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Josie Woods (16 May 1912 – 28 June 2008) was a Black British dancer, choreographer and activist.
Davis created a group called the Magnolia Blossoms with several girls, including Woods.
Woods worked in France for two years before returning to Britain in 1932 as part of the group Eight Black Streaks. The group toured and were successful, being described as "the first established dance troupe of black Britons". They appeared in the film Kentucky Minstrels (1934).
Woods also toured with Cyril Lagey and Ken "Snakehips" Johnson. During the Second World War, she worked with Eddie Williams.
Woods taught dance. She was one of the first people to introduce the jitterbug to Britain. After the Second World War, she set up an act with one of her students, Willie Payne, and they appeared in clubs as Ken Ross and Lucille. They were guest stars in the film The Nitwits on Parade (1949). Later she worked with Cab Kaye as an act called Two Brown Birds of Rhythm.
When working as an extra on the film Old Mother Riley's Jungle Treasure (1951), she organised a strike over pay.
Woods is part of the Black History Tube Map set up by the Black Cultural Archives and Transport for London.
Her biography was included in the Knowing Newham Hero Hunt, a children's theatre production developed for Newham Heritage Month in 2021.
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