Globe Trekker

infobox television
show_name = Globe Trekker (Pilot Guides)


caption =
creator =
format = Travel/adventure
runtime = 60 minutes
starring = Ian Wright
Justine Shapiro
Megan McCormick
country = United Kingdom
network = Channel 4
PBS
OLN Canada
Travel Channel
Travel Channel UK
TVOntario
NYCTV
Israel Broadcasting Authority
DR2
NRK2
first_aired = 1994
last_aired = Present
num_episodes = 130+

"Globe Trekker" (sometimes called "Pilot Guides" in Canada and the United States and originally broadcast as "Lonely Planet") is an adventure tourism television series produced by Pilot Productions. The British-based series was inspired by the Lonely Planet travelbooks and began airing in 1994. "Globe Trekker" is broadcast in over 40 countries across 6 continents.

Each episode features a host, called a "traveler", who travels with a camera crew to a country—often, a relatively exotic locale—and experiences the sights, sounds, and culture that the location has to offer. Special episodes feature in-depth city, beach, dive, shopping, history, festival, and food guides.

The show often goes far beyond popular tourist destinations in order to give viewers a more authentic look at local culture. Presenters usually participate in different aspects of regional life, such as attending a traditional wedding or visiting a mining community. They address the viewer directly, acting as tourists-turned-tour guides, but are also filmed interacting with locals and discovering interesting locations in (mostly) unrehearsed sequences. "Globe Trekker" also sometimes includes brief interviews with backpackers who share tips on independent travel in that particular country.

Production details

It usually takes 12 to 15 weeks to complete an episode of the show from start to finish, including at least 4 weeks of research, 3 weeks of planning and preparation (speaking to tourist boards, making travel arrangements), 2 to 3 weeks of actual filming, and 3 weeks of editing and post-production.

The presenter is often accompanied by 5–6 members of camera and production crew, who almost never appear on camera. Specifically, the crew consists of a camera operator and a sound technician, plus a producer and a director, who scout locations 2 weeks before filming. A driver, pilot, or other type of facilitator is often hired locally. A presenter and crew almost never spend more than three nights in one particular area.

The series is known for its distinctive theme and background music, which consists largely of instrumental, downtempo, electronic dance compositions containing global folk music elements. Most of the music is written for the show by Ian Ritchie, Michael Conn, Colin Winston-Fletcher, Mako Sakamoto and Jesper Mattsson, and Stephen Luscombe and Pandit Dinesh.

Presenters

*Jonathan Atherton
*Brianna Barnes
*Estelle Bingham
*Christina Chang
*KT Comer
*Bradley Cooper
*Andrew Daddo
*Neil Gibson
*Nikki Grosse
*Zay Harding
*Katy Haswell
*Megan McCormick
*Holly Morris
*Eils Nevitt
*Zoe Palmer
*Shilpa Mehta
*Alex Riley
*Sami Sabiti
*Justine Shapiro
*Lavinia Tan
*Adela Ucar Innerarity
*Ian Wright

External links

* [http://www.pilotguides.com/tv_shows/globe_trekker/ Globe Trekker Official Site]
*imdb title|id=0209673|title=Lonely Planet