists. To feature, the person must be a real person who is no longer alive.

Same Difference was thrilled when we heard this morning that the face of the new £50 note would definitely be a scientist. We didn’t need the brains of Stephen Hawking to figure out who we were going to nominate!

Stephen Hawking himself ticks all the Bank of England’s boxes. He was a real person, a brilliant scientist, and sadly passed away earlier this year.

Same Difference is a disability issues website, so we always think disability representation. Stephen Hawking was, of course, also disabled. So he ticks all our boxes, too.

Our editor has always been inspired by Stephen Hawking. He was easily the most intelligent disabled person of our times, if not of all time. Our editor has worked hard all her life to prove to the world that physically disabled people are just as intelligent as anyone else, and that they can do anything they wish to do, with appropriate support.

If anyone, ever, proved this very point by example, that person was Stephen Hawking.

Same Difference feels certain that making Stephen Hawking the face of the new £50 note would be the best possible tribute to a great scientist. It would also ensure that disability would be represented in a very important area of mainstream society for several years to come.

If you agree, please join Same Difference in nominating Stephen Hawking to be the face of the new £50 note.