Review: The Charley Boorman Show, Grand Opera House, York (From York Press)

Review: The Charley Boorman Show, Grand Opera House, York

9:03am Wednesday 10th March 2010 in

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From an early age, Charley Boorman discovered a love for exotic locations and faraway destinations.

His father, acclaimed film director John Boorman, cast the five-year-old Charley in the Oscar-winning Deliverance, and a movie career had begun. However, it was while filming The Serpent’s Kiss in 1997 that Charley met Trainspotting star Ewan McGregor, and Charley’s career path began to change.

A mutual love of motorbikes and travelling brought these two free-spirited souls together and a plan was hatched to ride their bikes around the world. And so they created the BBC travel series Long Way Round and Long Way Down, since when Charley has completed two By Any Means series.

His live show in York on Monday was the story of these journeys, plus one or two others, which he recalled in a highly entertaining, funny and enthusiastic manner, using a chat-show format with a genial host to compere the evening.

With the help of video clips, slides and crazy tales from the road, the wide-eyed adventurer and his part-time fellow traveller and mentor Simon Pavey ensured we had an engaging evening. We were introduced to Igor, his Kalashnikov rifle and his guitar, and to Fathi with his unfortunate name, and also the delights of a Mongolian testicle soup.

By the end, I felt like a miserable old git for not having done anything remotely as adventurous in my lifetime, but maybe there is still time. Now where can I get my hands on a nice second-hand BMW motorbike and a map?

Alex Calnan