Joe Simpson (mountaineer)
Joe Simpson (born 1960) is an English mountaineer, author and motivational speaker. He is best known for his book Touching the Void and the 2003 film adaptation of his book.
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[edit] Early life
Simpson was born on 13 August 1960[1] in Kuala Lumpur, Federation of Malaysia,[2] where his father was stationed with the British Army. From the age of 8, Simpson travelled between schools in Britain, primarily Ampleforth College, and various countries where his father was stationed. [3] He was just 14 when he read The White Spider: The Classic Account of the Ascent of the Eiger, an epic account of efforts to conquer the North Face of the Eiger by Heinrich Harrer, who climbed the then unconquered North Face with Anderl Heckmair, Fritz Kasparek, and Ludwig Vörg on 24 July 1938. Despite the inherent dangers of mountaineering described in the book, this reading sparked a passion for the mountains in the young man.
[edit] Climbing career
In 1985, Simpson and climbing partner Simon Yates made a first-ascent of the previously unclimbed West Face of the 6,344 metre (20,813 foot) Siula Grande, in the Peruvian Andes. On the descent, Simpson broke his leg and during the subsequent self-rescue in a storm, the two became separated. The climb was nearly fatal for both climbers, and their ordeal is described in Simpson's book Touching the Void.
Upon returning to Britain, Yates received criticism for cutting the rope on which Simpson hung. Simpson vigorously defended his teammate, saying he had absolutely no other alternative given the situation.[4]
Simpson received numerous surgical operations as a result of the leg injuries sustained on Siula Grande. The doctors told him he would never climb again and he would have trouble walking for the rest of his life. After 2 years of rehabilitation, he was back on the mountains.
He made six unsuccessful attempts on the North Face of Eiger from 2000 to 2003 with his regular climbing partner Ray Delaney, all aborted by bad weather.[5]
A bad fall broke his left ankle while climbing with Mal Duff in 1991 on Pachermo in Nepal, and is described in Simpson's third book This Game of Ghosts.
His later non-fiction books describe other expeditions and his changing feeling towards extreme mountaineering brought on by the many deaths that surround the pursuit. One of his books, The Beckoning Silence, was made into a documentary shown on Channel 4 in October 2007.[6] The book won the 2003 National Outdoor Book Award (Outdoor Literature category).
Simpson has begun another career as a motivational speaker, addressing corporate events throughout the world.
His best-selling book about the Siula Grande ordeal, Touching The Void, has been translated into 23 languages and has sold 500,000 copies worldwide.[7]
Simpson's most recent book is the novel The Sound of Gravity.
[edit] Bibliography
Except as noted, all works are non-fiction.
- Touching the Void (Jonathan Cape) 1988
- The Water People (fiction) (Jonathan Cape) 1992
- This Game of Ghosts (Jonathan Cape) 1993
- Storms of Silence (Jonathan Cape) 1996
- Dark Shadows Falling (Jonathan Cape) 1997
- The Beckoning Silence (Jonathan Cape) 2002
- The Sound of Gravity (fiction) (Jonathan Cape) 2011
[edit] References
- ^ http://www.noordinaryjoe.co.uk/aboutme.asp
- ^ http://www.bbc.co.uk/radio4/factual/desertislanddiscs_20040919.shtml
- ^ This Game of Ghosts, p. 27.
- ^ http://www.abc-of-mountaineering.com/info/joe-simpson.asp
- ^ Simpson, Joe (22 October 2007). "Joe Simpson: My journey back into the void". The Daily Telegraph (London). http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/features/3634463/Joe-Simpson-My-journey-back-into-the-void.html.
- ^ "Joe Simpson: My journey back into the void". London: The Daily Telegraph.. 22 October 2007. http://www.telegraph.co.uk/portal/main.jhtml?xml=/portal/2007/10/22/nosplit/ftvoid122.xml. Retrieved 2008-02-03.
- ^ http://www.noordinaryjoe.co.uk/news_item34.asp
