Off Grid

This week's episode is a bit of a different one. It's the first time I've ever had a guest come back onto the podcast, and it is my dear friend, Lord Cuthbert. In this conversation, we talk about: - The adventures we want to do this year. - Shaking hands at the bottom of Ben Nevis with a promise for the future. - Overcoming fear. - Growing up in the same village as the adventurer Ranulph Fiennes....

This episode is on video. First take, 1 take. Bosh. This is my first episode where I talk to the camera on my own - quite an unusual experience. I thought I’d kick off the New Year by reflecting on this podcast and my plans for the future. I talk about 5 lessons that I have learned from my guests and 5 lessons I have learned in building the podcast. In this conversation, I talk about: - Being in t...

George Bullard is a record breaking explorer. When he was 19 years old, he and his teammate Alex Hibbert set the world record for the longest unsupported polar ski expedition, covering 1,374 miles in 113 days. He has also kayaked from Greenland to Scotland with his teammate Ollie Hicks, covering 1,200 miles in 66 days. In this conversation, we talk about: - Kayaking along the Thames to George's jo...

This week, I’m joined by Chaz Powell. Chaz is an adventurer, bushcrafter, ranger and expedition leader, best known for ‘The Wildest Journey’ of walking Africa’s wildest rivers from source to sea. In this conversation, we talk about: - Feeling trapped as a child and ending up in a young offenders institution - Taking out a loan at 24 and flying to Bangkok with no real plan - The value of travel, un...

Alex Staniforth is an ultra-endurance runner and the fastest person to run every mountain in England and Wales. He is also the founder of the charity Mind Over Mountains. In this conversation, we talk about: Alex's childhood of being bullied, having epilepsy and a stammer. Being hit by the Nepal earthquake in 2015 at age 19. Whether we are driven by ambition or dragged by insecurity. The quiet...

Tristan Gooley, otherwise known as the Natural Navigator, writes all about outdoor clues and signs. The BBC has coined him the Sherlock Holmes of nature. He is also the best selling author of multiple books worldwide on natural navigation and the only living person to fly solo and sail single handed across the Atlantic. In this conversation, we talk about: - What a crow can tell us about where we...

Mark Beaumont is the fastest person to cycle around the world, which he did in 78 days, 14 hours and 40 minutes. He has cycled around the world twice, cycled the length of Africa, rowed oceans and cycled down the highest active volcano in the world. In this conversation, we talk about: - The importance of being alone. - What it means to suffer well. - Agency and how to lead our own lives. - The ne...

Holly Budge is the Founder of Female Ranger Week and NGO, How Many Elephants, where she supports female rangers globally and the anti-poaching of elephants. She is the first woman to skydive Everest and an Everest Summiter.  In this conversation, we talk about: - Growing up around entrepreneurs and adventure. - What makes a female ranger so effective at their job. - Holly’s experience of the front...

My mate Lord Cuthbert and I sit on a hill and recall our adventures together. What a laugh. In this conversation, we talk about: - Finding ourselves lost in the military danger zone of Dartmoor at night. - Getting defeated by a wet, muddy and midge infested Scotland. - Receiving unwanted romantic attention by a strange man in a quiet Scottish pub. - How Cuthbert managed to find himself ice-picking...

Efrem Brynin is the CEO and Founder of Strongmen, the UK men's bereavement charity. He participated in the TV show 'SAS: Who Dares Wins' in 2016 where he shared that his son, James, was killed in his second tour of Afghanistan. In this conversation, we talk about: - How dangerous and real the SAS tv show actually is for a recruit. - How to do the thing you say you are going to do. - Be...

The Brooner is in an elite military unit called the Mountain Leaders in the Royal Marines. He is the host of 'Brooners Mountain Madness' podcast and lives off grid in a van in Scotland. In this conversation, we talk about: Nearly quit ML selection in Norway ML vs SAS selection Avalanche warning stopped everything Map disintegrated in the Cairngorms Challenging the romanticising of risk Jus...

Megan Hine is a survival consultant who has worked with Bear Grylls and Mr Beast. She also holds a degree in psychology to translate high-risk fieldcraft into clear decisions under pressure. In this conversation, we talk about: ​Working 15 years alongside Bear Grylls ​Megan’s transition to YouTube and working with MrBeast ​Megan’s adventurous childhood and how running away became a career. ​The sc...

Jan Bakker is an expedition leader, co-author of Trekking in Tajikistan, and pioneer of the Pamir Trail, a long-distance trekking route that connects remote mountain communities. In this conversation, we talk about: How a boy from flat Netherlands fell in love with mountains First mountain at 16 in Mallorca Why Tajikistan captured his imagination Designing 1300 km Pamir Trail in Tajikistan How to...

Solène Declas is the Founder of AIBŌ, a social enterprise on a mission to reconnect generations. Growing up between cultures and now living in a three-generational home, Solène brings a unique perspective on the loneliness epidemic and what it means to build real community in a disconnected world. In this conversation, we talk about: Living in a three-generational home Solving the loneliness epide...

In this episode, I’m sharing 3 of my UK adventures bound by a single theme: they didn’t go to plan. From teenage mishaps to midnight marches and a canal odyssey gone sideways, these stories show that the best memories often come from the bits we couldn’t script. If you’ve been waiting for the “right time” to start, this is your cue to get outside. In this conversation I talk about: The South Downs...

Zukie Tandathu is an ultrarunner, a 22-year soldier, and a crew member of Black Trail Runners. In this episode we chat about how joy and discipline can live side by side, what it really takes to train for the desert in the Marathon de Sables, and why inclusion in trail running needs more action than slogans. In this conversation we talk about: Growing up in South Africa with sport at the centre Mo...

Connor Fletcher is an Expedition Leader with unique experience in leading children as young as 15 in some of the world's harshest environments. We get honest about resilience, failure, and why adventure is about people as much as peaks. Connor is a straight talker on the grind behind expeditions, social media myths, and the power of shared achievement. In this conversation, we talk about: - Ch...

Aaron Rolph is a mountain athlete, film-maker and The North Face ambassador. He holds world records for the greatest vertical mountain bike descent and the most countries visited by bike in seven days. Raised in the Lake District and now based in Chamonix, Aaron’s work spans photography, film and writing alongside big, human-powered objectives. In this conversation, we talk about: Life in Chamonix...

Xian Goh is a professional rock climber, coach, global champion and rock climbing ambassador for The North Face. In this conversation, we cover: ​Moving from urban Singapore to rural Scotland ​Culture shock and deciphering accents ​Early days of rock climbing ​From indoor comps to outdoor adventure ​Climbing as self-cultivation ​Patience, progress and avoiding injury ​Reframing the fear of falling...

This week I’m joined by Toby, a 24-year-old environmental scientist and deep-sea diver with incredible stories from his adventures around the world. From Indonesia to the Maldives, Toby has lived life below the surface (boom), chasing his passion for the ocean while learning to navigate fear, risk and conservation. In this conversation we talk about: ​Leaving university to get his dive master qual...

Oli France is an international speaker, adventurer and founder of Wild Edge. Oli ditched the corporate grind for a life in some of the most remote and dangerous places on Earth. He’s faced angry mobs in Ethiopia, stared down the barrel of a gun in Iraq, been detained as a suspected drug trafficker in Uzbekistan, and survived a deadly earthquake in Indonesia. This is the story of why he chose dange...

Hector Hughes is the Co-founder of Unplugged, that provide digital detox cabins in nature. In this conversation we talk about: - The high pressure grind of building a business - An acid trip and burnout that sent Hector all the way to India for a meditation retreat. - Why 90% of what we do might be a complete waste of time and how doing less could actually help you achieve more. - The deep insecur...

Oh hell yeah! This guy is a bad ass! In this inspiring episode, we dive deep with Matt Mason - Royal Marine, three-time Afghanistan tour veteran, and legendary ocean rower who made history by rowing 4,500 nautical miles across the Indian Ocean from Australia to Africa in just 71 days. Matt holds three world firsts for ocean rowing and serves as an Expedition Leader at Ocean Revival Adventures. Dis...

Hector Alexander is the Founder of Loaf, an adventure retreat business. He returned from a solo bike packing adventure just 3 weeks before our conversation, where he rode across 17 countries, from London to Bangkok. It took him 1.5 years. In this conversation we talk about: The misconception of travelling on social media Loneliness on the road How boarding school prepared Hector for being a lone a...

Raj Joshi is an Expedition Leader and Founder of The Adventure Boutique. In this conversation, we talk about: The dangers faced with David Beckham in the Amazon jungle. Working behind the scenes with the SAS guys. Meeting a tribe that had never had contact with the outside world. Growing up in Walsall. The value of pain in life. The importance of adventure in a comfort seeking society. Raj is the...