January 2026 Edition
Few years can have started off so dramatically worldwide as 2026, and all of these important developments seem to have involved President Donald J. Trump in one way or another.
The intervention in Venezuela and removal of ex-President Nicolas Maduro in order to face charges of narco-terrorism and conspiracy to import cocaine in the United States is of course to be applauded – but, as John Bolton has accurately observed, this intervention didn’t go nearly far enough as the rest of the Maduro regime remain in place. The Venezuelan people therefore continue to be suppressed under this tyrannic regime, and as a result more and more will be fleeing unregulated to the United States. Why Donald Trump thinks that Maduro’s designated Vice-President Delcy Rodriguez Gomez, with her close ties to Venezuela’s despotic Minister of the Interior Diosdado Cabello, would prove any different in the oppression of the Venezuelan people defies belief. Surely the US intervention should have gone far further and involved the implementation of fresh internationally-observed elections, especially as an alternative Venezuelan government lies ready under the leadership of Maria Corina Machado, who by her fawning support for the awarding of the Nobel Peace Prize to Donald Trump has shown that she would bring Venezuela firmly back into the Western fold.
At much the same time the people of Iran (Persia) have shown great courage by defying the equally oppressive regime of the mad mullahs in their country. Here President Trump has promised that he will “rescue” the Iranian protestors and that “Help is on its way”, but alas such promises still appear to be only words, and Iranian patriots continue to be slaughtered in the streets. Again an alternative government in the form of a Western-orientated constitutional monarchy under the leadership of Shah Reza Pahlavi lies awaiting, so why therefore hasn’t the promised “help” arrived to “rescue” the country and to re-install the Pahlavi dynasty?
Another attempted uprising against the current order has however occurred in the United States itself, this time not opposing an oppressive regime but rather the exact opposite, wishing to undermine the country and its Western democratic society by allowing more and more illegal third-world immigrants to settle and remain. The federal Immigration and Custom Enforcement (ICE) agency have done an excellent job in trying to remove these parasites, but after one of the self-hating supporters of the illegal immigrants was shot by an ICE agent in Minneapolis whilst trying to prevent them from doing their duty all hell broke loose in the city as the “enemies within” violently confronted the forces of law and order. President Trump has threatened to invoke the Insurrection Act to quell this lawlessness, but alas at the time of writing has failed to do so.
The most disturbing development this year has however been President Trump’s bizarre and illegal threat to seize Greenland. Greenland has been a Danish possession since 1721 – i.e. since before the United States was even established! It has been well-ruled by Denmark ever since, and has never had any long-standing connection to the US. It is not ruled by narco-terrorists, nor by mad mullahs, and as Denmark is an advanced Western nation and a fellow member of NATO there is absolutely no risk of Greenland being used by either Red China or by Russia as a springboard to de-stable the United States. This irrational claim on Greenland is therefore not only deranged but also highly dangerous, as it risks causing conflict between Western nations at a time when they are all under potential threat from the Islamic world and from Red China. It is said that Donald Trump has only made this reprehensible threat because he wishes to go down in history as the President who re-enacted the Monroe Doctrine and increased the size of the United States. He should be reminded therefore that the original Monroe Doctrine was only concerned with Latin America, namely only lands to the south of the United States! Furthermore if he wished to increase the size of the country then why not grant Puerto Rico statehood or re-establish ownership of the Panama Canal, which was a US territory before being given away by the insipid Jimmy Carter – or perhaps even by liberating Cuba and claiming far more logical and acceptable ownership of that island!
Donald Trump gained the US Presidency both is 2016 and in 2024 with a lot of goodwill, not only from this publication but also from patriotic forces throughout the West in general. Now however he risks losing all this goodwill by failing to complete the job in Venezuela, by failing to keep his promises to the Iranian people, by failing to support his own ICE agents adequately – and particularly by his lunatic and perilous claim on Greenland. We therefore call upon him to see sense and to turn his desire for expansionism south rather than north, otherwise he will go down in history as the president who plunged the entire West into jeopardy.
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SPRINGBOK CLUB NEWS
The Springbok Club held a most enjoyable informal gathering last month at which, inter alia, Mrs. Susan Beresford told something about the situation in the “new” South Africa when she left the country a couple of years ago.
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The 2026 Annual General Meeting of the Springbok Club will be held on Sunday 25th January 2026 in the upstairs “Snug” room of The Antelope, 22 Eaton Terrace, Belgravia, London SW1W 8EZ (nearest tube station: Sloane Square), commencing at 14.30 hrs. You are reminded that although all fully paid-up members of the Springbok Club are entitled to attend and to participate in discussions, only Honorary, Life and fully paid-up Full Members will be allowed to vote or to stand for office. Cash membership renewals may however be made on the day.
The agenda will be as follows :-
1) Organiser’s report for 2025. 2) Treasurer’s report for 2025. 3) Election of officers to the Executive Committee and other appointments for 2026. 4) Motions for debate (if any). 5) Any other business, including discussions about plans for activities during 2026.
All nominations for office and motions for debate must be proposed and seconded by Honorary, Life or fully paid-up Full Members of the Springbok Club, and must be submitted in writing or by e-mail to the current Executive Committee at least 48 hours prior to the meeting.
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PATRIOTIC FORUM NEWS
The Patriotic Forum will be staging its traditional Burns Night/Australia Day celebration on Sunday 25th January 2026, commencing with a haggis meal at the Sir John Hawkshaw Wetherspoons pub at Cannon Street Station (City of London, EC4N 6AP) at approximately 16.15 hrs, and then journeying on to the bust of Admiral Arthur Phillip (who founded Sydney and became the first Governor of New South Wales) towards the rear of St.Paul’s Cathedral where at approximately 18.30 hrs the Australian National Anthem will be sung.
In the Spring of 2026 the Patriotic Forum will be welcoming Mr. Edward Spalton, the Honorary President of the Campaign for an Independent Britain, as guest speaker. The organisation also hopes to stage meetings to be addressed by a leading official from the Turning Point UK organisation, a sitting county councillor, a representative from another leading EuroSceptic organisation and a visiting Australian supporter later during 2026. Further details will of course be given in future editions of the SCN.
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MESSAGE FROM “SAVE OUR RED SQUIRRELS”
We have recently received the following most important message from the Save Our Red Squirrels organisation. It reads as follows :-
“Once common across the UK, these shy, iconic mammals now cling to survival in just a few woodland strongholds. They are more than a countryside symbol – they are a national favourite. Even King Charles III has called them “ambassadors for nature”. Their cultural importance is so widely felt that they now feature on the UK’s new 2p coin, their copper-red coats echoing its hue.
“It’s only thanks to tireless volunteers, local groups and small charities that red squirrels survive in England at all. But those efforts are being quietly undone. While it’s illegal to kill a red squirrel, destroying its habitat is still allowed – and it’s happening. Ancient plantations known to support reds are being felled with no mitigation, no reassessment, and no consequence. Enough is enough. If we don’t act now, we risk losing red squirrels from England for good.
“WHY IT MATTERS
“Red squirrels are now functionally extinct across most of England. Officially listed as Near Threatened (Woodland Trust), they survive in just a few strongholds in the north where targeted conservation continues. Core populations remain in :-
• Cumbria • Northumberland • County Durham • Lancashire • Parts of North Yorkshire
“Their range has shrunk drastically due to habitat loss and the spread of the non-native North American grey squirrel – which outcompetes reds and carries the deadly squirrel pox virus. DEFRA data shows grey squirrels now outnumber reds in both Cumbria (by 17.3%) and Northumberland (by 25%).These regions offer the last hope for recovery – if we act now to protect and restore habitat.
“THE QUIET CRISIS
“Despite conservation success stories – like the recovery of reds on Anglesey – threats remain :-
• Forestry England reportedly plans to clear-fell one of the largest red squirrel woodlands in the north. • At Killhope, County Durham, a thriving red squirrel plantation has already been razed. • At Pow Hill Bog, reds cling to a fragile strip of woodland, under pressure from recreation and road traffic. • In Northumberland, several red-supporting conifer plantations have been heavily or entirely felled. • Under the UK Forestry Standard, landowners are advised to retain at least 20% of woodland for biodiversity – but in practice, this is often ignored.
“THE GREY SQUIRREL PROBLEM
“It's not their 'fault' - as they were brought from North America by the Victorians - but... Non-native greys:
• Carry squirrel pox (fatal to reds) • Strip bark from hardwoods, causing tree death and disease • Cause significant property damage – insurers like LV= report rising claims worth hundreds of millions
“We have wildlife laws on paper – but they’re not being enforced.
“WHAT WE’RE CALLING FOR
“We urge the UK Government and devolved authorities to :-
• Enforce existing legislation – including the Wildlife and Countryside Act and Forest Research Operational Notes – in red squirrel areas. • Add red squirrels to the Habitats and Species Conservation Regulations 2017 – just as badgers and beavers were in 2022. • Implement the 20% biodiversity set-aside properly, with oversight and penalties for non-compliance. • Reform and expand squirrel management grants (e.g. WS3) to support more private landowners in northern England. • Promote mixed native planting of trees – Scots pine, hazel, oak – to boost long-term biodiversity.
“TIME TO PUT RED SQUIRRELS ON THE NATIONAL AGENDA
“Most people don’t realise the true impact grey squirrels have – or how close we are to losing reds in England entirely. We don’t need to rewrite policy. We just need to enforce what’s already there. We must protect vital habitat. We must prioritise native biodiversity over profit.
“SIGN THIS PETITION TO :-
• Enforce red squirrel protection laws. • Include red squirrels under the UK’s strongest legal safeguards. • Protect and monitor at least 20% of sustainable woodland for biodiversity. • Stop habitat destruction before it’s too late. • Secure a future for one of Britain’s most beloved native species.
https://www.change.org/p/save-our-red-squirrels-enforce-protections-prioritise-habitat-in-uk-woodlands/
“Thank you for helping protect our precious reds.”
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PETER DIMMOCK MEMORIAL AWARDS 2025
The winners of the 2025 Peter Dimmock Memorial Awards were as follows :-
British Sports Personality of the Year : RORY McILROY (Golf)
British Sports Team of the Year : BATH RUGBY FOOTBALL CLUB
Overseas Sports Personality of the Year : TADEJ PODACAR (Slovenia, Cycling)
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HEDONISM RULES!
There has been much comment in the UK media regarding England’s rather disappointing performance in this year’s Ashes series “Down Under”. Certain commentators have tried to place the blame on the team being allowed to “unwind” whilst having a break between matches at the seaside resort of Noosa on the Queensland Sunshine Coast. Poor old Ben Duckett seems to have been singled out for particular criticism in this regard after a video emerged which seemed to show him as being slightly tipsy.
Several things should be born in mind here however. Firstly there is no such thing as a bad Australian team; the current Aussie team may have been weaker than some, but it is clearly still probably the strongest in the world. England however are currently in a state of re-building, particularly in the bowling department, and few people realistically thought that they were capable of re-gaining the Ashes this year. The kill-joy critics should however remember an incident which occurred during the Lords Ashes Test in 1948 when on the morning of the third day’s play England players were surprised to see Denis Compton turning up at the changing room wearing a tuxedo – evidently he had been up all night at a trendy night-club in London with Anna Neagle. He promptly went out and scored 53 against the likes of Lindwall and Johnston!
Perhaps England’s current team should therefore be encouraged to engage in more hedonistic activities between matches, not less!
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REMEMBERING MAURICE OWEN
Maurice Owen was a great supporter of the patriotic movement in Durban during the 1980s (see SCN January 2004). He was best known however for his Boxing exploits. He fought as an amateur, representing Natal at Heavyweight on several occasions, before after retirement becoming one of the leading Boxing promoters in the city, staging many bills at the D.L.I. Drill Hall in the middle of Greyville racetrack.
What is not so well known is that he also ran a very successful ceramic tiling company, and somehow he came into contact with a relative of the then Shah of Iran, who was so impressed with the floor and wall tiles which he had to offer that she gave him a contract to tile one of the royal palaces in Iran. He evidently travelled to the country once to inspect the palace in question, but alas before the contract could be completed the Iranian Islamic revolution took place and his contact have to flee with the Shah, and Maurice’s tiling contract was therefore never completed.
Maurice Owen sadly died in 2003, but we wonder whether he’s now looking down from above and observing all the clamour for the restoration of the Pahlavi Dynasty some 47 years after he lost his tiling contract and contemplating what might have been!
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SEARCH SERVICES FOR THOSE SEEKING LOST RELATIVES
Find any South African, even those who have emigrated. We also search Botswana, Namibia and ex-Rhodesia/Zimbabwe. Please use the search request form at :-
http://www.bellemodel.biz/emails/emails.php?id=emails_from_SCN
Also check :-
https://www.bellemodel.biz/uruguay/uruguay.php?id=uruguay_from_letter_uy
(This site is for people who have considered emigrating from South Africa, specifically to Uruguay.)
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BOOK OFFERS
“LIEUTENANT COLONEL ALFRED JAMES TOMLINSON: MEMOIRS OF AN AFRICAN PIONEER AND BSAP OFFICER" is now available at Amazon.com, and can be shipped to anywhere in the world. This book contains excerpts from Lieut. Tomlinson's writings detailing his experiences as a member of the BSAP in Southern Rhodesia, where he rose from the rank of an ordinary trooper to retire as the commanding officer. It also includes the personal story of Majaqaba Ncube, a man who was enslaved by Lobengula when his entire village was massacred by the chief's soldiers. After he escaped, Lieut. Tomlinson saved him from certain death and gave him a job. They lost contact and were reunited after 45 years, when Majaqaba presented Lieut. Tomlinson with an earthenware jar.
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"THE SAINTS" – a unique documentary in support of the book on the brief history of the RLI.
DVD available along with other premium titles of historical interest from Msasa Enterprises. Visit www.rhodesianvideos.co.za or write to msasavideos@gmail.com for more information. UK contact telephone: 07865088212.
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WHERE ARE THEY NOW ?
No.326: Mr. Basil Petzer of Southampton.
Basil Petzer was one of the earliest subscribers to the SCN, though alas he was never seen at any Springbok Club events nor did we receive any further communications from him. It is believed that he was an ex-Rhodesian rather than an ex-South African, but alas recent copies of the SCN sent to him have been returned to us as evidently his last known e-mail address is no longer operative. If anyone could tell us how he can now be contacted we would be most grateful.
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RECOMMENDED WEB-SITE OF THE MONTH
Reza Pahlavi, the son and heir to the last Shah of Iran, has been receiving massive support on the streets of Iran during the current popular uprising against the regime of the mad mullahs. He advocates a secular democratic Iran, and his web-site can be accessed at :-
https://www.rezapahlavi.org/
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LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
HOOT IF YOU AGREE
Sir,
President Trump refused to go to the G20 meeting in South Africa. What a hoot!
Yours etc.,
Benny Sparrow, Durban, Natal, South Africa.
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JEWISH QUESTION
Sir,
What is the Springbok Club’s attitude/policy towards Israel, anti-Semitism, the Jewish people?
I gather that you - the Springbok Club as an establishment - are against Holocaust denial. Are you also against anti-Semitism?
I’d be grateful for a candid reply.
Thank you in advance.
Yours etc.,
Jillian Becker, California, U.S.A.
[ The Springbok Club as an organisation, being mainly concerned with the southern African diaspora and the British Empire and Commonwealth in general, doesn’t of course have any official attitude/policy on these matters. I think it is fair to say however, given that the organisation is fully supportive of the preservation of Western civilisation, it is unofficially totally pro-Israel and completely opposes all forms of anti-Semitism. We remember well the close, friendly and mutually-beneficial links which the State of Israel had with South Africa during then days of civilised rule, and furthermore the organisation has several keen supporters who have Jewish blood in their veins! – Ed. ]
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FAIR DINKUM
Sir,
Australia is no longer allowing free speech :-
https://www.facebook.com/stories/117104841249526/UzpfSVNDOjEzODA0NDM2ODM4NjYyNzE=/?view_single=1&source=shared_permalink&mibextid=wwXIfr
Yours etc.,
A.Cameron, New South Wales, Australia.
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OBITUARY
BRIGITTE BARDOT
It was with much sadness and sorrow that we, and millions of others throughout the West, learnt of the death of Brigitte Bardot at the end of last month. Brigitte Bardot exemplified the French post-WW2 Nouvelle Vague cinema and personified all that was exciting about French culture and society at the time. She became the pin-up for countless young (and not so young!) men around the Western World.
Brigitte Anne-Marie Bardot was born at Paris in 1934 into a wealthy upper-middle-class Parisien family. Blessed with mesmerizing beauty, a wonderful singing voice and natural acting ability it wasn’t long before her talents were spotted, and she was engaged as a model for Elle magazine at the age of only 15. She appeared in her first film, “Le Trou Normand” in 1952 and went on to appear in 47 feature films, starring in most of them. Among her most outstanding successes were “Manina, the Girl in the Bikini”, “And God created woman” (a performance which gained her the appellation of “evil” from the Vatican – a sobriquet which did her career no harm whatsoever!), “La Vérité”, Jean-Luc Godard’s masterpiece “Le Mépris” and “Viva Maria!”. Although not so well known in the English-speaking world, she was also a highly successful recording artist in France, recording at least four albums including “Brigitte Bardot Sings” and the collaboration with Serge Gainsbourg, “Bonnie and Clyde”.
Alas Brigitte Bardot’s private life was not so successful. She married four times, the first three of which ended in divorce. She was furthermore rumoured to have had many affairs, though almost all of these were mere speculations and “wishful thinkings” on the part of the other parties, and most of them were vigorously denied. She only had one child, a son named Nicolas-Jacques from her second husband Jacques Charrier, but sadly she subsequently became estranged from him.
In 1973 she shocked the world by retiring entirely from the entertainment business and devoting all of her time for the rest of her life to her passion for animal welfare, founding and then running her own Brigitte Bardot Foundation for animal rights. She once said: “I gave my youth and my beauty to men, I am now giving my wisdom and my experience, the best of myself, to animals”. Even though she became a vegetarian during the 1960s she didn’t become a doctrinaire vegan, her vegetarianism being because of her concern for individual animals rather than for any blanket opposition. She received many awards for her tireless work for animal welfare from around the world, including from the United Nations Environmental Programme and from PETA (People for the Ethical Treatment of Animals). When the animal rights activist Jill Phipps was crushed to death by a lorry during a protest against the transport of live calves to be slaughtered for veal Brigitte Bardot made a point of flying to the UK to attend her funeral at Coventry Cathedral. Her love for animals was so great that she invariably shared beds with then, even those as large as small ponies!
Brigitte Bardot’s overriding concern for animal welfare spurred her on to her second great mission of the second part of her life – her French patriotism and her striving for the preservation of Western culture in general. She became increasingly shocked and angered by the Muslim practice of Halal slaughter of animals, and this anger quickly turned into forthright opposition to the increasing number of third-world immigrants – particularly Mohammedans – entering France which she saw as diluting and potentially destroying French culture and identity. She became fiercely outspoken in her comments about the third-world invaders, being convicted of “inciting racial hatred” on six occasions and receiving increasingly heavy fines – but she was not to be intimidated and fearlessly maintained her opposition to the mainly Muslim immigrant population who she maintained was: “destroying us, destroying our country and imposing its habits”, and who had: “kept the genes of savages” by beheading goats and sheep without anesthetising them first. Such sentiments were of course anathema to the egalitarian leftist sections of French society, but they were welcomed and applauded by more patriotic elements – not all of whom had been fans of her earlier acting career! Her bravely expressed comments were not her only contribution to the patriotic cause in France however, for in both 2012 and 2017 she openly endorsed Marine Le Pen, the leader of the Front National/Rassemblement National party, at the French Presidential elections, and emphasised her commitment to the party when in 1992 she married Bernard d’Ormale (the marriage which lasted!), a key advisor to Jean-Marie Le Pen, the father and predecessor of Marine Le Pen.
Brigitte Bardot died at St.Tropez, a Mediterranean resort which became synonymous with her name. She was a great Frenchwoman and a great human being, whose talents, activism and courage will inspire and galvanise patriots and animal-lovers throughout the Western World for generations to come. We join with millions of other admirers around the globe in mourning this truly magnificent woman who defined all that was best about France.
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