Edward Michael “Bear” Grylls OBE (/ˈɡrɪlz/; born 7 June 1974) is a British adventurer, writer, television presenter and former SAS trooper who is also a survival expert. He first drew attention after embarking on a number of notable adventures, including several world records in hostile environments, and then became widely known for his television series Man vs. Wild (2006–2011).
He is also involved in a number of wilderness survival television series in the UK and US, such as Running Wild with Bear Grylls and The Island with Bear Grylls.
Grylls was born in Donaghadee, Northern Ireland, on 7 June 1974. His family has a strong cricketing background, his grandfather Neville Ford and great-great-grandfather William Augustus Ford having both been first-class cricketers. He is the son of Conservative politician Sir Michael Grylls and his wife Sarah “Sally” (née Ford). Her mother Patricia (née Smiles), was briefly an MP, succeeding her father; later she married an MP.
He lived in Donaghadee until the age of four, when his family moved to Bembridge on the Isle of Wight.From an early age, he learned to climb and sail with his father, who was a member of the Royal Yacht Squadron.
