Now it has been deposed by Zambia and Zimbabwe (formerly Northern Rhodesia and Rhodesia). Zambia is even encouraging the white man to return, Zambia is even encouraging the white man to return. bringing foreign exchange and work creation schemes.
THERE may be shades of Happy Valley, but this is no life of indolence. The new colonials come not to sow tobacco or prospect for gold, but for the modern money-spinner: tourism.
The spotlight fell on the Zim-Zam set earlier this year when Tommy Leigh-Pemberton (son of Robin, former Governor of the Bank of England) was killed in a car crash in Harare.
"He was the last of the Mad Dogs and Englishmen breed." says close friend Will Ruck-Kcenc. Yet the breed lives on with such British exiles as ex-Army officer Kevin "Muppet" Muggleton. now a video producer. who spearheaded videoing whitewater rafting below Victoria Falls; canoe safari operator Tim Came. 27. who runs Tongabezi River Safaris:
lan MacAdam, who with Zambian Nick Dean offers micro lighting trips over the Falls: and pilot Rupert St Aubyn.
"We have the ultimate lifestyle." says Ben Parker. 31. as he pours the gin and tonics and watches the burned orange orb of the sun dip behind the ebony and mahogany trees along the Zambezi. Master of his own small universe of 70 acres and 75 staff, plus a private island, Parker adds: "I might be in the office for a few hours. Then I'll go canoeing and might come face to face with an elephant."
The lifestyle enjoyed by the new colonials has the opulence of another era. Parker and Ruck-Keane's private incomes enabled them to invest a total of £100.000.
Their camp has open thatched rooms and secluded suites for 16 guests, and they have a Fleet of boats, five four-wheel drive vehicles and four London taxis.
It was worth the 18 months of red tape to get government approval.
"Zambia has so much potential." says Will Ruck-Keene. 32," "though the day Tongabezi opened, there was a coup."
There are many sides of paradise - the two things most frequently missed are the company of others on the British wavelength, and certain foods. "Provisioning is a nightmare, says the camp's cordon bleu cook. Clair Scriven.
"Sometimes Livingstone. the local town. runs out of eggs or cream."
Zimbabwe. independent only since 198(1, is more restrictive than Zambia towards foreign entrepreneurs. But then it has far more to offer. Victoria Falls - a flourishing one-horse town half a mile from the thundering waters - is
Ex-Army officer "Muppet" Muggleton laps up his new life
The Mecca (for displaced Hooray Henrys. "If you want to do anything, Vic Falls is the place, says Muggleton. "Two years ago. the town was full of hunters. There was no doctor, no chemist and one supermarket."
Now there is a handful of shops, a Wimpy and Explorers Bar - the African version of the Admiral Cod in Sloane Square - which doubles up as the bush telegraph exchange, since new colonials have no telephones.
Muggleton. 26. is the archetypal Boy's Own adventurer, who put half
the town out of electricity when he took a pot shot at a baboon and hit a transformer. And. on a single kayak trip. he was chased by an elephant. snapped at by a crocodile and overturned by a hippo.
"If you have a good idea you can make it happen." he says. "I don't think you can in Britain now."
Many Britons under 35 entered adult life to catch the crest of the Eighties economic wave. then had the surfboard pulled from under them. After recession, redundancy and a downward spiral in national morale, some former yuppies said. "Goodbye to all that".
"I have an aversion to bad news and the reality of life in the modern West." says Ruck-Keene. "Some people say coming here is running away from reality."
Perhaps so. The new colonials are natural adventurers, but one also senses they never found their niche at home.
Yet. in contrast to white Africa of yester-year. when costumed colonials on their best misbehaviour would swap partners and dance until dawn. Will and Ben extinguish lanterns before midnight and rise for work at six.
But at Vic Falls the spirit of their forefathers remains. "We had a black-tie dinner on a rock at Devil's Cataract last year," says Tim Came.
"We had porters, tables with cloths and candles. Pimm's. and fine wines and Scotch. Then we all crashed out in our sleeping bags."
NEW colonials hanker for such tastes of the homeland. Parker and Ruck-Keane always ask visiting friends to bring smoked salmon and Stilton, and they subscribe to The Spectator. Private Eye and The Economist. So how strong is their tie to the motherland?
"It would be hard to go back." says Ruck-Keane. "But Britain will always be home.
"I would educate
my children there
and probably retire
there." Perhaps Parker speaks for his compatriots when he says: "There will always be a pull. I'm sure the pioneers kept a bit of their heart in England." |
