The magazine of the photo-essay
November 2018 back issue
Christian the Lion
by John Rendall and Derek Cattani
“A free, really high quality photo-essay magazine. Fabulous!”
Stephen Fry. British actor, writer and film maker
In 1969, Harrods luxury department store in London sold a three-month-old lion cub
to two young Australians, John Rendall and Anthony (Ace) Bourke. They named him
Christian.
For a year, Christian lived happily with John and Ace and his human pride. His home
was a pine furniture shop called Sophistocat in the World’s End on Chelsea’s King’s
Road. It was here that Fleet Street photographer Derek Cattani first began
photographing him.
When Christian outgrew London, he was entrusted to the care of George Adamson
in Kenya. He and his wife Joy had already successfully rehabilitated a lioness
named Elsa, a story known to the world through Joy’s book Born Free and the film
of the same name.
In 1971, one year after Christian had started living in the wild, John and Ace returned to Kenya in an attempt to find him
and see how he was adapting. The film clip of their emotional reunion has now been viewed by over 100 million people
on YouTube.
In 1972, John and Ace returned for a second reunion. Christian, although still affectionate, was much more mature and
now preoccupied with wild lionesses. George’s rehabilitation programme was succeeding.
In 1973, Christian disappeared into the wild forever. But George heard him mating and was confident that Christian had
established his own pride. George Adamson had succeeded in rehabilitating a fifth-generation zoo-bred lion in the wild. It
was the first time this had ever been done.
When John and Ace took Christian to Kenya in 1970, there were an estimated 400,00 lions in Africa. Today there are
fewer than 20,000. The future of Christian’s descendants is as precarious as that of rhino and the elephant – and, in fact,
of all Africa’s wildlife.
Christian attracts young admirers as he heads out in the Bentley. © Derek Cattani
Christian demands attention. © Derek Cattani
John and Christian on the stairs at Sophistocat. © Derek Cattani
Christian was surprisingly gentle with children. © Derek Cattani
Christian tackles John during a game of football in the Moravian Close. © Derek Cattani
Christian and John get some rest on the first night in camp. © Derek Cattani
Derek takes a light reading from Christian at Kora. © John Rendall
John, Christian and Ace at Kampi ya Simba, ‘The camp of lions’, Kora. © Derek Cattani
Driving down the King’s Road in the Mercedes. © Derek Cattani
Christian is reunited with John and Ace in a moment that was to captivate millions of viewers on YouTube twenty-seven
years later. © Simon Trevor
John with Christian on Kora Rock, enjoying a fine view of the reserve, 1972. © Tony Fitzjohn (Gawpt)
George Adamson and Christian in 1973… last photos. © Tony Fitzjohn (Gawpt)
