What happened in this episode?
Julian Dorey interviews travel YouTuber Tommy Sabbatical about building a channel through high-risk, on-the-ground reporting-style vlogging across Africa and the Middle East. Sabbatical says he began early travel filming with little money, including using a US Covid stimulus cheque to reach Tanzania, where he found his first viral traction through unscripted encounters.
The conversation turns to claims of corruption and security pressure: Sabbatical alleges Nigeria’s main airport was permeated by petty bribery when he filmed there in 2021, and says police attempted to force deletion of his footage before he published it; he claims Nigerians later told him the government briefly cracked down. He also describes travelling across Iraq in late 2024, including a decision to abandon a visit to Samarra after being detained at a checkpoint he says was run by Shia militias rather than the Iraqi state.
In Iraq, Sabbatical recounts being questioned about whether he was a journalist, Israeli or Jewish while filming with a Shia family, and describes a site he says retained a Star of David despite conversion into a mosque. He discusses meeting Yazidis and visiting what he calls their holiest site, saying communities displaced by Islamic State violence remained under-resourced.
Sabbatical also describes travelling in Israel and the West Bank weeks after 7 October, alleging severe checkpoint delays and locals warning of shootings, and outlines how he crossed via a Jerusalem-licensed driver. The episode closes with broader reflections on how travel changes perceptions of US foreign policy and local attitudes towards conflict.
