North Korea Journal

THE BOOK BEHIND THE HIT DOCUMENTARY

A glimpse of life inside the worlds most secretive country, as told by Britains best-loved travel writer.

In May 2018, former Monty Python stalwart and intrepid globetrotter Michael Palin spent two weeks in the notoriously secretive Democratic Peoples Republic of Korea, a cut-off land without internet or phone signal, where the countryside has barely moved beyond a centuries-old peasant economy but where the cities have gleaming skyscrapers and luxurious underground train stations. His resulting documentary for Channel 5 was widely acclaimed.

Now he shares his day-by-day diary of his visit, in which he describes not only what he saw and his fleeting views of what the authorities didnt want him to see but recounts the conversations he had with the countrys inhabitants, talks candidly about his encounters with officialdom, and records his musings about a land wholly unlike any other he has ever visited one that inspires fascination and fear in equal measure.

Written with Palins trademark warmth and wit, and illustrated with beautiful colour photographs throughout, the journal offers a rare insight into the North Korea behind the headlines.