About this episode
Dwayne Fields shares his journey from a challenging childhood to becoming an explorer and the UK's Chief Scout.
Dwayne Fields is an explorer and broadcaster who was appointed the UK’s Chief Scout in 2024. He is the first black Briton to reach the Magnetic North Pole. His television work includes fronting the series 7 Toughest Days and co-presenting Endurance: Race to the Pole, and Expedition: Search for the Nile, with fellow adventurer Ben Fogle. Dwayne was born in Jamaica and was brought up by his great-grandmother for the first few years of his life. When he was six he moved to north London to live with his mother. He struggled to adapt to his new surroundings until he found his way to a Cub Scouts meeting where he experienced a sense of belonging for the first time since his arrival. As a teenager, he grew up surrounded by gang violence and experienced a serious knife attack when he was 19. A few years later, during a heated confrontation, he had a gun pointed at him. The gun misfired twice and he survived. This shocking incident spurred Dwayne to change his life and challenge himself to inspire other young people to do the same. In 2010, he walked 400 nautical miles to reach the Magnetic North Pole. In 2019, he co‑founded the WeTwo Foundation with explorer and wild camper Phoebe Smith…
People in this episode
Guest: Dwayne Fields
Topics covered
- exploration
- personal transformation
- adventure
- youth empowerment
- scouting
Keywords
- explorer
- Magnetic North Pole
- Cub Scouts
- WeTwo Foundation
- youth empowerment
Mentioned in this episode
Organizations: WeTwo Foundation
Books & works: Three Little Birds, Dance With My Father
Places: Jamaica, Magnetic North Pole, north London, Peterborough
More episodes of Desert Island Discs
- David Morrissey, actor · June 6, 2026 · 51 min
- Classic Desert Island Discs - Whoopi Goldberg · May 31, 2026 · 35 min
- Classic Desert Island Discs - Arsène Wenger · May 24, 2026 · 48 min
- Classic Desert Island Discs - Dame Donna Langley · May 17, 2026 · 35 min
- Classic Desert Island Discs - Dr Jane Goodall · May 3, 2026 · 37 min
- Si King, cook · April 25, 2026 · 50 min
Explore listener stats, chart rankings, contacts and more on the Desert Island Discs podcast page.