Bear Grylls meets Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky in a new Channel 4 documentary airing on Tuesday, March 28. During an emotional chat with the world leader on the streets of Kyiv, Bear learns how the Russo-Ukrainian war has impacted the children of the war-torn country.
Zelensky, who has been President since 2019, reveals that the nature of his job means that he doesn’t get much time to see his family. He has been married to wife Olena Kiyashko - whom he calls his “best friend” - since 2003 and they have two children together.
“It’s very hard for my son,” Zelensky tells Bear. “He’s nine so for him, it’s a really tough situation because he needs a father and he doesn’t have enough warm moments.”
Bear then asks, “How do you explain the situation to your son?” And Zelensky replies: “He is in the soldier form and he’s always ready."
Further elaborating on how the war has changed the Ukrainian people, Zelensky says: “This war changed our people and it changed our children. They are not children, they are adults.”
Bear says: “Kids all through the country, I guess they will have had to grow up so fast.” And the President agrees, adding: “Yes and our children have had to grow up really fast.”
The 45-year-old politician and former comedian and actor then recalls a conversation that he previously had with his son. “My son said to me, ‘I am strong, I am okay, do your job’ but during this moment, you see the wet eyes of your son and you understand that he’s a child.”
Last week, Bear took to Instagram to share a first look at his interview with President Zelensky. He captioned the post: “Here we go! The hardest episode we’ve ever shot… but maybe the most important. Tuesday 8pm @channel4 : “'Bear Grylls Meets President Zelensky.' It was a huge privilege to travel to Kyiv and walk with the President and get to know the real man away from the podium. Also to meet so many Ukrainian unsung heroes battling for their lives, including Ukrainian Scouts."
Catch the full interview on Channel 4 at 8pm on Tuesday, March 28. For the latest TV and showbiz news sign up to our newsletter here.
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