Some of my fondest memories and operational experiences in my 24 years in the British Army have been serving alongside Commonwealth troops. By being part of Op Belonging, I aim to highlight how their exceptional skill sets and unique cultural heritage have helped shape history and continue to do so to this day.

Matt is an avid outdoorsman from a very young age. Matt was born and raised on thewest coast of Scotland which sparked his curiosity from experiences exploringnew undiscovered areas from mountainous Arran to uninhabited coastal islandsand unkempt moors on his doorstep. Learning from each new experience sparked more desire to delve into the unknown which led Matt to join the BritishArmy in June 1994.A life of adventure and rapid learning unfolded with two, six-month tours in Bosnia, followed by tours in Macedonia, Kosovo, Sierra Leonne, Northern Ireland,Iraq, and two, six-month tours in Afghanistan. Matt specialised as a Communications Operator, passed the Airborne Parachuteselection, Army Commando selection followed by a Special Forces Communicator(SAS) selection, and served for 6 years with Special Forces. Qualifying as aSurvival, Escape, and Evasion Instructor. During this time, Matt was attached to the Royal Marines for training in Norway where he served for 6 years on joint winter exercises before going on to serve onoperations with 42 and 45 Commando. His enthusiasm for cooler climates,encouraged him to carry out Arctic Survival training and became a Ski TourLeader, now boasting over 20 years of worldwide adventure and survival training experience. Matt has organised and delivered adventure and wilderness survival experiences across the globe including. Achieving a life-long dream to lead to an expedition re-enacting the Real Heroesof Telemark sabotage mission over the Hardanger-Vidda in Norway during 2011 up to the present day. Matt is honoured to have led these a subsequent 8 times and continues to support this mission on an annual basis through his company SOE Expeditions.com

Following the birth of his children, Matt decided to leave his military career as aSergeant Major, after 22 years of exhilarating service. The desire to be at home with his wife, son and three daughters far outweighed the prolonged periods oftravel. Leading expeditions and delivering immersive experiences all over the world encouraged Matt’s passion to share vitally important skills which led to the creation of SOE Expeditions in Sept 2014. (SOE) Expeditions has grown to deliver authentic S.O.E and Special Forces endurance-based adventure expeditions across Europe and Asia. Reliving some of the saboteurs and special forces most successful and daring operations of World War 2. After lockdown Matt took the brave decision to launch his latest venture, Highland Kings. The world’s first premium luxury, ultra race. Over four days, covering 120 miles of the most rugged yet scenic terrain in the heart of Glencoe Scotland. With a world-class support crew behind athletes every step of the way.Covering all key aspects of race preparation; physical, mental, nutritionalpreparation and more. After losing his older brother to PTSD in 1999 Matt is passionate about givingback to veteran charities and to help raise awareness about mental health.