“It’s Not One Big Jolly!” I Scream (To Myself…)

Many people – including fellow TV programme makers who should know better – often think that in making my numerous travel shows abroad, I’m on one big jolly holiday. When they say that, inside I’m silently screaming. Now I’m not denying it’s a huge privilege to journey overseas and experience some of the most amazing cultures, people, and landscapes and to get an insight into how a country or region ticks.

But its not a “holiday” as I frequently protest in vain. I’m not lying on a beach recliner sipping margaritas all day ( or even at the end of the day). My recent trip to Madeira – an island in the Atlantic that’s part of Portugal but actually closer to Morocco is a great case in point. That beautiful above- the- clouds sunrise involved a six hour shoot starting in the middle of the night. Every single moment of daylight is used during these filming trips and you spend an awful lot of time with a filming team who are under pressure to deliver quality programmes with very limited budgets.

We don’t travel business or first class and we don’t stay in luxury hotels. There are no freebies and frankly it’s not glamourous.

The author Paul Theroux once commented: “Travel is glamorous only in retrospect”

But having said that, wow what a great week that was in Madeira, discovering the intensity of their pride in local boy turned superstar Cristiano Ronaldo, hiking the famous water channels the Levadas, in the countryside and experiencing virtually every one of the nine different micro climates that co- exist on one tiny piece of very fertile land.

Am I protesting too much? You suspect I am don’t you ? Oh, who cares if people think it’s one big jolly! I’m one of the luckiest people on the planet and I’m grateful. Hope you enjoy the show….

BBC Travel Show Madeira is broadcast over the weekend of 28th September on the BBC News Channel and on the BBC iPlayer.