TV legend set for fourth Channel 5 travel series but admits ‘it could be the last’
TV legend Michael Palin is set to present his fourth Channel 5 series but he admits it could be his last.
The travel presenter shot to fame in the 1960s as an original member of Monty Python, but he is loved for his work as a TV travel journalist.
His last major TV series aired in April on Channel 5, with Michael Palin: Into Nigeria following the adventurer on a 1,300-mile journey over three parts.
Michael admitted that he had never visited Nigeria, despite being spellbound by its offerings.
And now Michael told the RadioTimes of his next project: “Channel 5 are currently working out somewhere really uncomfortable for me to go to next, in a location I can’t disclose…
“That could be the last journey, but who knows? Everything has been ‘the last journey.”
During the last series, Michael met Nigerians from all walks of life and uncovered how wealth and poverty are found in this intriguing country.
Michael visited the country on the Gulf of Guinea and discovered how the modern-day and legacies of the past exist in harmony.
The fascinating country inhabited by over 250 ethnic groups that speak 500 languages and identify with different cultures.
It has a GDP of £199.72 billion and is the largest oil-producing country, yet various factors constrain its economic potential.
He explored all this and more about the ‘Giant of Africa’ and how in 50 years it will be the third most populated country in the world after India and China.
Before this, he explored Iraq, which reached 2.5 million viewers and won a prestigious AIB award.
In Iraq he embarked on a 1,000 mile oddessey following the Tigris river from its source in Eastern Turkey to the Persian Gulf, visiting Mosul and Erbil before following the river to Tikrit.
He spent time in Baghdad and then discovered the ancient city of Babylon.
Similarly his exploration of North Korea was also nominated twice for a BAFTA.
In this groundbreaking series, he discovered how Kim Jong Un launched a new light beer to help residents lose weight.
Micheal has been on great railway journeys, travelled pole to pole and even gone full circle across the globe.
Top Channel 5 dramas
Channel 5 has become a hub for gripping drama, these are some of the best My5 has to offer.
- All Creatures Great and Small – Based on the best-selling novels by real-life vet Alf Wright, the show revolves around a trio of vets working in the Yorkshire Dales in the late 1930s. Eccentric Siegfried Farnon (Samuel West) hires James Herriot (Nicholas Ralph) for his veterinary practice at Skeldale House alongside himself and his younger brother Tristan (Callum Woodhouse). There James settles into his new life and even finds love with local farmer’s daughter Helen (Rachel Shenton).
- The Ex-Wife – New parents Tasha (Céline Buckens) and Jack (Tom Misson) seem to have the perfect life, but the constant presence of Jack’s overly friendly but suspicious ex-wife Jen (Janet Montgomery) puts pressure on the couple. But as the series progresses it becomes less clear who the bad guy really is and how far everyone will go to get the life they think they deserve.
- Heat – EastEnders alum Danny Dyer leads this four-part action thriller, set in Australia, which sees two families holidaying together during bushfire season. But instead of rest and relaxation, secrets and lies start to unravel — and not everyone will make it out alive…
- Lie With Me – Another soap legend jets off to Australia, this time its EastEnders alum Charlie Brooks who takes as a married woman trying to saving her marriage by moving halfway around the world after her husband had an affair. However it’s far from plain sailing, as a young and attractive live-in nanny comes to work with the Fallmont family, and tensions soon build and eventually, someone ends up dead.
- The Drowning – Jill Halfpenny plays Jodie, a woman whose life is shattered following the disappearance of her beloved four-year-old son, Daniel. However, ten years later, the grieving mother thinks she’s finally found her missing child, and embarks on a journey to discover the truth about him. But has she really just found the son she has been missing for so long?
On his adventures, he has explored the Himalayas, the Sahara, Brazil, the Indian Ocean, and Europe—travelling to over a hundred countries in total.
One of his memorable programmes also took him Around the World in 80 Days, like the famous explorer Phileus Fogg.
Stay tuned to find out where his next adventure will be.
For now you can watch Micheal Palin Travels of a Lifetime on Amazon Prime and Full Circle and some of his other shows on BBCiPlayer.