Ray Mears


Raymond Paul Mears is a British woodsman, instructor, businessman, author and TV presenter. His TV appearances cover bushcraft and survival techniques. He is best known for the TV series Ray Mears' Bushcraft, Ray Mears' World of Survival, Extreme Survival, Survival with Ray Mears, Wild Britain with Ray Mears and Ray Mears Goes Walkabout.

Life and work

Early life

Mears grew up on the North Downs, in Southern England. He attended Downside Preparatory School in Purley and then Reigate Grammar School, where he was a member of the naval cadre of the Combined Cadet Force.
His ambition was to join the Royal Marines, but he could not meet the eyesight requirements for entry. After taking A-levels, Mears briefly worked in an office in the City of London.

Career

In 1983, Mears founded Woodlore, a company that offers bushcraft-related courses and paraphernalia. It became so successful that it soon led to the trademarking of the name "Ray Mears". Mears first appeared on television in 1994 presenting the BBC series Tracks and then, in 1997, Ray Mears' World of Survival. In 2003, he presented the BBC documentary Ray Mears' Real Heroes of Telemark about the Norwegian heavy water sabotage mission during World War II.
While filming a documentary in Wyoming, US in 2005, Mears was involved in a serious accident. The helicopter in which he and his camera crew were travelling hit the ground during a steep low level turn, and broke apart, rolling to a stop. The fuel tank was ruptured in the accident and escaping fuel covered Mears and the crew. No fire occurred, and Mears was able to escape the wreckage uninjured and assist in the rescue and administer first aid to one of the crew who was badly hurt.
On 29 May 2008, Mears appeared on The Graham Norton Show where he attempted unsuccessfully to light a fire using a bow drill. Unbeknownst to Mears, the entire set had been sprayed with fire-retardant.
In 2009, Mears was approached by ITV to present a planned revival of the nature documentary series Survival. The resulting three-part series was rebranded Survival with Ray Mears and broadcast on ITV1 in 2010. Each episode followed Mears as he used his tracking skills to locate bears, wolves and leopards.
In a Radio Times interview to promote the series, Mears complained of being typecast by the BBC with the result that he was not offered the opportunity to present wildlife programmes. He then presented Wild Britain with Ray Mears, which was also broadcast by ITV. Mears was a guest on BBC Radio 4's Desert Island Discs in January 2014. His choices were "Jumpin' Jack Flash" by the Rolling Stones, "English Rose" by the Jam, "Lucy in the Sky with Diamonds" by the Beatles, "Annie's Song" by John Denver, "Maria" by Blondie, "Suddenly I See" by KT Tunstall, "Mona Lisas and Mad Hatters" by Elton John and "Feeling Good" by Nina Simone.
In July 2010, Mears was asked by Northumbria Police to help them track fugitive killer Raoul Moat, after he fled his temporary tent-based shelter in the village of Rothbury.

Personal life

Mears met his first wife, Rachel, in 1992 when she attended one of his five-day survival courses. The couple lived in Eastbourne, East Sussex with her two adult children and married in 2005, after Rachel was diagnosed with breast cancer. Rachel died in 2006, aged 50, and her ashes are scattered in Ashdown Forest near their home.
Mears currently lives in Sussex with his second wife Ruth and his stepson.

Series