Reilly2040's Blog

Another show I was watching and enjoying recently was By Any Means. The latest adventure from Charley Boorman, this time he was going from his home town in Ireland to Sydney by any means. The only stipulation they had was that comercial airlines were a last resort and for as much as possible, they’d travel by sea or land.

It was a great series, showcasing loads of beautiful countries, and highlighting a whole load of different types of transport. It was just a pity that most of their sea crossings seemed to end up cursed to one degree or other, with overlaiden ferries, boats that conk out leaving them stranded, or just straight up start sinking.

With the series now having aired on BBC 2 and the book released, Charley is now doing a tour around the UK, and we were fortunate enough to get tickets for his appearance in Glasgow. The first part took the form of a conversation, with the host asking him questions about the trip, and Charley getting the chance to recount various stories from not just By Any Means, but also the Long Way… series, and his attempt at the Dakar Rally. It has to be said, that this simply flew past. Charley made for an entertaining speaker with a wealth of tales from his travels both funny and poignant from discussing his near missed on the various boats, to talking about leaving Georgia just prior to the Russian tanks rolling in, or his experiences of Iran. He has a very relaxed, friendly attitude about it all that makes his stories captivating. Its very much a normal guy who’s just had the great opportunity to do these amazing things.

The second part of the evening was a traditional book signing.  Charley was really friendly with every one, and more than happy to continually get out of his seat to have pictures taken.  Sadly our camera phone can be a bit tricky, and caused a minor bit of confusion, and thus some slightly concerned expressions in the photos.  If the photo doesn’t take first time, you quickly become aware of the long queue of people waiting behind you.

Cracking night though, and Charley Boorman came across exactly as he does in the shows.  Really likable and easy to listen to.  Honestly, the conversation part could’ve easily been twice as long and I’d have loved it.  Can’t wait to see what his next trip will be (he mentioned a couple of times that he wants another shot at the Dakar Rally), and I hope he comes back to Glasgow afterwards, as I’d definitely be buying tickets again.

Long Way Round was something I’d always meant to see, and earlier last year, I was gifted the DVD, which I sat, watched and thoroughly enjoyed.

I then got the book for Christmas this year (along with the DVD and book of Long Way Down) which I’ve been working my way through.

Its truely fascinating stuff, following Ewan and Charley’s trip of a lifetime around the world. Even just watching it on TV, its amazing to get those glimpses into other cultures, so the affect it must have had on those involved in the trip must’ve been truely profound.

The book also provides a good counter-point to the TV series. While the TV series did a good job of balancing the trials and joys of the journey, the book provides a slightly starker look at how challenging the trip could be.

Certainly by halfway through the book, I was left wondering why these two would go through it all again for Long Way Down, as both actors are very upfront about having to confront their own demons, with Charley accepting that his constant worrying about things is leading to clashes, and both actors battling the poor moods that the constant travelling through poor conditions can cause. However, as the book goes on, and they start travelling through Mongolia, Ewan especially starts to find the trip that he dreamed of, camping out in the Wilderness and meeting warm-hearted strangers to whom he is just a passing traveller and not just “Obi Wan Kenobi on a bike”.

Its a heart-warming read how these encounters clearly touched both actors quite profoundly and you can’t help but revel in their triumph as they finally reach Manhatten.

Now I’ve just got to get cracking on the Long Way Down book