Full Circle - by Michael Palin (Paperback)

About the Book

Originally published: London: BBC, 1997.

Book Synopsis

'It was a journey of dazzling extremes. Beauty and ugliness, sophistication and squalor, unceasing urban noise and monastic tranquillity . . . This is a record of a year of wonder'

Full Circle is the diary of Michael Palin's epic 245-day, 50,000-mile adventure around the rim of the Pacific Ocean. It's a journey that takes him through eighteen different countries - including some of the most politically volatile and physically demanding places on Earth. Told with Michael's trademark warmth and good humour, this is a spectacular story of high contrasts, intense drama and unmissable beauty.

Review Quotes

Coupled with his eye for detail, he has the diarist's willingness to try anything and to laugh at himself ... travel-writing of unpretentious charm and enjoyable originality--Independent

He observes shrewdly, writes wittily; laughs with, not at, the people he meets, and charmingly slips in a huge amount of information. His approach still towers above its imitators--Independent

His easy-going charm and passion for discovery are captivating--Daily Express

Palin is the Python we all want to go abroad with--Observer

Palin makes a wonderful travelling companion ... his humour is set at exactly the right pitch--Daily Telegraph

About the Author

Michael Palin has written and starred in numerous TV programmes and films, from Monty Python and Ripping Yarns to The Missionary and The Death of Stalin. He has also made several much-acclaimed travel documentaries, his journeys taking him to the North and South Poles, the Sahara Desert, the Himalayas, Eastern Europe and Brazil. His books include accounts of his journeys, two novels (Hemingway's Chair and The Truth), three volumes of diaries and Erebus, the Story of a Ship. From 2009 to 2012 he was president of the Royal Geographical Society. He received a BAFTA fellowship in 2013, and a knighthood in the 2019 New Year Honours list. He lives in London.