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Primitive Technology
YouTube channel and associated blog

Primitive Technology is a YouTube channel run by John Plant. Based in Far North Queensland, Australia, the series demonstrates the process of making tools and buildings using only materials found in the wild. Created in May 2015, the channel has gained over 10.8 million subscribers and over 1.12 billion views as of December 2023.

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Background

Plant describes his subject as a hobby,1 and he "lives in a modern house and eats modern food".23 He stated in a comment on a January 2018 video that he owns the land on which he films the videos.4 He states on his website that he has no Aboriginal ancestry and has not received military training.5

In a correspondence with Michelle Castillo of CNBC in 2018, Plant stated that he was in his mid 30s. He also said he went to university and received a Bachelor of Science degree but "didn't do anything with it",6 and instead mowed lawns for a living while going out into the bush in his spare time to practice his hobby.7 He stated his affinity for subsisting off of nature began at a young age: at 11, he would make huts by a creek behind his house using only natural materials.8910

Description

Each video provides a closed-caption narrated account of the progress of one or more projects demonstrating the techniques and methods used to create tools or buildings.11 As he explains on his blog, he builds "completely from scratch using no modern tools or materials", only using what he can source from his natural environment, such as plant materials, clay, soil, and stones; creating a self-contained progression of accessible technique and implements for the projects.1213 Episodes of the series contain no speaking, and only minimal ambient sound, usually focusing on the natural sounds of wildlife, weather, and the creek which runs near the site. Mr. Plant often records his videos wearing little except his cargo shorts, and crafted items such as handwoven cordage sandals.14

History

Blog

In June 2015, Plant created the Primitive Technology blog on WordPress. That blog was a primary source of his videos through November 2018 when he posted the "Iron Prills" video,15 whereupon Plant moved exclusively to YouTube.

YouTube channel

Plant created the Primitive Technology channel in May 2015. The first video was uploaded on 1 May 2015. Since that time, each of his videos has garnered millions of views. The channel amassed 5.4 million subscribers and 350 million views by September 2017,16 increasing to 8.7 million subscribers and 615 million views by September 2018.17 As of June 2024, the channel has over 10.9 million subscribers and over 1.14 billion views.

For the first two years of the channel's existence, the man in the videos remained anonymous. In June 2017, he identified himself as John Plant when he complained to Facebook that his videos were being stolen as a result of people reposting them on the website, and that the practice had cost him thousands of Australian dollars.18

Book

Plant has authored the 192 page, illustrated, hardcover book Primitive Technology: A survivalist's guide to building tools, shelters, and more in the wild (ISBN 9781984823670), published by Clarkson Potter on 29 October 2019. The book is "a practical guide to building huts and tools using only natural materials from the wild" containing "50 projects with step-by-step instructions on how to make tools, weapons, shelters, pottery, clothing, and more".1920

Hiatus and return to YouTube

After a video on 13 December 2019, no new videos were uploaded to Primitive Technology in the usual timeframe. On 28 May 2020, a post explaining the hiatus was posted to a Reddit community maintained by fans of the Primitive Technology channel. The post stated that Plant was taking a break from YouTube because he was working on a project for a cable network.21 Another post on 8 February 2021, explained that Plant shot a pilot episode for the project but the network wanted to change the format, and that Plant could not share any more information. In his free time, Plant was still recording new material, but he did not want to post it if he deemed it of not high enough quality.22 On 2 March 2022, Plant posted his first video in over two years, titled Primitive Technology: Thatched Workshop.23 He continues to upload videos monthly.

References

  1. Mooney, Paula (21 February 2016). "Primitive Technology' YouTube Guy Gets 31 Million Views: What's The Name Of Shirtless, Silent Australian Man In The Videos?". Inquisitr. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2016. http://www.inquisitr.com/2815630/primitive-technology-youtube-guy-gets-31-million-views-whats-the-name-of-shirtless-silent-australian-man-in-the-videos/ ↩

  2. "Primitive Technology Wordpress blog 'About' page". Primitive Technology website. 7 July 2015. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2016. https://primitivetechnology.wordpress.com/about/ ↩

  3. Pierpoint, George (27 August 2018). "What is 'primitive technology' and why do we love it?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2018. https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-45118653 ↩

  4. "Primitive Technology's highlighted reply". YouTube. 19 January 2018. Retrieved 21 January 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_7985zBEM3o&lc=Ugz8LVkQMApfhmsJ1lN4AaABAg.8bbr-k69_QU8bbtjVJklQC ↩

  5. Mooney, Paula (21 February 2016). "Primitive Technology' YouTube Guy Gets 31 Million Views: What's The Name Of Shirtless, Silent Australian Man In The Videos?". Inquisitr. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2016. http://www.inquisitr.com/2815630/primitive-technology-youtube-guy-gets-31-million-views-whats-the-name-of-shirtless-silent-australian-man-in-the-videos/ ↩

  6. Castillo, Michelle (15 September 2017). "How a YouTube star gained 5.4 million followers by mimicking the Stone Age". CNBC. Archived from the original on 23 May 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2017. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/15/youtube-primitive-technology-shows-john-plant-living-in-the-stone-age.html ↩

  7. Pierpoint, George (27 August 2018). "What is 'primitive technology' and why do we love it?". BBC News. Archived from the original on 24 November 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2018. https://www.bbc.com/news/blogs-trending-45118653 ↩

  8. Castillo, Michelle (15 September 2017). "How a YouTube star gained 5.4 million followers by mimicking the Stone Age". CNBC. Archived from the original on 23 May 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2017. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/15/youtube-primitive-technology-shows-john-plant-living-in-the-stone-age.html ↩

  9. Staff writer(s) (2 October 2017). "Primitive Technology auf YouTube: Technik-Tipps aus der Vorzeit". Der Spiegel. Archived from the original on 22 June 2018. Retrieved 29 November 2017. http://www.spiegel.de/netzwelt/web/primitive-technology-auf-youtube-technik-tipps-aus-der-vorzeit-a-1170181.html ↩

  10. Staff writer(s) (28 September 2017). "Nackter Oberkörper und zwei geschickte Hände: Steinzeit-Handwerker wird zum Youtube-Star". Aargauer Zeitung. Archived from the original on 9 February 2019. Retrieved 29 November 2017. https://web.archive.org/web/20190209040240/https://www.aargauerzeitung.ch/panorama/vermischtes/nackter-oberkoerper-und-zwei-geschickte-haende-steinzeit-handwerker-wird-zum-youtube-star-131751630 ↩

  11. Kahn, Jennifer (1 December 2016). "Letter of Recommendation: 'Primitive Technology'". The New York Times. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2017. https://www.nytimes.com/2016/12/01/magazine/letter-of-recommendation-primitive-technology.html ↩

  12. "Primitive Technology Wordpress blog 'About' page". Primitive Technology website. 7 July 2015. Archived from the original on 14 May 2019. Retrieved 21 November 2016. https://primitivetechnology.wordpress.com/about/ ↩

  13. "'Youtuber' primitivo: Internet se rinde al canal de este 'McGyver' prehistórico". El Mundo. 4 August 2017. Archived from the original on 30 May 2019. Retrieved 22 August 2017. http://www.elmundo.es/f5/comparte/2017/08/04/5980626d46163f20778b4614.html ↩

  14. "Primitive Technology: Sandals". YouTube. 30 July 2017. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i-WYT2UotIc ↩

  15. "Primitive Technology: Iron prills". YouTube. 17 August 2018. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DyGLE0usN_I ↩

  16. Castillo, Michelle (15 September 2017). "How a YouTube star gained 5.4 million followers by mimicking the Stone Age". CNBC. Archived from the original on 23 May 2018. Retrieved 23 September 2017. https://www.cnbc.com/2017/09/15/youtube-primitive-technology-shows-john-plant-living-in-the-stone-age.html ↩

  17. Bridge, Mark (1 September 2018). "Stone Age skills are YouTube smash hit". The Times. Archived from the original on 21 October 2018. Retrieved 9 September 2018. https://www.thetimes.com/business-money/technology/article/stone-age-skills-are-youtube-smash-hit-jpw8jc8ww ↩

  18. Michael, Peter (3 June 2017). "Caveman YouTube neolithic skills sensation accuses Facebook of theft". The Sunday Mail. Archived from the original on 10 March 2022. Retrieved 23 September 2017.(subscription required) http://www.couriermail.com.au/news/queensland/caveman-youtube-neolithic-skills-sensation-accuses-facebook-of-theft/news-story/13924d5b27102f8ce1212430c0394257 ↩

  19. "Primitive Technology by John Plant". www.penguinrandomhouse.com. Penguin Random House. Archived from the original on 10 August 2019. Retrieved 10 August 2019. https://www.penguinrandomhouse.com/books/600727/primitive-technology-by-john-plant/9781984823670/ ↩

  20. Booktopia - Primitive Technology. Archived from the original on 31 October 2020. Retrieved 27 October 2020. https://www.booktopia.com.au/primitive-technology-john-plant/book/9781529104592.html ↩

  21. "An update on Primitive Technology". Archived from the original on 20 November 2020. Retrieved 31 May 2020. https://www.reddit.com/r/PrimitiveTechnology/comments/gscvv8/an_update_on_primitive_technology_and_johns/ ↩

  22. "A new update on Primitive Technology and John's well-being". Archived from the original on 30 August 2021. Retrieved 30 August 2021. https://www.reddit.com/r/PrimitiveTechnology/comments/lfsq04/a_new_update_on_primitive_technology_and_johns/ ↩

  23. "Primitive Technology: Thatched Workshop". YouTube. 2 March 2022. Archived from the original on 3 March 2022. Retrieved 3 March 2022. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=0tZLCCLMws4 ↩