Twenty thousand miles. That’s the distance. If you’ve ever sat on a motorbike for more than three hours, you know your backside starts to feel like a piece of tenderized steak. Now imagine doing that every day for three months, crossing through some of the most volatile borders on the planet, all while your best friend is occasionally getting on your last nerve. That’s basically the Long Way Down television show in a nutshell.
It wasn't just a sequel. It was a massive, sprawling, often exhausting experiment in human endurance and friendship. Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman already proved they could ride from London to New York the long way around. But Africa? Africa is a different beast entirely.
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The Road from John o' Groats to Cape Town
Most people think travel shows are about the destination. They aren't. Not the good ones, anyway. The Long Way Down television show worked because it was about the logistics of suffering. You start at the northernmost tip of Scotland—John o' Groats—and you think, "Yeah, this is lovely." Then you hit Libya. Then Ethiopia. Then the sand starts eating your bike's engine.
Honestly, the chemistry between Ewan and Charley is what keeps the wheels turning. You’ve got Ewan, who at the time was one of the biggest movie stars on the planet (hot off the Star Wars prequels), and Charley, a guy who basically lives and breathes petrol. They aren't acting. When they get stuck in the mud in Kenya, the frustration is real. When they're exhausted in a tent, the bags under their eyes aren't makeup.
It's raw.
Breaking Down the Route
The journey spanned roughly 15,000 miles (give or take a few detours) through 18 different countries. They ripped through Europe, crossed the Mediterranean into Tunisia, and then the real work began. Libya, Egypt, Sudan, Ethiopia, Kenya, Uganda, Rwanda, Tanzania, Malawi, Zambia, Botswana, Namibia, and finally, South Africa.
Most travelers would take a year to do this. They did it in about 85 days.
Why Long Way Down Was Different from Long Way Round
There’s this weird debate among fans about which series is better. Long Way Round had the "first time" charm. It was messy and they almost didn't make it. By the time the Long Way Down television show started filming in 2007, they had a bit more of a "system," but that almost made it more dangerous. They were confident. Maybe a bit too confident.
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The stakes felt higher in Africa. In the first series, the main enemy was the lack of roads in Siberia. In Long Way Down, the challenges were more human. Bureaucracy. Border crossings that took ten hours of sweating in the sun. The constant threat of political instability.
And then there was the "Eve" situation.
If you want to see real, unscripted tension, watch the episodes where Ewan’s wife, Eve Mavrakis, joins the expedition. Charley wasn't thrilled. He felt it changed the dynamic of the "boys' club" trip they had planned. It’s one of the few times you see the cracks in their friendship. It wasn't some manufactured reality TV drama; it was the genuine friction of a high-stress environment being disrupted by a new variable.
The Bikes: BMW R1200GS Adventure
You can't talk about this show without talking about the bikes. The BMW R1200GS Adventure became an icon because of this series. Sales skyrocketed. Suddenly every middle-aged guy with a license wanted a massive 500-pound German adventure bike.
They were tanks.
They dropped them in the sand. They drowned them in rivers. They caked them in African dust until the air filters choked. Yet, they kept going. There’s a specific kind of mechanical sympathy that develops when your life literally depends on a machine not breaking down in the middle of the Sudanese desert.
A Few Technical Realities
- Weight: Fully loaded, those bikes were nearly 600 pounds. Dropping one meant a two-man lift.
- Tyres: They had to swap between street tyres and knobbies depending on the terrain, often in the dirt.
- Support: Unlike your average YouTuber today, they had a crew. David Alexanian and Russ Malkin followed in Nissans. It doesn't make the riding easier, but it does mean someone is there to film you when you fall off.
The UNICEF Connection
It’s easy to dismiss this as two rich guys on an expensive vacation. But the Long Way Down television show did something most travelogues fail at: it showed the work. Their visits to UNICEF projects in places like Ethiopia and Malawi weren't just "feel-good" segments. They were sobering.
Seeing Ewan McGregor—a man known globally as Obi-Wan Kenobi—sitting on the ground talking to landmine victims or children orphaned by AIDS felt authentic. It gave the miles meaning. It wasn't just about the "achievement" of reaching Cape Town; it was about seeing the world as it actually exists, not just as a backdrop for a motorbike ride.
What Most People Get Wrong About the Show
People think it's a "how-to" guide for adventure motorcycling. It’s not. It’s a documentary about a production.
If you tried to recreate their trip today, you’d find it nearly impossible in some regions due to shifting geopolitics. Libya is a completely different world now compared to 2007. Sudan has faced immense turmoil. The show captured a very specific window in time where this specific route was—barely—possible for a Western film crew.
Also, some critics at the time complained it was too "sanitized" because of the support vehicles. Honestly? Go ride a bike through a sandstorm in Ethiopia and then tell me if having a car a mile behind you makes the sand in your teeth feel any better. The physical toll on the riders was immense.
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The Legacy of the Journey
Without Long Way Down, we wouldn't have the current explosion of adventure travel content. It set the blueprint. The high-definition cameras (well, high-def for the mid-2000s), the helmet cams, and the vulnerable "diary" entries into the camera at night—it all started here.
It paved the way for Long Way Up years later, where they swapped petrol for electric Rivians and LiveWires. But there’s something about the grit of the Africa trip that remains the gold standard.
Actionable Insights for Your Own "Long Way" Trip
If the Long Way Down television show has inspired you to grab a bike and head for the horizon, don't just wing it.
- Get Training: Ewan and Charley did intensive off-road training before they left. If you’ve only ever ridden on asphalt, a gravel road will end your trip in ten minutes.
- The Bike Isn't Everything: You don't need a $25,000 BMW. You need a bike you can fix with a zip tie and a prayer.
- Paperwork is the Real Enemy: Carnet de Passages (a passport for your vehicle) is more important than your spare parts. Without the right stamps, your bike stays at the border while you go home.
- Embrace the Boredom: The show edits out the eight-hour stretches of straight, flat roads. Adventure is mostly boredom punctuated by moments of sheer terror.
- Pack Light: Whatever you think you need, halve it. Then halve it again.
The Long Way Down television show wasn't just about motorcycles. It was about the fact that the world is huge, intimidating, and beautiful, and the only way to see it is to just start moving. Whether you're on a BMW or a 125cc scooter, the goal is the same: get out there and get a little bit lost.