Bodyguard School

Unleash your inner Bond with the ultimate homework.

Featured November 08

Bodyguard Boomtime

Celebrity protection is de rigueur these days� so for James Bond wannabes, it's time to get training

WORDS BY PIERS TOWNLEY

JUST A FRACTION OF A SECOND LATER, IT'S ALL OVER. One minute we're escorting the principal (the pretend VIP in question) through the smoky haze of the disused aircraft hangar, the next, there's a flash of light and our bodyguard box (the protective formation) has been shattered by masked attackers. A few of our group descend into sniggering.

From Robbie Williams to Nicholas Sarkozy and Paris Hilton, the bodyguard industry is enjoying a surge of business. This company, Quintessentially Secure, currently instructs teams protecting heads of state, crack foreign military units, the odd brickhouse A-list bouncer, and for the benefit of this training day, a handful of curious James Bond wannabes.

"When it goes down, it goes down fast," states David, the boss bodyguard. "And if you're not on the ball, it could be over before you've even blinked." Which is why David has us paired up pointing guns at each other. Unloaded ones, though, designed to sharpen our hastily learned unarmed combat skills before we move out on to the airfield to practise evasive driving and protective formations.

The breathtaking pace of the day is matched only by the surge of adrenaline as we try our hands at disarming pistol-wielding assailants with Krav Maga (close quarter combat, Israeli-style) techniques, while learning to operate as a team.

The Debus and Embus drills (getting in and out of a car) are practised with real ferocity (and more than a little bit of fun). They're also balanced by the calm, methodic and very unnerving smiles and movements of David and Roger, both of whom reveal themselves to be strict Buddhists in this, the least likely of karma careers.

"It's about a mindset," explains Roger, very calmly. "Much of this work, much of the training and the survival out there on assignments is down to a state of mind. If that's controlled, then so are you."

This is, of course, much, much harder to practise in the middle of your first high-speed J-turn, while all around you the smoke grenades crack and fizzle.

Bodyguard experiences are arranged through www.quintessentiallyescape.com