Singer and presenter Jane MacDonald is well known for her popular cruising TV shows but when did it all begin?
The Cruise
In 1998, Jane found national stardom when she first appeared on the BBC One docusoap The Cruise.
The series of 12 episodes followed the staff on board the luxury cruise ship Galaxy as it sailed the Caribbean on its maiden voyage.
The show found great success, with each episode bringing in a whopping 13 million viewers.
In August 2008, BBC Two broadcast a five-part series called Return to... The Cruise where the stars of The Cruise reminisced about life onboard Galaxy, alongside highlights from the series.
Cruising with Jane McDonald
Since 2017 Jane has presented the BAFTA award-winning show Cruising with Jane McDonald on Channel 5.
The show follows Jane as she boards some of the world's biggest and most luxurious cruise ships.
There have currently been seven series of the show, with four episodes in each one.
There has also been a spin-off of the show, Holidaying with Jane McDonald where Jane road tests a host of holiday resorts and destinations around the world with the help of celebrity friends to help viewers plan their holidays.
In the latest series Jane embarked on a series of ocean getaways aboard some of the world’s biggest and most luxurious cruise ships.
Filmed prior to the start of the pandemic, the series has four episodes.
The first episode sees Jane exploring the Caribbean aboard a new luxury liner.
She started in Fort Lauderdale in Florida before heading towards the private resort of Princess Cays on the island of Eleuthera.
From there she continued along to the Virgin Isles and St Thomas, ending on the island of St Martin.
In the second half of the trip, Jane visits Grand Cayman for a spot of horse-riding on the beach.
She then visits Roatan off the coast of Honduras, where she discovers the wonders of the deep aboard a submarine.
The trip concludes on the Mexican island of Cozumel, where Jane parties the night away at the carnival.
Jane steps down
Sadly, in 2020 Jane revealed she would no longer be presenting her two travel shows.
She announced in a statement: “It has been a privilege to call this a ‘job’. After so many years filming abroad I am looking forward to some much needed time in the UK and to focus on my music and tours and exciting new projects. Thank you Channel 5 for some great trips and many fabulous memories.”
Ben Frow, Director of Programming at Channel 5, added: “We’ve loved working with Jane and are proud to have had her as part of the family. She helped us to win our first BAFTA and her series have become solid staples of our Friday night schedules. Thank you Jane. We are sorry to see you go but wish you every happiness for the future.”
Scottish comedian Susan Calman is set to take over presenting duties.
She said: “I can’t wait to go on exciting voyages and incredible journeys and take the wonderful viewers with me. It’s the start of a magnificent chapter and I can’t wait to get going!”
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