John Peters

In January 1991, John’s bruised and battered face was broadcast across the world, becoming an enduring symbol of Saddam Hussein’s aggression during the Gulf War. Shot down while flying a Tornado GR1, John was captured and subjected to seven weeks of brutal interrogation and torture — pushed to the edge of human endurance and close to death.

But this is not a story of victimhood.

It is a story of choice under pressure, leadership without authority, and how the human spirit adapts, endures and grows through adversity.

Today, John brings these lived lessons to audiences across business, government and the charitable sector — translating extreme experience into practical insight for everyday leadership challenges: uncertainty, volatility, performance pressure, mental health, and sustained resilience. Despite the gravity of his story, John speaks with an innate sense of humour, humility and warmth, making even the toughest subjects relatable, engaging and profoundly human.

What sets John apart is not just what he has survived — but how effectively he connects it to organisational outcomes. Having worked internationally as a consultant across all three sectors, and across generations and cultures, his messages resonate seamlessly from the boardroom to the frontline. Leaders leave not inspired alone, but clearer, steadier and better equipped.

John’s speaking credibility is matched by his professional authority. He has addressed audiences around the world, including following Nelson Mandela on stage in South Africa, representing the British Armed Forces at the National Gulf Memorial Service in front of Her Majesty, The Queen, and delivering the Sir James Martin Lecture at the Royal Aeronautical Society in the presence of Prince Philip.

A former RAF Tornado pilot, John went on to lead Ministry of Defence programmes on leadership, safety and human error — experience that later shaped his work as a leadership consultant, coach and academic. He founded Monkey Business, a consultancy working with senior leadership teams on strategy, innovation and leadership, with clients including Capital One, Virgin Media and Lloyds Bank.

John is the author of two best-selling books, and the subject of the award-winning documentary Tornado Down, an Independent Documentary of the Year and BAFTA nominee. He is a former Chair of the Association of MBAs, Visiting Professor at Kingston Business School, Associate Professor at RANEPA in Moscow, and was awarded an Honorary Doctorate in Education in 2022.

Above all, John Peters leaves audiences with something rare: perspective under pressure, courage in uncertainty, and the confidence that even in the most testing conditions, growth is possible.