Brian Milton

Brian Milton has combined a career as a top TV presenter and journalist in TV, radio and the press with hair-raising adventures around the world.

In 1968-1969 he drove a 1937 Austin 7 across the Sahara Desert and through the Congo to marry a girl at the other end of Africa. He failed in North Eastern Zaire, after 2,000 miles on 3 pistons, 900 miles without any brakes, and 5 weeks without any money.

In the 1970's he was a BBC Radio freelance, often contributing to BBC Radio 4 'Today' programme, and BBC World Service. From 1980-82 he was the Editor of the 2-hour daily current affairs programme, 'Rush Hour', with ('Face the Facts') John Waite as his presenter. During this period, he founded and flew in the National Hang Gliding League, which took Britain from also-ran status to becoming world champions for 10 years.

Prince Charles gave him the Prince of Wales Trophy in 1979, the highest award in British sporting aviation, for taking a British team to the US and beating them 7-2. In 1985 the Queen gave him the National Trophy, the highest award in British hang gliding first recipient, the three subsequent winners were world champions.

From 1982-7, he worked as editor, industrial reporter and financial correspondent at TV-am. He founded, edited and presented the half hour daily TV financial programme 'European Business Today' in 1990-91 and was Editor of 'Euromoney TV' and then edited BSkyB's 'Business Sunday' programme.

In 1987-8 he flew a microlight, The Dalgety Flyer, from London to Sydney in 59 days, still the longest and fastest microlight flight in history, and an official Bicentenary event.

Incidents included being wrecked by high winds on a Greek island and gluing the aircraft together again in 6 days, crossing the Mediteranean, three desert outlandings (once to avoid a sandstorm, twice with poor fuel), and ditching in the Persian Gulf on Christmas Day 32 miles from Abu Dhabi in the middle of the Iran- Iraq War. He reached Darwin, Australia after 50 days, by island hopping through storms in Indonesia.

The aircraft is now in the Powerhouse Museum in Sydney, and a candidate for a special display case in the new Banktown Airport being built for the 2,000 Olympics. He led both commemorative Bleriot microlight crossings in 1989 and 1992 and the flight of 22 microlights out of Heathrow to Paris in appalling weather in 1994. He is the author of 'The Dalgety Flyer' (Bloomsbury), 'The Children of the Wind', 'Some Thoughts on the Military Uses of Microlights'. The flight has been in the Guinness Book of Records for the last six years.

A natural communicator and motivational speaker , Brian Milton recounts his remarkable adventures around the world, and outlines how he sets himself the challenges and overcomes the many obstacles he confronts.