Presenters Rylan Clark and Rob Rinder have been touring Italy for a new BBC Two series, retracing the steps of the Grand Tourists of the past. Both having gone through painful divorces recently and are ready for the next chapter in their lives, Clark sees the trip as part of his restart. The original gap year, the Grand Tour was a rite of passage for the young male nobility of the 18th Century, who would travel to Europe to discover its culture, architecture – and themselves. The duo travelled to Venice, Florence and Rome following in the footsteps of one of the most famous of Grand Tourists, romantic poet Lord Byron, on the 200th anniversary of his death.
Byron – like Clark and Rinder – was also in the public eye and divorced. It’s something Clark can identify with. The culmination of his marriage breaking down after six years, and the knock-on effect of stopping work for the first time in 10 years, sent Clark into a “downward spiral”, he says. For Rinder, one of the hardest things to do is live in the moment, rather than in his head. On his arrival in Italy, Byron fell in love. Like the original tourists on the Grand Tour, Rinder and Clark met up with prospective love interests too, taking themselves out of their comfort zone to date Venetian men. But they also studied the art, architecture and culture of the historic Italian cities.
For Clark, the tour has given him the confidence to not feel intimidated to talk about art any more. He says the make-up he wears is his suit of armour, and that when he wipes it all off, Ross isn’t bruised, Rylan takes the battering, that’s how he deals with it. For Clark, who loves design and says he wanted to be an architect growing up, the trip has given him the chance to redefine himself. “It does feel like he and Rinder have had a renaissance of their own on the trip,” says the article.
The experience has been just as liberating for Rinder. “I’m one of life’s great overthinkers, it stops me doing everything. It stops me finding joy, it stops me taking risks,” he says, “I feel like I’ve learnt living life can’t just be in books, it’s got to be real. You can’t write about love, or paint about it, unless you’ve done it.” The series “Rob and Rylan’s Grand Tour” started on Sunday, 12 May at 21:00 BST on BBC Two and BBC iPlayer. The article also provides a link to the BBC Action Line for those affected by any of the issues raised in the story
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