Behind the lens with Ballito cameraman Glen Middleton

If Ballito resident Glen Middleton had followed his father’s advice of becoming an electrician, many of the world’s atrocities would never have been exposed.

One of the most recognised names in the media, Middleton, in 1980, was a fresh army conscript teenager who would within a year incur an injury which caused him to be reclassified and relocated to working as an army storeman.

Total boredom motivated Middleton to convince his commandant of the military’s need for a photography unit, which he ended up taking charge of.

Within a year he had built up an impressive portfolio, which he planned to use to find a job as a press photographer.

But his father had other plans for him, insisting he study to become an artisan.

In less than 3 months the Zimbabwean-born Middleton almost killed himself while incorrectly wiring an electrical cable as a trainee electrician.

This finally prompted him to pursue a job in the media world.

In 1983 he was hired by The Citizen newspaper as a press photographer, and within a month he began covering the types of stories usually assigned to senior photographers.

His keen eye and fast-developing skill saw him head-hunted by the Rand Daily Mail, which closed down in 1988.

He then joined the SABC, but the broadcaster’s covert allegiance to and control by the then government soon caused conflict within himself.

Exposing lies, corruption, inequality, state control and more eventually pushed Middleton to later betray the SABC.

He had filmed a funeral in Soweto where mourners sang Nkosi Sikelel’ iAfrika, then banned under Apartheid.

Police were caught on camera opening fire on the funeral-goers, killing 8.

He made a copy which he delivered to the BBC’s Johannesburg offices when he was told his footage would not be aired by the SABC.

The story took over international headlines within hours.

Middleton was instructed to tender his resignation before the end of the next day.

For the next couple of years he continued freelancing for some of the largest media agencies in the world, including Sky News and CNN.

In 1992 the BBC offered him a contract position as a cameraman, a position he would occupy for 22 years.

Middleton was assigned to film various stories across the globe, including the Rwandan genocide and post-911 Afghanistan.

In many instances he also fulfilled the role of journalist, often reporting from war-ravaged countries.

He was one of the cameramen involved in the 1994 BBC documentary, Panorama: Journey into Darkness, a BBC documentary released in 1994.

He joined journalist Fergal Keane into the heart of government-held territory in Rwanda during the genocide.

Keane traced the cause of the slaughter, spoke with victims and cornered Rusumo mayor at the time, Sylvestre Gacumbitsi, who had been accused of orchestrating the slaughter of Tutsis in a village church.

The programme won the Royal Television Society’s International Current Affairs award, which instantly boosted Middleton’s reputation and career.

He became a news jet-setter, assigned to cover trending global affairs stories across the globe.

“At one time I held five different passports. I was the only contracted news cameraman for Africa with the BBC,” Middleton said.

He experienced many life-threatening moments out in the field, recalling an especially dangerous incident while filming at the Hotel de Mille Collines in Kigali, Rwanda.

They were travelling in an United Nations armoured vehicle which came under heavy fire, bullets flying everywhere.

The hotel had been hit by artillery.

“We were going to film the injured, but when we got there the garden had become a cemetery and the pool was filled with bodies.

“I have had hundreds of close calls,” said Middleton, who has survived incoming fire from snipers, bomb strikes and more.

Covering a protest at the Protea police station, he and a colleague were caught in the middle as police opened fire.

Both were wounded and Middleton still has some of the shotgun pellets lodged in his back.

He still does freelance work today, but now at his own pace.

He relocated to the North Coast in 2007 and is happily married to wife Tracey, a local estate agent. They have three children, triplets Jethro, Travis and Vicky.

He officially ended his contract with the BBC in 2014.

If you are in the market for a freelancer who has done it all, contact Glen Middleton at 082 800 5405.

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