Monty Halls | |
|---|---|
| Born | (1966-11-05)5 November 1966 (age 59) Exeter, England |
| Education | Bedstone College |
| Alma mater | University of Plymouth |
| Occupation(s) | TV presenter,underwater diver |
| Television | Monty Halls' Great Escape,Animal Planet,Perfect Weapon |
| Spouse | Tamsyn Smith |
| Children | 2 |
| Website | montyhalls |
Monty Halls (born 5 November 1966) is a British TV broadcaster and marine biologist best known for his BBC Great Escape seriesMonty Halls' Great Escape,Monty Halls' Great Hebridean Escape andMonty Halls' Great Irish Escape, during which he lived and worked in remote parts of the UK and Ireland with his dog Reuben. Halls' other TV programmes includeWWII's Great Escapes,[1]Great Barrier Reef[2]andLost Worlds[3]withLeo Houlding forDiscovery Channel.
Halls is the founder and managing director of Seadog TV and Film Productions Ltd and Leaderbox.
Born in Wakefield, Halls attendedBedstone College, where he was head boy,[4] after which he was commissioned as aRoyal Marines officer.[5] His time in the Marines included a period in the British Military Assistance and Training Team in South Africa, where he assisted with the integration of formerANCguerrillas into theSouth African Army.
At 29, having left theRoyal Marines, Halls studiedMarine Biology at theUniversity of Plymouth where he became involved with projects including the underwater filming of a rare species ofcrocodile inBelize in partnership with theNatural History Museum of London. He graduated with a First Class HonoursBachelor's degree in 1999.[5]
Halls has led a number ofscuba diving expeditions and was an expedition leader for the marine conservation charity Coral Cay Conservation.[6]In 2002, Halls led a group of adventurers and scientists (from the Scientific Exploration Society) to the sunken city ofMahabalipuram offTamil Nadu (India), and discovered six temples, which are still being explored. In 2015 he led the 'Shoals of Agulhas' expedition on behalf ofLand Rover, following the route of the annualSardine Run from Port Elizabeth to Durban.[7] Halls is also a Steppes Travel tour leader.[8]
In 2005, he presented a nine-part TV series calledGreat Ocean Adventures (co-produced byRDF Television andChannel Five). A second series was broadcast in 2007. Memorable moments include Halls diving among a large number of GiantHumboldt Squid. In 2008 he co-hosted aNational Geographic series,Perfect Weapon, looking at aspects ofmedieval weaponry. In 2008, Halls left his home in Bristol for Applecross on the west coast of Scotland for the first of the three BBCGreat Escape series,Monty Halls' Great Escape, where he tried to recreate the life of crofters for six months. In 2009 Halls then left for the Outer Hebrides to live and work as a nature warden onNorth Uist for six months.[9] 2010 saw Monty live for six months inConnemara working with Irish Whale & Dolphin Conservation Group (IWDG). All of these series featured his dog, Reuben.
In 2016 Halls formed Seadog TV and Film Productions and in 2017 produced and presentedWWII's Great Escapes: The Freedom Trails, a four-part series in which Halls re-traced the journeys made by escaped prisoners of war out of Nazi occupied Europe. The series first broadcast on Channel 4 in September 2017.
In February 2018 Channel 4 announced a second series from Halls and Seadog TV and Film Productions,My Family and the Galapagos.[10]
Halls is a public andmotivational speaker and has spoken at events such as The Adventure Travel Show,[11] theKeswick Mountain Festival[12] and the London 'Night of Adventure' event, hosted by fellow explorer and speakerAlastair Humphreys.[13]
In 2016 Halls founded Leaderbox, a universal leadership and team building tool designed to develop confidence, fosters teamwork, and generate key leadership skills in young people and professionals.[14]
With his background as a Royal Marine, Halls was deeply moved when his close friend andbest man, MajorJason WardRM was killed in a helicopter crash on 21 March 2003, the second day of theIraq War (Operation Telic).[15][16] Halls supports military charities, in particular he is apatron ofHelp for Heroes, a charity committed to improving the facilities for injured servicemen and women. As amarine biologist he supports charities associated with the marine environment, and is also a patron of Shark Trust.[17] In 2015 Halls became president of theGalapagos Conservation Trust after serving as Ambassador for many years.[18]
In 2003, Halls was awarded the Bish Medal by the "Scientific Exploration Society" for his services to exploration. In December 2010, he was awarded an Honorary Doctor of Science Degree byPlymouth University.[citation needed], and in 2016 an 'Outstanding Contribution to Diving' award by Sport Diver magazine.[19]
Halls lives inDevon, England with his wife Tamsyn Smith and their daughters Isla and Molly.[20]
Television
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