All clinging, all chancing: meet the Shard Climber

George King tells Hebe Campbell about the compulsions that drive him to risk his life - and why he just can't stop

- By Hebe Campbell

George King is generally a very happy young man. “I want to live to old age,” he tells The Independent. “I love my life.” But every time he enjoys his favourite hobby, he knows there is a very real chance it could kill him.

The 26-year-old hit the headlines in 2019 after scaling London's Shard - western Europe's tallest building - in an audacious free climb that stopped traffic, transfixed bystanders and sparked a media frenzy. Despite eventually being jailed over the stunt, it represented the realisation of a dream several years in the making for the Shard Climber.

"I was around 10 years old when I first climbed a climbing wall without rope," recalls King. "I remember getting halfway and freezing. But after composing myself and focusing on my breathing, I reached the top and felt something I'd never felt before - an overwhelming sense of euphoria, bliss, almost like a supernatural feeling."

That moment would become the launchpad for his obsession with urban free climbing - a discipline that leaves little room for error.