Game Changers 2024
From your nominations, we have selected 30 Game Changers across Community, Heritage, Sport and Arts & Film. Over the next two months we will announce the identities of our inspirational Game Changers through a series of spectacular art installations at National Lottery funded venues across the UK.
Community Game Changers
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Ed Parker
Ed Parker founded veteran charity Walking with the Wounded in 2010 after his nephew lost both of his legs in Afghanistan.
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Trevor Lyttleton
Trevor Lyttleton founded Re-engage (formerly Contact the Elderly) to tackle loneliness among elderly people.
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Sandra Igwe
Sandra Igwe is a formidable advocate for black maternal health and the visionary founder of The Motherhood Group.
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Javeno McLean
Javeno McLean is an inspiring fitness coach, community champion and social media personality who has dedicated his life to empowering the disabled, elderly, and those struggling with severe health challenges.
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Dame Laura Lee
Dame Laura Lee has been CEO of Maggie’s for 28 years and oversees a network of cancer care centres providing emotional and practical support to those affected by cancer across the UK and beyond.
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Marcus Fair
Marcus Fair survived addiction, homelessness and multiple prison sentences before going on to found charity Eternal Media.
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Conor Largey
Conor is an aspirational senior youth leader in west Belfast, inspiring the next generation, giving them a voice and the confidence to shape their own futures.
Heritage Game Changers
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Professor Teresa Anderson MBE
Professor Teresa Anderson, MBE, is Director of the Jodrell Bank Centre for Engagement, which is co-located with Jodrell Bank Observatory, one of the world's foremost radio astronomy observatories.
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Chantelle Lindsay
Chantelle Lindsay is a Project Coordinator at London Wildlife Trust, Co-Presenter of children’s wildlife programme ‘Teeny Tiny Creatures’ on CBeebies and a Public Speaker.
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Sir Tim Smit
Sir Tim Smit is the co-founder of The Eden Project, an initiative that has transformed the landscape of plant conservation in Britain and attracted millions of visitors from around the world.
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Sandy Bremner
Sandy is the Convener of the Cairngorms National Park Authority, Britain’s biggest national park.
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Lisa Power MBE
Lisa Power is a prominent British sexual health and LGBTQIA+ rights campaigner, having been dubbed ‘the matriarch of LGBTQIA+ activism’.
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Heidi McIlvenny
Heidi McIlvenny was part of the Sea Deep Project, a first-of-its-kind shark-tagging programme in Northern Ireland to gather vital data about local sharks, skates and rays.
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Arthur Torrington CBE
Arthur Torrington CBE, a passionate community advocate born in Guyana, has dedicated his life to preserving the legacy of the Windrush Generation.
Sport Game Changers
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Paul Sinton-Hewitt CBE
Paul Sinton-Hewitt founded parkrun, taking running mainstream with a simple blend of community and physical activity.
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Damian Kennedy
Damian Kennedy has been instrumental in transforming boxing in Northern Ireland, with Irish boxing punching well above its weight thanks to his leadership.
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Baroness Sue Campbell
Baroness Sue Campbell transformed women’s football, from the Lionesses winning the EUROs to getting 5 million women and girls playing at a grassroots level.
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Steven Tigg
The swim coach who trained Scotland’s most decorated Olympian, through years of dedication, Steven Tigg has become one of the leading forces in UK swimming.
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Dame Sarah Storey
Dame Sarah Storey is ParalympicsGB's most successful Paralympian of all time. Her love of sport enabled her to pursue not one, but two sports at an elite level.
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Stephen Jones
Stephen is the Head Coach and chairman at North Wales Crusaders Wheelchair Rugby League & Disability Sports Clubs.
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Alice Dearing
Alice Dearing is an Olympic swimmer aiming to ensure that black and ethnic minority communities have equal access to aquatics.
Arts & Film Game Changers
Announced soon
The final two Game Changers will be announced on The National Lottery’s New Year’s Eve Big Bash scheduled for broadcast on ITV on 31 December.