Jeff Brazier says Celebrity Race Across the World was 'harder than SAS' amid clashes with Freddie

Jeff and Freddie in Celebrity Race Across the World
-Credit: (Image: Reach Publishing Services Limited)


Jeff Brazier has opened up about his time on Celebrity Race Across the World, which concluded tonight, revealing that the BBC One travel show proved to be much "harder" than his time on military training show Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins.

The TV presenter, 45, took part in the much-loved show with his son Freddie, 19, with the pair spending five weeks trekking across South America with a small budget, no phone, no wallet and a tight deadline. Although the show was an amazing opportunity, Jeff told OK! in an exclusive chat that there were moments of stress on the journey.

Jeff Brazier has admitted that Race Across the World was "harder" than his time on SAS Who Dares Wins
Jeff Brazier has admitted that Race Across the World was "harder" than his time on SAS Who Dares Wins -Credit:BBC/Studio Lambert/Hans Georg

"I actually found it harder [than Celebrity SAS: Who Dares Wins]. People think I’m being silly by even suggesting that a travel show can be harder than being interrogated, hosed down and screamed at, but it’s the five weeks of constant challenge and pressure,” Jeff said.

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READ MORE:Jeff Brazier speaks out on emotional toll Race Across The World had on son Freddy

He added: “The relationship is under scrutiny because throughout Freddie’s childhood, if there’s any stress, Dad takes over. But you can imagine that Fred doesn’t want to be seen as Dad’s plus-one here, so it creates an unnatural reaction sometimes where Fred fights for something that isn’t necessarily important to him.”

Jeff took part in the first celebrity series of SAS: Who Dares Wins back in 2019, taking part alongside Sam Thompson, AJ Odudu, Andrea McLean, Louise Mensch and Jeremy Irvine. Taking place in the Andes Mountains in Chile, Jeff was ultimately culled from the process with footballer Wayne Bridge being the only celeb to pass the course.

With checkpoints across Chile and Argentina to reach on Celebrity Race Across the World, the Brazier boys found themselves tussling over the GPS tracker. “A lot of the time, Fred will be using complete guesswork because that’s the way his brain works and I’ll be using logic because I’m 45 years old,” Jeff laughed. “You have to find a system that works for you – sometimes we would go with Fred’s unpredictability and it would end up being a quicker or more enjoyable route.”

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Jeff and Freddie found it difficult dealing with the intense heat in South America
Jeff and Freddie found it difficult dealing with the intense heat in South America -Credit:BBC/Studio Lambert

Meanwhile, Freddie interjected: “I’m great at finding places without a map! I somehow always get to where I want to be.”

The intense South American heat was also tough. “The most luxurious shower we had was at a bus garage,” Jeff admitted. “In my football days, we would be at service stations and see truckers going for a shower and think, ‘No way would I ever shower in one of those.’ On Race, it was 10 times worse than that.”

The pair compete against DJ Scott Mills and his husband Sam Vaughan, presenter Kelly Brook and her husband Jeremy Parisi, and Ted Lasso’s Kola Bokinni and his cousin Mary Ellen on the show, as they attempt to be the first duo to reach the Andes from the Amazon Rainforest.