Four celebrity pairs swap luxury for a strict budget of £26 per person per day to navigate across two continents without phones or flights as the new series of Celebrity Race Across the World launches on BBC One and BBC iPlayer.
The Bottom Line
- Four famous duos race from Kuching in Malaysia to Melbourne, Australia across three countries and five checkpoints.
- Contestants must survive without planes or mobile phones, relying entirely on local transport, maps, and strangers.
- The daily budget is strictly capped at £26 per person, mirroring the format’s demanding survival conditions.
The Route and Rules of the 2026 Competition
The latest edition of the Studio Lambert-produced format tests four new teams over a vast geographical expanse. The contestants set off from Kuching in Malaysia, with the ultimate goal of reaching Melbourne, Australia. They follow in the footsteps of last year’s winners, celebrity sibling duo Roman and Harleymoon Kemp.
Celebrity Race Across The World: Meet the cast ahead of show's BBC return https://t.co/TcSDIuMBIQ
Participants face severe restrictions during the journey. They cannot board any aircraft or use mobile phones for navigation or communication. Instead, they depend on local transport networks, physical maps, and the goodwill of strangers to clear five mandatory checkpoints spread across three countries and two continents.
Meet the Famous Faces and Their Companions
The 2026 lineup features four distinct pairs taking on the grueling overland trek. Media personalities and siblings Princess and Junior Andre join the roster. Princess, 19, and Junior, 21, are the children of former glamour model Katie Price—who first rose to fame for The Sun under the pseudonym Jordan—and her ex-husband Peter Andre, who gained notoriety for his 1995 hit song Mysterious Girl. Junior admitted he was immediately keen to join, while his sister required some persuasion before agreeing to tackle the lack of sleep and home comforts, noting that after discussing it they decided they had nothing to lose because We’re young, wild and free, so let’s just do our thing!
Singer-songwriter Ella Eyre competes alongside her childhood friend Nana Pepera. In 2013, a 32-year-old Eyre gained widespread recognition alongside Rudimental for the track Waiting All Night, which secured the Brit Award for British Single of the Year. She and Pepera attended boarding school together and have known each other for over two decades. Eyre stated that she can’t have imagined doing this challenge with anyone else other than Nana
and described her as literally family,
later adding that It was an absolute perfect winner
.
Music is further represented by singer Sam Ryder, who secured the runner-up spot at Eurovision and racked up an impressive 466 points with his track Space Man, and is traveling alongside his tour manager and best friend, Kaz Coles.
Rounding out the cast is veteran sports broadcaster Jeff Stelling alongside his son, Matt. Since 2023, he has presented TalkSport’s breakfast show, alongside Ally McCoist.
| Celebrity Contestant | Companion | Notable Background |
|---|---|---|
| Princess & Junior Andre | Each other | Media personalities, children of Katie Price and Peter Andre |
| Ella Eyre | Nana Pepera | Brit Award-winning singer-songwriter |
| Sam Ryder | Kaz Coles | Eurovision runner-up and TikTok artist |
| Jeff Stelling | Matt Stelling | Veteran sports broadcaster and TV host |
Reflections From the Trail
Reflecting on the rigorous process of filming the show, Junior highlighted the intense nature of sibling dynamics on the road, while Princess admitted that despite finding the lack of sleep, food, and home comforts difficult to adjust to, it was genuinely one of the best things I’ve ever done
. The series airs on BBC One and BBC iPlayer on Wednesday, October 28, offering viewers a glimpse into the emotional and physical hurdles each duo overcame, which showed them just how magical the world is
.
