View source for Around the World in 80 Days with Michael Palin

{{Short description|1989 British television travel documentary series}}
{{More citations needed|date=November 2021}}
{{EngvarB|date=September 2016}}
{{Use dmy dates|date=May 2020}}
{{Infobox television
| image                = AroundTheWorldIn80DaysDvdCover.jpg
| caption              = Title sequence of the series featuring passport-style markings.
| camera               =
| based_on             = {{based on|''[[Around the World in Eighty Days]]''|[[Jules Verne]]}}
| runtime              = 52 minutes
| writer               = [[Michael Palin]]
| director             = Roger Mills
| creator              = 
| developer            = 
| executive_producer   = 
| presenter            = Michael Palin
| composer             = [[Paddy Kingsland]]
| editor               = David Thomas
| producer             = Clem Vallance
| narrated             = 
| opentheme            = 
| endtheme             = 
| theme_music_composer = 
| country              = United Kingdom
| language             = English
| network              = [[BBC1]]
| first_aired          = {{Start date|1989|10|11|df=y}}
| last_aired           = {{End date|1989|11|22|df=y}}
| num_series           = 1
| num_episodes         = 7
| list_episodes        =  
}}

'''''Around the World in 80 Days with Michael Palin''''' is a 7-part [[BBC]] television travel series first broadcast on [[BBC1]] from 11 October to 22 November 1989, and presented by comedian and actor [[Michael Palin]]. Inspired by [[Jules Verne]]'s 1872 novel ''[[Around the World in Eighty Days]]'', in which [[Phileas Fogg]] accepts a wager to [[circumnavigation|circumnavigate]] the globe in eighty days or less, Palin takes on the same task, prohibited from using aircraft in order to use a combination of trains, boats and other forms of transport, to take him across several countries around his circumnavigation of the world, including [[Italy]], [[Egypt]], [[China]], [[Japan]], and the [[United States]].

The programme was a critical and commercial success, gaining strong ratings in the UK and selling well abroad. It was also released on video tape and later on DVD. Following the trip Michael Palin wrote a [[Around the World in 80 Days (Michael Palin book)|book]] about the experience. The book contains much more detail, along with photographs, than could be presented in the TV programme, and Palin's personal views are also more evident.

The series later spawned two further globe-crossing series featuring Palin {{snd}} ''[[Pole to Pole with Michael Palin]]'' (travelling from the North Pole to the South Pole), an 8-part series first broadcast on BBC One in 1992; and ''[[Full Circle with Michael Palin]]'' (the circumnavigation of the [[Pacific Rim]]), a 10-part series first broadcast on BBC One in 1997 {{snd}} as well as addition travel series in later years {{snd}} ''[[Michael Palin's Hemingway Adventure|Hemingway Adventure]]'' (following in the footsteps of [[Ernest Hemingway]]) first broadcast in 1999, ''[[Sahara with Michael Palin|Sahara]]'' (travelling around and through the [[Sahara Desert]]) first broadcast in 2002, ''[[Himalaya with Michael Palin|Himalaya]]'' (travelling around the [[Himalayas]]) first broadcast in 2004, ''[[Michael Palin's New Europe|New Europe]]'' (travelling around Eastern Europe) first broadcast in 2007, ''[[Brazil with Michael Palin|Brazil]]'' first broadcast in 2012, ''[[Michael Palin in North Korea]]'' broadcast in 2018, and ''[[Michael Palin: Into Iraq]]'' aired in 2022.

==Synopsis==
[[File:Around the World in Eighty Days map.png|thumb|right|Phileas Fogg's fictional journey]]
[[File:Palin 80 Days map.svg|thumb|right|Palin's journey]]
In 1988, the [[BBC]] offers Michael Palin a challenge to undertake for them – to circumnavigate the world in 80 days, much like [[Jules Verne]]'s fictional character [[Phileas Fogg]] undertook in Verne's 1873 novel ''[[Around the World in Eighty Days]]''. With the start and finish line being the [[Reform Club]] in London, Palin would be required to not use aircraft, which would not have been around in the late 19th century, instead relying on various modes of transportation, mostly consisting of passenger trains and commercial ships. In agreement to this, Palin was also given the task of acquiring a series of souvenirs along the journey for three 'referees' - [[Robert Hewison]], and fellow [[Monty Python|Pythons]] [[Terry Jones]] and [[Terry Gilliam]]. Accompanying Palin would be a small five-man film crew, who the comedian collectively names after [[Passepartout (character)|Passepartout]], Phileas Fogg's manservant.

Each episode of the series focuses on a specific leg of the journey, and the sights and people Palin encounters. In addition, the show also features the various problems and obstacles encountered on the journey that impeded progress, and Palin and his team's efforts to overcome them by negotiations and finding alternative arrangements to keep on track of completing the circumnavigation within the eighty day limit.


==Episodes==
[[File:World palin 80 days.svg|thumb|right|Countries visited during ''Around the World in 80 Days''.]]
{{Episode table |total_width=auto |overall= |title= |airdate= |episodes=
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 1
| Title               = The Challenge
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|10|11}}
|ShortSummary = Michael Palin agrees to a challenge offered by the BBC – to travel around the world in 80 days, much like Jules Verne's character Phileas Fogg. Following preparation for the journey, including arrangements for money, meeting seasoned TV traveller [[Alan Whicker]],<ref>{{Cite news|url=https://www.independent.co.uk/arts-entertainment/tv/features/presenter-michael-palin-and-film-maker-roger-mills-look-back-on-25-years-of-globe-trotting-9730530.html|title=Presenter Michael Palin and film-maker Roger Mills look back on 25|date=17 September 2014|author= Burrell, Ian|access-date = 13 January 2022|work=[[The Independent]]}}</ref> and being given a list of items to collect on his travels, Palin sets off from the [[Reform Club]], and then from [[London Victoria Station]], for the city of [[Alexandria]] in [[Egypt]]. Along the way, he mingles with passengers on the [[Venice-Simplon Orient Express]], rides with garbage men on their gondola in [[Venice]], sees the world-renowned [[Evzones]] while travelling through [[Greece]], and has cream tea with British soldiers stationed on the island of [[Crete]].
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 2
| Title               = Arabian Frights
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|10|18}}
|ShortSummary = In Alexandria, Palin heads onwards to [[Cairo]], stopping off to watch a local [[Association football|football]] match starring in a [[cameo appearance|cameo]] part in an Egyptian film,<ref>{{cite web|url=https://www.imdb.com/title/tt0281928/fullcredits#cast|title=Full cast and crew for ''Inar gahined''|publisher=[[Internet Movie Database]]|access-date=29 August 2011}}</ref> and visiting the [[Pyramids]] in [[Giza]]. Heading for the [[Red Sea]], a cancelled passage by ship forces Palin to take a ferry to [[Jeddah]] in [[Saudi Arabia]], which causes him to miss an important connection. With little choice, he takes a moment to jog around some interesting art pieces in the city, before being given the news he has been given passage by the authorities to cross to the city of [[Dubai]] in the [[United Arab Emirates]], though only he and one of his crew can tackle the journey. With the rest of the crew travelling by air, Palin is left to present photographs of this leg of his travels.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 3
| Title               = Ancient Mariners
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|10|25}}
|ShortSummary = At Dubai, Palin and his team find themselves struggling to find a ship that can take them across the [[Arabian Sea]] to [[Mumbai|Bombay]]. With their schedule set back several days due to the trouble crossing over Saudi Arabia, the group find salvation in the crew of a [[dhow]] called the Al-Sharma, which can take them to [[India]]. For the journey, Palin finds himself enduring sleep on sacks of grain and rice, making use of a unique open-air latrine due to [[diarrhoea]], and having little much to do with the slow pace of the journey, except to enjoy the gracious hospitalty of the crew, whom the team find to be an extended family from the Indian state of [[Gujarat]].

''Notes'': This episode was not originally planned for the series, but the producers received special permission to create it due to the amount of footage obtained from the dhow journey. Palin would later track down the crew from this episode in a BBC television documentary, ''[[Around the World in 20 Years]]'', to reunite with them.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 4
| Title               = A Close Shave
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|11|1}}
|ShortSummary = In Bombay, Palin finds himself stuck for the day waiting for his train connection that will take him to the eastern shoreline of India, and so spends it experiencing a quick shave from a blind barber, watching a snake charmer's performance, and meeting [[astrologer]] Jagjit Uppal for one of the required items on his list.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.jagjituppal.com/about.html|title=About Jagjit Uppal|website=Jagjituppal.com|access-date=13 September 2011}}</ref> The following day, he and his team embark on their train journey aboard the "Southern Express" for [[Chennai|Madras]], stopping at [[Poona|Pune]] for a brief while. Once at the coastline, passage to [[Singapore]] is fraught with problems, until negotiations allow Palin and one of his crew to secure space on a Yugoslavian freighter, in which the presenter not only must learn to be a soundman, but work with the crew doing various tasks.

''Notes'': Palin would later reunited with the captain of the freighter during filming of his ''[[Michael Palin's New Europe|New Europe]]'' series; the meeting features as part of the deleted scenes on the DVDs for that series.
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 5
| Title               = Oriental Express
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|11|8}}
|ShortSummary = At Singapore, Palin finds his connection to [[China]] has just left, but miraculously it is only a few miles off shore, allowing him to catch up to it with a fast motorboat. The ship brings him to the busy port city of [[Hong Kong]], where he takes the opportunity to enjoy life in the metropolis, betting on a horse race, checking out [[Kowloon]], and attending a party in honour of reaching his halfway point in his journey. From Hong Kong, accompanied by his friend, photographer [[Basil Pao]], he proceeds by train to reach the city of [[Shanghai]], along the way experiencing a meal where the main ingredient is snake, and securing another of the items on his list during a stop at a station. 
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 6
| Title               = Far East and Farther East
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|11|15}}
|ShortSummary = In Shanghai, Palin prepares for the journey onwards by securing herbal remedies, and spending his final day with Pao to watch a Chinese [[jazz]] band, before parting ways the next day for a Chinese ferry to [[Japan]]. Arriving at [[Yokohama]], Palin rides the world-famous [[shinkansen]] train to [[Tokyo]], where he explores the city with British journalist David Powers, sampling life in a [[sushi]] bar and [[karaoke]] bar, and spending a night in a [[capsule hotel]]. Eventually, he prepares for his journey across the [[Pacific Ocean]] to the [[United States]] boarding a [[container ship]] that will take eleven days to make the trip. While dull, Palin and his crew find things enlivened for a while when the crew invite them to partake in a game of [[pass the parcel]], and an unusual ceremony to commemorate crossing the [[International Date Line]].
}}
{{Episode list
| EpisodeNumber       = 7
| Title               = Dateline to Deadline
| OriginalAirDate     = {{Start date|df=yes|1989|11|22}}
|ShortSummary = Arriving in [[Long Beach, California]], Palin spends his time on the US West Coast by staying a night in the permanently berthed ''[[RMS Queen Mary|Queen Mary]]'', and exploring the beachside attractions. Boarding an [[Amtrak]] train eastwards, he later makes a stopover in [[Colorado]] to experience a [[hot-air balloon]] ride and a dog sled trip, before making a hurried journey to [[New York City]] after some moments that leave his nerves wracked with worry. Finally, he secures passage on a container ship for the [[United Kingdom|UK]]. The final leg of his journey sees him making for train connections from [[Felixstowe]] to [[London]], where Palin reaches the finish line within 80 days, before meeting his friends with the souvenirs he was requested to get.
}}
}}

==Production==
The journey around the world lasted from 25 September to 12 December 1988. Palin travelled through the following countries by foot, train, ship, balloon, and husky dog, amongst other methods of transport (except for aircraft): United Kingdom, France, [[Switzerland]], [[Austria]], Italy, [[Greece]], [[Egypt]], [[Saudi Arabia]], [[Qatar]], [[United Arab Emirates]], [[India]], Singapore, Hong Kong, China, Japan, and the United States.

Only four members of Palin's film crew completed the circumnavigation: Clem Vallance and Roger Mills (the directors), and Angela Elbourne and Ann Holland (the production assistants). The three others who started with him left when they got to Hong Kong, and were replaced by others. Strictly speaking, it was only Palin who obeyed the rules of the journey, as the production team was not allowed on the road trip across [[Saudi Arabia]] and [[Qatar]] (Palin and Clem Vallance did this stretch) or on the Croatian ship (Palin and Nigel Meakin did this stretch). The remainder of the team flew on these stretches. During the Jeddah to Dubai episode, Palin managed to snap a few pictures, which are seen in the documentary.

While preparing for the journey, Palin had a chat with documentarist [[Alan Whicker]]. In the book and an interview on the DVD, Palin mentions that Whicker had been the BBC's first choice of presenter, but he and two others ([[Miles Kington]] and [[Noel Edmonds]]) had declined; Palin was fourth on the BBC's list.

==''Around the World in 20 Years''==
On 30 December 2008, the BBC aired a special one-hour documentary entitled ''[[Around the World in 20 Years]]''. In it, Palin goes in search of the crew of the ''Al Shama'', the [[dhow]] which carried him from Dubai to Bombay (now Mumbai) some 20 years ago. After an extensive search involving the shipping company that owned ''Al Shama'', Palin tracks them to the city of [[Mandvi]] in Gujarat. There, Palin finds the captain of ''Al Shama'' himself, along with five other members of the crew. Two of the original crew members had died in the intervening years, one of them being the older man whom Palin had let listen to Bruce Springsteen on his [[Walkman]]. Palin also discovers that the ''Al Shama'' had sunk in the Indian Ocean while being towed for repairs years before. The production crew are the same people as on ''80 Days''.

==See also==
* '''''<small>{{portal-inline|Television}}</small>'''''
* '''''<small>{{portal-inline|World}}</small>'''''

==References==
{{reflist}}

==External links==
*[http://www.palinstravels.co.uk/static-7 Palin's Travels – the official web site]
*{{IMDb title|id=0096536|title=Michael Palin: Around the World in 80 Days}}

{{Michael Palin's Trips}}
{{Around the World in 80 Days}}

{{DEFAULTSORT:Around the World in 80 Days with Michael Palin}}
[[Category:1989 British television series debuts]]
[[Category:1989 British television series endings]]
[[Category:1980s British documentary television series]]
[[Category:1980s British travel television series]]
[[Category:Television shows based on Around the World in Eighty Days]]
[[Category:BBC television documentaries]]
[[Category:BBC travel television series]]
[[Category:British English-language television shows]]
[[Category:Works by Michael Palin]]
[[Category:Television shows set in India]]
[[Category:Television shows set in Mumbai]]
[[Category:Television shows set in Pune]]
[[Category:Chennai]]