Nirmal 'Nims' Purja MBE was born in Nepal. He served as a Gurkha and in the elite Special Boat Service (SBS) before leaving to concentrate on his passion for mountaineering and exploration. He has become a historic mountaineer, accumulating an ever-growing list of record-breaking summits alongside many high-altitude rescue missions. His first book, Beyond Possible, was a Sunday Times bestseller, and his Netflix documentary 14 Peaks was the platform's most-watched documentary of the year.