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Oliver Steed has travelled, explored and caused trouble in over 100 countries including expeditions in Mongolia, Mauritania, Niger, Algeria, Saudi Arabia, Yemen, China, Syria, Jordan, the Amazon and New Guinea. His adventures have seen him live with tribes of cannibals, walk 1250 kilometers across the Gobi Desert for his survival, go in search of the Ark of the Covenant, Atlantis and the Lost City of Gold ‘El Dorado’, escape from the People’s Liberation Army after being chased across the Shangtu Grassland, run six consecutive marathons across the Sahara to raise money for Lupus, get jailed on trumped up charges of espionage in a number of different countries, escape from Devil’s Island (the notorious Papillion Prison in French Guiana, try to hunt down the Amber Room (the most valuable piece of missing art in the world), have horses stolen by rustlers, hunt with stoned Mbuti Pygmies in the lawless Congolese Ituri, retrieve video tapes from a kidnapped family in Nicaragua, and even lead a Royal Geographical Society Expedition to research the Grass Silk Road.
Oliver presents adventure, historical, tribal and scientific programming in the UK, US and Worldwide for the Discovery Channel, Travel Channel, and Channel 4 amongst others.
Oliver is the youngest of 50 of the world’s leading explorers featured in ‘Faces of Exploration’ alongside such luminaries as Buzz Aldrin, Dr. Jane Goodall and Sir Ranulph Fiennes where he’s described as ‘a representative of the new generation modern, media savvy, high tech, digital adventurer.’
Oliver is also the Director of Digital Explorer and the Academy of Exploration dedicated to engaging young people in global issues for a better future and co-founder of the non profit iNOMAD. He is a Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, the Explorer’s Club, the Scientific Exploration Society, one of the founding evolutionaries behind The Beagle Campaign a proud member of the Cordon Rouge Club. He speaks rather bad Mandarin Chinese and worse French, Mongolian, Kombai, Mek, Machigenga and Uighur and he’s trying to learn Spanish.
INVESTIGATIVE REPORTER
Oliver is a critically acclaimed international investigative reporter. Whenever possible, he works with the multi-award winning international investigative series ‘Unreported World’ on Channel 4. His reports include Malaria Town and The Great Escape, the latter reporting from the Chinese-North Korean borders about the plight of North Koreans fleeing into China including thousands of women who have been forced into prostitution or sold as brides after fleeing persecution and starvation.
His other reports have been featured on ABC, BBC Channel 4 and Al Jazeera English among others but there’s no story that’s off-limits he’s covered war, human rights, indigenous peoples, environmental affairs, politics and development. If anything, Olly specializes in investigating the under-reported whether it’s being smuggled through the jungles of Northern Burma to report on the illegal trade in hardwoods, drugs and gems that keeps the military junta in business or confronting Chinese politicians over accusations of illegal imprisonment and torture, or whether he’s heading into the Sahara to record evidence of ongoing chattel slavery or even filming undercover in Al Qaeda gun-markets it’s in these places, for some reason, that Oliver seems to be the most effective.
Oliver’s work has been nominated and short-listed for Best Current Affairs Program (Asian TV Awards), US Livingstone Award for Young Journalists, and nominated for Emmy’s and Overseas Press Awards. Oliver was formerly a producer at ABC News including managing ABC News’ Asia news operations from their Beijing HQ. Regarded highly in his industry, Oliver lectures on investigative reporting, broadcast journalism and filming in hostile environments.
Ten questions he thought he’d never have to ask
1. What’s the best way to cook human flesh? (New Guinea)
2. Are you sure you’re an anethetist? What happens when I lose conciousness? (broken arm, somewhere in former Soviet Union)
3. Why do you think I’m a transvestite? (at home in Reading, UK)
4. Why are you trying to set me up with the Minister of the Interior? (to the President of Botswana)
5. Why do we only have 5 boiled sweets to eat and Wet Wipes to drink for the next 4 days? (On foot, in the Gobi desert)
6. Are we lost? (Answer Yes. situation as above)
7. I’ve broken out of prison and I’m on the run. Can you call the Consulate? (To my mother).
8. Please can you be more gentle? (To Fijians whilst playing rugby against them in Hong Kong)
9. Why are you doing this? (To myself whilst tackling trying to run 6 consequetive marathons across the Sahara)
10. Do you have anything bigger? (To an arms dealer in a known Al Qaeda gunmarket, Yemen)
Oliver is now the Chief Executive and Founder of Nekton, a company who have been doing scientific research and marine operations across our oceans since 2015.
