Go barging in France 5 celebs Lot Cahors Pont Valentre

Last year we were in touch the production company behind a UK TV series called Celebrity 5 Go… The idea, as you might imagine, was to haul together some well known faces and ship them off on a road trip. It turned out that the show was enough of a hit for them to commission a second series. Naturally we were encouraging that they bring the next round to France and to take to the waterways. And so airing now, on UK television’s Channel 5, is series two of Celebrity 5 Go Barging.

Celebs go barging

Obviously there’s the question around the notion of celebrity and how well known the characters are that are involved in this adventure. There are no Instagrammers or social media influencers in this line up, you may be relieved to hear. This series brings together actor Tom Conti, perhaps best known for his film role Shirley Valentine, charming Irish gardener Diarmuid Gavin of many a TV show resurrecting other people’s gardens, former athlete and Great Britain Olympian Tessa Sanderson, broadcaster and author Penny Smith, and 1970s pop idol Tony Christie.

What a combination of Great British cultural heritage from the last 40 years!

Two boats go barging

In collaboration with one of our hire boating partners, Le Boat, Channel 5 divide the motley crew into two groups and introduce them to their self-drive boats. Who will take the helm? How quickly will they grasp the not-particularly-tricky art of piloting a cruiser on calm waters?

With the joy of prerecorded television and editing teams, we find out pretty quickly that Penny may need a bit of practice before she should be allowed near the wheel again after getting a little too close to the bank and a tree.

Along the River Lot

Their boating adventure takes them along the River Lot from Parnac to Cahors aboard cruisers from Le Boat. Amidst the novelty factor of this intrepid adventure and the prankster efforts of Conti and Christie, the Lot’s tricky locks and this lot don’t appear to be a perfect combination. As we might expect, they meet boating savvy couples along the way. Hear their envy at the tranquility of the boating life! Forgive the stereotypes of excursions to the market in search of snails.

Challenged by the Canal du Midi

In episode three, the group are taken to Sete and introduced to this Mediterranean stretch of the Canal du Midi. It’s all change as far as boats go as they’re introduced to a narrow boat for this stretch of their journey. It’s edited into quite the debacle as they attempt and eventually manage to set off across the Etang du Thau, France’s largest lagoon.

As we head into episode four, will the famous five disembark friends or foes…?

Easier than it looks

Editing aside, they largely appear to crack the knack of steering these boats, some obviously more successful than others. You can catch up with Celebrity 5 Go Barging here.

If watching the series inspires you to have a go yourself, we promise it’s easier than they make it look and just as much fun! Find out more about hire boating.

PIN this post:
Celebs go barging Obviously there’s the question around the notion of celebrity and how well known the characters are that are involved in this adventure. There are no Instagrammers or social media influencers in this line up, you may be relieved to hear. This series brings together actor Tom Conti, perhaps best known for his film role Shirley Valentine, charming Irish gardener Diarmuid Gavin of many a TV show resurrecting other people’s gardens, former athlete and Great Britain Olympian Tessa Sanderson, broadcaster and author Penny Smith, and 1970s pop idol Tony Christie.