Ben Fogle

Ben Fogle
FRGS
Fogle in Ecuador (2014)
Born Benjamin Myer Fogle[1]
(1973-11-03) 3 November 1973
Westminster, London, England
Alma mater University of Portsmouth
University of Costa Rica
Occupation Television presenter and writer
Spouse(s) Marina Fogle (m. 2006)[2]
Children Ludo Fogle (b. 2009)
Iona Fogle (b. 2011)[2]
Parent(s) Julia Foster
Bruce Fogle
Website Official Website

Benjamin Myer Fogle, FRGS (born 3 November 1973 in Westminster, London[3]) is an English broadcaster, writer and adventurer, best known for his presenting roles with British television channels Channel 5, BBC and ITV.

Early life

Fogle is the son of English actress Julia Foster and Canadian expatriate veterinarian Bruce Fogle. He was educated at two independent schools: The Hall School, Hampstead in London, and Bryanston School in Blandford Forum, Dorset, followed by the University of Portsmouth and the University of Costa Rica.[4] Fogle became a Midshipman in the Royal Naval Reserve, serving as an URNU officer on HMS Blazer.[5]

Career

Television

Fogle first came to public notice when he participated in the BBC reality show Castaway 2000, which followed a group of thirty-six people marooned on the Scottish island of Taransay for a year, starting 1 January 2000. This was a social experiment aimed at creating a fully self-sufficient community within a year.

Fogle is a television presenter who has worked for the BBC, ITV, Channel 5, Sky, Discovery and the National Geographic channels in the UK. He has hosted Crufts, One Man and His Dog, Countryfile, Country Tracks, Extreme Dreams With Ben Fogle, Animal Park, Wild on the West Coast, Wild in Africa, "Ben Fogle – African Migration" and Ben Fogle's Escape in Time. Fogle made a film about the facial deforming disease Noma for a BBC Two documentary Make Me A New Face which followed the work of the charity Facing Africa and Great Ormond Street Hospital.

Fogle has produced films about naval history and the Royal National Lifeboat Institute (RNLI) for the History Channel and followed Princes William and Harry on their first joint Royal Tour in Botswana and made an exclusive documentary called Prince William's Africa. He marked the centenary of Captain Scott's expedition to the South Pole with The Secrets of Scott's Hut. Fogle is popular on the motivational and corporate speaking circuit. His new series, Swimming with Crocodiles will air on BBC Two, Storm City in 3D in Sky One and National Geographic. Fogle has become a special correspondent for NBC News in the United States.

Fogle appeared on the programme Countryfile with John Craven from 2001 to 2008, during which he reported on a number of UK rural pastimes. He rejoined the programme in 2014.

Since 2013, Fogle has presented two series of Harbour Lives, a documentary series on ITV. In 2014, Fogle joined the presenting team on ITV series Countrywise with Liz Bonnin and Paul Heiney, which focuses on the best of the British coast and country.

In 2013, Fogle presented a new show for Channel 5 called Ben Fogle: New Lives in the Wild, that saw him follow the stories of people living in the wild and isolated from society.[6] Additionally, Fogle took over as the host of Animal Clinic on Channel 5, replacing Rolf Harris.

Sport

On 16 May 2018, Fogle summited Mount Everest, completing the climb over a six week period whilst accompanied by two local sherpa guides, as well as Kenton Cool, a 44-year-old Brit who has summited Everest 12 times. His trek also included former Olympic cyclist Victoria Pendleton, who unfortunately had to abandon her attempt early due to severe altitude sickness. There will be a film documented by CNN, airing in June 2018, which will be highlight environmental issues around mountains in his new role as UN patron of the wilderness. The whole project was made possible by Fogle's good friend, Princess Haya Bint Al Hussein of Jordan, in memory of her father alongside raising awareness and money for The Red Cross [7][8]

Fogle and Cracknell before the start of the 2005 Atlantic Rowing Race

Fogle was the first to cross the line in the pairs division of the 2005–2006 Atlantic Rowing Race in "Spirit of EDF Energy", partnered by Olympic rower James Cracknell. While competing in the 3,000-mile race, the pair had their boat fully capsized by huge waves. They made landfall in Antigua at 07.13 GMT on 19 January 2006, a crossing time of 49 days, 19 hours, 8 minutes. After penalties, they were placed second in the pairs and fourth overall. In 2007, the BBC series that followed the pair, Through Hell and High Water, won a Royal Television Society award.

He has also completed the six-day Marathon des Sables for the World Wide Fund for Nature across 160 miles (260 km) of the Sahara Desert and the Safaricom Marathon in Kenya for the Tusk Trust, with Longleat Safari Park keeper Ryan Hockley. Fogle has completed the Bupa Great North Run in 1 hour 33 minutes, the London Marathon and the Royal Parks Half Marathon. He beat EastEnders actor Sid Owen in a three-round charity boxing match for BBC Sport Relief under the training of Frank Bruno and he recently re-ran the Safaricom marathon in Kenya with the injured Battleback Soldiers.

Fogle teamed up with Cracknell once again, together with Ed Coats, a Bristol-based doctor,[9] as Team QinetiQ to take part in the inaugural "Amundsen Omega 3 South Pole Race". Six teams set out to race across the Antarctic Plateau to commemorate the historic race of 1911 between Roald Amundsen and Robert Falcon Scott. Having led the race for much of the time,[10] the team took 18 days, 5 hours and 10 minutes to complete the 770-kilometre (480 mi) race, coming second overall, 20 hours[11][12] behind the Norwegian team, who commended them on making it "a fantastic race",[13][14] and over 2 days ahead of the next placed team.[15] Fogle suffered hypothermia and frostbite to his nose and the team experienced temperatures as low as −40 °C (−40 °F). The race was filmed by the BBC for the series On Thin Ice and was aired in Summer 2009. Five episodes of On Thin Ice were broadcast on BBC Two Sunday evenings[16] receiving a peak record of 3.7 million viewers. Macmillan published an account of their journey, Race to The Pole, which became a top-10 best-seller in the UK.

In October 2009, Fogle and Cracknell cycled a rickshaw 423 miles from Edinburgh to London non-stop. They took 60 hours to reach the capital, raising money for SSAFA (Soldiers, Sailors, Airmen and Families Association). The event was filmed as part of The Pride of Britain Awards.

Fogle and Cracknell planned to take part in the infamous Tour Divide race in 2010, a 3,000-mile mountain-bike race across the Rocky Mountains, from Banff in Canada to the border of Mexico. The world record is held by American Matthew Lee and stands at 17 days. The race was put on hold after Cracknell received life-threatening injuries after being knocked from his bicycle in America while training.

In 2011, Fogle filmed a new series A Year of Adventures with Lonely Planet and BBC Worldwide in which he travels the world in the pursuit of the ultimate adventure, from solo skydiving in Australia to flying in a Cold War fighter jet in the Czech Republic. During the series he swam from Alcatraz to San Francisco and dived between the tectonic plates of North America and Europe in Iceland.

In 2013, Fogle and Cracknell teamed up again for their third and final expedition across the Empty-quarter of Oman for a new BBC Two series.

Writing

Fogle has written nine books; The Teatime Islands in search of the remaining islands in the British Empire in which he travels to Saint Helena, Ascension Island, the Falkland Islands, the British Indian Ocean Territories and Tristan da Cunha. He also tried to visit Pitcairn Island by private yacht, but when the inhabitants learned that he was a journalist they refused to let him land. Fogle claims that they suspected that he was a spy, and after six hours of interrogation he was refused permission to visit and deported. He was also accused of attempting to smuggle a breadfruit on to the island.[17] The book was short-listed for the W H Smith's people's award for Best Travel Book.

He has also written Offshore (2006), published by Penguin Books, in which he travelled around Britain[18] in search of an island of his own. He visited the Kingdom of Sealand and attempted to invade Rockall in the North Atlantic.

In 2006 he published The Crossing, published by Atlantic books and co-written with Cracknell followed their Transatlantic rowing bid.

In 2009, The Race to the Pole was published by Macmillan and spent ten weeks in the best-seller list.

The Accidental Adventurer, published in 2011 tells Ben's story of how he became to live such an action-packed life. A book about defying expectations and living differently.

The Accidental Naturalist, My Wild Years was published in 2012. The book tells the story of Ben's amazing encounters with animals and how they changed his life.

His seventh book Labrador was released in 2015. In it, Ben explores the origin, characteristics and exploits of the breed.

In 2016, Land Rover: The Story of the Car that Conquered the World[19] was published, written by Fogle.

His most recent book, English, published in 2017, takes the reader on a journey through the peculiarly English, paying tribute to the history, culture and ideas adopted with such gusto that they have become part of the fabric of the country.[20]

He is due to publish his tenth book, Up, in October 2018. Co-written with his wife, Marina, Up will document his planning, training and eventual summit of Mount Everest.

Fogle writes a weekly Country Diary for the Sunday Telegraph and is a regular columnist for The Daily Telegraph and travel writer for The Independent and has contributed to the Evening Standard, The New York Times, the Sunday Times and Glamour magazine. He has interviewed Gordon Brown and Prince William for the Mail on Sunday's LIVE magazine. He is guest director of Cheltenham Literary Festival and a regular at the Hay-on-Wye festival.

Transworld published his first travel memoir The Accidental Adventurer in 2011 and his second, The Accidental Naturalist was published in 2012; both made the Sunday Times best-seller list.

Activism

Fogle is the UN Patron of the Wilderness, a role that sees him highlight the pressure and impact on the earth's wildest corners. His aim is to focus more attention on the conservation cause and inspire greater global action to ensure our actions do not damage the environment. [21]

He is the President of the Campaign for National Parks,.[22] Fogle is also: an ambassador for the World Wildlife Fund (WWF) and Tusk; a supporter of the Duke of Edinburgh award scheme, and Hearing Dogs for Deaf People. He is a fellow of the Royal Geographical Society.[23] He is also a patron for the British Hedgehog Preservation Society, the Prince's Trust, the Royal Parks Foundation and ShelterBox.

Alongside the historian Philippa Gregory, Fogle is a patron of the UK Chagos Supporters Association, fighting for the islanders' rights to return to the British Indian Ocean Territory. He has described "the story of the Chagos islanders' treatment at the hands of the UK government" as "one for which I am ashamed to be British [...] a story of deceit [... which has] shaken my very principles on conservation and democracy".[24]

In August 2014, Fogle was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian expressing their hope that Scotland would vote to remain part of the United Kingdom in September's referendum on that issue.[25]

Filmography

Television
Year Title Role Channel
2001–2009, 2014–2015, 2017–2018 Countryfile Co-presenter BBC One
2001–2009, 2016—2018 Animal Park Co-presenter BBC One/BBC Two
2002–2007 One Man and His Dog Presenter BBC Two
2003 Big Screen Britain Presenter
2003 Death by Pets
2004 The Sand Marathon Presenter BBC Two
2005–2006 Animal Park: Wild in Africa Co-presenter
2006 Through Hell and High Water Co-presenter BBC One
2006, 2007–2008 Crufts Co-presenter BBC Two
Cash in the Attic Co-presenter BBC One
2007 Animal Park: Wild on the West Coast Co-presenter BBC Two
2007–2009 Extreme Dreams with Ben Fogle Presenter
2009 On Thin Ice Co-presenter
2009–2010 Country Tracks Co-presenter BBC One
2010 Ben Fogle's Escape in Time Presenter BBC Two
2010 Make Me A New Face: Hope For Africa's Hidden Children Presenter
2010 Prince William's Africa Presenter Sky1
2011 The Secrets of Scott's Hut Presenter BBC Two
2011 The World's Most Dangerous Roads[26] Co-presenter
2012 Swimming with Crocodiles Presenter
2012 Lonely Planet's Year of Adventures Presenter Travel Channel
2013— Ben Fogle: New Lives in the Wild Presenter Channel 5
2013–2016 Countrywise Co-presenter ITV
2013 Ben Fogle's Animal Clinic Presenter Channel 5
2013–2014 Harbour Lives Presenter ITV
2014 Trawlermen's Lives Presenter
2015 Ben Fogle: The Great African Migration Presenter Channel 5
2016 Coastal Walks with My Dog Co-presenter Channel 4
2017, 2018 Walks with My Dog Co-presenter More4
2018 Britain's Favourite Dogs: Top 100 Co-presenter ITV

Personal life

In 2006, Fogle married Marina Charlotte Elisabeth,[27] daughter of Dr Jonathan Hunt (son of John Hunt, Baron Hunt of Fawley) and Monika (daughter of Dr Herbert Kuhlmann, of Schloss Urstein, Salzburg, Austria),[28][29] whom he met while walking his black Labrador Retriever, Inca, in London's Hyde Park.[30] Their first child, a boy named Ludovic Herbert Richard Fogle, was born in 2009.[31] Their second child, a girl named Iona, was born in 2011.

While filming the latest series of Extreme Dreams in Peru, Fogle contracted leishmaniasis, which left him bedridden for three weeks on his return home. He was treated at London's Hospital for Tropical Diseases.[32] Fogle went on to make a documentary, Make Me a New Face, about children suffering from flesh-eating bacteria called noma in Ethiopia. The documentary was broadcast on BBC Two.

Fogle was awarded an honorary doctorate of letters by the University of Portsmouth in 2007.[33]

His waxwork was recently unveiled at Madame Tussauds. He was awarded the Freedom of the City of London in 2013. Fogle has had an acting cameo on the television programme Hotel Babylon.

On 20 February 2013, BBC Newsbeat published an article stating that he had claimed that his drink had been spiked at a pub in Gloucestershire. He described the effects as making him try to jump out of a window, and he subsequently spent a night in hospital.[34]

See also

References

  1. ↑ "England & Wales Births 1837–2006".
  2. 1 2 Staff (n.d.). "Ben Fogle : Biography". benfogle.com. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  3. ↑ "findmypast.co.uk". Search.findmypast.co.uk. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  4. ↑ Appleyard, Diana (24 July 2009). "Me and My School Photo: Ben Fogle Remembers His Homesick Boarding School Days and How He Struggled with Dyslexia". Daily Mail. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  5. ↑ "Chat with Ben Fogle! | Mayhem! Magazine". Archived from the original on 9 September 2013. Retrieved 10 August 2013.
  6. ↑ "Ben Fogle: New Lives In The Wild". Channel 5. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
  7. ↑ Cohen, Claire (11 December 2017). "Exclusive: Victoria Pendleton and Ben Fogle on why they have joined forces to conquer Mount Everest" – via www.telegraph.co.uk.
  8. ↑ Association, Press (16 May 2018). "Adventurer Ben Fogle completes Mount Everest climb". the Guardian.
  9. ↑ Bryony Gordon (8 October 2008). "James Cracknell's Race to the South Pole – James Cracknell Should Probably Be Spending This Christmas at Home with His Wife, Beverley Turner, Who Will Be Six Months Pregnant with Their Second Child by Then". The Daily Telegraph. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  10. ↑ "On Thin Ice". Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  11. ↑ . Sparks.
  12. ↑ "Team QinetiQ conquer the South Pole". QinetiQ Group plc. Archived from the original on 9 November 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  13. ↑ "South Pole Race website". 27 January 2009. Archived from the original on 9 July 2009.
  14. ↑ "Team Missing Link Wins the South Pole Race". The Epoch Times. Archived from the original on 9 November 2013. Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  15. ↑ "Cornishman completes gruelling endurance race to South Pole". This Is Cornwall. Archived from the original on |archive-url= requires |archive-date= (help). Retrieved 8 July 2013.
  16. ↑ "Network TV BBC Week 26: Unplaced". BBC Press Office. 29 October 2014. Retrieved 5 July 2015.
  17. ↑ Would I Lie To You?, Series 4 Episode 4
  18. ↑ Fogle, Ben (12 June 2008). "Joseph Haschka's review of Offshore: In Search of an Island of My Own". Amazon.co.uk. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
  19. ↑ Land Rover: The Story of the Car that Conquered the World; Fogle, Ben; William Collins; 2016; 336 pages; ISBN 978-0008194222
  20. ↑ Hirsch, Afua (19 October 2017). "English by Ben Fogle review – Marmite, queuing and weather". The Guardian. Retrieved 15 July 2018.
  21. ↑ "UN Environment announces Ben Fogle as new United Nations Patron of the Wilderness".
  22. ↑ "Ben Fogle to fight National Park cause". Campaign for National Parks. 17 July 2007. Archived from the original on 1 February 2009.
  23. ↑ "Our Members". The Royal Geographical Society. Archived from the original on 13 May 2012. Retrieved 29 August 2012.
  24. ↑ "The Chagos islanders' plight makes me ashamed to be British: The exiled islanders are desperate for the right to return to their homeland – but Britain seems determined to stop them". The Guardian. 21 May 2012. Retrieved 21 May 2012.
  25. ↑ "Celebrities' open letter to Scotland – full text and list of signatories". The Guardian. London. 7 August 2014. Retrieved 26 August 2014.
  26. ↑ "BBC Two – World's Most Dangerous Roads, Series 1, Peru". Bbc.co.uk. 19 July 2012. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
  27. ↑ https://beta.companieshouse.gov.uk/officers/GMmQk3v6dLjUPp5EsCHDFrO8h7I/appointments
  28. ↑ Debrett's Peerage and Baronetage, 2011, Debrett's Peerage Ltd, p. 807
  29. ↑ County Life, vol. 162, 1977, p. 591
  30. ↑ Staff (12 June 2009). "Ben Fogle 'Thrilled' To Become a Father after His Wife Marina Suffered a Miscarriage Last Year". Daily Mail. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  31. ↑ . Ben Fogle (via Twitter).
  32. ↑ Staff (30 October 2008). "Fogle Catches a Flesh-Eating Bug". BBC News. Retrieved 9 July 2012.
  33. ↑ Communicator – The newsletter of the University of Portsmouth – Issue 19 – Autumn 2007 Archived 5 February 2009 at the Wayback Machine. (PDF format).
  34. ↑ Gladwell, Amy (20 February 2013). "Newsbeat – TV presenter Ben Fogle claims drink was spiked with drug". BBC. Retrieved 7 April 2014.
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