Not All Fans Know These Facts About 'Man VS Wild'

On March 10, 2006, the first episode of Man vs. Wild aired, also known as Born Survivor: Bear Grylls, Ultimate Survival, Survival Game, Real Survival Hero or simply Bear Grylls over in the UK. The show ran for five years before ending on November 29, 2011. Throughout its time on the air though, we watched as Bear Grylls tried to survive in the wilderness, all while demonstrating techniques on how to survive to viewers.

Just by viewing the show though, many could tell that some of the situations he got himself in were a little, well questionable. If you are one of those viewers, then know you weren’t alone. There have been many allegations and even confirmed episodes where scenes were faked for better views.

Here are 12 unknown facts about Bear Grylls and his show Man vs. Wild.

12 Bear Grylls Didn't Really Build The Raft, His Behind-The-Scenes Experts Did

At the start of the show, there is a disclaimer that states, “Bear Grylls and the crew receive support when they are in potentially life-threatening situations.” That’s perfectly ok, we understand. What it doesn’t state though is HOW much help he gets. For example, in one of the episodes, Bear builds a Polynesian-style raft, but he actually had an outside expert by the name of Mark Weinert come in an build the entire thing. So much for his expert knowledge and the founding of the Bear Grylls Survival Academy.

11 Bear Doesn't Always Sleep Outside During Filming, He Sometimes Sleeps In Hotels

Not only does Bear get help from outsiders, but he also doesn’t sleep outside while filming the show. Instead, he gets to sleep in luxury hotels. When news of this broke, a spokesman for the show put out this response, “Bear does all his own stunts and does put himself in perilous situations. But the show is not an observational documentary series, it’s a “how to” guide to basic survival techniques.

10 Not Everything They Show Is Actually Possible

During one episode of Man vs. Wild, Bear Grylls teaches viewers how to squeeze water out of elephant dung. A useful technique if someone gets lost near elephant territory. It seems like this is just a made-up technique though. According to Les Stroud, star of Survivorman, “It is not possible to squeeze drinkable water out of elephant dung. Well, it is when your cameraman has soaked it with bottled water.”

9 The Crew Spends A Week Prior To Shooting In Order To Study The Area For Bear

Every episode of Man vs. Wild takes about 7 to 10 days to shoot, depending on what Bear is doing. Prior to shooting an episode though, the crew goes out and spends at least a week researching and scouting the location and setting everything up for Bear. Then Bear needs to spend at least two days doing intense survival training where experts will come in and train him for that specific area.

8 Bear Is Actually Extremely Afraid Of Heights

One would think someone like Bear who has gone parachuting and even climbed the summit of Mount Everest, wouldn’t be afraid of heights. It's true though. When asked if he struggles with anything during filming, he replied, “of course, I’m human. I get scared an awful lot on the show, especially at great heights. I’ve learnt over the years though that the more of a nightmare it is for me, the better viewing it makes.”

7 During A 2007 Episode Involving A Volcano, The Smoke Coming Off Of It Was Actually From A Smoke Machine

Back in 2007, there is an episode that was filmed on Mount Kilauea, a volcano in Hawaii. At one point, a billow of white smoke is shown coming out of the volcano. That is when Bear says, “Look at this, you can actually see the sulfur dioxide seeping out of these vents. In high concentrations, this gas is a killer.” As it turns out though, that was just one scene that was totally fake and was just smoke from a smoke machine.

6 The Scene Involving Wild Horses Was Also Faked

The smoke coming from the volcano isn’t the only thing that was faked. During another episode that involved a group of “wild” horses, it was learned that the horses weren’t wild, but actually trained horses. In response to fans learning this, Discovery issued a statement saying that from now they would start being 100% transparent and explaining upfront to their viewers and that all past episodes would be edited appropriately.

5 They Used A Crew Member Dressed In A Bear Suit In Place Of A Real Bear

During the first episode of Man vs. Wild in 2006, there is a part in the episode where Bear thinks he is being stalked by a grizzly bear. He is so frightened that he even flees his camp in the middle of the night to escape the bear. Sadly, this scene was a complete fake and the bear that was “stalking” Bear, was actually just a crew member dressed up in a bear suit.

4 Bear Isn't Really A Survival Expert

Earlier on his life, Bear joined the military where he learned combat survival skills. After the military, he gained fame by going on some widely publicized adventures, including climbing Mount Everest. There is no denying that all these exploits and adventures were hard, but they don’t necessarily qualify him as a survival expert. Comparing him to other survival experts such as Ray Mears and Les Stroud, it's clear that his experience doesn’t even come close to theirs.

3 Some Of The Techniques He Uses Can Actually Make A Situation Worse...

Many of the techniques Bear uses on Man vs. Wild can actually make a situation worse, or even dangerous. One example of this would be during the times involving him running through dangerous terrain. Bear loves to run, jump, leap, and swing his way down cliffs. He has even pole-vaulted several hundred feet of rocky terrain. Let’s be smart though, one does not do this if they are in new and dangerous terrain.

2 .....Or Even End In Demise

Another thing Bear has a habit of doing is getting wet at every opportunity by swimming in frigid waters, rappelling down vines near waterfalls, and going down rapid rivers on homemade rafts. Not only are these dangerous and can result in drowning or injury, but they can also end in hypothermia, which if happens out in the wild, can result in a person’s demise.

1 Bear Has Been Under Fire For Endangering His Own Children

Back in 2015, Bear set up a training exercise for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution where the lifeboat crews had to rescue his 11-year-old son Jesse from a rocky ocean outcrop during high tide. The RNLI later put out a statement saying they had no idea Bear used his own child for the exercise. Bear later admitted that he also allows his three boys to go paragliding without helmets.

Next: 10 Places Bear Grylls Was A True Survivalist (10 Times He Was Debunked)