Michael Palin said the difficulty of getting insurance ‘could be the end’ of his career (Image: GETTY)
legend Sir fears that he may have to abandon his overseas travel programmes because of the difficulty of getting insurance in “strange” countries.
The 81-year-old, who has fronted a number of documentaries since 1980, believes the issue could potentially end his lengthy on-screen career.
“Insurance could be the end of my career, you know,” he said at the Henley Literary Festival, according to The Times.
“Seriously, an 81-year-old going to a place where there’s active cannibalism or something like that.
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Michael Palin has been making travel documentaries for many years (Image: CHANNEL5)
“Although you’re probably safe at 80. They probably wouldn’t want you.”
Michael shared his concerns while promoting his There and Back – The Diaries tour, in which he revisits some of his fondest memories.
During the shows, he takes fans on a journey through “the most productive decade of his life” from 1999 to 2009.
At the start of that decade, Michael fronted The Hemingway Adventure, in which he retraced the footsteps of Ernest Hemingway through the United States, Europe, Africa and the Caribbean.
Documentaries that followed included his visits to the Sahara desert, the Himalaya region and Europe.
In more recent years, he has explored Iraq where he took on a 1,000 mile journey, following the Tigris river from its source in eastern Turkey, through Iraq to the Persian Gulf.
Most recently, he took a trip to Nigeria and experienced the bustling Lagos as part of his 1300-mile journey.
Earlier this year while a guest on This Morning, Michael said while his age may soon go against him, he had no plans to slow down and wanted to continue working.
Future plans overseas however are “very much up to the company” he is with now, the actor has admitted.
“The last few [travel shows] I’ve done were for Channel 5 and they’re very good at getting permissions and getting you to go, getting visas for strange countries and all that.
“It’s sometimes easier than you think. Bureaucracy seems like an insurmountable wall but there’s a little loose brick at the bottom of it. So I hope I will continue to be insurable,” he added.
Should travelling become an issue, Michael said he wouldn’t rule out returning to writing fiction.