Simon Reeve's incredible life - 'whisker from suicide' to thrilling world travel (2024)

The story behind Simon Reeve's adventurous career might not be quite what some viewers expect.

Born and raised in Acton, Simon left school with no qualifications and found himself on the dole, before spiralling into a difficult space with his mental health.

At his darkest moment, Simon explained to The Mirror that he was a "whisker away" from suicide.

However, his life was dramatically turned on its head when he was given a chance to work as a post boy at a newspaper.

“Naturally, there’s an assumption that I must come from a wealthy, travelling family and I must have gone to a very good school and university," Simon, 48, told The Mirror.

"There’s a lot of people now who need to hear that you can still make a go of life if you’ve had a tricky start.

“I spiralled down into quite a dark place and I was a whisker away from committing suicide, quite frankly, literally on the edge of a bridge.

"I didn’t go to university, don’t have any qualifications, I was on the dole, I could have been long term unemployed. I had a really tricky time, but I found my way throughout it with a lot of luck and some hard work.”

Fast forward some decades, and Simon has become a best-selling author and television presenter. Not only that, he’s been detained by the KGB, had a car bomb explode while he was having dinner in Colombia and been smuggled into Burma.

However, his hard work ethic and humble background is something that Simon wants viewers to know about in his upcoming series.

Simon's latest four-part project, Incredible Journeys With Simon Reeve, offers a reflection upon his most memorable adventures interwoven with stories of how he got to where he is today.

The dad of one is certainly not unknown to adventure or the sheer thrill that comes with stepping into a foreign land, having now travelled to over 120 countries throughout his career.

Making connections around the globe

What always stands out during his adventuring - and something that features heavily in the new show - is the incredible people he meets along the way.

Simon explained to The Mirror that receiving updates this year about some of the people he had met around the globe, had been truly wonderful - especially at a time that we all crave contact and communication.

He continued: “The best bit about the adventures and the experiences is that chance to meet people around the world and share a bit of their lives.

"To go back to the old stories and the old footage and pick out some very happy, emotional memories of encounters with people was a real treat.”

Without giving too much away, Simon is left in tears when he receives an update from some of his former travel friends, such as Bangladeshi child labourer Jahangir.

Covid-19 legacy on communities around the world

While Simon has reflected upon his past adventures over the last 15 years, the fallout of the Covid-19 pandemic is also on his mind.

“You can look at the problems we’re having and in some cases times it by ten in countries that have less of an infrastructure, less of an economy and less of a health service,” he reminded me.

“They’ve got other things to worry about apart from the Covid pandemic in countries where there's conflict or endemic malaria, but still it's been a catastrophe for charity fundraising and it's been a disaster for wildlife conservation around the world.”

Climate crisis and the importance of protecting indigenous cultures

In Simon’s new series, the presenter also looks at the devastating effects of climate change, which he argues makes even the pandemic look mild in comparison. “We are cutting down and destroying forest and trees that could provide the solutions and treatments to some of our most devastating viruses, illnesses and diseases," he explained.

What’s more, this is amplified by the threat to indigenous communities who, Simon says, are the “key” to understanding our natural world.

While Simon is currently unable to travel, in the meantime, he has been making the most of exploring Cornwall and spending time with his wife, Anya, and son, Jake - who might very well follow in his dad’s adventurous footsteps.

Simon's adventures closer to home

Simon joked: “I told him he gets a massive present if he does something adventurous and breaks a bone because I want him to live a proper life and not be wrapped up in cotton wool - because when we are on these adventures we really feel like we are actually living.”

And what has been Simon’s tonic for getting through this unusual year? Family, his dogs, and most importantly walking - something that has been a guiding force for him ever since he was a teenager struggling with his mental health.

“I cannot under stress the value of that for us as humans. I really believe this, from when I was in my darkest days as a teenager, I think I’ve really understood the sheer act of putting one foot in front of another, it starts to provide answers and solutions and it clears the mind but it fills the heart as well.”

What can we expect for the future of travel?

Reflecting on his incredible journeys from his home in Dartmoor, Simon remains optimistic about the future of travel and hopes that the lockdown will be more encouragement to seize the opportunities to get away - and think differently about how we view our world.

“I don’t want people to stop going on holiday, I think we need to be more responsible about what we do and where we go.

"Not just because of screwing the planet, but so we can get more out of it. So that we can do things … that are certainly more adventurous than sitting by a pool.

"It might make you sexy on Instagram for a week, but you’re not going to get your experiences or the memories from topping up a tan, that you get from trekking across Mexico or going on an adventure and following a river from source to sea.”

Simon adds: “I’m always really keen to push people out of their comfort zone, eat more funny foreign food, have more exciting experiences and take some bloody risks. We can have it taken away from us, as we’ve seen with the pandemic.”

Like the majority of us, Simon Reeve doesn’t even know what he’s doing next week let alone when he’s next going to be overseas.

However, for this well-known adventurer, there remains hope that one day we will have the chance to visit foreign destinations yet again.

“I really miss the journeys, but I know we’ll get through this, I know we’ll be travelling again,” he added.

“People always have. We’ve gone through plague, pestilence, war and horror in the past and always people have been travelling. It's not a new invention, we’ll be back out there again and I can’t wait."

*Incredible Journeys with Simon Reeveairs on Sundays at 8pm from January 24 on BBC Two

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Simon Reeve's incredible life - 'whisker from suicide' to thrilling world travel (2024)
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