Stephen Robert Kuta is an established Author, Poet, Historian, and Genealogist based in the UK. He has published a number of highly regarded books and poetry anthologies. He is a 2nd cousin, 2x removed to British-Canadian folk musician Bill Plaskett and 3rd cousin, 1x removed to Canadian rock musician Joel Plaskett.
He lives in his hometown of Chelmsford with his seven-year-old niece Yhana, who he has cared for since she was three weeks old. Yhana and his partner Peter (are the most important people in his life)
Early life
Stephen Robert Kuta is the second eldest of five children and was born on the 11th June 1978 in Chelmsford, Essex, England. He is of English – Polish descent, his grandfather Jan Kuta (1924 – 1978) of Katarynice, Lwów Voivodeship, Poland, spent much of World War II in a Nazi forced Labour Camp (Morbach concentration camp) prior to his arrival in the UK in 1945. During this period he suffered both interrogation and violence, and on one occasion both of his hands were broken by German Officers. His arrival in England was first spent in an Essex Polish Displacement camp before he finally settled in nearby Maldon, Essex. Stephen was a keen humanities student at school and studied the English language, English literature, history, and drama. Stephen is still fascinated by humanities and has continued to progress his studies in more detail. He has completed a history course with the Open University which focused upon the Great War, featuring studies into wartime poetry and literature.
Through Stephen’s maternal Scottish descent from the Elphinstone Family, Stephen is 5th cousin, 5x removed to Sidney Buller-Fullerton-Elphinstone (1869 – 1955), a Scottish Nobleman styled; 16th Lord Elphinstone and 2nd Baron Elphinstone,KTFRSEFRSGS, his marriage to Lady Mary Bowes-Lyon (1883 – 1961), makes Sidney an Uncle to Queen Elizabeth II. Stephen’s 7th great-grandfather James Gordon of Cobairdy (1723 – 1773), took part in the Jacobite Rising of 1745, he was a companion of Charles Edward Stuart (1720 – 1778), James Gordon was husband to Lady Mary Forbes (1725 – 1793) a direct descendant of the King James V of Scotland (1512 – 1542), making Stephen the 15th great-grandson to this Scottish King.
Palaeography
Stephen also has a vast interest in palaeography which has resulted in the transcription of many probate records dating as far back as the early 16th century, many of these transcriptions have been published online
Modelling
In addition to his studies and academic interests, Stephen is also keen on modelling, photography, dramatics and art. He has been showcased in the Model Citizen Magazine and photographed by well respected London Photographers, and his photography portfolio is displayed in the book My Life in Pictures, which was published in 2018.
Published works
He successfully published selected prose and poetry in several anthologies in the 1990s, including works within the publications; Moments in the Garden A Few Precious Thoughts and A Quiet Storm. He has been recognised by the Sunday Mirror newspaper for his prose written in remembrance of Diana, Princess of Wales, and published within The Sunday Mirror, September 14th 1997, (Princess Diana Commemorative edition).
In 2005, Stephen edited and published a limited edition book which was intended to bring together voices from around the world as a response to the tragic tsunami on Boxing Day 2004. Paint the Sky with Stars features a collection of poetry written by people affected by the Tsunami which caused so much damage in South East Asia. People from all sectors of society contributed to the anthology and the poetry is unique and reflective of the poets’ thoughts surrounding this devastating natural disaster. The anthology is dedicated to the memory of everybody who died when the tsunami struck and to the people who survived this tragic event. All of the proceeds generated by the publication were donated to the Tsunami Earthquake Fund, and this book is now highly regarded as a valuable insight into social history. It is studied during several university degree courses.
In 2018, he published his first selected works in the anthology Once I Write of Love, a fully illustrated and highly regarding publication.
The book, My Life in Pictures is a photographic portfolio published in 2018. an autobiographical photo-biography which covers the life of a gay man over a period of four decades. All of the content is extremely personal and includes homoerotic photos. The Images include a range of self-portraits and professional shots, which were taken by Men Art. Much of the content of the book specifically focuses on LGBT Art, Stephen is an advocate for Gay rights and has supported the LGBT Community at pride events in Brighton, London and Manchester.
