I've seen the Northern Lights, the Midnight Sun, the Sahara Desert and Mount Everest
Northern Lights, Lofoten, Norway
Midnight sun, Svalbard, Norway
Camel Riding in the Sahara, Tunisia
Mount Everest, Nepal
I've stayed in an Ice Hotel in Sweden, a Gypsy Caravan, a camel-hair tent with the Qashqai Nomads in Iran, and a hammock camp in the jungles of Guyana
Ice Hotel, Kiruna, Sweden
Gypsy Caravan, Dorset, UK
Qashqai Nomad Tent, Iran
Carahaa Landing Hammock Camp, Guyana
I've driven a train in Norway and a boat full of tourists in Venice Lagoon, a sports car at 135mph on a public road, and landed a helicopter at Bristol Airport
Driving a train at Finse, Norway
Tourist boat in Venice
Lotus Europa driven at 135m/hr
Landing at Bristol Airport (screen print from video)
I've spoken to Michael Palin in the nude, as well as a self-confessed witch and mass murderer, been invited to a Sheikh's Palace for coffee in Saudi Arabia, and attended a funeral in Indonesia
Michael Palin - see notes below (1)
The Witch - see notes below (2)
Coffee at a Sheikh Madi Altalaq Palace
Toraja Funeral in Sulawesi, Indonesia
1. While Michael Palin was filming his series Sahara, we happened to be staying at the same 'campement' as him in Mali. I was chatting to him when the manager informed us that the water was finally back on again after a long outage. We both walked down to the communal shower block (as seen in the photo), entered adjoining cubicles and carried on our conversation.
2. In Ghana we visited a village where women who'd been accused of witchcraft and banished from their homes sought refuge. Through a translator, we talked to several of them, and while most denied the accusations, this particular lady freely admitted to being a witch and having killed a few family members with her craft.
2. In Ghana we visited a village where women who'd been accused of witchcraft and banished from their homes sought refuge. Through a translator, we talked to several of them, and while most denied the accusations, this particular lady freely admitted to being a witch and having killed a few family members with her craft.
I have travelled on a pinasse down the River Niger, felucca on the Nile, canal barge in Wales, and paddle steamer in Myanmar
Pinasse on Niger River
Felucca on the River Nile
Canal Barge on Llangollen Canal in Wales
MV Pandaw paddle steamer in Myanmar
I've seen tigers in India, wild dogs in Zambia, penguins in Antarctica, and guanacos in Argentina
Tigers in Tadoba National Park, India
Wild dogs in South Luangwa, Zambia
Chinstrap Penguins on Paulet Island, Antasrctica
Guanacos on the Puna in Argentina
I have attended a voodoo ceremony in Haiti, masked dances in Burkina Faso, the Ice Festival in China, and the Holi festival in India
Fet Gede (Day of the Dead) celebrations in Port au Prince, Haiti
Masked dances of the Bwaba Tribe in Boni Village
The Ice Carving Festival in Harbin, China
Holi celebrations in Jaipur, India
I have eaten durian in Bali, fried goat's blood in China, frogs' legs in France, and horse steak in Iceland
The foul-smelling durian fruit
Fried goat's blood
Frogs' legs
Horse steak
I've partied with the All Blacks rugby team (no photos), the Canadian and Panamanian ambassadors in Haiti, the locals at a shebeen (illegal drinking den) in a township in South Africa, the Bristol Mafia (definitely no photos), had a male stripper turn up at my 30th birthday party, and danced on the tables in Italy.
The evening ended with the Canadian Ambassador wearing a zebra head
The drinking den in South Africa
The stripper before he took his clothes off
Dancing on the tables
I've stroked a crocodile in The Gambia and a tortoise in The Seychelles, cuddled a lion cub in Tunisia, and wrapped a python around my neck in Benin