Image: Gyles and Sheila travel the Lea Navigation, visiting the former Royal Gunpowder Mills and tackling their first manual locks before travelling up the Thames – Nov 2020. Credit: Deposit Photos 318706968.

Great Canal Journeys cruises forward into 2021 with the latest episodes following Sheila and Gyles exploring Staffordshire’s waterways. If you’re not familiar with this Channel 4 TV series, it follows Timothy West, Prunella Scales, Sheila Hancock and Gyles Brandreth taking spectacular canal journeys across Britain and abroad.

Tim and Pru both spoke frankly about Pru’s dementia during the series, which has been praised by Alzheimer’s Research UK. The programme became much more than a calming travelogue exploring beautiful scenery, as a touching portrait of the couple’s marriage began to emerge. It was a sensitive exploration of the trials and joys of growing older. It was both humorous, poignant and meditative. But after ten series of navigating the waterways of the world, Pru’s struggle with Alzheimer’s forced the couple to stop filming.

Will there be any more Great Canal Journeys?

In 2020 Channel 4 continued the series with two new presenters, actor Sheila Hancock and author and presenter Gyles Brandreth. Read: Great Canal Journeys Has Two New Skippers.

In the first episode Timothy West gave the two novice canal boaters some basic training in boat handling. If you want to see what people love about this programme here are some ways to catch up with what you’ve missed.

Watch the Series

Many episodes are available to watch on Channel 4’s on demand streaming service. Great Canal Journeys. The first eight series have also been released on DVD, which you could find on Amazon or look for second-hand copies on eBay.

Read the Book

Timothy West tells the story of the couple’s life and travels, illustrated with beautiful photography in Our Great Canal Journeys: A Lifetime of Memories on Britain’s Most Beautiful Waterways. The book describes their careers as actors while recording their journeys along some of the world’s most scenic waterways. Beyond this, however, it explores with sensitivity how Prunella’s struggle with dementia has both changed, and yet failed to change, their lives together. It is a sometimes funny, sometimes moving reflection on love and life.

If you prefer to listen to the audio book it is read by Timothy West. The book and audio book are available in most good book shops. Great Canal Journeys – book.

What Next for Great Canal Journeys?

The new presenters have been well received by the British public. Sheila, 88, is an English actress and author, who trained at the Royal Academy of Dramatic Art before starting her career in repertory theatre. Gyles, 73, is a writer, broadcaster, actor, and former politician. He studied at Oxford University, before beginning a career in the media. Last year he also founded Poetry Together, bringing together young and old to connect over the joy of performing poetry. Despite the pandemic, schools and care homes still signed up in their hundreds.

Hopefully the easing of lockdown restrictions will allow Sheila and Gyles to record more episodes exploring the British canals. If you want to take your own great canal journey this year check availability now. We have some great holiday deals to enjoy this summer.

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The post How to Watch Great Canal Journeys in 2021 appeared first on Fox Narrowboats.

Does a narrowboat holiday make you think of romance, stress relief, or that telly programme with Tim and Prunella? Last year on our blog we covered all of these, plus, surprisingly we learned that you can visit movie locations by canal boat, and even take your dog with you! Here’s a collection of teachings and wisdom gathered over another great year of holidays on the Fenland waterways.

Lesson One: Are you too busy for a weekend getaway? Would you like something relaxing to look forward to? Last year we learned you don’t have to take your Valentines break on Valentine’s Day. Whether you enjoy walking, nature, heritage, market towns, rural villages, country pubs or city shopping, there are plenty of romantic, relaxing, and fun things to explore on the Fenland Waterways. Read more: The Surprising Narrowboat Break Your Valentine is Going to Love

Lesson Two: Celebrity couple Timothy West and Prunella Scales have taught us that narrowboating is a wonderful way to spend quality time with a loved one. In Channel 4’s television series, Great Canal Journeys, Tim and Prunella take canal barge and narrowboat trips in various countries around the world. Last year we learned how to cruise Like Tim and Pru from Great Canal Journeys: How to Reconnect With the Ones You Love

Lesson Three: With Spring approaching we shared the shocking truth about last minute bookings, including what little-known factors could affect your holiday price, and asked how safe is your ideal narrowboat from being fully booked? We learned that at the beginning of the cruising season many boaters had already booked and begun their narrowboat holiday! If you haven’t booked your canal holiday yet, read on for the truth about last minute bookings.

How Late Booking Gambles With Your Holiday Happiness: 3 Ways to Protect Yourself

Lesson Four: In May we learned that a narrowboat trip to an unknown village could provide a respite from responsibilities, a heavy workload, or the other challenges in life. Exercise, spending time in nature, and practising mindfulness are all effective ways of managing stress. Read on to learn five ways that a canal boat trip to an English village can soothe your soul.

Feeling Stressed? 5 Ways This Unknown Village Can Soothe Your Soul

Lesson Five: In October our blog explored our pet-friendly boats and some new dog-walking routes. If you’re wondering if you can even take your dog on a narrowboat, then let Fox Boats teach you why narrowboating is the ultimate in dog-friendly holidays and day trips. After all, what good is a day out if you can’t take your best friend?

Canal Boating With Your Dog: The Ultimate Guide

Lesson Six: From historical drama, to biography and romance, Cambridge and Ely have featured in many impressive films over the years. Last year we learned some of the best real movie locations that you can actually visit by narrowboat.

5 Real Movie Locations You Can Actually Visit by Narrowboat

Lesson Seven: Have you ever wondered if it’s cold in winter, living on a narrowboat? I spent 13 years living on canal boats and during that time many of my friends were concerned that I was “roughing it;” imagining that I was living simply without any modern comforts. However, if you read our blog last year you learned that modern narrowboats are extremely comfortable. Here are four surprising creature comforts you will find on a Fox narrowboat.

Narrowboats: Is it Cold in Winter? (The Answer Might Surprise You!)

Want to learn more about boats and boating this year? Subscribe to our blog in the right sidebar and get insider knowledge about the Fenland Waterways; look for ‘Follow Blog’. (We don’t send spam or salesy type stuff – just interesting articles about boats and waterways!)

You may also like: Why January is the Best Time to Book Your Hire Boat Holiday

The post 7 Surprising Lessons That Last Year Taught us About Narrowboating appeared first on Fox Narrowboats.

Want to explore the quieter parts of England?

Feel like cruising through amazing scenery?

Planning to spend quality time with a loved one?

In Channel 4’s television series, Great Canal Journeys, Timothy West and Prunella Scales now take canal barge and narrowboat trips in various countries around the world. But the programme originally began with focussing on their life-long love of the British inland waterways. Back in 1990 the actors were on the first narrowboat to travel the newly restored section of the Kennet and Avon between Bath and Devizes.

In the TV series they’ve travelled the popular Kennet and Avon, the Llangollen Canal, Oxford, Grand Union Canal and the Norfolk Broads, but have yet to feature the lesser-known Fenland Waterways. Sometimes referred to as the waterways best-kept secret; we find our local canals to be much less crowded; perfect for escaping the paparazzi! (BBC Countryfile presenter Adam Henson described the Fenlands as “a hidden gem,” in the Ely Standard.)

Matthew Corbett, Toyah Wilcox, Timothy Spall, Nicholas Cage, David Suchet, Heston Blumenthal, Brian Blessed, Camilla Parker Bowles, Harrison Ford (Indiana Jones) and Calista Flockhart have all tried escaping to the waterways for a narrowboat holiday. (Read more: How to Holiday Like a Celebrity Without it Costing a Fortune).

However, English canals, waterways and narrowboats are rarely featured in fictional films and television. (Read more: Movies That Feature Narrowboating Life).

Timothy and Prunella love discovering places that they haven’t been before, meeting new people, and taking life at a gentle pace. There is also something very poignant about watching their relationship, and seeing them reminisce about memories in their past.

You don’t have to be of retirement age to enjoy a narrowboat holiday though. What these programmes show us is that a boating holiday is a wonderful chance to get away from modern, busy distractions, and focus on our human relationships; the people that matter. In Marie Browne’s memoir, Narrow Margins, her young family discover how to slow down and reconnect with one another. She also describes travelling the River Nene – a route covered by Fox Boats holidays. (Read more: 3 Things this Book Can Tell Us About Narrowboat Holidays).

If you want to reconnect with the ones you love and spend some quality time together, then why not take a short narrowboat holiday break and experience your own Great Canal Journey? Slow down, and create new memories with the ones you love.

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The post Cruise Like Tim and Pru from Great Canal Journeys: How to Reconnect With the Ones You Love appeared first on Fox Narrowboats.