The second series of Celebrity Race Across the World was a race over across South America, starting in Belém, Brazil and finishing in Frutillar, Chile.
It was announced by the BBC on 30 July 2024 and began airing on 14 August 2024 in the 9pm time slot on BBC One.
In the same press release the BBC confirmed that the series would once again consist of 6 hour-long episodes and revealed the four pairs of competitors as broadcaster Jeff Brazier and his son, Freddy; actor Kola Bokinni and his cousin, Mary Ellen; former model Kelly Brook and her husband, Jeremy; and BBC Radio 2 presenter Scott Mills and his then-fiancé (now husband) Sam.
Overview The race had five checkpoints with enforced rest periods, with contestants only finding out the next destination on departure from a checkpoint. Teams were given a budget of £1100 per person – equivalent to the air fare for travelling the race route. Contestants were not permitted to subsidise their budgets, but short-term opportunities allowed them to work for money or bed and board. The contestants were not allowed access to telephones or the internet, but were provided with a map, travel guide and GPS tracker.
Contestants
Name Relationship Occupation Age Ref. Kelly BrookWife and Husband Broadcaster 44 Jeremy Parisi Judo champion 39 Scott MillsHusband and Husband BBC Radio 2 host 51 Sam Vaughan Events producer 35 Jeff BrazierFather and Son Broadcaster 45 Freddy Brazier Part time worker 19 Kola BokinniCousins Actor 32 Mary Ellen Moriarty Student 29
Results summary Colour key: – Team withdrawn – Series winners
TeamsPosition (by leg)123456Scott & Sam2nd4th3rd1st3rdWinnersKola & Mary Ellen4th2nd4th3rd1st2ndJeff & Freddy3rd1st1st4th2nd3rdKelly & Jeremy1st3rd2nd2nd4th4th
Route The checkpoints in the second celebrity series were: Leg From To1Siqueira Campos Square, Belém, Pará, BrazilHotel Long Beach, Canoa Quebrada, Ceará, Brazil2Hotel Long Beach, Canoa Quebrada, Ceará, BrazilHotel Canto das Águas, Lençóis, Bahia, Brazil3 Hotel Canto das Águas, Lençóis, Bahia, Brazil Hotel Unique, São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil4 Hotel Unique, São Paulo, São Paulo, BrazilDelta Eco Hotel, Tigre, Buenos Aires, Argentina5Delta Eco Hotel, Tigre, Buenos Aires, ArgentinaLas Marias Hotel, Tilcara, Argentina6Las Marias Hotel, Tilcara, ArgentinaVolcán Osorno, Frutillar, Chile
Race summary Mode of transportation Rail Ship Bus/coach Taxi Road vehicle Self-drive vehicle (paid) RVActivity Working for money and/or bed and board Excursion that cost time and/or money
Leg 1: Belém, Pará, Brazil → Canoa Quebrada, Ceará, Brazil
The four teams, having checked in at the Farol de Belém lighthouse to hand over their wallets and mobile phones and to collect their race essentials, began the race in earnest at 2pm underneath the clock tower in Siqueira Campos Square. It was revealed that the first checkpoint was away in the beach resort of Canoa Quebrada on the Ceará coast.
Two teams opted for an inland route whilst the other two opted for the more touristic and costly coastal route, but ultimately all four teams would pass through Fortaleza, the largest city closest to the checkpoint in Canoa Quebrada.
The two inland teams headed straight for work opportunities with the promise of free bed and board. Scott & Sam helped make Goiabada at a confectioners in Carolina in the Cerrado whilst Jeff & Freddy helped out on a Chacaras (farm) in São Raimundo.
Of the two coastal teams, Kelly & Jeremy headed to nearby Bragança to assist with planting mangrove seedlings in the Caete-Taperacu Reserve in exchange for free bed and board, whilst Kola & Mary Ellen headed initially to the state capital of Sao Luis and then immediately onto Santa Amaro. Having been delayed for a day due to poor transport links, Kelly & Jeremy reassessed their strategy and decided to divert inland to Teresina, a destination that Jeff & Freddy and Scott & Sam were also headed towards.
Kola & Mary Ellen did some dune bashing at Lençóis Maranhenses National Park, but found themselves stranded without any options of public transport forward. Desperate not to backtrack to Sao Luis, they splashed out on a costly taxi.
In Teresina, all three teams pressed forward to Fortaleza. Jeff & Freddy and Scott & Sam found themselves on the same 10-hour bus journey. At the bus terminus in Fortaleza, Scott & Sam immediately took a taxi whilst Jeff & Freddy tried to hitch a lift, a decision which would cost the latter team an hour and a race position.
Kelly & Jeremy arrived first at the checkpoint in the dying minutes of day 4, followed by Scott & Sam a little over an hour later. Jeff & Freddy finished third, a further hour after Scott & Sam.
OrderTeamsRouteHours behind leadersMoney left1Kelly & JeremyBelém → Bragança → Teresina → Fortaleza → Canoa Quebrada valign="top" 84%2Scott & SamBelém → Imperatiz → Carolina → Teresina → Fortaleza → Canoa Quebrada 1 hour 5 minutes 85%3Jeff & FreddyBelém → Porto Franco → São Raimundo → Porto Franco → Teresina → Fortaleza → Canoa Quebrada 2 hours 11 minutes 88%4Kola & Mary EllenBelém → Sao Luis → Santa Amaro → Parnaiba → Fortaleza → Canoa Quebrada 12 hours 30 minutes 79%
Leg 2: Canoa Quebrada, Ceará, Brazil → Lençóis, Bahia, Brazil
The race restarted on day 6 and the finish point of the second leg was revealed to be Lençóis, gateway to the Chapada Diamantina National Park, in the Brazilian state of Bahia, some away.
Once again, the teams faced the dilemma of selecting either a well-connected, but relatively expensive route traversing the coastal cities or a cheaper, rural one through the more sparsely populated interior, with the inland route entailing backtracking to Fortaleza first.
A complete lack of foreign exchange bureaux in Aracati forced Kelly & Jeremy to wait seven hours for a bus they could afford with their remaining Brazilian Reals. This unanticipated turn of events allowed Scott & Sam to catch up to the leading pair, but they also found themselves without enough local currency to pay for bus tickets. Some helpful Mormon missionaries facilitated an impromptu exchange and so Scott & Sam managed to secure seats for themselves on the same midnight service to Natal as the leading team.
Jeff & Freddy, the only team to opt to make their way through the interior, headed first to Quixadá where they worked alongside Alpacas at a glamping site in the Caatinga, after which they left for Juazeiro do Norte on an overnight bus. There, they visited the monumental statue of the city's patron saint, Padre Cícero Romão Batista, before pressing onward to Brejo Santo where they caught a bus to Seabra, within striking distance of the checkpoint in Lençóis.
Having arrived in Natal, Scott & Sam and Kelly & Jeremy went their separate ways to their own work opportunities. The former pair headed to Pipa Beach where they were mistaken for father and son. The latter duo, having lost another four hours searching for a place to change currency in Natal, eventually proceeded to João Pessoa and then back up the coast on an unpaved road to a hostel in Barra do Mamanguape.
Last to leave Canoa Quebrada on day 7, Kola & Mary Ellen headed straight to Recife on a 12-hour bus journey. On arrival they took a side trip to nearby Olinda to see the sights. That evening they bumped into Scott & Sam who were just arriving at Recife coach station as they were departing towards Petrolândia in the interior where they had arranged to top up funds working in a local restaurant.
The next day Scott & Sam caught a nightbus to Feira de Santana. Meanwhile, Kelly & Jeremy had journeyed down the Brazilian coast to Maceió, leapfrogging their rivals, and were also heading to Feira de Santana.
When Kola & Mary Ellen found out the bus from Petrolândia to Lençóis was sold out, they caught a lucky break when they were offered a taxi at the same price as the cost of the bus tickets.
On day 9, Jeff & Freddy were the first team to arrive in the colonial mining town of Lençóis. They were first directed to the Church of Igreja do Rosario and then onto the checkpoint at the Hotel Canto das Águas. It would be another day before Kola & Mary Ellen and Kelly & Jeremy reached the checkpoint in second and third place respectively.
OrderTeamsRouteHours behind leadersMoney left1Jeff & FreddyCanoa Quebrada → Fortaleza → Quixadá → Juazeiro do Norte → Brejo Santo → Seabra → Lençóis valign="top" 79%2Kola & Mary EllenCanoa Quebrada → Aracati → Recife → Olinda → Recife → Petrolândia → Lençóis 15 hours 20 minutes 66%3Kelly & JeremyCanoa Quebrada → Aracati → Natal → João Pessoa → Barra do Mamanguape → João Pessoa → Maceió → Feira de Santana → Lençóis 20 hours 29 minutes 66%4Scott & SamCanoa Quebrada → Aracati → Natal → Pipa Beach → Recife → Feira de Santana → Lençóis 27 hours 69%
Leg 3: Lençóis, Bahia, Brazil → São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil
The race recommenced on day 11 with a leg that started from tranquil Lençóis but finished in the bustling megalopolis of São Paulo, away to the south west.
Leaving in the morning, Jeff & Freddy decided to head to the coast and the city of Salvador. There they celebrated the life of Freddy's mother, Jade Goody, by viewing the sunset at the Barra lighthouse and taking a dip in the Bay of All Saints.
Kola & Mary Ellen left the checkpoint in the late evening, but with no overnight buses found themselves stranded for another night in Lençóis until the next day when they chose to head to Porto Seguro to work as a waiter and an Axé dancer respectively, at a famous beach bar.
That same day, Kelly & Jeremy also departed checkpoint two but chose to travel via Seabra to the capital Brasília, where they arrived on day 13. Whilst in the city they visited the Oscar Niemeyer designed Metropolitan cathedral before trying their hand at shoe shining at the intercity bus terminal.
Last to depart, Scott & Sam took a chance and requisitioned a taxi to Itaberaba, away, for an opportunity to top up their funds, but having underestimated the journey time, arrived too late both for work and any onward travel. Determined to turn their fortunes around they managed to secure a job that evening in the kitchen of a pizzeria.
Having made it to Rio de Janeiro via Vitoria, Freddy took the opportunity to sell Mate cocido on Copacabana beach to replenish funds he had spent on souvenirs. Also continuing to top up funds were Scott & Sam (serving drinks in a bar in Goiânia) and Kola & Mary Ellen (working in a coffee shop in Belo Horizonte).
Having made it as far as Uberlândia, Kelly & Jeremy pressed onward to São Paulo desperate to move up the leaderboard. When the teams arrived in the city they were instructed to take the Metro to the São Paulo Museum of Art (MASP) in the Jardins district and then given directions to the checkpoint at the Hotel Unique. Jeff & Freddy arrived first, followed by Kelly & Jeremy almost 9 hours later. Scott & Sam arrived third, a further 6 hours later followed eventually by Kola & Mary Ellen just over an hour after them.
OrderTeamsRouteHours behind leadersMoney left1Jeff & FreddyLençóis → Salvador → Vitoria → Rio de Janeiro → São Paulo valign="top" 56%2Kelly & JeremyLençóis → Seabra → Brasília → Uberlândia → São Paulo 8 hours 55 minutes 51%3Scott & SamLençóis → Itaberaba → Goiânia → São Paulo 14 hours 45 minutes 49%4Kola & Mary EllenLençóis → Porto Seguro → Belo Horizonte → São Paulo 16 hours 6 minutes 45%
Leg 4: São Paulo, São Paulo, Brazil → Tigre, Buenos Aires, Argentina
The race recommenced on day 17 from São Paulo in Brazil and finished in Tigre on the Parana River Delta, just north of the Argentinian capital Buenos Aires, a distance of approximately .