Dr Paul Lashmar - Drax of Drax Hall: How One British Family Got Rich (and Stayed Rich) from Sugar and Slavery

About the show

The Drax family are unique. Remarkably they still own the colonial sugar plantation in Barbados where their ancestors enslaved people for over 200 years. Nearly four centuries after James Drax arrived on the island in 1627, his descendants remain among the wealthiest landowners in Britain. Now, for the first time, ‘Drax of Drax Hall’ tells the full, unflinching story of the dynasty that pioneered the British sugar industry and created the blueprint for slave-based plantation economies.

The award-winning investigative journalist and historian, Dr Paul Lashmar is the author of six books. A long-time resident of West Dorset, Lashmar began investigating the Drax family following the Black Lives Matter protests of 2020. The hardback was published in 2025, with paperback and audiobooks due in 2026.

The event lasts an hour and will include a Q&A with the audience.