Major David Bradley grew up on his family’s farm in East Kent before attending the University of Cardiff. In 1992 David began officer training at the Royal Military Academy Sandhurst after graduating in Ancient History and Religious Studies. In 1993, he was commissioned to the Princess of Wales' Royal Regiment. As a young infantry officer, David served on operation in Northern Ireland as well as Germany, Canada and Germany. David is a favorite on the after dinner speaker circuit for his courageous story and motivational tales. In 1999, David was posted to 4th Armoured Brigade, serving in Kosovo for 4 months before returning to take command of B Company. Soon after David returned, he was sent with his brigade to Iraq, in what would be an extremely difficult tour.
Tasked with trying to rebuild local towns and cities whilst regularly being confronted with mortar, rocket and machine gun attacks, the violence culminated with a 3 hour battle trying to rescue an isolated patrol in the centre of Basra. David was left with severe injuries to his chest, shoulder, right eye and hand, at the time the field hospital gave him only a 5% chance of survival. A shocking tale, David has audiences in awe when describing this fearsome battle as a motivational speaker.
However after 4 years of rehabilitation and 20 operations David returned to run the family farm in Kent. Inspired by other amputee running marathons, David wanted to test his arm and shoulder and entered the Devizes to Westminster Canoe Race with a friend. On 22 March 2008, after 27 hours, 125 miles, 77 locks and the worst conditions in 60 years, the pair finished and managed to raise £22,000 for Help for Heroes in the process. A prime example of an individual overcoming adversity, Bradley is a highly respected motivational speaker and after dinner speaker. David’s interest in speaking on his life and what is needed to overcome adversity was discovered during a talk to Cadets when he was invited back to Sandhurst after his recovery. David often now addresses both military and civilian audiences with talks as an after dinner speaker concerning the principles and importance of consistent and direct leadership.
How to hire Maj. David Bradley
Contact the Champions Speakers Agency to provisionally enquire about hiring Maj. David Bradley for your next event, today. To get in touch, simply call an official booking agent on 0207 1010 553 or email us at [email protected] for more information.
** We do not accept requests for autographs, signed merchandise, fan mail, birthday messages or any other non-commercial contact with the speakers or acts. Each speaker on the website may not have necessarily worked with Champions in the past but are known to perform such engagements within the industry.
When he's at corporate events, David covers the following topics:
- Life in the military
- Mental resilience
- Performing under pressure
“Thank you so much for your presentation on Wednesday. It was absolutely excellent and the verbal feedback I have received so far and the fact you got a standing ovation (a first in the history of our events) reflected that.”- IPIA
