Television series
Long Way Round
Two friends on motorcycles ride from London to New York, crossing thirteen countries and three continents. It's genuinely about the friendship—the arguments, the repairs, the moments of awe—as much as the landscape. Funny, moving, and utterly absorbing: what happens when you commit to something this large and discover yourself in the doing.
Should you watch it?
Watch it if you love the slow-burn pleasure of two mates bickering, breaking down and muddling through a huge journey, with the landscapes doing as much talking as the people in them.
Skip it if you want a tightly plotted narrative or a quick hit; this is shaggy, meandering and often more about the wear of the road than about getting anywhere fast.
What it asks of you: Seven episodes of roughly an hour each, unhurried and rambling, with long stretches of riding and camp chat. You give it patience and let the miles add up.
Not sure? Find tonight's pick in a minute.
If you liked this
The Grand Tour2016
Three middle-aged men bickering affectionately while driving through extraordinary places. It shares Long Way Round's warmth and the pleasure of watching competent people navigate the world with humour and occasional catastrophe.
But Relies heavily on car-based comedy and studio segments that can feel repetitive. The format prioritises jokes over genuine human connection.
Anthony Bourdain: Parts Unknown2013
One man, unfamiliar countries, no script—just curiosity and a willingness to sit with strangers. Like Long Way Round, it's travel as a means to understand people rather than collect experiences.
But Bourdain's sardonic tone won't appeal if you prefer straightforward warmth. Some episodes veer toward the melancholic.
The Motorcycle Diaries2004
A young Che Guevara travels South America by motorcycle and witnesses inequality firsthand. It's contemplative where Long Way Round is exuberant, but both are about transformation through movement and human encounter.
But A political biography disguised as a road movie. If you want pure adventure without ideological weight, this isn't it.
Not sure tonight? Get a pick in a minute, starting from Long Way Round
The wildcard
Something you would not have found on your own.
Fitzcarraldo1982
Both are about men possessed by an idea, documenting the obsession more than the destination. Long Way Round asks 'can we?'; Fitzcarraldo asks 'why would we?'—and both answer by doing it anyway.
Werner Herzog's obsessive quest to haul a steamship over a mountain in the Amazon is the inverse of Long Way Round: not about arriving, but about the irrational pursuit itself. Mesmerising, mad, and absolutely real—Herzog actually did it.
But Difficult and strange. Herzog's philosophical narration and three-hour runtime won't suit viewers wanting traditional narrative momentum.
More like this (7)
180° South2010
A man travels from North America to Patagonia retracing a legendary road trip. It has the same DNA as Long Way Round: friendship, self-discovery, and genuinely stunning cinematography of remote places.
But More philosophically oriented and slower-paced. Less about incident, more about internal reflection.
An Idiot Abroad2010
Karl Pilkington reluctantly travels the world while his friends mock him from home. It's fundamentally about two people in relationship through travel, with genuine moments of wonder buried under the banter.
But Relies on Karl's curmudgeonly persona becoming a joke. If you find that act thin, the series will wear you down.
Senna2010
A documentary about obsession, rivalry, and the cost of excellence told through archive footage and interviews. It shares Long Way Round's intimate access and emotional depth, even though the subject is stationary.
But Dense and serious—about professional ambition rather than adventure. It's heavy in ways that require patient attention.
Departures2008
A man returns to his hometown and discovers a profession that teaches him about death, dignity, and connection. It's meditative travel-as-metaphor, finding the extraordinary within the ordinary, much like McGregor and Boorman's quieter moments.
But Japanese cinema with a very slow tempo. The emotional payoff requires patience and tolerance for sparse dialogue.
The Road Within2014
Three young people leave a treatment facility to complete a cross-country road trip. It's a quieter, quirkier take on movement as healing, with genuine affection between the characters.
But Indie dramedy sensibility will feel slight if you're looking for something ambitious. The tone is deliberately understated.
The Ballad of Little Jo1993
Both centre on transformation through landscape and journey. Long Way Round shows friendship tested by distance; this shows identity tested by necessity. Both are about discovering what you're capable of when the old rules no longer apply.
A woman escapes her circumstances by disguising herself as a man to survive the Old West frontier. It's a revisionist western that finds liberation in landscape and reinvention, with a similar spirit of breaking free and becoming someone new.
But A quiet, strange film that resists conventional narrative satisfaction. The tone is austere rather than adventurous, and it demands active interpretation.
The Ascent of Man1973
Both documents the specific moment when ambition meets reality, and both trust the audience to find meaning in the gap between intention and outcome. Long Way Round asks 'can we cross a continent?'; The Ascent asks 'should we try?' Both answer the deeper question: what does it cost to know?
A documentary following climbers attempting Everest, made before summit footage became routine. Raw, immediate, and brutally honest about fear and desire, it captures the same addictive clarity that drives McGregor and Boorman—the need to do something because it's hard.
But Structured as crisis and documentary rather than narrative adventure. Some footage is technically rough, and it doesn't sentimentalise its subjects.
People
Cast
Recommended by
The Great American Road Rally: Celebrity Edition, The Motorcycle Diaries, Race Across the World, Then Came Bronson, Long Way Down, Bono: Stories of Surrender, Globe Trekker, The Kindness Diaries