Of all the television treats coming to the BBC this festive season, one of the most anticipated is undoubtedly the brand new adaptation of Jules Verne’s Around the World in 80 Days – and we’ve now been given a sneak preview of the series with a first full-length trailer.
The 90-second clip sees David Tennant’s Phileas Fogg embark on his globe-trotting adventure along with his two companions, journalist Abigail Fix (Leonie Benesch) and trusted valet Jean Passepartout (Ibrahim Koma), as they come face to face with all sorts of hazards and threats.
It looks like Fogg is none too happy about his journey being documented in the press, with the explorer reacting with dismayed shock when Abigail explains she plans to cover his progress for the Daily Telegraph – and she certainly won’t have a lack of things to report on.
The trailer teases fistfights, gunshot wounds, foot chases, hot air balloon rides, and even an attack from a pesky fly, all set against a range of stunning and glamorous locations.
The clip follows a shorter teaser trailer that had previously been released for the series back in September, while the epic title sequence for the show was exclusively revealed by RadioTimes.com at the beginning of this month.
In September 2021, we also shared some exclusive first-look images showing Tennant and his co-stars in costume, and the Cape Town locations where part of the series was filmed.
All of the promotional material released so far seems to confirm Tennant’s claims to RadioTimes.com and other press this week that the new series is a “romp” and a “genuine piece of family entertainment”.
“It has that sense of something that everyone can come together, and it works,” said the former Doctor Who star. “It’ll work for your five-year-old, it’ll work for your 85-year-old. I think it’s got a genuine kind of cross-generational appeal to it and that’s something very special I’ve been involved in, in that kind of a story.”
Although an official UK air date for the show has not been revealed yet, we do know that it will air across the Christmas period – with the show having been announced as part of the BBC’s festive schedule along with other new dramas such as A Very British Scandal and The Tourist.
Meanwhile, for US viewers the series will air on PBS, with the premiere date having been announced as Sunday 2nd January.