On Tuesday the 20th of November we were lucky to have the renowned explorer, photographer, army officer and writer James Levison Wood come to talk to the Shackleton society. His talk was gripping throughout and served as an inspiration for all those wanting to follow their passions in life. He started by speaking about his fascination with travel and exploration from an early age and how through various influential moments throughout his life, such as his correspondence with an army officer, his early gap year adventures in Thailand, or even his army experience itself, he managed to become more and more comfortable with extreme exploration.
He then gave a detailed summary on the past adventures he had been on; be it from walking the Nile, the himalayas or from Mexico to Columbia; he was clearly a man who had experienced a lot, and it was difficult not to grin at the sheer variety of stories and encounters he has had. Perhaps the most entertaining of which being his kidnapping by an Eastern European man whereby he was locked in a house and forced to drink a bottle of vodka every day for a week until he made a dramatic escape.
He finished by reminding us of his upcoming documentary ‘Arabia’ which he said had been his favourite to shoot so far. From what he said at the talk it sounds as if it will be a highly entertaining watch, and I’d recommend it to all of you.
Barney Andreae
