Long Way Home: Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s latest adventure series trades high-tech for heart, cruising Europe on restored vintage motorcycles.
The duo that sparked the modern ADV movement with the Long Way Round is back — slower, older, and maybe wiser — but still chasing that adventure spark.
Back to Basics, Back on the Road
Twenty years after Long Way Round, the pair return with Long Way Home. No BMWs. No electric bikes. Just a 1974 Moto Guzzi El Dorado and a 1973 BMW R75/5, rolling through the landscapes of Europe. This isn’t a survival test — it’s a celebration of simplicity. Slower roads, richer stories, and vintage machines that break down as often as they connect you to strangers.
The Bikes
Ewan McGregor: 1974 Moto Guzzi El Dorado, ex-Californian police bike, lovingly nicknamed “Shitstorm.”
Charley Boorman: 1973 BMW R75/5, rebuilt just in time for the trip.
Despite their age, both bikes clocked over 200 miles per tank — impressive for gear this vintage.
A New Kind of Adventure
Long Way Home leans more into culture and cuisine than hard terrain. But riding vintage adds its own kind of challenge — unpredictable reliability, slower pace, and the need to stay present. McGregor mentions a moment in Estonia when his bike failed, and just like in the classic book Jupiter’s Travels, someone showed up. On a bicycle. The journey always continues.
The Ted Simon* inspiration
McGregor directly references Jupiter’s Travels by Ted Simon, a book that inspired the original series. Simon once wrote about running out of fuel in India and calmly waiting under a tree, confident someone would help. That same spirit runs through Long Way Home, where breakdowns are just opportunities to meet someone new.
Watch It Now!
Long Way Home is now streaming on Apple TV+.
Whether you’re a fan of the original series or just love real-world motorcycle travel, this one hits different. Older bikes. Slower roads. Better stories.
Ewan McGregor & Charley Boorman
Ewan McGregor Moto Guzzi El Dorado
Charley Boorman's 1973 BMW R75/5
In 1973, Ted Simon set off on a solo ride around the world — no GPS, no GoPro, just a Triumph Tiger 100 and a journalist’s curiosity. Over four years and 126,000 km, he crossed deserts, jungles, and war zones, capturing it all in Jupiter’s Travels, the book that would go on to inspire generations of adventure riders. His calm under pressure — like sitting under a tree in India, out of fuel, waiting for help that eventually came — became legend.
*Who Was Ted Simon?
We should revisit this, at a later date…
