The First True South-North Traverse of the British Isles
South
North
Adventures
Join Us to Conquer the Top to Toe of Britain
How We Started
The idea for the South-North adventure was created and founded by Professor Kevin Dutton, who is passionate about celebrating resilience and a “can-do” attitude in young people. He put together a team of liked-minded people, Billy Taylor, Patrick Neale, and Gary Hutchings to take on the challenge of the TRUE south-north of Great Britain over APRIL – MAY, 2026.” to take on the challenge of the TRUE south-north of Great Britain .The team will be raising funds for a group of amazing charities all focused on children’s mental health and wellbeing. Our journey is a celebration of the psychological strengths of our young people.
April- May 2026
The South North Adventure: A mental health pilgrimage aimed at giving young people a voice, celebrating their wisdom, creativity, and leadership in the face of adversity, and shining a wide and brilliant spotlight on their emotional and psychological well-being.
Forget Land’s End to John o’ Groats…
We bring you a festival of resilience and positivity as we take on a world-first challenge to travel the TRUE South-North of the British Isles – Les Minquiers in the south to Out Stack in the north – touching base with inspiring youngsters on the way and listening to their stories of hope, courage and transformation.
Children are 100% of our future.
They deserve 100% of our attention.
Sir Matthew Pinsent
"Totally and utterly bonkers - 2k was enough for me!! But what a challenge and a great cause. Good luck making history, fellas - and when you pass through Henley, there's a couple of beers with your name on them!"
Ronnie O'Sullivan
"Kev and the boys are going for a full clearance. A 147. A maxi. First one in history! Best of luck mate - and be sure to drop in on me on the way!"
Alistair & Jonny Brownlee
"Ocean rowing and a tuk-tuk? Can't see it catching on as a sport but CAN totally see why no one has attempted this challenge before! Crazy idea but all for a great cause. Go well lads - there's Yorkshire Tea and cake waiting for you up here in Bramhope. "
Andy McNab
"The SAS prayer, The Road to Samarkand, begins: 'We are the Pilgrams, master; we shall go always a little further...' Well, Kev and his team are taking this to the extreme! Wishing you a fair wind and a following sea, lads... and I'll be waiting for you at the PortsmouthHarbour with a brew and a bacon sandwich. You're paying!"
Meet the Team
Professor Kevin Dutton
Kevin Dutton is a professor of psychology and best-selling author of several books, including the Wisdom of Psychopaths and The Good Psychopaths Guide to Success (with Andy McNab). Described by Sir Ranulph Fiennes as a “Special Forces style psychologist” Kevin is a renowned intellectual adventurer and entertaining speaker. He is also slightly mad. Kevin does strange things at times. In 2021, to raise awareness of homelessness in London, he undertook the Metro-Marathon Challenge with GB rower John Collins, which saw them run all 315 stations of the London Underground - and, in so doing, become the first people in history to run the entire length of a major city metro system non-stop. They slept rough every night and, at the end of their 350-mile journey, took on the London Marathon. Understandably, on crossing the finish line, they thought they’d completed the challenge – only to discover that, since they’d been on the road, TFL had taken it upon themselves to open two new stations (Battersea Power Station and Nine Elms) which despatched them back over Chelsea bridge rather than the pub. In his spare time, Kevin co-hosts the podcast Psycho Schizo Espresso (soon to be re-released) with Iron Maiden lead singer, Bruce Dickinson. Despite living as far from the sea as possible, in West Oxfordshire, Kevin conceived of the idea of the TRUE South-North of the British Isles and persuaded a trio of inscrutable unsuitables - Billy, Patrick, and Gary - to join him in this epic row and cycle. He’s the team leader and hopes that they can use the challenge to create a national celebration of young people’s resilience and mental health.
Billy Taylor
Anyone who thinks fire and water don’t mix should meet Billy Taylor. Billy is a former fireman and paramedic who was captivated by ocean rowing in 2014 when he rowed from California to Hawaii as a last-minute substitute in a crew of four. This experience of being trapped in a tiny boat with three sweaty men for several weeks left a lasting impression on him and he’s not looked back since. In 2018, Billy rowed from Australia to Mauritius with one sweaty man from the previous crew, along with two others, one of whom had Parkinson’s Disease. The data they collected on the impact of exercise on the symptoms of Parkinson’s led to a ground-breaking project in Oxford Brooks University, who encouraged him to do another row with a crew member with Parkinson’s to continue the research. And so, a third row took place in 2020, with one sweaty man joining Billy and two “slightly” sweaty ladies as they made their way from the Canary Islands to Antigua, via Cape Verde. In 2021, he returned to cross the Atlantic for a second time with a crew of four. This time the focus was on raising funds for mental health - and research into sweat reduction. All in all, Billy has rowed over 12,000 miles across various oceans and is excited to join Kevin, Patrick and Gary for the South North adventure in support of young people’s mental health. He is the skipper for the rowing sections of the expedition.
Patrick Neale
Patrick Neale recently stopped playing rugby for his local club and is delighted to join the team for the South North Adventure. Like Kevin, he lives in one of England’s most landlocked counties, West Oxfordshire, which is just one of the reasons why he’s never rowed. Until now. Having worked in book retailing since 1988, Patrick is passionate about giving every child the best start and opportunity in life and understands how challenging modern life can be for kids from all backgrounds. A Farmer’s son, still proudly milking cows, he owns an independent bookshop in the Cotswolds with his partner Polly. “This adventure marks the beginning of a new chapter in my life,” he says, without the slightest hint of irony.
Gary Hutchings
Gary Robert Hutchings is an accomplished ocean rower known for his adventurous spirit and remarkable feats in endurance rowing. He gained recognition for his amazing attempt to row across the Atlantic Ocean solo showcasing not only physical strength but also mental resilience. Just this year, Gary has participated in various challenges hiking to Everest base camp and Mount Olympus demonstrating his commitment to pushing the limits of human capability. He’s a keen rugby player/supporter and misses the team spirit so is very excited for the challenge ahead. His journeys often have raised awareness for important causes, such as environmental conservation and mental health. His contributions to sport and his advocacy for meaningful issues make him a notable figure in his local community. Through his expeditions, Gary hopes to inspire others to embrace adventure and pursue their passions, regardless of the obstacles they may face. Therefore, the aims of the South North Adventure to highlight the importance of resilience in young people appeals to him.
THE MISSION
Land’s End to John o’ Groats. For time immemorial, it has symbolised “the full length” of our nation, with everyone from endurance athletes to intrepid fundraisers traversing its path to conquer the “top to toe” of Britain.
There’s just one problem… it isn’t!
Because all along, a longer, higher, tougher “peak” has lurked within our midst - hidden from view beneath the thick, dense cloud of conventional thought. The unconquered “south-north” face of the British Isles. The TRUE south-north of Britain.
Unconquered that is, until now.
Our 1500-mile mission is to be the first to successfully complete the “ascent” from Les Minquiers (a group of small islands 15 km south of Jersey and the true southernmost point of Britain) to Out Stack (a lump of black, pre-Cambrian rock jutting defiantly out of the waves of the North Sea 2 miles closer to the Arctic than the furthest tip of Shetland: the true north of Britain.)
And we’ll be doing it in style!
First, we’ll be rowing across the English Channel from Les Minquiers (Coordinates: 48°58′14″N 02°03′43″W / 48.97056°N 2.06194°W) to Portsmouth, with a brief stopover in Jersey. Second, we’ll be hopping on our custom-built tandem-rickshaw (the only one in existence!) and cycling to Scrabster. Finally, to top it off (quite literally), we’ll be jumping back in our ocean rowing boat and paddling our way to Out Stack (Coordinates: 60.8603°N 0.8741°W.)
Ours will be the First TRUE South-North Traverse of the British Isles.
While we are on our journey, we’ll be stopping off to spend time with young people who have triumphed over adversity. We are on a mission to embrace resilience, to celebrate those who have overcome adversity, and along the way to learn what our young people can teach us about mental health.
Followed every stroke and pedal of the way by some of Britain’s most well-known and best-loved celebrities - and we’ll be dropping in on some truly inspiring projects, with the aim of raising money for, and shining a light on, children’s mental health across the country.
This is the story of four men in a boat and a tandem-rickshaw…and then another boat!
Of an iconic, world first challenge…on home soil.
THE CHARITIES
Every Child Our Future - Peter James
Women in Sport - Brian Moore
Big Kid Foundation - Michel Roux Jr
Guide Dogs - Susie Dent
The Brownlee Foundation - Alistair and Jonny Brownlee
Heavy Metal Truants - Bruce Dickinson
1851 Trust - Sir Ben Ainslie
Jessie May - Rob Walker
How Donations Will Be Distributed
In the interests of full disclosure and transparency, a quick note on the allocation of funds. We are doing our best to cover the direct costs of the adventure (c. £60k - £70k) via corporate and other donations. If you are interested in making a donation, corporate or personal to help the team with their costs, please get in touch by emailing info@southnorthadventures.com. Once we have recovered the costs of getting The South North Adventure on the road – and water! - all monies raised from the challenge will be divided up equally among our chosen charity partners.
OUR SPONSORS
Gold Sponsors - £25k +
Silver Sponsor - £15k - £24k
Bronze Sponsor - £10k -14k
- Phantom Management
Major Sponsor - £5k - £9k
-Madison
“The South North Adventure Team are hugely grateful to all our sponsors and donors. We are making every effort to raise enough sponsorship to cover our costs so that we can distribute as many of the funds as possible raised on our GIVESTAR page to our chosen charities."
OUR SUPPORT TEAM
WIDER SUPPORT TEAM
Stephen Feeney, an original member of the team, Stephen unfortunately had to withdraw for personal reasons. However, he remains as an essential member of the wider support team, supporting the crew, helping with updating our website, among other things. Once a key member of the British Rowing Team, Stephen spent many years competing at the highest levels with gold and silver world championship medals. He is now a leading mental performance coach and is committed to helping others achieve their goals.
CHIEF CARTOGRAPHER
Anthony Goddard is the Founder of ZeroSixZero Adventure maps where he spends his days, nights and dreams combing through code and satellite images to make maps for expeditions. Anthony has worked on expeditions at the North Pole, South Pole and everywhere in between. His favourite maps are of incredible people telling extreme stories, never before attempted feats and epic adventures, so working with Kev, Stephen, Billy and the whole team at South North adventures was a natural fit. https://zerosixzero.com
DIRECTOR OF ON-ROAD SUPPORT
Julian Goater Julian was one of the UK’s leading endurance athletes of the 1970s1980s with widespread success in cross-country and 10,000m international events. Balancing an elite athletics career with study at Oxford University under an RAF cadetship, he later served as an RAF supply officer. Following his retirement from top-level athletics, he became a respected coach and fitness consultant, twice winning his age group at the World Duathlon Championships and authoring the training book The Art of Running Faster (buy it – it’s great!). He continues to promote running and fitness, coaching athletes of all ages (even Kevin!) and encouraging broader participation in sport, especially among young people, which is why the South North Adventure appealed to him.
HEAD OF LOGISTICS
Professor Elaine Fox is an affective scientist and cognitive psychologist and became Head of the School of Psychology at the University of Adelaide in February 2022. Prior to moving to Australia, she held a Professorship of Psychology and Affective Neuroscience at the University of Oxford since 2012. She has recently returned to the UK from Australia and has joined the Institute of Mental Health at the University of Birmingham as Professor of Psychology. Married to Kevin, who is passionate about adventure and supporting a ‘can-do’ attitude and resilient mindset in young people, she agreed to help with the logistics of getting the south north adventure on the road and water.
DIRECTOR OF SOCIAL MEDIA
Barry Hayes founded his social media company Sharkbait Socials several years ago, which focuses on enthusiastic storytelling to bring adventures to life. Barry has decades of adventure experience and is himself an accomplished ocean rower. He is passionate about sharing the positive impact of adventure on individuals and communities. He has been joined at Sharkbait Socials, by Lauren Hughes who has extensive experience with storytelling via social media. Both are excited to help convey the inevitable ups and downs of the South North Adventure.
SOCIAL MEDIA TEAM
Lauren Hughes, also at Sharkbait Socials, has extensive experience with storytelling via social media. She is excited to help convey the inevitable ups and downs of the South North Adventure.
WIDER SUPPORT TEAM
Krishna Thapa Another former team member, Krish, also known as ‘The Warrior Monk’, was one of the first Ghurka to join the SAS and served with them for 17 years. He is a world-class high-altitude mountaineer and has ascended to the world’s highest summits on many occasions, often leading expeditions for those with severe physical disabilities. He remains a core member of the wider support team advising and supporting the crew on many aspects of their adventure. Like Kevin, he is a passionate believer in the power of adventure to boost resilience and mental health, which is why the South North Adventure appealed to him.
FILMMAKER
Ben Cook Ben is an award-winning filmmaker with a disaster response and Royal Marines Commando background. With an incredible drive to tell stories that matter, he has a meticulous attention to detail. Reliable and unflappable under pressure, well-versed in working within international contexts and in extreme environments. A good-humoured and unflappable team player with a broad skillset. Kevin is convinced he is actually Roger Federer in disguise.
FLIMMAKER TOM McCLEAN
Tom McShane Tom McShane is an award-winning photographer, RGS Fellow, and expert expedition leader with a British Army background. Renowned for leading world-firsts like Walking the Nile, he specializes in high-risk safety and production. Tom is currently the Director and Producer of When Life Gives You Lemons... Everyone’s Everest, combining his field expertise with powerful, cinematic human storytelling.