beat the brochure

Cyprus is the European country that’s approximately 2/3rds Greek, 1/3rd Turkish and located in the Mediterranean Sea between Africa and Asia. Cheap Cyprus holidays are popular with vacationers the world over, yet not much is known of Cyprus and its people beyond the island’s perennial sunshine and myriad of blue flag-rated beaches.

The following are some of examples of Cypriots that may have entered into your consciousness…

George Michael

Not a Cypriot per se, Georgios Panayiotou was born to an English mother and Greek Cypriot father in Hertfordshire in 1963. You don’t need to be a fan of his, or even music (some people may argue that if you are a fan, you’re no fan of music) to be aware of George Michael. The former Wham! front man has sold over 100 million records worldwide and made countless headlines throughout his glittering career.

Tracey Emin

Another Cypriot representative within the arts, this time from the Turkish side, is controversial artist Tracey Emin. Emin has Turkish Cypriot parentage, and her (mostly autobiographical) works – including Everyone I Have Ever Slept With 1963-1995 and My Bed – have sparked many a heated debate amongst the art community, critics and public alike. Incidentally fellow Cypriot descendant George Michael is a collector of her work.

Fatima Whitbread

Former Olympic javelin thrower Fatima Whitbread was born in London to a Turkish Cypriot mother and Greek Cypriot father. She may be better known nowadays for her appearances on reality television shows but the one-time world record holding javelin thrower won both Silver and Bronze medals at the 1988 Seoul and 1984 Los Angeles games respectively.

Theo Paphitis

Born in Cyprus’ metropolitan second city Limassol in 1959, Theo Paphitis is a businessman best known for crushing entrepreneurs’ dreams on the TV show Dragon’s Den. Besides thwarting ambition, Paphitis owns stationary company Ryman and was once the owner of Millwall FC, where he oversaw their run to the FA Cup Final in 2004.

Tamer Hassan

Tamer Hassan was born into a Turkish-Cypriot family in London, and made his breakthrough as an actor appearing in the Nick Love films The Football Factory and The Business. Recently Hassan has branched out and has appeared in Hollywood films such as Kick-Ass and Clash of the Titans.

Cat Stevens

Steven Georgiou, better known as Cat Stevens and now Yusuf after dropping the suffix ‘Islam’, is (once again) a singer-songwriter of Greek Cypriot descent. Known for hits such as Father & Son and Wild World, Yusuf is a notable convert to the religion he once bore the name of. After a near death experience the singer quit the music business to devote his life to God, before returning to the industry after a 25 year break.

APOEL FC

There are several football players of Cypriot descent that’ll be familiar to fans of the sport like Leon Osman, Colin Kazim-Richards and Muzzy Izzet; however Cyprus’ most famous footballing export is APOEL FC of Nicosia. The Cypriot champions were the surprise package of the 2011/12 Champions League campaign; reaching the Quarter-finals where they were defeated by Real Madrid.

So there you are, a few Cypriots who’ve made their mark from the idyllic holiday island of World Heritage Sites, blue flag beaches, cheap holidays and sunshine, lots and lots of sunshine.