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Secret Compass

There's Always A Way. To us nothing is impossible and nowhere is unreachable.

Whether there’s a new destination to be reached, a new path to be forged, or a pioneering feat to be achieved – we’ll always find a way. We lead pioneering expeditions to the most remote regions on earth and have designed some of the most ambitious film shoots on the planet.

10/12/2024

Have you caught any episodes of Asia over on ?

Asia's landscape is exceptionally diverse, but whilst it provides shelter, food and opportunity, it is also full of dangers and hidden threats.

Our projects director, , spent 10 days as mountain safety, medic and security adviser on a 'camera trapping' trip for the show, helping the crew learn how to set up and service camera traps safely.

As a result, they got the first footage of a female Persian Leopard and her cubs in the little-known forests of Iraqi Kurdistan, an incredibly rare sighting, which you can see in episode 4: Tangled Worlds.

Read more about the trip and these remarkable creatures at the link below:

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/articles/3p35ryMbMdry2dqL06GYtfb/filming-a-family-of-persian-leopards-whilst-learning-kurdish

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04/12/2024

🌴Papua New Guinea🌴

Earlier this year, we embarked on one last expedition to PNG.

A place we have visited many times, but never fails to amaze, inspire and challenge us.

Expeditions will always be part of the Secret Compass DNA - thank you to everyone who made this trip, and every other, so memorable.

We'll leave the final thoughts to one of our awesome team mates, Michael Kelley.

"It was absolutely epic on so many levels: culture, nature, physicality, camaraderie and organisational leadership. The leaders are the real deal and were fantastic from start to finish. I’ll miss SC expeditions - they have made a genuine impact on my life over the years."

29/11/2024

🚨WE ARE HIRING!🚨

We have an exciting opportunity to join the Secret Compass team as a TV Risk Manager.

Based in our Bristol office, you can expect to be an integral part of the Secret Compass Operations Team, focused on the delivery of high quality, professional support to our client base across a wide range of varied projects in the TV and Film sphere.

The role will involve working with the wider Secret Compass team in assessing the requirement of any given project, developing and reviewing risk assessments and safety plans, and supporting our clients to successfully achieve their goals.

If this sounds like your dream job, we would love to hear from you. Apply via the link in bio. 🔗

27/11/2024

🪢Show 'em the ropes🪢

A fun day out doing serious work - rope training at Avon Gorge for an upcoming project with difficult access.

We covered:
🔥Assessment of the ground
🔥The principles of using ropes for protection at height
🔥The equipment
🔥Assessment of anchors
🔥Knots
🔥Emergencies
🔥Transporting heavy equipment

24/11/2024

🎥There's Always a Way🎥

We believe there is a way to tell every story.

Our team have managed a wide range of shoots in hostile environments around the world. We operate regularly in places like Afghanistan, Syria, Iraq, North Africa and have managed cartel-focused shoots in Central and South America. We have also deployed people to support news in places like Ukraine, Israel and Libya.

We provide realistic, contextual advice that is specific not just to your shoot, but to individual sequences. We understand these environments and we understand how you work within them. As a result our security advice is highly respected by networks, including BBC, Apple, C4, Netflix and Disney.

Wherever you need to go, and whatever story you want to tell - there's always a way.

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18/11/2024

Exciting times over here at Secret Compass HQ! As we head towards the end of a very interesting year, we're excited to say that we've just opened recruitment for the role of TV Risk Manager.

Head to our website or click the link below for more info, and to apply. The first wave of interviews will take place before the Christmas break. We look forward to hearing from you!

https://secretcompass.com/tv-risk-manager-apply-now/

17/11/2024

Secret Compass Director, Ben Major, has been to some of the world’s most remote and challenging places, so we knew he’d have a story or two up his sleeve.

Ben’s diverse career spans military service, mountaineering, wildlife conservation, and television consultancy. A seasoned adventurer, explorer, and survival expert, with over 40 global expeditions under his belt, he’s led some of Secret Compass’ most ground-breaking projects.

We grabbed 10 minutes with Ben - read the chat at our link in bio or click the link in stories.

03/11/2024

🔵River shoots🔵

We've enabled shoots in every environment - we've supported exploratory river trips over many years and have experience of many bold first descents within the team, including...

💧Expeditions with Steve Backshall – Running rivers in Bhutan, Kamchatka, Gabon and Suriname.
💧First raft descent of river in Madagascar as part of exploratory expedition.
💧First commercial descent of the Murchison Falls stretch of Nile in Uganda.
💧Packraft exploration and first descents of jungle rivers including the Moa River in Sierra Leone and Dji Dji in Gabon.

Splish splash. There's always a way.

📸: @.montgomery

31/10/2024

🕸Halloween, Secret Compass style🕸

Never afraid of creepy crawlies.

in the Belize jungle with for

23/10/2024

🪙Gold Rush: Parker's Trail🪙

In his latest season, gold mining prodigy, Parker Schnabel heads to South America to prospect some of the most lucrative gold mines in the world. Find out if he strikes it rich by streaming now on .

We had Deane Smith on the ground in Brazil who gave us an epic glimpse behind the scenes - get swiping!

🪙1. The tunnel left by Canadian energy company Colossus Minerals, which spent $300 million over the eight years trying to reopen the mine. The team bring in underwater drone specialists to find signs of gold.

🪙2. The team are led by local gold prospector in search of gold at the top of a waterfall.

🪙3. A huge corporation gold mine, where tonnes of gold is harvested from the earth. Camera views Parker and team with the owners and loading up 'pay dirt'.

🪙4. Parker and team stop at a local family mine to see their operating and trading skills.

🪙5. Lead vehicle en route across Brazil in search of gold mines. The temperatures were in the late 40s.

🪙6. Night navigation on the Amazon river, leading four boats. Local knowledge, GPS, control and several head torches later...

🪙7. Recharging after several weeks of long days - always rest while you can! On a floating house on the Amazon river, while crew are conducting interviews.

20/10/2024

The harsh, unforgiving heat of the desert can be extremely challenging to film in.

But we have a pedigree of forging new routes through remote desert locations, enabling the impossible to happen.

And (sometimes) with a smile! 😉

16/10/2024

🍃Into the Jungle🍃

Have you been watching Ed Stafford on ? It's a great lesson in the benefits of getting out of your comfort zone - we certainly were on the edge of ours in Belize 😳🐆

“There was genuine jeopardy on this show: the possibility of getting bitten by a snake, for instance, or attacked by a jaguar – one of our local guides saw a jaguar only ten metres outside of camp while we were all out there sleeping in hammocks. But I knew that we were far more likely to die in a road traffic accident on the bus journey from Belize City – and we could use that feeling of being in a strange place.

“Someone came on one of my expeditions, and because he was in an alien environment and his brain was spinning, he asked, ‘Will these Ibuprofen work in the jungle?’ Being somewhere unfamiliar destabilises you and therefore makes you more open to change. Go somewhere weird and wonderful – anywhere – and you can really learn about yourself.” - Ed Stafford (via Radio Times)

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14/10/2024

What a season. What a team 🔥

Always a pleasure,

Make sure you're watching the finale tonight. It's a good 'un 👊

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09/10/2024

❄️Polar shoots❄️

Nothing quite beats the feeling of remoteness of operating in polar regions.

Like this epic Welcome to Earth with Will Smith shoot in mainland Antarctica.

In addition to working at both poles, we have extensive experience across Antarctica and the US, Canadian, Greenland and Russian Arctic.

No matter how cold or how remote, there's always a way.

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04/10/2024

Our Director of TV & Projects, Sally Fitton, has jam-packed her career with epic adventures and experiences 😎

We grabbed 10 minutes with Sally, to find out all about her adventurous work, and life.

“You never quite know what is going to come through the door next. It could be
a reality TV show, a news security task, filming spider-tailed snakes in a
hard-to-access desert, or helping people tell stories that are very dangerous
for them to tell...”

Link to read in bio and on our stories now ✌🏻

30/09/2024

It's helidunk time!

Who will sink and who will swim?! 👀

We had a full squad on set, rigging the stunt and keeping everyone safe - that water was nippy! 🥶

Tonight - 9pm, Channel 4.

27/09/2024

🏔Mountain shoots🏔

The mountains are full of hazards and a particularly dangerous environment to film in.

Despite the risks, we've pushed the envelope to help create some groundbreaking TV here, safely and successfully.

🔹Arctic Ascent: we enabled the team filming Alex Honnold and Tommy Caldwell climbing the Devil’s Thumb in Alaska.
🔹7 Toughest days with Dwayne Fields: we provided winter mountain safety to Dwayne and crew in Kyrgyzstan.
🔹Multiple Series of Expeditions with Steve Backshall: we provided safety including Greenland and Kyrgyzstan.

There's always a way.

11/09/2024

🍃Jungle shoots🍃

The jungle is an unforgiving environment, and we have decades of experience within the team helping people film successfully in remote jungles.

From filming bonobos in remote parts of the DRC for Queens, to managing cast and crew in Belize for Kings of the Jungle with Ed Stafford, to following migrants across the Darien Gap for Al Jazeera, we've got the skills for any jungle shoot.

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http://secretcompass.com/contact-us/

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WE ARE SECRET COMPASS.

Adventure is the brunt of a tropical storm, a blister the size of your fist and digging deep to unzip the tent at 4am. It’s crossing deserts, hacking through jungles and connecting with others. It is discovery. It’ll have you shaking with fear, exploding with laughter and offer you a sideways look at the world.

Secret Compass was born of adrenaline and exploration. We pledged to experience the places no one knew about, the countries you struggle to spell and those which raise an eyebrow over dinner. We don’t want to read about them, we want to feel them for ourselves. We want to make up our own minds and to be part of the story ourselves.

Navigating our way through the remote wilds of this earth is how we made our name. Forging new routes, claiming first ascents and experiencing daily life so far removed from our own. But it’s always the people we remember and the interactions that define the adventure.

Stripped back of the modern day trappings, adventure is how we unplug and we invite you to do the same. Step away from routine, and from comfort. Unplug and come with us.