He has made the first ascents of a number of rock climbs including one of the first E7-graded climbs in Britain with Centrefold on Raven Crag Langdale in 1984.
Birkett began writing and photographing for climbing magazines in the late 1970s, and in 1985 he became a freelance writer and photographer.
Birkett's books have been published by a range of publishing companies including Cicerone Press, Oxford Illustrated Press, Constable, Harper Collins, AA, David & Charles and Frances Lincoln. In 2009 he set up his own publishing company, Bill Birkett Publishing to "have complete control" over future walks books.[4]
Awards and honours
Birkett has twice won Excellence awards from the Outdoor Writers and Photographers Guild for A Year in the Life of the Langdale Valleys in 2005, and A Year in the Life of the Duddon Valley in 2007.[5]
A Year in the Life of the Duddon Valley also won the Dalesman Award for Best Outdoot book in 2007.[6]
The Birketts
The 541 hills listed in Birkett's book the Complete Lakeland Fells (1994) have become known as Birketts (see Hill lists in the British Isles) and are a popular list used as a target by Hill Baggers.[7]
Publications
Birkett has written or co-authored over 30 books, including:
Winter Climbs In The Lake District (with Bob Bennet and Andy Hyslop, 1980, 3rd edition 1997) ISBN1852842466
Lakelands Greatest Pioneers, 100 Years of Rock Climbing (1983) ISBN0711227241
Classic Rock Climbs In Great Britain (1986) ISBN0946609306
He is a regular contributor to The Great Outdoors, Climber, Climb, On the Edge, High and Cumbria magazines.[3]
Television
Birkett appeared on the Chanel 4 series Yorkshire Dales and the Lake District (series 3, episode 1, 2019) climbing the North West Arete on Gimmer Crag in Langdale with his daughter Rowan Birkett.[8][9]
