A sad tale from the Swinging Sixties in England! This young woman apparently had everything, and yet ultimately, it would seem, had nothing. She failed to grasp anything meaningful about the Gospel of Jesus Christ.

Jayne Harries

Jayne Harries had everything one could wish for, born into an incredibly wealthy family with an amazing estate in Ewhurst, Surrey called Coxland. Her father was a self-made property millionaire in the days when being a millionaire was really notable. He was President of the London Welsh Society. Her lifestyle included fast cars, mink coats, trips around the world, the best show jumping ponies and horses, debutante balls and even the wish from her mother Anne (who began the Horse of the Year balls,) that one day Jayne might marry Prince Charles. Jayne wanted none of this and eventually became absolutely rebellious, sliding down the ivy into the arms of her lover, a celebrity London hairdresser, Gavin Hodge, and they eloped.

It was in 1968 when Gavin collected sixteen-year-old Jayne from Coxland at 2:00 a.m. and they ran off to Portugal together. On August 2nd, 1968 they married in Gibraltar. Time Magazine described Jayne as “Britain’s Runaway of the Year”, however, this union was not destined to last.

The episode was a terrible tragedy for Jayne’s parents and it totally shocked society in England – especially swinging London. Gavin was 23 and to run off with a sixteen-year-old then was shocking indeed.

Jayne was eventually involved with many drugs and as time went by, she was tragically found in a public toilet in Cranleigh, Surrey with a hypodermic needle in her arm. She was dead from an overdose of heroin. She was twenty-four years old.

It brings to my mind what the Bible says:

Mark 8:36-37

³⁶ For what shall it profit a man, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?

³⁷ Or what shall a man give in exchange for his soul?

Perhaps this episode prompted the Beatles hit:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=uKfALmKL0VU

Gibber! Gibber!

Chugley

The Thoughtful Chimp