Karl Bushby completes English Channel swim

He added: “All of us can accomplish more than we will ever imagine.”

Bushby said he swam for 20 hours over three days, making landfall at Shakespeare beach, just south of Dover, at 15:30 BST on Monday.

HM Coastguard said it “liaised with French authorities and maritime sector partners to ensure safety protocols were met”.

Bushby’s team said he was welcomed on the beach by a small gathering of friends and family, including his father, Keith Bushby, a former SAS soldier, and acclaimed filmmaker Werner Herzog, who is directing a feature-length documentary about the journey titled Walk of Life.

For many years, the French have only tolerated cross channel swims departing from the UK – not from France.

However, Bushby’s team said permission had been sought from both French and UK authorities, and said they chose not to publicise exactly when it would take place “for safety and security reasons”.