Jonathan Harries

I grew up in Namibia, an extraordinarily beautiful and wild country where the desert meets the sea, with not a blade of grass in between. In my early teens we moved to South Africa where, after completing the perfunctory exercises necessary for entering adulthood, I began a career in advertising. While my love and fascination with wildlife began in Namibia, it grew into a passion in South Africa, and I spent every chance I got going to Botswana and other places where you could – and luckily still can – see animals in their natural habitat.

I moved to the US in 1986 because it didn’t seem as if apartheid would ever end, and I’ve lived here ever since. I retired just over a year ago as Chairman of FCB, a global advertising agency, and published my first book, Killing Harry Bones. Both my sons are passionate about animals; my elder son, Simon, moved back to South Africa for a few years to become a safari guide. My wife and I go on safari as often as possible and have had some incredible trips into the bush, bringing back memories rather than trophies.