- Charley Boorman
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Charley Boorman 
Born 23 August 1966
Wimbledon, London, EnglandYears active 1972-present Spouse Olivia (1990-present) Charley Boorman (born 23 August 1966) is an English TV adventurer, travel writer and actor. He is well known for his association with motorcycles and enthusiasm for biking.
Contents
Education
Boorman was educated at three independent schools, two in the Republic of Ireland: St Gerard's School in Bray, Co Wicklow; St. Kilian's Deutsche Schule (English name: 'St. Kilian's German School') in Dublin; and Sibford School, a Quaker school near Banbury, Oxfordshire, from 1980 until 1983.
Personal life
Born in England, Boorman spent much of his formative years in County Wicklow, Ireland. Boorman is the son of German costume designer Christel Kruse and film director John Boorman.[1] He is married to Olivia with whom he has two daughters, Doone and Kinvara. Resides in Barnes, South-West London.
Acting career
Thanks to his father he got an early start in the film business as a child actor, appearing in three films directed by his father. He first appeared in Deliverance (1972). He returned to cinema as a young Mordred in Excalibur (1981), joined by his older sister Katrine Boorman who played Ygraine, Mordred's grandmother (via her son Arthur and daughter Morgana, Modred's parents). He was then in The Emerald Forest (1985) directed by his father. In Hope and Glory (1987), also directed by his father, he appears in a non-speaking role as the young German Luftwaffe pilot shot down, parachuting into the small village. His sister Katrine also appears in this film. More recent films include The Serpent's Kiss (1997) on which he met Ewan McGregor, and The Bunker (2001).
Theatre show
In 2007 Charley appeared on stage in Newcastle upon Tyne - The Tyne Theatre. A fully produced 'evening with' style show. After a couple more shows, the production went on a successful tour around the UK and Ireland in 2010. Just about this time Charley revealed he had testicular cancer. Caught early, he had a testicle removed and has since been a strong supporter of 'Movember' - an organisation that focuses on this killer disease. Boorman, 43, has now been given the all-clear, but has been telling audiences across the country about his ordeal, and is encouraging more men to be aware and get checked out early if there was any concern.
In 2011 the Charley Boorman Live show tours the UK and Ireland again. Similar format as his first tour but without support acts - see http://www.charleyboormanlive.com/
Boorman also began promoting African Adventures - on motorbikes. Using his biker profile, he has created two 17 day BMW bike adventures across Africa. Taking 50 riders from Cape Town to Victoria Falls, Boorman used various technologies to help promote the trip - including a GPS Satellite tracking device allowing thousands of fans to follow the trip day by day http://spotwalla.com/tripViewer.php?id=1ce64c6052180f8c5
Charity work
Boorman has been actively supporting the United Nations Children's Fund (UNICEF) since 2004. Since then he has been on a number of visits to UNICEF projects, the majority of which have been integrated into his television programmes Long Way Round, Long Way Down and By Any Means. In 2009, Boorman was made president of Dyslexia Action; being dyslexic himself, Boorman is very passionate about the cause and is keen to help the charity achieve its vision of a world where barriers are removed for those with dyslexia and other specific learning difficulties. Boorman has been on many visits to Dyslexia Action's regional centres and has been actively involved in the charity's latest appeal It's ME! and supports its whole school initiative P4L (Partnership for Literacy). Charley recently participated in a live web chat for the charity where he answered questions about his dyslexia and his various adventures.[2]
In 2009 Charley went to Helmund Provence, Afghanistan and visited troops. Kandahar and Bastion were the two key camps he visited, just before Christmas. He was reported to be "humbled" by meeting the troops out there and has since been involved in various fund raising projects - in particular for 'Help For Heroes'.
Presenting career
Long Way Round
Main article: Long Way RoundBoorman took part in Long Way Round, an international motorcycle trip from London to New York via Europe and Asia with Ewan McGregor in 2004.[3] This was recorded, then later made into a television series, book and DVD. The series was shown around the world and the DVD and book became best sellers.
Race to Dakar
Main article: Race to DakarAlong with producer Russ Malkin (from Long Way Round) and a motorcycle team, Boorman competed in the Dakar Rally in January 2006. The event was filmed and the series Race to Dakar began on Sky2 in the United Kingdom on 17 October 2006. During the rally Boorman injured himself and was forced to retire from the race after five days.[4]
Long Way Down
Main article: Long Way DownOn 12 May 2007, he started another journey with McGregor: this time taking part in Long Way Down,[5] a trip from John o' Groats in Scotland, to Cape Town, South Africa. This was first televised on BBC2 on Sunday 28 October 2007.[6] During this initial programme, it became public knowledge that Charley's wife was undergoing treatment for pneumonia, but had insisted that Charley complete the trip in any case. In 2007 Boorman also speculated on a future trip which involves starting at the tip of South America and ending in Alaska, entitled Long Way Up,[7] but as of 2010 this has still not happened.
By Any Means
Main article: By Any Means
Boorman in 2008
On 12 April 2008, Charley Boorman started By Any Means, which has taken him all around the world starting in his home town in County Wicklow, Ireland and ending in Sydney, Australia.[8] He set out to complete the journey "by any means" using local transportation appropriate to the area being travelled, on 22 July 2008.[9] He travelled the world on various forms of transportation using air travel only when necessary, accompanied by producer Russ Malkin, and cameraman Paul Mungeam, nicknamed Mungo.
Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means
Main article: Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any MeansOn 22 March 2009, Charley announced on his Twitter page that a sequel,[10] tentatively named By Any Means 2 but later named Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means was in the works. This will take Charley and the team from Sydney to Tokyo via the Pacific Rim. The Manly Daily newspaper issued an open invitation for fellow motorcyclists to join him on this first leg from Freshwater Park on the Northern Beaches of Sydney, leaving at 10:00 am on Monday 18 May 2009, heading up to the Central Coast of New South Wales. The newspaper reported approximately 1,500 riders took part. The trip ended on the Rainbow Bridge in Tokyo on 9 August 2009, and has been shown on BBC2 in the UK.
Future trips
Boorman has said that the third installment of the Long Way series, Long Way Up, is planned with McGregor for 2011,[11] he says "it should be crazy stuff riding up through South America. I'm expecting jungles, bandidos and drug lords"
Filmography
- Deliverance (1972)
- Excalibur (1981)
- The Emerald Forest (1985)
- Hope and Glory (1987)
- Two Nudes Bathing (1995)
- The Serpent's Kiss (1997)
- The Bunker (2001)
- I, Cesar (2003)
- In My Country (2004)
- Famous and Fearless (2011 television series) - Winner. Chosen charity: UNICEF
- World's Most Dangerous Roads (2011 television series - with Sue Perkins)
Bibliography
- Long Way Round (2004 - With Ewan McGregor)
- Race to Dakar (2006)
- Long Way Down (2007 - With Ewan McGregor)
- By Any Means (2008)
- Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means (2009)
Awards
- Galaxy British Book Award for Long Way Down - 2007, Shared with Ewan McGregor.
- Best goatie in showbusiness - 2008, voted by readers of Now! magazine.
References
- ^ "John Boorman Biography (1933-)". Filmreference.com. http://www.filmreference.com/film/46/John-Boorman.html. Retrieved 2009-05-05.
- ^ "Charley Boorman becomes Dyslexia Action President". http://www.dyslexiaaction.org.uk/Page.aspx?PageId=20#Boorman. Retrieved 28 January 2010.
- ^ Long Way Round official website
- ^ Charley Boorman (2006) Race to Dakar. Time Warner Books. ISBN 9780316027113
- ^ http://www.longwaydown.com/ The Long Way Down official Site
- ^ BBC Long Way Down microsite
- ^ Hull, Rob (9 August 2007). "Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman reveal Long Way Up is on the cards". Motorcycle News. http://www.motorcyclenews.com/MCN/News/newsresults/mcn/2007/August/august6-12/aug0907ewanmcgregorandcharleyboormanreveallongwayupisonthecards/. Retrieved 29 July 2010.
- ^ http://byanymeans.bigearth.tv/ Itinerary on official BigEarth site
- ^ MotorcycleNews.com interview
- ^ Charley Boorman's Twitter page
- ^ "The world according to Charley Boorman". Dailymail.co.uk. http://www.dailymail.co.uk/home/moslive/article-1308020/Charley-Boorman-My-acting-career-going--I-met-Ewan-McGregor.html. Retrieved 5 September 2010.
External links
- Charley Boorman, Official Site.
- Charley Boorman at the Internet Movie Database
- Charley's Twitter
- Video Clips of Charley Boorman on Nat Geo Adventure
Boorman and McGregor's Travel Adventures Television programmes Long Way Round (2004) • Race to Dakar (2006) • Long Way Down (2007) • By Any Means (2008) • Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means (2009) •People Categories:- 1966 births
- English child actors
- English explorers
- English film actors
- English people of German descent
- Living people
- Motorcycling media people
- Long distance motorcycle riding
- People educated at Sibford School
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