I grew up in the South of England and floated through the education system until I graduated with a BSc in Genetics from Nottingham University.
Growing up I was very scientifically minded, my choice to study genetics was partly my desire to cure diseases and partly my fascination with the mechanics of living organisms. Shortly after discovering the realities of a career in biomedical research I decided to go backpacking and an intended 16 month trip turned out to last a lot longer.
Travelling gave me such a variety of amazing experiences which allowed me to grow as a person, to better myself and add many strings to my bow.
I have slept in a Mosque, excavated pyramids, hang-glided over Rio, walked on glaciers and sailed down the Amazon. I was interviewed live on Peruvian radio, I shared corn flakes with an African tribe, searched for UFOs in the desert and much, much more.
All these experiences happened during my first decade which ended in Sept 2012. I spent the rest of the year writing and then in 2013 I self-published my book and wrote some short stories for magazines. I started making videos and formed the Modern Explorers, which eventually led to making a pilot for the Science Channel. I have been written about in newspapers, websites, interviewed on radio stations in Ireland, Holland, Dubai and England and I even appeared on TV in Australia.
All this happened in an effort to publicise my book which features diary extracts describing my favourite experiences on the road, whilst trying to eat a bowl of Corn Flakes in every country in the world.
Work
I have worked in a number of countries over the years, in an attempt to explore different cultures in depth and at the same time try out different things.
I worked as a bicycle courier in New York, a dive master in Honduras, a holiday rep in both France and Spain, and in the building trade in Norway. I’ve waited tables, worked behind the bar and in the kitchen. I’ve created statistics for call centres, worked as a painter and decorator, and I was also employed to make promotional videos for a well known adventure holiday company.
Diabetes
I was diagnosed with type 1 when I was 9 years old and I like to give credit to the condition for shaping my personality. I decided early on that I would be the boss of my diabetes, not the other way round. It made me a stronger person and made me want to make the most of my life.
Having diabetes gave me opportunities to teach, in fact I had to teach so that people would know what to do if I had a hypo and became incoherent. Teaching people what to do if I became ill became extremely necessary on the road.
Another taste of teaching came from blogging for the charity diabetes.org.uk. I wrote articles to share things I have learnt from having diabetes, things that you don’t here about from medical professionals. I wanted to educate to help others cope and inspire others to not allow diabetes to be an obstacle to them. The feedback was great and I took great pleasure from feeling that I had eased the fears of newly diagnosed diabetics and their parents.
Travelling into Teaching
I really enjoyed teaching people how to scuba dive. Helping them overcome their inhibitions and achieve something so mind-blowing and rewarding was very satisfying for me. I particularly liked helping those with a fear of going underwater as they were so proud of themselves after the course and the smiles on their faces were priceless.
The importance of education was evident all over the world, I visited numerous schools in Africa, Asia and South America, which were very rewarding experiences. In areas with poor access to schooling there was little prospect, not much to aim for and generally a very poor understanding of the world in they lived. Having seen the value of quality education I became more motivated to teach, I wanted to do something that benefits people and at the same time benefits society.
The final push towards teaching came from comments on my youtube channels. The whole reason I started making videos was to educate people about a subject I am very passionate about and when so many people took the time to thank me for showing them something new I felt happy.
I graduated from the University of Portsmouth in 2019 and have worked teaching Science ever since. I was working as a science teacher when Covid arrived and now I have chosen to start giving tuition as I find the 1-to-1 style of teaching far more enjoyable than the crowd-control style of teaching required in classrooms.
I believe my experiences on the road, combined with my science knowledge, help me make science interesting to my pupils. I have experienced various cultures and beliefs, met a variety of interesting characters and communicated without language, all requiring an abundance of patience and a sense of humour. This means I can relate to them to be able to encourage them to want to study and use scientific methods in their learning.
I believe I am highly organised, a good leader, a good communicator, a good listener, I am flexible, adaptable and dealing with diabetes means I am in a position to help others overcome hurdles to realise their ambitions.