Riku Rantala

Awarded the Top Male TV personality in Finland in 2009 and 2010, Riku Rantala has become a fan favourite among audiences fed up with fake, banal and predictable television. His sometimes harsh, take-no-prisoners attitude towards TV reporting earned him both accolades and disapproval, but never indifference.

Riku’s career started after studying in several universities including the Finnish Military Academy and the University of Journalism & Mass Communication. He first worked as the investigative crime reporter in the biggest daily newspaper of Scandinavia, Helsingin Sanomat. Among his most well-known scoops was the one that revealed the Finnish national skiing team’s systematic use of doping.

After getting into long-haul travelling with his childhood friend Tunna Milonoff, Riku quit the rat race and started Gimmeyawallet Productions together with Tunna in 2001. In their first production, Riku’s share was to write, present and produce an eight-month long journey into 12 episodes of travel shows that would go on to make Finnish television history. After the success of the first series, production and hosting duties have been his responsibility in the following seasons.

Riku is also the writer of the award-winning travel book Madventures – International Adventurist’s Manual, together with Tunna. The book is currently in its eighth edition.