Chris Bonington is Britain's best known climber and one of the most successful expedition leaders in the World having led the teams that made the first ascents of the South Face of Annapurna and the South West Face of Everest. He has been at the cutting edge of climbing for the last forty years making first ascents of twenty peaks in the greater ranges of the World. His ascent of the Ogre with Doug Scott in 1978 was only repeated after twenty attempts in 2002.

He has put into practice the lessons learnt in expedition leadership in the voluntary sector in many lead roles including that of President of the British Mountaineering Council and President of the Council for National Parks and in the business sector as Chairman of Berghaus, Britain's most successful outdoors clothing brand. He is in high demand as a motivational speaker around the world, has written 14 books and fronted numerous television programs and has been awarded

the prestigious Founders Medal of the Royal Geographical Society, been made a Commander of the British Empire and received a knighthood in 1996. He still climbs actively and made a first ascent of an unclimbed peak in the Kulu range of the Indian Himalaya in 2003.