Start date and celebrity guests revealed for Gary Barlow's new food and travel series
The Take That star will be heading to South Africa
Last updated 30th Oct 2024
Take That star Gary Barlow will be fronting a brand new TV series this Autumn, taking his love of food, wine and travel to sample the delights in South Africa. Gary, who released Take That's ninth album 'This Life' along with bandmates Howard Donald and Mark Owen last November, will appear in five episodes on ITV/STV.
What is the show called?
Gary's new series is called Gary Barlow's Wine Tour: South Africa.
When is it on TV?
The series begins on Monday 11th November at 2pm.
How many episodes?
The series is made-up of five episodes.
What channel is it on?
Gary Barlow's Wine Tour: South Africa will air on ITV1 and ITVX, and STV1/STV Player for viewers in Scotland.
What is it about?
ITV say of the show: 'Despite travelling the world as part of Take That, the multi-award winning singer songwriter has always had a soft spot for South Africa and now as a newcomer and an entrepreneur in the wine industry, Gary’s endearing love of the country extends beyond the epic landscapes and roaming wildlife.'
Gary himself has expressed his excitement over the upcoming show, saying: "I’m absolutely delighted to be exploring my passion for food, wine and travel in this new series for ITV. I’ve always loved South Africa and I can’t wait to really see all that it has to offer: the people, the places, its amazing history… and a glass or two of its incredible wine! This series is something that’s a bit different for me – but I can’t wait to get going."
ITV bosses added: 'Gary is set to start his journey on the Western Cape exploring the vineyards and learning about the variety of grapes, their sustainability, and what food is paired perfectly with each before driving through the breath-taking scenery.
'Joined by friends along the way, Gary will also head further North to embark on a safari experience of a lifetime and enjoy the hustle and bustle of Johannesburg, where he’ll discover a wine revolution is taking place!'
Who are the celebrity guests?
It's now been revealed that Gary will be joined by a number of friends during the five episodes, including Jane McDonald, Ben Shepherd, Michaela Strachan, Eliot Kennedy and Mica Paris.
Scroll through to see Gary's career highlights through the years:
Early beginnings
Gary was born in Frodsham in Cheshire, and although his family weren't musical themselves, they recognised the talent in Gary.
After being inspired by Elton John to learn the piano, Gary entered a Christmas singing competition at the age of 15, reaching the semi-finals and recording his track at a studio in London, causing him to start performing on the northern club circuit - performing both original songs and covers.
1989 - Gary started to take his music career seriously
Gary appointed a manager and was introduced to a casting agent, who wanted to start a boyband... And, as we know, the rest is history.
1990 - Gary was appointed as the lead singer of Take That
Gary, along with bandmates Howard Donald, Jason Orange, Mark Owen and Robbie Williams released three studio albums together as a five-piece: 'Take That & Party' in 1992, 'Everything Changes' in 1993 and 'Nobody Else' in 1995.
1997 - Gary Barlow released 'Open Road'
Gary released his first solo album after Take That's split in 1997. 'Open Road' featured singles such as 'Forever Love' and 'Love Won't Wait', topping the UK charts and paving the way for his follow-up record 'Twelve Months, Eleven Days' in 1999.
2000 - Gary Barlow and Dawn Andrews get married
Gary met Dawn Andrews when she was a dancer on Take That's 'Nobody Else' tour in 1995. They now have three children including Daniel who was born in 2000, Emily (born 2002) and Daisy (born 2009).
2006 - Gary releases My Take
My Take was Gary's autobiography released in 2006.
2011 - Gary Barlow is named as a judge on The X Factor
Gary Barlow was a judge on The X Factor for three series, from 2011 until 2013. While he was on the show, Gary mentored acts including Christopher Maloney, Marcus Collins and the group Kingsland Road.
2012 - Gary Barlow was awarded an OBE in the Queen's birthday honours
Gary was approached by the Queen's advisers to write a song to commemorate her Diamond Jubilee in 2012. Working with musical theatre legend Andrew Lloyd Webber, Gary released 'Sing' as the official single which featured the Commonwealth Band and the Military Wives choir.
Gary was also awarded an OBE in the Queen's birthday honours that summer.
Gary also performed at the Closing Ceremony of the London 2012 Olympics, where he sang 'Rule The World'.
2014 - Take That reunited
Take That reunited as a trio without Robbie Williams and Jason Orange. The album 'III' was released in November 2014 and became the band's seventh Number 1.
2016 - Gary launches his own talent show Let It Shine
The talent show, Let It Shine, which aired in 2017, searched for a group to star in The Band, a new stage musical featuring the songs of Take That. The winners of the show were called Five to Five and went on tour later that year.
2017 - Gary releases A Better Me
In 2017, Gary released his honest memoir about his successful journey back to a healthy lifestyle with his mental and physical wellbeing back to normal. After Take That split and he was out of work, out of shape and depressed, Gary hit rock bottom.
2020 - Gary Barlow's Crooner Sessions
During the COVID-19 lockdown, Gary brightened our days with a series of Crooner Sessions with the singer teaming up with all sorts of artists including Ronan Keating, Robbie Williams, JLS, Leona Lewis, The Script, Elton John and of course, Take That.
Gary also released his fifth solo studio album on 27th November 2020, 'Music Played By Humans', which debuted at Number 1 in the UK! It features singles 'Elita' featuring Michael Bublé and Sebastián Yatra, 'Incredible' and 'This Is My Time'. Other album tracks feature vocals from the likes of Beverley Knight, Alesha Dixon and James Corden among others.
2021 - Gary launches Gary Barlow Wines
On 7th October 2021, Gary announced that he was taking on a new exciting venture. Gary has also received numerous compliments on the bottles design, which features piano keys wrapped around the bottle as well as the singer's name.
2021 - Gary Barlow releases his first Christmas album
On 26th November 2021 Gary released his first Christmas album called 'The Dream Of Christmas', he released his versions of the classic Christmas songs 'Sleigh Ride' and 'The Dream of Christmas' in October 2021.
Gary gets in the festive spirit
Gary Barlow took to the airwaves of Magic Radio for Christmas 2021 with his very own radio show! The five-part Christmas series saw the Take That singer share all his favourite memories from the festive season, as well as choosing his best loved Christmas songs, every Sunday throughout the festive season.
2022 - 'A Different Stage''
In January 2022, Gary announced his theatre show 'A Different Stage' with dates in February. Due to popular demand by fans he will be adding more performance dates and locations to the show throughout the year.
2023 - Take That perform at the Coronation Concert
That That performed at King Charles' Coronation Concert in May 2023. Closing the show, Gary, Mark and Howard performed hits such as 'Shine' and 'Never Forget'. They were also joined by Calum Scott and DJ Robin Schulz for a performance of 'Greatest Day'.
2023 - Greatest Days hit cinemas
Take That's musical Greatest Days hit cinemas in June 2023. The film is loosely based on Take That's musical The Band, which starred the winners of the 2017 TV show Let It Shine, with Gary taking to the judging panel on the show. Take That performed at the Greatest Days premiere.
2023 - Take That perform at BST Hyde Park
Take That performed at BST Hyde Park in July 2023. Speaking after the gig was announced, the band said: "We're so excited to be back together and that BST Hyde Park will be the first stage we perform on in almost four years. We have incredible memories of playing there in 2016, and we can't wait to see everyone in July."
2023 - Take That announce 'This Life on Tour' and their ninth album
Take That announced 'This Life on Tour' would take place in 2024 in support of their ninth album 'This Life'. They also released the first song from the album called 'Windows'.
2023 - Take That release ninth studio album
In November 2023, Take That released their ninth studio album 'This Life.' On the day of the album's release, the band took to social media and wrote: 'THIS LIFE 💙 OUR NEW ALBUM IS OUT NOW! Writing and releasing this album has been such a beautiful, emotional journey and we couldn't be happier and prouder to finally have it out in the world. We hope you love it - let us know what you think!'
2023 - Agnetha Fältskog releases a song with Gary Barlow
Agnetha Fältskog released 'I Should've Followed You Home (A+)' with Gary Barlow on 29th September. The song originally appeared on Agnetha's 2013 album 'A'.
2024 - Food and travel TV show announced
Announced in February 2024, ITV confirmed that Gary would be fronting a food and travel show which will air on the channel in Autumn 2024. He said: "I'm absolutely delighted to be exploring my passion for food, wine and travel in this new series for ITV. I've always loved South Africa and I can't wait to really see all that it has to offer: the people, the places, its amazing history… and a glass or two of its incredible wine! This series is something that's a bit different for me – but I can't wait to get going."
Gary Barlow's Wine Tour: South Africa begins on Monday 11th November.
Now read:
Take That: Everything you need to know about the 90s heartthrobs
Take That's biggest career moments through the years
24 facts you probably didn't know about Take That