On 1st September 1999, I was selected to spend a year on a remote Scottish island as part of a BBC reality TV series called Castaway 2000. That was 25 years ago today...
In October and November 2025, Mike will be leading a group to the Geographic South Pole. The most likely route will be from Hercules Inlet and the expected duration for the expedition will be eight weeks.
Further details to follow...
In 2001 I had read a book called The Danakil Diary and was planning to lead a trip into the Danakil myself. I knew next to nothing about Ethiopia so I took it upon myself to trace the author of the book.
To be honest, as the book recounted an expedition undertaken 70 years earlier I did not hold out much hope. As luck would have it I traced Sir Wilfred Thesiger to a retirement home, Orford House, in Coulsdon, Surrey.
With Covid impacting on travel plans, Mike decided it was a great opportunity to tick off this famous walk in southern England, over 215km from Winchester to Canterbury.
It was also the perfect chance to raise some funds in the process for The NHS Royal Hospital for Sick Children in Edinburgh, which had recently done such a wonderful job caring for his young niece.
In 2019 Mike ventured off to eastern Russia on a 'double-solo' expedition with renowned explorer Rosie Stancer.
Mike and Rosie both walked and skied over 650 kilometers solo but with a common objective. Travelling by foot and on skis, pulling sledges without resupply they hoped to complete the crossing of Lake Baikal in 25-30 days.
No strangers to extreme challenges, both Mike and Rosie undertook the venture in the spirit of adventure but taking with them a Veterans Aid banner to raise funds for and awareness of the charity they both admire.
Veteran's Aid provides immediate and practical support to ex-servicemen and women in crisis. All money raised by the pair went towards funding Veteran Aid's emergency interventions - the immediate actions that prevent ex-servicemen and women in crisis ending up homeless or facing the prospect and consequences of homelessness.
Last year VA saw 812 ex-servicemen and women, helped 94 veterans into employment or into training and appropriately homed 154.
Follow in Mike's footsteps on a Lake Baikal expedition with CrossingBaikal.com.
Mike spent 2017 working as a Speciality Scuba Instructor in Bali teaching all levels up to PADI Divemaster and including speciality training in Wreck Diving, Deep Diving and Nitrox courses.
Working on Nusa Penida and the east coast of Bali Mike regularly led dives on the famous USAT Liberty wreck, Manta Point and other awesome locations in Tulamben and Padang Bai.
In his spare time Mike has also visited the islands of Komodo, Rinca, East Nusa Tenggara, Gili Trawangan, Pulau Padar and Kelor. He has taken medical supplies to camps for people removed
from the homes due to the threat of Mount Agung erupting and also done some voluntary English teaching in local schools.
In 2007 Mike was a photographer embedded with troops in Afghanistan. Amongst the many things he saw, he spent time in military hospitals where wounded and severely injured service men
and women (as well as civilians) were brought for primary care.
His time in Afghanistan fostered an immense respect in him for what our services do for us and the often perilous
circumstances in which they work.
During his walk he is raising funds for a charity called Pilgrim Bandits which primarily assists those unfortunate enough to have lost one or more limbs.
Pilgrim Bandits know that adversity, challenges and obstacles serve to strengthen the human spirit. But for some of those we support, just to smile or enjoy
the company of others, is an almost insurmountable task. We endeavour to get them to believe in a life worth living again. Through Pilgrim Bandits they push to new limits. They help
others. They inspire children and young people by working with schools and care centres. They raise funds like other charities, and they also try to fund research to push scientific
and engineering advances into prosthetic limbs. The Pilgrim Bandits will never ask for your charity... but, we will ask for your support.
Links to their website and Mike's fund-raising page are below.
As Mike is giving up a week of time, please can you give up a bit of cash? It really would be very much appreciated. Thank you.
May 12th - I recently returned from Moscow and meetings with the British Ambassador and American Embassy. I also met with renowned Russian explorers Matvey and Dmitri Shparo at the Russian Polar Society.
March 15th - Mike and James returned to the UK after a successful recce. James frostbite and Mike s wrist injury are both fully mended. Progress is being made on how to refine some of the kit and in
general it s looking good for 2016.
Royal Patron: HRH Prince Michael of Kent GCVO
The expedition team are delighted and honoured to announce that following the recce to the Bering Strait in March and subsequent meetings at Kensington Palace in London, His Royal Highness Prince Michael of Kent GCVO has agreed to be the expedition s Patron.
With summer approaching fast, and finding myself with a few weeks to spare (a rare luxury for me!), I decided to go through my bucket list and see if I could tick anything off.
As I had recently been taking to my bike regularly to get fitter, item number 27 (cycle across Britain) jumped out at me, and that was it. Bike and tent were in the car and I was off to Land's End!
I was invited to talk about mudhifs in the Iraq Marshes for the 31st Bonham Carter Lecture at the British Academy on behalf
of the British Institute for the study of Iraq (BISI).
My lecture was based around the mudhifs of southern Iraq, both their history and construction, and my planned BISI-funded project to build one of these
traditional reed houses with the local community in the marshes of Chabaish, between Qurnah and Nasiriyah.
For some people to reach 'A Pole' is a life long ambition. For me though it was something that really only came onto my radar about two years
ago although it had crossed my mind many years prior.
In those two years prior to my setting off on foot for the Magnetic North Pole, I needed to gain many new skills beforehand as well as build on some
existing ones. First Aid, gun handling, navigation and general camp craft were relatively easy and just the beginning.
Satellite Communications, understanding polar bear psychology and learning about frost bite treatments all added to the arsenal of skills needed
to keep us in one piece in this hostile environment, and ensure our safe return.....
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Mike is in Milton Keynes.
An interview with Mike covering a range of his travels was aired on BBC Radio Scotland on the 12th June 2014.
Click on the PRESS tab to hear the interview.
Mike was a Director of MarocAroundTheClock, a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society,
a Trustee of the Scientific Exploration Society, and an honorary member of the Anglo-Bolivian Society.
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