Introducing Mike Bates: The Real-Life James Bond, Adventurer and Speaker

Mike Bates is a former counter-terrorism covert operations leader and human intelligence specialist turned entrepreneur and adventurer. He served a combined total of 20 years within His Majesty’s Royal Marines and the Intelligence and Security fields of the Ministry of Defence. Following his departure from the MOD in 2020, Mike turned his hand to charity work, and has become the fastest solo British person to complete the ‘The World’s Toughest Row’. He is now focussed on helping others with the lessons he learned fighting terrorism and mother nature at her most ferocious and use his unique stories and principle-based approach to do so. Mike helps others achieve fulfilment through inspiring talks and workshops. His unique experiences lend themselves excellently to talks on resilience, leadership, motivation and more, never failing to captivate any audience.

The Real-Life James Bond

Mike Bates joined the Royal Marines in 2000 and was in training when 9/11 happened. In 2002, he was among the first British troops to arrive in Afghanistan, where his unit was involved in the search for the notorious leader of Al-Qaeda, Osama Bin Laden. Following his time in Afghanistan, Mike went on to serve in Iraq in 2003, and Northern Ireland in 2004. Throughout his military career, he led elite sections in challenging operational environments. 

Mike resigned from the military in 2005 to join the Ministry of Defence as a Covert Operation Leader in the same year. He went on to become the first officer in the history of the MOD to pass all necessary courses to serve at the very front line of the UK’s counter-terror response. Mike led teams gathering covert intelligence within a specialist confidential MOD department and was deployed globally to assist in maintaining the security and prosperity of the UK. He gathered evidence against the highest-profile targets and handled agents at the top level of the intelligence field. 

The Rowing Challenge

In 2020, Mike left the intelligence fields of the MOD to begin his charity work. Following his premature birth in 2011, Mike’s son Gabe contracted meningitis and spent the first few months of his life in the Paediatric Intensive Care Unit at Leeds Children’s Hospital. Mike therefore wanted to show his support and gratitude for the staff and used a portion of the total he raised for six neo-natal monitoring devices for Leeds Children’s Hospital. He has already donated a staggering £65,000.

Not liking an easy ride, Mike chose the ‘The World’s Toughest Row’, to put himself to the ultimate test. With a lack of confidence around open water and a lack of rowing experience, he decided this would be a great challenge for him both mentally and physically. Admitting “I’m not really built for rowing, I’m only 5ft 8in and a bit” Mike said, “It’s going to push me to do something I’m not that comfortable with”. He rallied a huge number of sponsors and even received support from the likes of Castore Sportswear, Goals Soccer Centres, Causeway Cottage Filey, OTE Sports and the REORG charity.

Mike dubbed his fundraising challenge ‘The Atlantic Grappler’ and completed the 3,000-mile solo row across the Atlantic in 46 days, 6 hours and 10 minutes. This earned him the title of the fastest solo British person to complete the challenge. Throughout his row, Mike tackled Mother Nature at her most powerful and described the experience as “brutal… it was worse than the commando course… the final 48 hours I spent 22 hours rowing non-stop into a 20-knot headwind.”

Over his 3-year campaign for this challenge, Mike raised a phenomenal £175,000 for charity and inspired people all over the world.

Mike Today

Today, Mike is developing his public speaking profile and focusing on helping others with the lessons he learned fighting terrorism and mother nature at her most ferocious. He is using his unique stories and principle-based approach to do this.

After serving for 5 years in the military and 15 years in the MOD, he also holds a black belt in Brazilian Jiu Jitsu, a sport that he took up whilst in the Marines. He now runs his own Brazilian Jiu-Jitsu academy in Leeds, encouraging others into the self-defence martial art. Mike’s unique background and experiences make him an excellent speaker on resilience, leadership, overcoming adversity and more. With first-hand knowledge of crucial operations and leading a team, both fighting terrorists and recruiting covert agents, Mike is able to give audiences a unique insight into what life is like as a real James Bond. 

For more information on how to book Mike as a speaker for your next event, contact jo@evolve-agency.co.uk.