Series synopsis
Pilgrimage is a British documentary television series that premiered on BBC Two on March 16, 2018. It stars Will Bayley, Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen, Monty Panesar and Louisa Clein.
Seven well-known personalities, all with differing faiths and beliefs, put on backpacks and walking boots and, on foot and by road, set out to cover sections of the Sultans Trail - a modern-day, 2,200km pilgrimage across Eastern Europe, which starts in Vienna and ends in the historic city of Istanbul. Journalist Adrian Chiles, former politician Edwina Currie, Olympian Fatima Whitbread, comedian Dom Joly, actor Pauline McLynn, broadcaster Mim Shaikh and television presenter Amar Latif live as mo ...
Premise
Seven well-known personalities, all with differing faiths and beliefs, put on backpacks and walking boots and, on foot and by road, set out to cover sections of the Sultans Trail - a modern-day, 2,200km pilgrimage across Eastern Europe, which starts in Vienna and ends in the historic city of Istanbul. Journalist Adrian Chiles, former politician Edwina Currie, Olympian Fatima Whitbread, comedian Dom Joly, actor Pauline McLynn, broadcaster Mim Shaikh and television presenter Amar Latif live as modern-day pilgrims, staying in basic hotels and often sleeping in shared rooms.
Cast and characters
Leading cast
- Will Bayley as Self
- Laurence Llewelyn-Bowen as Self
- Monty Panesar as Self
- Louisa Clein as Self
- Nick Hewer as Self
- Scarlett Moffatt as Self
- Shazia Mirza as Self
- Adrian Chiles as Self
Supporting cast
- Edwina Currie as Self
- Fatima Whitbread as Self
- Dom Joly as Self
- Pauline McLynn as Self
- Mim Shaikh as Self
- Amar Latif as Self
- Les Dennis as Self
- Lesley Joseph as Self
- Brendan Cole as Self
- Stephen K. Amos as Self
- Katy Brand as Self
- Greg Rutherford as Self
Episodes
This series spans 8 seasons with 24 episodes.
| Season | Episodes | First aired | Last aired |
|---|---|---|---|
| Season 1 | 3 | March 16, 2018 | March 30, 2018 |
| Season 2 | 3 | April 5, 2019 | April 19, 2019 |
| Season 3 | 3 | March 27, 2020 | April 10, 2020 |
| Season 4 | 3 | April 8, 2022 | April 22, 2022 |
| Season 5 | 3 | April 7, 2023 | April 21, 2023 |
| Season 6 | 3 | March 29, 2024 | April 12, 2024 |
| Season 7 | 3 | April 20, 2025 | April 22, 2025 |
| Season 8 | 3 | April 5, 2026 | April 7, 2026 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Neil Morrissey, Debbie McGee, Ed Byrne, Heather Small, Kate Bottley, Raphael Rowe and JJ Chalmers arrive in Biarritz and make their way to the start of their pilgrimage. |
March 16, 2018 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 The celebrities are delighted to find charity on their pilgrimage with a free-flowing wine fountain, but leave a hostel in solidarity with singer Heather when she senses racism. |
March 23, 2018 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 The seven celebrities are walking the last 100km to Santiago. Priest Kate still dreads the walk, but non-believer Raph is enjoying the opportunity to appreciate his surroundings. |
March 30, 2018 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Eight well-known personalities, all with differing beliefs and faiths, put on backpacks and walking boots, and set out to cover the Italian section of the ancient 2,000km Via Francigena, which starts in Canterbury and finishes in Rome. They have only 15 days to tackle 1,000km, so they start their pilgrimage in the Alps, just before the Swiss-Italian border. Will this journey of a lifetime change the way they think about themselves and their beliefs? |
April 5, 2019 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Stephen K Amos tells the group that as a gay man he struggles to find any kind of religious home. |
April 12, 2019 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 The celebrity pilgrims set off on the final challenging stretch of the Via toward Rome. When they receive an extraordinary invitation from the Vatican, emotions run high. |
April 19, 2019 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Seven celebrities of differing faiths and beliefs tackle the 2,200km Sultans Trail by road and on foot in a modern-day pilgrimage across Europe to the historic city of Istanbul. |
March 27, 2020 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Life on the Sultans Trail begins to challenge the celebrities as Adrian Chiles tells the group he is struggling with the purpose of pilgrimage in the face of their experiences. |
April 3, 2020 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 The celebrities set off on the final leg of their pilgrimage and arrive in Turkey, where they head for the magnificent Suleymaniye Mosque in the historic city of Istanbul. |
April 10, 2020 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Seven celebrities of differing faiths and beliefs set out in search of St Columba, an Irish monk born 1,500 years ago who helped spread Christianity from Ireland to Scotland. |
April 8, 2022 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 Life on the pilgrimage gets tough as the celebrities are challenged both physically and spiritually, struggling with lack of sleep and difficult questions about faith. |
April 15, 2022 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 With the end of their pilgrimage looming, the celebrities get a taste of monastic life in a medieval abbey, but will it help them discover more about the pathway to faith? |
April 22, 2022 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Seven well-known personalities, with differing faiths and beliefs, meet in northern Portugal to tackle a modern Catholic pilgrimage: the famous sanctuary in the city of Fatima. |
April 7, 2023 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 With under a week to go before they join tens of thousands of people in Fatima for the annual celebration of the Miracle of the Sun, the pilgrims decide to speed up their journey. |
April 14, 2023 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 In Coimbra, there are visits to a convent, a mosque and a synagogue. Finally, after 14 days and 364 kilometres, the group finally reach the famous Sanctuary of Fatima. |
April 21, 2023 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Seven celebrities of differing faiths and beliefs experience an emotional journey on a pilgrimage in north Wales, a route linked by churches dedicated to early Celtic Christian saints. |
March 29, 2024 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 The pilgrims head into Eryri National Park as the pilgrim path leads the group to one of Wales’ most famous natural wonders, Aber Falls. |
April 5, 2024 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 The pilgrims' final destination is Bardsey Island, the fabled ‘Island of 20,000 Saints’. Along the way, they see spectacular landscapes, visit holy sites and engage in fasting, ritual and meditation. |
April 12, 2024 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Seven celebrities of differing faiths and beliefs take on a pilgrimage through the Austrian and Swiss Alps to Einsiedeln Abbey, a pilgrim destination for over a thousand years. |
April 20, 2025 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 It's day five, and the pilgrims prepare for the challenging Alpine paths ahead of them. As they go along the path, they discover part of their route is covered by a deep snow drift. |
April 21, 2025 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 The celebrities finish their journey at Einsiedeln Abbey, a pilgrim destination for over 1,000 years. |
April 22, 2025 |
| Episode | Title | Air date |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |
Episode 1 Seven celebrities make a pilgrimage through the stunning landscapes of north east England to one of Britain’s most important pilgrimage sites, the Holy Island of Lindisfarne. |
April 5, 2026 |
| 2 |
Episode 2 The pilgrims continue their adventure in Durham and visit the 12th-century Norman cathedral, where they're introduced to the ancient pilgrim tradition of foot washing. |
April 6, 2026 |
| 3 |
Episode 3 The pilgrims are in the Scottish Borders on St Cuthbert’s Way in the Cheviots, reaching spectacular views on Wideopen Hill. |
April 7, 2026 |
Production
Release
| Original network/platform | BBC Two |
|---|---|
| First aired | March 16, 2018 |
| Last aired | April 7, 2026 |
| Runtime | 60 minutes |
| Status | continue |