By Any Means

When I first encountered Charlie Boorman, it was in his first televised travel adventure Long Way Round. In this he and his better known chum Ewan MacGregor motorcycled their way westwards, circumnavigating the planet. It was far better than I had expected as although the pair were accompanied by a well-equipped support team, the challenge was undoubtedly genuine and there were moments of real danger. Similarly the follow-up Long Way Down, a trip from London to Cape Town, was most enjoyable.

So I was quite looking forward to seeing Boorman’s latest effort, sans MacGregor, By Any Means. The challenge of this trip to Sydney, as the title suggests, is to get there on as many different forms of transport as possible.

I’m afraid I managed only ten minutes. I could stand Charlie’s grinning face and bulging eyes not a second longer. I’m not sure whether his presentation style has changed or the lack of a partner has made the difference. He now appears as a cross between a modern-day Bertie Wooster and Paul Whitehouse’s ‘Brilliant!’ character from the Fast Show.