大象传媒 Scotland - 大象传媒 Scotland - Globe-trotting adventurer Simon Reeve came close to suicide as a teenager, but a trip to Glencoe transformed his life

Globe-trotting adventurer Simon Reeve came close to suicide as a teenager, but a trip to Glencoe transformed his life

24 September 2018

Simon Reeve has travelled the globe reporting from remote, dangerous and beautiful locations. It’s a career many would envy but, as Simon revealed on Out for the Weekend, it would never have happened if it hadn’t been for a trip to Scotland.

As a troubled teenager, Simon found himself perched on a bridge above a motorway, preparing to end his life. The toot of a lorry’s horn shook him out of the moment and he chose to live.

He caught a train from London to Scotland and eventually found himself in Glencoe, where he started to climb.

Simon Reeve鈥檚 life-changing trip to Scotland

Unprepared and under-dressed, teenage Simon found himself in Glencoe.

The venture wasn’t without risk. “I was one of these urban muppets that you hear about being taken off by mountain rescue,” explained Simon. “Or I could have been.”

“I was totally unprepared. Trainers, jeans and a shower curtain of a cagoule and that was it.

“I kept going even when people told me to turn back. In a way I shouldn’t have but in every way thank goodness for me that I did.”

Reaching the peak in darkness, Simon scrambled back down with a brand new sense of achievement.

“I stepped out after that climb with completely new purpose and was able to go for some job interviews.

“It changed my life.”

Hint: you鈥檒l need to take more than trainers, jeans and a cagoule!

If you are feeling emotionally distressed, or know someone who is, there are .

A Dayak welcome

Simon is welcomed by the Dayak, a tribe traditionally known for headhunting.
Finks motorcycle club

In Australia, Simon meets with a notorious motorcycle club.
Eating xebu penis soup

In Madagascar Simon and his guide sit down to eat a local dish, the penis of an ox.
The lemurs of Madagascar

With 90% of Madagascar鈥檚 forest already gone, it鈥檚 almost impossible to see lemurs in the wild.