Charley Boorman (born 23 August 1966) is a British TV presenter, travel writer and actor. A motorbike enthusiast, Boorman has made three long-distance motorcycle rides with his friend

Ewan McGregor Ewan Gordon McGregor ( ; born 31 March 1971) is a Scottish actor. His accolades include a Golden Globe Award, a Primetime Emmy Award, and the BAFTA Britannia Humanitarian Award. In 2013, he was appointed Officer of the Order of the British ...

, documented in ''

Long Way Round ''Long Way Round'' (''LWR'') is a British television series and book documenting the journey of Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman from London to New York City on motorcycles. They travelled eastwards through Europe and Asia, flew to Alaska, ...

'' (2004), ''

Long Way Down ''Long Way Down'' is a television series and book documenting a motorcycle journey undertaken in 2007 by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, from John o' Groats in Scotland through eighteen countries in Europe and Africa to Cape Town in South ...

'' (2007), and ''

Long Way Up ''Long Way Up'' is a British television series which debuted 18 September 2020, documenting a motorcycle journey undertaken in 2019 by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman, from Ushuaia in Argentina through South and Central America to Los Angeles i ...

'' (2020).

Early life and background

Born in Wimbledon, London, Boorman spent much of his formative years in County Wicklow,

Ireland Ireland ( ; ga, Éire ; Ulster Scots dialect, Ulster-Scots: ) is an island in the Atlantic Ocean, North Atlantic Ocean, in Northwestern Europe, north-western Europe. It is separated from Great Britain to its east by the North Channel (Grea ...

. Boorman is the son of German costume designer Christel Kruse and film director Sir John Boorman.

Lee Marvin Lee Marvin (born Lamont Waltman Marvin Jr.; February 19, 1924August 29, 1987) was an American film and television actor. Known for his bass voice and premature white hair, he is best remembered for playing hardboiled "tough guy" characters. Alt ...

, a lifelong friend of his father, was Charley's godfather. Boorman attended three schools in Ireland:

St Gerard's School St Gerard's School is a lay Catholic co-educational independent day school in Bray, County Wicklow, Ireland. A fee-charging school, it is administered by a Board of Governors as a charitable trust. As of 2019, the student population was about ...

(

Bray, County Wicklow Bray ( ) is a coastal town in north County Wicklow, Ireland. It is situated about south of Dublin city centre on the east coast. It has a population of 32,600 making it the ninth largest urban area within Ireland (at the 2016 census). Bray is ...

) an
St Oliver Plunkett Primary School
(

Monkstown, County Dublin Monkstown (), historically known as ''Carrickbrennan'' ( gle, Carraig Bhraonáin), is a suburb in south Dublin, located in Dún Laoghaire–Rathdown, Ireland. It is on the coast, between Blackrock and Dún Laoghaire. The lands of the Carrickb ...

), both Roman Catholic schools, the latter a school dedicated to teaching children with dyslexia. He also attended the German-language medium school, St Kilians Deutsche Schule (

Dublin Dublin (; , or ) is the capital and largest city of Ireland. On a bay at the mouth of the River Liffey, it is in the province of Leinster, bordered on the south by the Dublin Mountains, a part of the Wicklow Mountains range. At the 2016 c ...

). In England, he went on to attend

Sibford School Sibford School is a British co-educational independent school in Sibford Ferris, west of Banbury in north Oxfordshire, linked with the Religious Society of Friends. The school has both day and boarding pupils between the ages of 3 and 18. It i ...

, a Quaker school near Banbury, Oxfordshire (from 1980 to 1983).

Marriage

He and his wife Olivia have two daughters and live in London.

Acting career

At an early age, Boorman started appearing in films directed by his father. His first role was in ''

Deliverance ''Deliverance'' is a 1972 American survival thriller film produced and directed by John Boorman, and starring Jon Voight, Burt Reynolds, Ned Beatty, and Ronny Cox, with the latter two making their feature film debuts. The screenplay was adapt ...

'' (1972). Boorman played a young Mordred in ''

Excalibur Excalibur () is the legendary sword of King Arthur, sometimes also attributed with magical powers or associated with the rightful sovereignty of Britain. It was associated with the Arthurian legend very early on. Excalibur and the Sword in th ...

'' (1981) (joined by his older sister Katrine Boorman who played

Ygraine In the Matter of Britain, Igraine () is the mother of King Arthur. Igraine is also known in Latin as Igerna, in Welsh as Eigr (Middle Welsh Eigyr), in French as Ygraine (Old French Ygerne or Igerne), in ''Le Morte d'Arthur'' as Ygrayne—often ...

, Mordred's grandmother), then in 1985 played a leading role in ''

The Emerald Forest ''The Emerald Forest'' is a 1985 British adventure drama film set in the Brazilian rainforest, directed by John Boorman, written by Rospo Pallenberg, and starring Powers Boothe, Meg Foster, and Charley Boorman with supporting roles by Rui Po ...

''. In 1987 he had a non-speaking role in '' Hope and Glory'' as a young German

Luftwaffe The ''Luftwaffe'' () was the aerial-warfare branch of the German ''Wehrmacht'' before and during World War II. Germany's military air arms during World War I, the ''Luftstreitkräfte'' of the Imperial Army and the '' Marine-Fliegerabtei ...

pilot parachuting into wartime London, having been shot down; his sister Katrine also appeared in that film. His further acting appearances include ''

The Serpent's Kiss ''The Serpent's Kiss'' is a 1997 British romantic drama film directed by Philippe Rousselot. Set in late-17th-century England, it tells the story of a Dutch garden architect, Meneer Chrome (Ewan McGregor), who has been hired by a wealthy merchan ...

'' (1997), on which he met

, and '' The Bunker'' (2001).

Theatre show

In 2007, Boorman appeared on stage in

Newcastle upon Tyne Newcastle upon Tyne ( RP: , ), or simply Newcastle, is a city and metropolitan borough in Tyne and Wear, England. The city is located on the River Tyne's northern bank and forms the largest part of the Tyneside built-up area. Newcastle is ...

at the Tyne Theatre. The 'evening with' style show then went on a tour around the UK and Ireland in 2010. Around this time Boorman revealed he had

testicular cancer Testicular cancer is cancer that develops in the testicles, a part of the male reproductive system. Symptoms may include a lump in the testicle, or swelling or pain in the scrotum. Treatment may result in infertility. Risk factors include an ...

. Caught early, he had a testicle removed and has since been a supporter of

Movember Movember is an annual event involving the growing of moustaches during the month of November to raise awareness of men's health issues, such as prostate cancer, testicular cancer, and men's suicide. It is a portmanteau of the Australian-Engli ...

. Boorman was given the all-clear, but continued telling audiences across the country about his ordeal, encouraging more men to be aware and get checked out early if there was any concern. In 2011, the Charley Boorman Live show toured the UK and Ireland again, following a similar format to the first tour but without support acts. Boorman also began promoting African Adventures, which are commercial 17-day BMW motorcycle trips across Africa. Taking 50 riders from

Cape Town Cape Town ( af, Kaapstad; , xh, iKapa) is one of South Africa's three capital cities, serving as the seat of the Parliament of South Africa. It is the legislative capital of the country, the oldest city in the country, and the second largest ...

Victoria Falls Victoria Falls ( Lozi: ''Mosi-oa-Tunya'', "The Smoke That Thunders"; Tonga: ''Shungu Namutitima'', "Boiling Water") is a waterfall on the Zambezi River in southern Africa, which provides habitat for several unique species of plants and anim ...

, Boorman used various technologies to help promote the trip, including a GPS satellite tracking device allowing people to follow the trip day by day.

Charity work

Boorman has supported the

United Nations Children's Fund UNICEF (), originally called the United Nations International Children's Emergency Fund in full, now officially United Nations Children's Fund, is an agency of the United Nations responsible for providing humanitarian and developmental aid to ...

(UNICEF) since 2004, carrying out a number of visits to UNICEF projects, which have been noted in his television programmes ''

'', ''

'' and '' By Any Means''. In 2009, Boorman was made president of Dyslexia Action; he is dyslexic. Boorman has been on many visits to Dyslexia Action's regional centres and was involved in the charity's appeal "It's ME!". He also supported its school initiative "P4L" (Partnership for Literacy). Boorman recently participated in
live web chat
for the charity where he answered questions about his dyslexia and his various adventures. In 2009, Boorman went to

Helmand Province Helmand (Pashto/Dari: ; ), also known as Hillmand, in ancient times, as Hermand and Hethumand, is one of the 34 provinces of Afghanistan, in the south of the country. It is the largest province by area, covering area. The province contains 13 ...

Afghanistan Afghanistan, officially the Islamic Emirate of Afghanistan,; prs, امارت اسلامی افغانستان is a landlocked country located at the crossroads of Central Asia and South Asia. Referred to as the Heart of Asia, it is bordere ...

and visited troops.

Kandahar Kandahar (; Kandahār, , Qandahār) is a city in Afghanistan, located in the south of the country on the Arghandab River, at an elevation of . It is Afghanistan's second largest city after Kabul, with a population of about 614,118. It is the c ...

and Bastion were the two key camps he visited, just before Christmas. In February 2014 and November 2016 Boorman presented Gold Duke of Edinburgh's Award

at St James's Palace, on behalf of Prince Philip, Duke of Edinburgh, The Duke of Edinburgh.

Accident

Boorman was involved in a serious accident whilst test riding a motorbike with journalists in Portugal in 2016. Boorman broke both legs after colliding with a wall whilst avoiding a car that pulled out in front of him. He then broke his hip riding a Vespa whilst still in recovery. After a period reliant on a wheelchair, Boorman is back riding, but now walks with a limp as his left leg is 1 cm shorter than his right after operations to repair the breaks.

Presenting career

''Long Way Round''

In 2004,

and Boorman undertook an international motorcycle journey from London to New York, riding east across Europe, Asia, and North America. This was recorded for a popular television series and book.

''Race to Dakar''

Along with producer

Russ Malkin Russ Malkin is a British TV producer, director and founder of Big Earth Productions. He has created documentaries and formats for many broadcasters globally including BBC, ITV, Sky, National Geographic, Amazon and Discovery. Often working with hi ...

(from ''Long Way Round'') and a motorbike team, Boorman competed in the

2006 Dakar Rally The 2006 Dakar Rally, also known as the 2006 Paris-Dakar Rally, was the 28th running of the Dakar Rally event. The 2006 event ran from 31 December 2005 to 15 January 2006. It started from Lisbon, Portugal, and passed through Spain, Morocco, Mali, M ...

in January 2006. The event was filmed and the series ''Race to Dakar'' began on

Sky2 Sky Replay is a British pay television channel operated by Sky as a sister channel to Sky Max and Sky Witness. The current channel began broadcasting (as Sky One Mix) in December 2002. The 'Sky 2' name and format had earlier been used for a si ...

in the United Kingdom in October 2006. During the rally Boorman injured himself and was forced to retire from the race after five days.

''Long Way Down''

In 2007, he took another journey with McGregor: ''

'', a trip from John o' Groats in Scotland, to

, South Africa. This was televised on BBC2 starting in October 2007. During this initial programme, it became public knowledge that Boorman's wife was undergoing treatment for pneumonia, but had insisted that he complete the trip.

''By Any Means''

In 2008, Boorman produced ''By Any Means'', which started in his hometown in County Wicklow, ending in Sydney. He set out to complete the journey "by any means", using local transport appropriate to the area being travelled, and using air travel only when necessary.

''Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means''

In 2009, Boorman undertook a journey titled ''Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means'', travelling from Sydney to Tokyo via the Pacific Rim. The programme documenting this trip has been shown on BBC2 in the UK.

''World's Most Dangerous Roads: Alaska''

Boorman appeared with Sue Perkins in Series 1 of the BBC TV series ''

World's Most Dangerous Roads ''World's Most Dangerous Roads'' is a British TV series in which two celebrities are filmed as they journey by 4×4 vehicle along roads considered among the world's most dangerous. The first series aired on BBC Two BBC Two is a British ...

: Alaska'', shown in 2011, in which they drove the

Dalton Highway The James W. Dalton Highway, usually referred to as the Dalton Highway (and signed as Alaska Route 11), is a road in Alaska. It begins at the Elliott Highway, north of Fairbanks, and ends at Deadhorse (an unincorporated community within the ...

''Charley Boorman's Extreme Frontiers''

In 2011, Boorman presented a prime-time adventure series for Channel 5, ''Charley Boorman's Extreme Frontiers''. This show was another collaboration between Boorman and producer-director

, who made frequent on-screen appearances. ''Extreme Frontiers'' claimed to 'take in all four extremities of Canada'. Accompanying the show was book and DVD. In 2012, Boorman continued the series in a South African setting. From 9 June to 22 July 2012, Boorman and his team journeyed around South Africa on two motorbikes and a 4-wheel vehicle.

''Charley Boorman USA Adventure''

Boorman and Malkin returned on Channel 5 at the end of 2013 for his next trip, which was in the US. Starting in Hawaii, he moves to Alaska, then to the Eastern seaboard and down to the Southern states, inland to the Gulf of Mexico, up again to the Rockies and finishing on the Pacific Coast at Los Angeles

''Long Way Up''

Boorman and McGregor traveled in 2019 from the southernmost tip of South America up to Los Angeles, on electric Harley-Davidson LiveWire motorbikes.

''Motorbike TV''

In 2022 Boorman began presenting Motorbike TV, a motorcycle magazine entertainment show for Motorsport.TV.

Filmography

Film

*''

'' (1972) - Ed's Boy *''

'' (1981) - Boy Mordred *'' Nemo'' (1984) - Cunegond / lift Operator *''

'' (1985) - Tomme *'' Hope and Glory'' (1987) - Luftwaffe Pilot *''Ada dans la jungle'' (1988) - Nancy *'' Mister Frost'' (1990) - Thief *''Connemara'' (1990) - Loup *''Massacres'' (1991) - Ronny *'' Beyond Rangoon'' (1995) - Photographer *'' Two Nudes Bathing'' (1995, Short) - The Painter *''

'' (1997) - Secretary *''

Cannes Man ''Cannes Man'' is a 1996 independent comedy film directed Richard Martini. The film stars Seymour Cassel and Francesco Quinn. The film also features more than 15 famous Hollywood actors (mostly cameo) including Johnny Depp, Jon Cryer, Benicio d ...

'' (1997) - Himself *''Cash in Hand'' (1998) - George Tompkins *'' The Bunker'' (2001) - Pfc. Franke *''

I, Cesar ''I, Cesar'' (french: Moi César, 10 ans ½, 1m39) is a 2003 French comedy film directed by Richard Berry. Plot César is a young boy living in Montmartre, Paris, with his parents. Morgan, his friend, tries to find his father in London. César a ...

'' (2003) - Charley Fitzpatrick *'' In My Country'' (2004) - Adam Hartley *''Travellers'' (2011) - Brian Seaborn *''David Knight: Iron Man of Enduro'' (2004) - Himself - Narrator

Bibliography

*''

'' (2004 – With Ewan McGregor) *'' Race to Dakar'' (2006) *''

'' (2007 – With Ewan McGregor) *'' By Any Means'' (2008) *'' Right to the Edge: Sydney to Tokyo By Any Means'' (2009) *''Extreme frontiers'' (2011) *''Long Way Back'' - Autobiography (2017)

References

* Holmstrom, John. ''The Moving Picture Boy: An International Encyclopaedia from 1895 to 1995''. Norwich, Michael Russell, 1996, p. 363.

External links

* * * ''WideWorld'' magazine �
Interview with Charley Boorman
{{DEFAULTSORT:Boorman, Charley Living people 1966 births English explorers English male child actors English male film actors English people of Dutch descent English people of German descent Long-distance motorcycle riders Male actors from County Wicklow Motorcycling mass media people People educated at Sibford School People educated at St Gerard's School, Bray People educated at St Kilian's German School