S17, Ep7 Sir Ranulph Fiennes on adventure, fertility and living up to his father's memory
06/14/23 • 57 min
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You wait years for one globally renowned adventurer to come onto How To Fail, and then two appear in the same season! First it was Bear Grylls and now it's the turn of his mentor, Sir Ranulph Fiennes. I spoil you, I really do.
Sir Ranulph is one of the greatest British explorers - a man who has raised millions of pounds for charity through his exploits, which include the first north-south surface circumnavigation of the world, crossing Antarctica on foot and running seven marathons in seven days on seven continents despite suffering a heart attack and undergoing a double coronary artery bypass just four months before. He is also the oldest Briton ever to summit Mount Everest.
He joins me to talk about failing to follow in his late father's footsteps by flunking the Sandurst admission, his competitive drive, the dangers of solo expeditions and - in one especially memorable passage - the time he sawed off his own frostbitten fingers (those of a squeamish disposition may want to skip that bit). And, in a particularly moving exchange, we talk about his inability to have a child with his late wife, Ginny despite several rounds of IVF and a desire to adopt. Regular listeners will know how passionate I am about bringing converstaions around fertility to the fore. It is very rare to hear men talk about it and I'm so grateful to Ranulph for opening up to me. Spoiler alert - there is a happy ending in that Ranulph now has a teenage daughter with his second wife.
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Ranulph Fiennes' latest book, Climb Your Mountain: Everyday Lessons from an Extraordinary Life, is out now and available to purchase here.
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You can donate to one of Sir Ranulph's favourite charities, Marie Curie, here.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email [email protected]
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Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
You wait years for one globally renowned adventurer to come onto How To Fail, and then two appear in the same season! First it was Bear Grylls and now it's the turn of his mentor, Sir Ranulph Fiennes. I spoil you, I really do.
Sir Ranulph is one of the greatest British explorers - a man who has raised millions of pounds for charity through his exploits, which include the first north-south surface circumnavigation of the world, crossing Antarctica on foot and running seven marathons in seven days on seven continents despite suffering a heart attack and undergoing a double coronary artery bypass just four months before. He is also the oldest Briton ever to summit Mount Everest.
He joins me to talk about failing to follow in his late father's footsteps by flunking the Sandurst admission, his competitive drive, the dangers of solo expeditions and - in one especially memorable passage - the time he sawed off his own frostbitten fingers (those of a squeamish disposition may want to skip that bit). And, in a particularly moving exchange, we talk about his inability to have a child with his late wife, Ginny despite several rounds of IVF and a desire to adopt. Regular listeners will know how passionate I am about bringing converstaions around fertility to the fore. It is very rare to hear men talk about it and I'm so grateful to Ranulph for opening up to me. Spoiler alert - there is a happy ending in that Ranulph now has a teenage daughter with his second wife.
--
Ranulph Fiennes' latest book, Climb Your Mountain: Everyday Lessons from an Extraordinary Life, is out now and available to purchase here.
--
You can donate to one of Sir Ranulph's favourite charities, Marie Curie, here.
--
How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email [email protected]
--
Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Previous Episode
S17, Ep6 Diana Evans: the bestselling author on writing routines, dealing with her inner critic and living life to the fullest
TW: Suicide
Diana Evans is the award-winning, bestselling author of A House for Alice, Ordinary People, The Wonder and 26a. Her third novel, Ordinary People, was one of my favourites of the year when it was published in 2018 - and it was shortlisted for the Women's Prize.
Now, she's written a critically acclaimed follow-up, A House for Alice, set against the backdrop of the Grenfell Tower tragedy. Diana joins me to discuss how she writes (and manages failure in her writing), the curse of perfectionism, the importance of tackling social justice in fiction and her abject inability to complete her list of '10 Things To Do Before I'm 50' in time. She also talks movingly about the death of her twin sister by suicide and how this forever shapes the life she now lives.
Thank you Diana, for opening up to me and for the magical words you put on the page.
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A House for Alice by Diana Evans is out now.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email [email protected]
--
Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Diana Evans @dianaevansop
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
Next Episode
S17, Ep8 Yomi Adegoke on social media, mental health and reality TV
This week's guest is the journalist and author Yomi Adegoke. You might know her from her column in the Guardian or as the co-author of the brilliant 2018 non-fiction book, Slay In Your Lane or you might follow her on Instagram for her glamorous serving of LEWKS. And even if you don't know her, you should because she's the definition of good energy and you will love this episode.
Yomi joins me to talk about her failures in hodling down a 9-to-5, her experiences with depression while at university and her debut novel, The List, which has already been snapped up by HBO Max for TV adaptation.
In this episode, we touch on issues of race, gender and cultural influence and, thrillingly, I get to chat about reality TV with someone who takes it as seriously as I do. Lol.
Enjoy!
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Signed copies of The List by Yomi Adegoke are available to pre-order here.
Yomi will be in conversation with Bernardine Evaristo at the Southbank Centre in London on 20th July. Tickets are available here.
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How To Fail With Elizabeth Day is hosted and produced by Elizabeth Day. To contact us, email [email protected]
--
Social Media:
Elizabeth Day @elizabday
How To Fail @howtofailpod
Yomi Adegoke @yomi.adegoke
Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices
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