Ranulph Fiennes OBE

About

Ranulph is a British adventurer and holder of several endurance records. He is also a prolific writer and described by The Guinness Book of Records as “the world’s greatest living explorer”. That was back in 1984 since then he has broken many more world records and led many more expeditions to remote regions.

Ranulph Fiennes (Sir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 3rd Baronet, OBE) inherited his father’s baronetcy, becoming the 3rd Baronet of Banbury, at his birth. Fiennes is the third cousin of actors Joseph and Ralph Fiennes and is a distant cousin to the British Royal Family.

After the war his mother moved the family to South Africa, where he remained until he was 12. Fiennes then returned to be educated at Sandroyd School, Wiltshire and then Eton, after which he joined the British Army.

Fiennes served in the British Army for eight years including a period on counter-insurgency service while attached to the army of the Sultanate of Oman.

Ranulph is the author of 19 fiction and non-fiction books, including The Feather Men. In 2003, he published a biography of Captain Robert Falcon Scott.

In 1986 Fiennes was awarded the Polar Medal for “outstanding service to British Polar exploration and research.” In 1994 he was awarded a second clasp to the Polar Medal, having visited both poles. He remains the only person to have received a double clasp for both the Arctic and Antarctica.

In 2007, he received the ITV Greatest Briton Award (other nominees included Lewis Hamilton and Joe Calzaghe).

He has also been awarded a number of honorary doctorates, the first in 1986 by Loughborough University, followed in 1995 by University of Central England, in 2000 by University of Portsmouth, 2002 by Glasgow Caledonian University, 2005 by University of Sheffield, 2007 by University of Abertay Dundee and September 2011 by University of Plymouth. Fiennes later received the Royal Geographical Society’s Founder’s Medal. Fiennes was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1993 for “human endeavour and for charitable services”: his expeditions have raised £14 million for good causes.

In May 2009, at the age of 65, he climbed to the summit of Mount Everest. According to the Guinness Book of World Records he is the world’s greatest living explorer.

Ranulph Fiennes was named as the UK’s top celebrity fundraiser by JustGiving in 2010, after raising more than £2.5 million for Marie Curie Cancer Care over the previous two years, which is more than any other celebrity fundraiser featured on JustGiving.com during the same period.

Fiennes continues to compete in UK-based endurance events and has seen recent success in the veteran categories of some Mountain Marathon races. His training nowadays consists of regular two-hour runs around Exmoor.

Ranulph Fiennes is renowned for his passionate and enthralling motivational speeches. His natural style and exuberant spirit allows him to set an audience at ease whilst keeping entertained and on the edge of their seats throughout the course of the presentation.