During the course of the series, Portillo travels a total distance of 2,500 miles and passes through six countries,[1] beginning with Hong Kong then moving on to Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and Malaysia before reaching his final destination of Singapore.[3] One of the main themes he explores is colonial history, examining the legacy of the British, French, Dutch and Portuguese empires, and how the countries involved gained their independence.[1][4] Filming for the series was carried out in two stages and took 7–8 weeks to complete.[4]
Broadcast
The programme was first broadcast as 20 30-minute episodes on consecutive weekday evenings on BBC Two, beginning on 27 January 2020.[3][5] It was re-broadcast weekly as ten 60-minute episodes starting 4 April 2020.[6][7]