The Bear necessities

The explorer dropped in by helicopter to chat to more 700 Cubs, Scouts, Explorers and Beaver Scouts during their bank holiday camp at Hesley Wood Scout Camp.

Bear, the star of BBC show Born Survivor, met members of Rotherham District Explorers, who were busy preparing for a once in a lifetime expedition to South Africa, and passed on some tips on outdoor cooking.

As part of their planned trip, the Explorer Scouts will be building facilities for a primary school and nursery for mentally and physically handicapped children.

They will be helping to improve the sanitary conditions as well as building a new outdoor play area and adventure playground.

Among them was Tim French, a Rotherham Explorer Scout, who said: "Bear was a genuinely nice person and is a real role model for scouting worldwide.

"I thought his advice was very useful for our forthcoming expedition and this experience was a great opportunity to learn from the vast knowledge Bear has of the world.

"He has definitely made an impact on me and my fellow Scouts.

"This was a once in a lifetime opportunity to meet one of my idols in exploration and he has really spurred me on with the training and showed me that I must enjoy every minute of it."

Bear, whose real name is Edward Michael Grylls, was shown around the different activities by James Bell Whinfrow, a Rotherham Explorer Scout who was nominated to represent South Yorkshire.