Ranulph Fiennes

{{Infobox person

| honorific_prefix = Sir

| name = Ranulph Fiennes

| honorific_suffix = {{postnom|country=GBR|size=100%|Bt|OBE}}

| image = Ranulph Fiennes 2014.jpg

| image_size = 200px

| caption = Fiennes in 2014

| alt = Sir Ranulph Fiennes at Wexas in 2014

| birth_name = Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes

| birth_date = {{Birth date and age|1944|3|7|df=y}}

| birth_place = Windsor, Berkshire, England

| death_date =

| death_place =

| alma_mater = Mons Officer Cadet School

| spouse = {{Plainlist|

{{Marriage|Ginny Pepper|9 September 1970|February 2004|reason=died}}
{{Marriage|Louise Millington|2005}}

}}

| relatives =

| children = 1

| occupation = British Army Officer; explorer and travel writer

| awards = {{ublist|Order of the British Empire|Polar Medal (with double clasp)}}

| module = {{Infobox military person|embed=yes

| allegiance = United Kingdom

| branch = British Army

| serviceyears = 1963–1983

| rank = Lieutenant

| servicenumber = 474357

| unit = {{plainlist|

Royal Scots Greys
(1963–1966, 1966–1968)
22 SAS (1966)
Royal Army of Oman (1967–1970)
22 SAS (R Sqn) (1970–1971)
21 SAS (Reserve) (1971–1983)

}}

Sir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, 3rd Baronet {{postnom|country=GBR|OBE}} (born 7 March 1944), commonly known as Sir Ranulph Fiennes ({{IPAc-en|ˈ|r|æ|n|ʌ|l|f|_|ˈ|f|aɪ|n|z}}) and sometimes as Ran Fiennes,{{efn|He has the triple-barrelled surname Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes, but is known by the surname Fiennes, as registered at birth}} is a British explorer, writer and poet, who holds several endurance records.

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. He later undertook numerous expeditions and was the first person to visit both the North Pole and South Pole by surface means and the first to completely cross Antarctica on foot. In May 2009, at the age of 65, he reached the summit of Mount Everest.

According to the Guinness Book of World Records in 1984, he was the world's greatest living explorer.{{cite web |title=SPOTLIGHT SERIES 60th ICONS |url=https://guinnessworldrecords.com/60/60th-icons.html |website=Guinness World Records |access-date=26 September 2022 |archive-date=26 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220926073221/https://guinnessworldrecords.com/60/60th-icons.html |url-status=live }} Fiennes has written numerous books about his army service and his expeditions as well as books on explorers Robert Falcon Scott and Ernest Shackleton.

Early life and education

Fiennes was born in Windsor, Berkshire, on 7 March 1944, nearly four months after the death of his father, Lieutenant-Colonel Sir Ranulph Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes.{{Cite web|url=http://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/information.pl?cite=gwnGjYAoxR2efNlkFL4Okw&scan=1|title=Index entry|access-date=7 August 2016|work=FreeBMD|publisher=ONS|archive-date=21 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021234454/https://www.freebmd.org.uk/cgi/information.pl?cite=gwnGjYAoxR2efNlkFL4Okw&scan=1|url-status=live}} While commanding the Royal Scots Greys in Italy Fiennes' father trod on a German anti-personnel S-mine and died of his wounds eleven days later in Naples on 24 November 1943.{{Cite news|last=Jinman|first=Richard|date=19 February 2019|title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes on rivalry, pain and the storage of amputated fingers|work=Sydney Morning Herald|url=https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/sir-ranulph-fiennes-on-rivalry-pain-and-the-storage-of-amputated-fingers-20190218-h1be6y.html|access-date=4 August 2021|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190222153049/https://www.smh.com.au/entertainment/sir-ranulph-fiennes-on-rivalry-pain-and-the-storage-of-amputated-fingers-20190218-h1be6y.html|archive-date=22 February 2019}} He was posthumously awarded the Distinguished Service Order.{{London Gazette |issue=36327 |date=13 January 1944 |page=255 |supp=y }} Fiennes' mother was Audrey Joan (died 2004), younger daughter of Sir Percy Newson.Who's Who 2014 Fiennes inherited his father's baronetcy, becoming the 3rd Twisleton-Wykeham-Fiennes baronet at his birth.

After the war his mother moved the family to South Africa, where he remained until he was 12. While in South Africa he attended Western Province Preparatory School in Newlands, Cape Town. Fiennes then returned to be educated at Sandroyd School, Wiltshire, and then at Eton College.

Career

File:Ranulph Fiennes (cropped).jpg's Legacy event in London, 2012]]

=Officer=

After failing to gain entry into the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst, Fiennes attended Mons Officer Cadet School.Sir Ranulph Fiennes, To the Ends of the Earth: The Transglobe Expedition, the First Pole-to-Pole (1983), [https://books.google.com/books?id=PigGIj4PXnYC&pg=PA17 p. 17] {{Webarchive|url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021234451/https://books.google.com/books?id=PigGIj4PXnYC&pg=PA17#v=onepage&q&f=false |date=21 October 2023 }} After completing several months' training, on 27 July 1963 he was granted a short service commission in his late father's former regiment, the Royal Scots Greys. He was later seconded to the Special Air Service where he specialised in demolitions.{{London Gazette |issue=43116 |date=24 September 1963 |pages=7978–7979 |supp=y }}

Offended by the construction of a temporary sandbag damhttps://www.mediastorehouse.com/memory-lane-prints/mirror/0100to0199-00157/recreated-coastal-fishing-village-castle-combe-21522915.htmlhttps://www.reelstreets.com/wp-content/uploads/Films/doctor_dolittle/drd001.jpg built in Castle Combe, Wiltshire, by 20th Century FoxTop Gear series 4, episode 9, "Star in a Reasonably Priced Car." for the production of the 1967 film Doctor Dolittle, Fiennes with others plotted to blow up the dam but the police foiled the plan.{{cite web |last1=Brew |first1=Simon |title=5 real examples of deliberate sabotage on the set of movies |url=https://www.filmstories.co.uk/features/a-few-real-moments-of-deliberate-sabotage-on-the-set-of-movies/ |website=Film Stories |access-date=18 December 2022 |date=2020 |archive-date=14 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221214084947/https://www.filmstories.co.uk/features/a-few-real-moments-of-deliberate-sabotage-on-the-set-of-movies/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |last1=Petherick |first1=Sam |title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes admits he narrowly avoided prison after blowing up Dr Doolittle movie dam |url=https://www.somersetlive.co.uk/news/sir-ranulph-fiennes-admits-narrowly-1818913 |access-date=8 January 2025 |issue=Somerset Live |date=24 July 2018}} Fiennes was fined £300 for conspiring to cause a public mischief, and £200 for unlawfully possessing explosives;{{cite news |title=Sir Ranulph and his men are fined |url=https://www.britishnewspaperarchive.co.uk/viewer/bl/0000560/19661006/012/0002 |access-date=8 January 2025 |work=Daily Mirror |date=6 October 1966}} he and a co-conspirator were dismissed from the SAS. He was initially posted to another cavalry regiment but was eventually permitted to return to the Royal Scots Greys.

Fiennes spent the last two years of his army career seconded to the Sultan of Oman's Armed Forces. At the time, Oman was experiencing a growing communist insurgency supported from neighbouring South Yemen. After familiarisation, he commanded the Reconnaissance Platoon of the Muscat Regiment, seeing extensive active service in the Dhofar War. He led several raids deep into rebel-held territory on the Djebel Dhofar and was decorated for bravery by the Sultanate. After eight years' service Fiennes relinquished his commission on 27 July 1971.{{London Gazette |issue=45433 |date=27 July 1971 |page=8051 |supp=y }}

=Expedition leader=

Since the 1960s Fiennes has been an expedition leader. He led expeditions up the White Nile on a hovercraft in 1969 and on Norway's Jostedalsbreen Glacier in 1970. A notable trek was the Transglobe Expedition he undertook between 1979 and 1982, when he and two fellow members of 21 SAS, Oliver Shepard and Charles R. Burton, journeyed around the world on its polar axis, using surface transport only. Nobody else has ever done so by any route before or since.{{Cite web|url=https://www.spri.cam.ac.uk/friends/polarbytes/48/|title=Scott Polar Research Institute, Cambridge » 'Polar Bytes' no. 48|website=spri.cam.ac.uk|language=en|access-date=2018-05-25|archive-date=25 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180525204850/https://www.spri.cam.ac.uk/friends/polarbytes/48/|url-status=live}}{{Cite news|url=https://www.outdoorsradar.com/uncategorised/sir-ranulph-fiennes-announces-latest-challenge/|title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes announces latest challenge {{!}} OutdoorsRadar|date=2016-07-19|work=OutdoorsRadar|access-date=2018-05-25|language=en-GB|archive-date=25 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180525205031/https://www.outdoorsradar.com/uncategorised/sir-ranulph-fiennes-announces-latest-challenge/|url-status=live}}{{Cite web|url=https://www.freezeframe.ac.uk/resources/expeditions/trans-globe-expedition-1979-82/transglobe-expedition-1979-82|title=Freeze Frame » Transglobe Expedition 1979-82|website=freezeframe.ac.uk|language=en-US|access-date=2018-05-25|archive-date=25 May 2018|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180525204928/https://www.freezeframe.ac.uk/resources/expeditions/trans-globe-expedition-1979-82/transglobe-expedition-1979-82|url-status=live}}

As part of the Transglobe Expedition, Fiennes and Burton completed the Northwest Passage. They left Tuktoyaktuk on 26 July 1981 in an 18 ft open Boston Whaler and reached Tanquary Fiord on 31 August 1981.{{Cite book|url=https://books.google.com/books?id=q20QAJEDcScC&q=tuktoyaktuk+transglobe&pg=PA91|title=Historical Dictionary of the Discovery and Exploration of the Northwest Passage|last=Day|first=Alan|date=2006-01-03|publisher=Scarecrow Press|isbn=9780810865198|pages=91–93|language=en|access-date=19 November 2020|archive-date=21 October 2023|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021234451/https://books.google.com/books?id=q20QAJEDcScC&q=tuktoyaktuk+transglobe&pg=PA91#v=snippet&q=tuktoyaktuk%20transglobe&f=false|url-status=live}} Their journey was the first open boat transit from West to East and covered around 3,000 miles (2,600 nautical miles or 4,800 km), taking a route through Dolphin and Union Strait following the south coast of Victoria Island and King William Island, north to Resolute Bay via the Franklin Strait and Peel Sound, around the south and east coasts of Devon Island, through Hell Gate and across Norwegian Bay to Eureka, Greely Bay and the head of Tanquary Fiord. Once they reached Tanquary Fiord, they had to trek a further 150 miles via Lake Hazen to Alert before setting up their winter base camp.{{citation needed|date=September 2016}}

In 1992 Fiennes led an expedition that discovered what may be an outpost of the lost city of Iram in Oman. The following year he joined nutrition specialist Mike Stroud to become the first to cross the Antarctic continent unsupported; they took 93 days. A further attempt in 1996 to walk to the South Pole solo, in aid of the Breast Cancer Campaign, was unsuccessful due to a kidney stone attack and he had to be rescued from the operation by his crew.

In 2000 he attempted to walk solo and unsupported to the North Pole. The expedition failed when his sleds fell through weak ice and Fiennes was forced to pull them out by hand. He sustained severe frostbite to the tips of all the fingers on his left hand, forcing him to abandon the attempt. On returning home, his surgeon insisted the necrotic fingertips be retained for several months before amputation, to allow regrowth of the remaining healthy tissue. Impatient at the pain the dying fingertips caused, Fiennes cut them off himself with an electric fretsaw,{{cite web |url=http://koboldwatch.com/explorers/sir-ranulph-fiennes-bt-o-b-e/ |title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Bt. O.B.E. |publisher=Kobold Watch |date=2 November 2003 |access-date=28 March 2012 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120419013437/http://koboldwatch.com/explorers/sir-ranulph-fiennes-bt-o-b-e/ |archive-date=19 April 2012 }} just above where the blood and the soreness was.{{cite news |last=Henley |first=Jon |date=5 October 2007 |title=I am not a madman |url=https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2007/oct/05/features11.g21 |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |access-date=9 January 2015 |archive-date=11 February 2017 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20170211130352/https://www.theguardian.com/theguardian/2007/oct/05/features11.g21 |url-status=live }}

Despite suffering from a heart attack and undergoing a double coronary artery bypass operation just four months before, Fiennes joined Stroud again in 2003 to complete seven marathons in seven days on seven continents in the Land Rover 7x7x7 Challenge for the British Heart Foundation. "In retrospect I wouldn't have done it. I would not do it again. It was Mike Stroud's idea". Their series of marathons was as follows:

:::* 26 October – Race 1: Patagonia – South America

:::* 27 October – Race 2: Falkland Islands – "Antarctica"

:::* 28 October – Race 3: Sydney – Australia

:::* 29 October – Race 4: Singapore – Asia

:::* 30 October – Race 5: London – Europe

:::* 31 October – Race 6: Cairo – Africa

:::* 1 November – Race 7: New York City – North America

Originally Fiennes had planned to run the first marathon on King George Island, Antarctica. The second marathon would then have taken place in Santiago, Chile. However, bad weather and aeroplane engine trouble caused him to change his plans, running the South American segment in southern Patagonia first and then hopping to the Falklands as a substitute for the Antarctic leg.

Speaking after the event, Fiennes said the Singapore Marathon had been by far the most difficult because of high humidity and pollution. He also said his cardiac surgeon had approved the marathons, providing his heart-rate did not exceed 130 beats per minute. Fiennes later said that he forgot to pack his heart-rate monitor, and therefore did not know how fast his heart was beating.

In June 2005, Fiennes had to abandon an attempt to be the oldest Briton to climb Mount Everest when, in another climb for charity, he was forced to turn back as a result of heart problems, after reaching the final stopping point of the ascent. In March 2007, despite a lifelong fear of heights, Fiennes climbed the Eiger by its North Face, with sponsorship totalling £1.8 million to be paid to the Marie Curie Cancer Care Delivering Choice Programme. Kenton Cool first met Fiennes in 2004, and subsequently guided him in the Alps and Himalayas.{{cite book |last= Cool |first= Kenton |title= One Man's Everest |year= 2015 |publisher= Preface (Penguin Random House) |location= London |isbn= 9781848094482 |pages=143–162 }}

File:ranulph fiennes.jpg

In 2008 Fiennes made his second attempt to climb Mount Everest, getting to within {{convert|400|m}} of the summit before bad timing and bad weather stopped the expedition. On 20 May 2009 Fiennes reached the summit of Mount Everest, becoming the oldest British person to achieve this. Fiennes also became the first person to have climbed Everest and crossed both polar ice-caps.{{cite news |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8060649.stm |title=Fiennes climbs to Everest summit |date=20 May 2009 |work=BBC News |access-date=22 May 2009 |archive-date=22 May 2009 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20090522013306/http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/uk/8060649.stm |url-status=live }} Of the other handful of adventurers who had visited both poles, only four had successfully crossed both polar icecaps: Norwegian Børge Ousland, Belgian Alain Hubert and Fiennes. In successfully reaching the summit of Everest in 2009 Fiennes became the first person to achieve all three goals. Ousland wrote to congratulate him.{{cite web |url=http://www.adventurestats.com/tables/threepoles.shtml |title=by Explorersweb |publisher=AdventureStats |date=2003-09-30 |access-date=2013-08-16 |archive-date=18 February 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150218171527/http://www.adventurestats.com/tables/threepoles.shtml |url-status=usurped }} 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.{{citation needed|date=May 2020}}

In September 2012 it was announced that Fiennes was to lead the first attempt to cross Antarctica during the southern winter, in aid of the charity Seeing is Believing, an initiative to prevent avoidable blindness. The six-man team was dropped off by ship at Crown Bay in Queen Maud Land in January 2013, and waited until the Southern Hemisphere's autumnal equinox on 21 March 2013 before embarking across the ice shelf. The team would ascend {{convert|10000|ft|m}} onto the inland plateau, and head to the South Pole. The intention was for Fiennes and his skiing partner, Dr Mike Stroud,{{Cite web|url=http://www.ranulphfiennes.co.uk/page/news-and-events.html|title=News and Events :: Ranulph Fiennes|website=ranulphfiennes.co.uk|access-date=2019-03-25|archive-date=19 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219220240/http://www.ranulphfiennes.co.uk/page/news-and-events.html|url-status=dead}} to lead on foot and be followed by two bulldozers dragging industrial sledges.{{cite news |last=Price |first=Matthew |author-link=Matthew Price |date=17 September 2012 |title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes to attempt record Antarctica trek |url=https://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19609293 |work=BBC News |access-date=16 August 2013 |archive-date=10 June 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130610082031/http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/uk-19609293 |url-status=live }}

Fiennes had to pull out of the Coldest Journey expedition on 25 February 2013 because of frostbite and was evacuated from Antarctica.{{cite web |url=http://www.thecoldestjourney.org/blog/news-from-hq/latest-news/ |title=Latest News |last=Bowring |first=Hugh |date=25 February 2013 |publisher=The Coldest Journey |access-date=16 August 2013 |archive-date=2 April 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130402181104/http://www.thecoldestjourney.org/blog/news-from-hq/latest-news/ |url-status=live }}{{cite news |author= |title=Ranulph Fiennes pulls out of Antarctic journey |url=https://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/02/25/ranulph-fiennes-antarctic-journey/1946571/ |newspaper=USA Today |date=25 February 2013 |agency=Associated Press |access-date=16 August 2013 |archive-date=1 March 2013 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130301081850/http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/world/2013/02/25/ranulph-fiennes-antarctic-journey/1946571/? |url-status=live }}

=Author=

Fiennes' career as an author has developed alongside his career as an explorer: he is the author of 24 fiction and non-fiction books,{{Cite web|url=http://www.ranulphfiennes.co.uk/page/books.html|title=Books :: Ranulph Fiennes|website=ranulphfiennes.co.uk|access-date=2019-03-25|archive-date=25 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200225213122/http://www.ranulphfiennes.co.uk/page/books.html|url-status=dead}} including The Feather Men. In 2003, he published a biography of Captain Robert Falcon Scott which attempted to provide a robust defence of Scott's achievements and reputation, which had been strongly questioned by biographers such as Roland Huntford. Although others have made comparisons between Fiennes and Scott, Fiennes says he identifies more with Lawrence Oates, another member of Scott's doomed Antarctic team.

=Political views=

Fiennes stood for the Countryside Party in the 2004 European elections in the South West England region – fourth on their list of six. The party received 30,824 votes – insufficient for any of their candidates to be elected. Contrary to some reports, he has never been an official patron of the UK Independence Party.{{cite news|url=http://www.ranulphfiennes.co.uk/page/news-and-events.html|title=Q&A With Sir Ranulph Fiennes|last=Fiennes|first=Ranulph|date=20 March 2019|newspaper=Ranulph Fiennes Official Website|access-date=25 March 2019|archive-date=19 February 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200219220240/http://www.ranulphfiennes.co.uk/page/news-and-events.html|url-status=dead}} He is also a member of the libertarian pressure group The Freedom Association.{{cite web| url=http://www.tfa.net/about-us/council-and-supporters/| title=The Freedom Association - Council & Supporters| url-status=dead| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20130407205549/http://www.tfa.net/about-us/council-and-supporters/| archive-date=7 April 2013}} In August 2014, Fiennes was one of 200 public figures who were signatories to a letter to The Guardian opposing Scottish independence in the run-up to September's referendum on that issue.{{cite news |author= |title=Celebrities' open letter to Scotland – full text and list of signatories |url=https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/aug/07/celebrities-open-letter-scotland-independence-full-text |newspaper=The Guardian |location=London |date=7 August 2014 |access-date=26 August 2014 |archive-date=1 April 2019 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20190401031202/https://www.theguardian.com/politics/2014/aug/07/celebrities-open-letter-scotland-independence-full-text |url-status=live }}

=Media appearances=

As a guest on the British motoring television programme Top Gear, as a Star in a Reasonably Priced Car, his test track lap time, in a Suzuki Liana was 1:51, putting him 26th out of 65. He also appeared in the Polar Special episode, casually berating the three hosts for their flippant attitude toward the dangers of the Arctic.

According to an interview on Top Gear, Fiennes was considered for the role of James Bond during the casting process, making it to the final six contenders, but was rejected by Cubby Broccoli for having "hands too big and a face like a farmer", and Roger Moore was eventually chosen.Top Gear Series 4, Episode 9, airdate 25 July 2004. Fiennes related this tale again during one of his appearances on Countdown, in which he referred also to a brief film career that included an appearance alongside Liz Fraser.Countdown, 19 November 2013. When he recounted this story, Fiennes initially confused Frazer with another Carry On actress, Barbara Windsor, excusing himself on the grounds that they were both "big up top".

Between 1 and 5 October 2012, and again from 13 to 19 November 2013, Fiennes featured on the Channel 4 game show Countdown as the celebrity guest in 'Dictionary Corner' and provided interludes based on his life stories and explorations.

Fiennes was an expert guest commentator on the PBS documentary Chasing Shackleton which aired in January 2014. Fiennes makes a number of corporate and after dinner speeches.{{cite web |url=http://www.militaryspeakers.co.uk/speakers/sir-ranulph-fiennes.aspx |title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes |publisher=Military Speakers |access-date=2014-08-26 |archive-date=25 June 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200625103411/http://www.militaryspeakers.co.uk/speakers/sir-ranulph-fiennes.aspx |url-status=live }}

In 2019, Fiennes appeared in a three part National Geographic documentary Egypt with the World's Greatest Explorer (also titled Fiennes Return to Egypt) with his cousin and actor Joseph Fiennes that re-traced his first expedition in Egypt back in the 1960s.{{Cite web|url=https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimdobson/2019/03/02/world-explorer-sir-ranulph-fiennes-and-actor-joseph-fiennes-on-their-new-adventure-series-in-egypt/|title=World Explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes And Actor Joseph Fiennes on Their New Adventure Series in Egypt|last=Dobson|first=Jim|website=Forbes|language=en|access-date=2020-01-02|archive-date=6 August 2020|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200806172010/https://www.forbes.com/sites/jimdobson/2019/03/02/world-explorer-sir-ranulph-fiennes-and-actor-joseph-fiennes-on-their-new-adventure-series-in-egypt/|url-status=live}}

Personal life

Fiennes married his childhood sweetheart, and fellow adventurer, Virginia ("Ginny") Pepper on 9 September 1970. They ran a country farm estate on Exmoor, Somerset, where they raised cattle and sheep. Ginny built up a herd of Aberdeen Angus cattle while Fiennes was away on his expeditions. She was the first woman to receive the Polar Medal in recognition of her research work into VLF radio propagation. She also conceived, organised and participated in the Transglobe Expedition. The two remained married until her death from stomach cancer in February 2004.{{cite web |title=Lady Virginia Fiennes Wife of explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes and first woman to receive the Polar Medal |url=https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12516822.lady-virginia-fiennes-wife-of-explorer-sir-ranulph-fiennes-and-first-woman-to-receive-the-polar-medal/ |website=Herald Scotland |access-date=31 December 2022 |language=en |date=25 February 2004 |archive-date=4 October 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221004183722/https://www.heraldscotland.com/news/12516822.lady-virginia-fiennes-wife-of-explorer-sir-ranulph-fiennes-and-first-woman-to-receive-the-polar-medal/ |url-status=live }}

Fiennes embarked on a lecture tour, where in Cheshire he met Louise Millington, whom he married at St Boniface's Church, Bunbury, one year and three weeks after Ginny's death. A daughter, Elizabeth, was born in April 2006. He also has a stepson named Alexander. In 2007 Millington was interviewed by The Daily Telegraph to help raise money for the Philip Leverhulme Equine Hospital in Cheshire.{{cite news |last=Jardine |first=Cassandra |author-link=Cassandra Jardine |date=16 April 2007 |title=Of course I am an evil, evil woman |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/3632121/Of-course-I-am-an-evil-evil-woman.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |access-date=16 August 2013 |archive-date=7 September 2014 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20140907212357/http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/3632121/Of-course-I-am-an-evil-evil-woman.html |url-status=live }}

In 2003, shortly after boarding a flight to Scotland from Bristol Airport, Fiennes suffered a heart attack and later underwent emergency bypass surgery.{{Cite web| url=https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sir-ranulph-fiennes-has-emergency-heart-attack-surgery-108144.html| title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes has emergency heart attack surgery| website=Independent.co.uk| date=2003-06-08| access-date=3 July 2018| archive-date=3 July 2018| archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20180703200816/https://www.independent.co.uk/news/uk/home-news/sir-ranulph-fiennes-has-emergency-heart-attack-surgery-108144.html| url-status=live}}

On 6 March 2010, Fiennes was involved in a three-car collision in Stockport which resulted in minor injuries to himself and serious injuries to the driver of another car. He had been in Stockport to participate in the annual High Peak Marathon in Derbyshire as part of a veterans' team known as Poles Apart that, despite the freezing conditions, managed to win the veterans' trophy in just over 12 hours.{{cite news |author= |title=Explorer Sir Ranulph Fiennes in car crash in Stockport |url=http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/manchester/8554639.stm |work=BBC News |date=7 March 2010 |access-date=9 January 2015 |archive-date=21 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021234452/http://news.bbc.co.uk/2/hi/uk_news/england/manchester/8554639.stm |url-status=live }}

Diagnosed with Parkinson's disease in 2019, Fiennes continues to be open about the disease and his battle with it.{{cite news |url= https://www.thetimes.com/life-style/article/sir-ranulph-fiennes-on-breaking-records-and-life-with-parkinsons-jn9f953xm |title = Sir Ranulph Fiennes on breaking records and life with Parkinson's |work=The Times |location= London |date=1 January 2023 |first=

Nick |last=McGrath}}

Fiennes is a member of the Worshipful Company of Vintners and the Highland Society of London and holds honorary membership of the Travellers Club.{{cite web |url=http://www.debretts.com/people-of-today/profile/4199/ |title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes, Bt, OBE Authorised Biography |publisher=Debrett's |access-date=9 January 2014 |url-status=dead |archive-url=https://archive.today/20150115014615/http://www.debretts.com/people-of-today/profile/4199/ |archive-date=15 January 2015 }}

Awards and recognition

In 1970, while serving with the Omani Army, Fiennes received the Sultan's Bravery Medal. 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.{{cite news|url=https://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-devon-14999651|title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes gets Plymouth University honorary doctorate - BBC News|access-date=10 August 2015|work=BBC News|date=21 September 2011|archive-date=24 September 2015|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150924145910/http://www.bbc.com/news/uk-england-devon-14999651|url-status=live}} Fiennes later received the Royal Geographical Society's Founder's Medal.

He was the subject of This Is Your Life in 1982 when he was surprised by Eamonn Andrews.{{cite book |last1=Fiennes |first1=Ranulph |title=The Ranulph Fiennes Collection |date=2012 |publisher=Hodder and Stoughton |location=London |isbn=978-1-444-77753-6 |url=https://books.google.com/books?id=Y11qkpSLNc8C&dq=%22This+Is+Your+Life%22+fiennes&pg=PT378 |access-date=31 December 2022 |archive-date=21 October 2023 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20231021234451/https://books.google.com/books?id=Y11qkpSLNc8C&dq=%22This+Is+Your+Life%22+fiennes&pg=PT378 |url-status=live }}

Fiennes was appointed Officer of the Order of the British Empire in 1993 for "human endeavour and for charitable services":{{London Gazette |issue=53332 |date=11 June 1993 |page=13 |supp=y }} in 2015 it was reported his expeditions have raised £16 million for good causes.{{cite web |last1=Battersby |first1=Kate |title=Ranulph Fiennes: I don't think I do amazing things |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/goodlife/11387311/Ranulph-Fiennes-I-dont-think-I-do-amazing-things.html |website=Daily Telegraph |access-date=31 December 2022 |date=12 February 2015 |archive-date=31 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221231142930/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/goodlife/11387311/Ranulph-Fiennes-I-dont-think-I-do-amazing-things.html |url-status=live }}

In 1986, Fiennes was awarded the Polar Medal for "outstanding service to British Polar exploration and research."{{London Gazette|issue=50650 |date=8 September 1986|page=11713 |supp=y }} In 1994 he was awarded a second clasp to the Polar Medal,{{London Gazette|issue=53882 |date=29 December 1994 |page=17745 |supp=y }} having visited both poles. He remains the only person to have received a double clasp for both the Arctic and Antarctica.

In the 2007 Top Gear: Polar Special the presenters travelled to the Magnetic North Pole in a Toyota Hilux. Fiennes was called in to speak with the presenters after their constant joking and horseplay during their cold weather training. As a former guest on the show who was familiar with their penchant for tomfoolery, Fiennes bluntly informed them of the grave dangers of polar expeditions, showing pictures of his own frostbite injuries and presenting what remained of his left hand. Sir Ranulph was given recognition by having his name placed before every surname in the closing credits: "Sir Ranulph Clarkson, Sir Ranulph Hammond, Sir Ranulph May"....Top Gear series 9, Polar Special.

In May 2007, Fiennes received ITV's Greatest Britons Award for Sport beating fellow nominees Lewis Hamilton and Joe Calzaghe. In October 2007 Fiennes ranked 94th (tied with five others) in a list of the "Top 100 living geniuses" published by The Daily Telegraph.{{cite news |title=Top 100 living geniuses |url=https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1567544/Top-100-living-geniuses.html |newspaper=The Daily Telegraph |location=London |date=31 October 2007 |access-date=30 July 2009 |archive-date=3 August 2020 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20200803031241/https://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/uknews/1567544/Top-100-living-geniuses.html |url-status=live }}

In late 2008/early 2009, Fiennes took part in a new BBC programme called Top Dogs: Adventures in War, Sea and Ice, in which he teamed with fellow Britons John Simpson, the BBC News world affairs editor, and Sir Robin Knox-Johnston, the round-the-world yachtsman. The team undertook three trips, with each team member experiencing the other's adventure field. The first episode, aired on 27 March 2009, saw Fiennes, Simpson and Knox-Johnston go on a news-gathering trip to Afghanistan. The team reported from the Khyber Pass and the Tora Bora mountain complex. In the other two episodes they undertook a voyage around Cape Horn and an expedition hauling sledges across the deep-frozen Frobisher Bay in the far north of Canada.{{cite web |last1=Wollaston |first1=Sam |title=Last night's TV: Dogs of war - and yachting |url=https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/mar/28/television-top-dogs-adventures |website=The Guardian |access-date=31 December 2022 |date=28 March 2009 |archive-date=31 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221231082943/https://www.theguardian.com/culture/2009/mar/28/television-top-dogs-adventures |url-status=live }}

In 2010, Fiennes was named as the UK's top celebrity fundraiser by Justgiving, after raising more than £2.5 million for Marie Curie Cancer Care over the previous two years – more than any other celebrity fundraiser featured on JustGiving.com during the same period.{{cite web |title=Welsh stars join the list of generous celebrities who raise charity funds |url=https://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/showbiz/welsh-stars-join-list-generous-1856999 |website=Wales Online |access-date=31 December 2022 |date=10 January 2011 |archive-date=31 December 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20221231082624/https://www.walesonline.co.uk/lifestyle/showbiz/welsh-stars-join-list-generous-1856999 |url-status=live }}

In September 2011, Fiennes was awarded an honorary Doctorate in Science from Plymouth University and, in July 2012, he was awarded an Honorary Fellowship from the University of Glamorgan.{{cite web |url=http://news.glam.ac.uk/news/en/2012/jul/18/britains-most-famous-modern-day-explorer-sir-ranul/ |title=Glamorgan graduates meet Britain's most famous modern-day explorer |publisher=News.glam.ac.uk |date=18 July 2012 |access-date=16 August 2013|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20120723062116/http://news.glam.ac.uk/news/en/2012/jul/18/britains-most-famous-modern-day-explorer-sir-ranul/ |archive-date=23 July 2012 |url-status=dead }}

In December 2012, Fiennes was named one of the Men of the Year for 2012 by Top Gear magazine.{{cite news |title=Sir Ranulph Fiennes heads to Antarctica |url=http://www.topgear.com/uk/photos/ranulph-fiennes-antarctica-expedition-2012-12-06 |newspaper=Top Gear |date=9 January 2013 |access-date=9 January 2015 |archive-date=9 January 2015 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20150109041348/http://www.topgear.com/uk/photos/ranulph-fiennes-antarctica-expedition-2012-12-06 |url-status=live }}

In October 2014 it was announced that Fiennes would receive an honorary Doctorate of Science, from the University of Chester, in recognition of "outstanding and inspirational contribution to the field of exploration".{{cite web|url=http://www.chester.ac.uk/node/27572|title=Leading names to join students at graduation celebrations|publisher=chester.ac.uk|access-date=25 January 2015|archive-date=5 November 2014|archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20141105224657/http://www.chester.ac.uk/node/27572|url-status=live}}

On 14 July 2022, the documentary film Explorer was released, which focused on Fiennes and his exploits and includes both contemporary and archive footage.{{cite web |last1=Clarke |first1=Cath |title=Explorer review – Ranulph Fiennes on frostbite, family and James Bond |url=https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/jul/13/explorer-review-ranulph-fiennes-on-frostbite-family-and-james-bond |newspaper=The Guardian |date=13 July 2022 |access-date=4 September 2022 |archive-date=4 September 2022 |archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220904064652/https://www.theguardian.com/film/2022/jul/13/explorer-review-ranulph-fiennes-on-frostbite-family-and-james-bond |url-status=live }}

100px

class="wikitable" style="margin:1em auto;"
style="background:silver;" align="center" \|Ribbon	Description	Notes
40px	Baronet (Bt)	1944
40px	Officer of the Order of the British Empire (OBE)	1993
40px	Polar Medal & Two Clasps	First clasp: 1986 Second clasp: 1994
40px	Midal Jura'at us-Sultan ul-Battuli (Sultans Bravery Medal) Oman	1970

Works

A Talent for Trouble (1970). {{ISBN|978-0340128459}}.
Ice Fall in Norway (1972). {{ISBN|978-0749319083}}.
The Headless Valley (1973). {{ISBN|978-0340158722}}.
Where Soldiers fear to tread (1976). {{ISBN|978-0340147542}}.
Hell on Ice (1979). {{ISBN|978-0340222157}}.
To the Ends of the Earth: The Transglobe Expedition, the First Pole-to-pole Circumnavigation of the Globe (1983). {{ISBN|978-0877954903}}.
Bothie the Polar Dog (1984). {{ISBN|0-340-36319-3}} (co-authored with Virginia Fiennes).
Living Dangerously (1988), Time Warner Paperbacks. {{ISBN|978-0-7515-0434-7}}.
The Feather Men (1991), the book upon which the 2011 film Killer Elite is based.
Atlantis of the Sands (1992), Bloomsbury. {{ISBN|0-7475-1327-9}}.
Mind over Matter: The Epic Crossing of the Antarctic Continent (1994), Delacorte Press. {{ISBN|978-0385312165}}.
The Sett (1997), Mandarin. {{ISBN|978-0749321611}}.
Discovery Road (1998), TravellersEye Ltd. {{ISBN|978-0-9530575-3-5}} (with T. Garratt and A. Brown).
Fit for Life (1999), Little, Brown & Co. {{ISBN|0-316-85263-5}}.
Home of the Blizzard: A True Story of Antarctic Survival, Birlinn Ltd. {{ISBN|978-1-84158-077-7}} (by Sir Douglas Mawson, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Just for the Love of it: The First Woman to Climb Mount Everest from Both Sides (2000), Free to Decide Publishing. {{ISBN|978-0-620-24782-5}} (by Cathy O'Dowd, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Across the Frozen Himalaya: The Epic Winter Ski Traverse from Karakoram to Lipu Lekh (2000), Indus Publishing Company. {{ISBN|978-81-7387-106-1}} (by Harish Kohli, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
The Antarctic Dictionary: A Complete Guide to Antarctic English (2000), Museum Victoria Publishing, {{ISBN|978-0-9577471-1-1}} (by Bernadette Hince, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Beyond the Limits (2000), Little, Brown & Co, {{ISBN|978-0-316-85706-2}}.
The Secret Hunters (2002), Time Warner Paperbacks. {{ISBN|978-0-7515-3193-0}}.
Captain Scott (2003), Hodder & Stoughton. {{ISBN|978-0-340-82697-3}}.
Race to the Pole: Tragedy, Heroism, and Scott's Antarctic Quest (2005), Hyperion; reprint edition. {{ISBN|978-0786888580}}.
Above the World: Stunning Satellite Images From Above Earth (2005), Cassell Illustrated, a division of the Octopus Publishing Group. {{ISBN|978-1-84403-181-8}} (foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Moods of Future Joys (2007), Adlibbed Ltd. {{ISBN|978-1-897312-38-4}} (by Alastair Humphreys, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Extreme Running (2007), Pavilion Books. {{ISBN|978-1-86205-756-2}} (by Dave Horsley and Kym McConnell, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Travels with My Heart: The Essential Guide for Travellers with Heart Conditions (2007), Matador. {{ISBN|978-1-905886-88-3}} (by Robin Liston, foreword by Ranulph Fiennes).
Face to Face: Polar Portraits (2008), The Scott Polar Research Institute with Polarworld, {{ISBN|978-0-901021-07-6}} (with Huw Lewis-Jones, Hugh Brody and Martin Hartley (photographer)).
8 More Tales from the Travellers: A Further Collection of Tales by Members of the Travellers Club, M. Tomkinson Publishing. {{ISBN|978-0-905500-74-4}} (with Sir Chris Bonington, Sandy Gall and others).
Mad, Bad and Dangerous to Know (2008), Hodder & Stoughton. {{ISBN|978-0-340-95169-9}}.
Mad Dogs and Englishmen: An Expedition Round My Family (2010), Hodder & Stoughton. {{ISBN|978-0-340-92504-1}}.
Running Beyond Limits: The Adventures of an Ultra Marathon Runner (2011), Mountain Media. {{ISBN|978-0-9562957-2-9}} (by Andrew Murray, introduction by Ranulph Fiennes).
Killer Elite (2011), Hodder & Stoughton Ltd. {{ISBN|978-1-4447-0792-2}} (previously published as The Feather Men).
My Heroes: Extraordinary Courage, Exceptional People (2011), Hodder & Stoughton Ltd. {{ISBN|978-1-4447-2242-0}}.
The Last Expedition (2012), Vintage Classics. {{ISBN|978-0-09-956138-5}} (by Captain Robert Falcon Scott, new edition introduction by Ranulph Fiennes).
Cold: Extreme Adventures at the Lowest Temperatures on Earth (2013), Simon & Schuster. {{ISBN|978-1-47112-782-3}}.
Heat: Extreme Adventures at the Highest Temperatures on Earth (2015). {{ISBN|1471137953}}.
Agincourt: The Fight for France (2015), Pegasus. {{ISBN|978-1-60598-915-0}}.
Fear: Our Ultimate Challenge (2016), Hodder & Stoughton. {{ISBN|978-1-473-61798-8}}.
Colder: The Illustrated Story of Britain's Greatest Polar Explorer (2016). {{ISBN|9781471153556}}.
The Elite: The Story of Special Forces – From Ancient Sparta to the War on Terror (2019). {{ISBN|9781471156618}}.
Shackleton: A Biography (2021), Michael Joseph. {{ISBN|9780241356715}}.{{cite web | url=https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/books/book-reviews/ranulph-fiennes-makes-a-fine-guide-on-voyage-into-ernest-shackletons-world-40833305.html | title=Ranulph Fiennes makes a fine guide on voyage into Ernest Shackleton's world | date=11 September 2021 | access-date=12 March 2022 | archive-date=12 March 2022 | archive-url=https://web.archive.org/web/20220312162809/https://www.independent.ie/entertainment/books/book-reviews/ranulph-fiennes-makes-a-fine-guide-on-voyage-into-ernest-shackletons-world-40833305.html | url-status=live }}
Lawrence of Arabia (2023). {{ISBN|9780241450611}}.{{cite book | url=https://www.penguin.co.uk/books/317494/lawrence-of-arabia-by-fiennes-ranulph/9780241450611 | title=Lawrence of Arabia | date=26 October 2023 | access-date=19 January 2024 }}
Around the World in 80 Years: A Life of Exploration (2024). {{ISBN|9781399729758}}.

Notes

References

External links

{{wikinews|British explorer Ranulph Fiennes leaves Antarctic expedition after frostbite}}

{{IMDb name|0276399}}
[http://www.wideworldmag.com/features/heroes-sir-ranulph-fiennes In his own words (interview with WideWorld magazine, pt1)]
[http://www.wideworldmag.com/features/heroes-sir-ranulph-fiennes-pt-2 In his own words (interview with WideWorld magazine, pt2)]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20090531035741/http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1900969,00.html?imw=Y Interview with TIME Magazine]
[http://www.gordonpoole.com/talent/ranulph-fiennes/ Sir Ranulph Fiennes Agent – Guest Speaking Biography, Profile and Video]
[http://www.bartholomewmaps.com/fragileearthnew/FE%20006-007%20Forward.jpg Foreword by Sir Ranulph Fiennes] of the book Fragile Earth
[http://www.freewebs.com/drskinnersite/ranulphfiennesview.htm Foreword to 'Beyond the Setting Sun- 6000 miles on foot for hospice'] by Colin Skinner
[http://pro-motivate.com/speaker/ranulph-fiennes/ Sir Ranulph Fiennes Guest Speaking Details (Videos, Topics and Achievements) for Events and Conferences )]
[https://web.archive.org/web/20100411064216/http://www.londonspeakerbureau.co.uk/sir_ranulph_fiennes.aspx Ranulph Fiennes's Profile] London Speaker Bureau
The National Portrait Gallery collection includes several bromide prints by [http://www.npg.org.uk/collections/search/largerimage.php?search=ss&firstRun=true&sText=ranulph&LinkID=mp94466&page=1&rNo=0&role=sit Bassano] from the years 1964 and 1966.
[http://www.antarcticstation.org/multimedia/picture_gallery/meeting_the_coldest_journey_team_at_crown_bay/ Meeting the "Coldest Journey" Team at Crown Bay]
[https://www.educationalwealthfund.org/ Patron of Educational Wealth Fund] (2018)