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"One of the most inspiring, thought provoking and memorable talks I’ve ever heard." - "We've never had so many audience questions before." - “A consummate storyteller with an infectious energy. Thoroughly recommended.” - "The kids were in awe of him!" |
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Charlie is available for talks appealing to a wide range of clients. He has given talks for all ages to festivals, schools and travel clubs seeking an inspiring story of ambition, determination and perseverance. His presentations use amusing and exciting stories from a decade of human-powered travel around the world to inspire people to push themselves and achieve their goals in all aspects of life.
Like a good novel, we weren't sure of the ending or that he would safely make it home, even though he was standing in front of us!"
-Royal Scottish Geographical Society
"One of the most inspiring, thought provoking and memorable talks I’ve ever heard. Charlie is a fluent, engaging & witty speaker. So lovely to have a speaker who doesn’t rely on notes. We'll definitely be inviting Charlie back next year."
-Rachel Holland, Chalke Valley History Festival Director
“Charlie was an inspirational guest and a remarkable speaker. We were honoured to host him - he helped spark the flame of adventure within our pupils."
-Eton College, Berkshire
“An excellent and highly entertaining talk about one of his extraordinary journeys to a packed audience.”
-Chairman, The Scientific Exploration Society
“Charlie was an outstanding speaker and broadened the students' horizons, literally and figuratively. There was simply not enough time for their endless questions after his talk. We will certainly be inviting Charlie back to Harrow in the future.”
-Harrow School, London
“Charlie is an inspirational and engaging speaker. He demonstrated the mindset required for overcoming challenges, and highlighted techniques that can be applied to the difficulties of day-to-day tasks. Charlie's presentations will see individuals and teams taken out of their comfort zones and encouraged to push past boundaries and achieve goals. He is a pleasure to work with.”
-CPA Australia, London
“Charlie told of his remarkable journey with eloquence and humour. His passion for travel and photographs from his remarkable route engaged the audience and we had a lot of thanks from the packed audience for this special event.”
-Royal Geographical Society, Hong Kong
"The audience were enthralled from the start. It was no mean feat to fully engage a room full of experienced business-people, law lords and peers. You really left them wanting more!"
-Bryanston Society
“Charlie kept us intrigued and a in awe of his fortitude with accounts of the ups and downs of completing such a task. His many anecdotes provided excellent insight into the hardships and loneliness that he faced and the supreme importance of his upbeat outlook and determination to keep going. His presentation had all the elements that our audience enjoy: thrilling anecdotes, great images, and a journey both novel and daring.”
-Royal Scottish Geographical Society
-Rachel Holland, Chalke Valley History Festival Director
“Charlie was an inspirational guest and a remarkable speaker. We were honoured to host him - he helped spark the flame of adventure within our pupils."
-Eton College, Berkshire
“An excellent and highly entertaining talk about one of his extraordinary journeys to a packed audience.”
-Chairman, The Scientific Exploration Society
“Charlie was an outstanding speaker and broadened the students' horizons, literally and figuratively. There was simply not enough time for their endless questions after his talk. We will certainly be inviting Charlie back to Harrow in the future.”
-Harrow School, London
“Charlie is an inspirational and engaging speaker. He demonstrated the mindset required for overcoming challenges, and highlighted techniques that can be applied to the difficulties of day-to-day tasks. Charlie's presentations will see individuals and teams taken out of their comfort zones and encouraged to push past boundaries and achieve goals. He is a pleasure to work with.”
-CPA Australia, London
“Charlie told of his remarkable journey with eloquence and humour. His passion for travel and photographs from his remarkable route engaged the audience and we had a lot of thanks from the packed audience for this special event.”
-Royal Geographical Society, Hong Kong
"The audience were enthralled from the start. It was no mean feat to fully engage a room full of experienced business-people, law lords and peers. You really left them wanting more!"
-Bryanston Society
“Charlie kept us intrigued and a in awe of his fortitude with accounts of the ups and downs of completing such a task. His many anecdotes provided excellent insight into the hardships and loneliness that he faced and the supreme importance of his upbeat outlook and determination to keep going. His presentation had all the elements that our audience enjoy: thrilling anecdotes, great images, and a journey both novel and daring.”
-Royal Scottish Geographical Society
A timed seven-minute talk at a London charity event in which speakers have only 20 seconds per slide.
"We were lucky enough to hear Charlie speak midway through his journey. Students and teachers alike found his tales of adventure engrossing, entertaining and downright inspiring. A particular highlight were Charlie's stories from China and his escapades in Tibet, delivered with great humour despite the peril they involved!"
-Harrow International School, Beijing
“Charlie truly inspired our students, teaching them about passion, determination and grit. They latched onto his every word and couldn't stop talking about his adventures for days! We would love to have Charlie back!”
-English Schools Foundation, Hong Kong
“Inspiring, motivating and energising are just a few of the words to describe Charlie's lecture. He spoke passionately about his astounding journey which took him into the Arctic, through the Himalayas and twice across the Sahara. Humorous about the difficulties of overcoming the language barrier with the thousands of people he encountered on his journey, he spoke grippingly about digging deep to keep motivated, especially when facing -45°C weather, malaria and frostbite. Charlie held the audience's attention constantly.”
-Gordonstoun School, Scotland
“It was brilliant to welcome Charlie back to Bryanston! He spoke with a real sense of passion and the audience instantly engaged with him. His journey was extraordinary and it has been lovely hearing students setting themselves ambitious challenges, as a result of his talk. Thank you so much for your visit, we look forward to seeing you again!”
-Bryanston School, Dorset
“Charlie's journey around the world is full of important lessons for us all and a perfect demonstration of determination and resilience. Our students were buzzing with enthusiasm afterwards.”
-Wimbledon High School, London
“The questions asked afterwards are the measure of a good talk and, judging from the response to yours, you were sensational… the students didn’t want to leave. You engaged with such a diverse audience – staff, sixth formers and year sevens were all keen to speak with you afterwards. Besides being incredibly funny, your self-effacing delivery pointed to the adventurous spirit and deep vein of untapped resources within all of us.”
-Tudor Hall School, Oxfordshire
“Charlie’s talk was inspiring, thought provoking and engaging. His pleasant manner and sense of humour had our students hooked and genuinely considering how much they could achieve in life. We will definitely be inviting him back again!”
-Stoneyhurst College, Lancashire
“Charlie is an excellent speaker and his talk was perfectly targeted at the audience – keeping 250 13-18 year olds enthralled on a Friday evening was a challenge he was well-equipped to meet! His engaging manner, entertaining anecdotes and self-deprecating humour only serve to highlight the impressive nature of his journey and the trials and challenges he has overcome during his travels. An inspirational evening.”
-Milton Abbey School, Dorset
“To say the boys were enthralled, inspired, hanging on every word, amazed and terrified in equal measure would be an understatement of significant proportion.”
-Caldicott School, Bucks
“Charlie's talk inspired our sixth form so much that they were all still talking about it the next day. Many felt moved to try things they hitherto thought impossible! It was great to see the students engaged by his ‘show’ rather than ‘tell’ approach. Charlie is able to engage the students with his enthralling story, advising them without lecturing by sharing his own awesome experiences. Without patronising, Charlie talks of resilience, problem solving, persistence, determination and optimism, all within a 40 minute talk. The best speaker we have had this academic year – we can’t wait to see him again.”
-St Edmunds College, Herts
“A wonderful tale of bravery and endeavour.”
-St George’s School, Windsor
-Harrow International School, Beijing
“Charlie truly inspired our students, teaching them about passion, determination and grit. They latched onto his every word and couldn't stop talking about his adventures for days! We would love to have Charlie back!”
-English Schools Foundation, Hong Kong
“Inspiring, motivating and energising are just a few of the words to describe Charlie's lecture. He spoke passionately about his astounding journey which took him into the Arctic, through the Himalayas and twice across the Sahara. Humorous about the difficulties of overcoming the language barrier with the thousands of people he encountered on his journey, he spoke grippingly about digging deep to keep motivated, especially when facing -45°C weather, malaria and frostbite. Charlie held the audience's attention constantly.”
-Gordonstoun School, Scotland
“It was brilliant to welcome Charlie back to Bryanston! He spoke with a real sense of passion and the audience instantly engaged with him. His journey was extraordinary and it has been lovely hearing students setting themselves ambitious challenges, as a result of his talk. Thank you so much for your visit, we look forward to seeing you again!”
-Bryanston School, Dorset
“Charlie's journey around the world is full of important lessons for us all and a perfect demonstration of determination and resilience. Our students were buzzing with enthusiasm afterwards.”
-Wimbledon High School, London
“The questions asked afterwards are the measure of a good talk and, judging from the response to yours, you were sensational… the students didn’t want to leave. You engaged with such a diverse audience – staff, sixth formers and year sevens were all keen to speak with you afterwards. Besides being incredibly funny, your self-effacing delivery pointed to the adventurous spirit and deep vein of untapped resources within all of us.”
-Tudor Hall School, Oxfordshire
“Charlie’s talk was inspiring, thought provoking and engaging. His pleasant manner and sense of humour had our students hooked and genuinely considering how much they could achieve in life. We will definitely be inviting him back again!”
-Stoneyhurst College, Lancashire
“Charlie is an excellent speaker and his talk was perfectly targeted at the audience – keeping 250 13-18 year olds enthralled on a Friday evening was a challenge he was well-equipped to meet! His engaging manner, entertaining anecdotes and self-deprecating humour only serve to highlight the impressive nature of his journey and the trials and challenges he has overcome during his travels. An inspirational evening.”
-Milton Abbey School, Dorset
“To say the boys were enthralled, inspired, hanging on every word, amazed and terrified in equal measure would be an understatement of significant proportion.”
-Caldicott School, Bucks
“Charlie's talk inspired our sixth form so much that they were all still talking about it the next day. Many felt moved to try things they hitherto thought impossible! It was great to see the students engaged by his ‘show’ rather than ‘tell’ approach. Charlie is able to engage the students with his enthralling story, advising them without lecturing by sharing his own awesome experiences. Without patronising, Charlie talks of resilience, problem solving, persistence, determination and optimism, all within a 40 minute talk. The best speaker we have had this academic year – we can’t wait to see him again.”
-St Edmunds College, Herts
“A wonderful tale of bravery and endeavour.”
-St George’s School, Windsor
“Charlie instantly engaged my students with his wit and honesty. He had some cracking anecdotes on the subject of fear and violence. They loved how frank he was when answering their questions. It made them feel respected. I can see it has opened up some doors in their mind, particularly regarding how they think about different cultures. Of course, they are all planning their own trips now. Thank you Charlie!”
-St Julians, Lisbon
"Charlie gave a fascinating, entertaining and truly inspiring talk to our Sixth Form about his exploits. His accompanying photographs of the landscapes and the people he encountered were exceptional and we've never had so many questions from the audience before."
-Giggleswick School, North Yorkshire
“Of the many fascinating speakers who have visited the school, Charlie’s incredible tales elicited the strongest audience response from both children and adults alike – it was a remarkable story, brilliantly told.”
-Bickley Park School, Kent
“Charlie gave a fascinating insight into what it means to be an adventurer in the twenty first century. He kept the boys absolutely spell bound with his tales of evading Chinese guards and travelling the world.”
-Ludgrove School, Berkshire
“Charlie is an engaging speaker, the boys really enjoyed hearing about his experiences which I’m sure will inspire faith in their own abilities and to take the first steps to realising their greatest ambitions.”
-Shrewsbury House School, Surrey
“Charlie's story is amazing! Our students were totally absorbed in his incredible adventure and enthralling delivery. He tailored his talk to fit with our term's themes of Resilience and Perseverance, which provided the perfect end point to our class discussions. If Carlsberg did entertaining, thought provoking & informative Prep School speakers...”
-Eagle House School, Berkshire
“Charlie's talk was inspirational not just because of the physical adventure but also the issues of the different peoples he met in terms of their politics, religions, hospitality and respective cultures. He also clearly demonstrated that any dream can be realised and that people are not necessarily restricted by their environs. The Sixth Form Students that Charlie talked to thoroughly enjoyed the event.”
-Queenswood School, Herts
“Charlie held the audience of 250 enthralled with his epic tales of cycling, walking and canoeing across three continents. He spoke with disarming humility of the perils and hardships he faced and each student was left with both a sense of wonder about how he survived such a remarkable feat, and importantly the inspiration that they too could tackle such an adventure if so they wished. Charlie’s story reminds us of the importance of resilience, courage and challenge in our lives which can easily be overlooked in our modern world. We had a rare glimpse into the life of a true adventurer and everyone was left wanting to know more.”
-Windlesham House School, West Sussex
"I have seen and arranged many talks over the years: Charlie’s stimulating and entertaining presentation must rate as one of the best. His love of life, of its potential and the opportunities it offers, cannot but impress. He is highly recommended.”
-Sibford School, Oxfordshire
“Such an inspirational talk, really enjoyed by all, and we were privileged to be in the room. It was fabulous to stand at the front and to see the full sense of appreciation from the packed audience.”
-St Andrews School, Berkshire
“Our students, parents and staff alike thoroughly enjoyed the talk; many people say they could have easily listened to him for another hour, and they have many more questions! Charlie kept the audience captivated, inquisitive and thoroughly entertained! I think they took a lot away from the experience and we would most definitely like to welcome him back again in the future.”
-King Edward's Witley, Surrey
“Charlie has the ability to engage absolutely everyone in a room. I have never seen so many hands going up to ask questions. His approachable and positive manner help to make him a wonderful speaker and I could not recommend him enough. We look to forward to Charlie’s next visit.”
-King Edward VI School, Southampton
"Charlie's talk was gripping! There was always something unexpected. He interacted with us really well and his lively speaking invoked my curiosity to hear more."
-Year 12 student, Sibford School, Oxfordshire
"Charlie featured in the London line up of our 'Night of Adventure'. These unique events bring together an eclectic collection of first-class adventurers, from across the spectrum. Each speaker is limited to just 20 slides to accompany their tales. The challenge is that each slide automatically scrolls forward after just 20 seconds. Charlie rose to that challenge and thoroughly entertained the sell out audience of 950 with his daring descent of a little known tributary of the Congo River by dugout canoe, dodging crocodiles, hippos and rapids along the way."
-Hope & Homes for Children
“Charlie’s talk – and superb accompanying photos - on his round-the-world cycle had the boys transfixed from start to finish. There lessons for the boys in terms of the importance of perseverance, setting goals and overcoming obstacles, however, Charlie broached them with subtlety while doing a simply superb job of bringing the adventures and thrills of his odyssey to life.”
-Woodcote House School, Surrey
“The students really enjoyed the talk which was funny, interesting and engaging. They loved listening to Charlie's stories and were bursting with questions afterwards. We've already asked him back for next year!”
-Perins School, Hampshire
“I was amazed about what Charlie had done, it made me really think about how big the world is and how much is out there.”
-Year 7 student, Perins School, Hampshire
“Charlie was an inspiration to all of us and inspiration should be at the heart of any child’s education. The children haven’t stopped speaking about him and I overheard three boys discussing, with genuine thought and consideration, how they might make it to America on a pedal powered boat!”
-Daneshill Prepschool, Hampshire
"His obvious enthusiasm for life, willingness to embrace new cultures and endeavour in surmounting personal and physical obstacles was a most inspirational message for our students. Charlie's passion was tangible throughout his presentation, which was rich with the colour and vibrancy of his travels and which led us all to consider the wonderful opportunity and experience travel offers."
-Amery Hill School, Hampshire
“Charlie delivered a thoroughly entertaining talk at our Presentation Day, engaging both the children and their parents with the fascinating and inspiring story of his travels.”
-St Edward’s Prep School, Gloucestershire
“An engaging, inspirational and funny speech. The audience were captivated Charlie’s tales and left wanting to hear more. The students were inspired and now feel they too can do anything they set their mind to.”
-Farnham Heath End School, Surrey
“He can grip the adults, the 13 year olds and the 7 year olds at the same time...Defiantly one of the best and not to be missed while he is in the country.”
-St Ronan’s School, Kent
"We had Charlie in to talk about our current topic of exploration to our year 7 and year 8 pupils. He talk was both amusing and inspiring for the kids. Well worth it. The kids were in awe of him!"
-Immanuel and St Andrew Primary School, London
"Charlie's experiences were so engaging and relevant to our classroom discussions. Our students loved speaking with him and he truly inspired them to question things and learn more about our world! I hope he continues to connect with classrooms all over the world! Truly an adventurer...the kids loved it!"
-Spirit Lake Community School, Iowa, USA