In 1995, long before North Korea became a byword for curiosity tourism, one man stood on the Juche Tower in Pyongyang and declared it the last great adventure on earth. That man was Andy Kershaw. A BBC broadcaster, journalist, raconteur, and one of Koryo Tours' earliest and most beloved travel companions.
Andy Kershaw died on 17th April 2026. We had the privilege of travelling with him more times than we can count, and every single trip was better for having him on it. He was funny, brilliant, infuriating in the best possible way, and completely irreplaceable. The DPRK lost one of its most unlikely but most genuine admirers. We lost a friend.
The most extraordinary country on earth.
The most fascinating trip I’ve yet made and, truly, the most bizarre week of my life.
After North Korea, everywhere else will now seem as remarkable as Luton.
Andy Kershaw on his first trip with Koryo in 1995.
Andy Kershaw in North Korea
In 1996, Koryo Tours took the British radio presenter (DJ and journalist) Andy Kershaw into North Korea for the first-ever travel program on the enigmatic country.
His people contacted Koryo Tours to see if we could arrange for Andy to make the first-ever travel show inside North Korea, which we managed to obtain permission for.
It was a wonderful, innovative travel series, ‘Travelogue’, put out by Channel 4 television in the UK.
Travelogue episodes were presented by different celebrities and offered an alternative, backpacker-style travel programme compared to the traditional glamorous ‘holiday in the sun’ format of the time. Long before travel influencers and the whole industry of alternative tourism became as mainstream as it is today.
Andy had great humour and insightful knowledge on the DPRK, backed up with razor-sharp wit.
I remember telling Andy that we had received special permission to visit a cement factory, but we had to make it look as if this was a highlight and not simply an oddity to visit.
In his voiceover, his sardonic, dry delivery worked beautifully: “No bus tour of North Korea seems complete without a brush with heavy industry, if you’re lucky, you may visit the Wonsan Disabled Soldiers’ Plastic Dailies Necessity Complex or here at the Sangwon Cement Factory” (which incidentally turned our camera footage to black and white…not sure what it did to us!).
Nick Bonner and Andy Kershaw in 1995 on the Juche Tower, dazzled by the ‘Korea’ monthly.
North Korea appealed to Andy not just because of it being a bizarre oddity but also because of its tenacity and its struggle against the US, which he genuinely admired.
He was a walking dictionary of odd facts and figures and just loved getting behind the inextricable stories of the country.
We went on a few trips where he invited his chums who included British journalists Christopher Hitchins, Francis Wheen, and Chris Smith.
Never a dull moment on these trips, that was for sure.
Finally in 2003, we produced a piece for BBC Radio on North Korea’s contemporary music scene. The two-part programme was Sony Award-nominated.
This was one more unusual insight into the rather mysterious world of the DRPK. I remember being on the DMZ, the most sensitive militarised (despite the name) area of the country, and Andy was speaking to the military officer and cheekily asked if he would sing for us.
There was an awkward silence.
The officer grabbed the nearest soldier and said “I won’t, but you will find this soldier will…” and true enough the soldier burst into song.
You can listen to the episode here: Andy Kershaw - BBC on North Korea, Part 1
The theme of ‘music’ allowed us to receive permission and build a picture of the country around the various musical interludes and it is well worth a listen.
A trip with Andy involved a lot of hard work and late nights with alcohol and as a raconteur, he was the most entertaining of people to work with.
He was a grand man to listen to and to travel with.
“This is the last great adventure on planet Earth”
- Andy Kershaw, BBC Radio, presenter and journalist
- Andy Kershaw, BBC Radio, presenter and journalist
Andy Kershaw; giant of British radio, journalist, traveller, and friend of Koryo Tours, died on 17th April 2026.
Read more and watch Andy Kershaw's TRAVELOG
The first North Korean film production made by a Western television crew.
The first North Korean film production made by a Western television crew.
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Nicholas Bonner
Nick Bonner is the co-founder & CEO of Koryo Tours & Studio
Originally from the UK, Nick has been running tours to North Korea and other extraordinary destinations for over 30 years. Since his first trip to North Korea in 1993, he has pioneered tourism to North Korea and is a well-known face and name in international media and academic conferences. He also curates and runs unique tours to Koryo's worldwide destinations, including Uzbekistan, where he is fascinated by the Korean connection and the intriguing forbidden art gallery in the middle of the desert.
Nick is an expert in North Korean art and runs Koryo Studio, an art gallery specialising in North Korean art and film. He has co-produced three feature-length documentaries and the first foreign-North Korean-produced feature-length film, Comrade Kim Goes Flying.