Bill Bailey embarks upon Perfect Pub Walks for Channel 4
- Bill Bailey is shooting a new More4 series about walks that end at the pub
- The musical comic has been spotted filming Perfect Pub Walks with Paul Merton
- Speaking about the benefits of walking, Bailey has said: "Strolling along, chatting about difficult subjects, is easier than having a sit-down chat about it"
Bill Bailey is pub crawling around the British countryside for a new More4 show.
The musical comic is currently filming Perfect Pub Walks and has been spotted shooting with Paul Merton.
The premise of the show is described as follows: "In a brand-new series comedian, musician and nature-lover Bill Bailey will set out on some of the best and most spectacular pub walks the country has to offer, taking in the Peak District, Somerset, Dorset and Suffolk.
"In each of the four episodes Bill will be accompanied by a different guest and together the two men will have the time and opportunity to share wide ranging, funny and sometimes very personal conversations, on their way to the pub.
"Covering everything from history and nature to music, food and art, their talks will also see Bill and his guests discuss memories, challenges and life experiences, touching on subjects that men are sometimes reluctant to open up about."
The series is being produced by Up & Away Films, who previously made the BBC One travelogue Along The US-Mexico Border With Sue Perkins.
Commissioning editor Nicole Streak says: "Taking a celebratory look at our landscape, pub culture and lives well lived, this uplifting new series will allow our guests to open up about the subjects close to their heart whilst taking in some breath-taking countryside. More4's Perfect Pub Walks is a beautiful escapist new series that offers a rare opportunity to listen in on the more intimate conversations between men."
A keen rambler, Bailey hiked 100 miles last year from Bude in Cornwall to Combe Martin in Devon in memory of his late friend Sean Lock, raising £110,000 for Macmillan Cancer Support, inspired by the hikes that the two comics used to take together.
Bailey was joined on the trek by Lee Mack, Kevin Eldon and other friends and family of Lock.
With its outdoors backdrop and scope for leisurely conversation, the More4 format is likely to draw comparisons with BBC Two's hit series Mortimer And Whitehouse: Gone Fishing.
Earlier this year, Bailey espoused the mental health benefits of walking in the Sunday Telegraph, writing that "When you're talking to someone on a walk they're facing the same way. Strolling along, chatting about difficult subjects, is easier than having a sit-down chat about it."