Michael Palin in the Philippines

Michael starts his journey in Manila, the capital city of the Philippines, at a political protest march marking the 40th anniversary of the day when President Ferdinand Marcos and his wife Imelda were kicked out of power after 21 years of dictatorial rule and financial excess. Singer and activist Leah Navarro reveals how the Marcos family has tried to reinvent themselves in recent years. Nearly 40% of the country's urban population lives in poverty and Michael heads to Tondo, a tough slum-like neighbourhood in the city. He is shocked when he notices a food vendor selling ‘Pag-pag'; half-eaten fried chicken taken from the bins of fast food restaurants and re-cooked for sale to locals. Then, he meets Emily Soriano, who reveals the tragic story of how her 15-year-old son, Angelito, was shot dead by previous President Rodrigo Duterte's notorious ‘death squads'. After tortuous negotiations Michael is suddenly invited to the Presidential Palace to meet the latest President Marcos, who, it turns out, is a lifelong Monty Python fan. He also reveals the inside story of growing up in the palace under his parents' excessive regime. Michael then embarks on his journey across the archipelago to see the beauty of the islands, flying to the remote island of Palawan and the idyllic beaches of El Nido. He meets Eddie Agamos, who takes Michael on a traditional Bangka boat amid the exquisite scenery, before they spend the night at a rustic, deserted beach camp. The next day, Michael gets permission to board a military flight to the island of Pagasa in the South China Sea to meet some of its 400 residents - but China is aggressively claiming the whole region. As soon as he lands on the unique airstrip bisecting the island, Michael sees an intimidating flotilla of Chinese ships on the horizon. The next day, he heads out on a covert coastguard patrol and soon has a dramatic encounter with a Chinese vessel determined to turn them back.

Michael starts the second part of his Philippines journey on the tiny island of Palawan, exploring the magical Puerto Princesa Subterranean River, the longest navigable underground river in the world. The whole island is a UNESCO biosphere reserve, but when Michael visits the town of Brooke's Point, he sees that its natural environment is under serious threat from a huge nearby nickel mine, which is suspected of poisoning the area. Michael then flies to Cebu City, the oldest city in the Philippines, and visits the Cebu Detention and Rehabilitation Centre, a large prison where he witnesses the dazzling, if bizarre, synchronised disco dance routine performed by hundreds of smiling inmates. But later, he discovers that the cramped conditions in the cells are far less enjoyable. Back in the city, he meets comedian Margie DeLeon. He discovers that the Philippines is one of only two countries in the world where divorce is officially banned, the other being Vatican City! The Philippines is one of the largest exporters of coconuts in the world, and Michael witnesses a local farmer's death-defying climb to the top of a 20-metre-high tree to pick and throw the fruit to the ground. But while the Philippines is blessed with nature, it is also vulnerable to the increasingly strong typhoons that hit the archipelago. Michael visits a local town destroyed by flooding and learns how billions of dollars of public money, that was supposed to have been spent on flood control projects, has been lost to corruption. Finally, Michael arrives in the fishing town of Moalboal, where shoals of millions of sardines have settled in the bay. He meets local freediver, Gladys Documento, who has dived these waters for years. Enthused by stories of how spectacular being below the surface can be, 82-year-old Michael takes the plunge to see for himself the amazing sight of the huge formations of fish as they swirl beneath the waves, giving Michael an extraordinary experience he'll never forget.