Say hello to a stranger.
Travel like it’s 1999!
Our Looney Planet is here to revive the magic of “analog travel.”
It was not too long ago when humans had to turn to their own common sense and to strangers for guidance.
30 years ago, Ian Wright & Justine Shapiro, the original hosts of the travel series Lonely Planet / Globe Trekker backpacked through more than 100 countries before the smartphone. No way to phone home. No GPS. No Google Translate. Along the way they met fellow travelers and locals who pointed the way to unexpected corners of the world. That dynamic wasn't a by-product of the trip. It was the trip.
Ian & Justine appeared on-camera unscripted and often unshowered, their curiosity and intrepid spirits attracted 10s of millions of viewers across the globe. And now they’re back, still unscripted and…
So buckle up as the Mulder and Scully of pre-digital travel reacquaint humanity with the joy, challenges and rewards that come with making friends with the unknown.
Taa Daaaaa !!
We are delighted to announce that Season 2 of Our Looney Planet launches in late September!
Six video podcast episodes and one new video series.
Our Looney Planet presents: Hello Stranger (3 episodes)
Ian & Justine chat with a stranger. No briefing, no bio — Ian & Justine know one thing about their guest: the city they live in. The conversation starts from zero, the way it does when you find yourself sitting next to a stranger on a bus, or a train, in the bleachers, or on a plane.
Our Looney Planet presents: Hello GlobeTrekker (3 episodes)
Ian & Justine reunite with members of the intrepid team behind the iconic 90s travel series Globe Trekker, made back in the stone age, before drones, memory cards, or smartphones.
Personal Geographies:
We hand the camera to a local who takes us through their city in their own voice — chatting with strangers, meeting up with friends, steering us to favorite spots no guide book knows about. The ultimate street level perspective.
Participate
We want your stories. We really really do. Click that PARTICIPATE button above. We're all a little Loonie around here, and honestly… your stories are as good as ours.
Our Current Episode
Episode 6: Part 2: Life After Globe Trekker
March 19, 2026
In Episode 6, Part 1, Ian and Justine pulled back the curtain on what it was really like to have "The Best Job in the World." Now, in Part 2, Ian & Justine are back to tell us what they've been up to since hosting Globe Trekker.
Ian, never one to stay still for long, went on to host a string of raucous, irreverent travel shows that felt tailor-made for his infectious energy. Between adventures he retreated to his studio in Norfolk, England, where a lifelong devotion to drawing, painting, sewing, and making has remained his quiet constant — a creative anchor through decades of wandering.
Justine embraced motherhood, raising her son while channeling her curiosity about the world into documentary filmmaking. Her films include Promises — an intimate portrait of Palestinian and Jewish children navigating life in Israel and the West Bank — earned an Academy Award nomination and won two Emmy Awards and continues to be the most widely used documentary film in classrooms and think tanks on the subject of the Palestinian-Israeli conflict.
And then, as life tends to do, the years filled up with everything in between — the extraordinary and the mundane, adventures and misadventures, setbacks, joy and the quieter weight of loss and change. In 2025 Ian and Justine reunited to launch Our Looney Planet. Yes, there is life after Globe Trekker . A lot of it.
