4 join Guy Deacon CBE on his ‘one last adventure’

Over 18,000 miles, 25 countries, 5 breakdowns, an emergency evacuation and 3650 prescription pills…

Army Officer Guy Deacon suffers from Parkinson’s Disease. But rather than sit and feel sorry for himself, he decides to set out across Africa in his VW campervan to explore what the disease means for those living with Parkinson’s across this vast continent.

Aged 60 and having lived with Parkinson’s disease for over 10 years, Guy Deacon CBE sets out for one last adventure, a solo drive from his home in the UK to South Africa. This incredible journey, crossing Europe and the full length of Africa, will take the former army officer and father of two over 12 months, 18,000 miles, 25 countries, 5 breakdowns, an emergency evacuation and 3,650 prescription pills.

Quite simply an incredible feat for a man travelling alone with Stage 3 Parkinson’s. With very little use of his hands, poor spatial awareness and often appearing drunk to those who do not understand the disease, Guy drives, lives and sleeps in his VW Transporter for 12 months, often camping alone in the jungle or remote areas hundreds of miles from the nearest village or town.

There are never more than a handful of vehicles a year attempting to drive from the North African coast to Cape Town in South Africa. Some never complete the journey. Challenges Guy faces include, illegal checkpoints, extortion, extreme weather, terrible road conditions, contaminated fuel and lack of services, making this a huge undertaking.

Not only is his journey fulfilling a childhood dream to drive across Africa, but Guy’s mission is also to raise awareness of Parkinson’s Disease, a heavily stigmatised condition in Africa which is often linked to witchcraft and black magic, leaving sufferers ostracised and abandoned by their communities.

Throughout the 18,000-mile journey, Guy kept a video diary and was joined on four occasions by documentary maker, Rob Hayward. This has resulted in World’s Toughest Drive: An African Adventure a one-hour documentary made by Rob Hayward Films which will be broadcast on Channel 4 at 11pm on Thursday 10th April 2025, the day before World Parkinson’s Day.

Parkinson’s disease affects mobility so the simplest tasks, from emptying pockets, tying up shoelaces, to going to the loo and putting on clothes. Typing texts to picking up change and making food became herculean for Guy. The day-to-day challenges of living in Africa, the road conditions and living in a relatively small space would be challenging to anyone let alone a Parkinson’s sufferer who struggles to move limbs.

There are countless examples of things going wrong and strangers stepping in to help and offering him a bed for the night. When his rear differential breaks in Andorra, when his clutch burns out in Cote d’Ivoire, when his suspension collapses in Gabon, his prop shaft brakes in Angola, when he contracts malaria in Zambia, when his phone is stolen in Cote d’Ivoire and on those occasions where he forgets to take his medication and his symptoms dramatically worsen.

Each time Guy thinks he will have to give up and that the latest setback will be the end of the road, there is always someone who kindly steps in to help, a stranger reaching out to help in his hour of need.

Guy first set off in November 2019 making it as far as Sierra Leone in March 2020 when the COVID 19 epidemic struck. The borders were closed off and after being stuck in Sierra Leone with no way out, Guy was evacuated by the British Government on an emergency relief flight, leaving his trusty van behind. Many adventurers have setbacks on their journeys but for Guy, with each passing month that he waited in the UK for travel restrictions to lift, his Parkinson’s would advance, and his mobility would deteriorate. By the time he restarted the journey two years later in March 2022 his condition had deteriorated significantly.

Parkinson’s Disease is the fastest-growing neurodegenerative illness worldwide and has no known cause and no cure. By 2040, more than 13 million people will be living with PD – a quarter of them in Africa where the disease is poorly understood. On his journey Guy met with Parkinson’s sufferers in almost all the countries he travelled through and learnt what daily life was like for those sufferers that he met, but first he had to get there.

Guy was supported throughout his journey by The Cure Parkinson’s Trust a charity set up to find a cure for Parkinson’s as well as Parkinson’s Africa, whose mission is to raise awareness and empower those with Parkinson’s to make informed decisions about their own health. Guy is an ambassador for both charities. In July 2024, Guy suffered a stroke that has dramatically affected his speech and mobility. Guy is currently in recovery and determined to get back on the road as soon as he can.

World’s Toughest Drive: An African Adventure, Channel 4, 11pm, Thursday 10th April