Sir Ranulph Fiennes: a life of adventure

1971: Captain Sir Ranulph Twistleton-Wykeham-Fiennes with his wife Virginia, 23, at Lyneham. The photo was taken before a Royal Scots Greys expedition to uncover the secrets of the notorious Headless valley, in northern Canada Photograph: PA

1990: Taking part in the Anglo-Soviet North Pole expedition. He was Leader of the Pentland South Pole expedition, which achieved the first unsupported crossing of the Antarctic continent and the longest unsupported polar journey in history, in 1992/1993 Photograph: PA Photos

1991: Fiennes in Poles Apart, an episode of the TV programme Viewpoint 91. He took part in Transglobe, the first surface journey around the world's polar axis from 1979 to 1982, during which Fiennes and Charles Burton became the first people ever to reach both poles by surface travel. He then went on a North Pole unsupported expedition in 1986 Photograph: ITV/Rex Features

1999: Fiennes of Team Hi-Tec in action during a mountaineering leg of the Discovery Channel eco challenge, in Patagonia, Argentina Photograph: Graham Chadwick/Getty Images

2000: Fiennes in a picture from his book Beyond the Limits (Little, Brown and Company 2000). Fiennes is also the author of several books including his autobiography, Living Dangerously, The Feather Men (a UK No 1 bestseller), Atlantis of the Sands, Mind Over Matter (a harrowing account of his Antarctic expedition), The Sett, Beyond the Limits and his most recent, The Secret Hunters Photograph: Ranulph Fiennes/© Little, Brown and Company 2000

2000: The frost-covered face of Fiennes from his book Beyond the Limits Photograph: Ranulph Fiennes /© Little, Brown and Company 2000

2003: Fiennes (l) and Mike Stroud run around the Sydney Harbour foreshore at the start of the Sydney marathon leg of the Land Rover 7x7x7 challenge. Fiennes attempted to run seven marathons in seven days Photograph: Paul Miller/EPA

2003: Fiennes starts the Egyptian marathon in front of the Sphinx, near Cairo. Fiennes attempted his feat less than five months after suffering a near-fatal heart attack Photograph: Salah Ibrahim/EPA

2007: Fiennes scales a climbing wall in east London, before his attempt to climb the north face of Mount Eiger to raise money for the Marie Curie charity. Fiennes suffers from vertigo, a heart condition and has lost fingers from his left hand to frost bite Photograph: Carl De Souza/AFP

2008: Fiennes on his second Everest expedition. He has reached the summit of the world's tallest mountain on his third attempt, this year Photograph: Liz Scarff/PA

2008: Fiennes on his second Everest expedition. Photograph: Liz Scarff/PA