British comedian Jason Manford recalls the moment his friend of 15 years, Take That star Gary Barlow, got in touch with him about a travel idea.Manford had been at Keele Services between junctions 15 and 16 of the M6, when the eight-time Brit Awards winner called.Barlow asked him: ‘Do you want to come to New Zealand?’Manford, hardly believing what he was hearing, answered: ‘Oh, yeah!’Since 2024, Barlow, 55, has conducted a series of travels for Gary Barlow’s Food And Wine Tour on ITV1 and has so far visited South Africa and Australia.His latest adventure, in New Zealand, is being shown today, in which Barlow’s passion and knowledge of wine shines through.He says Manford, 45, initially admitted he didn’t know anything about wine. Yet he had retorted: ‘That’s what we want. We don’t want professionals, we want people to learn while the audience watches.’As soon as they touched down in New Zealand, the singer knew instantly that the friends, who grew up 30 miles apart in the North West, would have a great time. The Mail on Sunday spoke to Gary Barlow about his travel show, 'Gary Barlow's Food and Wine Tour', which spotlights New Zealand. This time, the star is joined by friend Jason Manford Gary Barlow noted how he was particularly blown away by New Zealand's resplendent landscapes Barlow and Manford sampled some of New Zealand's finest wines during their stay, which included a trip to the Craggy Range Winery ‘All Jason does is talk – it’s great talk, he’s very funny, and I thought, “Well, this is going to be easy for me!” We had the most incredible time.’Barlow was blown away by the scenery. ‘You’re always adjusting your eyes because you’ve never seen size like this: the big skies, beautiful mountains and amazing coastlines,’ he told The Mail on Sunday. ‘I’ve been telling everybody since to put New Zealand at the top of their list.’Over a fortnight the duo visited the North and South Islands, taking in Auckland, Queenstown, Central Otago, Marlborough Sounds and Hawke’s Bay.Barlow says one of the highlights was the awe-inspiring views he, Manford and the crew enjoyed on the 3.5-hour ferry ride from Picton on South Island to the capital, Wellington, on North Island: ‘It was an amazing thing to do. To come out of The Sounds, those big inlets of water, and then cross the Cook Strait is something special.’High-octane exploits included a Bond-esque zip-line arrival into Waiheke Island’s boutique Man O’ War winery as well as a thrilling 60mph ride through the canyons of Shotover River on a jet-powered boat.The friends hiked the interiors of Central Otago and watched dolphins dip and dive along the Kaikoura coast while rattling along on the Coastal Pacific railway.This Southern Hemisphere bromance also saw a jaunt in a gleaming vintage car through Napier in the Hawke’s Bay region and on a tandem bicycle.‘The crew thought we were going to be terrible at it but we got on and were in sync immediately. It disappointed everyone!’ Barlow says. The pair also tried a range of different Kiwi foods, including long-finned eel as well as wild venison, paired with beetroot and figs The 3.5-hour ferry ride from Picton on South Island to the capital Wellington was another of Barlow's highlightsDid the Kiwis appreciate the pair’s Northern banter? ‘New Zealanders are quite dry, like the British,’ Barlow replied. ‘They share the same humour as us.’Manford even managed an impromptu stand-up gig in Christchurch. ‘He did ten minutes and it was brilliant to see him doing what he does,’ says Barlow.The new series features deep dives into wine, including bold reds at Craggy Range, the family-run winery at the foot of Te Mata Peak in Hawke’s Bay.At chef Ben Bayly’s one Michelin-starred Auckland restaurant Ahi, Barlow dined on seafood delicacy paua (large edible sea snails) as well as wild venison, paired with beetroot and figs.Elsewhere, the duo also sampled whitebait fritters, green-lipped mussels and Cloudy Bay clams – plus Kiwi meat pie. New Zealand’s culinary recognition is long overdue, according to Barlow. ‘New Zealanders don’t shout about it as much as they should – the food is sensational.’Where next for the adventurous, wine-loving pop legend? California, Barlow says, and after that perhaps Greece: ‘But we’ll see. The world’s a big place!’Gary Barlow’s Food and Wine Tour: New Zealand is on ITV1 today at 12.30pm.