TOUGH guy Michael Maisey, from near Wellington, put himself to the SAS test when he took part in the Channel 4 television programme Who Dares Wins.

The series, which sees civilians put through a re-creation of the elite regiment’s selection process, was filmed in the Andes in Chile in September.

Michael said: “It was brutal, it was really tough. They ‘beast’ you every day, throughout the day.”

He went into the programme as a veteran of several marathons and Tough Mudder events, and after passing physical tests and an interview in London trained with South West Military Fitness in Exeter.

The recruits quickly found out what was in store when on the first day they had to jump into an ice-cold lake and submerge their bodies.

The high altitude was difficult for many of the recruits, who were based at an abandoned mining camp at 2,000 metres above sea level.

Michael said one of his toughest moments came when he got altitude sickness after trekking with heavy kit to the top of a mountain 3,500 metres above sea level.

He said the recruits slept on camp beds and did not have any showers, and added: “I had never realised about the sleep deprivation – you are running on about two or three hours of sleep a night.

“But you are never really sleeping because the Directing Staff randomly come into the accommodation and order you onto the parade square – and if your’re not there in ten minutes you get ‘beasted’.

“You are constantly in a high state of alert – thinking you need to sleep with one eye open. Never having any downtime was hard.”

Michael, who made it half way through the ten-day process, said: “I was gutted when I was told I was leaving the show but it was hard not to get excited.

“I was really happy at the thought of going home and seeing my wife and kids, getting some sleep and having a warm shower.

“But I would do it again – I’m a sucker for punishment.”

Michael, 36, who lives in Clayhidon, owns an estate agency in London. He appeared in the television show Birds of a Feather as a youngster and still acts for enjoyment – one of his latest roles was Jack the Ripper in Myth or Monster.

He has also written a book about his life called A Boy with a Gun, set to be published in July.

Michael, who grew up on a tough estate in West London, said: “I had a pretty difficult upbringing and a crazy life story. Mum was an alcoholic, Dad was a heroin addict, and I was physically and sexually abused. At the age of 15 I was convicted of armed robbery, possession of firearms and went to prison.

“But when I came out of prison at 18 I started on a path of turning my life around. I got sober at the age of 25 and I have been sober ever since – 11 years now.

“I really made an effort to help others do the same and won a Community Safety Hero award from the Metropolitan Police in 2014 for everything I had been doing.”

Now he runs a men’s retreat on land he owns at his home passing on some of the lessons he has learned in life. He also does voluntary work visiting schools and prisons.