Explorer and TV Presenter
Ed Stafford is the Guinness World Record-holding first man to walk the Amazon River. Sir Ranulph Fiennes described the former British Army captain’s expedition as being “truly extraordinary… in the top league of expeditions past and present.”
Ed’s tale of true grit, bravery and determination to succeed against all odds has led to him being described by The Daily Mail as, “Britain’s most intrepid hero since Scott of the Antarctic,” and “A true hero” by The Times.
Video footage of Ed’s expedition was made into a Discovery Channel and Channel 5 documentary that was sold to over 100 countries. His best-selling first book, Walking the Amazon, has been translated into multiple languages.
Since Walking the Amazon, Ed has started appearring regularly on our screens. In 2013, Ed hosted the Discovery series, Naked and Marooned [Naked Castaway in the USA], where he was stranded on an uninhabited island for 60 days with no food, water, or tools - he was not even allowed to take any clothes. The concept was then developed into the runaway hit series, Naked and Afraid. With exceptional viewing figures Ed has gone on to host numerous series’ for The Discovery Channel.
2013 also saw the premiere of Ed’s self-filmed series Marooned with Ed Stafford. The popularity of this led to a follow up show Ed Stafford: Into The Unknown, which aired in 2015 and saw Ed investigate some of the planet’s most bizarre mysteries.
Ed has also presented, Ed Stafford: Left For Dead and three series of Ed Stafford: First Man Out, which premiered in 2019. This competitive series saw Ed take on survival experts from around the world, in a challenge to outlast the extreme environments they face. In 2020 Ed, his wife Laura and their 20 month old son all appeared in the Discovery series Man Women Child Wild, where they searched for a healthier lifestyle by living off the grid on an Indonesian Island.
In 2019 Ed presented the critically acclaimed Channel 4 documentary 60 Days on the Streets that saw Ed spend 60 days and nights on the streets with no money and no shelter, filming himself to get a first-hand view of Britain’s growing homelessness problem. Following on from the sucess of the documentary, Channel 4 commissioned 60 days with the Gypsies where Ed spent two months with Gypsey and Traveller communities across the country. In 2023 Ed will also present 60 days on the Estates, which will see him move in with residents on some of the UK's most infmous housing estates.
Ed’s passion for what he does has led him to write books about his experiences and those of others. As well as Ed’s debut book, Walking the Amazon, he has also written Naked and Marooned and Ed Stafford’s Ultimate Adventure Guide: The Bucket List for the Brave, as well as Adventures for a Lifetime. In 2019, Ed released his book, Expeditions Unpacked: What the Great Explorers Took into the Unknown.
Ed uses his adventures to inspire adults and kids alike to get outside and take some risks. In a world where mental health issues are rising and there is a growing feeling of disconnect, Ed passionately beileves that adventures can be the catalysts for personal growth and development. Situations where you don’t have all the answers force us to come up with new solutions and new ways of looking at the world, and they are a great antidote to the apathy of the modern, screen-addicted society.
Ed is an ambassador for Land Rover, the Scout Associations, and the Youth Adventure Trust.
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