Cape Town stage brings Stephen McGown’s al-Qaida ordeal to life

Desert Chess, a monodrama by playwright Mike van Graan, tells the story of Stephen McGown, who set off on a bucket-list motorbike trip from London to Cape Town in 2011 and was captured by al-Qaida in Mali.

He was held for ransom in the Sahara for nearly six years. The play runs at Artscape’s Arena Theatre from 3 to 14 November.

It draws on McGown’s account as recorded by author Tudor Caradoc-Davies in Six Years with Al Qaeda and traces how McGown changed, and what he learnt, during his years in captivity.

Wessel Pretorius plays the lead and Wolf Britz directs. Philip Miller composed the soundscape and Marcos Martins created the visuals.

McGown, a South African and British national, was seized by al-Qaida in the Islamic Maghreb while travelling in Timbuktu on 25 November 2011. Two other foreign tourists, Swede Johan Gustafsson and Dutchman Sjaak Rijke, were taken with him into the desert.

He was moved between desert camps roughly every two months. He later described extreme conditions, isolation from his family and recurring fear for his life, although he said he was not physically mistreated. He converted to Islam of his own accord, learnt Arabic and French, and picked up desert survival skills such as finding water and hunting. His mother’s health deteriorated while he was held, and she died before his release.

McGown was freed on 29 July 2017 after negotiations and appeals involving the South African and Malian governments and the Gift of the Givers. Pretoria said no ransom was paid, although some reports alleged otherwise. He returned to Johannesburg shortly afterwards, having become one of the longest-held surviving al-Qaida hostages.

Sources: Martin Myers Publicity, SAnews, GroundUp.