Long Way Round is the epic adventure undertaken by Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman in 2004 to travel from London to New York...the long way, through Europe to Far East Russia, and then across to Canada and the USA. It first aired on Sky One, and it was there that I watched it for the first time. I've been a fan of Ewan McGregor for a long time (interesting fact - he went to school with my cousin) and when I saw the adverts the show was promoted more about motorbikes than the journey, but I decided to watch it as I like him. And that, as they say, was that...I was hooked.

Ewan and Charley were long time friends, and once Ewan came up with this mad idea, they brought in other friends and acquaintances to help make it happen. They included their producers David Alexanian and Russ Malkin, cameramen Jim Simak and Claudio Von Planta, and numerous other based in their office in London and around the world to help them with visas, language and local customs.

The friendship and camaraderie between the pair is one of the things that, for me, makes the programme what it is. They are quite different characters but that is why they work so well together under duress. Ewan and Charley went round the world on their BMW motorbikes alone with Claudio the cameraman on a third bike. There was a support crew, including David and Russ, in 4x4s, but they kept their distance for much of the journey so as the bikes were on their own. This meant that a lot of the problems the bikes came up against they had to solve on their own.

The trip took Ewan and Charley through parts of the world that most people will never travel to, and that was another thing I loved. I will probably never visit most of these places, but I got to experience the different landscapes and cultures through them - and despite being well-travelled film stars, these places were new to them to, so I saw them through the eyes of first time travellers, as I would be.

We also hear from Ewan and Charley's wives, mainly in the preparation segments of the programme. This also gives another perspective, that of the loving outsider who is watching their partner go off on the trip of a lifetime without them, but who is also undertaking something dangerous. I liked hearing from Eve McGregor and Olly Boorman, and it's interesting how they have slightly different takes on the trip. I don't like Eve as she's married to Ewan...but that's nothing personal against her!!!

The special edition is, in my opinion, far better than the original. Instead of the original 7 episodes, it features 10, which obviously gives more running time and far more footage of the trip. It adds so much to the experience. The brilliant thing about this special extended edition is that, unlike in some releases, it is presented in chronological order, so all the footage which is not featured on the original DVD is slotted seamlessly into the running order. For example, we see a lot more of the preparation for the trip, which is featured in the first two episodes of the special edition.