Channel 4 gets away with The Great Escapists (w/t)

27 February 2017

Channel 4 and Little Gem Media today announced The Great Escapists (w/t), a new 1x60 commission for Channel 4 which aims to show viewers how to make the most of their weekend by exploring the weird, wonderful and wild activities you can do right here in the UK.

Holidaying at home should mean far more than wet walks and cream teas.  Commissioned for Channel 4 Features by Tim Hancock and Gill Wilson, the one-off will offer some enticing and exhilarating experiences ideas to those who want to try something different this weekend.

The Great Escapists (w/t) will show viewers how to do Devon and be home recharged or refreshed by Sunday night. And they’ll meet the colourful, charismatic and often extremely eccentric characters who have created bespoke experiences.

Comedian and tent-monster Adam Buxton is going to check out the best places to stay. He’s going wild-camping on a windy Dartmoor tor, checking out Devon’s one and only sustainable eco-pod campsite and trying out a camping trailer that leaves nothing to chance.

Paralympic presenter, ex-Royal Marine and seasoned adrenaline junkie Arthur Williams will show you how to get your nerve-ends tingling as he goes free-diving, wild swimming and sea kayaking.

And food lover Clem Green is going to attempt to eat the most delicious things the county has to offer, and try out activities that jolt her way out of her comfort zone. She’s going to learn to ride and wrangle ponies on Dartmoor, forage and cook a delicious lunch on Dartmoor’s foothills, and stay in a hand-built iron-age roundhouse.

Ben Gale said of the commission “Weekends have never been more fun”. The Great Escapists (w/t) will TX this spring.

About Little Gem

Little Gem was set up by Natasha Bondy and Ben Gale in 2014 to produce popular factual programmes with first class storytelling at their heart. To date they have been commissioned by BBC One Frontline Doctors: Winter Migrant Crisis , BBC Three Jade: Why I Chose Porn, Channel 4 How to Lose Weight Well, Never Seen A Doctor, How to Build a Human and The Great Escapists and Sky One (The Family Project.)