Speedo Mick reveals why he thought about turning down honour from the King

Speedo Mick has revealed he thought about turning down an honour from the King because he felt conflicted over accepting it.

Mick was named in the King’s New Year Honours List, receiving a British Empire Medal for his services to charity after his incredible treks around the country raised more than £1million.

BEMs are awarded specifically for an achievement or contribution that’s very hands-on in the community, often in recognition of local charitable achievements or innovative work that has resulted in real impact. 

But although he says it was “something I could never have imagined in a million years”, Mick admits he still thought long and hard about whether to refuse it.

He explains:

“When I got the letter telling me about the honour, I absolutely wasn’t expecting it, it was a complete surprise, and I still don’t know who nominated me. When I saw it was from His Majesty I thought I’d forgotten to pay my tax!

“At first I read about four lines and then I put it down for a while because I was processing what I’d just read, it was a lot to take in, so I didn’t read it all for a few hours.

“I wasn’t sure if I could reconcile it with me personally and my own morals. I’ve always been anti-establishment, I’m a working class lad and we’ve had to fight for everything we’ve got. They’re on the other side of the tracks and we’re not aligned so I honestly wasn’t sure.

“I even wondered whether I should make a statement — maybe refuse it altogether – because I care. Because inequality hurts. Because I’ve lived on the wrong side of it.”

Mick says he took months making his mind up, contacting friends and family to get their reactions.

“I was seriously thinking I might not take it so I phoned loads of people up who I value and trust and respect, including my best mate, and I said ‘look, I’ve got a dilemma.’ 

“I was going to listen with an open mind, but every single person said, ‘take it, you’ve worked hard enough for it.’ So I listened to a lot of opinions before I made the decision.

“I even phoned my family in Ireland and asked them, because I wanted some guidance from them about what I should do, but they said, ‘you’ve turned your life around and it’s an acknowledgement of how far you’ve come.’ That was it, I didn’t need to ask anyone else.”

Mick, who’s about to embark on his latest fundraising Arctic challenge in February, will be presented with his BEM in London in May and plans to take his two granddaughters with him to the ceremonies.

“I’ve got to go to the Tower of London and then to Buckingham Palace so I’m going to take one of my granddaughters to each,” he says.

He hopes that by accepting the honour he can inspire other people who’ve been through or are still going through their own struggles, and help more grassroots charities to support those who need it most.

“It’s not about the awards, I’ve never been looking for awards or medals, it’s the good deed that you do that really matters. 

“I’ve had such incredible support from the people of Liverpool, I’m so grateful for that, and I just hope this honour from the King can help me do more work. I realised I needed to think of the bigger picture, not just myself.

“The letter says, ‘to the founder of the Speedo Mick Foundation’ and I was buzzing about that. It’s something I’ve made happen and that’s massive to me and hopefully the charity will be able to continue for years to come – me in my knickers, doing my thing, now by royal approval!” 

Find out more about the Speedo Mick Foundation here.

Speedo Mick is also teaming up with an Olympic champion for his next huge challenge, find out more here.

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