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The Ghosts of Happy Valley

Juliet Barnes, MA (hons) 1985

Kenya's infamous Happy Valley had its heyday between the wars. Its small clique of hedonistic aristocrats and family black sheep were frowned upon by many British colonials for their excessive drinking, drug taking and wife-swapping parties. The mysterious murder of Lord Erroll in 1941 (still unsolved today) abruptly ended the era. Or did it? From 2000 - 2012, I braved the bad roads up to Happy Valley in my Old Landrover to see what was left there now. 

Today it has declined from those days of large colonial houses and expansive farms, to a densely populated and poor area, with mounting environmental issues. As I discovered crumbling remains of grand old homes and met Kikuyu elders in the area, many more strange and unexpected stories of love, murder, scandal and torture surfaced, going back to the 1920s - up to the present day. 

My Kikuyu friend and guide, Solomon Gitau, was born in Happy Valley and has his own tale of courage and adversity. Meanwhile my grandparents farmed in Kenya in colonial times and knew some of the Happy Valley players, while my grandfather's cousin committed suicide there, further stimulating my own interest. 

Thus the book became a personal quest, as I became fascinated by the Erroll murder as well as Solomon's conservation battles.

ISBN: 978 1 78131 085 4

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