He has conquered Everest, scaled the north face of the Eiger and has run across deserts, but Sir Ranulph Fiennes appears to have met his match in a clash with Whitehall bureaucrats, according to reports.
The 72-year-old, called “the world’s greatest living explorer” by Guinness World Records, claimed the Foreign Office blocked an attempt to traverse the Antarctic during winter as it would be “embarrassing” for them if he got into difficulties.
Fiennes said British officials were worried they would be left red-faced as there is no rescue service in the overseas territory for thousands of miles, so his “bucket list” item may have to go unticked, the Daily Telegraph reported.
Speaking at the Cheltenham Literature Festival, he said: “For 39 years now our group has tried to break world records. We have always had a problem with the same people; they are called the Norwegians. This makes us want to go for bucket lists where they still have not got there, and crossing the Antarctic continent in winter has never been done by anybody.
“The main problem is called the Foreign Office. They do not allow you down there because there is no rescue service for 8,000 miles during the winter and therefore you become embarrassing to your government.”
Despite his advancing years, a heart attack and losing fingers to frostbite, Fiennes is preparing to complete another gruelling challenge. He hopes to enter the history books again by becoming the first person to cross both polar ice caps and climb the highest mountain on every continent.
He will attempt to scale four mammoth peaks in 10 months, having already reached the north pole and south pole in 1982. However, he still wants to be first to cross Antarctica in the depths of winter, having failed during an attempt in 2013.
Foreign and Commonwealth Office (FCO) guidance says the British Antarctic Territory is inaccessible during winter months – March to October – and that permits may be required for travel to the icy wilderness.
A spokesman said: “There is not a blanket ban on travel to Antarctica in winter, but it has to be safe. Sir Ranulph Fiennes is a great British explorer who we can be proud of and in 2013 the FCO gave permission for Sir Ranulph to travel there in winter, but unfortunately, as was widely reported at the time, he had to abandon that expedition.”
