Seven years ago, Stephen Fry travelled through all fifty states of the USA in a black cab. But he’s always been fascinated by events south of the border, so now, in this brand new four-part series, he embarks on an adventure into America’s backyard.

In episode four, Stephen’s journey continues through Costa Rica and Panama. In Costa Rica he discovers a country, which is a marked contrast to the rest of Central America. With no army or civil wars it boasts a stable democracy with an enviable living standard that has propelled it to the top of the UN Happiness Index.

With virgin rainforests teaming with exotic wildlife and stunning natural beauty, it has become a leading light in conservation and ecotourism.

Beginning his journey on The San Juan River, that forms the border between Nicaragua and Costa Rica in the province of Guanacaste, Stephen tries his hand at tarpon fishing with Dan Wise, a retired lawyer from Mississippi, who cites his reason for coming here as being that Costa Rica is the Switzerland of Central America.

Stephen John Fry is an English comedian, actor, writer, presenter, and activist. Besides working in television, Fry has contributed columns and articles for newspapers and magazines and written four novels and three volumes of autobiography. He also appears frequently on BBC Radio 4, starring in the comedy series Absolute Power, being a frequent guest on panel games such as Just a Minute, and acting as chairman for I’m Sorry I Haven’t a Clue, where he was one of a trio of hosts who succeeded the late Humphrey Lyttelton. Fry is also known for his voice-overs, reading all seven of the Harry Potter novels for the UK audiobook recordings, narrating the LittleBigPlanet and Birds of Steel series of video games, as well as an animated series of explanations of the laws of cricket, and a series of animations about Humanism for the British Humanist Association.^[