Tributes to drowned former Holloway School teacher Roger Diski
Strong current off African coast claimed life of man who became an ethical travel pioneer
Published: 3rd June, 2011
by PETER GRUNER and JOSIE HINTON
EX-COLLEAGUES have paid tribute to a former Holloway School teacher who drowned while on a working holiday in Sierra Leone.
An inquest heard how Roger Diski, who went on to become an ethical travel pioneer after leaving education, died when he was caught in a strong undercurrent while swimming off the coast of Fremantle with his daughter in February.
The 61-year-old, of Tufnell Park, was respected throughout the tourism industry for founding Rainbow Tours, an award-winning ethical travel company promoting sustainable tourism in Africa.
He had also been a respected and popular teacher. In the 1970s he set up a school in King’s Cross for young people from disadvantaged backgrounds and later taught at Holloway School for 15 years, where he was head of history.
St Pancras Coroner’s Court heard on Tuesday how Mr Diski was with his daughter on a remote beach on February 23 when they went for a swim.
His wife, Judith De Witt, said: “They had gone for a walk and a swim before lunch. They talked about what a beautiful place it was. Then they started back across this estuary to have lunch.”
Sadly, Mr Diski was caught in an undertow and didn’t make it back to shore. The inquest heard he was caught in a spot notorious for its strong currents.
Ms De Witt added: “In general, the west coast of Africa is a dodgy place to swim unless you know what you’re doing.”
Mr Diski was in extremely good health and had spent the past two years “getting slim and fit,” the inquest heard. But a post-morten examination found he had underlying heart disease which may have contributed to his death.
Recording a verdict of accidental death, coroner Dr Andrew Reid said: “It appears he did have unexpected underlying heart disease. This would have contributed to his death by drowning.”
Mr Diski will be remembered for his recent campaigns to shame the holiday industry for the damage it does to Third World countries.
He was a trustee for the Holloway-based national charity Tourism Concern. They are currently campaigning against holiday firms who destroy host communities by diverting water for new tourist developments.
Brian Fletcher, who was deputy headteacher at Holloway School during the 1970s, remembered Mr Diski with great affection.
He said: “There were several teachers at the time, including Roger and the late Jeff Gordon, who were truly inspirational.”
Mr Diski taught history at Holloway until the early 1980s when he became increasingly disillusioned with education. Mr Fletcher added: “He was an extremely gifted teacher who was compelling in the classroom and able to engage with the children. He was a very effective communicator but on top of that he was also extremely principled with a social and political conscience. The sixth-formers really loved him.”
Mr Diski is survived by his wife, two daughters, one step-daughter and two stepsons.