Boris Johnson's father, Stanley, at the premiere of his new travel documentary, In the Footsteps of Marco Polo
In the Footsteps of Marco Polo, a new travel documentary starring Stanley Johnson and his youngest son Max Johnson, premiered at the Curzon cinema in Mayfair, London, on Wednesday (3rd July).
The 90-minute travelogue retraces the Venetian explorer’s 5,000+-mile journey from Venice to China along the Silk Road.
Mr Johnson Snr completed most of the Silk Road on a motorbike with late Oxford University pals Michael de Larrabeiti, the novelist and travel writer, and Tim Severin, the historian and explorer, in 1961.
They vowed to return and complete the journey together, but Michael and Tim passed away in 2008 and 2020 respectively.
Mr Johnson Snr, 83, said the 2023 documentary “picks up where we left off” and follows him and youngest son Max, 39, as they drive the remaining 2,500 miles to Beijing.
An accompanying book of the same name, released today in hardcover by Telensky Editions, recounts both of Stanley’s Silk Road expeditions. Its publication coincides with the 700th anniversary of Marco Polo’s death.
The film is supported by the education provider Global Education (GEDU) and its English Path language school.
Prominent guests included Boris Johnson and wife Carrie, the Chinese ambassador, Zheng Zeguang, the veteran broadcaster Dame Angela Rippon, and the Olivier award-winning actor Tom Conti.
