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Pole to Pole with Michael Palin
Pole to Pole with Michael Palin is an eight-part television BBC documentary travel series, first broadcast on BBC 1 in 1992, and presented by comedian and actor Michael Palin. The programme is the sequel to Around the World in 80 Days with Michael Palin, and was the second of Palin's major journeys, the series focusing on a journey along the 30-degree east line of longitude from the North Pole to the South Pole, sticking to using mainly cars, buses, trains and ships to make the 5-month journey, while travelling through northern and eastern Europe (including through the territory of the Soviet Union before its collapse), and Africa; a last-minute change of plans led to the journey diverting through South America, in order to reach Antarctica . The series' broadcast rights were later sold on to various countries around the world, and later released onto VHS taps and DVD. A book recounting the trip, Pole to Pole, was later released by the BBC, containing many pictures captured on the trip, as well as Palin's insights on every aspect of the journey he experienced. The series was later followed by Full Circle with Michael Palin in 1997. Synopsis In 1991, Michael Palin decided to conduct a new journey that would take him from the North Pole to the South Pole, with the decision being that the journey would stick as close as it could to the line of 30th degree meridian. The planned route involved passing through countries in northern and eastern Europe, Turkey, and then across Africa along the eastern half of the continent, in order to reach a supply ship that made a yearly trip to Antarctica . Much of the journey mainly used trains, buses and ferries to move between locations and countries, with hire cars, private travel companies and supply ships used for stretches where other arrangements could not be made; a plane ride was also needed to get between the North Pole and the Norwegian island of Spitsbergen. However, plans had to be changed once the journey reached Africa - a detour was required to avoid war-torn regions of southern Sudan affected by the Second Sudanese Civil War at the time of filming, whilst Palin and his film crew had to travel from South Africa to South America to use an aviation travel company to get to the South Pole, after their production office was unable to secure them berths on the supply ship Agulhas prior to its yearly voyage. As with Palin's previous travel series, each episode covers a particular leg of the journey, and the various sights and people he encountered on his journey, as well the complications and problems he faced on each stage in various parts. Episode list
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