After a stint in the British Army where he fought in combat during the Korean War in 1951, he became a successful journalist and publisher in England, then a wine grower in Italy.
In 1980 he set out to become a modern Robinson Crusoe seeking a remote tropical island where he could be self-sufficient together with a female companion.
He advertised in Time Out magazine in 1980 for a woman to share life with him on a deserted island.
The story was also depicted in the film Castaway (1986), in which Kingsland was portrayed by Oliver Reed and Irvine by Amanda Donohoe.
Whilst living in Samoa, Kingsland was diagnosed with bowel cancer, returning to the UK in 2000.