BBC Presenter Vanishes In Remote Jungle Searching For Lost Tribe


A British explorer has gone missing after he ventured into a remote jungle looking for a lost tribe of headhunters for a BBC documentary.

Benedict Allen, 57, hasn't been heard from since he was dropped off by a helicopter three weeks ago.

He had no phone or GPS device when he entered the crocodile-infested jungle in Papua New Guinea.

The experienced adventurer was supposed to have started his long journey home by Sunday, but there has been no sign of him. His family are now worried that something bad happened to him while he was searching for the "scary" and reclusive Pacific tribe.


Allen, a father-of-three, was trying to find the Yaifo people - thought to have no contact with outsiders - when he vanished.

He first met the tribe 30 years ago and was hoping to meet them again in East Sepik province to film them for a BBC documentary.

Mr Allen's agent Joanna Sarsby said his wife Lenka has not heard from him and became very worried when he missed his flight to Hong Kong, where he was due to speak to the Royal Geographical Society.

Before leaving for Papua New Guinea, Mr Allen, who has a home in Bristol, had written a blog post about his expedition to meet the Yaifo tribe 30 years after his chance encounter.

Mr Allen is a veteran explorer who has made six TV series for the BBC and once ate a stray dog to stay alive after getting lost in the Brazilian rainforest in 1982.

According to his website, he is the only person known to have crossed the Amazon basin at its widest, and is the only person known to have crossed the Gobi Desert with camels alone.

The Foreign Office has said it is assisting a British man's family and contacting local officials after he was reported missing in Papua New Guinea.


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