BBCs fulltime Security Correspondent reporting on events from Afghanistan to piracy off the Somali coast to Arctic challenges Shot 6 times at close range while on assignment in Saudi Arabia in 2004 left severely wounded and dependant on a wheelchair Awarded an OBE by HM The Queen in 2005 Author of 3 bestselling books Blood and Sand describing his Middle East experiences and Far Horizons describing unusual journeys to unusual places and Crisis his debut spy thriller set in Colombia Married with 2 children lives in London