I was born in 1969, so I have no memory of Martin Luther King alive and in the news, though my parents do. We did hear about him in school, though nowhere near the extent he's taught about in the US. (I.e. if I had to rely only on what school taught me about him and the US Civil Rights movement, I'd know segregation was legal, Rosa Parks, "I have a dream", death by assassination, and that's it. Oh, and two or three excerpts from his speeches taught in religious education as well. I remember that as a child, I found his name confusing because he was evidently not the same person as The Other Guy, but his first two names were spelled the same, and so why was "Luther" pronounced differently in his name than it was with Martin L?

It was the combination of visiting the US and being a voracious reader which taught me more as I grew up. But I still had no idea what Selma would be about through the title alone when the movie was originally released - I.e. I wasn't familiar with the name - and when reviews started to come in did I realise this was Martin Luther King/Civil Rights related.