Billy Connolly: Journey to the Edge of the World

Introduction

The traditional tourist method of crossing Canada is by train from Halifax to Vancouver via Montreal, Toronto and Calgary, though it's common to fly over the vast prairies in the centre. In this documentary, Billy Connolly takes the slightly more scenic route by going north from Halifax rather than west, taking the North West Passage which is iced over for most of the year. Just as he does in his World Tours of... series, Connolly explores the regions and meets the people on his travels, showing a little known side of the countries he visits.

Using car, helicopter, aeroplane, boat, horse, foot and, of course, motorcycle, Connolly takes in the world's second largest country in an epic trip that journeys to the Arctic Circle and, as the title suggests, the edge of the world.

Aired over four weeks on ITV in February and March 2009, this is released on DVD less than a week after the final episode was broadcast.

Video

It's almost impossible to make a comprehensive travelogue about a country with a landscape as varied as Canada without it looking anything other than stunning and this is the case here. The picture quality is superb, seemingly shot digitally, but without the negative artefacts occasionally associated with the digital format. The colours are fantastic, from the greens of the lush forests of British Columbia to the blues of the Arctic waters.

Audio

A clear soundtrack, exactly as it was on television, but with optional English HoH subtitles, and a terrific folk music score led by banjo and violin. The music plays a key role in the documentary to emphasise emotions and bring a sense of levity to the journey - Connolly's banjo is almost omnipresent, there are plenty of shots of him carrying it on and off boats and planes, and he plays it throughout.

Extra Features

The sole supplementary material is Billy's Unseen Travelogue which clocks in at a healthy 53 minutes and comprises behind the scenes footage, outtakes and Connolly talking to the camera in a video diary style. It is this that undoubtedly gained the set a 15 certificate, containing language that those familiar with his stand-up work would be familiar. The rest of the material is pretty much family friendly, with only mild language so if you have younger children, let them watch the episodes but not this.

Conclusion

I've been a fan of Billy Connolly since I was 14 when a friend gave me an audio tape of one of his stand up shows. Since then I've accumulated videos and DVDs of his live shows and World Tour of ... programmes, but this snuck under the radar and I was only made aware of it just before the last episode was about to air.

Connolly is such a personable and enthusiastic bloke that he could say just about anything and it would be funny and he has a way of endearing himself to total strangers so that you are involved in their meeting and conversations. This trait is ideal for his travelogues and works perfectly here as he crosses northern Canada, engaging with weird and wonderful locals as he goes. You hear that Canada is the second largest country in the world but it doesn't really mean anything until you see the sheer geographical scale and encounter the vastly different types of people who live there - from the ex-pats of Nova Scotia and New Brunswick (who retain their Scottish heritage far more than he does!) to the isolated Inuits to the north. He wants to understand the culture of the Inuit people but realises that it's impossible for him - he can only understand why they live as they do and that they should be left to it.

I can't imagine this being so much fun or so informative with a different presenter; Connolly is such an uninhibited and joyous guy that he finds pleasure in just about anything and he constantly laughs, occasionally at his own expense. This show was an absolute joy to watch and is highly recommended for anyone who likes travel shows and/or Billy Connolly. If you are at all reticent about watching because of his predilection for using obscenities, you have no need to worry as the language is pretty tame and I would challenge anyone to find it offensive. I thought it was a fantastic series and look forward to watching it again.