Brian Blessed, from 'Gordon's Alive,' recounts how he once punched a polar bear on the nose to save its life while trekking across the North Pole while other camp members rushed with their rifles, ready to shoot
Brian Blessed has told how he punched a polar bear on the `f******’ nose - to save its life.
The "Gordon’s Alive" actor and explorer was asleep in his tent on a trek across the North Pole when the giant creature woke him up. Other camp members rushed to help him with rifles at the ready to shoot what is one of the most dangerous breeds of bear on Earth.
But boom-voiced Brian, 88, instructed them to hold their fire while he took on the potential killer face-to-face. Blessed - one of the Daily Star’s biggest fans - shouted at the bear before slugging it with a right hook.
It ran off nursing a sore conk…but the bear was alive. Speaking on the We Can Be Weirdos podcast Brian said: "It was our magnetic pole expedition. We're in there at night getting near the pole.
We've been followed by bears. It's their kingdom. She came close. She was very big. And she ripped open the tent one night. I said: 'Nobody shoots them. Don't you f****** dare.’ And so, and he came close. "I hit him straight on the f****** nose. And it ran off.’’
Brian, who starred in 1980 comic movie space opera Flash Gordon, Star Wars: The Phantom Menace and smash hit TV comedy Blackadder, has worked with animals all his life and been involved with conservation projects to protect wild gorillas and orangutans.
He said he has always felt close to nature and believes he has more in common with animals than many people. The actor, who said late Queen Elizabeth II was among legions of fans to demand he uttered his famous sci-fi movie catchphrase "Gordon’s alive", could not stand to see any animal shot.
"I have worked a tremendous amount with gorillas and orangutans and all kinds of creatures and protecting them,’’ he said.
"My physique is very gorilla. I like my physique. I don't want to be long and thin. I like what I am - Rocky Marciano. I've got on well with all the wild creatures because of my love for them. I've kept them and looked after them and so forth. I've always got on so bloody well with animals, left, right and centre, you know? Which is quite terrific."
Polar bears - which can grow up to 12ft tall and weigh up to 115st - are so fierce they have no natural predators. Since records began in 1870 they have carried out 73 attacks on humans - killing 20.
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