THE MAGAZINE SUMMER 2011 - PrivatAir

call him that, as he’s a relaxed sort of chap) is
drinking cheap instant coff ee. Dressed in a
simple round-neck sweater and shirt, he looks
like he might once have been in fi nance (which
he was) and that it probably bored him (which
it did). I say this because he has a spirited edge
that reveals itself as soon as we start to talk. For
while Charlie takes Tusk very seriously indeed
– protecting wildlife, supporting communities,
promoting education with grassroots, simple
everyday solutions – he also sees the humour in
how it all began. He was a gap year student, in
South Africa, selling Bic biros from the back of
a car. Th at was in 1979 – the fi rst time Charlie
set foot on the continent. ‘I knew it wasn’t the