Buckle up for Great Australian Road Trips on SBS – Premiering 31 July, the SBS documentary series Great Australian Road Trips puts Claudia Karvan, Melissa Leong, Nazeem Hussain and Steph Tisdell in the driver’s seat, taking viewers on six epic journeys celebrating the country’s natural beauty and cultural treasures.
From the dirt tracks of the Red Centre Way in the Northern Territory to the Great Barrier Reef Drive in northern Queensland, Kangaroo Island in South Australia to the waterfalls and windswept beauty of Tasmania’s western coast, iconic Grand Pacific Drive south of Sydney to the nerve-jangling drive across the East Alligator River, this is the ultimate open road enthusiast’s guide to Australia.
New episodes will premiere Thursdays, at 7.30pm on SBS and be added weekly to stream free on SBS On Demand.
Actor/producer Claudia Karvan and writer/performer Steph Tisdell are one driving duo and food critic/writer Melissa Leong and comedian/writer Nazeem Hussain are the other. Each episode focuses on a driving adventure with one pair.
While the destinations are majestic, the real joy for viewers is coming along for the ride to experience the camaraderie and confessions in the car, the people on the road and the stories they share.
The six-episode series is a Mint Pictures production for SBS. Principal production funding by Screen NSW and post produced in NSW, with the assistance of the NSW Government.
SBS Senior Commissioning Editor for Factual Bernadine Lim said:
“Great Australian Road Trips is a distinctively SBS adventure: discovering spectacular landscapes across our great country while exploring history and culture. Presenters Claudia, Melissa, Nazeem and Steph boldly hit the highways and some less beaten tracks, sharing their genuine friendships and authentic experiences connecting with First Nations’ knowledge and multicultural perspectives in every episode of this inspirational series.”
Mint Productions Creative Director and Great Australian Road Trips Executive Producer Dan Goldberg said:
“Aside from the spectacular visuals from across six diverse corners of Australia, the secret sauce in this series is that viewers will feel they’re riding in the back seat of these two cars, eavesdropping in on the candid, funny and illuminating chit-chat between these two sets of mates.”
The Great Australian Road Trips adventures are:
Episode 1: Red Centre Way Mel introduces Naz to the magic and mystique of the Aussie outback on the iconic Red Centre Way from Alice Springs to Kings Canyon.
Episode 2: Great Barrier Reef Drive Steph takes Claudia to her Country – on an iconic road trip through Far North Queensland from the Atherton Tablelands to the Daintree Rainforest.
Episode 3: Wild West Coast Mel takes Naz to Tasmania to experience the wild West Coast, from the mining town of Queenstown to pristine wilderness of Cradle Mountain.
Episode 4: Adelaide to Kangaroo Island Steph and Claudia embark on a vibrant road trip from Adelaide to Kangaroo Island, uncovering the heart and soul of South Australia through its people, landscapes and stories.
Episode 5: The Top End Naz takes Mel on a wild ride from Darwin to Arnhem Land, a roadie that’s been on Naz’s bucket list for years.
Episode 6: Grand Pacific Drive Claudia is in the driver’s seat for this New South Wales adventure from Sydney to Jervis Bay via the Royal National Park, over the famous Sea Cliff Bridge and the quaint town of Berry.
Episodes will be available to stream on SBS On Demand with subtitles in Arabic, Simplified Chinese, Traditional Chinese, Vietnamese and Korean. All episodes will also be available on SBS On Demand with audio description.
Great Australian Road Trips launches 31 July on SBS and SBS On Demand, with new episodes weekly on Thursdays at 7.30pm.
Media Release – SBS
Link to SBS on Demand HERE
TV Central SBS content HERE
Buckle up for Great Australian Road Trips on SBS
