Race Across The World - Series 3

[LindorDoubleChoc]

This starts Wednesday week on BBC1 (22 March).

Anyone want to join me on a thread about it? I saw some episodes of the previous two series but didn't watch them all and am kicking myself about it now because it really is such an interesting and beautifully shot reality series.

So am going to watch the whole of the next one - this time in Canada!

I agree - or even Africa. Would there be decisions over more developed more expensive countries vs more basic but direct? (Not sure on infrastructure or political stability)

They managed in Russia and South America @Drywhitefruitycidergin - its about having good handlers on the ground who can quickly pivot the route if a particular territory is looking dodgy.

There's likely a lot of people on the ground advising the production. I always imagine the insurance and risk assessments on these shows would be something else.

Some close calls in South America - which made it fun to watch 😀 but I doubt they'll go for Russia now.....

You could probably do an amazing route through India/Nepal Kerala to Katmandhu, staying well clear of the Pakistan borders. And I'm sure there's an amazing route you could do through Africa, maybe even from the Pyramids to Cape Town, although you'd have to chart it very carefully.

But it would present massive "check your privilege", "poverty cosplay" challenges. The winners of series two giving away money and half their winnings to the street children of Rio was powerful but it was a single scene of real poverty in a journey through areas which were basically fine.

The core game of RATW is that you cheapskate your way on a self-imposed budget handed to you by the production team in order to win twenty grand, and I think there comes a point where that risks being a bit distasteful.

For context, here's the GNPI per capita round the world. There's a significant difference between the places they've been in the first two series and most of Africa or even India. And that's without reckoning on the changes in political mindset between 2019 and 2023. I'm not saying it's impossible, but it would need real sensitivity.

looking at that map Australia seems sensible

Thanks for the map, interesting!

I re-watched series 1 before starting this. I was disappointed when I heard it was going to be Canada too. But the sheer cost of everything presents its own challenges.

It would be interesting if they had a leg across the Philippines. There are so many islands and different routes you could take. There is also unpredictable public transport (II was told on a particular island that there was no bus timetable and in order to catch the bus you just have to stand on the side of the road of the direction you want to travel in until the bus comes!)

Philippines, Borneo, and the safer bits of the rest of Indonesia would be fun. I think there are some bits you can't do by public transport atm though so they might need to be taken across some bits of water by the production team.

I'd be personally a bit twitchy about ferries in the Philippines which come under the heading of "perils which the power of the BBC can't protect you from" but objectively the risk is probably small enough to be acceptable.

I think there's also a problem with teams of 2 women: there are some parts of the world where they would meet with significant problems, even with a crew to hand.

This is such a backward attitude.

You know we have a bunch of female war reporters don't you?

As someone who has travelled as a female alone, I find it massively depressing to see other women saying women should travel without men.

I also think that the 2 women have had to work for their advantage. They're not being given the keys to any vehicle for free - or being told how to get a free vehicle/ride. The other teams are getting free stuff falling in their laps.

Ok, @RedToothBrush . I do know that there are war correspondents. I also know that women travel alone. I have travelled through the former Soviet Union and East Germany. Also Malaysia and Indonesia. Women do it, women do it well. My point is that, sadly, it will be easier for teams of men in many circumstances . Not that women shouldn't do it. I apologise if this post appeared to be anti feminist in any way, as I have been vociferous and an active campaigner on these matters for more than 45 years ✊👊

I think that by "there's a problem with teams of two women" the PP didn't actually mean "having teams of two women is a problem and therefore they shouldn't do it". I read her as meaning "teams of two women may experience problems in some regions that mixed or all male teams won't".

Which is pretty undeniable, and something that programme makers with duties of care to participating members of the public have to consider when picking routes and allocating minders.

If you're travelling through areas where two women will be basically safe but where persistent street harassment is inevitable, should you deliberately allocate them a burly male camera person? expect them to put up with it because they're strong adults? boycott those areas when planning?

Thank you, @QuietlyConfident . That is exactly what I meant.

Glad there's a thread!
Loved series 1&2, particularly 2... really liked Jo and Sam, and Jen and Rob!
Yes, Canada makes it a bit less "foreign" somehow - in culture and challenge) accessibility, but I'm sure they'll incorporate ways of keeping up the challenge element.

What I'm puzzled by is how pub dad was able to just drive that car belonging to someone else to Uncle Norm's house... wouldn't there be insurance implications?

I'm not sure who I want to win yet!

Interesting point about the car insurance. I'm not sure how it works in Canada, but if you were doing something similar in the UK you'd ring up your insurer and buy temporary coverage for the person you were lending it to as an additional driver, and then the RATW could just give you the cash for the additional premium which would be far far less than the cost of a hire car or taxi.

The process would make the most boring telly ever so I'm not surprised they didn't show or discuss it.

Not sure how sad this makes me (very) but I am interested in these sort of boring details and how each team tackles it. I also want to know what they all decided to pack in their backpacks at the beginning of the race and see what they a thought might be useful to them.

I understood what you meant too @Maireas & disappointingly I agree.

(I do also love @RedToothBrush and find her posts enlightening, especially on the Ukraine threads, so I'm sure no offence was meant there either).

Me too @Fleabea

Although with the insurance, I assumed it was the same as in the USA in that if someone gave you permission to drive their car, then you were insured (at least that's how it was when we lived there twenty years ago).

I'd definitely watch a RATW: Packing! spin-off show

Thank you, @Gothambutnotahamster . I take your points.

they do have a camera crew with them at all times though and a medical team bringing up the rear.

Me too @QuietlyConfident

@QuietlyConfident I'm not sure if it need be boring, a few seconds of discussion would be all that's needed... it would show another layer of necessary organisation. Not acknowledging such things may just leave some of us scratching our heads. "Here, have my car!" just seems so strange, though as others have said insurance may just work like that there.
I wonder if they'd have offered their car if a film crew hadn't been there!

DH and I were also laughing at how much the guy with the trailer looked like a stereotypical movie serial killer!