Sailor
Engineer
​Adventurer

Seb Coulthard is an award winning sailor, engineer and adventurer. Since childhood he has pursued a passionate interest for adventure in remote wildernesses: the Amazonian Rainforest, Antarctica, East Africa, Svalbard and The Arabian Desert. His father inspired him to become an explorer which put him on a crossroads with legendary explorers such as:
Sir Ernest Shackleton, Lawrence of Arabia and George Mallory.
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Seb joined Shackleton Epic Expedition in 2013, the most audacious and faithful re-enactment of the celebrated 830 mile boat journey undertaken by Sir Ernest Shackleton aboard the James Caird lifeboat from Elephant Island to South Georgia. The crew of the Alexandra Shackleton spent 12 days at sea using the same period equipment as Shackleton 100 years prior; woollen underwear, wooden lifeboat, sextant, compass, and starvation diet. The Shackleton Epic team became the only expedition in history to complete Shackleton's perilous voyage using period resources.
In 2017, Seb led a three-man expedition across the Jordanian desert in the footsteps of Lawrence of Arabia to mark the 100th Anniversary of the Battle of Aqaba, the turning point in the Middle Eastern Theatre of World War One. The expedition ventured into mid-summer temperatures in excess of 45 centigrade, with no external support, only what their camels could carry. His experiences are currently the subject of an illustrated audio-book for release in 2018-19.
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Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society, Member of the Explorers Club,a joint Royal Yachting Association and Union Internationale Motonautique  powerboat world record holder. Seb is a retired Royal Navy helicopter mechanical engineer who can turn his hand to solving any expedition engineering problem.

Affiliations & Awards

Fellow of the Royal Geographical Society (FRGS)
The Royal Geographical Society (with the Institute of British Geographers) is the UK's leading learned society for the advancement of geographical sciences founded in 1830. Today, it is the leading centre for geographers and geographical learning. The Society has over 16,500 members and its work reaches millions of people each year.
Member of the Explorers Club (Former GB Chapter Chair, 2014-16)
The Explorers Club is an international multidisciplinary professional society dedicated to the advancement of field research and the ideal that it is vital to preserve the instinct to explore. 
Joint recipient of the Royal Institute of Navigation Certificate of Achievement (2013)
The Royal Institute of Navigation (RIN) is a learned society with charitable status, aimed at furthering the development of navigation on land and sea, in the air and in space.
Member of the James Caird Society
The James Caird Society, established in 199, is the only institution that exists to preserve the memory, honour the remarkable feats of discovery in the Antarctic and commend the outstanding qualities of leadership associated with the name of Sir Ernest Shackleton, KCVO (l874-l922), especially during the ill-fated but glorious Endurance expedition.
Certified IAATO Field Staff
The International Association of Antarctica Tour Operators (IAATO) was founded in 1991, the primary goal of the association is to "advocate and promote the practice of safe and environmentally responsible private-sector travel to the Antarctic"
Royal Yachting Association and Union Internationale Motonautique World Record
On Monday 16th June 2014, VSV Maryslim completed a 53 hour, 29 minute, 52 second powerboat return-trip from Portland Bill to the remote island of Rockall (located 162 nautical miles due west of St. Kilda, Scotland).
Brand Ambassador for The Shackleton Company
The Shackleton Company's business and products are built on the powerful shoulders of Sir Ernest Shackleton, with the invaluable support and involvement of the Shackleton family, notably his granddaughter The Hon. Alexandra Shackleton.
Member of The South Georgia Association
The SGA was formed to give voice to those who care for South Georgia. South Georgia is a remote mountainous island of exceptional natural beauty in the Southern Atlantic.
Certified Polar Tourism Guide
The PTGA is a US federally recognized 501-c6 non-profit Professional Industry Association servicing the standards and competency needs of polar tourism operators, field staff and guides across all platforms of polar tourism for the benefit of all stakeholders and the environments we represent.

Public Speaking & Cruise Ship Lecturing

Seb Coulthard is a historian with unparalleled knowledge an enthusiasm. Subject to notice, Seb can lecture at private and corporate events including cruise ship lecturing in remote parts of the world. His field of expertise cover a number of subject, some of which are listed below. 
  • Operation Corporate: The Falklands War, 1982.
  • The Sea Devil: The wartime adventures of Count Felix von Luckner.
  • Mocha Dick and Pacific Whaling.
  • The Rise & Fall of Captain Cook.
  • Captain's of Evolution: Robert FitzRoy & Charles Darwin.
  • History of the Royal Navy.
  • The Kon Tiki Expedition.
  • Mutiny of the Bounty
  • The Last Place on Earth: How Antarctica Was Mapped.
  • Shackleton's Imperial Trans-Antarctic Expedition, 1914-17.
  • Shackleton's Boat Journey, 1916.
  • Lawrence of Arabia: The Man Behind The Legend.
  • Because It Is There: The Mount Everest Expedition, 1924.
  • Asia/Pacific History (including WW1 / WW2 events)
  • Icelandic History (including Vikings, Arctic Convoys, Cod Wars, etc)
  • Arctic History (including WW2, aviation pioneers, submarine operations, etc )​​
For speaker and media enquiries please contact Shackleton Legacy Ltd using the contact form below.