An Elephant in my Kitchen

A blonde, chic Parisienne, Françoise never expected to find herself living on a South African game reserve. But when she fell in love with renowned conservationist Lawrence Anthony her life took an unexpected turn. Lawrence died in 2012 and Françoise was left to face the tough reality of running Thula Thula without him, even though she knew very little about conservation. She was short on money, poachers were threatening their rhinos, and one of their elephants was charging Land Rovers on game drives and terrifying guests. There was no time to mourn when Thula Thula’s human and animal family were depending on her.

Their elephant herd, rescued by Lawrence, shared Françoise’s grief at his passing but over time forged a new relationship with her. One day a baby, Tom, became separated from the herd and found his way into Françoise’s kitchen. Another day there was a desperate race against time to save a baby who had a snare wrapped around his face and couldn’t open his mouth to suckle.

Meanwhile, Françoise fulfilled her dream of building a rescue centre for orphaned rhinos and other wildlife. Abandoned hippo baby Charlie, who hated water, joined the centre’s rhinos and quickly became best friends with a little girl rhino called Makhosi. The traumatised babies had round the clock care, including an unlikely nursemaid in the form of a German Shepherd called Duma. If you loved Lawrence’s The Elephant Whisperer, or just want to spend time with some very special animals, then you won’t want to miss this sparkling book.

Some of its chapters lifted me up while others brought me to my knees, between them illustrating the biodiversity crisis playing out across modern Africa. It's a call to arms, and an epic of love and courage. I strongly recommend it.

Francoise's latest article in the Reader's Digests!

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An Elephant In My Kitchen Interview!

Francoise talking to Michael our International Marketing Manager about her book, the challenges she faced, poaching and of course how an elephant ended up in her kitchen!

Thula Thula Private Game Reserve

Thula Thula, a family owned and operated private game lodge, is situated in the heart of Zululand, Kwa-Zulu Natal.

This 4500 ha, malaria free game reserve was established in 1911 and has been operational as Thula Thula since 1999. It is home to a wide variety of game like elephant, buffalo, rhino, leopard, giraffe and birds.

Thula Thula, with its centuries of cultural and wildlife heritage, takes pride in tracing back its origin to the private hunting grounds of King Shaka, founder of the Zulu Empire. The first historic meeting between Shaka and his father (Senzangakhona), which set the stage for the creation of the Zulu nation, took place at the Nseleni River at Thula Thula. The Zulu name Thula Thula literally means peace and tranquillity.

Wildlife Rehabilitation

Celebrating the opening of the Fundimvelo Thula Thula Wildlife Rehabilitation centre on the 26th of May 2017.

The Fundimvelo Thula Thula Wildlife Rehabilitation Centre is a joint venture, created in partnership with Thula Thula Game Reserve, Fundimvelo Community Conservation Trust and international animal welfare organisation FOUR PAWS, for the purpose of rescue, care and protection of wildlife, conservation education and community involvement.

Volunteer Camp

The Thula Thula volunteer programme truly is a must for everyone, from students, corporate groups and those with a lifelong dream to work in the wild African bush and make a difference to conservation.

The Thula Thula Volunteers programme offers both local and international volunteers a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to get involved in wildlife conservation, reserve management and environmental studies. Thula Thula welcomes you to join a team of highly skilled and knowledgeable rangers, reserve managers, veterinarians and general nature lovers, in our efforts to continually develop a link between people and the wilderness which we cherish so much.

German Release

The book has been published in German by MVG Verlag in February 2019!

We do have a dedicated German page for this incredible book: Ein Elefant in meiner Küche!

International Release

The book is available in a number of foreign languages! Currently it is available in English, German, French and Dutch!

Extraordinary article in the Daily Mail - UK

Read more about the incredible story of Francoise and Thula Thula in the Daily Mail UK

Another great article!

Wild life: Françoise Malby-Anthony

The co-founder of South Africa’s Thula Thula game reserve on the challenges of being a woman in conservation and not giving up, read more at Brummel Magazine!