Princess Golda John Abiola is a British-Nigerian international actress, who rose to prominence in 1974 playing a lead role in Wale Ogunyemi’s ‘The Divorce’. She told SEGUN KASALI her life story.
YOU are both Yoruba and South-South. How did that come about?
My mother was Yoruba but dad was from Rivers State. It is very good for Nigeria’s diversity, but my father encountered some difficulty marrying my mother due to ethnicity. A man from Rivers State fell in love with my Yoruba mother and they wanted to go ahead with their marriage but her people would not allow it. I was told this story very much later when my husband wanted to ask for my hand in marriage. They used to call my father ‘Yellow’ because of his skin colour; he was very tall and handsome.
Were you told how he sailed through?
Yes, I was told and it was difficult for them because they already had sexual relations with each other at the time. In the olden days, you know there wasn’t much talk about protection but my father said they depended on the withdrawal method because they did not want a child at the time due to the refusal of my mother’s family to honour their marriage. But he could not withdraw one particular day and I started forming in my mother’s womb. She said she made efforts to abort the pregnancy while I was still forming. While still trying to abort the pregnancy, she went to the market one day and ran into a pastor who told her “woman, you are going to die.” The pastor told her she was trying to stop the life in her; she was shaken because of that. Because of that, they had to stop their plans and had to tell her mother that she was pregnant. They are from the Royal House “Obalanlege”.
Suffice to say you were a child of necessity?
I would use destiny rather than necessity. They eventually allowed him to do the traditional rites. As a mechanical engineer, my father got a scholarship to go abroad to further his studies. No sooner than he left that my mum’s regular admirer began to insist on marrying her even with her pregnancy. While my father was away, my mum left home and went with the man. By the time she gave birth to me, my father was not around. I did not get to know my mother properly because by the time I grew up, she had passed on.
Before her death, my father went to her house upon return from England and greeted her new husband. It was a welcoming event that happened without rancour. My father played with me, greeted my mother and left. After he left, I started falling ill. My mother said they went to check, as Muslim, and they said my spirit was with my father and that they should return me to him. There, they concluded that they take me to visit him rather than return me to him.
But there was a year when there was an outbreak of flu. It was like the Covid-19 pandemic and I was affected by it that I almost died. They said it was terrible and there was an emphasis on the need to return me to my father. They said, ‘If you don’t take her to her father she would die’. That was how they took me back to my father. There, I had a stepmother who looked after her child and me. I grew up in my father’s house and later my grandmother joined us. I was brought up the Rivers way and I would say it is different from the Yoruba way.
How?
We don’t kneel down to greet on my father’s side; we greet with respect but we don’t kneel down. They believe you only kneel down for God Almighty. So, we say ‘papa, good morning’ and ‘mama, good morning’. But it is considered disrespectful when you don’t go on your knees on my mother’s side. So, that is like a culture clash, isn’t it? My grandmother stopped us from using Yoruba language to make abusive statements and she made sure she taught us Kalabari language.
What experience has come to stay with you?
There are few things. We should be grateful to God if we have good stepmothers. As you can see, I did not grow up with my mum but stepmum. For a while, I did not know she wasn’t my mother because I had my grandmother in the house that showed us the Christian way. But, I noticed my stepmum always favoured my sister. So, I did not know she was not my mum until I told my father that “I don’t like what mama is doing because whenever I wanted something, I don’t get it but my sister would get it.” He sat me down and told me she was not really my mother and told me if I needed anything I should tell him or my grandmother. For me, I did not falter because she looked after me. I still give her the credit. Unfortunately, I got married before her daughter who is older.
What did you see in the man you got married to?
Integrity and honesty. We met in the United Kingdom and I grew up to be a very good actress. I started acting quite early. I was the first person to do Chief Wale Ogunyemi’s The Divorce. From there, I was going from one play to the other; I did many plays. I did not stop there. I was also with the University of Lagos Centre for Culture Studies. I was a resident artiste and did a lot of cultural exchange programmes. I was initially in an abusive marriage but on getting to the United Kingdom, I closed every relationship with any man. But, as fate would have it, I saw the veteran photojournalist, late Hakeem Shitta looking a little bit unwell with something like a ball at the back of his head. When I got to the United Kingdom, I settled in and also met a friend who insisted I must follow her to church.
When I got there, my husband, Prince Mike Abiola, came with Shitta for the purpose of fundraising, but I did not know Prince at the time but he was doing a celebrity magazine then. Apparently, that little boil at the back of Shitta’s head had grown to almost as big as his head. When they came in, I just shouted Shitta and went to embrace him. I was shocked when the pastor of the church announced that Shitta was here to fundraise. There, Prince Mike collected my number, but I did not know he wanted to use my photograph on the cover of the magazine’s next edition. Prior to the interview, I told him he was going to give me money but he said he would try because he did not expect to pay. Funnily enough, he looked for me and brought me the money. So, I was like ‘oh, there are people like this.’ We later became friends and I was involved in his magazine too. From being friends, one thing led to the other and we couldn’t even draw the line when we started dating, but the rest is history; that is over 30 years ago now.
What play brought you to limelight?
We thank God for talent. I remember how Chief Wale Ogunyemi even put me on board. I was at the University of Ibadan theatre just waiting for someone and he was having audition with Uncle Jimi Solanke and others for that particular part―Tayo Ajao. I was just an observer sitting like the audience. All of a sudden, Chief Wale Ogunyemi just looked up and pointed at me and told me to read for him. Immediately, he said, “This is the person I am looking for.” That was how he gave me the opportunity to act.
Why did you go to the United Kingdom?
Like I do say, talent alone is not enough. It is good to have the knowledge as well. So, I had to go to University of Ibadan to study Theatre Arts, but just to enhance what I already had. I am not an economic migrant. I had been to the UK several times; we travelled with the exchange programme.
What do you have to say to the young girls out there?
Do not stay in an abusive relationship. Don’t keep it to yourself even though they put fear in your mind not to tell anymore. You must always tell. Let your parents know. Sometimes, your parents are in denial because they still want you to be in that relationship. They don’t want shame, but you must not allow yourself to be trampled upon. Open up for help.
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