Tanga, 1914 - When the British Empire Met Its Match in East Africa I was born in the early 1960s in Tanzania, East Africa, near the seaside town of Tanga. Imagine standing on the shores of Ras Kasone, where my parents once resided, a few years later. It is hard to
From my father's friendship with a famous British orchestra leader to Bollywood melodies, ABBA in Brighton and Freddie Mercury at Live Aid — the remarkable soundtrack of my life. A Musical Education Before I Was Even Born There are certain things in life that stay with you forever. Your
I originally wrote this reflection around World Mental Health Day 2026. But mental health isn't something we should talk about on just one designated day of the year. So, this is simply my story of depression, recovery, setbacks, friendship and gradually learning that saying “I'm not
My School Days on Two Continents When I was a small boy growing up in Tanga on the coast of Tanzania, I certainly never imagined that my education would eventually take me from a local primary school to a Catholic boarding school in the Usambara Mountains and finally to a
There's a moment that happens to every Brit in a Tunisian medina, usually around minute four. You've picked up a leather bag and admired it, and the stallholder has named a price that seems to have been generated by throwing darts at a calculator. You laugh
Ten Days in Tunisia: Sun, Souks, Seafood and the Occasional Surprise There are holidays where everything goes exactly according to plan. And then there are holidays that make much better stories. Our ten days in Hammamet belonged firmly in the second category. Tunisia greeted us with sunshine, extraordinary heat, warm
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