She Left Her Husband, Kids For Masai Tribesman After Holiday Fling. 30 Years On, She Regrets It
Last Updated:
Daniel's habits began to irritate Cheryl. He would jump around the garden doing Masai dances, saying he wanted to leap as high as an elephant, which she found increasingly odd
A holiday romance that once seemed like a fairytale has turned into a lifelong regret for a British woman. Decades ago, during a trip to Kenya, she fell in love with a tribal man and, in a moment of passion, left her husband and children to marry him. Now, nearly 30 years later, the relationship has ended—and she's speaking out about the decision she calls the biggest mistake of her life.
According to a report by The Mirror, in 1994, when Cheryl Thomasgood was 34, she travelled to Kenya for a holiday. There, she fell in love with Daniel Lekimencho, a young man from the Masai tribe—but what began as a holiday romance soon turned into bitter regret.
Now a mother of four, Cheryl has come forward to share her story, urging other women to think twice before falling in love on holiday. At the time, she was living a comfortable life on the Isle of Wight, England, but was also grappling with unresolved childhood trauma and a broken marriage. On a friend's suggestion from church, she visited the Bamburi Beach Hotel in Mombasa, Kenya, where she first met Daniel, a performer in a traditional dance troupe.
Cheryl was drawn to Daniel's simplicity and detachment from material things. So strong was the impression that, after returning to the UK from her three-week holiday, she made the drastic decision to leave her husband, Mike Mason, and their children. She went back to Kenya and began living with Daniel in his tribal village—sleeping on goat skin, cooking on an open fire, and eating traditional foods like cabbage and cow blood.
In 1995, the two returned to England and married on Valentine's Day in traditional Masai attire. Daniel then moved to the Isle of Wight to live with Cheryl's children, and the couple welcomed a daughter, Misty, who is now 27.
While everything seemed exciting at first, Cheryl soon realised that Daniel's priorities had shifted—from spiritual values to material desires. He began demanding a big house, expensive clothes, and money to send back to his family.
Daniel's habits gradually began to irritate Cheryl. He would jump around the garden performing traditional Masai dances and say he wanted to jump as high as an elephant. While this may have been entertaining for the children, it started to feel strange to Cheryl.
In 1999, their relationship ended and the couple divorced. Cheryl believes she stayed in the relationship only because she wanted to prove society wrong. 'The biggest regret is that my children could not accept Daniel as a stable father — they lost a lot," she said.
Now, after three marriages, Cheryl shared that she will never marry again. She currently lives a peaceful life with her four children — Steve (43), Tommy (41), Chloe (34), and Misty (27). Daniel still lives on the Isle of Wight and works in a supermarket.
First Published:
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
Scroll.in
2 hours ago
- Scroll.in
Start the week with a film: In ‘Deep Cover', improv comedians are both joke and punchline
The premise is unusual, the actors are in form and the humour is superb. So even if the plot of Deep Cover is a stretch, it doesn't matter. British director Tom Kingsley's film is about a comedy coach in London who infiltrates a criminal gang with two of her students. Detective Sergeant Graham (Sean Bean) believes that undercover operations fail because cops are poor performers. Rather than recruiting actual actors, Graham zeroes in on struggling improv teacher Kat (Bryce Dallas Howard), whose last stand-up gig was a decade ago. Kat selects Marlon (Orlando Bloom), an aspiring actor who is stuck doing commercials, and IT company employee Hugh (Nick Mohammed) who joins Kat's class to better his poor social skills. The trio's first assignment escalates rapidly from routine fake cigarette bust to major drug racket expose. Kat, Marlon and Hugh get involved with London underworld luminary Fly (Paddy Considine) and his enforcer Shosh (Sonoya Mizuno). The imposters' fear at being caught increases when Fly introduces them to his boss. Metcalfe (Ian McShane) smells a rat, and rightly so. The movie, which is out on Prime Video, has no business succeeding, but it does. Tom Kingsley's controlled direction of a madcap script by Colin Trevorrow, Derek Connolly, Ben Ashenden and Alexander Owen puts impersonation on a spectrum of the kind of performance needed to make both fiction and survival possible. Even earnest police detective Dawes (Ben Ashenden) and his deputy Beverly (Alexander Owen), who has watched far too many crime films, appear to be playacting. The three fakers get into one scrape after another, escaping each time by their ability to adapt to the situation. The first rule of improv is to always say yes, Kat reminds the easily frightened Hugh. Marlon needs no such assurance. Marlon seizes the opportunity to unleash his inner Method actor, transforming himself into the meanest gangster London has ever seen. The actors are fully in tune with the anything-goes material. Bryce Dallas Howard is a fine comedienne, well complemented by a hilariously hammy Orlando Bloom. There is sweetness tucked into the swagger, especially between Nick Mohammed and Sonoya Mizuno and whenever the always affable Paddy Considine is around. Deep Cover keeps its tone light, never forgetting its ultimate goal – escapist enjoyment – while also suggesting a new direction for improv comedians when the bills start to pile up. Play
Hindustan Times
2 hours ago
- Hindustan Times
British man arrested after attempting to stage fake wedding with 9-year-old girl at Disneyland Paris
A 22-year-old British man has been arrested after allegedly attempting to stage a fake wedding ceremony with a nine-year-old girl at Disneyland Paris, according to a report by The Sunday Times. The shocking incident unfolded on the morning of Saturday, 21 June, in front of the park's iconic Sleeping Beauty Castle. A fake child wedding at Disneyland Paris shocked guests and led to arrests.(Representational image/Unsplash) (Also read: $900 for breakfast? Cost of Disneyland meal divides internet: 'This is pure theft') Authorities told The Sunday Times that the man, who posed as the groom in the ceremony, claimed the event was intended purely for the creation of social media content. However, the seriousness of the situation came to light after Disneyland Paris staff raised concerns when they noticed the supposed bride appeared alarmingly young. The event, scheduled as part of a pre-booked wedding package, quickly came under scrutiny, leading to police intervention. Further investigation revealed that the guests at the wedding were actually hired actors who had been transported to the park with minimal knowledge about the event's true nature. Multiple arrests made Alexandre Verney, assistant prosecutor for the Seine-et-Marne département, confirmed to The Sunday Times that the child was given a medical examination and was found to be physically unharmed. In connection with the incident, police arrested four individuals: the British man alleged to be the groom, the child's 41-year-old Ukrainian mother, and two Latvian nationals aged 24 and 55. While the mother and the 55-year-old Latvian have since been released from custody, Verney said the British man and the 24-year-old Latvian remain detained as authorities explore potential charges of financial fraud. Guests left stunned Eyewitnesses at the park expressed disbelief upon realising the child's role in the ceremony. Speaking to French news outlet Le Parisien, one attendee said, 'We all thought we were going to attend a wedding. Everyone was stunned, no one expected it.' (Also read: Woman surprised to see Hong Kong Disneyland nearly empty: 'Is there a recession?') Another added, 'Disneyland did things very well. They cancelled everything as soon as they realised the bride was a child. We were shocked to see that.'
News18
5 hours ago
- News18
She Left Her Husband, Kids For Masai Tribesman After Holiday Fling. 30 Years On, She Regrets It
Last Updated: Daniel's habits began to irritate Cheryl. He would jump around the garden doing Masai dances, saying he wanted to leap as high as an elephant, which she found increasingly odd A holiday romance that once seemed like a fairytale has turned into a lifelong regret for a British woman. Decades ago, during a trip to Kenya, she fell in love with a tribal man and, in a moment of passion, left her husband and children to marry him. Now, nearly 30 years later, the relationship has ended—and she's speaking out about the decision she calls the biggest mistake of her life. According to a report by The Mirror, in 1994, when Cheryl Thomasgood was 34, she travelled to Kenya for a holiday. There, she fell in love with Daniel Lekimencho, a young man from the Masai tribe—but what began as a holiday romance soon turned into bitter regret. Now a mother of four, Cheryl has come forward to share her story, urging other women to think twice before falling in love on holiday. At the time, she was living a comfortable life on the Isle of Wight, England, but was also grappling with unresolved childhood trauma and a broken marriage. On a friend's suggestion from church, she visited the Bamburi Beach Hotel in Mombasa, Kenya, where she first met Daniel, a performer in a traditional dance troupe. Cheryl was drawn to Daniel's simplicity and detachment from material things. So strong was the impression that, after returning to the UK from her three-week holiday, she made the drastic decision to leave her husband, Mike Mason, and their children. She went back to Kenya and began living with Daniel in his tribal village—sleeping on goat skin, cooking on an open fire, and eating traditional foods like cabbage and cow blood. In 1995, the two returned to England and married on Valentine's Day in traditional Masai attire. Daniel then moved to the Isle of Wight to live with Cheryl's children, and the couple welcomed a daughter, Misty, who is now 27. While everything seemed exciting at first, Cheryl soon realised that Daniel's priorities had shifted—from spiritual values to material desires. He began demanding a big house, expensive clothes, and money to send back to his family. Daniel's habits gradually began to irritate Cheryl. He would jump around the garden performing traditional Masai dances and say he wanted to jump as high as an elephant. While this may have been entertaining for the children, it started to feel strange to Cheryl. In 1999, their relationship ended and the couple divorced. Cheryl believes she stayed in the relationship only because she wanted to prove society wrong. 'The biggest regret is that my children could not accept Daniel as a stable father — they lost a lot," she said. Now, after three marriages, Cheryl shared that she will never marry again. She currently lives a peaceful life with her four children — Steve (43), Tommy (41), Chloe (34), and Misty (27). Daniel still lives on the Isle of Wight and works in a supermarket. First Published:
