Leonard Benker Johnson, known simply as Len among his admirers, and dubbed "Len Johnson" by the press, was a British boxer who competed from 1920 to 1933. He held the British Empire middleweight title, the first non-white boxer to hold a major title during the British colour bar era, de facto reigning from 20 February 1926 to 12 July 1926. He also held the Northern Area championships at middleweight and light-heavyweight, respectively. A strategic and intelligent boxer, Johnson was considered to be one of the best middleweights of his era. He was known for his exceptional boxing skill, using an educated left-hand, as well a slippery defence that made him difficult to hit, while leaving his features largely unmarked throughout his thirteen-year career. Additionally, Johnson possessed a very long reach and rather good height.
Johnson at Prescot in 1936
Len Johnson's grave in Southern Cemetery, Manchester
Leonard Austen Harvey was a British boxer. A great defensive boxer, he boxed at every weight division available at the time, from flyweight to heavyweight. He became the light-heavyweight and heavyweight champion of the British Empire, and was recognised as world light-heavyweight champion in Britain from 1939 to 1942. Harvey was inducted into the International Boxing Hall of Fame in the class of 2008.
Len Harvey