Thuppahi's Blog

Dirk Tissera, whose prefered title for this article is  “Sir Christopher Ondaatje (1933-2026): A Story-teller Par Excellence–  Memories don’t Leave like People do” …. NB: the highlights are an editorial imposition

From being wealthy to poor and back to wealthy again, Sir Philip Christopher Ondaatje (93), the Sri Lankan-born-English Knight and Canadian businessman, philanthropist, adventurer, writer and bob-sledding Olympian for Canada, passed away on July 20, 2026.

Contributing Editor and Patron of The Sri Lankan Anchorman in Toronto, a monthly English tabloid established in 2002, Sir Christopher contributed his fascinating stories to every issue since the paper’s inception.

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Riyaz Aluher

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ABSORB the varied setting and programmes in this VIDEO and Note the ‘pristine’ school uniforms  ….. https://mail.google.com/mail/u/0/?tab=rm&ogbl#inbox/FMfcgzQhVXGPFXjrWHtjMnbmRgQdpdWL?projector=1

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Sir Christopher Ondaatje, 93, no more!

It is with profound sadness that we learn of the passing of Sir Christopher Ondaatje in the Bahamas. Sir Christopher Ondaatje passed away on the morning of July 20, 2026, at the age of 93.

Broker, publisher, Nile explorer, Olympic athlete and arts philanthropist. Born in Sri Lanka in 1933, he moved to England for schooling before emigrating to Canada in 1956. His death was met with widespread mourning across the arts, sports, and philanthropic communities. He leaves behind an extraordinary legacy as a financier, Olympic athlete, author, explorer, and a highly generous patron of the arts.

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Christopher Ondaatje

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Uditha Devapriya, whose favoured title for this essay is “Martin Wickramasinghe: The making of a Sri Lankan mind”

 Regarded as one of Sri Lanka’s finest public intellectuals, Martin Wickramasinghe (1890 – 1976) unleashed the possibilities of radical thought in 20th century South Asia. His 50th death anniversary fell this week, on July 23.

A tiny island some 30 or so miles from India, Sri Lanka has a recorded history of more than 2,500 years. Its recent history has been marred by ethnic conflict, civil war, and political and economic crisis. This has tended to dominate international reporting at the expense of other aspects. In reality, the country is popularly marketed as the pearl of the Indian Ocean. The more cynical and pessimistic, mindful of its troubled past, call it a teardrop. Both groups are right: the half-full bottle, after all, is also half-empty.

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Nandasiri Jasentuliyana in USA, 27 July 2026, in a Comment on a TPS Item on  Cricket which  I  Consider Worthy of  Frontal Notice ++

For  Richmond college to provide six on the squad and captains of the team in all three formats for Sri Lanka  is no mean task for an outstation school It should be some sort of a record, may even be worth an entry in the Wisden, as it probably never happened in any cricket playing country school.
The list is as follows:

Dhananjaya de Silva … Sri Lanka test captain
Charith Asalanka .………….. Sri Lanka ODI & T20I Captain
Wanindu Hasaranga ……. Former Sri Lanka ODI Captain
Kamindu Mendis …… Formerly, Sri Lanka Under-19s Captain.

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Senaka Weeraratna

Sobers bowled Yatawara = 58

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Earlson Forbes

Regarding your recent Thuppahi article titled:“Post Second World War Sri Lankan Migration to Australia…..1946’: I found your article very interesting. However, I could not compare figures in one of my articles with figures supplied in your article as the formatting of tables was user unfriendly.

The first point I wish to make is that due recognition has not been attributed to The Colombo Plan as an instrument that contributed to a change of attitude in Australian Migration Policy.  The Colombo Plan was established in 1951 to enable post war recovery in the British Commonwealth of Nations, (somewhat like a mini Marshal Plan).  The Colombo Plan sought not only to foster infrastructure development, but to focus on education at both the institutional and individual levels.  Australian bureaucrats and policy makers who came into direct contact with their counterparts in India, (including present day Pakistan and Bangladesh), Ceylon and Malaysia realised that there was a sizeable body of highly qualified personnel capable of satisfying Australia’s future developmental needs.[1]

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Sandy Austin

Primrose Marie Swan wrote many books while she was living in Kenya, including ‘Dim Venue’; ‘Tides Of Zhimoni’;  ‘So Low The Stars’; ‘Wake Of A Moonbeam’; ‘No Day But This’; Secret Splendour’; ‘Joyous Bondage’; ‘Dear Enchantment’ and ‘Dangerous Delight’. All written under the nom de plume Valerie Rift (after the Rift Valley of Africa) and published by Wright & Brown Ltd, London.  She worked as a journalist for the Nairobi Times and later as editor of the women’s section of the newspaper.
She also wrote an autobiographical account of her life in Kenya under her own name Marie  Bartlett titled ‘The Rhino Stayed For Breakfast’. It is of life set in colonial Kenya, the difficulties faced by Europeans in an increasingly hostile environment of Mau Mau revolution. Fearing for the safety of her two children, born in Kenya, Marie and her husband Bill returned to Britain where she continued her writing.

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