Bear Grylls 'smashes myth' on where he got his name from

You would think there wasn't much left to discover about Bear Grylls. Surely a man who eats insects on camera can't much left to reveal to the world?

But the origin of his name has finally come to light in a recent interview.

The 48-year-old British adventurer appeared on the Big Fish with Spencer Matthews podcast when the subject arose.

Matthews was curious about where Grylls, whose birth name is Edward, got his iconic name from.

The Made In Chelsea star asked: "When did you become Bear Grylls that we all know?"

Grylls replied: "I was christened Edward.

"Everyone always think it's some butch story of how I wrestled a bear at the age of four."

I mean... it's not the wildest assumption to make here, surely?

Instagram/@beargrylls

Grylls explained: "The truth is, I had an older sister who thought 'That's a really boring name'.

"My mum had had three miscarriages and my sister was eight years old and I was a little toy.

"Smashing that myth for a start.

"This is about as butch as that.

"When you say 'When did you become Bear Grylls', I get nervous often meeting lots of people.

"I always think I'm never going to be as adventurous or strong or cool as the TV makes things out to be.

"I'm much more normal."

Viewers on TikTok appreciated Grylls' honesty in the interview and praised him in the comments section.

One wrote: "I think he is an amazing guy who does not care for the publicity but still wants to show us things we are capable of if we really had to do them."

One fan commented: "Just a good guy. Talented, smart and courageous," while another opined: "That's a better story of he got his name."

If you say so, I'm sticking with the 'wrestled a bear' narrative.

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This isn't the first time that Grylls and Matthews have met, as the two previously collaborated on an expedition up Mount Everest to retrieve the body of Matthews' brother.

Michael Matthews, who was a mountaineer, passed away in 1999 while descending the mountain.

He was 22 years old at the time and was the youngest British person to reach the peak of Mount Everest.

Grylls had been the previous record holder, as he had accomplished the same feat a year earlier at the age of 23.

The expedition was filmed for the documentary Finding Michael which is available to watch on Disney+.