Jonny Beardmore is the Galapagos Postman
And he could be knocking on your door next.
You’re sitting at home and hear a knock on the door. The postie has already been and you’re not expecting anyone. It’s 2024, you think to yourself. This is supposed to be a safe space. Who the hell drops by unannounced?
Still, you’re curious.
Excited, even.
So you open the door and are met by a scruffy bloke you’ve never seen before. ‘Hello,’ he says. ‘My name is Jonny Beardmore. I’ve come all the way from the Galapagos Islands to bring you a letter.’
For fifty people across six continents, this will be – or already has been – a very real interaction. Because for a 365-day period, beginning in March this year, Kiwi-born Jonny Beardmore has crowned himself the Galapagos Postman.
And the postman, Jonny promises, will always deliver.
For the past 230-odd years, a whiskey-cask-turned-postbox on Isla Floreana, in the Galapagos Islands, has served as a place for passing travellers to leave letters for loved ones. Visitors to the island are encouraged to check the barrel for letters addressed to their homeland and deliver a letter or two themselves, as sailors have done since the 18th century.
Jonny went a step further. He gathered fifty letters addressed to all corners of the globe and has taken it upon himself to hand-deliver them. Along the way, he hopes to raise awareness of, and funds for, motor neurone disease (MND).
‘This whole challenge is about reconnecting the world one letter at a time,’ says Jonny, whose father battled MND for almost a decade before passing away in 2022. ‘I [also] want to highlight the loss of mobility and freedom of movement that my father and other MND sufferers experience – a reminder that we should never take these abilities for granted.’
Though Jonny’s father, Eric, was given just two or three years to live after his diagnosis, he ended up fighting for another eight. This gave him time to plan his exit, Jonny says, and he was even able to use the end-of-life protocol, which has been approved in New Zealand.
‘It was amazing how he dealt with it,’ says Jonny. ‘His spirit and humour as his body shut down. His voice stopped and he couldn't communicate verbally, so he had to use his hands or type with his fingers. And during that phase, I couldn't really go too far. I couldn't do anything too big because I was mindful that something could happen and I might get a call. So I was sort of just biding my time and supporting him.’
In the wake of Eric’s death, Jonny began playing with ideas of what he might do next. He’d already driven a car across Central Asia to play a game of cricket – filming a documentary in the process – and had spent quite a bit of time travelling through Europe and South America, but he felt like whatever came next would be inspired, in some way, by his father.
‘I love exploring the world,’ says Jonny. ‘I’ve visited 114 countries and a goal of mine is to see all these places with my own eyes, to experience them myself. I try to come up with journeys that have a purpose to them. Something that inspires me rather than, you know, a fun weekend away.’
In January last year, Jonny travelled from his home in London to the Galapagos with his partner. They visited Isla Floreana and stopped at Post Office Bay, where they learned about the famous postbox for the first time.
‘It was pretty cool,’ says Jonny. ‘I stuck a letter in for my mum in New Zealand and took a couple out to deliver in London. It’s quite an experience, you know? You just rock up to somebody’s door and explain what you’re doing. And because it [the letter] is from somebody they know, there’s a bond that makes the meeting a little bit special. Everyone is amazed you’ve brought it to them by hand.’
Before his plum gig as the Galapagos Postman, Jonny worked as a commercial storyteller. He collaborated with designers and writers to help businesses tell better stories and oversaw strategy and project management. His day-to-day work was structured and organised, which is why he was looking for a project to motivate and excite him, something that might invite a bit of unpredictability into his life.
A year working as the Galapagos Postman fit the bill, so Jonny returned to Isla Floreana and got cracking. He took all the letters out of the postbox and spent a couple of hours sorting them geographically; a big pile for North America, a big pile for Europe, and tiny piles for all the other regions, with the exception of Africa and the Pacific Islands.
‘For all of the small regions, I took everything,’ says Jonny, explaining his process. ‘And then I took a selection spread across Europe and North America. One of the US letters just said “Show me your boobies”, which is to do with the blue-footed boobie, a kind of in-joke in the Galapagos. That made me chuckle. I thought it would be interesting [to deliver]. But there wasn’t really a science around it.’
Jonny’s first delivery was in Quito, Ecuador. He then delivered five letters in Argentina, Brazil and Paraguay before travelling north to Central America. There was a love letter to hand over in Belize; a letter from a daughter to her mother in Mexico to thank her for helping her follow her dreams; another from a son to his mother, telling her how much he loved her, but the mother couldn’t read so Jonny and his translator had to read the letter to her.
‘All through the Americas, everybody was just really amazed and really happy,’ says Jonny. ‘They all had unique stories and were very warm and welcoming. After some deliveries I stayed for drinks and we’re still in touch. And there was one in Napa, in California, where a triplet had sent a letter to herself and I delivered it on graduation day. The whole family was there. They invited me to stay for dinner and asked about my travels. I learned about their family background and they shared their stories with me, which was quite a privilege.’
Not content with his position as the Galapagos Postman, Jonny has also dabbled in playing cupid. That love letter in Belize? It read: Dear Steve, no matter what happens between us, I’ll always love you.
‘It was so lovely, so I had to deliver it,’ says Jonny. ‘But I didn’t have a clear address. I just turned up on the island of San Pedro and started asking around. I tried to stalk him online and found who I thought it might be, then found one of his friends and contacted her. She knew who he was and helped me find him. We turned up at a quiz night and he was part of this big expat community.’
Steve was stoked to receive his letter but he and Denise, the sender, had already broken up. Still, Jonny had lunch with both of them the following day and the two started talking again. Weeks later, the Wall Street Journal interviewed Jonny and he shared the story of Steve and Denise.
‘I called him [Steve] and said, “Mate, you’re in the Wall Street Journal.” And he goes, “Guess what? Denise and I are back together.” I told him they have to stay together until March next year, at least, so I can end the book, or the story, with this.’
With twenty-five of the fifty letters now delivered, Jonny has had plenty of memorable interactions. But things started slow, he says, especially in South America.
‘I was finding it difficult to get one-on-one time with people. I was hoping I could just rock up and they’d go wow, this is amazing. They’d invite me in, feed me, offer me their eldest daughter in marriage and I’d be part of the family forever. But that didn’t happen.’
By the time Jonny arrived in Central America, he had refined his approach. He would ask an Uber driver to help with translating or invite locals to join him on deliveries, which made the experiences so much richer. And though he’s now back in the UK, he still gets excited come delivery day and leaves with a big smile on his face.
His plan, now, is to continue delivering letters across the UK and Europe. He’ll then head towards the Middle East before dropping into Southeast Asia and Australia and New Zealand around Christmas time.
While in the UK, Jonny has teamed up with Sam Perkins and his charity Stand Against MND to spread awareness of MND. All Jonny’s UK fundraising will go to Stand Against MND to continue the work that Sam and his charity have achieved to date.
Formerly a keen Ironman triathlete, Sam was diagnosed with MND in 2019, at the age of 37, after suffering shortness of breath and being admitted to hospital with pneumonia. The aggressive strand of the disease meant his condition quickly regressed and left him relying on a ventilator to breathe. And though he lost all movement in the months that followed, he didn’t lose his drive to live a full life. Stand Against MND has raised more than £250,000 to date.
And when it comes to fundraising, Jonny hasn’t fared too badly himself; with half of the fifty letters still to be delivered, his Galapagos Postman adventure has raised over $10,500 for MND New Zealand. He hopes to increase that number with every delivery, so be sure to keep an eye out for the Galapagos Postman – it might be your door he’s knocking on next.
Keep up with the Galapagos Postman via his live tracker. You can also follow along on Instagram or support his journey and MND via New Zealand and United Kingdom charities.
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Wonderful story, Pat. Loved the way you captured Jonny’s enthusiasm. Hope you’re doing well.