Griff Rhys Jones, Dara O'Briain, Rory McGrath and a nervous dog called Loli set out in a wooden skiff. Launching in Kingston, Surrey, they retrace a journey up the Thames immortalised by Jerome K Jerome in his comic tale Three Men in a Boat. Along the way they drop in on David Gilmour of Pink Floyd and Antony Worrall Thompson. However, halfway to Oxford, Rory and Dara are in the pub while Griff is left to prepare supper. Will the two come back?
The intrepid trio, Griff Rhys Jones, Rory McGrath and Dara O'Briain, plus dog, set off on the second leg of their journey up the Thames from Kingston to Oxford. Rowing into the middle of the Wallingford Regatta, Dara decides to enter them in a race. The junior novice ladies team turn out to be worthy opponents. As night draws in, there are still three miles to go before Oxford. Will the weary trio ask for a little help to speed them along?
First of a two part follow-up to the 2006 remake of the Jerome K. Jerome classic. Griff Rhys Jones, Dara O'Briain and Rory McGrath have set their ambitions much higher than their previous chortle along the Thames. This time, they are sailing from Tower Bridge to the Isle of Wight in Griff's classic yacht. Dara and Rory have never sailed before, and it is Griff's job to teach them. But unfortunately, though they excel in wisecracks, they struggle in getting off their lazy backsides.
Second of a two part follow-up to the 2006 remake of the Jerome K. Jerome classic. Griff Rhys Jones, Dara O'Briain and Rory McGrath have set their ambitions much higher than their previous chortle along the Thames. This time, they are sailing from Tower Bridge to the Isle of Wight in Griff's classic yacht. Dara and Rory have never sailed before, and Griff is teaching them. But Dara disappears, Rory stages a mutiny and only the Rolling Stones can get them all back together.
Setting off from Plymouth with a plan to make it all the way to the Isles of Scilly, the three men are hampered by the fact that Rory is in charge of getting the boat, a subject he unfortunately knows nothing about. When their first vessel nearly kills them they are forced to beg, borrow and steal boats for the rest of the journey. En route they manage to crash into one harbour, charm their way on board a round the world racing yacht, do their bit for lobster repopulation, lend their voices to an amateur production of Pirates of Penzance and, true to form, indulge their competitive spirit (with a little help from an Olympic gold medal winner).
Dara has a breakthrough hitching a lift on a tug and finally learns to respect the power of the sea. Meanwhile, back on dry land Griff explores Redruth's only working tin mine, and Cornish pride comes to the fore when Rory pays a visit to the place of his birth (now heavily patrolled by police at night). But as the winds pick up and the voyage nears its close, will the boys be able to find a boat willing and able to take them through a force eight gale, the Scilly Isles and their final destination - the spectacular Bishop Rock lighthouse?
Kicking off in Dublin, the Three Men are soon heading down the Grand Canal on Ireland's last original Guinness barge. They are only slightly hampered by the fact that it's over 80 years old, very heavy and somewhat difficult to start and even more difficult to stop. It has no brakes or reverse gear. The barge's lack of speed, temperamental engine and an endless succession of canal locks prove too much for Three Men and they quickly abandon it to take to the Royal Canal in a car with a difference...
The trio start by sailing down the Shannon in the best weather Ireland has had in years, stopping off along the way to visit a friend of Dara's who also lives in Ireland's most haunted castle. After that they must face sailing through the terrifying Ardnacrusha, Europe's largest lock. Arriving in Limerick, Dara and Griff try a spot of powerboat racing, while Rory decides to host his own poetry festival for limericks only - the inaugural Limerick Limerick Competition. The journey ends with a trip to the stunning Aran Islands, where the Men take a Galway hooker to visit the megalithic fort of Dun Aengus.
The guys first boat turns out to have wings, as they catch the Seaplane from Glasgow to the end of the Crinan Canal. It's here that Vic 32 awaits, it's one of the last surviving coal fired steam puffers. Their first task is to light the boiler and wait for it to get to temperature. In the meantime they decide to have a go at the Kilmore highland games, which means getting kitted out in full highland attire. Dara takes on the ladies hammer throwing champion and Griff takes part in a rowing race.
In the second party the three catch the ferry from Oban to Mull, where they visit Fingal's Cave, inspiration to so many writers, artists and musicians like Felix Mendelssohn. They leave Mull onboard Mascot, a 1904 Bristol Pilot Cutter, but immediately run into trouble as they get tangled in a lobster pot. They then sail along the coast to the Knoydart Peninsular, where they are shown how to survive, before finding Britain's most remote pub. Dara offers to give his friend, comedian and mountaineer Ed Byrne, a lift to the Cullins on Skye. He is trying to climb as many Scottish mountains as he can. They sail north, but realise they're running out of time. So they catch a lift with the Scottish Fisheries Protectorate Ship Norna, finally making the last week of the fishing season at Amhuinnsuidhe Castle on Harris, a place that has been described as 'heaven on earth'.
The trio of Rory McGrath, Griff Rhys Jones and Dara O Briain head to Montenegro, where they catch a lift on a military motor yacht that used to be used by Marshal Tito, the leader of the Socialist Republic of Yugoslavia. Rory finds plenty of clues as to what the charismatic Socialist leader got up to onboard. In the Bay of Kotor they transfer to another military vessel, a naval sail training ship dating to 1931. With three masts and 21 sails, everything has to be done by hand. The trio are put to work alongside the cadets by the commander, but Griff gets stuck up the 150 foot mast as a storm comes in. Crossing the border, into the Croatian city of Dubrovnik, they discover that the city and its people remember the recent wars all too well. They continue up the coast on a mini cruise boat, MS Magellan, arriving at the Island of Korcula. Famed for its Moreska sword dance. When they have a go with the local troupe, Dara turns out to have a natural talent for the dance and ends up staging a performance for the local school and passing tourists. Next stop is the island of Viz, one of the most unspoilt islands on the coast. Because of its military importance it was closed to tourists until 1989. The three men have been entered into a cricket match with the local side against the MCC - the Munich Cricket Club. Dara's unconventional batting style is surprisingly successful.
The trio of Rory McGrath, Griff Rhys Jones and Dara O Briain head to the Adriatic, travelling up the Dalmatian coast to Venice. They've been entered into a Gondola Race on the Grand Canal in front of thousands of tourists. The region has an amazing maritime history, so there are plenty of boats to sail, motor and row their way to one of the most beautiful cities in the world. The three men discover that travelling along the Adriatic out of season means that there are very few options to get to Venice by boat, so they attempt to blag a lift with a super yacht at the Split boat show. The only problem is that they will have to wait until the show finishes to find out if they're successful. In the meantime they get a lift with a tanker delivering drinking water to the outlying islands along the coast. Outside the Roman city of Pula Griff and Rory come across Europe's biggest nudist colony, and Griff can't resist having a go. Eventually the three men make it to Venice and are immediately thrown into Gondola practice ready for the race. A race down the Grand Canal is a big deal to the locals and they want to make sure the three men are good enough. Rory tries to make a suitable trophy for the race out of glass on the island of Murano, whilst Griff and Dara end up cooking with the last remaining fishing families in Venice. Griff's search for ingredients leads him to Venice's finest vegetable stall at the local women's prison. Whilst Dara's visit to the local fire station ends up in an emergency call on a fire boat.
Rory McGrath, Griff Rhys Jones and Dara O Briain head to America to join a birthday party flotilla celebrating the 125th anniversary of the Statue of Liberty, in New York harbour. They start in the cradle of American history, New England, and have just ten days to find a suitable vessel and get to New York.
The three men soon discover that the end of October is a bad time to look for boats. It's the end of the season for some and the start of the racing season in the Caribbean for others. But few can make it to New York. They decide to take a trip to Cape Cod to see a famous lifeboat; en route they have a go at sports fishing, and see a pilot whale
A compilation of the best bits from the first six series of Three Men in a Boat when Griff Rhys Jones, Dara O'Briain and Rory McGrath recreated the Victorian journey in the famous book, Three Men in a Boat.
