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Bear Grylls is probably the most recognizable face of adventure on the planet. He's a former 21 SAS soldier, who went on to become one of the youngest ever climbers of Mt. Everest, despite breaking his back in a free-fall accident only months earlier. Grylls has hosted more extreme adventure TV shows across more global networks than anyone in history, from the legendary Discovery Channel show Man Vs Wild , his latest show Celebrity Bear Hunt on Netflix, and the hit show Running Wild with Bear Grylls , now in its ninth season. His guests have included: Will Ferrell, Bradley Cooper, Roger Federer, Julia Roberts, President Obama, Prime Minister Modi of India, and many others. The husband and father of three is also a double BAFTA, Emmy winner, and a No. 1 bestselling author who has sold more than 20 million books. He's also the Honorary Colonel to the British Royal Marine Commandos, and the first ever Chief Ambassador to 55 million young Scouts worldwide. Grylls sat down with editor-in-chief Joann Butler at the LifeMinute studios recently to tell us all about his latest book The Greatest Story Ever Told: An Eyewitness Account , that documents the life of Jesus and more. This is a LifeMinute with Bear Grylls.
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00:00Hey guys, Bear Grylls here and respect to you for watching Life Minute TV.
00:05He's the fearless face of wildlife adventure, the man who's hosted more extreme TV shows than anyone in history,
00:12taking everyone from Will Thurl, Bradley Cooper and Julia Roberts, even President Obama along for the ride.
00:18Now the former British Army 21 Special Air Force soldier, devoted family man and number one best-selling author
00:25is out with his latest book, The Greatest Story Ever Told.
00:28Grylls sat down with me at our studios in New York City recently to tell us all about it and more.
00:34This is a Life Minute with Bear Grylls.
00:37Bear Grylls in the house.
00:39Hey, nice to be with you.
00:40Thanks for joining us. So great to have you here.
00:43Thank you. Yeah, good fun. We're surviving.
00:45We're still going.
00:46Yeah, yes. Not easy sometimes.
00:49So you have this beautiful new book out, The Greatest Story Ever Told.
00:54Tell us about it.
00:55This has been the hardest, but probably the best thing I feel I've ever done.
00:59You know, I still have my day job, which is all the survival shows, and we've just finished filming Season 9, Running Wild,
01:04which has been, you know, a privilege and always fun.
01:07But along that journey of life and adventure, my Christian faith has always been a, you know,
01:12quiet, empowering part of my life that's helped me through, you know, so many jungles, deserts, mountains over the years.
01:20I don't know. I just feel so few people know the real story of Christ.
01:25Myself included grew up with such a, I don't know, sanitized version of faith, you know,
01:31where it was always wrapped up in religion and church.
01:34And I just felt like, why don't you write the real story of Jesus actually as a straight story?
01:40Because most of us know stories, you know, like we might have heard of the Nativity or the Crucifixion or the Good Samaritan or whatever.
01:47But, you know, out of all the zillions of books around the world,
01:52nobody's ever just written the story of Jesus as like a thriller, as a thriller.
01:57You know, theologically accurate, but written just as a straight story.
02:00So I've done this. It came out. It went straight to number one when we released it.
02:05And it's just like developed this life of its own. It's outgrown me, really.
02:10And I get messages and letters and every day from all over the world, people, different cultures, different faiths,
02:17from Muslims, from all sorts of people.
02:20And they generally say the same thing, which is I had no idea of how radical this guy was and the real story.
02:28So, like I say, hardest for the best thing, but a real privilege.
02:32Beautiful. And why now? Why did you feel compelled to do it?
02:36I don't know. I think in life you've got to try the journey of life to follow your heart, isn't it?
02:40Try and have the courage in life to follow your heart.
02:43And I just really felt like clear the decks and write this.
02:46And like I say, I think when I realized that nobody had ever done this before, for me it was so logical.
02:51You know, and people find it hard to read the Bible.
02:53I mean, not many people read the Bible.
02:54You know, even people of faith, you know, you might dip into it and you have a reading for something, but it's hard.
03:00So I kind of wanted to make this story really accessible for people and to sort of show how faith can be a really beautiful, empowering part of life.
03:12It doesn't have to mean you've got to be super religious or anything, because I'm not, actually.
03:16You know, I really, really never have been.
03:18That's not the part that appeals to me, you know.
03:22But I think we all want to find strength in life and find peace and find home.
03:28And that's the sort of thing that Jesus always talked about, you know, finding freedom and being healed in our lives.
03:35And everybody wants that.
03:37So it's trying to sort of separate what 2,000 years of church infrastructure has made it
03:43and showing actually how different the real thing is and telling that story.
03:47We did a series a couple of years ago in Israel called Refugee Renegade Redeemer,
03:53which was first kind of departure of into faith programming, I suppose, that we'd done.
03:58And I took a parachute, a tent and a motorbike and travel through Israel,
04:02literally like a week before October the 7th.
04:04So the timing was crazy and kind of told the story.
04:07And I think that was a catalyst for the book of like actually going there and just seeing it for myself
04:11and trying to figure out why did everyday people just fight to be close to this guy
04:18and why did the religious elite fear him so much.
04:22You know, that was intriguing for me.
04:24Why has he become so much the center of the world still 2,000 years on?
04:29And so the book was born.
04:31Cool.
04:31That's really neat.
04:32Did your faith sort of like help you survive through all your wild adventures?
04:39My faith has helped me survive in everyday life as well.
04:42I think it's not just a wilderness thing.
04:45You know, I think people say, I got asked the other day, was, you know, on the summit of Everest,
04:50did you feel, you know, closer to God?
04:52And the answer is like, no, we're focused, we're on the edge here.
04:55You know, it's like, I don't think it's always kind of like that.
04:58But through so much, the good, the bad and the wild stuff and also the everyday stuff.
05:02Like I said, over the years, my faith has just been like a backbone through things
05:07and I look at it as like a streak of steel in the middle and light to a dark path often ahead.
05:14And so, yeah, always, always grateful for that.
05:16But I try not to overcomplicate it more than that, really.
05:19And I have as many doubts, to be honest, as I do moments of Eyes Wide Wonder.
05:25But I've also learned that that's okay, you know.
05:27Doubt and faith, maybe they're like two sides of the same coin.
05:31So, yeah.
05:32That's good.
05:34Do you think religion should be taught in schools?
05:36Depends what you mean by religion.
05:38I would say faith should be.
05:40Faith in the Almighty.
05:41You know, I remember when I first joined the Army, a guy much wiser than me saying to me,
05:46you've got to have faith in three things.
05:47Faith in yourself, faith in each other, faith in the Almighty.
05:52And so I think faith is a key part of life.
05:54You cannot be truly empowered on your own.
05:56You're always going to be weak.
05:58Everyone thinks they're strong in the wild until they're not.
06:01And then where do you go, you know?
06:04So, faith is a key thing for young people to grow up with.
06:08Religion, as such, you know, that doesn't empower anyone.
06:13And our faith is not religion.
06:14And our faith isn't even church.
06:16You know, I'm not saying there's anything wrong with church, you know,
06:18or singing or sermons or, you know, they all have a place.
06:22But they aren't our faith.
06:23Our faith is quietly kneeling before the Almighty, asking for help.
06:27And that's a place of empowerment, actually.
06:30You know, I always remember the quote that man is never as tall as when he kneels down.
06:35And I like that because life is humbling, ultimately.
06:39Ready, set, see ya.
06:42Did you always have a love of nature and a wild side?
06:51I think adventures always felt natural to me.
06:53I mean, I was brought up from a young age to love the outdoors and to be in the outdoors all the time
06:59and always kind of, with my dad at a young age, tinkering around, fixing up boats
07:03and climbing on the sea cliffs where I was brought up at home.
07:07And it was just a big part of my life always.
07:09But he'd been a former Royal Marines commando and just a really great dad, actually, you know.
07:15And he died, sadly, too young.
07:16But I kind of look back on those years and I'm now dad to three boys
07:20and realised he got so much of it right, you know.
07:24And that was a gift.
07:25And he had a strong faith as well.
07:27That was always sort of quiet but clear with him.
07:31Always encouraged me to go for things in life.
07:34Don't be scared of fail.
07:36Don't listen to the dream stealers.
07:38And be a never-give-upper.
07:39That was his thing.
07:41And so, yeah, adventure's always been a part of my life.
07:43I think if you could say to the seven-year-old me,
07:46you could have a job that involved getting muddy, still climbing up stuff, jumping off stuff.
07:51I feel very lucky.
07:52Oh, that's so great.
07:54Are you afraid of anything?
07:55So many things.
07:57You know, I think one of the dangers of TV is that it always makes everything out to look.
08:01The music's always playing.
08:02Yeah, it's always that, uh-uh, uh-uh.
08:11Life's not like that, you know.
08:12So I have many fears.
08:14I mean, I broke my back whilst I was a young soldier in a free-fall accident.
08:18And ever since then, you know, skydiving for me is really hard.
08:23But as you know, it's a huge part of my life.
08:25And the TV shows are always starting the episodes jumping out of a plane or chopper or hot air balloon or something.
08:32So for me, it's like a choice to always try and walk towards the difficult stuff, not run from it.
08:40And I think ultimately adventure is a state of mind.
08:42You know, it's how we live our life.
08:44It's not just confined to the mountains.
08:46You know, adventure is how we approach risk and relationships and work and family.
08:52And it's a state of mind.
08:53What propels that, like, drive to want to put yourself in those situations?
08:59We become a product of our little decisions every day.
09:02And I just think it's how I've always been brought up.
09:04You know, it's like the outdoors is good.
09:06And it lights people up.
09:07And I see it all the time now.
09:08I see it through, you know, those many years I did as chief scout to the world's scouts.
09:13You know, 55 million young people.
09:15I'd see it every day, you know, especially in difficult areas.
09:18Give them access to the outdoors and adventure.
09:20It lights them up.
09:20It binds us together.
09:21It strengthens us inside.
09:24And I see it on Running Wild.
09:25You know, I take all these stars away and they're always rookies to this stuff.
09:29And yet it lights them up.
09:30So that's always been, it's just always been part of my life.
09:34Tell us about your new show, a little bit more, Bear Hunt.
09:37So Bear Hunt was a show we did for Netflix this year.
09:39He is going to be formidable prey.
09:47That's been really fun.
09:48You know, we took 12 British celebrities into the jungle, trained them up, unleashed them.
09:54And then I had to hunt them down.
09:56So that was, that was pretty fun.
09:58And it did well in the UK.
10:00I went to number one on Netflix in the UK.
10:02And it's been great.
10:03And they did great.
10:04You know, they did great.
10:04I mean, it's a different show for me.
10:06Because normally Running Wild, I'm always taking people one-on-one.
10:09So this was different.
10:10But, but I loved it.
10:11Yeah.
10:12So, but now we're back on Running Wild.
10:14We just wrapped up season nine.
10:15And we've got some great guests.
10:17We haven't yet announced them all.
10:18That's to come.
10:20But yeah, I mean, to be honest, I never thought I'd still be, we're still going.
10:23The show goes from strength to strength.
10:25I think the real star of the show is always the outdoors.
10:28Because it opens people up.
10:29And you get to know people in a totally unique way.
10:32So, yeah.
10:33Any favorites that you work with?
10:35You work with so many people.
10:36Have any special ones?
10:37Yeah, I think, I love tennis.
10:39I think for me, the Federer one, taking Roger Federer was great.
10:43Julia Roberts, obviously amazing.
10:45And Bradley Cooper is such a great guy.
10:47And he's become a friend over the years.
10:49And I know we've just taken great people over the years.
10:53And I love it.
10:53Because you forge sort of a different sort of friendship.
10:56You know, it's not like a chat show where, you know, you sit on a chat show and it's sort of performance for three minutes of telling a funny story or something.
11:04You know, the wild is different.
11:05You're facing some fears, crossing rivers, climbing cliffs.
11:09You get to know each other in a different way.
11:10And they have to trust you.
11:13Well, it's good.
11:14And you've got to face those fears together.
11:16And that always creates strong bonds between you.
11:19And, you know, you don't get that in everyday life.
11:22And that's the wild again.
11:24Yeah.
11:24So it's something that you want to do you haven't done yet.
11:26I'm a really grateful guy.
11:28You know, I don't live, like, always unrestless and unsatisfied.
11:31I'm really grateful.
11:32First of all, I should have died many times in my life.
11:35I mean, there have been a solid 20 times where I shouldn't have come home.
11:39I'm so grateful for life.
11:40So I do live like that.
11:41I love my work.
11:42I love the team we film with, you know.
11:44And I try and get home afterwards and love my family.
11:47I think this book, The Greatest Story, has been such a special thing in all of our lives as a team and as a family.
11:54And I think sort of when you start to do things that are beyond yourself, there's always a power to that, isn't it?
12:01And I think out of all the things I've done, I've never had a response to any TV show or, you know, other books or live shows.
12:08You know, this has been different.
12:09This touches people's hearts because I think it's all of our stories wrapped up in it.
12:15You know, it's not like it could be the greatest story ever told, you know, or maybe the greatest.
12:19You know, if it's true, it changes so much.
12:22And I think that's why it touches people and just getting that response from people of, like, I wasn't ready for this.
12:30You know, I've had, I mean, I had it yesterday.
12:32I had some grown man, sort of big, like, biker guy.
12:36He said, I've just been in tears and tears reading this book, you know.
12:39It's so great to see.
12:41And spirituality is such a key part of life, isn't it?
12:44Like, it's part of your arsenal of what makes you strong.
12:47You know, we're not just physical or just emotional or just mental.
12:50You know, it's part of life.
12:53Beautiful.
12:55Since this is Life Minute, what life advice, everyday advice for surviving life would you give us?
13:01Yeah, that's a good question.
13:02I think for all of us, and I say this for myself as well, is, like, live life boldly.
13:08You know, you've got nothing to lose.
13:09I think we're sort of brought up with such a culture of fear of failure, and especially from a young age and kids.
13:14It's always, like, you know, school's so busy to celebrate the winning and the sporty and the academic
13:20and doesn't always just reward the quiet, humble, resilient people.
13:25But life does, and I think for all of us in life, it's, like, it's amazing how much you can achieve
13:30if you're not scared to fail a few times.
13:32I mean, I've had so many failures in my life, way more than the successes.
13:36You know, people always ask me about the successes.
13:38You ask about TV shows or the books or the summits, you know, but actually behind that,
13:42it's a string of things that haven't worked out, and I'm proud of them.
13:45They're our scars, our markers.
13:48They're the stepping stones to the good stuff.
13:50So I say go for things.
13:52Don't be scared of fail and know the power of never giving up in your life.
13:56It's a superpower, and the great thing is it's not a God-given gift.
13:59It's not like someone's good-looking or sporty or, like, you know, this is resilience.
14:04You build it inside, and I love that because it means we all have a chance to elevate and
14:11separate ourselves and go that extra mile, and that's where the good stuff in life always is.
14:17So good.
14:18What's your favorite comfort food?
14:20I don't know.
14:20A really, a really good big steak.
14:23Yeah.
14:25It's part of our life every day.
14:26A whole family, we live off good grass-fed steak and eggs, try and hunt out raw milk,
14:35good honey, good fruit.
14:37Do you come home, like, with stuff?
14:39Yeah, all the time.
14:41What does a day of relaxing look like to you?
14:44Pretty good at relaxing, too.
14:46I mean, I still like to train most days.
14:48That's just become part of my life.
14:50But then we live on a little island in the UK and Wales, so I'm swimming in the sea every
14:54day.
14:55I love that.
14:56Very happy to have just cozy days with the family.
14:59You know, it's not all death and destruction, knives and ammo.
15:03You know, we have very cozy times as well.
15:06But I do, I love the outdoors.
15:07I always have.
15:08And I like to get barefoot, play with the dogs, swim in rivers.
15:12It's always part of my life, those things.
15:14Awesome.
15:15Does your family ever like, uh, like, take it easier?
15:18They just know that's what, you know, it's part of your life.
15:20Well, I do take it easy.
15:21But also, as a family, everyone likes to be outside.
15:25So, yeah, we try and mourn more in life, try and follow the heart and follow nature.
15:30And those two things generally get it right.
15:32I love that.
15:33So good.
15:35What's something you never travel without?
15:37A sense of humor.
15:38You know, because if things can go wrong, they will go wrong, especially in terms of the wild.
15:43You know, you've got to be ready to pivot, laugh at a situation, adapt a little bit.
15:48Know that no plan survives first contact with the enemy.
15:52You know, if it's going to go wrong in the wild, it will.
15:54So I think that sort of ability to laugh at yourself, laugh at situations, kind of roll with it sometimes.
16:01What do you do if you encounter a bear?
16:03Well, it depends which bear it is.
16:06If it's a black bear, you want to make yourself loud and make a noise and fight back.
16:12If it's a brown bear, you don't want to be there.
16:13You want to move away faster.
16:15You're unfortunate to encounter it.
16:17But if you're being attacked, they actually say often, like, play dead.
16:22And then if it's a polar bear, if you're cornered, you're in trouble.
16:25So the thing is, black fight back, brown lie down, white goodnight.
16:32That's a good way to remember it.
16:34To hear more of this interview, visit our podcast, Life Minute TV on iTunes and all streaming podcast platforms.
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