- Martin Faulks
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Martin Faulks Born December 21, 1977
Norwich, NorfolkOccupation Martial arts Author Spouse Philippa Faulks (author) [1] Martin Faulks (born December 21, 1977 in Norwich) is an English Bujinkan Ninjutsu author, publisher and prominent Freemason.
Contents
In The Media
In January 2011, newspaper,[1][2][3] television, and radio [4] reports concerning Martin Faulks, the 'Norfolk Ninja', or the 'Ninja of Norwich', became prevalent. They concerned the heroic actions of Norfolk-born-and-bred martial-arts mystic Martin Faulks, who works for world renowned publishing company Ian Allan Publishing. The newspaper reports pictured Martin standing with Masaaki Hatsumi, the ninja Grand Master in Japan, and talked of his various forms of training, including learning to stand under a freezing-cold waterfall in the winter; training with Stephen K. Hayes, the world renowned martial arts expert and former bodyguard to the Dalai Lama, from whom he learned the arts of Buddhist meditation; through to training in the arts of stealth with former special-forces operatives. The book reports that Martin took part in a documentary which proved that he was as stealthy as a jaguar;[citation needed] however, this documentary doesn't appear to have ever aired on television.
The Bookseller claims that Martin is the bestselling martial-arts author in the country and that his book, "Becoming a Ninja Warrior," is the bestselling book on ninja since the '70s ninja boom.
Other appearances: Martin has appeared in a documentary for Channel 4 television about Freemasonry. He has also appeared on various radio shows and briefly, alongside his family, on the BBC2 television production Ben's Zoo
Biography
Martin Faulks has a black belt in the Korean martial art Kuk Sool Won and has won two gold medals in the UK National Kuk Sool Won Championships, as verified by the Kuk Sool Won website. He is also a holder of a third-level certification in fencing, and was a former Norfolk fencing champion, as stated on his website.
He has a black belt in Bujinkan Budo Taijutsu, which has been confirmed by martial arts expert Simon Yeo. However, it is stated that Noguchi Sensei gave him his black belt because of his extraordinary effort rather than his skill. Martin Faulks has also studied extensively under Bo Ou Mander, a Tai Chi master in Norwich, who originally trained in China.
Other activities: Though known primarily for his martial-arts books, Martin has been involved in other media projects. He worked alongside Amber Entertainment for the promotion of the first Tesco produced movie Paris Connections. He was also involved in the marketing of the film Erasing David (directed by David Bond, Green Lion Films) and is currently co-producing "The Haunting of Harry Payne" a film about an ex-London gangster (Payne) who retires to Norfolk to be close to his wife but was driven mad when he was forced to kill his best friend, psychopathic gang boss Eugene McCann. Immediately he is drawn into a murder mystery in which an obsessive local police detective targets him as the killer. However, unknown to anyone, Harry has psychic abilities he has always suppressed with drink. Now he must confront the supernatural and his own personal demons to save his wife and free the tormented souls of the ghosts that haunt him.
Freemasonry
Martin's associations with Freemasonry are strong. He holds the position of Past Master of Cabbell Lodge No. 807 and Burlington Lodge 96. Martin has appeared on BBC's "Heaven and Earth" show and featured in the Channel 4 television series "The Mystery of Masonry" in 2009.
Writing
Freemasonry
Martin is the author of numerous articles on Freemasonry and has contributed to magazines such as Freemasonry Today, The Square and the Scottish magazine The Ashlar. Martin wrote the foreword for the latest best selling book by Robert Lomas titled "Turning the Templar Key " of which 300,000 copies of this book are in print to date and it has been translated into 4 different languages. The foreword is reproduced in full at the Turning the Hiram Key website [2] Martin is also quoted on page 36 of the same book.
He also compiled two joke books (How Many Freemasons Does It Take To Change a Light Bulb? and a sequel called "The Sign of a Mason") with all proceeds going directly to the Royal Masonic Benevolent Institute (RMBI) and the Masonic Samaritan Fund (MSF).
Martial Arts
Martin wrote a book on the lotus position entitled "Becoming the Lotus". He has another two books on health and spirituality with Watkins Publishing, including a volume about the Chinese health and youth restoring exercises called Yijin Jing. Martin has also written articles for Europe's leading yoga magazine Yoga and Health magazine and a UK edition of Combat Magazine. In addition to all this he is also a regular contributor to various periodicals including Pentacle, and Paranormal Magazine.
Books
Becoming a Ninja Warrior: A Quest to Recover the Secret Legacy of Japan's Most Secret Warriors (Ian Allan Publishing, 2010)
Gateways to Health: Secrets of Rejuvenation (Watkins Publishing, 2009)
Butterfly Tai Chi: Health, Energy and Tranquility in 10 Minutes a Day (Watkins Publishing, 2009)
Becoming the Lotus: How to Achieve the Full Lotus Posture (Merkur Publishing, 2009)
The Sign of a Mason (Lewis Masonic, 2008)
How Many Freemasons Does It Take To Change a Light Bulb? (Lewis Masonic, 2007)
Criticism
Critics of Martin claim that his sensationalist marketing and picturing himself in a Ninja suit brings the martial arts into disrepute. The comedian Russell Howard mentioned the 'Norwich Ninja' as part of his comedy routine http://www.cliconline.co.uk/en/news/review-russe-howard-live/04038.html, and there have been call-ins on national radio stations as to whether or not have-a-go heroes like the Norfolk Ninja should be allowed.
Martial Arts Qualifications and Achievements
Black belt in Kuk Sool Won
Black Belt in Bujinkan Budo Yaijutsu
Blue Belt in To Shin do
References
- ^ Daily Mail (13 Jan 2011). "The Ninja Of Norfolk". The Daily mail (London). http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1348498/Meet-ninja-Norwich-Humble-publishing-clerk-day-fearsome-warrior-night.html. Retrieved January 2011.
- ^ Gary Goods (12 Jan 2011). "Ninja-battles-evil-with-his-mystic-fighting-skills-in-Norwich". The Sun Newspaper (London). http://www.thesun.co.uk/sol/homepage/news/3358922/Ninja-battles-evil-with-his-mystic-fighting-skills-in-Norwich.html. Retrieved January 2011.
- ^ Gary Goods (13 Jan 2011). "superhero-fan-learns-ancient-ninja-warrior-skills-so-he-can-fight-crime". The Metro Newspaper (London). http://www.metro.co.uk/news/853040-superhero-fan-learns-ancient-ninja-warrior-skills-so-he-can-fight-crime. Retrieved January 2011.
- ^ Matthew Gudgin Radio Show (Tue 14 Dec 2010). "Meet Norfolks Real Mystic Warrior". The Daily mail (Norwich). http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/p00cl4f6. Retrieved Tue 14 Dec 2010.
Wiki Links Lewis Masonic Stephen k Hayes
[3] The Daily Mail Article
[4] An article about Martin in the Sun Newspaper
[5] An article in the Metro
External links
Categories:- 1977 births
- Living people
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