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Countryfile viewers will know Steve Brown as one of the main presenters on the show, having joined the series in 2017. Express.co.uk recently exclusively spoke to the star about what the job means to him and how he hasn’t let anything stop him from pursuing his goals.
Fans of Countryfile will know Brown well as one of the team of presenters who travel around the UK to highlight stories of those bettering their surroundings.
He has been a part of the show alongside presenters like Matt Baker and Helen Skelton since he joined in April 2017.
Brown landed the job when he retired from a successful career in wheelchair rugby, which saw him compete in the Paralympic Games in 2012.
Following his athletic career, he had presenting jobs on The One Show and Springwatch before joining Countryfile.
Since then, viewers have gotten used to seeing him taking on new challenges in each episode of the show.
However, some might not realise Countryfile was actually a dream job for the star.
Speaking to Express.co.uk ahead of taking part in this year’s Countryfile Ramble, Brown revealed how he had the career in mind since he was at school.
And he explained how it was really important for him to not allow his injury to get in the way of this.
Brown said: “To end up in such a roundabout way doing what my childhood dream was, I never thought I’d have the opportunity.
“When I went to see my career’s adviser and I told him I wanted to be a sportsperson, he said ‘You know what Steve, there’s a lot of people that want to do that, you’d have to maybe rethink it.’
“And then to go back and see him a couple of weeks later and say ‘You know what? I’d like to be like David Attenborough, I love wildlife and the countryside.’
“And he said ‘You know what Steve, that’s a little ambitious, maybe you should rethink it.’
“Now I’ve done both! I didn’t think that I’d have to lose the use of two-thirds of my body to make the most of the last third.”
The star has always been very open about what happened to him when he was just 23-years-old.
Working for a holiday company in Europe, he tripped and fell off of a hotel balcony, losing function of part of his body.
However, the presenter has made it his mission never to let his injury get in the way of what he wanted to do.
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He added: “I think I have always wanted to do the best that I could and as I’ve grown up I’ve understood how important it is to just try it.
“It doesn’t matter what it is you’re doing, just try to do it to the best of your ability.
“And I’ve got a competitive nature so I like to push myself.
“When I had my injury I started to realise pushing yourself is important, it also starts to separate you and people start to realise the qualities you have.”
Brown will soon be taking on another huge challenge as he takes part in the Countryfile Ramble to raise money for Children in Need.
He will be climbing Pen y Fan in Wales with the help of his brothers as part of the televised event.
His task has been inspired by five-year-old Emerson who has a spinal cord injury and contracted coronavirus COVID-19 earlier this year.
Brown revealed how inspired he was by him and how brave he and his family were during such a frightening time.
He explained: “People with similar disabilities to myself and Emerson, you have very low immune systems.
“I can only imagine the worry and the turmoil that his parents would have been going through.”
Part of Emerson’s strength is what has driven Brown to push himself in the new challenge and he revealed he will be thinking of him along the way.
He added: “I’m going to have Emerson in my mind all the way through it, I’m there doing it for him.
“He’s going to be my motivation, he’s going to be at the very centre of my mind all the way to the top.”
The Countryfile Ramble for BBC Children in Need will air on BBC One on Sunday, November 1.
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