The real reason we can’t get enough of TV shows about middle-aged men on road trips

It seems all you need to pitch a TV show these days is a pair of middle-aged male celebrities, a Volkswagen campervan and a travel itinerary.

Hugh Dennis and David Baddiel are the latest celebrity pairing to embark on a road trip for our entertainment. 

The Outnumbered star will be cycling across France with his comedian pal Baddiel, a slightly less enthusiastic cyclist, who’ll be riding an e-bike.

But the Channel 4 show is just the tip of the travelogue iceberg as Men Behaving Badly’s Neil Morrissey and Martin Clunes will also be larking about in France for an upcoming series called Neil and Martin’s Bon Voyage on UKTV.

Earlier this year, we watched another bromance blossom between Paddy McGuinness and former Top Gear co-star Chris Harris as they frolicked in Greece, Sweden and Switzerland, attempting to discover the secret to old age.

And then there was a three-way friendship between Gordon Ramsay, Gino d’Acampo and Fred Sirieix travelling as far as Lapland and united by nothing more than their love of food.

Here, FEMAIL speaks to TV experts to find out just why we can’t get enough of blokes in mid-life telling us about their travels…

THEY’RE CHEAP TO MAKE – AND THE TALENT HAS FUN DOING THEM 

Founder and Managing Editor of AllYourScreens.com Rick Ellis revealed there are a variety of factors at play which help to make road trip series successful for networks – the first being their relatively low cost.

‘They’re very cheap to make,’ Rick told Femail.

For the likes of Men Behaving Badly’s Neil Morrissey and Martin Clunes, a free adventure through France is seen as ‘part of their pay’.

According to Rick, this keeps the cost of talent down and makes casting famous faces ‘doable’.

As well as low talent costs, only a few crew members are hired to make it easier to transport them, and their equipment, between filming destinations.

For a typical travel show, Rick said that the behind the scenes team is ‘small’ with often just one camera crew and a handful of producers.

Men Behaving Badly’s Neil Morrissey (left) and Martin Clunes (right) will be larking about in France for a series called Neil and Martin’s Bon Voyage on UKTV

EASY TO MARKET: VIEWERS LOVE A ROAD-TRIP

As well as keeping costs low with fewer and lower wages than a regular TV show, Rick explained that road-trip series are ‘easier to market’.

Explaining to Femail, he said: ‘The shows are easier to market then a new series, thanks to casting a couple of people who are already known to the public.

‘These are often stars who aren’t actors but presenters and comedians. 

‘It gives viewers the opportunity to see them in a new situation.’

Rick said that various news outlets will also write articles about the shows due to the popularity of the men starring in them, which helps to lower marketing costs.

This was certainly the case with Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour which aired in May of this year.

Having both endured painful divorces, criminal barrister Rob Rinder, 46, and presenter Rylan Clark, 35, said they both looking for ‘a new start’ when embarking on their tour of Italy. 

Presenter Rylan Clark (left) and criminal barrister Rob Rinder (right) in Venice while filming Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour

The two spoke openly about their sexualities, their failed relationships and bonded over Botticelli as they visited Venice, Florence and Rome.

In fact, they got along so well that media outlets quickly theorised they were romantically involved.

Amid the promo trail, Rob threw fuel on the fire when he tweeted: ‘Friendship may and often does, grow into love. See you alongside him 9pm tonight.’

Although it was provocative, the quote was actually from romantic poet Lord Byron and a nod to their show as the pair follow Byron’s journey across Italy, two centuries after his death.

Clarifying later, Rylan said: ‘We started this process as mates and we finished it as actual genuine friends.’

But after news of their bromance blew up on social media and across various news platforms, more than three million people tuned in to BBC Three to watch Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour.

It was quickly renewed for a second season.

Amid the promo trail, Rob threw fuel on the fire when he tweeted: ‘Friendship may and often does, grow into love. See you alongside him 9pm tonight’

A JOURNEY WHILE ON A JOURNEY: THEY’RE A GREAT WAY TO TACKLE TABOO SUBJECTS 

While not all travelogues feature middle-aged men, for example Miriam Margoyles’ A New Australian Adventure or Sue Perkins’ Perfectly Legal on Netflix, TV expert Rick acknowledged it as a ‘dominant casting choice’.

He said: ‘It is a reflection of the popularity of these shows with a demographic of viewers that networks see as a core audience: older viewers, less interested in edgy comedies and dark dramas, who are nonetheless prized by advertisers’.

TV and media expert Chad Teizeira agreed and told Femail: ‘When it comes to commissioning TV series, it’s finding that special connection with the viewer.

‘For many middle-aged men, the role of husband, son, brother, or dad, can take it’s toll and escaping on a virtual adventure through the TV reignites their passion for life and adventure.’

For men that ‘don’t like to talk about issues in their lives’, a road-trip series starring two celebrities who are willing to open up can be used as an outlet to ‘break down taboos and barriers’. 

‘No topic of conversation is off limits in these shows,’ Chad said.

‘You learn more about celebrity friends as they reveal the good and the bad about their relationships, hopes and dreams. We laugh with them, cry with them, and can really relate to them on a personal level.’

Chris Harris (left) and Paddy McGuinness (right) riding mopeds on Ikaria – a Greek island in the Aegean Sea – for the show Paddy and Chris: Road Tripping

Paddy McGuinness (left) and Chris Harris (right) make a pitstop on their road trip and pose in dressing gowns on a balcony at five-star hotel Grand Resort Bad Ragaz in Switzerland

ESCAPISM – BUT WILL VIEWERS EVENTUALLY GET BORED? 

It is hard to say when networks started commissioning the all-male road-trip format.

Perhaps the trend started in 2010 when Ricky Gervais sent his mate Karl Pilkington around the world in An Idiot Abroad, or in 2015 with Richard Ayoade awkwardly making his way around various cities in Travel Man.

But TV expert Chad believes that the format will continue to be re-commissioned for years to come.

He said: ‘I don’t think we’ll stop seeing road trips with middle-aged men on our screens anytime soon!

‘We may not all be lucky enough to go on a road trip this year, but we can enjoy the experience alongside celebrities such as Hugh Dennis and David Baddiel or Martin Clunes and Neil Morrissey.

‘Immersed in the hour-long TV shows, we really feel like we’re coming along for the ride with Rob and Rylan as they explore parts of Venice, Florence and Rome in their Grand Tour. It’s away from everyday life. It’s exciting and makes you feel alive again.

‘This sort of heartwarming format is set to continue to be re-commissioned for years to come!’

Gordon Ramsay (left), Gino D’Acampo (centre) and Fred Sirieix (right) in their series American Road Trip

Viewers and industry insiders have taken to X to voice their despair at the sheer number of celebrity road-trip series being commissioned

But it seems some viewers are already starting to get bored by this ‘heartwarming’ format.

One ranted on X: ‘I hate all these white men road trip shows. So tedious. Think up some new ideas TV people!’

Another frenzied viewer commented: ‘I’m so sick of these sort of shows.’

And a third angrily added: ‘How many celebs on a road trip shows do we need? The BBC is making the cheapest possible TV now and it really shows.’

Even industry insiders are aware of the problem. When tweeting about Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour, TV critic Scott Bryan said: ‘Yes it is another BBC celebrity travel show in Italy but it is touching, personal and refreshingly honest.’

Promoting the ‘touching’ series from the couch on This Morning, Rylan Clark acknowledged the issue and said: ‘The first thing I said to Rob was “We’re not going to be another two celebrities doing a travelogue in Italy. I don’t want to do that. Everyone is doing one.”‘

‘It’s not a travelogue. It’s almost like a reality show, documentary, it’s everything.’