Ant Middleton

Anthony Middleton (born 22 September 1980) is a former British soldier, adventurer and television presenter. He is best known as the Chief Instructor on the Channel 4 television series SAS: Who Dares Wins. Middleton also appeared as the captain in the adventure/reality-show Mutiny and the survival show Escape. In 2018 he climbed Everest for the TV show Extreme Everest with Ant Middleton.

Ant Middleton
Born
Anthony Middleton

(1980-09-22) 22 September 1980
Portsmouth, Hampshire, England
OccupationTelevision personality, adventurer
Years active2015–present
Spouse(s)Emilie Middleton
Children5
Military career
AllegianceUnited Kingdom
Service/branchBritish Army (1998–2002)
Royal Marines (2005–2012)
Years of service1998–2002
2005–2012
Service number255700
Unit9 Parachute Squadron Royal Engineers
40 Commando
Special Boat Service
Battles/warsNorthern Ireland
War in Afghanistan
Websitehttps://antmiddleton.com

Career

Military service

Middleton joined the army in 1998[1] at the age of 17 where he served in the 9 Parachute Squadron RE and served tours of duty in Northern Ireland in 1999 and North Macedonia in 2001. After leaving the army he later enlisted in the Royal Marines in 2005. He passed out of his commando course in January 2006, winning the King's Badge, and was posted to B Company, 40 Commando. In 2007, he did his first tour in Afghanistan. In 2008 he joined the Special Boat Service, serving for four years. In this time he completed two further tours in Afghanistan and reached the rank of L/Cpl.

Television

Middleton is the Chief Instructor on SAS: Who Dares Wins, a reality quasi-military training television programme produced by Channel 4, which was first broadcast in 2015. The show propelled Middleton into celebrity limelight, and since its screening Middleton's popularity has increased significantly, allowing him more TV opportunities. Mutiny, an adventure/reality crossover show, screened on UK television in February 2017, with Middleton starring as boat captain alongside eight volunteering participants.[2] The show was a re-enactment of the infamous Mutiny on the Bounty and Middleton described the experience as, "... mentally speaking, the hardest thing I've ever done."[3]

Publications

In 2017, Middleton co-authored his first book, SAS: Who Dares Wins: Leadership Secrets from the Special Forces, with his fellow TV presenters and Special Forces colleagues Jason Fox, Matthew "Ollie" Ollerton and Colin Maclachlan. Middleton's autobiography, First Man In: Leading from the Front, was published in 2018, becoming a Number 1 Sunday Times best-seller.[4] His second book,The Fear Bubble: Harness Fear and Live Without Limits, was published in 2019, and was also No.1 on The Sunday Times best-seller chart.

Other

In 2018 Middleton climbed Mount Everest.[5]

In November 2019 Middleton was appointed as Chief Cadet in the Royal Navy's [[Volunteer Cadet Corps], just 9 months later he was forced to resign from the role after calling BLM protesters “scum”

Personal life

Middleton was born in Portsmouth, Hampshire, and brought up in France.[6]

In 2013, as a result of a "nightclub bust-up" in Chelmsford, Essex,[7] Middleton was convicted of the unlawful wounding of one police officer, PC Christopher Brooksbank, and common assault upon a second, PC Katherine Alison. He was sentenced to 14 months in prison, of which he served four months.[7][8]

During the Covid-19 pandemic in March 2020 he was heavily criticised for encouraging the public to ignore government social distancing advice.[9] Later that year in June 2020, Middleton was criticised for calling Black Lives Matter protestors "absolute scum", something for which he later apologised. [10]



RibbonDescriptionNotes
General Service Medal
  • With "NORTHERN IRELAND" Clasp
NATO Medal for North Macedonia
Operational Service Medal for Afghanistan
  • With clasp "AFGHANISTAN"
Queen Elizabeth II Diamond Jubilee Medal
  • 2012
  • UK version of this medal

References
  1. "twitter". Twitter. Retrieved 12 June 2020.
  2. Ling, Thomas (27 February 2017). "The crew on Mutiny, C4's Bounty documentary, lost almost 4 stone during their voyage". Radio Times. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  3. "Meet the men recreating the Mutiny on the Bounty for Channel 4". Radio Times. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  4. "First Man In: No.1 Sunday Times Best Seller". Ant Middleton.
  5. "Ant Middleton: 'My wife called me an idiot when she found out how close I'd come to death on Everest ... to be fair, I agreed with her!'". The Belfast Telegraph. 10 November 2018. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  6. "Ant Middleton | Biography". antmiddleton.com. Retrieved 12 November 2018.
  7. Methven, Nicola (21 October 2015). "TV SAS star was jailed for violent assault on police". mirror. Retrieved 16 December 2018.
  8. "Who Dares Wins star Ant Middleton is a Rangers fan". The Evening Times. 7 June 2018. Retrieved 16 June 2019.
  10. Rodger, James (17 June 2020). "Ant Middleton apologises for Black Lives Matter 'scum' comment". coventrytelegraph. Retrieved 17 June 2020.
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