Peter Gerard Locke

Peter Gerard Locke is a second generation Zimbabwean, born and brought up in Bulawayo. He graduated with a B.Sc (Hons) in geology in 1972 and, following in the footsteps of his grandfather (pioneer geologist in Rhodesia and appointed first Curator of the Bulawayo Museum in 1901 at the instigation of C.J. Rhodes), he joined the same institution as Curator of Geology.

After postgraduate training in museology he transferred to Mutare Museum in 1979 as Director, which post he held until opting to stand down to Curator of Antiquities in 1987 in order to pursue historical research. He undertook his national service with the army in 1973 and thereafter was attached to the Rhodesian Intelligence Corps as a territorial soldier, serving in the Tangent, Repulse and Thrasher operational areas until 1980. Ironically, he spent his last days in uniform pulping truckloads of classified records at the local paper mill in the aftermath of the independence elections - which has not helped the task of war historians but was thought the logical thing to do at the time! His interests include early transport, firearms, numismatics and antiques in the broad sense, and he has published research papers in all these fields.

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Peter David Farquharson Cooke

EMail: petercooke@paradise.net.nz
E mihi ana ahau ki nga tangata whenua o Zimbabwe, ki nga iwi o Shona, Ndebele me etahi atu iwi, ki te poroporoaki hoki ki nga tane me nga wahine kua hinga i te wa whawhai e kiia nei e ratou ko te Chimurenga.

Peter David Farquharson Cooke's father Geoff had served with the Northamptonshire Regt on the Rhine and as a Military Policeman, Dusseldorf, in WWII. In Kenya Geoff organised the Embu Guard during the Mau Mau before becoming District Officer, Kikuyu. After a career on the London stage his mother Patricia Lett joined the Army and, commissioned a Lieutenant in the WRAC, served in GHQ Kenya during the Mau Mau. Peter Cooke lived his first seven years in Kenya. After moving to Tauranga, New Zealand, he went through war games and then completed a BA (Hons) in History at Massey University, Palmerston North, writing his dissertation on NZ Defence Policy 1919-41. He researched pioneering history on armoured vehicles developed in New Zealand during WWII and was first published on Rhodesian vehicles in 1980. Living in Wellington, Peter is a self-employed desk-top publisher. He created and edits Tank TV, an enthusiasts' magazine of mechanical prevailability. He cites military tattoos and Hatari amongst his influences.

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