The idea came to Richard Creasey on an airplane. Below him, the Channel Tunnel was being built. If a car could soon travel from Britain to France, why stop there? Follow the roads east through Europe and Russia, find a way across the Bering Strait, and New York might become a driving destination.
It is an irresistible thought to entertain from an airline seat. Overland to America follows what happened when Creasey turned it into the Ford London–New York Overland Challenge and took the plan into a Siberian winter.
Documentary video artwork, via the film’s Vimeo upload.
Explore all ten expedition documentaries in our viewing guide.
Leaving London in December
Creasey’s archive dates the departure to December 27, 1993, with the expedition reaching New York in April 1994. Ford Mavericks and Mondeos were associated with the undertaking. Photographer Richard Blanshard and video contributor Kees t’Hooft are among the people identified in the archive.
The proposed route connected Britain, continental Europe and Russia, then reached toward the Bering region and Alaska before continuing through Canada and the United States. On a map, you can follow the logic. Farther east, winter begins testing what that logic is worth.
When the plan needs a bigger truck
In northeastern Russia, the Mavericks needed towing assistance from Ural trucks. CarsGuide’s account of the documentary describes conditions severe enough to damage even those heavy vehicles. The original expedition cars had become part of a much larger effort to keep moving.
That development gives the film its tension. By this point, the team has invested far too much to treat the next problem as an abstract question. They have to decide what can actually be done with the people, equipment and conditions they have.
The Bering Strait brought another limit. CarsGuide records that the attempted ice crossing could not be completed and that aircraft carried the team across the remaining gap. Keep that distinction in mind when following the expedition’s London-to-New York ambition.
The distance between an idea and the ground
The attraction of this film is how quickly you can understand the proposal, and how much harder it becomes to make it happen. A few place names are enough to explain the route. Carrying an expedition between them requires an entirely different level of commitment.
For anyone who enjoys planning trips, there is something familiar in that progression. One possibility leads to another. A destination that once seemed unreasonable begins to look attainable. The expedition lets you follow that thought far beyond an ordinary holiday, into a place where changing the plan becomes essential to continuing.
Why seek it out
This is a rewarding choice if you liked the ambition of Long Way Round and want another journey into Russia’s far east. Its appeal comes from the scale, the winter setting and the growing difficulty of reaching the next stage.
Watch it with the original proposal in mind. Creasey could imagine the connection from the air. The documentary follows the work of finding out how much of it could be made on the ground.
How to watch
Creasey’s expedition archive hosts the full documentary in an embedded Vimeo player. It also links to the itinerary, team information and contemporary material from the challenge.
Viewing information checked November 8, 2026. Follow the linked viewing page for current availability.
Keep exploring
For another London-to-New York ambition tested in Mongolia and Siberia, watch Long Way Round. Read more in Ewan McGregor and Charley Boorman’s Long Way Round book. As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases.
Sources and further reading
Richard Creasey’s expedition archive · CarsGuide film background
