Michael Palin - Sahara (2002)
BBC

Description

Michael Palin writes: "Sahara is one of the most powerful and evocative names on the world map. As a child, the images I had of the Sahara were both frightening and intriguing - palm trees, camels, turbanned travellers reclining, whilst being poured sparkling water by urn-carrying maidens in flimsy veils. It looked fun. I also knew that most western explorers who tried to cross it never came back. The combination of seduction and severity appealed to me. In the spring of 2000 I decided that it should be the next television journey.

It promised to be tough, but that’s what the viewer seemed to like. It also offered the chance of going into, if not the unknown, certainly the very little known. "

Tags

Africa, Travel, Senegal, Adventure, Gibraltar, Sahara, Morocco, Mauritania, Mali, Niger, Algeria, Libya, Tunisia

Collected reviews and ratings

9.2 DVD Verdict | James A. Stewart

For the most part, Palin's journey won me over with his ingratiating way of chatting up people; he's just out like they're old pals. It helps that he's a familiar face from TV and movies—from Palin's Himalaya, I recall that even the Dalai Lama mentioned his enjoyment of Palin travelogues.
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9.0 Amazon (UK) user reviews

The formula that Palin established in Around The World In Eighty Days has hardly been tampered with, but Sahara is proof that there are few better exponents of the travelogue. Palin is an engaging host, far more attractive than the extreme survival merchants, walking the fine line between experienced traveller and slightly eccentric Englishman abroad.
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9.0 DVD Talk | Randy Miller III

Though it may not be as immediately breathtaking as Himalaya or as epic as Pole to Pole, Sahara is a worthwhile series in its own right.
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9.0 DVD.net.au | Terry Kemp

If like most people, BBC executives included, you thought the Sahara was just a big sand dune with little in it and certainly nothing of interest, then spend some time with Michael Palin on his four month journey and be surprised, interested and amused at the number of wonders that this most desolate of environments has to offer.
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8.0 DVD Active | Dave Manley

Michael’s enthusiasm for these places and the people he meets is infectious and you find yourself wanting to be there. You then remember it’s 150ºF in the shade and are kind of glad Michael went for us.
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7.0 PopMatters.com | Stuart Henderson

There is little doubt that Palin makes for a wonderful travel companion. He is affable and quite happy to embarrass himself in the pursuit of adventure and experience.
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