Round-the-world walker Karl Bushby to tell story of 'true British grit' to theatre audiences
Round-the-world walker Karl Bushby is about to step into the next chapter of his life – telling his “deeply human tale of courage, British grit, sacrifice and refusal to surrender” to theatre audiences.
A civic welcome will greet the 57-year-old when he finally makes it back to Hull on Monday, 28 years after setting out from Punta Arenas in Chile.
Bushby set himself two strict rules – to use no transport to advance his journey, and he couldn’t go home until the mission was completed on foot.
He has since travelled 36,000 miles (58,000 km), crossing the deadly Darien Gap between Colombia and Panama and the frozen Bering Strait between Alaska and Siberia, Russia. He recently swam the Channel to get back to the UK.
After crossing the Humber Bridge, Bushby is expected to arrive in the city centre at about 11am before continuing to his mother’s home on Sutton Park estate “for a cup of tea and a biscuit”.
Bushby has already spoken about how difficult to readjust after so many years on the road. "Ending something like this is hard.
"There’s going to be bit of an impact, the whole psychology of losing who you were”, he told ITV, adding that his family “is going to be a much tougher challenge”.
He will be appearing on stage at Hull New Theatre on November 13 and at York Theatre Royal on November 22, where audiences can hear about the “sheer determination that has carried him across continents”.
People can pay an extra £58.50 in York for a “meet and greet”, including a drink.