February 11, 1990

In the car on the way to Soweto, Alan gave us his perspective on February 11, 1990, the day the ruling National Party released Nelson Mandela from prison. To jog your memory, here's the BBC newscast from that day...

At the time, he was about 30 years old, working at the Ponte City Apartments, the tallest building in Johannesburg, pictured here...
The huge news spread like a roadside brushfire through the city. When it reached Alan's workplace, he and his co-workers headed to the roof of their building to celebrate. As they looked out over Johannesburg, all they could see were black faces taking to the streets in sheer rapture. The warm summer sky opened up and the rain poured down, but the masses were undaunted. They just removed their shirts and danced. Alan said it was one of the best days of his life.