Best of the World with Antoni Porowski (2026) s01e04 Episode Script
London
[Antoni] If sightseeing
is your thing,
London doesn't mess around.
Buckingham Palace,
St. Paul's Cathedral,
the Tower of London.
But go beyond the postcards
and this city goes deep.
There's vintage stores,
record stores, shops, kiosks,
there's a lot happening.
Maybe it's just
being a New Yorker,
chaos is weirdly comforting.
Brick Lane in East London,
once a Jewish neighborhood,
now predominantly Muslim,
is one of the city's hippest
hangouts and home to a
bagel spot that could go
toe-to-toe Stateside.
-Next please. Okay.
-I got you half bite but I have
to ask, what are you having?
-Okay great. Salt beef
and pickle, okay, okay.
A lovely young lady
told me that I have to have
the salt beef.
-Yeah, 100%.
[Antoni] Yeah, let’s go.
How long have you
guys been around?
[Elias] Nearly 50 years.
Family business.
[Antoni] Family business.
[Elias] Yeah.
We’re open 24 hours,
7 days a week.
[Antoni] Never close?
[Elias] I don’t even
know where the key is.
[Antoni] Brilliant,
thank you so much.
-You're welcome man.
-Thank you.
A killer combo in a part
of town that's seen it all.
It's damn good.
Welcome to London.
A city that refuses
to sit still.
If this is how I'm starting,
I've got high hopes for
the rest of this journey.
This is unreal.
What makes something the best?
Is it the view?
Wow.
You said don't look down
and that was the first thing
that I did.
Is it the stay?
Oh, it's so romantic.
Or is it a meal so good
it makes you want to cry.
Oh, that was so beautiful
that like, warmed my soul.
Every year,
National Geographic
names its Best of the World.
Must-see destinations
that rise above the rest.
[Brie] This is the
most biodiverse place in
the whole world.
[Antoni] And you're
part of that story.
[Brie] Absolutely.
[Antoni] Now they've given
me the best job in the world.
I just saw my reflection.
I'm crushing it.
To explore places to stay.
Restaurants, sights
and experiences.
That's a fang.
I'm in the head.
In Paris
Mexico City
London and my hometown.
You're a New York treasure.
I'm on a quest to find the best.
Because for me, the best
is more than just hype.
This is like a beautiful
representation of cultures.
It's food, but it's also
a history of the people.
It's the sights, the sounds.
-It's showtime.
[Antoni] The flavors.
-You can only taste
this in Mexico.
[Antoni] And it's almost
always the people.
-It's made with a lot of love.
[Antoni] Why the
Statue of Liberty?
[Lady Pink] She’s so New York.
I came to this
country for freedom.
-Unreal.
Best I've ever had in my life.
I'm Antoni Porowski, and
this is Best of the World.
Hello.
-Hi, hello!
-I’m Antoni.
What’s your name?
-My name’s Marie,
nice to meet you.
-So nice to meet you.
[Marie] What brings
you to London?
-I'm here to explore the city.
And meet people that make
this city this living,
breathing thing that
is constantly evolving.
There's nowhere
quite like London.
2,000 years of history,
community, and culture,
and it's still the
coolest kid in class.
Why don't you
come on over, Valerie? ♪
Does it ever get old?
[Marie] No, it doesn’t.
-No.
London.
A hot mix of young and old.
Grit and gloss.
History and what's next.
600 square miles.
32 distinct boroughs.
Split in two by
the River Thames.
Londoners say you're either
North or South of it,
but I've picked six experiences
across the city that showcase
its complex mix of influences.
First stop, a vibey
North London borough,
three miles from the center.
So I'm in Islington,
which I've never
been to before.
My third coffee's kicking
in and I'm getting hungry,
so I'm really excited.
Back-to-back food recs from me?
Shocking, I know.
But the soul of a city
lives in its food.
Home to nearly 300
ethnicities and nationalities,
London's basically
the world on a plate.
But on a Sunday,
one dish rules them all,
the roast.
You need the crispy potatoes,
the meat has to be juicy,
the carrots sweet,
the Yorkshire pudding
has to have just the right
amount of height,
and the cheesy cauliflower.
I love all of it.
Thought to have originally
been served after Sunday church
in medieval times,
Brits have been eating
it much the same way for
over 500 years.
Now that's commitment.
But one pub didn't
get the memo,
and its Sunday roast
rips up the rulebook.
Good morning.
-Hey.
-Hey.
-How are you?
-I’m Antoni.
How are you?
-Nice to meet you.
[Antoni] So nice to meet you.
-Welcome.
[Antoni] Friends Prince and
Glen opened The Tamil Crown
three years ago,
and Londoners
are absolutely loving it.
Tell me about this roast that
is like selling out tables week
after week after week.
[Glen] We’ve taken the roast
dinner that has loads of
different elements, kind
of mashed them together,
so you get this kind of
roast feel but actually
really authentic Indian.
[Antoni] Like, Londoners take
Sunday roast very seriously.
-Yeah.
-It's super traditional.
-Definitely.
I think people have very
strong opinions on what makes
a good Sunday roast.
I think your, your idea to
kind of create this Indian Roast
is probably a bit controversial.
-Easy!
[Glen] But rewarding,
but rewarding.
[Antoni] Ballsy is the only
word I can kind of think of,
but at the same time,
Indian cuisine is
so synonymous with London,
it makes complete sense.
Britain fell for Indian food
in the days of the Empire,
and never quite got over it.
The Empire may be long gone,
but when a new
wave of immigrants arrived
in the 1950s,
they brought their
cooking with them.
Today, nearly 7.5%
of Londoners have
South Asian heritage,
and the city boasts more
than three and a half thousand
Indian restaurants.
At The Tamil Crown,
they've given the
Sunday roast a serious
Indian style glow-up.
-It didn't get
off to a flying start,
and it took probably
about three months before
the bookings really
started to fill up a bit.
And now obviously,
it's going really well and
everyone seems to like it.
The vibe in here is
really fun on a Sunday.
-The vibe is like
proper Sunday roast, families,
lots of families here.
-Now we’re in your realm.
-My realm.
[Antoni] Prince trained as a
chef in the family business,
back in Southern India.
Glen has lived in London
for nearly two decades.
They met in 2018 and
dreamed up a place that would
blend the best of both worlds.
[chef] We’ve got roast chicken,
beef, lamb chops.
Service.
[Antoni] At the Tamil,
their roast is based on a
South Indian Thali, small
dishes served on a platter.
Prince's version
has nine elements,
infused with flavors from
Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
It takes two days to prepare.
-Where do you think
we should stick him?
[Antoni] Yes.
Most daring of all,
the beloved Yorkshire pudding,
basically a popover,
has been replaced by the
king of Indian flatbreads, roti.
[Prince] I’ll make
your first roti.
So, upside down, upside down.
[Antoni] Oh no!
Prince is giving me a
masterclass in stretching the
paper-thin dough.
And then once it's a circle?
[Prince] Yes.
One hand, up, yes, yes.
[Antoni] You’re saying yes
but I'm not doing it well.
[Prince] Yes.
No, no, no, good, good.
[Antoni] Oh my gosh.
Every roast gets a roti,
and as you can tell,
there's an art to it.
This is the stressful part.
Whoa.
So, how old were you when
you made your first roti?
[Prince] I was 16 years
old at my sister’s wedding.
[Antoni] For your sister's
wedding was the first time that
you did it.
-First time making roti.
-No pressure.
These are ready to go right?
[Prince] These are
ready to go, yeah.
[Antoni] It's so much heat,
so much speed.
Sidenote, freshly
made rotis are HOT.
If it looks like my hands
are on fire, they are.
Oww.
[Prince] Antoni,
quicker and faster.
[Antoni] Yep. Right. Whoa.
[Glen] Alright, lads,
how are we getting on?
Prince, has he got the job?
[Prince] Umm
-No!
[laughter]
It's not just the dish,
it's everything
that's behind it,
but what these guys are
doing in this kitchen,
there is care in every single
element of this Sunday roast.
Ah.
-And this is
our lamb roast dinner.
-Yes!
Come on.
Crumpled up and my,
my creation doesn't
look as bad, you know.
Stupid!
The softness, it's all that
fat and yet it's not greasy,
it's like it's, it's
absorbed everything.
I think when you
really unpack it,
when you kind of
like dig deeper,
this is like a beautiful
representation of cultures
at the end of the day.
It's, it's food,
but it's also a history
of the people.
Like it actually makes me
emotional to think about.
Crying over a Sunday roast.
-Hi Antoni,
how are you enjoying it?
-I don’t even
know what to say.
This is so beautiful.
-Oh, great, nice.
-This is like
truly one for the books. Yeah.
-Thank you.
-Thank you so much,
honestly we appreciate it.
[Antoni] Thank you, guys. Yeah.
This is truly the
best Sunday Roast,
hands down, bar none.
When your lunch is
more than just food,
when it tells the story
of a city, a country,
you know you're
somewhere special.
Honestly, I could
stay here all weekend,
but London's original tick-tock
experience is calling.
[Antoni] I'm heading
to central London,
where the city wears
its history loud and proud.
This is still north of
the river, like Islington,
but centuries
apart in character.
At the heart of it all
sits Parliament Square.
A UNESCO World Heritage
site and the UK's
political nerve center.
Home to the Houses of
Parliament and an icon that has
truly stood the test of time
Thank you so much.
Big Ben.
Telling time precisely,
and I mean precisely,
for more than 160 years.
It's also marked some of
Britain's defining moments,
from Coronations to
Millennium celebrations.
This tower's seen it all,
and I'm a total timepiece nerd,
so I'm meeting the man
who keeps it running like,
well, I guess
like clockwork.
Hi Andrew, how are you?
It's so nice to meet you.
-Thank you.
Welcome to parliament.
-Thank you.
Andrew's a mathematician,
clockmaker,
and my new style icon.
[Andrew] You brought
the weather with you.
[Antoni] I know.
[Andrew] It does look
stunning in this light.
[Antoni] He's been one
of the custodians of the
clock since 2023.
Ever wondered what
makes Big Ben tick?
Well, it's this guy.
Is the actual entrance for you?
[Andrew] This is the,
the only way to get in.
[Antoni] Oh, really, okay.
Anyone can take the tour,
but I'm tagging along
for Andrew's day job.
[Andrew] Welcome to the Tower.
[Antoni] If I can make
it up the 292 steps.
Wow.
[Andrew] Still a ways to go.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Providing you're willing
to up your step count
[Andrew] Nearly there.
[Antoni] behind the clock
face is the ticking heart
of the tower.
[Andrew] This is where the
clock itself is housed.
[Antoni] Wow.
Designs for this mechanical
marvel began in 1846.
That's more than a
decade before Abraham Lincoln
became president.
Since then it's
barely changed at all.
[Andrew] Every
quarter it does that.
[Antoni] Oh my gosh.
[Andrew] That’s what keeps
the clock on time, that’s the,
the heartbeat of the clock.
[Antoni] This feels like a
classic grandfather clock,
except on steroids.
[Andrew] Absolutely.
All of the principles
of this clock are,
are very much the same
as a grandfather clock.
[Antoni] Really?
I've been obsessed with watches
since I was really young.
What do you have?
[Andrew] Well I’m
packing a 1930’s Omega.
[Antoni] Shut up.
What a beauty.
And the hands on the dial,
is that what inspired the,
handlebar mustache?
-It could be, it could be.
-I’m sure you get that a lot.
[Andrew] Yeah.
-Okay.
-Uh, yeah.
[Antoni] Temperature
fluctuations and shifts in
barometric pressure affect
the metal and can speed up or
slow down the
160-year-old mechanism,
which means Andrew
can’t ever really clock off.
-So to make changes
to, to the time keeping,
the regulation of the clock
is done through the pendulum.
The pendulum is at the
back of the clock there.
[Antoni] Everything
here is supersized.
The pendulum is 15 feet long.
I guess they don’t call
it Big Ben for nothing.
[Andrew] This is what
keeps it on time.
That swings every 2 seconds.
[Antoni] Wait, why are
there coins on here?
The swing rate is adjusted
by adding old pennies.
The tiny extra weight of
each one speeds up the clock
by two-fifths of a
second in 24 hours.
[Andrew] Try not to
nudge the pendulum,
it’ll disturb the
timekeeping for about a day.
-I would piss off
a lot of Brits.
Yeah. That's not happening.
But sometimes bigger and
more immediate adjustments
are called for.
[Andrew] Now, currently
the clock’s about a,
a fifth of a second late,
so I’m gonna ask you to
make a regulation change.
-Okay.
[Andrew] So that it’s on
time for the next hour.
So this shelf here,
this is original to the clock,
placing it on the pendulum,
that makes the clock gain
about a second in 15 minutes.
-Okay.
-So, if we leave
it on for three minutes,
we could be bang on time.
-Math. Right. Got it.
[Andrew] That’s it.
[Antoni] Get a little closer,
let the pendulum move into it.
[Andrew] That's
absolutely spot on.
Now we're just gonna
wait for three minutes.
[Antoni] My gosh.
[Andrew] Welcome to the Belfry.
[Antoni] Wow!
Once we’ve
removed the weight,
we’re off to the very top
and the 15-ton Big Ben bell,
which gives the
tower its nickname.
Andrew measures the clock’s
accuracy by timing its tolls.
[Andrew] So here we
are above the bells.
[Antoni] Beautiful.
Okay, so how do you
actually measure?
[Andrew] I actually programmed
my game’s console so that I can
time the clock off of this.
So it’s just got
a running clock.
As soon as I press
this button, it stops.
And so I just want to
check that the time is exactly
on the hour.
[Antoni] Here’s hopin’ because
the bells are broadcast live on
the radio to millions.
[Andrew] We should put these on,
and we should be ready.
[bells tolling]
[bells tolling]
[bells tolling]
[bells tolling]
[Antoni] So how did we do?
[Andrew] Well within about
a tenth of a second, so,
happy with that.
-And you want it within a
quarter, so that's really good.
-That’s really good.
-Yeah.
-We’re good.
-That’s amazing.
[Andrew] One of the
joys of this job is being
here at sunset, it’s amazing.
[Antoni] Do you ever
bring a date here?
-Uh my girlfriend
has been up here.
-Really?
-Yes.
-Is that how you,
wait, did you bring her on
the first date?
-It was not
the first date, no.
It wasn’t the first date.
But--
-Aw. That would
have been a little much.
[Andrew] It would, it would.
-She would have
been like, calm down.
[Andrew] It would be a bit much.
It would be a bit much.
Thanks for your help.
[Antoni] Seriously, it’s really
fricking cool what you do,
like, beyond unique and,
and can’t compare
it to anything else.
-It’s a joy, it is.
-Clearly, like you’re
deeply passionate about this,
this is your,
this is your thing,
you’ve found your thing.
[Andrew] Uh-huh, uh-huh.
Absolutely. Yeah.
[Antoni] What a gift.
That was so beautiful.
I already know that
when I'm back in New York,
I'm gonna talk about
this very moment,
'cause the best moments are
all with the people that keep
this city alive.
This tower's a legend.
A piece of the past still
watching over the present.
But I know a place that feels
like the London of the future.
[Antoni] Follow
the Thames east,
and London gets a
makeover, in Canary Wharf,
its sleek money-making district.
Think Wall Street but on water.
It's definitely very corporate.
Everyone's pretty
much dressed the same,
and I'm the only muppet
in a rain jacket.
It might not be the
first place you'd think of
for a wellness fix,
but hidden amongst the
skyscrapers is something
that'll boost your body and
pretty much blow your mind.
I mean this is definitely the
most unexpected spot to have
any place for swimming.
This is a whole different game.
Yep, round here, cash isn't the
only thing they're swimming in.
This one-of-a-kind urban
oasis is the perfect place for
Londoners to escape
the daily grind,
in some of the purest water
you'll find in the city.
Hi
-Hi.
-I’m Antoni,
lovely to meet you.
So, you’re like a swim club,
in the financial district?
What is happening?
[Francesca] It must feel
really strange but we’ve got
a really special
body of water here.
[Antoni] It’s nothing
like the Thames.
-It’s nothing.
-Yeah, yeah.
Do you all swim
together typically or?
-It's very much a
communal thing.
[Antoni] Yeah?
[Francesca] It’s so lovely that
it brings communities together,
and for your mental health,
it’s something incredibly
special with getting in and
having that contact with the
water and with nature.
[Aimee] Have you done
any open water before?
-I've done, I've
swam in the ocean, like,
lakes and stuff like that but
never with skyscrapers around.
[Aimee] Yeah.
[Antoni] This is
definitely a first.
[Aimee] It’s pretty epic.
[Francesca] So, I guess
you’re swim-ready then?
[Antoni] I am.
I mean it’s under here,
it’s under here,
it’s not like ready to go.
[Francesca] I was gonna say,
jeans might be a bit heavy.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Jump in with jeans.
Francesca and her friends
swim here almost every week.
At a frosty 60
degrees Fahrenheit,
you get all the mental
and physical perks cold
water swimmers love,
but this setting
takes it to another level.
[Antoni] Let's go.
When it's this cold,
I definitely don't need a
second invitation to get moving.
[Francesca] So we have the
Docklands Light Railway
above us.
[Antoni] And there is a
railway right above this?
[Francesca] You’ve got
people walking on foot.
You’ve got the airplanes.
-I was gonna say,
cue the airplanes, yeah.
That is wild.
London's story is
written in water.
Along with the River Thames,
the city is threaded with
nearly 400 miles of canals,
rivers, and docks.
London Docklands and
Canary Wharf were
the beating heart.
200 years ago,
it was one of
the world's busiest,
and most polluted,
shipping ports.
It fell into decline
in the late 1960s,
before a multi-billion-dollar
regeneration project in the
1980s rebuilt the area and
restored the waterways,
giving it a whole
new lease on life.
[Antoni] That's deep.
[Francesca] So, what do you
think you’re gonna be able to
see when you look down here?
[Antoni] I have no idea.
[Francesca] In most places
where you swim in London,
you can’t really see anything.
[Antoni] Right.
[Francesca] The, the
water’s very cloudy,
so either through plant life
or the bird life that’s there,
it’s so crystal clear, and
even as I tell you this,
I know you won't quite believe
it until you see for yourself.
[Antoni] Yeah, let's go.
Cut off from the
river and fed by a
natural spring, thankfully,
these crystal-clear
waters don't come
from the Thames.
It's an experience you
won't get anywhere else.
Wow. I mean, it's just stunning.
I can't get over it.
That was beautiful.
Londoners love their
open water swimming,
with over a million of them
taking the plunge every year in
swimming ponds and waterways
all over the capital.
[Antoni] Ah.
-You did good.
-Ho.
[Francesca] You did brilliantly.
-Ah. This
actually feels really nice.
Oh my gosh.
[Francesca] It’s that
sensation when you come out,
and your body relaxes again.
So, this is where you get that
euphoric kick that comes in.
[Antoni] Oh, I feel it.
All the hype about cold water
swimming and an endorphin rush?
Yeah, I get it now.
Coming out of
the water, I feel like,
I feel really high.
Thank you so much.
Ah. This is not at all
what I expected.
-It’s just an incredible thing
to do and it’s really freeing.
[Antoni] Yeah, but I totally
get why you keep coming back.
Like, come on!
[Nilmini] Yeah. Yeah.
[Antoni] My dad is 75,
he lives on a lake,
like he does this all the time,
and he keeps on
telling me like,
come with him and I’m
always like oh I’m busy,
I’m busy, and this really like.
[Aimee] Now you can see why.
[Nilmini] Now you can do it.
[Antoni] It just makes me
want to do it with him.
[Nilmini] Yeah.
[Antoni] Ah.
That was really nice.
Thank you.
Can I give you a hug?
[Francesca] You did so well,
you really, really really did.
You absolutely smashed it.
[Antoni] I really had
the best time doing that.
And if you love swimming and
you wanna try something that is
truly off the beaten path,
I think this is one of
the best things you can do.
A wild swimming spot,
in London's financial district,
this place is on the money.
But while these
skyscrapers are impressive,
I've got my eye on a
building that puts them
all in the shade.
[Antoni] Mm, that lovely
Thames water when it hits
your lips, umm.
It's great for
the immune system.
More than almost any
other major city,
London proudly wears the
old and new side by side
But 80 years ago, this
place looked very different.
World War II bombs left a
lot of the city in ruins.
But rebuilding after the war
brought a whole new look.
I mean what a sight.
You see Tower Bridge and
then as soon as you creep up,
the Shard just appears
in the background.
And that show off on the
South bank of the Thames is
what I'm here for.
Oh wow.
Oh, um that, oh,
that's where I'm going.
That's nasty.
At over 1,000 feet the
Shard is the tallest skyscraper
in Western Europe.
Wrapped in over
11,000 glass panels,
this megatower
wouldn't be out of place as
a Bond villain's lair.
Its iconic silhouette slices
through the skyline, literally,
like a shard of glass.
This might be the
moment I confess,
heights are not my thing.
But I'm gonna
push through that,
because nestled inside
is the Shangri-La,
a luxury hotel with a
view so dramatic it deserves
its own agent.
Woah. Oh my gosh.
Oh my gosh, wow,
and if you look there
it goes right down.
I think the most surprising
thing at first glance is London
is so much more modern
than I think I perceived and
the Thames is really brown.
Yeah.
It is a brown river.
Yep.
Super-glad about getting
splashed on the lips now.
And the man who knows more
about this place than anyone
is General Manager, Kurt.
Humans first.
[Kurt] Yes.
[Antoni] Antoni,
nice to meet you.
[Kurt] Welcome to the
Shangri-La at The Shard.
Nice to meet you.
[Antoni] Thank you.
Who’s this little guy?
[Kurt] This is Rocky.
[Antoni] Come here.
You know you're in a fancy
hotel when even the dog looks
like he's got a stylist.
This is the best view
of London, right?
[Kurt] Yes, being the tallest
building in Western Europe,
we call it sightseeing
in the clouds.
[Antoni] It’s wild.
I mean, my vertigo
definitely kicked in
as soon as I came, but uh.
-Sorry to hear.
-No, it’s okay,
I mean it’s worth it
‘cause it’s beautiful, right?
[Kurt] Let me show you
around a little bit.
-Please, I'd love to.
Starting on level 34 and
occupying the next 18 floors,
the hotel boasts the highest
bar, the highest infinity pool,
and well, pretty much the
highest anything in London.
[Kurt] Let me show you to
the restaurant where we serve
afternoon tea.
[Antoni] And if you don't
want to shell out for a room,
try afternoon tea.
Do people fight over the edge
tables versus the center?
-Yes, the window
seat is the most popular.
[Antoni] Of course, yeah.
And if afternoon tea has
whet your appetite check out
the main event, the
premier Shangri-La Suite.
Okay.
[Kurt] Come on in.
[Antoni] Oh, queue
the dramatic effect.
[Kurt] And now the
blinds are going up.
Unveil the 180-degree
views of this suite.
[Antoni] Oh my gosh.
How many square feet?
[Kurt] 2,500.
-2,500, which is
more than most houses.
[Kurt] Yes.
[Antoni] For almost $14,000
a night you’ll get an insane
bedroom, more couches than
you know what to do with,
and you could invite
your whole family around for
dinner and then
work it off next door.
[Antoni] Who stays
in a room like this?
[Kurt] Celebrities.
[Antoni] Okay.
[Kurt] CEOs of big companies.
[Antoni] Yeah.
The bedroom's unreal.
[Kurt] So this is, this is
the largest king-size bed,
California king.
-Oh yeah.
-It can sleep 4 people.
-4 people? Yeah.
I wanna talk to
the window cleaners.
I bet they have stories.
But nothing can steal
the limelight from the real
star of the show.
[Kurt] Always something
different to see,
I mean the different
sunsets, the sun rises.
-Yeah, Yeah. Yeah, perspective
like this when you see
the grandeur of even, of
even London, and again, I it’s--
[Kurt] London has changed.
I mean I've been
here six years,
but if you look over now
to the city of London,
there's so many new
buildings that haven't been here
six years ago.
It's so ever, ever changing.
[Antoni] The older this
city gets, the younger it looks.
I'll have some of
whatever London's having.
The Shard soars above
the borough of Southwark,
London's oldest
neighborhood south of the river.
Historically low-rise,
and home to
Shakespeare's Globe.
Then in 2012,
the Shard arrived,
towering almost 300 feet over
everything else in London.
So I'm heading 15-floors
higher than the public viewing
platform to get a proper sense
of its place in the city.
[guard] Don’t look down,
[Antoni] Yeah. Nope.
[guard] So what you need to do,
just go up and just
hold the rails on the side.
[Antoni] Perfect, yep.
This access is so
special it comes with its
own security guard.
[guard] Yep, there you go,
you're almost there.
[Antoni] You said don't
look down and that was the
first thing I did, yeah.
Wow. Whoa.
It's overwhelming,
it's humbling,
it kind of puts a lot of
things into perspective.
And I see a lot of the older
architecture like right over
there with Tower Bridge,
it's history with newness,
and it's like
this ever-growing,
changing dynamic thing.
This is wild.
I'm really glad I haven't
had lunch yet, yeah.
I won't be forgetting this
experience anytime soon,
and neither will my stomach.
But next up,
I'm heading to a place where
I can take some deep breaths
and keep my feet
firmly on the ground.
[Antoni] When you're in a
city of 9 million people,
even a New Yorker
like me needs a break,
and luckily in London,
there's a park around
almost every corner.
In the 18th century,
they were called
"The lungs of London."
And today, over 40% of the
capital is green space,
and I'm heading west
from the center,
to a fancy borough
called Richmond.
The English sure do
love their gardens,
but I've heard
there's one so epic,
it's a botanical mic drop
Oh my god,
this is beautiful.
This is like,
proper English Garden.
Welcome to the Royal
Botanic Gardens at Kew.
A 300-acre UNESCO
World Heritage Site.
Forget about
your regular park,
this place is home to
17,000 unique plant species
and 11,000 trees.
It's crazy to think there's
more plant life represented
here than in the Amazon.
Wooh.
[in English accent]
It's nice and windy innit?
You know I told myself I
wouldn't do an English accent,
I couldn't help myself there.
Today I'm here to meet
one of Kew's botanists,
Brie Langley.
I won't try the
accent with her, I promise.
Morning.
[Brie] Hey, how you doing?
[Antoni] Good, how are you?
[Brie] Would be better
if it wasn’t raining.
[Antoni] Oh, so
nice to meet you.
-So I’m so sorry
about the weather.
-No, don't, it's
actually really charming.
Brie's dedicated the last seven
years of her life to this place.
For a profession like this,
is this one of those
things where you were like
a little kid and were like
this is what I'm gonna do?
[Brie] Not at all.
[Antoni] Wait, really?
[Brie] No.
[Antoni] Ah, not at
all what I expected. Okay.
[Brie] No, no, no, no.
[Antoni] What were your hopes
and dreams when you were a,
when you were a little one?
[Brie] Oh, I wanted,
I wanted to be a singer,
I wanted to be on TV.
[Antoni] Really?
[Brie] Yeah, yeah
yeah yeah, definitely.
[Antoni] Okay well you're
checking one of those boxes
today at least.
-I know.
-Yeah.
What was the purpose
of Kew Gardens when
it originally opened?
-So, it first started in 1759.
[Antoni] Okay.
-And it was started
by Princess Augusta,
who is the mother
of George the Third.
-So this was for
the Royal Family basically?
[Brie] Absolutely.
[Antoni] Since the 1700’s
British explorers and
adventurers roaming
the globe were tasked with
collecting preserved
and live plant specimens
and bringing them back to Kew.
[Brie] Ever since then we’ve
been adding to it and making it
more and more a place
for scientific learning,
and we’ve now got to
the point where this is the
most biodiverse place
in the whole world.
-This is the most biodiverse
place in the entire world?
[Brie] If you yeah.
Here we've got plants
from everywhere.
[Antoni] And all
these plants aren't just
hidden away in the labs,
you can see
them for yourself.
Many of their specimens
are housed in one of their
Victorian greenhouses.
One of the smallest ones
was built almost
200 years ago to showcase
just one plant.
Oh my God.
Kew's star attraction,
the giant water lily.
-It's cool, huh?
-Come on.
This is magical.
[Brie] So as you go around,
you see all of
these large leaves.
[Antoni] Yeah.
[Brie] They’re all
from one plant.
Comes from right in
the middle there,
where you can see those
flowers sticking up.
[Antoni] This is one organism?
[Brie] Yeah.
[Antoni] The entire thing?
[Brie] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[Antoni] Wow.
You'd never guess
it from the size,
but the lily is regrown
from seed every year,
which means constant feeding
with nutrient-rich food bombs.
[Brie] This is a combination
of soil, fish blood, and bone.
[Antoni] Okay.
-They have also
got chicken poo in them
as a little extra, you know.
-Delicious.
What a little bonus.
-A little sprinkling.
-Fun. Okay, great.
I don’t know why I smelled it.
I don’t, I don’t
know why I did that.
[Brie] Can you smell
the difference?
Uh so, can I give you this?
[Antoni] Please.
[Brie] And this?
[Antoni] Okay.
How often do they get fed?
-Once a week.
They are hungry.
[Antoni] Okay.
[Brie] So you’re into the
belly of the beast now.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Little do those chickens know
they're helping the lily pads
grow up to six feet wide.
The ribbed underside
means they can support up
to 180 pounds of weight.
These lilies can lift.
Oh my god, come on.
Nature is so cool.
I didn't realize how deep it is.
[Brie] Mmm.
The colors are
beautiful, aren’t they?
[Antoni] Right.
You're truly so lucky
to do what you do.
It's really cool.
[Brie] Aw.
Thank you very much.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Brie's found her place and
she's the latest in a long line
of caretakers tending to these
queens of the plant world.
To think since this
structure was built,
like all the people and
all the hours that have gone
by just to maintain this
and to keep it going,
and you're part of that story.
-Absolutely.
-Like, that’s awesome.
-Yeah.
-Yeah. Wow.
[Brie] 200 years and counting.
[Antoni] Ah.
Kew has a long history
of helping Londoners
reconnect with nature,
but in the Temperate House,
there's a way to immerse
yourself in the greenery that
would have had the
Victorians reaching for
their smelling salts,
and one that
I'm running late for.
[Yogi] Releasing any
tensions in the vertebrae.
Coming back to a neutral
spine on all fours.
[Antoni] I mean I just,
it’s, it’s poetic,
it just doesn’t feel real.
-Swan dive, so
knees bent or straight.
Coming down with a flat back.
[Antoni] And they’re
all very much on time.
[Yogi] Send your
hips up and back.
[Antoni] I've done yoga
in a lot of wild places,
but none of it comes close
to the experience of being
surrounded by
thousands of plants in a full-on
glass greenhouse.
What's incredible is that
people have been coming here
for centuries, and the
complexity of it as well is
that it's not only for
science, but for wellness.
It's really so one of a kind.
This place is all
about the TLC,
and I'm already
feeling the benefits.
It's a good thing too, because
I'm about to swap plant-life
for some serious nightlife.
[Antoni] London's
shown off range so far
and for my final stop,
I'm turning up the volume.
If you're heading
out after dark,
there's a neighborhood you
should know about that does
things a little differently.
We're in Dalston, East London,
it's a little grittier,
incredibly diverse,
super multicultural.
Definitely a
younger demographic.
London's nightlife still buzzes
in areas like Soho but rising
rents have pushed
the action outward,
with places like Dalston
in the Borough of Hackney
leading the way.
And on these busy streets,
there's a hidden
gem that's fun,
fabulous and just freakin' wild.
This place is dope.
Welcome to The Divine.
The go-to destination for
this city's most distinctive and
outrageous drag performers.
It's a spot where identity,
fashion and performance are
redefined every
night of the week.
Pulling the strings and adding
the sparkle are The Divine's
co-owners, John Sizzle
[John] Welcome to Dalston.
-Hey. This place is awesome.
And the one
and only Jonny Woo.
So, for anyone coming to London
and they're like I wanna check
out the drag scene,
what do you say to them?
-Come to east London for
a bit more youthful, exuberance.
-They’re pouring in.
-This is the strip
this is the new strip.
[Jonny] And this side
of town, East London.
[Antoni] And before
we go any further,
a drag queen is usually a
male performing as a female,
a drag king is usually a
female performing as a male,
and a drag thing is someone
who's mixing it all up.
Would you say that it's as camp
here as it is in the States?
[John] It’s less polished.
-Less polished.
There’s a bit more self, um,
deprecation going on.
-Right.
-And I don't know if this
was a little clue,
but there's a show on tonight
and we need another
-Judge.
Do you wanna judge with me?
-Nothing would make
me more terrified and excited
at the exact same time.
-Walk downstairs,
they’re all down there,
looking down,
they’re all waiting for you.
[Antoni] Drag might seem
a far cry from Britain's
buttoned-up reputation,
but it's always been
part of the story.
Back in Shakespeare's time,
men played all
the female roles.
Later, it found its stride
in cabaret and music halls,
before becoming a fixture
of London nightlife.
The Divine runs
with that legacy.
Nine shows a week,
celebrating queer expression
in all its beautiful forms.
Hello.
-Hello darling.
[Antoni] Lucinda and Margo
are regular Divine performers.
What drew you to drag
in the first place?
-The idea to
kind of express in a,
in a way that
explores my gender,
as in my femininity as
well as my masculinity.
-So here it's just a lot less
about that binary idea of drag
and more about sort of like
creating your own persona,
your own thing.
We’re now seeing all
these different stories from
how people feel
differently in their bodies.
-Right.
Less black and white, more gray.
-Yeah.
Like the whole spectrum, honey.
[Antoni] Oh hi.
-Hi!
[Antoni] I’m Antoni.
-Nice to meet you.
I'm Fabio.
[Antoni] Fabio, so
nice to meet you.
So tell me what makes
The Divine special?
-You’ve got, not just
drag queens like you do in
so many places,
you’ve got drag kings,
drag things, drag monsters.
-Yeah. It's more of a spectrum.
-Exactly.
[Antoni gasps]
-Hello.
-Ah hello.
-I’m Sateva by the way.
[Antoni] I almost
fainted Sateva.
Lovely to meet you.
I’m Antoni.
[Sateva] Thank you.
I know who you are babes,
as gorgeous as ever.
[bell ringing]
-It’s showtime!
[Antoni] Best of luck.
-Thank you.
-I'm rooting for you.
-Thank you.
-Crush it.
-Thank you so much.
[Fabio] Thank you.
[Antoni] There's definitely
a sense of community,
inclusivity, like it's
a chaotic, diverse,
all over the place,
shiny family,
and I met my first drag king.
I've got a front row
seat for a lip-sync battle,
as John Sizzle and I judge
the divas on style and sass.
[Jonny] Are you ready
for the competition?
Make some noise for the
sensational Lucinda!
Do you miss me to tonight? ♪
Are you feeling
less than bright, ♪
I'm just fine you
see nothing ♪
[Antoni] I’m no
stranger to drag,
but this is a triple
threat, fashion, comedy,
and full-blown cabaret.
[Sateva] Woo.
-Woo!
[Antoni] Each artist gets
their chance to bring it,
and the crowd is loving it.
But only one diva
can take the crown.
Woo!
[Jonny] Wow.
Absolutely incredible.
[Antoni] Now the
pressure is really on.
-What did you
think of that Antoni?
Come on up, come on up.
[Antoni] I need to
decide on a winner.
When I walked in,
I was just kind of like so
pleasantly surprised by the
sense of community,
like you all show
up for each other,
and the beautiful
weirdness that I saw,
I think it's a reflection
of like the diversity
of our community.
[John] And the
winner is, Lucinda.
[Antoni] The Divine, it’s
something every single
person should experience.
There is absolutely
nothing but love,
and it's this like
living, breathing,
community of artists
and performers.
It’s just pure joy.
I’ve always loved how London
holds its past and present in
the same frame.
It’s a city that
runs on contrasts,
in its people,
its neighborhoods, its culture,
and that’s what
makes it feel alive.
[Big Ben chimes]
And I can never listen to that
damn bell the same way again.
I think before this trip I, I,
I was in London as a viewer,
and this time I feel like for
the first time in my life I
actually got to experience
it and to actually live in it.
That's pretty cool.
[upbeat music playing]
is your thing,
London doesn't mess around.
Buckingham Palace,
St. Paul's Cathedral,
the Tower of London.
But go beyond the postcards
and this city goes deep.
There's vintage stores,
record stores, shops, kiosks,
there's a lot happening.
Maybe it's just
being a New Yorker,
chaos is weirdly comforting.
Brick Lane in East London,
once a Jewish neighborhood,
now predominantly Muslim,
is one of the city's hippest
hangouts and home to a
bagel spot that could go
toe-to-toe Stateside.
-Next please. Okay.
-I got you half bite but I have
to ask, what are you having?
-Okay great. Salt beef
and pickle, okay, okay.
A lovely young lady
told me that I have to have
the salt beef.
-Yeah, 100%.
[Antoni] Yeah, let’s go.
How long have you
guys been around?
[Elias] Nearly 50 years.
Family business.
[Antoni] Family business.
[Elias] Yeah.
We’re open 24 hours,
7 days a week.
[Antoni] Never close?
[Elias] I don’t even
know where the key is.
[Antoni] Brilliant,
thank you so much.
-You're welcome man.
-Thank you.
A killer combo in a part
of town that's seen it all.
It's damn good.
Welcome to London.
A city that refuses
to sit still.
If this is how I'm starting,
I've got high hopes for
the rest of this journey.
This is unreal.
What makes something the best?
Is it the view?
Wow.
You said don't look down
and that was the first thing
that I did.
Is it the stay?
Oh, it's so romantic.
Or is it a meal so good
it makes you want to cry.
Oh, that was so beautiful
that like, warmed my soul.
Every year,
National Geographic
names its Best of the World.
Must-see destinations
that rise above the rest.
[Brie] This is the
most biodiverse place in
the whole world.
[Antoni] And you're
part of that story.
[Brie] Absolutely.
[Antoni] Now they've given
me the best job in the world.
I just saw my reflection.
I'm crushing it.
To explore places to stay.
Restaurants, sights
and experiences.
That's a fang.
I'm in the head.
In Paris
Mexico City
London and my hometown.
You're a New York treasure.
I'm on a quest to find the best.
Because for me, the best
is more than just hype.
This is like a beautiful
representation of cultures.
It's food, but it's also
a history of the people.
It's the sights, the sounds.
-It's showtime.
[Antoni] The flavors.
-You can only taste
this in Mexico.
[Antoni] And it's almost
always the people.
-It's made with a lot of love.
[Antoni] Why the
Statue of Liberty?
[Lady Pink] She’s so New York.
I came to this
country for freedom.
-Unreal.
Best I've ever had in my life.
I'm Antoni Porowski, and
this is Best of the World.
Hello.
-Hi, hello!
-I’m Antoni.
What’s your name?
-My name’s Marie,
nice to meet you.
-So nice to meet you.
[Marie] What brings
you to London?
-I'm here to explore the city.
And meet people that make
this city this living,
breathing thing that
is constantly evolving.
There's nowhere
quite like London.
2,000 years of history,
community, and culture,
and it's still the
coolest kid in class.
Why don't you
come on over, Valerie? ♪
Does it ever get old?
[Marie] No, it doesn’t.
-No.
London.
A hot mix of young and old.
Grit and gloss.
History and what's next.
600 square miles.
32 distinct boroughs.
Split in two by
the River Thames.
Londoners say you're either
North or South of it,
but I've picked six experiences
across the city that showcase
its complex mix of influences.
First stop, a vibey
North London borough,
three miles from the center.
So I'm in Islington,
which I've never
been to before.
My third coffee's kicking
in and I'm getting hungry,
so I'm really excited.
Back-to-back food recs from me?
Shocking, I know.
But the soul of a city
lives in its food.
Home to nearly 300
ethnicities and nationalities,
London's basically
the world on a plate.
But on a Sunday,
one dish rules them all,
the roast.
You need the crispy potatoes,
the meat has to be juicy,
the carrots sweet,
the Yorkshire pudding
has to have just the right
amount of height,
and the cheesy cauliflower.
I love all of it.
Thought to have originally
been served after Sunday church
in medieval times,
Brits have been eating
it much the same way for
over 500 years.
Now that's commitment.
But one pub didn't
get the memo,
and its Sunday roast
rips up the rulebook.
Good morning.
-Hey.
-Hey.
-How are you?
-I’m Antoni.
How are you?
-Nice to meet you.
[Antoni] So nice to meet you.
-Welcome.
[Antoni] Friends Prince and
Glen opened The Tamil Crown
three years ago,
and Londoners
are absolutely loving it.
Tell me about this roast that
is like selling out tables week
after week after week.
[Glen] We’ve taken the roast
dinner that has loads of
different elements, kind
of mashed them together,
so you get this kind of
roast feel but actually
really authentic Indian.
[Antoni] Like, Londoners take
Sunday roast very seriously.
-Yeah.
-It's super traditional.
-Definitely.
I think people have very
strong opinions on what makes
a good Sunday roast.
I think your, your idea to
kind of create this Indian Roast
is probably a bit controversial.
-Easy!
[Glen] But rewarding,
but rewarding.
[Antoni] Ballsy is the only
word I can kind of think of,
but at the same time,
Indian cuisine is
so synonymous with London,
it makes complete sense.
Britain fell for Indian food
in the days of the Empire,
and never quite got over it.
The Empire may be long gone,
but when a new
wave of immigrants arrived
in the 1950s,
they brought their
cooking with them.
Today, nearly 7.5%
of Londoners have
South Asian heritage,
and the city boasts more
than three and a half thousand
Indian restaurants.
At The Tamil Crown,
they've given the
Sunday roast a serious
Indian style glow-up.
-It didn't get
off to a flying start,
and it took probably
about three months before
the bookings really
started to fill up a bit.
And now obviously,
it's going really well and
everyone seems to like it.
The vibe in here is
really fun on a Sunday.
-The vibe is like
proper Sunday roast, families,
lots of families here.
-Now we’re in your realm.
-My realm.
[Antoni] Prince trained as a
chef in the family business,
back in Southern India.
Glen has lived in London
for nearly two decades.
They met in 2018 and
dreamed up a place that would
blend the best of both worlds.
[chef] We’ve got roast chicken,
beef, lamb chops.
Service.
[Antoni] At the Tamil,
their roast is based on a
South Indian Thali, small
dishes served on a platter.
Prince's version
has nine elements,
infused with flavors from
Tamil Nadu and Kerala.
It takes two days to prepare.
-Where do you think
we should stick him?
[Antoni] Yes.
Most daring of all,
the beloved Yorkshire pudding,
basically a popover,
has been replaced by the
king of Indian flatbreads, roti.
[Prince] I’ll make
your first roti.
So, upside down, upside down.
[Antoni] Oh no!
Prince is giving me a
masterclass in stretching the
paper-thin dough.
And then once it's a circle?
[Prince] Yes.
One hand, up, yes, yes.
[Antoni] You’re saying yes
but I'm not doing it well.
[Prince] Yes.
No, no, no, good, good.
[Antoni] Oh my gosh.
Every roast gets a roti,
and as you can tell,
there's an art to it.
This is the stressful part.
Whoa.
So, how old were you when
you made your first roti?
[Prince] I was 16 years
old at my sister’s wedding.
[Antoni] For your sister's
wedding was the first time that
you did it.
-First time making roti.
-No pressure.
These are ready to go right?
[Prince] These are
ready to go, yeah.
[Antoni] It's so much heat,
so much speed.
Sidenote, freshly
made rotis are HOT.
If it looks like my hands
are on fire, they are.
Oww.
[Prince] Antoni,
quicker and faster.
[Antoni] Yep. Right. Whoa.
[Glen] Alright, lads,
how are we getting on?
Prince, has he got the job?
[Prince] Umm
-No!
[laughter]
It's not just the dish,
it's everything
that's behind it,
but what these guys are
doing in this kitchen,
there is care in every single
element of this Sunday roast.
Ah.
-And this is
our lamb roast dinner.
-Yes!
Come on.
Crumpled up and my,
my creation doesn't
look as bad, you know.
Stupid!
The softness, it's all that
fat and yet it's not greasy,
it's like it's, it's
absorbed everything.
I think when you
really unpack it,
when you kind of
like dig deeper,
this is like a beautiful
representation of cultures
at the end of the day.
It's, it's food,
but it's also a history
of the people.
Like it actually makes me
emotional to think about.
Crying over a Sunday roast.
-Hi Antoni,
how are you enjoying it?
-I don’t even
know what to say.
This is so beautiful.
-Oh, great, nice.
-This is like
truly one for the books. Yeah.
-Thank you.
-Thank you so much,
honestly we appreciate it.
[Antoni] Thank you, guys. Yeah.
This is truly the
best Sunday Roast,
hands down, bar none.
When your lunch is
more than just food,
when it tells the story
of a city, a country,
you know you're
somewhere special.
Honestly, I could
stay here all weekend,
but London's original tick-tock
experience is calling.
[Antoni] I'm heading
to central London,
where the city wears
its history loud and proud.
This is still north of
the river, like Islington,
but centuries
apart in character.
At the heart of it all
sits Parliament Square.
A UNESCO World Heritage
site and the UK's
political nerve center.
Home to the Houses of
Parliament and an icon that has
truly stood the test of time
Thank you so much.
Big Ben.
Telling time precisely,
and I mean precisely,
for more than 160 years.
It's also marked some of
Britain's defining moments,
from Coronations to
Millennium celebrations.
This tower's seen it all,
and I'm a total timepiece nerd,
so I'm meeting the man
who keeps it running like,
well, I guess
like clockwork.
Hi Andrew, how are you?
It's so nice to meet you.
-Thank you.
Welcome to parliament.
-Thank you.
Andrew's a mathematician,
clockmaker,
and my new style icon.
[Andrew] You brought
the weather with you.
[Antoni] I know.
[Andrew] It does look
stunning in this light.
[Antoni] He's been one
of the custodians of the
clock since 2023.
Ever wondered what
makes Big Ben tick?
Well, it's this guy.
Is the actual entrance for you?
[Andrew] This is the,
the only way to get in.
[Antoni] Oh, really, okay.
Anyone can take the tour,
but I'm tagging along
for Andrew's day job.
[Andrew] Welcome to the Tower.
[Antoni] If I can make
it up the 292 steps.
Wow.
[Andrew] Still a ways to go.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Providing you're willing
to up your step count
[Andrew] Nearly there.
[Antoni] behind the clock
face is the ticking heart
of the tower.
[Andrew] This is where the
clock itself is housed.
[Antoni] Wow.
Designs for this mechanical
marvel began in 1846.
That's more than a
decade before Abraham Lincoln
became president.
Since then it's
barely changed at all.
[Andrew] Every
quarter it does that.
[Antoni] Oh my gosh.
[Andrew] That’s what keeps
the clock on time, that’s the,
the heartbeat of the clock.
[Antoni] This feels like a
classic grandfather clock,
except on steroids.
[Andrew] Absolutely.
All of the principles
of this clock are,
are very much the same
as a grandfather clock.
[Antoni] Really?
I've been obsessed with watches
since I was really young.
What do you have?
[Andrew] Well I’m
packing a 1930’s Omega.
[Antoni] Shut up.
What a beauty.
And the hands on the dial,
is that what inspired the,
handlebar mustache?
-It could be, it could be.
-I’m sure you get that a lot.
[Andrew] Yeah.
-Okay.
-Uh, yeah.
[Antoni] Temperature
fluctuations and shifts in
barometric pressure affect
the metal and can speed up or
slow down the
160-year-old mechanism,
which means Andrew
can’t ever really clock off.
-So to make changes
to, to the time keeping,
the regulation of the clock
is done through the pendulum.
The pendulum is at the
back of the clock there.
[Antoni] Everything
here is supersized.
The pendulum is 15 feet long.
I guess they don’t call
it Big Ben for nothing.
[Andrew] This is what
keeps it on time.
That swings every 2 seconds.
[Antoni] Wait, why are
there coins on here?
The swing rate is adjusted
by adding old pennies.
The tiny extra weight of
each one speeds up the clock
by two-fifths of a
second in 24 hours.
[Andrew] Try not to
nudge the pendulum,
it’ll disturb the
timekeeping for about a day.
-I would piss off
a lot of Brits.
Yeah. That's not happening.
But sometimes bigger and
more immediate adjustments
are called for.
[Andrew] Now, currently
the clock’s about a,
a fifth of a second late,
so I’m gonna ask you to
make a regulation change.
-Okay.
[Andrew] So that it’s on
time for the next hour.
So this shelf here,
this is original to the clock,
placing it on the pendulum,
that makes the clock gain
about a second in 15 minutes.
-Okay.
-So, if we leave
it on for three minutes,
we could be bang on time.
-Math. Right. Got it.
[Andrew] That’s it.
[Antoni] Get a little closer,
let the pendulum move into it.
[Andrew] That's
absolutely spot on.
Now we're just gonna
wait for three minutes.
[Antoni] My gosh.
[Andrew] Welcome to the Belfry.
[Antoni] Wow!
Once we’ve
removed the weight,
we’re off to the very top
and the 15-ton Big Ben bell,
which gives the
tower its nickname.
Andrew measures the clock’s
accuracy by timing its tolls.
[Andrew] So here we
are above the bells.
[Antoni] Beautiful.
Okay, so how do you
actually measure?
[Andrew] I actually programmed
my game’s console so that I can
time the clock off of this.
So it’s just got
a running clock.
As soon as I press
this button, it stops.
And so I just want to
check that the time is exactly
on the hour.
[Antoni] Here’s hopin’ because
the bells are broadcast live on
the radio to millions.
[Andrew] We should put these on,
and we should be ready.
[bells tolling]
[bells tolling]
[bells tolling]
[bells tolling]
[Antoni] So how did we do?
[Andrew] Well within about
a tenth of a second, so,
happy with that.
-And you want it within a
quarter, so that's really good.
-That’s really good.
-Yeah.
-We’re good.
-That’s amazing.
[Andrew] One of the
joys of this job is being
here at sunset, it’s amazing.
[Antoni] Do you ever
bring a date here?
-Uh my girlfriend
has been up here.
-Really?
-Yes.
-Is that how you,
wait, did you bring her on
the first date?
-It was not
the first date, no.
It wasn’t the first date.
But--
-Aw. That would
have been a little much.
[Andrew] It would, it would.
-She would have
been like, calm down.
[Andrew] It would be a bit much.
It would be a bit much.
Thanks for your help.
[Antoni] Seriously, it’s really
fricking cool what you do,
like, beyond unique and,
and can’t compare
it to anything else.
-It’s a joy, it is.
-Clearly, like you’re
deeply passionate about this,
this is your,
this is your thing,
you’ve found your thing.
[Andrew] Uh-huh, uh-huh.
Absolutely. Yeah.
[Antoni] What a gift.
That was so beautiful.
I already know that
when I'm back in New York,
I'm gonna talk about
this very moment,
'cause the best moments are
all with the people that keep
this city alive.
This tower's a legend.
A piece of the past still
watching over the present.
But I know a place that feels
like the London of the future.
[Antoni] Follow
the Thames east,
and London gets a
makeover, in Canary Wharf,
its sleek money-making district.
Think Wall Street but on water.
It's definitely very corporate.
Everyone's pretty
much dressed the same,
and I'm the only muppet
in a rain jacket.
It might not be the
first place you'd think of
for a wellness fix,
but hidden amongst the
skyscrapers is something
that'll boost your body and
pretty much blow your mind.
I mean this is definitely the
most unexpected spot to have
any place for swimming.
This is a whole different game.
Yep, round here, cash isn't the
only thing they're swimming in.
This one-of-a-kind urban
oasis is the perfect place for
Londoners to escape
the daily grind,
in some of the purest water
you'll find in the city.
Hi
-Hi.
-I’m Antoni,
lovely to meet you.
So, you’re like a swim club,
in the financial district?
What is happening?
[Francesca] It must feel
really strange but we’ve got
a really special
body of water here.
[Antoni] It’s nothing
like the Thames.
-It’s nothing.
-Yeah, yeah.
Do you all swim
together typically or?
-It's very much a
communal thing.
[Antoni] Yeah?
[Francesca] It’s so lovely that
it brings communities together,
and for your mental health,
it’s something incredibly
special with getting in and
having that contact with the
water and with nature.
[Aimee] Have you done
any open water before?
-I've done, I've
swam in the ocean, like,
lakes and stuff like that but
never with skyscrapers around.
[Aimee] Yeah.
[Antoni] This is
definitely a first.
[Aimee] It’s pretty epic.
[Francesca] So, I guess
you’re swim-ready then?
[Antoni] I am.
I mean it’s under here,
it’s under here,
it’s not like ready to go.
[Francesca] I was gonna say,
jeans might be a bit heavy.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Jump in with jeans.
Francesca and her friends
swim here almost every week.
At a frosty 60
degrees Fahrenheit,
you get all the mental
and physical perks cold
water swimmers love,
but this setting
takes it to another level.
[Antoni] Let's go.
When it's this cold,
I definitely don't need a
second invitation to get moving.
[Francesca] So we have the
Docklands Light Railway
above us.
[Antoni] And there is a
railway right above this?
[Francesca] You’ve got
people walking on foot.
You’ve got the airplanes.
-I was gonna say,
cue the airplanes, yeah.
That is wild.
London's story is
written in water.
Along with the River Thames,
the city is threaded with
nearly 400 miles of canals,
rivers, and docks.
London Docklands and
Canary Wharf were
the beating heart.
200 years ago,
it was one of
the world's busiest,
and most polluted,
shipping ports.
It fell into decline
in the late 1960s,
before a multi-billion-dollar
regeneration project in the
1980s rebuilt the area and
restored the waterways,
giving it a whole
new lease on life.
[Antoni] That's deep.
[Francesca] So, what do you
think you’re gonna be able to
see when you look down here?
[Antoni] I have no idea.
[Francesca] In most places
where you swim in London,
you can’t really see anything.
[Antoni] Right.
[Francesca] The, the
water’s very cloudy,
so either through plant life
or the bird life that’s there,
it’s so crystal clear, and
even as I tell you this,
I know you won't quite believe
it until you see for yourself.
[Antoni] Yeah, let's go.
Cut off from the
river and fed by a
natural spring, thankfully,
these crystal-clear
waters don't come
from the Thames.
It's an experience you
won't get anywhere else.
Wow. I mean, it's just stunning.
I can't get over it.
That was beautiful.
Londoners love their
open water swimming,
with over a million of them
taking the plunge every year in
swimming ponds and waterways
all over the capital.
[Antoni] Ah.
-You did good.
-Ho.
[Francesca] You did brilliantly.
-Ah. This
actually feels really nice.
Oh my gosh.
[Francesca] It’s that
sensation when you come out,
and your body relaxes again.
So, this is where you get that
euphoric kick that comes in.
[Antoni] Oh, I feel it.
All the hype about cold water
swimming and an endorphin rush?
Yeah, I get it now.
Coming out of
the water, I feel like,
I feel really high.
Thank you so much.
Ah. This is not at all
what I expected.
-It’s just an incredible thing
to do and it’s really freeing.
[Antoni] Yeah, but I totally
get why you keep coming back.
Like, come on!
[Nilmini] Yeah. Yeah.
[Antoni] My dad is 75,
he lives on a lake,
like he does this all the time,
and he keeps on
telling me like,
come with him and I’m
always like oh I’m busy,
I’m busy, and this really like.
[Aimee] Now you can see why.
[Nilmini] Now you can do it.
[Antoni] It just makes me
want to do it with him.
[Nilmini] Yeah.
[Antoni] Ah.
That was really nice.
Thank you.
Can I give you a hug?
[Francesca] You did so well,
you really, really really did.
You absolutely smashed it.
[Antoni] I really had
the best time doing that.
And if you love swimming and
you wanna try something that is
truly off the beaten path,
I think this is one of
the best things you can do.
A wild swimming spot,
in London's financial district,
this place is on the money.
But while these
skyscrapers are impressive,
I've got my eye on a
building that puts them
all in the shade.
[Antoni] Mm, that lovely
Thames water when it hits
your lips, umm.
It's great for
the immune system.
More than almost any
other major city,
London proudly wears the
old and new side by side
But 80 years ago, this
place looked very different.
World War II bombs left a
lot of the city in ruins.
But rebuilding after the war
brought a whole new look.
I mean what a sight.
You see Tower Bridge and
then as soon as you creep up,
the Shard just appears
in the background.
And that show off on the
South bank of the Thames is
what I'm here for.
Oh wow.
Oh, um that, oh,
that's where I'm going.
That's nasty.
At over 1,000 feet the
Shard is the tallest skyscraper
in Western Europe.
Wrapped in over
11,000 glass panels,
this megatower
wouldn't be out of place as
a Bond villain's lair.
Its iconic silhouette slices
through the skyline, literally,
like a shard of glass.
This might be the
moment I confess,
heights are not my thing.
But I'm gonna
push through that,
because nestled inside
is the Shangri-La,
a luxury hotel with a
view so dramatic it deserves
its own agent.
Woah. Oh my gosh.
Oh my gosh, wow,
and if you look there
it goes right down.
I think the most surprising
thing at first glance is London
is so much more modern
than I think I perceived and
the Thames is really brown.
Yeah.
It is a brown river.
Yep.
Super-glad about getting
splashed on the lips now.
And the man who knows more
about this place than anyone
is General Manager, Kurt.
Humans first.
[Kurt] Yes.
[Antoni] Antoni,
nice to meet you.
[Kurt] Welcome to the
Shangri-La at The Shard.
Nice to meet you.
[Antoni] Thank you.
Who’s this little guy?
[Kurt] This is Rocky.
[Antoni] Come here.
You know you're in a fancy
hotel when even the dog looks
like he's got a stylist.
This is the best view
of London, right?
[Kurt] Yes, being the tallest
building in Western Europe,
we call it sightseeing
in the clouds.
[Antoni] It’s wild.
I mean, my vertigo
definitely kicked in
as soon as I came, but uh.
-Sorry to hear.
-No, it’s okay,
I mean it’s worth it
‘cause it’s beautiful, right?
[Kurt] Let me show you
around a little bit.
-Please, I'd love to.
Starting on level 34 and
occupying the next 18 floors,
the hotel boasts the highest
bar, the highest infinity pool,
and well, pretty much the
highest anything in London.
[Kurt] Let me show you to
the restaurant where we serve
afternoon tea.
[Antoni] And if you don't
want to shell out for a room,
try afternoon tea.
Do people fight over the edge
tables versus the center?
-Yes, the window
seat is the most popular.
[Antoni] Of course, yeah.
And if afternoon tea has
whet your appetite check out
the main event, the
premier Shangri-La Suite.
Okay.
[Kurt] Come on in.
[Antoni] Oh, queue
the dramatic effect.
[Kurt] And now the
blinds are going up.
Unveil the 180-degree
views of this suite.
[Antoni] Oh my gosh.
How many square feet?
[Kurt] 2,500.
-2,500, which is
more than most houses.
[Kurt] Yes.
[Antoni] For almost $14,000
a night you’ll get an insane
bedroom, more couches than
you know what to do with,
and you could invite
your whole family around for
dinner and then
work it off next door.
[Antoni] Who stays
in a room like this?
[Kurt] Celebrities.
[Antoni] Okay.
[Kurt] CEOs of big companies.
[Antoni] Yeah.
The bedroom's unreal.
[Kurt] So this is, this is
the largest king-size bed,
California king.
-Oh yeah.
-It can sleep 4 people.
-4 people? Yeah.
I wanna talk to
the window cleaners.
I bet they have stories.
But nothing can steal
the limelight from the real
star of the show.
[Kurt] Always something
different to see,
I mean the different
sunsets, the sun rises.
-Yeah, Yeah. Yeah, perspective
like this when you see
the grandeur of even, of
even London, and again, I it’s--
[Kurt] London has changed.
I mean I've been
here six years,
but if you look over now
to the city of London,
there's so many new
buildings that haven't been here
six years ago.
It's so ever, ever changing.
[Antoni] The older this
city gets, the younger it looks.
I'll have some of
whatever London's having.
The Shard soars above
the borough of Southwark,
London's oldest
neighborhood south of the river.
Historically low-rise,
and home to
Shakespeare's Globe.
Then in 2012,
the Shard arrived,
towering almost 300 feet over
everything else in London.
So I'm heading 15-floors
higher than the public viewing
platform to get a proper sense
of its place in the city.
[guard] Don’t look down,
[Antoni] Yeah. Nope.
[guard] So what you need to do,
just go up and just
hold the rails on the side.
[Antoni] Perfect, yep.
This access is so
special it comes with its
own security guard.
[guard] Yep, there you go,
you're almost there.
[Antoni] You said don't
look down and that was the
first thing I did, yeah.
Wow. Whoa.
It's overwhelming,
it's humbling,
it kind of puts a lot of
things into perspective.
And I see a lot of the older
architecture like right over
there with Tower Bridge,
it's history with newness,
and it's like
this ever-growing,
changing dynamic thing.
This is wild.
I'm really glad I haven't
had lunch yet, yeah.
I won't be forgetting this
experience anytime soon,
and neither will my stomach.
But next up,
I'm heading to a place where
I can take some deep breaths
and keep my feet
firmly on the ground.
[Antoni] When you're in a
city of 9 million people,
even a New Yorker
like me needs a break,
and luckily in London,
there's a park around
almost every corner.
In the 18th century,
they were called
"The lungs of London."
And today, over 40% of the
capital is green space,
and I'm heading west
from the center,
to a fancy borough
called Richmond.
The English sure do
love their gardens,
but I've heard
there's one so epic,
it's a botanical mic drop
Oh my god,
this is beautiful.
This is like,
proper English Garden.
Welcome to the Royal
Botanic Gardens at Kew.
A 300-acre UNESCO
World Heritage Site.
Forget about
your regular park,
this place is home to
17,000 unique plant species
and 11,000 trees.
It's crazy to think there's
more plant life represented
here than in the Amazon.
Wooh.
[in English accent]
It's nice and windy innit?
You know I told myself I
wouldn't do an English accent,
I couldn't help myself there.
Today I'm here to meet
one of Kew's botanists,
Brie Langley.
I won't try the
accent with her, I promise.
Morning.
[Brie] Hey, how you doing?
[Antoni] Good, how are you?
[Brie] Would be better
if it wasn’t raining.
[Antoni] Oh, so
nice to meet you.
-So I’m so sorry
about the weather.
-No, don't, it's
actually really charming.
Brie's dedicated the last seven
years of her life to this place.
For a profession like this,
is this one of those
things where you were like
a little kid and were like
this is what I'm gonna do?
[Brie] Not at all.
[Antoni] Wait, really?
[Brie] No.
[Antoni] Ah, not at
all what I expected. Okay.
[Brie] No, no, no, no.
[Antoni] What were your hopes
and dreams when you were a,
when you were a little one?
[Brie] Oh, I wanted,
I wanted to be a singer,
I wanted to be on TV.
[Antoni] Really?
[Brie] Yeah, yeah
yeah yeah, definitely.
[Antoni] Okay well you're
checking one of those boxes
today at least.
-I know.
-Yeah.
What was the purpose
of Kew Gardens when
it originally opened?
-So, it first started in 1759.
[Antoni] Okay.
-And it was started
by Princess Augusta,
who is the mother
of George the Third.
-So this was for
the Royal Family basically?
[Brie] Absolutely.
[Antoni] Since the 1700’s
British explorers and
adventurers roaming
the globe were tasked with
collecting preserved
and live plant specimens
and bringing them back to Kew.
[Brie] Ever since then we’ve
been adding to it and making it
more and more a place
for scientific learning,
and we’ve now got to
the point where this is the
most biodiverse place
in the whole world.
-This is the most biodiverse
place in the entire world?
[Brie] If you yeah.
Here we've got plants
from everywhere.
[Antoni] And all
these plants aren't just
hidden away in the labs,
you can see
them for yourself.
Many of their specimens
are housed in one of their
Victorian greenhouses.
One of the smallest ones
was built almost
200 years ago to showcase
just one plant.
Oh my God.
Kew's star attraction,
the giant water lily.
-It's cool, huh?
-Come on.
This is magical.
[Brie] So as you go around,
you see all of
these large leaves.
[Antoni] Yeah.
[Brie] They’re all
from one plant.
Comes from right in
the middle there,
where you can see those
flowers sticking up.
[Antoni] This is one organism?
[Brie] Yeah.
[Antoni] The entire thing?
[Brie] Yeah, yeah, yeah.
[Antoni] Wow.
You'd never guess
it from the size,
but the lily is regrown
from seed every year,
which means constant feeding
with nutrient-rich food bombs.
[Brie] This is a combination
of soil, fish blood, and bone.
[Antoni] Okay.
-They have also
got chicken poo in them
as a little extra, you know.
-Delicious.
What a little bonus.
-A little sprinkling.
-Fun. Okay, great.
I don’t know why I smelled it.
I don’t, I don’t
know why I did that.
[Brie] Can you smell
the difference?
Uh so, can I give you this?
[Antoni] Please.
[Brie] And this?
[Antoni] Okay.
How often do they get fed?
-Once a week.
They are hungry.
[Antoni] Okay.
[Brie] So you’re into the
belly of the beast now.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Little do those chickens know
they're helping the lily pads
grow up to six feet wide.
The ribbed underside
means they can support up
to 180 pounds of weight.
These lilies can lift.
Oh my god, come on.
Nature is so cool.
I didn't realize how deep it is.
[Brie] Mmm.
The colors are
beautiful, aren’t they?
[Antoni] Right.
You're truly so lucky
to do what you do.
It's really cool.
[Brie] Aw.
Thank you very much.
[Antoni] Yeah.
Brie's found her place and
she's the latest in a long line
of caretakers tending to these
queens of the plant world.
To think since this
structure was built,
like all the people and
all the hours that have gone
by just to maintain this
and to keep it going,
and you're part of that story.
-Absolutely.
-Like, that’s awesome.
-Yeah.
-Yeah. Wow.
[Brie] 200 years and counting.
[Antoni] Ah.
Kew has a long history
of helping Londoners
reconnect with nature,
but in the Temperate House,
there's a way to immerse
yourself in the greenery that
would have had the
Victorians reaching for
their smelling salts,
and one that
I'm running late for.
[Yogi] Releasing any
tensions in the vertebrae.
Coming back to a neutral
spine on all fours.
[Antoni] I mean I just,
it’s, it’s poetic,
it just doesn’t feel real.
-Swan dive, so
knees bent or straight.
Coming down with a flat back.
[Antoni] And they’re
all very much on time.
[Yogi] Send your
hips up and back.
[Antoni] I've done yoga
in a lot of wild places,
but none of it comes close
to the experience of being
surrounded by
thousands of plants in a full-on
glass greenhouse.
What's incredible is that
people have been coming here
for centuries, and the
complexity of it as well is
that it's not only for
science, but for wellness.
It's really so one of a kind.
This place is all
about the TLC,
and I'm already
feeling the benefits.
It's a good thing too, because
I'm about to swap plant-life
for some serious nightlife.
[Antoni] London's
shown off range so far
and for my final stop,
I'm turning up the volume.
If you're heading
out after dark,
there's a neighborhood you
should know about that does
things a little differently.
We're in Dalston, East London,
it's a little grittier,
incredibly diverse,
super multicultural.
Definitely a
younger demographic.
London's nightlife still buzzes
in areas like Soho but rising
rents have pushed
the action outward,
with places like Dalston
in the Borough of Hackney
leading the way.
And on these busy streets,
there's a hidden
gem that's fun,
fabulous and just freakin' wild.
This place is dope.
Welcome to The Divine.
The go-to destination for
this city's most distinctive and
outrageous drag performers.
It's a spot where identity,
fashion and performance are
redefined every
night of the week.
Pulling the strings and adding
the sparkle are The Divine's
co-owners, John Sizzle
[John] Welcome to Dalston.
-Hey. This place is awesome.
And the one
and only Jonny Woo.
So, for anyone coming to London
and they're like I wanna check
out the drag scene,
what do you say to them?
-Come to east London for
a bit more youthful, exuberance.
-They’re pouring in.
-This is the strip
this is the new strip.
[Jonny] And this side
of town, East London.
[Antoni] And before
we go any further,
a drag queen is usually a
male performing as a female,
a drag king is usually a
female performing as a male,
and a drag thing is someone
who's mixing it all up.
Would you say that it's as camp
here as it is in the States?
[John] It’s less polished.
-Less polished.
There’s a bit more self, um,
deprecation going on.
-Right.
-And I don't know if this
was a little clue,
but there's a show on tonight
and we need another
-Judge.
Do you wanna judge with me?
-Nothing would make
me more terrified and excited
at the exact same time.
-Walk downstairs,
they’re all down there,
looking down,
they’re all waiting for you.
[Antoni] Drag might seem
a far cry from Britain's
buttoned-up reputation,
but it's always been
part of the story.
Back in Shakespeare's time,
men played all
the female roles.
Later, it found its stride
in cabaret and music halls,
before becoming a fixture
of London nightlife.
The Divine runs
with that legacy.
Nine shows a week,
celebrating queer expression
in all its beautiful forms.
Hello.
-Hello darling.
[Antoni] Lucinda and Margo
are regular Divine performers.
What drew you to drag
in the first place?
-The idea to
kind of express in a,
in a way that
explores my gender,
as in my femininity as
well as my masculinity.
-So here it's just a lot less
about that binary idea of drag
and more about sort of like
creating your own persona,
your own thing.
We’re now seeing all
these different stories from
how people feel
differently in their bodies.
-Right.
Less black and white, more gray.
-Yeah.
Like the whole spectrum, honey.
[Antoni] Oh hi.
-Hi!
[Antoni] I’m Antoni.
-Nice to meet you.
I'm Fabio.
[Antoni] Fabio, so
nice to meet you.
So tell me what makes
The Divine special?
-You’ve got, not just
drag queens like you do in
so many places,
you’ve got drag kings,
drag things, drag monsters.
-Yeah. It's more of a spectrum.
-Exactly.
[Antoni gasps]
-Hello.
-Ah hello.
-I’m Sateva by the way.
[Antoni] I almost
fainted Sateva.
Lovely to meet you.
I’m Antoni.
[Sateva] Thank you.
I know who you are babes,
as gorgeous as ever.
[bell ringing]
-It’s showtime!
[Antoni] Best of luck.
-Thank you.
-I'm rooting for you.
-Thank you.
-Crush it.
-Thank you so much.
[Fabio] Thank you.
[Antoni] There's definitely
a sense of community,
inclusivity, like it's
a chaotic, diverse,
all over the place,
shiny family,
and I met my first drag king.
I've got a front row
seat for a lip-sync battle,
as John Sizzle and I judge
the divas on style and sass.
[Jonny] Are you ready
for the competition?
Make some noise for the
sensational Lucinda!
Do you miss me to tonight? ♪
Are you feeling
less than bright, ♪
I'm just fine you
see nothing ♪
[Antoni] I’m no
stranger to drag,
but this is a triple
threat, fashion, comedy,
and full-blown cabaret.
[Sateva] Woo.
-Woo!
[Antoni] Each artist gets
their chance to bring it,
and the crowd is loving it.
But only one diva
can take the crown.
Woo!
[Jonny] Wow.
Absolutely incredible.
[Antoni] Now the
pressure is really on.
-What did you
think of that Antoni?
Come on up, come on up.
[Antoni] I need to
decide on a winner.
When I walked in,
I was just kind of like so
pleasantly surprised by the
sense of community,
like you all show
up for each other,
and the beautiful
weirdness that I saw,
I think it's a reflection
of like the diversity
of our community.
[John] And the
winner is, Lucinda.
[Antoni] The Divine, it’s
something every single
person should experience.
There is absolutely
nothing but love,
and it's this like
living, breathing,
community of artists
and performers.
It’s just pure joy.
I’ve always loved how London
holds its past and present in
the same frame.
It’s a city that
runs on contrasts,
in its people,
its neighborhoods, its culture,
and that’s what
makes it feel alive.
[Big Ben chimes]
And I can never listen to that
damn bell the same way again.
I think before this trip I, I,
I was in London as a viewer,
and this time I feel like for
the first time in my life I
actually got to experience
it and to actually live in it.
That's pretty cool.
[upbeat music playing]