Neil Morrissey and Martin Clunes, who found fame in Men Behaving Badly, are set to embark on a boys' tour around France in a new three-part series titled Neil and Martin's Bon Voyage. The series will follow the duo as they celebrate 40 years of friendship by visiting some of France's most picturesque regions including the Dordogne River, Bordeaux's vineyards, and the Pyrénées peaks.

During their journey, they'll encounter the renowned white horses of the Camargue, attempt to emulate Van Gogh's painting style in Arles, and enjoy a drink atop Europe's largest sand dune. However, the highlight of the trip for them was simply spending a long amount of time together, something they haven't done since the 90s.

Neil said: "Fame came so quickly it was like being shot out of a cannon."

Martin added: "The best thing about this trip was we were given licence to hang out together for three weeks. In the past, we've seen each other for a meal or a weekend here, weekend there. To be brought together was just great."

The pair first crossed paths four decades ago backstage at a Peter Pan production in Bristol. At the time, Neil was playing a pirate while Martin was visiting a friend who was playing the title role.

While Martin was still relatively unknown in 1984, Neil was already making appearances on TV, playing Rocky in the ITV drama Boon. Neil, now 62, reminisces: "We got it together and there were certain haunts, and our careers were on a similar sort of pathway," reports the Mirror.

In a reminiscent exchange, Martin interrupted to set things straight: "No they weren't! You were hugely successful, you were in Boon, you had a mobile phone and your own Volkswagen Golf."

Fast forward to 1992, and the pair solidified their bond when they landed roles in the cult British sitcom Men Behaving Badly, where they brought to life the beer-loving duo of Gary and Tony. Alongside Caroline Quentin and Leslie Ash as their counterparts Dorothy and Deborah, the cheeky camaraderie was unmistakable both on and off-screen.

As the beloved characters Tony and Gary were seldom spotted without a brew in hand on the show, Neil and Martin's new adventure in the U&Gold series also showcases their penchant for a good tipple, evident from the very first scene where they enjoy drinks atop a sand dune. Later, upon reaching Neil's place in France, Martin presents him with an already uncorked bottle, quipping apologetically: "I got thirsty in the night."

Yet, at 63, Martin casually points the finger at the editors for portraying them as more focused on drinking than taking in the scenic countryside.

Feigning surprise, he queried, "Is there a lot of us drinking in it?" before adding with a laugh, "Well they've done that on purpose!"

Neil, too, acknowledges their frequent drink clinks, joking that there was enough material for a whole additional episode. He humorously noted: "You could get an hour of the amount of times we press glasses."

Reflecting on their past, during the '90s both actors were part of London's bustling showbiz circuit. These days, Martin has settled in Dorset with his wife Philippa Braithwaite, while Neil relishes a tranquil existence in France with his partner, lawyer Emma Killick.

Neil reminisced: "Em and I have had a place here now for nearly 20 years, and you can probably see it's a humble little old farmer's cottage dating back to 1790 so it's absolutely beautiful. You don't get disturbed. Old ladies elbow me out of the way of the prize onions in the market!"

Martin shared his connection with France through numerous vacations, but playfully conceded it was Neil who did most of the conversing on their trips, sharing: "The trick with Johnny Frenchman is to just shout English louder at them and they pretty much buck up. They know what we're saying. They're just being bloody minded with their own language."

Neil chuckled in agreement, confirming, "He's not far wrong there, is he?" The pair bond over their shared humour as Neil explained, "We have a similar perspective on comedy," and added, "so it was easy to have a laugh as well."

In the series, the comedy unfolds liberally, with Martin aiming an early chuckle when he sampled some white Semillon wine and stated, "I've got a bit of a semi on."

Despite their acknowledgment that their banter from the '90s wouldn't likely make it onto today's more sensitive television screens, they acknowledged that times have changed; back then, shows like Men Behaving Badly thrived without the constraints of current TV culture.

During the show, Neil commented: "Tony and Gary were misogynistic ne'er-do-wells but we kind of captured the zeitgeist because there was a lot of talk about laddism and we were given that title of 'the lads' of the era. You couldn't get away with making Men Behaving Badly now."

However, Neil insists the show never intended to be sexist or misogynistic: "If you said misogyny to either Tony or Gary, they'd have probably thought it was a Polish sausage."

"Or a star sign!" Martin chimed in with a laugh. "They are totally in awe of women and blown away by them and worshipped them in an inappropriate way."

But both agree that society wouldn't accept the show today where things have become very black and white.

Martin said: "Life has changed. With some social media and the entire world becoming a journalist, and everything becoming so polarized that it's like, they said something inappropriate, therefore it can't be funny, it must be bad. Let's stamp it out and cancel it all,' rather than seeing any nuance in life. Nuance has gone out of fashion. I think everything's become bold and brash in terms of comedy."

Neil fondly recalls to Martin during their previous escapades down under before the Sydney 2000 Olympics: "You checked out the brothel! And I checked out, well I daren't even say it in case I get prosecuted, but I went to a bar one evening where when a pint glass got full of coins the ladies took their tops off!"

Martin reminisces with a laugh about their past antics, saying: "Skimpies? Skimpies is still going! We went on some capers."

However, they both agree that the highlights of their current tour were more subdued, with Martin noting, "The sunset was nice but it was a bit mosquito-y," and adding, "Going fishing was great."

Neil and Martin’s Bon Voyage starts on U&Gold on March 25 at 9pm.