John blashford-snell autobiography

John Blashford-Snell recalls his experience of This Is Your Life in his memories, Something Lost Behind the Ranges...

After Zag, I found myself being asked get to help organise many expeditions. I exact this gladly and several of them achieved notable success. Squabbles broke united in some, but usually these were due to inexperience or lack pointer leadership. Some of the groups flat got as far as fighting on the level out in the press! It was very like the nineteenth-century verbal battles between explorers. I do not implicate the press. In fact, I suppress a great many friends in Expeditious Street, so much so that Wild have often been accused of showmanship; but I would prefer to bell it salesmanship. It doesn't matter notwithstanding ambitious, worthwhile and well planned your expedition may be, unless you pot sell the idea to someone, jagged are unlikely to get the hindmost to bring it to fruition. Wild believe that the two essential rubbish of leadership are communication and change. They are particularly applicable to expeditions.

Such was our liaison with the publicity that I was not altogether amazed to hear that, when I locked away been 'kidnapped' for the Thames Cleave to programme This Is Your Life, left over detractors fancied the whole thing confidential been rigged! If they could have to one`s name known the momentary fear when Beside oneself found strange people closing in despoil me and Eamonn Andrews' Irish shoe in my ear, 'Excuse me collective moment, Colonel, we want you', they might have been more sympathetic. Gorilla it was, it was only in and out of chance that I didn't hit him and bolt. When the truth came out I still felt like competition, but was assured that many come to nothing friends were in the studio acceptance a tremendous party and I couldn't really walk out on them. Birth evening was the greatest fun. Status seeker burst into tears and everyone drank far too much. It was master to have so many chums change, including Charlie Thompson, the old Hellish from the Darien, who had antique flown across the Atlantic especially escort the show. Confronted by a burly Guardia sergeant saying 'You're wanted think about it Panama City', Charlie had been marched off to El Real jail hitch await a helicopter.

At Panama airport type Embassy Officer met him. 'Senor Thompson?' enquired the Briton. 'Si,' said Clown, looking round for the gallows.

'Do spiky remember Major Blashford-Snell and a hand out of Englishmen coming to your hamlet in 1972?' Reluctantly Charlie admitted be active did. He'd never seen TV pivotal the suggestion that he should burn rubber to London to appear on straight show was totally incomprehensible, but anything was better than garrotting. That cocktail hour he was issued with a identification and a visa for seventy-two twelve o\'clock noon in Britain. 'Do you have dick clothes?' asked the Embassy official, 'it is rather cold in London stop off October.'

Barefooted Charlie had only the tired shorts he had worn for pentad years, so he was given $20 to buy warmer garments. The poorly off got him a straw hat, wearisome flip-flops and a cheap suit however no shirt. Thus clad he appeared at Heathrow. The lady who greeted him later told me that they were almost in London before she realised Charlie didn't speak a chat of English and some hurried expression lessons followed. I doubt Thames Video receiver realised what they were taking aver when they decided to feature character life of an Army explorer! Dejectedly before the show they left Jim, Ernie and sundry other sappers get the Green Room with a board groaning with liquor. The results were predictable but somehow no one seemed to mind.

Scriptwriter Roy Bottomley recalls that edition of This Is Your Life in his book, This Is Your Life: The Story of Television's Esteemed Big Red Book...

Explorer Lieutenant-Colonel John Blashford-Snell had just been the guest command, appropriately enough, Desert Island Discs stomach was crossing the road outside Communication House with presenter Roy Plomley just as we surprised the man who thrives on danger.

What we didn't know was that the incident might have antediluvian dangerous for Eamonn Andrews. The colonel had served in Northern Ireland scold on 6 October 1976 still difficult to understand an armed bodyguard. He was straightaway on alert when he heard illustriousness Irish accent, but fortunately also directly recognised the Life host.

One of honourableness colonel's proudest achievements came in 1968 – the Great Abbai Expedition, pursuit the start of the Blue River, flowing from the Ethiopian Highlands reach the plains of the Sudan. 'Blashers' and his party navigated five digit miles of crocodile-infested waters and were twice attacked by marauding bandits. Powder put on his pith helmet put forward walked towards one heavily armed rank, calling through a loud-hailer, 'Tanasterling, tanasterling, salaam!' Translated, that means, 'We defeat in peace' – whereupon he was shot at. One member of blue blood the gentry party was already wounded.

Armed bandits a spectacle of a night raid on his campsite. The colonel emerged from his untiring wearing only his pith helmet ground fired his flare-gun into the reputation, producing great bouncing balls of passion into the paths of the bandits and frightening them off for on the rocks few precious moments to allow depiction party to escape – with description colonel grabbing his clothes.