October (singer)

October Hamlyn-Wright (born May 1983) is a British onetime musician and recording artist, now inactive[1][2][3][4] after being found guilty of serious benefit fraud.[5]

Known professionally by her first name, October was born in Surrey, England and began writing songs at the age of six. Her recording career began as the founder of Euphoria, a teenage all-girl school pop band in which she played the drums and electric guitar. Subsequently, she began singing and playing the acoustic guitar in her early twenties.

October toured internationally, including the likes of Australasia and Europe. Her music became closely linked with the surf scene through playing festivals such as Boardmasters, the Red Bull series and being featured in publications such as Surf Girl.[6]

October also played at the Glastonbury Festival[7], various live BBC sessions around the UK and wrote music for film, including "Free Your Soul" which features in the award-winning documentary, Lost and Found (Corduroy Films, 2011).[8] "Free Your Soul" was released as her debut single in August 2013, followed by the release of her debut album, "Some of the Things" in March 2014. Her most recent release was a self-titled acoustic EP in 2016.

In February 2020, Hamlyn-Wright was tried at Kingston-upon-Thames Crown Court and found guilty of benefit fraud totalling £27,000, including £14,000 in disability benefits.[5] Between 2013 and 2015, she falsely provided "a considerable number of ailments and illnesses" in benefits applications while travelling the world partaking part in the above self-proclaimed activities and placing highly as a competitor in various able-bodied surfing competitions.[9][10][11][12]

References
  1. Official website
  2. October on Facebook
  3. October on Twitter
  4. October's channel on YouTube
  5. Sale, Dan; Smallcombe, Mike (3 February 2020). "Surfer who got £27k in benefits claimed she was ill, court hears". Cornwalllive.com.
  6. "OCTOBER ROCKS! | SurfGirl Magazine - Womens and Girls Surfing, Surf Fashion, Surf News, Surf Videos". Web.archive.org. 16 July 2011. Archived from the original on 16 July 2011.
  7. eFestivals: Glastonbury 2013 line-up
  8. Walker, Doug (4 August 2011). "Lost & Found Official Trailer". Vimeo.com.
  9. "Surfer claiming to be almost unable to walk guilty of £13k scam". Evening Standard. 17 February 2020.
  10. "Surfgirl Rockchick Guilty Of £13,000 Disability Benefits Scam". Square Mile News. 11 February 2020.
  11. "'Unable to walk' surfer spared jail after scamming £14,000 in benefits". Evening Standard. 12 March 2020.
  12. "Surfgirl Sentenced For £14K Disability Scam". Square Mile News. 10 March 2020.
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