The British adventurer Ben Fogle revealed he is set to reunite with his “precious family” after an extraordinary trip away filming the new series of his show Ben Fogle: New Lives in the Wild. The dad-of-two, 51, didn’t go into detail about the trip but shared a photo of himself standing on the Great Wall of China.“I’ve reached the end of an extraordinary journey across one of the most secretive places in the world…Now back to spend time with my precious family…” Ben wrote.
So far, Ben’s Channel Five programme has seen him travel everywhere from Wales to Utah, to meet and document the lives of people who have left their urban lives behind to live in remote and self-sufficient ways. It’s safe to say fans cannot wait to see the result of Ben’s latest adventure. One follower wrote in the comments: “Blimey Ben! Wow can't wait to see this one! No wonder it's been quiet on here lately without you.”
Meanwhile, a second added: “Yes, you are right! It is time to come down from the Great Wall of China and return to your family cocoon. They must certainly miss you.” A third penned: “Looking forward to this. Safe travels.”
Ben’s quiet family life
Ben is a devoted father to two children, his son, Ludo, 15, and daughter, Iona, 13, whom he shares with his wife of 19 years, Marina. The family-of-four live in a stunning £2.2 million home in Henley, and while he may be a star adventurer on our screens, being a father is what he’s most proud of. "Fatherhood is the best thing that's ever happened to me," the doting dad told the Metro in 2019.
His son Ludo has even inherited his father’s love of the outdoors: "My son's like me in that he loves the outdoors, whether it's in the sunshine or rain, but he doesn't have the shyness I suffered from as a child,” he said. "My daughter is more like my wife as she's relaxed and chilled but definitely knows what she wants," he continued.
While Ludo is a lot like his famous dad, Ben previously told HELLO! in an exclusive interview that he is also heavily inspired by his veterinarian grandfather, Bruce Fogle, revealing his son’s desire to become a vet himself a decision he made “pretty much from when he could talk.”He loves animals," the Channel 5 favourite said. "We have a black Labrador called Storm who he absolutely loves. My father – his grandfather – was a vet and he loves going to the veterinary clinic and sitting in on the operations and sitting in on the consultations so I know he would love to work with animals one day.
"But he's fascinated by travel and I was lucky enough to take them to Africa and they loved seeing all the big African animals and they got to meet baby elephants… Iona as well." His recent update isn’t the first time he’s shared his adoration for coming home to his loved ones.
"Coming home is the best feeling ever. There's nothing like perspective to remind you of what you have," he previously told House Beautiful. "We can all get a bit complacent with our home, our family and what we have. I love coming home, being in our house, being back with family and dogs. If I could bottle how it feels, I probably wouldn't have to work again." Both children attend boarding school close to their home in Henley.