Long Way Round (2004–2010) User Reviews (61)

Very Enjoyable Documentary

[Mr_Sensitive · 8/10 · 31 May 2006]

This is truly is a great way to document the journey of the two best friends doing the things they love to do: Riding their bike and travel around the world.

And it happens to be our very own Obeiwan : Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman. Starting off their bike from London on the 115 days journey to New York; crossing three continental – Europe, Northern Asia, And Northern America.

This is somewhat one of the most pleasant documentaries to watch. It is not just because we know we have an actual star in it but also the document shot in a very friendly ways and to the extent: personal. The document capture the meaning of friendship between the two best friends and new friends like one can see excessive appearance of producer, camera man, and the local people and so on. But most importance of all it is passion of traveling and riding bike.

Recommendation: Definitely A Must Watch

Rating: 8/10 (Grade: A-) Please

Rate My Review Yes/No, After Reading. Thanks!!

An excellent adventure

[olivet · 10/10 · 28 July 2005]

This is a show about two guys fulfilling a long held dream of adventure. During a four month journey they travel on their motorbikes from London to New York the long way round through Western Europe, little visited parts of Eastern Europe (including Kasakhstan, Mongolia and Siberia), Alaska and Canada. We see the preparation and the actual journey.

I can't stand reality shows, don't care about actors private lives, don't like motorcycles and only bought the DVD because my husband had seen some bits on TV and nagged me into it. I also didn't want to shell out for the DVD as I was very sceptical that we'd want to see this more than once.

Wrong, wrong, wrong. We ended up watching it in one go until 2am on a workday. Definitely want to watch it again. What a thrill ride.

I enjoyed the show because it engaged me as a viewer on many different levels: it was fun to watch two guys (three including the cameraman) having an excellent adventure. Interesting to see countries and cultures we know very little about (Kasakhstan, where the hell is that?). Touching and humbling to see the Unicef work they visited on the way.

There are funny bits and really scary bits, amazing and interesting people they meet on the way, moments of hardship and friendship, individual endurance and teamwork.

Travelling is a state of mind as much as being in different locations and we get treated to all the highs and lows you can expect on such a difficult journey. Ewan and Charlie are very honest and open about their feelings and thoughts. The show is as much about what they are experiencing as people as about the actual journey itself.

Ewan McGregor is of course a natural showman, I was quite amused to watch his transformation from bespectacled actor to somewhat scary easy rider. This was a nice visual reminder of the influence a long journey has on you as a person.

I found the show inspiring. Ultimately it reminds us that we are all just people, regardless of our race, location or occupation.

The boring bits: The camera-work is good to excellent (I would have liked to see and know more about the cameraman, after all he was part of the team). The soundtrack is good. Solid production values. A few nice extras on the DVD. In short, you get value for money.

Brilliant

[gordywright · 10/10 · 27 August 2005]

Brilliant, excellent, gritty, realistic, inspiring, And those are the bad bits.

This is a fabulous piece of television , and I would recommend that you watch it.

If you like bikes, or even if you don't, it won't matter, this is a class apart.

The whole premise is so real, with a warts and all approach, you feel at one with the two guys, at times I was helping them, and sharing their laughs and their problems.

I can't recommend it highly enough

Outstanding!

[r8erz · 10/10 · 27 October 2005]

The only downside is it will make you want to get on a motorcycle and see the world.

:)

Except maybe not so much of it in one trip.

And maybe stay ... Ah, well, watch the series, you'll understand...

Ewan impressed us as being a pretty down-to-earth superstar - even from the get go. And if you have family, the ending will make you cry with tears of joy.

We couldn't stop watching, we had to watch all 7 episodes almost straight through. Even my 4 year old daughter found most of it interesting...

Fascinating and Addictive

[GaryPUK · 10/10 · 10 July 2005]

Whenever I buy DVDs I always pop them in the player to make sure they work and then shelve them. I popped L.W.R. into the player and I ended up watching three hours of the series before I realised the time.

This is truly compulsive viewing as, no doubt has been said earlier, it is not the standard celebs on a cushy ride under the guise of reality TV. There are times when there is genuine fear for their safety - and lives, and shows a real insight into the genuine personalities of Charlie and Ewan. Their is also a great sense of personal effort and struggle despite the well organised support crew who are, in the main, nowhere to be seen.

The one thing I felt could have improved this was more screen time, and so a better understanding of the role and personality of Claudio, their cameraman.

This is one of the few DVDs I own which gets a regular playing and it loses none of its appeal/humour/drama whatsoever.

Fascinating and Addictive.

10/10

Stunning series.

[planetbrendee · 10/10 · 14 December 2004]

A thoroughly enjoyable series. Not only was it serious and informative, but hugely funny too, not to mention moving. It was a real insight into other cultures and countries. Beautifully filmed, giving a 'warts and all' view, and yet emphasising how stunning these countries really are, and the people who live there. Makes you realize just how much we take for granted, and how tough life can be without a few home comforts! Refreshing to see celebs looking rough and struggling with emotions, hardships, mosquito's and dodgy cuisine! I have to confess that I would not normally watch anything like this, I expected it to be a couple of actors being macho, trying to win popularity (not like they need to!) by being REAL people. However, I underestimated them - it was awesome and I take my hat off to all those involved, not only out there in the wilderness, but the patient families also. It was a very brave and worthwhile thing to do. Good on ya.

Absolutely mind-blowing

[henrycoles9 · 10/10 · 9 December 2020]

This is the one and only adventure I always fantasized about as a kid and I also used to have a fondness of motorcycling but sadly I never took it up. I just wish they'd spent more time filming in Western Europe before they went on to Eastern Europe and Asia.

The ultimate real life road movie

[cf99-1 · 10/10 · 16 March 2005]

I have never seen Ewan McGregor as a real "movie star" and Charley Boorman is a journeyman actor.

The camera-work is okay, sometimes excellent and often good.

I don't like motorbikes and abhor contrived "reality TV".

Why have I watched this series twice already then?

This is a story about 2 friends who go off around the world and see *real* wilderness -not David Attenburgh like Serengeti - the real wilderness that is on the doorstep of Europe. As much a political and social wilderness as a geographic one.

Ewan and Charley are genuinely interesting and real people. They get fed up, hungry, tired. They sometimes argue and often get scared. This all goes to make a fascinating insight into both a "land that TV documentaries forgot" and a relationship that is as real as the cultures they ride through.

Being on motorbikes, they are forced to experience the journey first hand and the films are all the better for this - in fact it would have been a waste of time without them.

Ewan said "it's all about the motorbikes". Well, it isn't. It's all about Charley and Ewan and - more importantly - their friendship. It's all about the people they meet and the fascinating and often moving experiences along the way. As it happens, they had 2 wheels and a reliable BMW engine to help them along - but don't dismiss the biggest land mass on Earth and 2 good friends.

This is what television should be about. Good on the guys for having the vision, determination and stupidity to do this. Thanks!

An adventure full of good bits and great bits.

[SJJWalsh · 10/10 · 7 June 2005]

I bought this DVD just before christmas'04, after reading an interview with Mcgregor on the internet. This is kind of a 'Michael Palin' documentary, but with two good friends and very funny camera man. The DVD gives a personal account of the journey that when you watch it you feel like you have become a member of the team and after a short while you begin to connect emotional with both of the guys. It is often very funny and the humour generated is simply two men having the time of their lives while seeing and experiencing some of the world's most beautiful places and unusual cultures and traditions. Ewan Mcgregor in particular is amusing and you learn is very good at impressions and coming up with comedic anecdote's about his life. The book that accompanies the series (also the same name) goes hand in hand with the footage you see on the DVD, and becomes essential reading when it comes to filling in the blanks left out of the footage. The book reads like a diary and is littered with banter between the guys and honest accounts of their feelings about their lives and how it reflects on the trip. I recommend this DVD to anyone who is a fan of the 'Kilted One' but to anyone who enjoys an adventure.

The Mother Of All Roadtrips

[fwomp · 9/10 · 17 November 2006]

Many people dream of round-the-world trips but few are ever able to take them. Be it time or financial constraints, the barriers are often broad and appear unwieldy. So many times we have to experience the rest of the world vicariously via magazine articles or, in this case, a documentary.

LONG WAY ROUND was the brainchild of actor Ewan McGregor (STAR WARS) and his longtime buddy Charley Boorman (ON EDGE), two men with a passion for motorcycling. One day they decide to give this round-the-world idea some wings by mapping out a course across the globe ...but instead of traveling by plane or rail, they decide to do it using two BMW motorbikes.

Preparation for the trip starts months in advance as transportation is arranged, passports collected, boarder crossing ensured, and training of the two riders takes place (CPR, first aid, exercising, motorcycle training, Russian language classes, etc.) The trip begins in London, England and ends 115 days later in New York. The trip starts out well enough, with adequately paved roads and quaint villages. But the further east McGregor and Boorman travel, the less biker-friendly the way becomes. Smooth asphalt quickly gives way to pitted asphalt, then divot-riddled asphalt, then into dirt roads. Once into Mongolia, anything resembling a sustainable thoroughfare becomes completely blurred by bogs, riverbeds and stretches of absolute nothingness.

Difficulty of traveling aside, the two bikers meet some of the most incredible people. Ewan McGregor being Ewan McGregor, he is initially seen as a hero, a movie-star bringing notice to these otherwise unnoteworthy locales. Police escorts pop-up out of nowhere and guide Ewan and Charley into small townships where parties await them in their honor. But, again, the further east our two journeymen head, the less this happens. In and out of Mongolia, they soon head up into Siberia where they encounter The Road of Bones, a stretch of road built by slave labor during Stalin's tyranny (many a dead slaves body rests somewhere beneath this road ...or so it is said). No one knows who Ewan McGregor is here.

Pushing themselves to the limit, the two slush through wetlands, river crossings and some of the worst roadways in the world. Even a support crew that follows them has great difficulties, one time crashing their vehicle and nearly killing some of the passengers.

Arriving 115 days later in New York, many viewers will breath a sigh of relief for Charley and Ewan. The intensity of the trip is well-spent on the audience, helping the viewer feel the pressure and difficulties of the route. But it also helps us see that what is often said to be impossible is, in fact, possible if you apply yourself hard enough. That and the exposure to the myriad of other cultures makes this documentary a strong film.

Fantastic

[girlieno_2 · 28 January 2005]

My sister was raving about 'The Long Way Round' after she bought it on DVD, she lent me hers and I watched both discs in a weekend! as i was hooked. It was the best television programme I have seen in a very long time. I went and bought it and have been raving about it to anyone & everyone since. I only knew about the series originally as Ewan was on Fridy night with Jonathon Ross and it went quiet from there. It was on 'Sky' but again didn't hear much about it which is a travesty. I won't go into detail of the programme as this will spoil your viewing. It'll make you laugh out loud, worry about them, will them on and you'll just really enjoy it but prepare to feel slightly inept due to the tenacity of Ewan, Charlie & the team.

Ace, Brill, Great - 10/10 - 100% - A+

[englandfan66_1985 · 10/10 · 2 January 2005]

I got this series on DVD for Christmas as at the moment I'm quite interested in traveling. Its brilliant, Ewan and Charlie are such strong characters and have that great attitude that I try to have that life is just a laugh. Its good to see too that actors are not all Clooneys and Pitts and that they have a desire for real life and don't like to brag about there riches. I have a real dream to see the world and this is an inspiring step in the right direction.

I'm saving up as we speak for my motorbike and then ill be off London to New York - The Extra Extra Long way round. From London I'll cross the channel to France then through to Spain and across from Gibralter to Morroco then across to Eygpt. Then Over to China and down through the rest of Asia to Australia. When in Australia i'll cross to South Africa and then to South Ameerica and up to New York. Simple.

Anyway Great Series, well worth a look.

"This trips about motorbikes, it always has been and it always will be" Ewan McGregor

The Ultimate Road Trip

[jonreastwood · 10/10 · 19 August 2005]

Who needs a scripted 'buddy movie' when you have real buddies on a trip of a lifetime? I've been enjoying the recently edited 10 part (rather than the original 6 part) version of the series on Sky One and am hoping a new directors cut DVD is released soon. The original run, although excellent did give the impression that there was so much more of the trip that hadn't been shown and this extended re-run does the show even more justice.

I guess maybe the American people that are eagerly anticipating the DVD might end up getting the extended series?

The book accompanying the Series should definitely be read if your a fan of the show. The personal insights by Charlie and Ewan are great and it's interesting to get two perspectives on certain situations; a pretty funny confession from both of them was that out of boredom on long legs of the journey they would purposely avoid a pothole at the last possible moment knowing that poor Claudio who would be directly behind would never have a enough reaction time to avoid them!

What An Adventure

[johnseegers · 10/10 · 12 August 2019]

Loved every minute of this. I thought a 1000 mile weekend was a big deal back in my motorcycling days. Don't overlook the date on this! 2004 was a long time ago...

Nothing short of an accomplishment

[Ant_Lan · 10/10 · 15 March 2008]

I was intrigued from the start at Ewan McGregor, major and rightly so movie star, for wanting to undertake something so un-Hollywood as a months-long bike trip. And being a big fan of the man, I made a point of checking out the ensuing DVD, expecting a bit of a bore still.

The first two episodes, which concern only the preparations and not the trip itself, left me physically and emotionally drained. The two adventurers, McGregor and his friend Charley Boorman (son of renowned director John Boorman) are so human and devoid of hypocrisy or flashiness that it leaves you with nothing but their pure passion and investment in their quest. Such that from the get go I was swept along, and felt quite heavy-hearted when it was all over.

The basic premise of this series is that, as mentioned, McGregor and Boorman make a round-the-world trip on "motorbikes", from London to Russia, then with a quick plane fare pick up in Alaska all the way to New York. A third motorist accompanies them with a camera (a poor lad who confronts the same hardship as the two "heroes"), while a support crew follows in trucks on easier roads. What comes of it is anything but a Bike trip. It is a journey to the end of a man's expectation and understanding of himself and his planet. The things they see, people they meet and obstacles they overcome makes the viewer rediscover life with ever maturing eyes.

The visual quality itself is nothing short of an accomplishment, given the difficulty level of filming from a motorcycle in terrains that would bring any grown man crying on their knees. Breathtaking imagery and editing are equalled only by the most engaging and exciting soundtrack I have ever heard attached to a simple documentary.

Highly recommended to absolutely everyone. It plays not only as a documentary, but as a dramatic comedy as well as reality show. Quick tip for enjoyment - resist the urge to watch it all at once. It really IS draining. And for those who fall for it as much as I did, a second series has just started airing in the UK, called "Long Way Down", about this time a trip to South Africa.

A poor documentary of a dubious adventure

[robertllr · 2/10 · 5 July 2006]

The account of this round-the-world motorcycle trip was extremely disappointing. I gave it two stars only because there are a few funny moments and a couple of thought-provoking sequences. But, on the whole, I found the journey itself lackluster and the documentation haphazard and artless.

First (and worst) is the "reality TV" format. In this style, the entire documentary is made up of sound bites—few scenes lasting for more than 10 seconds, and most for only a fraction of that. This is a poor format for any kind of documentary reporting—but for a road trip—which consists largely of views and experiences long and deep (rather than short and shallow) it must be the worst way to present the ambiance of such an adventure.

The second disappointment is with the event itself. Travel accounts are generally by and about a single traveler. This adventure, however, is more of a traditional expedition. The principals (actors Charley Boorman and Ewan McGregor) are not alone on their voyage. They are attended by at least three 4-wheel support vehicles and a huge crew. The plan was for the riders to stay ahead of the crew and rely on them only for assistance at border crossings; but it hardly works out that way, and the motorcyclists rely heavily on the crew vehicles for all kinds of support.

Boorman and McGregor are also accompanied by a third rider, the principal photographer (known only as Claudio) who presumably shares all their experiences but is almost never seen or heard from. I was never sure of his nationality but he spoke a heavily-accented English. He was brought on at the last minute and had no say in the planning of the trip, nor did he have any of the training that the two principals underwent before the ride. Indeed the relationship of these three riders must have been odd: two mates who make the trip as best friends plus a stranger who stands outside their experience and documents it. The viewer can't help but wonder: was the photographer included in their intimate evening conversation? Did they care about his thoughts or observations? Was he treated like a gentleman's gentleman rather than a fellow traveler? In the end, though Claudio has ridden the very same roads and suffered the very same hardships as Boorman and McGregor, he does not join in their victory celebration. Knowing he is there, but is being kept literally out of the picture puts a strange cast over the entire proceedings and adds to the viewer's feeling that the whole expedition is more like a stunt than a true journey.

The two actors know almost nothing about motorcycle mechanics. Indeed, they have chosen for their trip overly large and highly sophisticated motor cycles—bikes they cannot maintain or repair. As it turns out, the photographer's mount is damaged and finally abandoned for a basic Russian model that seems better suited to the task. It is interesting to note that Ted Simon, a man who traveled over the entire world (not just circumnavigating the relatively short 50th parallel) learned to strip and rebuild his bike before leaving on his four year solo journey. Indeed, Simon repeated the trip again at the age of 70, and Boorman and McGregor actually meet him in one brief scene.

The preparation for the journey is undertaken, not by the two bikers, but by an enormous staff of secretaries, facilitators, and specialists. The budget for the trip itself—exclusive of filming costs--must have been in the millions—not counting the support of sponsors such as the bike manufacturer and others. Boorman and McGregor have literally hordes of lackeys to arrange for the travel documents and other necessities, producers who get them appointments with ambassadors and trainers of various kinds—they even rent and remodel an entire building to serve as an operating and outfitting center. Shakelton—the 19th century Antarctic explorer--probably did more of his own preparation that these two did; and countless unrecorded travelers have made much more remarkable journeys with far less outside support

Lastly--and perhaps "worstly"--is the amazing inarticulateness of Boorman and McGregor. They speak no foreign languages, have little or no knowledge of the geography, history, the flora or fauna, or the cultures of the places through which they travel. As a result, all they can do is look happy or sad--depending on the difficulty of the road. "It's fantastic" is about all they can utter as they try to describe the scenery or the people. They sound more like a couple of uneducated pot heads than a pair of observant travelers. ("All the wildlife we've seen!" McGregor enthuses in one scene, as the film cuts to a one-second image of a crow sitting on a post.)

I gave the film two stars, however, so here is what I liked. The travelers did, in fact meet many people who helped them—people who had no idea who they were, or how big and obscenely funded their expedition really was, and I was genuinely moved by what would seem to be the basic goodness of common people everywhere.

Another engaging sequence was their travail in eastern Russia, on the so-called "Road of Bones" where the entire expedition would have been stopped in its tracks, except for the assistance of Russian truck drivers in extremely tall and rugged vehicles who help them across rivers and patches of seemingly unsurpassable terrain. What is engaging about these sequences is that the expedition members and the truck drivers labor side by side to create passable fords, or build log bridges. It is probably the only time on the trip that the two dandies and their friends ever do any real work.

A film has been made of Ted Simon's journeys—a camera crew following him on one leg of his second trip, with fabricated flashbacks to the earlier journey. I have not yet seen it, but I am sure it would make an interesting comparison.

A plus effort

[futureidol · 10/10 · 22 November 2004]

Scottish heartthrob Ewan McGregor is a man that takes risks. His new reality show on Bravo (Thurs. 8 Eas.), is a fascinating look at a celebrity's real life adventure around the globe. Most of the traveling is done on motorbikes which makes for some crabby as well as hilarious moments. The messes Ewan and his crew get into on their journey from London to New York are so bizarre not even the most talented screenwriter couldn't have scripted them better. The show is full of extremes, from the hilarious encounters with the Ukrainian mob, to the heart wrenching visit to a children's charity house, to the nerve racking accidental spray of gasoline in the eyes, to the beautiful song writing and voice of Mr. McGregor, the show leaves you pondering each commercial break "what next?," and each new adventure tops the next. Ewan has shown America that he really is the kind natured gentleman he plays so well on the silver screen. The show is humorous, surreal, educational, and an all around A plus effort. You almost don't want to fun to end, it's as if you're along for the journey. I highly recommend it.

Long Way Round

[jboothmillard · 8/10 · 4 July 2006]

This programme was originally broadcast on a Sky television channel, then they showed it on the BBC, and I got to watching it when it was released on DVD. Basically, actors Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman met each other when working together in the movie The Serpent's Kiss in 1997 and sharing a love for motorbikes have been best friends ever since. In 2004, they planned a journey to go around the world riding on BMW motorbikes (they originally wanted KTM bikes, but KTM declined to provide them with bikes thinking they would fail). They plan a journey that would take them 19,000 miles from London, England to New York, USA, travelling eastwards through Europe and Asia, flying to Alaska, and riding the rest of the way. They are joined by the support crew in four-by-fours, director/producers David Alexanian and Russ Malkin, and cameramen Claudio von Planta and James Simak. The crew would link up with them at borders and help with logistics, equipment and supplies, but otherwise, they were on their own, with handheld and helmet cameras. Ewan and Charley travel through the United Kingdom, France, Belgium, Germany, the Czech Republic, Slovakia, Ukraine, Russia, Kazakhstan, Mongolia, Canada, and the United States of America. They stay mainly in hotels, but occasionally were given places to stay from natives of the countries and camped where possible. During the journey they meet many interesting people, see the famous sites, experience the culture, and eat food, and they visit UNICEF projects (Ewan is an ambassador). They go through many towns, villages, and cities, and through various types of scenery, including forests, mountains, deserts, and rivers, through hot, cold, wet, and windy weathers. There are many challenges along the way, including dangerous territories, hostile environments, tough terrain, and occasional accidents, but team try to remain optimistic, and there are some surprises along the way (Ewan is surprised by his dad Jim appearing). The ten-part series is full of struggles, success, and exploration, the sights make for wonderful viewing, and you really get the sense of adventure from the two best friends. It has the catchy title song by Kelly Jones, lead singer of the Stereophonics, Ewan and Charley and the members of the crew are great characters, this is perfect for anybody who likes a road trip, motorbikes and seeing the world, a fantastic travel documentary. It was number 76 on The 100 Greatest TV Treats 2004. Very good!

How can one improve on this

[drew612 · 10/10 · 14 December 2006]

If this doesn't rate a 10 nothing should. Truly one of the best documentaries I've ever seen. It helps if you're a motorcycle fanatic like myself but even if not, this is greatly entertaining. I couldn't stop watching till it was all over and it caused me to search within myself for the answer to the question, have I done enough in my life, am I stretching myself, will I have regrets when I look back through my 80 year old eyes? This series reaffirms that it's the most difficult times that can be the most rewarding. The only part I hated about watching this was that I had to sit in a comfy chair to do so when I really rather would have been in the midst of the action slogging it out in the mud.

excellent!!!!

[vladimir_bgyu · 10/10 · 4 March 2006]

When I've seen it first on Viasat Explorer, I was stunned!!!! The great show especially the moments at Russia and Mongolia where the crew meet most of the difficulties on the long way round. Warm and sensitive, the show here touches you even if you are not a bike person.

(And now I replay the tape over and over again!) I was crying in tears watching most of the episodes 'cause this show is not like any other show, this is the real thing! Emotions, drama, excitement, homesickness,... from the bottom of their hearts.

If you haven't seen this series.... YOU JUST HAVE TO! (sorry for my poor English,..... and all the best to all the crew of the Long Way Round !!!! especially Ewan, Charlie and Claudio )

A really good travel documentary

[alanpuzey · 10/10 · 7 December 2021]

I did it all the wrong way round. I watched this series after watching trips 3 and 2. They were all entertaining with some really good footage - though in all three series, there were weaker episodes.

This first trip had all the excitement of the first trip that later led into the subsequent ones. It set a good pattern, and I'm very glad that almost the same team were in all trips.

You get the good, the bad and the ugly here.

The strangest motorcycle movie

[Jos.Rock · 7/10 · 13 January 2007]

Imagine that you love riding motorcycles and are also fabulously rich. You decide to ride around the world by a sort-of northern route. How to approach the problem? Why, buy huge quantities of costly goodies, pile it onto two suffering behemoth bikes, and hire two SUVs full of camera gear to follow you all the way and take pictures. In other words, do it just the way a couple of wealthy but saucy young British men would have done it a couple hundred years ago, using the fruits of technology wrought since then. The result, after the proper investment in editing, is pure entertainment, and works beautifully when taken as such. Ewan and Charlie float across Eurasia in a haze of movie star glamour. Everywhere they stop, people gather to take pictures, seek autographs, host the best party. The ideal, the execution, and the telling of the story are all frankly surreal. The landscape fills it out with the infinite space of Genghis Khan's homeland. The abiding image... a motorcycle, mired to the seat in mud.

How the Unprivileged Others Live

[AZINDN · 7/10 · 13 December 2005]

I have a love-hate dilemma with this docu made for TV special for several reasons. As a enormous fan of Ewan McGregor, the principle of a trip to experience the world seems a great notion, however, there is more to this story than simply two blokes out for a lark on bikes. This much touted adventure for the extreme sports fans as well featured the star and his best friend, actor Charlie Boorman, on BMW motorcycles on an around the world vacation. Because of Ewan's star power, the pair are able to offset the cost of this adventure by hiring a television producer and charming companies to donate their equipment and services including two enormous BMW touring cycles, 4x4 SUVs, security equipment, camping equipment, designer duds for biking, tools, toolboxes, and the list goes on and on. They also had a contract with Bravo TV and a book deal in the bag. This is hardly a living off the land excursion, but an expedition that might turn into the ill-fated McGregor- Boorman Party. Most offensive perhaps, is the statement that the adventure was to raise awareness and monies for UNICEF charities for children, not to profit McGregor and Boorman. Whether this is true is never revealed and if funds were raised for the organization, it's not disclosed, however, the television commercials and internet exposure was worldwide, much to McGregor's surprise. He doesn't seem to understand how expansive the web is worldwide.

Throughout the two discs set, McGregor and Boorman provide reality TV one-on-one interviews with their personal diaries of the day's activities. It is an informal discussion, usually provided after the pair have settled in for the evening and are about to retire. The humorous quips and obvious friendship and respect between McGregor and Boorman keeps the situation light, but as the conditions of the road deteriorate, so do the spirits of the star.

While Boorman struggles to remain healthy and keep the pair on the road, McGregor is at the mercy of his own off-road inexperience, away from wife, kiddies, and his security blanket, it is his own inability to be of tougher stuff that is exposed. He whines, they both whine, and when it becomes almost intolerable, they meet situations and people who live so far below the standards of their pampered lifestyles it is obscene to complain without seeming hypocritical. I wanted to yell, "grow up" at the screen.

Although invited to share the homes of kind folks along the road, nomads, and simple working class individuals, the experience of seeing the world as they've never known it is still trying for Ewan. It is only when the pair is exposed to the remains of the soviet block countries is there the beginnings of a reality check for the pair. Children dying of exposure to Chernobyl, children who live under the streets to survive, and nomads who are so foreign to McGregor that he at times seems childish and unprepared for their hard lives. His depression is real, yet, didn't anyone tell him what to expect?

Only when the pair reach the United States, Alaska, through Canada, and into the northern states to NYC do the pair seem to relax among English speaking, cell-phone toting, westerners like themselves. But, it is during the hardship of the Road of Bones that McGregor seemed to finally grow up and with that experience under his belt, his entry to New York is a decided letdown.

I enjoy the personalities, but the premise still has an uncomfortable aura of privilege versus poverty that makes for uncomfortable watching through most of the series.

#....and the Wheels of the Bikes go round and round all day Long....#

[Cinema_Fan · 7/10 · 12 October 2005]

You've got your bike, you've got your map and you've got your Wonder Lust, but there are several roads you can go down, with this Package.

The first road being the Charity road. I think its Great and Commendable that the Team are helping Unicef and the Children this or anyway they can.

The second road could be the irony of getting it all for free road. "What! Messrs Mcgregor and Boorman travelling around the World and they need Our charity and support, we'll have to give them a sticker to put on their panniers".

Then possibly there is the third, of selling the package down the road, yeah; they love bikes and the road, now it looks like Mr Boorman is making a career out of it. A writer for a commercial monthly bike mag, now he's doing the Dakar, yes they will be selling the video, book and t shirt soon after no doubt.

Maybe there is a fourth road? I've got it, #...Follow, follow the Yellow Brick Road...#? Only kidding.

It all seems too easy, I sometimes wonder what was the point, apart from helping Unicef etc, just look at all the help they got, what happens behind the camera is anyone's guess.

No, its a great concept and package, I'm not trying to sound like a sceptic, because I've done the sleeping under the stars around Europe on my own travels, there is a slight feeling of empathy with you when things did go amiss, I've been there too, but I would have to question its true purpose.

To be honest I would recommend the DVD of a group of ordinary men who were helped only by their own wit and imaginations riding their own DR350s around the World, called MONDO ENDURO and also by the same riders TERRA CIRCA. They even had to give up their day jobs for this once in a lifetime experience.

I have read the Long way Round book, but this is a case of seeing the movie then you've read the book.

What books do I recommend? The first being Ted Simons Jupiter's Travel's, around the World in FOUR years on a first generation Triumph Tiger during the early '70s. The second book is by Jonny Bealby who wrote the moving story of his travels through Africa on his Yamaha Ténéré, trying to find himself after the sudden death of his Partner during the late '80s. The book is called Running With the Moon.

The Team have done wonders for the image of Motorbiking, I at least hope that through all your hard work, because it certainly was, have set a seed of Wonder Lust in someone, then I say thank you.

Ride Free and don't forget that Lifesaver.

Thanks One and All.

The journey to end all journeys

[jmccluskey2005 · 10/10 · 17 June 2005]

The entire idea of this show was that two friends take a trip out on their respective motorcycles and relax but this goes far beyond that and goes into the personal relationships that they have with each other and the difficulties that each other face while trying to keep to a mountain of a deadline and try keep to the spirit of their voyage while also keeping to their commitments of check points and meeting's with various people along the way. A sometimes painful clash of objective between the guys meant that what started as a two man journey of discovery quickly snowballed far beyond that and into a corporate game of cat and mouse and that was before they even started their trip.

My hat/crash helmet goes off to the guys not only for the guts it took just to think up what most people would see as an impossible task but for the sometime literal pain they both went through to make their dream off two mates two bikes and 20,000 mile come true through hellish heat and high fast flowing water

A great travel adventure that is recommended to all