A PODCASTER from Newton Abbot has teamed up with a Canadian photojournalist hoping to break a World Record and help children in Africa along the way.

Ollie Jenks, 34, and Seth Scott, 31, have set themselves the challenge of driving what is thought to be the last Reliant Robin van to roll off the production line along the length of the continent of Africa.

The possibly harebrained scheme aims to see the pair become the first to navigate a three-wheeled vehicle from Morocco in north Africa, through 20 countries and finishing in South Africa.

They hope their trip will become a ‘viral sensation’.

Ollie said: ‘It sounds crazy but we have been accepted for the Guinness World Record attempt to take this iconic piece of British engineering with its 850cc engine all the way from Devon to Cape Town.’

Ollie and Seth first met in 2018 on another adventure, The Mongol Rally, when they drove budget cars from Devon to Mongolia and back.

Ollie explained: ‘Seven years later, we reconciled for another off the beaten track adventure in a British icon, the Reliant Robin.

‘Ever the butt of the joke in the motoring world, we wanted to give this vehicle a chance to prove itself in the most unlikely of environments, hence this bizarre World Record attempt.’

By chance they managed to find the very vehicle they were looking for at nearby BerryBrook Motors in Exminster.

There are less than 60 Reliant Robins thought to be still on the road.

Ollie said: ‘We are 99 per cent sure this van version was the last one manufactured in 2000.

‘We were chatting to people on forums and were asking around the UK and it was actually BerryBrook Motors in Exminster that had a small collection of Robins for restoration and sale.

‘They loved the challenge and had expert knowledge on these vehicles, a massive bonus as they’re a few miles from home.’

As well as attempting to achieve a World Record, the duo are also visiting African schools along the way.

They have teamed up with Somerset charity School In A Bag and want to hand deliver the bags to as many schools on their route as they can.

Ollie, who also runs a sports card business specialising in classic football, said the route covers most of the western side of the continent which has the better roads, capital cities and is considered the safest option.

Once Ollie has received his passport back from the Nigerian Embassy, he and Scott are ready to hit the road, get the ferry to France and head down through Spain to their starting point in Morocco.

Seth originally from Canada is a photo journalist and has spent time all over the world documenting world events exclusively in 35mm film.

Ollie has also had stints living in Asia, USA and Ireland.

Their adventures can be followed at https://linktr.ee/holdmygear.official