Roman & Harleymoon Kemp Win Celebrity Race Across the World by Just Two Minutes — An Emotional Finale Shocks Viewers

It was the closest finish in the show’s history. After 33 days and roughly 5,900km of travel through Central America, Roman and Harleymoon Kemp were crowned winners of the BBC’s Celebrity Race Across the World, reaching the final checkpoint on Colombia’s Guajira Peninsula just two minutes ahead of fellow finalists Molly Rainford and Tyler West.

Behind that tiny winning margin were broken boat engines, cliffside sprints and a deeply emotional family story that resonated with millions of BBC One and iPlayer viewers.

The Nail-Biting Finish in Colombia

The finale picked up in Medellín, with all remaining celebrity pairs racing more than 1,000km to the final checkpoint at the remote cliffs above the sea in La Guajira, northern Colombia. Locked to a tight backpacker budget and banned from using phones or flights, the teams had to stitch together a route using buses, 4x4s, local drivers and boats.

For the Kemp siblings, the last stretch unfolded in three brutal stages: a rough 4×4 ride, a tense boat crossing and a final run up a cliff in intense heat. When they opened the guestbook at the finish, they discovered they had arrived first, just minutes ahead of Molly and Tyler, who lost time when their boat suffered engine problems.

Roman described the final sprint as “the most adrenaline, most emotion” he’d ever experienced, while Harleymoon admitted she had “never run like that” in her life.

The Route: 33 Days, 5,900km and No Phones

Across six legs, the celebrity pairs travelled from Isla Mujeres in Mexico down through Guatemala, El Salvador, Honduras, Costa Rica and Panama before crossing into Colombia for the final push. The format remained true to the core Race Across the World rules: no smartphones, no access to bank cards, and a budget of just £950 per person – the rough cost of an economy-class airfare for the route.

While the show is famous for its “no-fly” travel ethos, this series was also shaped by real-world logistics and safety. As producers have acknowledged in recent seasons, political unrest and filming restrictions in some regions have occasionally forced limited, controlled flights or route changes – a reminder that the race is run in the real world, not on a closed studio set.

Who the Finalists Were – and How They Finished

Four pairs began the celebrity race; only three made the finish line.

• Winners: Roman Kemp, BBC presenter and former Capital Breakfast host, and his sister Harleymoon Kemp, a singer-songwriter. Children of Spandau Ballet bassist Martin Kemp and singer Shirlie Holliman, the siblings entered as underdogs but gradually grew into one of the most consistent teams on the route.
• Runners-up: Molly Rainford, who plays Anna Knight in EastEnders and reached the final of Strictly Come Dancing in 2022, and her fiancé Tyler West, KISS radio and TV host. The couple started the series as fan favourites and went into the finale in pole position with a time advantage, only to be overhauled in the final minutes.
• Third place: Anita Rani, co-host of BBC Radio 4’s Woman’s Hour and BBC One’s Countryfile, racing with her father Balvinder “Bal” Nazran. They completed the race around six hours after the winners, still visibly moved at having finished together.
• Fourth place (retired): Derry Girls actor Dylan Llewellyn and his mum Jackie, who exited earlier in the episode after their funds dwindled to single-digit levels, leaving them too exposed for the final push.

Roman Kemp’s Mental Health Story at the Heart of the Series

Beyond the checkpoints and photo-finish drama, this series was defined by Roman Kemp’s unusually candid openness about his mental health. In one of the most talked-about episodes, Roman revealed that he has been on antidepressants for more than 15 years and was coming off them during the race, describing the journey as a test of how he would cope emotionally without medication.

Sitting with Harleymoon at a quiet beach bar mid-race, he spoke about being “jealous” of her ability to “actively be happy”, and how his own emotional “ceiling” had always felt lower. The conversation – picked up by outlets including RadioTimes – struck a chord with viewers who praised his honesty.

In another episode, Roman broke down in tears as he thanked Harleymoon for “saving his life” during a crisis years ago, recalling a desperate phone call when he was suicidal. As covered by TV Guide, he told her on camera that keeping him talking on the phone gave their mum time to reach him in person.

Those scenes turned the Kemps’ victory into more than just a trophy moment – it became a milestone in a brother’s long, public journey as a mental health advocate.

Sibling Bonding, “Nepo Kids” and Learning to Let Go

For both Kemp siblings, the series was also about redefining what it means to be “nepo kids”. In an interview with The Independent, Roman admitted he was obsessed with not overspending during the race in case it reinforced assumptions that they didn’t understand money.

That penny-pinching mindset became a mini-storyline of its own; throughout the series, Roman was often the most anxious about their daily budget, worrying that they might run out before the finish. Harleymoon, by contrast, often tried to keep the experience in perspective and encouraged him to enjoy rare moments of downtime.

By the time they reached the final leg, the siblings seemed to have found a better balance: still careful with cash, but more comfortable embracing uncertainty and trusting each other’s instincts rather than over-controlling every decision.

Molly & Tyler: A Relationship Tested by the Race

Runners-up Molly Rainford and Tyler West provided one of the series’ strongest emotional arcs. The couple spoke openly about how the race became a real-time stress test of their relationship, with long travel days, tough budgeting calls and moments of pure exhaustion.

In pre-final interviews, Tyler even joked that the race would decide whether he could marry Molly – half in jest, half in recognition of just how intense the experience was. The pair’s late-series surge, plus their time advantage heading into the final, made their eventual second place particularly gutting for fans.

Their boat’s mechanical issue in the last leg will go down as one of the cruelest twists yet in Race Across the World history.

Anita & Bal, Dylan & Jackie: Family Time Under Pressure

While the trophy went to the Kemps, other families delivered some of the most touching scenes of the series.

Anita Rani and her dad Bal repeatedly spoke about how rare it was to spend uninterrupted time together after years of busy work and family schedules. The race forced them into situations – from cramped buses to unfamiliar border towns – where their patience, humour and cultural roots were all put to the test.

Dylan Llewellyn and his mum Jackie provided an especially moving storyline earlier in the run. In a ceremony in Central America, Dylan spoke publicly about the loss of his older brother James, who took his own life, and how that grief had shaped both him and Jackie. Their eventual decision to quit the race when the money ran out underlined how brutal the format can be when budgets get tight.

How Big Was This Series for the BBC?

The celebrity edition is now firmly established as one of the BBC’s most reliable unscripted hits. The third celebrity series drew around six million viewers across its run, with the emotional tone, low-tech travel and real-world stakes helping it stand out in a reality TV landscape dominated by studio-bound competitions and scripted dating formats.

For the BBC and production company Studio Lambert, the show has also become a cornerstone of their travel competition slate, sitting alongside the civilian Race Across the World and newer experiments such as Destination X.

For viewers, though, the appeal remains simple: real families, real money worries, and real moments of vulnerability in places most tourists will never see.

Where to Watch Celebrity Race Across the World

All episodes of this celebrity series are available to stream via BBC iPlayer (UK viewers), with highlight coverage and analysis appearing across outlets including The Independent and syndicated BBC reports.