Congo Free State
Joseph Conrad’s novel "Heart of Darkness", originally published in 1899 as a three-part series in "Blackwood's Magazine", inspired by his service as a captain on a steamer on the Congo 12 years before, sparked an organized international opposition to Leopold's exploitational activities. In 1900, Edmund Dene Morel, a part-time journalist and head of trade with Congo for the Liverpool shipping firm Elder Dempster, noticed that ships that brought vast loads of rubber from the Congo only ever returned there loaded with guns and ammunition for the "Force Publique". Morel became a journalist and then a publisher, attempting to discredit Leopold's regime. In 1902, Morel retired from his position at Elder Dempster to focus on campaigning. He founded his own magazine, "The West African Mail", and conducted speaking tours in Britain.
John Harvey (author)
The first Resnick novel, "Lonely Hearts", was published in 1989, and was named by The Times as one of the "100 Greatest Crime Novels of the Century". Harvey brought the series to an end in 2014 with "Darkness, Darkness", which he dramatised for the stage and which was produced at Nottingham Playhouse in 2014. Resnick has also made peripheral appearances in Harvey's new Frank Elder series.