TRAILS & tribulations

NICK HEWER on taking part in a life-changing adventure

- TESSLAMACRAFT

PILGRIMAGE: THE ROAD TO THE SCOTTISH ISLES

NEW FRI, 9PM (NOT WALES), BBC2 DOCUMENTARY (BOX SET, iPLAYER)

A brand-new group of celebrities are pulling on their walking boots to embark on a 15-day journey of self-discovery as the BBC2 series Pilgrimage returns for a fourth series.

After previous treks to Santiago, Rome, and Istanbul, this time the seven famous faces, who each have different religious backgrounds and beliefs, will be challenging themselves both physically and spiritually as they walk nearly 1,500km from County Donegal in Ireland to the remote Scottish island of Iona, and they'll be following in the footsteps of 6th-century Irish monk Saint Columba.

Here, former The Apprentice adviser and ex-Countdown host Nick Hewer, who, at 78, is the oldest pilgrim on this excursion, tells TV Times more about the journey...

What was your main reason for taking part?

I wanted to challenge myself physically and to have serious discussions about religion.

I went to a school run by a Jesuits, but it didn't really stick. I hated Sunday school so much that I once asked my brother to hit me over the head with a hammer so I didn't have to go!

I'm agnostic but curious.