About Us

Angus Begg Angus is serious about his craft. A CNN award-winning television producer, he was the first South African broadcast journalist to report from the chaos of Somalia in 1992. He went on to cover the Rwandan genocide of '94 and South Africa's first democratic elections the same year, for which he was nominated for the national public service radio awards. It was these episodes in Somalia and Rwanda that took him the roundabout route to the fields of travel and environment, in which he now writes, produces and photographs. He found that the experience was as much a travel story as tracking gorillas or reviewing a luxury lodge in the Kruger Park. He learnt about the role of people in travel too. With considerable experience in the various media since then - TV, print, radio, photography and the internet - Angus has gone on to cover every aspect of travel, whether rural communities clashing with wildlife, tracking the Serengeti migration, hiking Table Mountain or searching for that perfect sauvignon blanc.

Alison Hofer Alison has been an actress and presenter for over 20 years, working locally and internationally in theatre, film and TV, and in radio as a presenter, journalist and voice artist. Her subjects have ranged from dramas and commercials (with clients like BMW, Renault, Panasonic and SAA) to travel shows. Working in theatre, TV and education, Alison also presented a programme on Radio 106.7 Planet Fm in Auckland, New Zealand. She has been coaching and lecturing performance and acting at South Africa's School of Motion Picture, New Zealand's Performing Arts School and the University of Auckland. Holding a Masters Degree in Theatre Studies, she writes and directs theatre productions, most recently in South Africa and New Zealand. Alison speaks 5 languages, Dutch and German among them.

Helen Turnbull African Storybook is proud to be associated with Helen Turnbull because of her value and experience in the contemporary tourism industry. She started the Serendipity Africa tourism consultancy in 2002, through which she focuses on sustainable tourism development, hoping to change the mindset of the travel industry - and encourage them to implement responsible management strategies with an equal balance of economic, social and environmental considerations. Helen also has an extensive background in aviation, having spent sixteen years with Lufthansa, where she got to grips with corporate social responsibility policy, and how to adopt the best possible environmental measures within the limitations of a company. She went on to work with Air Mauritius and Malaysia Airlines in various capacities. In 2006 she also qualified as a freelance national trainer for FTTSA (Fair Trade Tourism South Africa), delivering workshops to basic Adult Education learners in the hospitality industry on 'Sustainable Tourism'. This is important to us as we like to work with like-minded properties and people.

Greg Nelson A perfect fit for African Storybook, Greg Nelson is one of South Africa's top actuality cameramen. After his early days at the South African Broadcasting Corporation - covering sports, musicals, arts, fashion, drama and news as a cameraman - Greg's first big freelance job was the release of Nelson Mandela from prison. With the UK's Channel 4 News he visited all corners of Africa and the Far East as a multi-skilled Cameraman/Editor (where he assisted in the establishment of the Hong Kong bureau). He went on to film the Tamil Tigers in Sri Lanka, the demise of the Chinese river dolphins, cult murders in Japan and the Rwanda genocide that finally influenced Greg's decision to switch genres and follow his lifelong passion of shooting wildlife documentaries. He has filmed lions for a series of lion documentaries sold to Discovery channel. He likewise filmed and co-produced a series for National Geographic Television entitled 'Wild Orphans', while for the BBC he shot 'Escape the Elephants' documentary with Saba Douglas Hamilton and the 'Elephant Diaries' in Kenya'. He filmed 'The Last Mahout' in Thailand and documented human- elephant conflict in India - the latter resulting in 'Elephant Wars' (or Australian TV. Most recently he was DOP/co-director/soundman for an Australian/BBC co-production in some of the most inhospitable terrain in Central Asia. Working as cameraman on the reality theme presenter-led 'Caught Live on Safari' drew high praise from Nat Geo Channels Executive Producer Geoff Daniels. Greg & African Storybook currently work as a team producing inserts for the South African multi award-winning current affairs and magazine programme, 'Carte Blanche'.