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{{short description|Television series and book}}
{{About|the TV documentary series}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=February 2021}}
{{Infobox television
| name = Long Way Down
| image = LWDtitle.jpg
| caption = Opening title shot for ''Long Way Down''
| genre = [[Documentary film|Documentary]]
| creator = [[Ewan McGregor]]<br/>[[Charley Boorman]]<br/>[[David Alexanian]]<br/>[[Russ Malkin]]
| developer =
| starring = Ewan McGregor<br/>Charley Boorman
| country = United Kingdom
| language = English
| num_episodes = 6 (10 ep. extended broadcast)
| producer = David Alexanian<br/>Russ Malkin
| executive_producer =
| location =
| camera =
| runtime = 60 minutes
| network = [[BBC Two]]
| first_run =
| first_aired = {{start date|2007|10|28|df=y}}
| last_aired = {{end date|2007|12|2|df=y}}
| related = ''[[Long Way Round]]''<br/>''[[Race to Dakar]]''<br/>''[[By Any Means (2008 TV series)|By Any Means]]''<br/>''[[Long Way Up]]''
| website = http://www.longwaydown.com
| cinematography = Claudio von Planta<br/>Jimmy Simak
}}
{{Infobox book
| name = Long Way Down
| title_orig =
| translator =
| image = Long Way Down cover.jpg
| caption =
| author = Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman
| illustrator =
| cover_artist =
| country =
| language = English
| series =
| subject =
| genre = Travelogue
| publisher = [[Atria Books]]
| pub_date = 15 July 2008
| english_pub_date =
| media_type = Hardback
| pages = 352
| isbn = 1-4165-7745-9
| oclc =
| dewey =
| congress =
| preceded_by = [[Long Way Round]]
| awards = Galaxy British Book Award 2008- Best Popular Non Fiction
}}
'''''Long Way Down''''' is a television series and book documenting a [[motorcycle]] journey undertaken in 2007 by [[Ewan McGregor]] and [[Charley Boorman]], from [[John o' Groats]] in Scotland through eighteen countries in Europe and Africa to [[Cape Town]] in South Africa. It is a follow-up to the ''[[Long Way Round]]'' of 2004, when the pair rode east from London to New York via [[Eurasia]] and North America.

The journey started on 12 May and finished on 4 August 2007.<ref>{{cite news | url = http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/scotland/6931450.stm | title = Actors complete 'Long Way' ride | work = [[BBC News]] | date = 2007-08-04 | accessdate = 2007-08-04}}</ref> They were accompanied by the same key team members from ''Long Way Round'', including cameraman and director of photography [[Claudio Von Planta]] and cameraman Jimmy Simak (who also oversaw music supervision and soundtrack production), and producers [[Russ Malkin]] and [[David Alexanian]]. They also decided to travel with medic Dai Jones, cameraman and security officer Jim Foster, and various "fixers"—local guides and interpreters. They rode the [[BMW R1200GS|BMW R1200GS Adventure]], the successor to the [[BMW R1150GS|R1150GS Adventure]] bikes in ''Long Way Round''.<ref>{{cite web | url = http://www.bbc.co.uk/longwaydown/feature/the_bikes.shtml | title = Long Way Down, The Bikes | publisher = [[BBC]] | date = 2007-04-24 | author = Mat Oxley | accessdate = 2007-09-24}}</ref>

As with their previous trip, and Boorman's ''[[Race to Dakar]]'', [[Russ Malkin]]'s company Big Earth produced the series. The television series began broadcast on [[BBC Two]] on 28 October 2007,<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.longwaydown.com/ |title=Long Way Down is almost here! |accessdate=2007-10-19 |url-status=dead |archiveurl=https://web.archive.org/web/20071016164814/http://www.longwaydown.com/ |archivedate=16 October 2007}}</ref> with clips also shown online. The series was added to [[Apple TV+]] on 18 September 2020 along with the first iteration ''[[Long Way Round]]'' (2004) and sequel ''[[Long Way Up]]'' (2020).

==Route==

The team travelled from their base in [[Shepherds Bush, London]] to [[John o' Groats]] at the northern tip of Scotland to begin their journey. The start was nearly delayed after Boorman, frustrated by an official at [[Gatwick Airport]], made an off-the-cuff comment regarding bombs and was detained for questioning. After being released without charge, he took a later flight to [[Inverness]] and the journey began as scheduled. The team took four days to ride from John o' Groats back to London, via the McGregor family home in [[Crieff]] and the [[Silverstone Circuit|Silverstone]] racetrack, where they camped in the middle of the circuit. They took the [[Channel Tunnel]] to France, and rode south to Italy. The European leg ended in [[Sicily]], where they caught a ferry to [[Tunisia]].

In Tunisia, McGregor and Boorman visited the set of ''[[Star Wars]]'' and then rode into [[Libya]]. However, American producer David Alexanian and cameraman Jimmy Simak were unable to obtain the necessary entry visas and were forced to fly from Tunisia to [[Egypt]]. After visiting the pyramids they boarded a ferry to [[Sudan]], continued into [[Ethiopia]] and then into [[Kenya]], where they crossed the equator. From Kenya they rode to [[Uganda]] and then [[Rwanda]], where they had an audience with President [[Paul Kagame]]. They went from there to [[Tanzania]], and then into [[Malawi]], where they were joined by Ewan McGregor's wife Eve. The final leg took them through [[Zambia]], [[Namibia]], [[Botswana]] and into South Africa. The journey ended at [[Cape Agulhas]], the southernmost point of the continent, from where they were accompanied to [[Cape Town]] by a phalanx of bikers, similar to their arrival in New York on the ''Long Way Round''.

==Border crossings==

The team anticipated problems at the various borders crossings, particularly in Africa. Given their experiences on the ''Long Way Round'', which included problems with Russian visas, a "fine" for a missing stamp in their [[ATA Carnet|carnet]], and delays of up to twelve hours, major preparation and planning went into the transit between countries. Although the American crew members were barred from entering Libya, this was anticipated ahead of their arrival. Upon arrival in Tunisia, the team bribed the local authorities with a few bottles of [[vodka]] to aid their passage into the country. It was assumed this would become a regular occurrence while travelling through Africa. However, although delays of a few hours were common, there were few significant problems at crossing points as they travelled further south.

==Breakdowns and accidents==

The quality of road surfaces throughout east Africa were surprisingly smooth, but sections were rough, bumpy or had sandy terrain, with some travel through a small river and [[mud wallow]]. The [[shock absorbers]] bore the brunt, with both McGregor's and von Planta's bikes suffering broken springs. As the only spare had been fitted to McGregor's bike, von Planta rode in a support vehicle while his bike was sent on ahead for repair. McGregor and von Planta also came off and damaged their bikes' bodywork, with von Planta involved in the more serious incident on a motorway in South Africa. Boorman admitted he had been "putting on a show" for a roadside garage, and braked sharply as part of a maneuver. Von Planta says he was riding too closely and fell while avoiding a collision; he was shaken but uninjured. His motorcycle was substantially damaged, and the footage of the rest of the journey to [[Cape Agulhas]] appears only to include support vehicle and helmet cam footage, suggesting that Von Planta's motorcycle was no longer used. McGregor's wife Eve, who learned to ride only for the journey, joined them partway and took several falls on sandy terrain in Malawi and Zambia, apparently without injury.

==UNICEF==
[[File:Ewan McGregor's motorbike from "long Way Down", now in the Riverside Museum, Glasgow.JPG|thumb|upright=1.3|Ewan McGregor's motorbike from "Long Way Down", now in the Riverside Museum, Glasgow]]
During the trip the pair visited three [[United Nations Children's Fund|UNICEF]] facilities to promote the work done by the organisation.<ref>{{cite web | url= http://www.unicef.org.uk/longwaydown/pages.asp?page=28&s=2 | publisher= [[UNICEF UK]] | title= Long Way Down | accessdate= 2008-01-04 | url-status= dead | archiveurl= https://web.archive.org/web/20071217024858/http://www.unicef.org.uk/longwaydown/pages.asp?page=28&s=2 | archivedate= 17 December 2007}}</ref>
In Ethiopia they visited a [[land mine]] awareness project and met children injured by mines. In Uganda they met former child soldiers of the [[Lord's Resistance Army]] and saw the work being done to rehabilitate them. In Malawi they visited care centres for children orphaned by [[AIDS]]. Both McGregor and Boorman had visited such centres in Africa previously.

==Music==

The title song was performed by Welsh group [[Stereophonics]], and is identical to the ''[[Long Way Round]]'' theme with the lyric "round" replaced with "down".

The soundtrack features music drawn substantially from the catalogue of [[Real World Records]], which produced the accompanying album. Co-director of photography Jimmy Simak also acted as music supervisor and soundtrack producer for the series.

==Broadcast schedule==
[[File:BMW R1200GS Adv Charley Boorman LWD.jpg|thumb|right|Boorman's BMW R1200GS motorcycle]]
The original broadcast dates in the United Kingdom were:
{| class="wikitable"
|+
|-
! Episode !! Original Airdate
|-
! 1
| 28 October 2007
|-
! 2
| 4 November 2007
|-
! 3
| 11 November 2007
|-
! 4
| 18 November 2007
|-
! 5
| 25 November 2007
|-
! 6
| 2 December 2007
|}

==Future trips==

In the final pages of the ''Long Way Down'' book there is a mention of "Long Way To Go" but this is not the intended title for a third series, but a reference to the continual support that [[UNICEF]] needs for its work. In the DVD extras, while preparing the bikes for cargo, Ewan McGregor refers to a possible future trip in South America, perhaps called ''[[Long Way Up]]''.

On the ''Late Show'' with David Letterman (17 February 2010), McGregor said he was not planning another trip because he found it difficult to be away from his family for such a long time, but he also mentioned wanting to do a trip from South to North America. In June 2015, McGregor indicated that the long-discussed South American trip was still at the planning stage, but he expected that an excursion through [[Baja California Peninsula]] would take place first.<ref>{{cite news|url=http://www.heraldscotland.com/news/13411936.Ewan_McGregor_secures_sponsorship_deal_for_South_American_road_trip/|work=The Herald|location=Glasgow|title=Ewan McGregor secures sponsorship deal for South American road trip|date=2015-06-07|accessdate=2015-06-07}}</ref> In March 2017 during a Reddit AMA, Ewan said there were "no plans at the moment" to do a third installment of the series. On 6 August 2018, Boorman tweeted a tease that the ''Long Way Up'', a trip from Tierra del Fuego to Alaska, would happen "if all goes well".<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://twitter.com/charleyboorman/status/1026475278296645632|title=Charley Boorman on Twitter|work=Twitter|access-date=2018-09-09|language=en}}</ref> In June 2019 it was reported that Boorman confirmed that the filming of a third installment would begin "in a few months".<ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.motorcyclenews.com/news/long-way-up-tv-/|publisher=Motorcycle News|title=Long Way Up is go! Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman will film in coming months|date=2019-06-18|accessdate=2019-06-25}}</ref><ref>{{cite news|url=https://www.adventurebikerider.com/charley-boorman-confirms-the-long-way-up-will-take-place-within-months/|publisher=Adventure Bike Rider|title=Charley Boorman confirms the Long Way Up will take place within months|date=2019-06-20|accessdate=2019-06-25}}</ref>

On 27 May 2020 it was announced that the series ''[[Long Way Up]]'' will premiere on [[Apple TV+]].<ref>{{Cite web|title=Apple TV+ now includes all classic Fraggle Rock episodes, orders full season reboot [update: official]|url=https://9to5mac.com/2020/05/27/apple-tv-plus-fraggle-rock/|last=Mayo|first=Benjamin|date=2020-05-27|website=9to5Mac|language=en-US|access-date=2020-05-28}}</ref>

==See also==
*[[List of long-distance motorcycle riders]]

== References ==
{{Reflist|2}}

* ''Long Way Down'' (DVD), EMI / Elixir Productions, 2007.
* {{cite book | title= Long Way Down | publisher= Sphere Publishing |date=October 2007 | isbn= 978-1-84744-053-2 | first1= Charley | last1= Boorman | first2= Ewan | last2= McGregor | authorlink1 = Charley Boorman | authorlink2 = Ewan McGregor}}

==External links==
*[https://web.archive.org/web/20071016164814/http://www.longwaydown.com/ Official website]
*{{BBC programme}}
* {{IMDb title|0959858|Long Way Down}}

{{Boorman McGregor Travel}}

[[Category:2007 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:2007 British television series endings]]
[[Category:BBC television documentaries]]
[[Category:Motorcycle television series]]
[[Category:Motorcycle writing]]
[[Category:Long-distance motorcycle riding]]
[[Category:British travel television series]]
[[Category:British travel books]]

Revision as of 10:04, 11 August 2021

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