Chris Ryan

Chris Ryan
Birth name	Colin Armstrong
Born	1961 (age 62–63) Rowlands Gill, County Durham, England
Allegiance	United Kingdom
Service/branch	British Army
Years of service	1978–1994
Rank	Sergeant
Service number	24496702
Unit	B Squadron, 22 Special Air Service Parachute Regiment 23 Special Air Service
Battles/wars	The Troubles Cambodian–Vietnamese War Gulf War
Awards	Military Medal
Other work	Author, television presenter
Website	https://www.chrisryanauthor.co.uk/

Colin Armstrong, MM (born 1961),^[1] usually known by the pen-name Chris Ryan, is a British author, television presenter, security consultant and former Special Air Service sergeant.^[2]

After the publication of fellow patrol member Andy McNab's Bravo Two Zero in 1993, Ryan published his own account of his experiences during the Bravo Two Zero mission in 1995, entitled The One That Got Away. Since retiring from the

Ryan was born in Rowlands Gill in County Durham. After attending Hookergate School, he enrolled in the British Army at the age of 16. Ryan's cousin was a member of the reservist 23 SAS Regiment and invited Ryan to come up and "see what it's like to be in the army".^[3]: 85 Ryan did this nearly every weekend, almost passing selection several times, but was too young to do 'test week'. When he was old enough, he passed selection into 23 SAS. Shortly after that he began selection for the regular 22 SAS Regiment and joined 'B' Squadron as a medic. Needing a parent regiment, Ryan and a former sailor who had joined 22 SAS from the Royal Navy, spent eight weeks with the Parachute Regiment before returning to 'B' Squadron.^{[3]: 100–102}

During the 1980s he was part of an SAS team sent to Thailand by the UK government to train members of the Khmer Rouge in tactics used to attack civilians in Cambodia.^[4][5][6][7]

Bravo Two Zero

During the

During his escape, Ryan suffered injuries from drinking water contaminated with nuclear waste.[8] Besides suffering severe muscle atrophy, he lost 36 lb (16 kg) and did not return to operational duties. Instead, he selected and trained potential recruits, before being honourably discharged from the SAS in 1994.^{[citation needed]}

On 29 June 1991 Ryan was awarded the Military Medal "in recognition of gallant and distinguished services in the Gulf in 1991" although the award was not gazetted until 15 December 1998 together with the equally delayed announcement of Andy McNab's Distinguished Conduct Medal.^[9]

Post-military career

After leaving the SAS, Ryan wrote The One That Got Away, which covers the account from his patrol report of the Bravo Two Zero mission. Both his and McNab's accounts have been heavily criticised by former territorial SAS member and explorer Michael Asher, who attempted to retrace the patrol's footsteps for TV and claimed to have debunked both accounts with the help of his friend, the then-SAS regimental sergeant major Peter Ratcliffe.^[10][11]

Ryan has written more than 70 books, both fiction and non-fiction. Many of his works are well known, such as fictional works like Strike Back (2007), which was adapted into the

In addition to his writing Ryan has contributed to several television series and video games. In 2002 Ryan co-created and appeared in ITV's action series, Ultimate Force, playing the role of Blue Troop leader Staff Sergeant Johnny Bell in the first series. He acted as a military adviser for the video game I.G.I.-2: Covert Strike.^{[citation needed]}

Ryan was the star of

Personal life

Ryan has one daughter.

His experiences in Iraq caused him to suffer from

Ryan has written the following books:[13]

Filmography

• SSgt
  Johnny Bell
• Hunting Chris Ryan (2003) - Himself
• Elite World Cops (2008) - Himself
• Chris Ryan's Strike Back (2010) - Commanding Officer