Karl Pilkington is Britain's everyman. He loves what he's used to, and that's all he knows. Before Ricky Gervais and Stephen Merchant sent him on his own personal odyssey he'd only ever been to Wales. By his own admission he pays his way in life, has a steady girlfriend and is as happy as a man with a perpetually glum expression can be.
Gervais and Merchant thought it would be fun to send him around the world to see the Seven Wonders; Merchant, because he thought it would be enlightening for Karl, and Gervais because he knew Karl would hate it. The result is An Idiot Abroad, first broadcast on Sky 1 and Sky 1 HD in the UK. The pilot episode saw Ricky and Stephen sending Karl to China to experience the Great Wall, which Karl likened to a 'Wimpey home' due to its modernisation in the 80's, and the M6 motorway because it stretches for miles. The politically correct would probably berate Karl for his honest points of view, but all of it is done with no malice or vindictiveness - purely his own opinion stated with innocence and somewhat childlike wonder.
Karl puts into words what we all think when we go abroad - for example, public toilets in China have no doors and no toilet rolls. As a Brit abroad, this would also perplex me. One particularly hilarious scene in the pilot showed Pilkington watching a Kung Fu master throwing a needle through a pane of glass and popping a balloon. Karl tried this, and ended up skewering his cameraman in the arm (said cameraman carried on filming like a true pro!)
I found myself laughing hysterically at Karl's misadventures, and look forward to more of the same. It's probably the most original travel documentary I've ever seen. None of it is contrived or feels forced, unlike some of Gervais's previous work, but for me this was great entertainment and good value for my Sky subscription. Roll on episode 2!
Gervais and Merchant thought it would be fun to send him around the world to see the Seven Wonders; Merchant, because he thought it would be enlightening for Karl, and Gervais because he knew Karl would hate it. The result is An Idiot Abroad, first broadcast on Sky 1 and Sky 1 HD in the UK. The pilot episode saw Ricky and Stephen sending Karl to China to experience the Great Wall, which Karl likened to a 'Wimpey home' due to its modernisation in the 80's, and the M6 motorway because it stretches for miles. The politically correct would probably berate Karl for his honest points of view, but all of it is done with no malice or vindictiveness - purely his own opinion stated with innocence and somewhat childlike wonder.
Karl puts into words what we all think when we go abroad - for example, public toilets in China have no doors and no toilet rolls. As a Brit abroad, this would also perplex me. One particularly hilarious scene in the pilot showed Pilkington watching a Kung Fu master throwing a needle through a pane of glass and popping a balloon. Karl tried this, and ended up skewering his cameraman in the arm (said cameraman carried on filming like a true pro!)
I found myself laughing hysterically at Karl's misadventures, and look forward to more of the same. It's probably the most original travel documentary I've ever seen. None of it is contrived or feels forced, unlike some of Gervais's previous work, but for me this was great entertainment and good value for my Sky subscription. Roll on episode 2!