Pilot Guides - My Favourite TV Show
My husband will attest that I am one of these people that
can eat, drink, talk and do travel pretty much all the time.
I just love travel, I read books on travel all the time, subscribe
to numerous travel magazines - in several languages, as you
can imagine. I visit and research travel websites, of course
I talk to travelers and naturally I watch travel shows on
TV! I am wondering if there is actually a saturation point
for me at which travel loses interest. Well, I haven't seen
one so far yet..
So, talking about TV shows, I thought I'd share with you my
favourite travel show on TV and one of my guilty viewing indulgences:
PILOT GUIDES!
In Canada "Pilot Guides" airs on the Outdoor
Life Network, usually on weekdays at 10 pm. It's a TV
show that is produced in Great Britain by Pilot Productions.
According to their website, www.pilotguides.com,
they are "an independent TV production company who have produced
specialist TV shows for 9 years covering travel, food and
history. The company and its presenters have won numerous
awards and achieved fame in the field of off-the-beaten track
travel TV with the TV show Pilot Guides (known as
Globe Trekker in the USA and was previously broadcast
under the name Lonely Planet), a show which celebrates
the best, newest and most exciting travel hotspots in the
world. Other successful shows in their catalogue include the
travel and food show Planet Food, the adventure and
trekking show Treks in a Wild World and shopping
and the travel series Bazaar.
There are now more than 100 episodes of Pilot Guides
that cover every continent, and what I really like about them
is that they present adventure travel in a light-hearted,
humorous and even educational way. In virtually every location
the presenters go off the beaten path, meet the locals and
do some crazy things. In many cases this involves eating some
strange-looking (and, as I am sure, strange-tasting) local
delicacies, celebrating with the locals, and getting introduced
to their customs and traditions. Trekking, hiking, mountain
biking or scuba-diving are usually involved as well. All shows
have a bit of geographical and historical background and therefore
have good informational content as well.
At the top of my favourite 3 presenters is Ian Wright, a quirky
Englishman with a pretty heavy accent, a great sense of humour
and absolutely no hesitations to taste any kind of native
dish. Ian now has his own TV show: Ian Wright Live
with its own website, www.ianwrightlive.com
, where he shares clips and travel stories with a live interactive
audience.
Beware though - sometimes this may turn into a sheep-eyeball-eating
contest where Ian invites somebody from the audience to recreate
a travel experience that he may have had in some far away
country. Obviously this person then has the pleasure of eating
a culinary sample of this particular dish, right in front
of a live TV audience. Here you can link to an interview
that demonstrates that Ian Wright is a rather interesting
and surprisingly multi-dimensional fellow.
Megan McCormack and Justine Shapiro are the two other presenters
who are willing to explore every location to the fullest in
local activities and adventures. They also show great sensitivity
in presenting the local cultures, even in politically explosive
areas, whether it be in places like Israel or the Middle East.
Check out an interesting interview
with Justine as well.
Even though I personally haven't done any real adventure travel
in exotic locations, watching one of these shows makes me
feel like I am out on the road with the presenters, on the
back of the truck hitching a ride, or interacting with the
locals. It's perfect for us armchair travelers, who don't
have the time or money to get away when we want. Watching
Pilot Guides is one of those guilty pleasures that
give me a wonderful escapist feeling when I am a bit stressed
out and when I need a little break from everyday life..
Related articles:
Ian Wright
- Live in Toronto - a chance to see my idol in person...
Feeling like a kid again - when I attended the Outdoor
Adventure Show
Interview with Chris
Ronneseth - Adventure travel expert
Interview with Jeff
Minthorn - Publisher of a magazine on adventure and discovery
travel