The Other Brother by Geoff Elliott
Published by Allen and Unwin
ISBN 1 74114 324 1. Paperback 194 pages.
Recommended Retail Price in Australia A$24.95.
Reviewed by David Skea <david@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
The Other Brother is the story of Simon Holmes à Court, the younger
brother of
Robert, the West Australian billionaire. Unexpectedly it’s a fairly
ordinary
story of a rather quiet, shy young man making a career first as a wild
life
protection officer in the then Bechuanaland Protectorate (now independent
Botswana). After independence, having to leave the British Crown service,
he
decided to start up a yacht charter business but first had to find a boat
and
learn to sail. Unfortunately this enterprise did not prosper so he then
decided to make a wild life do***entary film whilst sailing round the
world. He
completed his filming and spent a year or so editing the film footage he
had
taken but found no takers for the finished film. He then returned to
Botswana
starting out again as a sculptor.
What is puzzling is that in June 1977, at the age of 37, he suddenly
disappeared. His vehicle was found abandoned some two days drive away from
his
home in a remote forest. Moreover the vehicle identity had been defaced as
if
someone did not want the identity of the owner to become known.
Three years later some girls out cutting twigs to make brooms stumbled
across a
skeleton which was presumed to be that of Simon. Alongside was a
double-barrelled shotgun, one shell still unfired. An inquest was held
and the
case closed. The official cause of death was found to be an accident or
suicide
and it was also found that no one else was responsible for the cause of
death.
All of this was re****ted in the South African press but did not get
exposure in
Australia where his mother and brother lived. This is not really
surprising as
he wasn’t an Australian or a resident of Australia and his story wasn’t
unique.
So how did Elliott get involved? It seems that Elliott began his career as
a
journalist in Western Australia where, amongst other stories, he re****ted
on
the rise of Robert Holmes à Court. Later he moved to Europe and then to
South
Africa, working in Cape Town. A colleague there mentioned that he had gone
to
school with the Holmes à Court brothers and that Simon had disappeared.
This
was the first time that Elliott knew that there was a younger brother and
he
became intrigued (obsessed) by the story. This book is the result of the
research that followed.
It would appear that Simon was a somewhat foolhardy young man and early on
in
his sailing career was ‘lost at sea’ between Maputo (Lourenço Marques) and
Durban. Fortune smiled on him and he was rescued by a passing oil tanker.
However he had run up a huge debt for the rescue. In settlement for the
rescue
and towing, and to pay the cost of repairing his yacht, he agreed to a
sailing
trip up the east coast of Africa, ostensibly a charter trip for two rich
tourists. In reality this was electronic surveillance or spying trip where
he
also honed up his skills as a sailor. Another sailboat and a round the
world
sailing trip followed, ostensibly to film wild life. Unfortunately his
film was
not the commercial success Simon had hoped for and he ended up back in
Botswana
starting a new career as a sculptor. His friends say that he had a natural
ability and could have become well known. During this time, he apparently
became involved with a married woman who was living apart from her
husband. The
night before he left there was a tiff she said she needed a breathing
space,
time alone to work things out. Simon left early next morning for
Johannesburg,
ostensibly to purchase casting supplies for his business but he never
reached
there or returned home.
Elliott’s style is easy to read and my only complaint is where he comes
into
the story himself as a fictional re****ter. As he says, he had trouble with
writing this part of the story and this was his way of managing it.
All-in-all
a light read useful for passing the time on a long air trip.
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