Bear Grylls- TV programme

[Nomad_Of_Soul]

are people still going on about this program! 2 pages and only the first episode, there's more to go yet folks, old bear is off to the moab desert, the alps, mount kilauea, sierra nevada, african savanna, alaska and a desert island most of you are going to have babies by the time they are all shown.
If you check the end credits it would seem he is advised by a survival expert (Terry Moore) so i would guess that although Bear has some say in what he does on site he is more of a 'organ grinders monkey'.
Discovery channel came up with the idea, got some young fit bloke with some history of adventure to present it, throw in an expert to 'advise', film it all, get back to studio for some choice editing then air it. Then wait as word passes round about this idiot on tv doing idiotic stuff.
"really? i want to see this idiot on tv" and so yet another viewer watches and yet another dollar for the creators.
So although i enjoy watching it i don't really take it seriously, i don't think i would ever climb down a water fall with or without a harness. But it is entertaining, much more adrenalin packed than ray mears who has nothing in common with this program so why compare? (although we could try to settle this by arranging a proper man to man fight 'Bear vs Ray' in a ring and whoever wins is the best :swordfigh ).
It's about survival and the guy comes out alive, what point am i missing here in this forum? He may have a camera crew with him and there is more going on than meets the eye but for me the message Bear is saying is no matter what situation your in just keep going, don't give up and keep thinking on your feet.
Have a look here http://www.uknetguide.co.uk/TV/ to see what the alternative is if you don't have sky, 2.5 hours of poncy dogs Primevil where a golfer is brutally attacked- the suspense is killing me already :theyareon and comic relief - a quick donation at the local supermarket pays my way out of watching this so thank God for Bear's stupid programs even if i have seen them all already i want want to see them all again. Anything than the pointless crap on the other channels (bar comic relief-it's all for charity mate).

 

[dommyracer]

I've just watched him grunt his way through making fire with a bow drill, that was enough for me.

"If....I can just...grrrr......make enough of an ember.....rnnngggg....."

 

[sargey]

ultimately, wether it's our ray, ol' dave attenborough, grizzy-bear, or hard hitting investigative journo' programs like panorama, the provision of factual information is a by-product. they're not setting out to make a program for you or me. they're setting out to make a tv program that will win the ratings for a given demographic in a given time slot. much like any newspaper, the first priority is not to tell what's what, the first priority is to sell copies. or they don't get a second series, just a

but as far as bear grylls goes, is it just me or did he spend alot of the time dramatically dashing past the same termite chewed log, first dashing to the left, and then dashing to the right of it

it's a shame that the good plant info and such (i'm guessing provided by the local experts) has to be filtered out of all the bravo sierra. it's a shame that some people might take the whole thing as gospel.

i will confess that i did once try the boot knife actually attached to a boot, (i was very young), it seemed at the time that i couldn't run ten yards without the thing going flying with or without the sheath. i'm surprised he managed to hang onto the nasty dive knife as long as he did. (unless of course he had a big box of knives to replace the ones that deliberately launched themselves off into the undergrowth in order to escape the embarrassment of being seen in the show!)

i saw a bit of the video on you tube or somewhere, where he starts biting a zebra's rump. i couldn't but help thinking of the film madagascar where the zebra wakes to find his mate alex the lion biting his butt, if you've seen it you'll get it. at least both alex the lion and bear the grylls have the decency to look slightly embarrassed by it.

cheers, and.

 

[Tengu]

that seems a remarkable way to catch a zebra....

 

[spamel]

I wonder who would win in a fight between Ray Mears and Bear "Ar$e" Grylls?







There's only one way to find out!








FIGHT!!!!!!!!!!!

 

[nobby]

I am not a follower, I am my own master. I think it is a very sad reflection on our society that so many men need to follow others as opposed to their selves and that Is the point I'm making. Whether it is fashion/Ray Mears or whatever...it shows a lot of things that I find troubling about society, the shallowness of it at times, or for a better word how superficial it can be. Without substance a man is nothing, not even himself don't you think?

Well said.
Of course you are not a follower. I bet you are self employed, never need to take account of the time and pay no taxes.
We are all followers, and have been since industrialisation organised labour and did away with Holy days, wake days and Mondays to get over Sunday, but some of us are able to persuade ourselves that we aren't.
We all have substance just by being; we cannot be nothing while alive and especially in the brave world of 21st century touchy feely Britain.

 

[SunDog]

It's just TV right? With a different slant from RM. I personally thought the content was complete horesh*t, but as for what I suspect it was put out for, i.e. entertainment, good stuff. A good laugh anyway.
The bloke will make a few quid out of it, good luck to him. His book is out tomorrow, wonder how many people from this website will own up to buying it?

 

[dommyracer]

ultimately, wether it's our ray, ol' dave attenborough, grizzy-bear, or hard hitting investigative journo' programs like panorama, the provision of factual information is a by-product. they're not setting out to make a program for you or me. they're setting out to make a tv program that will win the ratings for a given demographic in a given time slot

Not strictly true.

In the case of the BBC produced programmes you mentioned, ie Ray, Attenborough and Panorama, these sorts of shows are made under the public service remit, and almost certainly wouldn't have been made if it wasn't for the Licence Fee.

Sure, they make the shows as interesting and groundbreaking as possible, and try to get as many people watching (like Planet Earth), but at the same time they are factual programs - you cannot honestly say that you don't get a sense of seriousness and gravitas with these shows, something that is distinctly lacking in a lot of other TV.

IMO, those 3 shows (and others, examples that spring to mind are Coast, Springwatch / Autumnwatch, Time Team) are factual programs that have been made entertaining.

This Bear Grylls show on Channel 4 (which I believe is just a recut version of a show made for the US) is pure entertainment, masquerading as factual programming, which sets a dangerous precedent IMO.

 

[oldsoldier]

As much as he puts out misinformation, I'll bet most here will watch this whole season, and, should it be given a second life, next season as well. However, I miss survivorman

 

[kb31]

harry hill will rip it to bits on sat
like that water did to his insides as soon as he said "it's fast flowing it sould be safe"
i was thinking and hopeing your going be badly off that marra
and he was- well funny
what kind of knife did he have? it looks like one of my first survival knifes
just missing the ball compass and sport billy handle?

 

[w00dsmoke]

Well said...
We are all followers, and have been since industrialisation organised labour and did away with Holy days, wake days and Mondays to get over Sunday, but some of us are able to persuade ourselves that we aren't.
We all have substance just by being; we cannot be nothing while alive and especially in the brave world of 21st century touchy feely Britain.

I think you are referring to Rousseau here and I quote;
"Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains. " But I believe that if you are aware of those chains you achieve what Paulo Freire (Liberation theorist) says is "Conscienscisation". In other words you have become conscious of that fact and have liberated yourself from those chains and have created your own freedom in an existentialist way (Sarte would probably agree). And that is the substance that maketh the man!

 

[wizard]

We Colonials have been exposed to Man vs. Wild and Bear for several months now and have probably had the opportunity to see all the different shows.
So, first let me say I respect Bear for his courage, stamina and past feats such as climbing Everest. No matter how you find your way up Mt. Everest, it is a personal feat of strengh and courage, with some luck thrown in.
Now as for that new TV series, I see entertainment, some skills and mostly staged buffoonery. The unfortunate thing is that while some of us see the mistakes in technique, or better yet, know what should and should not be done in the wilderness, Bear is potentially reaching many in a audience of novices that may consider some of his antics as the right way to "survive".
Sure, here and there he does do some appropriate skills. Mostly though he over dramatizes everything. Far worse he demostrates really risky behavior. In one show he sqeezes moisture from some elephant dung and drinks it. Well if he just follows the trail of the elephant, he will come to water!
As for Ray Mears comparison with Bear, well two different breeds and two different shows. Mr. Mears is showing proper technique, explaining his actions and is both entertaining and informative. Sure, his way of doing something may not be the only way but it is a good way. Ray is not really so different from any of us Bushcrafters, he learns as he goes too. He was not born with all his knowledge. It would sure be nice to have someone pay me to travel the world and practice and learn new skills!
Bear is more of an entertainer, as has already been said. He just seems to have figured out a way to get someone to pay him to take risks, play on the edge and have someone pay him to do it. He appears to have little in the way of real survival or bushcraft skills, just enough to toss into the shows to make it appear he is some sort of expert. That only works with an uninformed audience, which probably accounts for most of the viewers.
The rest of us are sort of wondering how did this get on TV?
As for the knife that he bangs with a rock, it is a SCUBA divers knife. Not really something you should plan to take on your next survival incident!
One more man, Les Stroud the Canadian with the Survivorman show, nice guy, knows a lot of technique and shows it all honestly. A lot can be learned from his shows and soon there will be another season of new shows. Like Ray Mears, I respect Les Stroud for his skills, method of presentation and his realistic, honest approach. Bear, I just think he is a little out there and respect him for taking risks and living through them.
Just the Yank's view

 

[Longstrider]

Having just spent a good deal of my night shift watching Man Vs. Nature clips on YouTube (Sorry Boss ) I'm not quite sure what to make of it all to be honest.
I have little doubt about the guys past achievements and the remarkable places he's been and the things he's done, but per-lease! The show is just that. A SHOW. It's hardly educational : Rough Quote "That's a Poison Dart Frog. (Pause) In Colombia they use the frog to make poison darts" .. and there I was hoping the frog would pull out it's blow-gun and pop one off at the man!
My guess is that he bought the cheapest, small, "El Rambo" looking knife he could find so it wouldn't matter if he (a) lost it from the most ridiculously positioned sheath I can imagine for the terrain (On his ankle/calf where it would catch on every piece of loose vegetation he passed) or (b) if he battoned it with a rock and destroyed any usefullness that the saw teeth on the back of the thing might have once had, (c) he snapped the point off trying to "spear" fish (So he could drop them back in! ), or (d) if he made a complete **** of the edge by scraping it against a stick "loaded" with the sort of gravel most of us only see in our driveways ! The sharpening technique is valid, but I can't help feeling that might have done better to either crush the rock to a nice fine paste first (as should be done) or to simply use one of the nicely rounded stones from the bed of the river for the job. To have claimed that it was "coming up a treat" or whatever after only 3 or 4 strokes across that gravel covered stick is just farcical.

It was fun to watch. It has some wonderful moments of "What the **** are you doing man!?", but I can't help feeling that it really should be preceded by a Govt Health Warning stating that the guy is acting like a "spanner" and showing you no-end of stuff that is more likely to get you killed than it ever is to help you survive. It's television. It's better telly than most of the garbage that seems to get aired, but it is, just, television. Survival Manual it ain't.

Hey, I've just realised what the "sharpening thing" was all about! Maybe he missed the saw teeth (that he destroyed by bashing them with a rock) so much that he decided to put some on the other side of the blade with a handful of gravel and a stick!

 

[hammock monkey]

i dont know why, but i found parts of it hillarious. not in a condescending way - respect to him for the foreign legion thing, but that way he'd mention how he was going to chance the water..then had a bad **** all night... it was really funny i thought. it just came accross with comedy timing.
the danger he kept putting himself in with the tree climbing etc...falling over when there was no need to, all that stuff...just made himself look pretty stupid. seems a nice guy tho, maybe in the future he'll work with a producer that can get his stuff accross better.
adding drama to the situation was pointless and just detracted from owt good he was going to do. some good bushcratfy-ness, but not much.
bring it on, i'll be watching to see how much he hurts himself next time, it kind of made me think of Jackass Bushcraft...
best of luck to him i guess...be safe Bear! keep the chuckles coming

 

[Nigel Harper]

I think you are referring to Rousseau here and I quote;
"Man is born free and everywhere he is in chains. " But I believe that if you are aware of those chains you achieve what Paulo Freire (Liberation theorist) says is "Conscienscisation". In other words you have become conscious of that fact and have liberated yourself from those chains and have created your own freedom in an existentialist way (Sarte would probably agree). And that is the substance that maketh the man!

hehehe im sure you your own man and everything but you sure quote a lot of other people

 

[Outdoorsman]

I did some digging on some other forums and this is the knife he was using
Scuba Max Titanium Dive Knife (model KN-200 in black)

I just finished watching all of the episodes on you tube, It's deffinatly 'Man Vs. Wild', channel 4 have just renamed it. He changes which knife he uses in each episode, apart from the one above there all folders;

Gerber Gator (the one with the serrated edge)
Masters Of Defense ATFK
Wenger Serrated Mountaineer

 

[madrussian]

Could it be that his choice of knife was because he thought he might do a little diving while filming the show and so wanted to be prepared. You know, in case of a Bullshark attack.

 

[British Red]

Jackass Bushcraft...

Thats just a perfect summary

Red

 

[StigOfTheDump]

I wasnt that impressed with Mr Grylls really, it all seems a bit too much about showmanship to me.

I prefer the Les Stroud programs, he does all his own filming and he takes it alot more seriously as he is really on his own.

I have only watched one Bear Grylls proggy so far, but it was the one where he used a vine to descend a cold slippery waterfall.

As if someone who is lost and on their own would do that, one slip and your knackered.

So, ill watch the rest, and maybe ill learn or see something of interest, but i cant help but think this is just a bit of a copy of the Les Stroud series.

 

[sargey]

Not strictly true.

In the case of the BBC produced programmes you mentioned, ie Ray, Attenborough and Panorama, these sorts of shows are made under the public service remit, and almost certainly wouldn't have been made if it wasn't for the Licence Fee.

Sure, they make the shows as interesting and groundbreaking as possible, and try to get as many people watching (like Planet Earth), but at the same time they are factual programs - you cannot honestly say that you don't get a sense of seriousness and gravitas with these shows, something that is distinctly lacking in a lot of other TV.

IMO, those 3 shows (and others, examples that spring to mind are Coast, Springwatch / Autumnwatch, Time Team) are factual programs that have been made entertaining.

This Bear Grylls show on Channel 4 (which I believe is just a recut version of a show made for the US) is pure entertainment, masquerading as factual programming, which sets a dangerous precedent IMO.

well, yeah. i agree with all of that, some programs are better than others, some more serious, some with more gravitas. some massive projects like blue planet, or walking with dinosaurs, hellishly long and expensive to produce. but look at the co-sponsors other than the bbc in the credits on many of them. other tv stations investing money to make a program that will interest viewers and gain ratings. the bbc sells the programs made to other tvcompanies.

"coast" for example is an open unversity program, you can get the coast booklet, there's not much more in it than a page for each episode. but there is a load of bumpf to sell OU courses.

imagine someone applying for funding to make the best most factual tv program ever, and when the boss asks, who's going to watch it? the reply is "nobody."

perhaps it isn't strictly true, because i'm sure that some of the four oclock in the morning open university programs on astro physics by beardy old geysers with courderoy flares, might not be overly concerned with ratings.

Rough Quote "That's a Poison Dart Frog. (Pause) In Colombia they use the frog to make poison darts" .. and there I was hoping the frog would pull out it's blow-gun and pop one off at the man!

good one longstrider, have you ever read the "war of the powers" books btw?

cheers, and.