Strachan: the final word
Noseweek|March 2020
Harold Strachan, Noseweek’s much-loved columnist of 20 years, died in Durban on 7 February 2020, aged 94
Strachan: the final word

NOSEWEEK WAS SURPRISED AND delighted to discover that the life of Robert Harold Lundie “Jock” Strachan, our veteran “Last Word” columnist of 20 years, was celebrated with a marathon 2,500-word obituary in The Times (London), in which he is referred to as “one of the most remarkable figures in recent South African history.” We could think of no better way to honour his memory than to republish it here – with The Times editor’s kind permission – and slightly shortened.

JOCK STRACHAN WAS ONE OF THE most remarkable figures in re-cent South African history: a bomber and fighter pilot, art teacher, painter, explosives expert and guerrilla, fisherman, picture restorer, cartoonist, novelist, humourist and ultra-marathon runner. He is perhaps best remembered, however, for his dramatic exposé of the appalling jail conditions in which political prisoners were held under apartheid, which caused a storm, including a debate at the UN, and led to improvements for Nelson Mandela and others.

In 1960, when the South African government declared a state of emergency, Strachan and his second wife, Maggie, followed the tide of Africans who streamed out of the Cato Manor area of Durban to demand the release of their political leaders. The security forces used Saracen armoured vehicles to try to block their advance. When this did not work, the shooting began.

In Syringa Avenue, Strachan saw a young African, hurrying home from market with a packet of apples, shot dead; today Strachan’s painting of the scene holds pride of place in the Durban Art Gallery. When the police warned that they would shoot the crowd if it did not disperse, the Strachans, gambling that they would not shoot white people, stood in front of the guns to the fury of the police, who judged the situation too explosive to manhandle them away.

This story is from the March 2020 edition of Noseweek.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

This story is from the March 2020 edition of Noseweek.

Start your 7-day Magzter GOLD free trial to access thousands of curated premium stories, and 8,500+ magazines and newspapers.

MORE STORIES FROM NOSEWEEKView All
Lennie The Liquidator Faces R500,000 Defamation Suit
Noseweek

Lennie The Liquidator Faces R500,000 Defamation Suit

After losing his cool when his fees were questioned

time-read
10+ mins  |
September 2020
Panel Beater De Luxe
Noseweek

Panel Beater De Luxe

Danmar Autobody and its erstwhile directors get a serious panel beating in court papers. Corruption and theft are said to have destroyed the firm chaired by Nelson Mandela’s eldest daughter, leaving 200 workers destitute and threatening to kill.

time-read
8 mins  |
September 2020
Meet Covid Diarist Ronald Wohlman
Noseweek

Meet Covid Diarist Ronald Wohlman

Ronald Wohlman – EX SOUTH African copywriter, author, and actor – never dreamt that his lockdown diaries, written on Facebook and followed by people all over the world – would become his “life’s work”.

time-read
10+ mins  |
September 2020
A Picture Of Peace?
Noseweek

A Picture Of Peace?

Beware: Appearances can be deceptive

time-read
6 mins  |
September 2020
Flogging A (Battery-Driven) Dead Horse
Noseweek

Flogging A (Battery-Driven) Dead Horse

Why plug-in vehicles are not all they’re cracked up to be– and, likely, never will be

time-read
4 mins  |
September 2020
Everybody Drinks Corona
Noseweek

Everybody Drinks Corona

I am hesitant to go Into the pub today. Not because it’s illegal, but there is a crème colored 1985 Mercedes 300D parked behind the pine tree. This means the devil is inside; that’s what we call Dr. De Villiers. You don’t know whether you will encounter the good doctor with the charming bedside manner or the violent, bipolar bully. The problem is, most of the time, you can never be sure which it is, so it’s best to always keep a social distance.

time-read
3 mins  |
May 2020
Never Take A Hypochondriac To A Pandemic
Noseweek

Never Take A Hypochondriac To A Pandemic

From Ronald Wohlman’s New York Corona Diary

time-read
4 mins  |
May 2020
The money train
Noseweek

The money train

Transnet in court battle with liquidators of Gupta-linked audit firm over R57m in ‘corrupt’ payments and invoices

time-read
10+ mins  |
May 2020
‘He's no pharmaceutical genius, he's a vulture'
Noseweek

‘He's no pharmaceutical genius, he's a vulture'

Pharma con seeks prison release to ‘help find Covid cure’

time-read
8 mins  |
May 2020
Bush school – A memoir
Noseweek

Bush school – A memoir

OUR SCHOOL WAS IN THE MIDDLE of the bush, ten miles from the nearest town in the harsh beauty of the Zimbabwean highveld. It started life in World War II as No 26 EFTS Guinea Fowl, a Royal Air Force elementary flying training school and I arrived there in 1954, just seven years after it became an all-white co-ed state boarding school.

time-read
10+ mins  |
May 2020