Brendan Sheerin, is without doubt, the ‘larger than life’ star of Channel 4’s reality TV show, Coach Trip. As long-suffering Tour Guide on the show, Brendan’s 30+ years of tour guiding experience has certainly come in handy. We spoke to him to find out why he still loves coach travel after so many years in the business.
WHAT ARE YOU UP TO?
I’m in Spain now, looking out at the palm trees. It’s a bit wet because there’s a storm coming through. I’m getting ready to fly to Havana on Friday. I’ve always wanted to do Cuba – this is my holiday. I’m being picked up at the airport by the Secretary to the Ambassador of Belize in Cuba. It’s not what you know, it’s who you know [laughing].
Don’t get me wrong, I’ve planned my itinerary – I’ve got about three or four nights in Havana, then I’m flying down to a small island for snorkeling; I love anything aquatic. I’m really getting into my swimming to get fit for the next series of Coach Trip. I’ll aim to get a bit of a tan and then return to Havana for four more nights. I’m staying at the Hotel Nacional: it’s the best hotel in Cuba. Ava Gardner, Gregory Peck, Winston Churchill and all the big stars have stayed there, and now me – not bad for a lad from Hunslet, eh?
WHY DO YOU THINK COACH HOLIDAYS ARE APPEALING?
I think it’s more of an adventure, travelling by coach; your holiday starts as soon as you get on. You might go to Austria for example: you get on at your local stop, work your way down to the south of England, head through Belgium or France – you see far more. If you made the same trip by plane, you board at the airport and see nothing but clouds!
Also, travelling in general still makes some people a wee bit nervous. When you holiday by coach, you’re looked after from the moment you join the tour right up until you disembark. Not just that, you get to meet like-minded people; there’s usually a great sense of camaraderie amongst passengers.
DO YOU OFTEN SEE THAT CAMARADERIE BETWEEN THE COUPLES ON COACH TRIP?
I do, well, the thing is, they all get along on the surface. But, when it comes to vote time, the claws are out! It can surprise you – you’ve got to remember that it’s a game.
The young students start networking as soon as they get on board – they watch the series and they know what to do because they’re very savvy. It takes the older passengers a while to cotton on and get going; by the time they do, they could be thrown off or have a yellow card at least!
Everyone’s looking for a reason to vote you out and you need to be aware of that.
WHAT MAKES A GREAT COACH TOUR GUIDE?
You’ve got to have a genuine interest in the places you visit and have lots of knowledge of the local history, geography, art etc. There’s no point showing a cathedral in France and not know what Gothic means. It’s no good going to Reims if you don’t know how important their champagne is to their economy. It’s no good going to Florence if you don’t know about Michelangelo!
If you’ve got a natural enthusiasm for all these things, it makes a big difference, especially when you visit some locations so often. I used to work on the Costa Brava, taking groups to Barcelona every Thursday; the trick is to keep energy levels up, make your enthusiasm contagious. Even though you’re doing it week in and week out, your passengers are there for a holiday and are excited to see all these sights.
As a tour guide, the most important thing is caring about your passengers; you’ve got to be a ‘people person’ and know how to communicate with everyone.
I remember once, at the airport, my driver and I were waiting for a coach load and a series of boxes suddenly started to appear on the luggage carousel. I went to investigate: they were all hatboxes! I had a Lord and a Lady on my tour. It was a complete surprise but, at the end of the day, you’ve got to handle a Lord and Lady in the same way you might do a miner from Barnsley – everyone’s important to a good guide.
You should never underestimate anyone’s little foibles or needs either; even a little problem can spoil someone’s holiday.
COULD YOU OFFER ANY TIPS TO ANYONE THINKING ABOUT BECOMING A TOUR GUIDE?
As a piece of advice to any guide just starting out, all I can say is never tell a lie. If someone onboard asks you the name of a mountain range, don’t make it up, telling them “Why, it’s the Costa Brava mountains, Madameâ€, for example. “It’s the Mont Seine†or “it’s the Pyrenees†or whatever.
She might be a Professor of Geography – everyday’s like having a mystery shopper on board! Just be honest, say “I’m sorry, I don’t know but I will find out for you.â€
HOW DID YOU END UP BEING THE BRITISH TOUR GUIDE ON THE REALITY TV SHOW COACH TRIP?
I’ve worked in tourism since I was eighteen; it’s been my life. I came back to live in England some years ago and started working for Scarborough Tourism Board. It was great. I became good friends with the manager and got to use my languages because there were always a lot of foreign students and tourists about.
I was asked to run the spa complex on the seafront which suited me fine; I loved all the history. I would show people around to book conferences – sometimes they’d spend a lot of money, it was quite an important role because that sort of money was the lifeblood of the town. On the odd occasion where we had a VIP in Scarborough, I would jump on a bus and take them to see Whitby, Scarborough, Filey, the moors and then Robin Hood’s Bay.
My boss at the time received an email from a production company looking for a tour guide and she said I’d be perfect for TV. I was a bit of a character, still am really. So, I filled in the form, emailed it to London and the team got in touch. It all happened so quickly and was pretty manic. I got asked for a photograph then I had to go through a questionnaire over the phone talking about my highs, my lows, my career, all that carry on. Others would call to ask me the same questions all through the day. They’d ask me to come down to London – I’d have to tell them I couldn’t. I mean, I was working!
Anyway, I got there eventually for an interview. There were about eight or nine people firing questions at me, looking over my CV and pointing a camera in my face, but I was just myself and they seemed happy.
SO, WHAT HAPPENED AFTER THAT?
The first step was the pilot; we needed to see whether the camera would spin round, check there wouldn’t be too much background noise from the engine or air conditioning. We filmed with only 8 to 10 people from London to Oxford and visited Longleat Safari Park, Oxford city centre for the vote, had a pub lunch and ended up back in London.
I was more interested in Oxford than the vote. I always say I’m like the country Switzerland: neutral. The red and yellow cards have been in my pocket ever since though. If the service isn’t any good at a shop, I give them out there and then!
Once the pilot was all wrapped up it was sent to Channel 4 because they’d have a big say in the series. Adam, who was the commissioner at that time, was happy to go ahead, so we filmed Series One with real passengers. Nobody had ever filmed anything like it before and it was a lot of hard work until Noel Edmonds came along with Deal or No Deal; Coach Trip was shelved for a wee bit until the new commissioner came in. At her say so, we were back to it, filming Series Three and it just took off – mad.
HOW DID CELEBRITY COACH TRIP COMPARE WITH THE ONES WHICH USE MEMBERS OF THE GENERAL PUBLIC?
Celebrities are quite easy to workwith, no matter what activities we do on the trip. Our other passengers are a bit quiet – it takes them a day or two to come out of their shell. With actors and actresses, they’re much bigger personalities and quick to respond.
If you want them to sing, they’ll sing. If you want them to dance, they’ll dance. Wherever the camera is, they’ll want to be there. I suppose members of the public are shyer and it takes a while to get to know them. The celebrities are the complete opposite – ask them to strip naked and they would (and they do.) They’re not phased by anything; they know what the Director’s job is and what the Producer does because they work with them all the time. Members of the public take a little while to find out who does what and wonder “why is that camera in my flipping face?†It’s a wee bit easier with celebrities even if they do all vie for the attention.
DO THE CELEBRITIES HAVE A DIFFERENT ATTITUDE TOWARDS THE VOTING?
Oh no! I still think they’re very competitive. You can see feathers ruffled during the day and it all comes out in the vote; they’re quite ruthless.
In fact, Alex Fearns from EastEnders and Imogen from Big Brother really fell out. Cheryl Baker hated David Van Day too – he lasted twelve hours and then he was gone. Unfortunately, so was Tony Blackburn. It was a real shame, he was a perfect gent.
IF YOU COULD INVITE FIVE PEOPLE TO TRAVEL ON YOUR FANTASY COACH TRIP, WHO WOULD THEY BE?
I think I’d like Victoria Wood and Julie Walters. As a couple, they’d be absolutely brilliant; they’re so witty and full of laughter. I’d like Alan Bennett too – he’s a wonderful playwright, he’s from Leeds and I love him. Maeve Binchy – I like her novels, I’d have her on. Lastly, to round it all off: Abba. I have very fond memories of Abba.
HOW MANY LANGUAGES CAN YOU SPEAK? DID YOU STUDY THEM OR PICK THEM UP ON YOUR TRAVELS?
I speak Spanish every day. I live in Spain and I don’t have any of the satellite channels or watch the BBC. Sometimes, I won’t speak English for three or four days. Spanish is my first language now, really.
When I first started in tourism, no-one on the Costa Brava spoke English – you had to speak Spanish to everyone. In the villages they actually spoke Catalan, it’s the language of the four provinces of Catalonia – Girona, Barcelona, Lleida and Tarragona – and I originally learned from that.
One of the girls I worked with had a dreadful accident. She was sent home and I had to take on her duties, going to the airport on the coach and leaving the office. They didn’t want to fly anyone else over from England because it was mid season – there were probably only three or four months left.
Sitting with a Spanish coach driver and not being able to speak with him was so frustrating. I’m Irish, I like to talk. I started to learn bits so I could communicate and the drivers would teach me things too. I studied French at school and I was very very good at it. When I got to Corpus Christi College in Leeds, I should’ve carried on with it but I loved Geology and I loved Geography and I couldn’t do all three. It’s a bit rusty now but I’m fine once I get going.
And then of course Italian; I understand a bit – every Latin based language is quite similar though really.
YOU MUST HAVE SO MANY STORIES FROM ALL YOUR TRAVELS. WOULD YOU EVER WRITE A BOOK ABOUT THEM, OR AN AUTOBIOGRAPHY?
Maybe by Christmas there might be something. I’m beavering away getting all-sorts of things sorted. Watch this space!