international liaison
offi cer’s report BY JOHN RENDALL
The role of International Liaison Offi cer for Ham Polo Club is a rather nebulous one,
and the only ‘qualifi cation’ I have to offer is my love of polo, and an appreciation for
the special charms of Ham Polo Club.
When our Chairman Nicholas Colquhoun-Denvers and Annie invited me to accept the
position I was honoured though unsure as to how I could fulfi l the role, but because of the
many happy years I have spent at the Club, I was delighted to accept and try to promote the
Club, both in the UK and abroad.
My playing years at Ham were hardly illustrious but they were a great introduction to the
‘sport of kings’ and I played many games and chukkas under the watchful eyes of the
then chairmen Col Geoffrey Godbold and Peter Adams, plus of course Peggy Healy whose
generous encouragement was always appreciated.
Since retiring as a player, (I last played at Royal Berkshire with the late Bryan Morrison who
also started his polo career at Ham), I have joined the ranks of enthusiastic spectators and
enjoy watching my former team mates and new players, particularly at Ham.
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International guests I have entertained at the Club have always been enthusiastic about
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the high standard of both the polo and the catering...all those delicious lunches we now
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enjoy thanks to Hunt Kendall...... and Sundays at Ham have become an essential part of my
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e summer schedule.
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Recently I have been travelling to promote the re-release of a book I wrote 40 years ago,
‘A Lion Called Christian’, about a lion I raised in London but who was successfully
rehabilitated back into the wild by George Adamson, the “lion whisperer” who had
rehabilitated his own lioness Elsa, made famous in his wife Joy’s book ‘Born Free’.
Interviewers asked about my interests other than lions and conservation in general,
so I have had numerous opportunities to mention Ham Polo Club.
The book was launched in America on the Oprah Winfrey Show, followed by an interview
with Whoopi Goldberg on her programme ‘The View’, so naturally I have invited both these
glamorous ladies to come and ‘tread in‘ at Ham when they are next in London.
So if you spot Oprah, Whoopi, Jay Leno, Richard and Judy, Philip and Ferne or some of the
actors from Home and Away or Neighbours (who I have met while promoting the book in
Australia), at the Club this season you will know that your International Liaison offi cer has
been busy telling all and sundry about the joys of our beloved Ham Polo Club.
rust (www.georgeadamson.org)
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Photo credit: George Adamson Wildlif
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