For over four decades, Mark Blythen and Margo Oakley shared little more than a mutual disdain and a profound love for the same woman. Today, they are making history as the first set of in-laws to team up on the BBC's hit survival series, Race Across the World.
The unlikely duo—who are competing for a £20,000 prize by racing to Mongolia without flights, smartphones, or internet access—embarked on the grueling journey to honor the dying wish of Julia, Mark’s wife and Margo’s older sister. In 2022, Julia tragically passed away from myelofibrosis, a rare form of blood cancer.
Their relationship wasn't always one of camaraderie. When a young Margo first met Mark, she pegged him as a "po-faced" and judgmental buzzkill. Mark, in turn, viewed his girlfriend's younger sister as loud and unruly. Mark and Julia had met as students at Huddersfield Polytechnic—after she famously hit him over the head with an umbrella while dating his flatmate—and went on to spend 40 deeply devoted years together.
For years, Julia acted as the vital glue holding the family together, bridging the gap between her husband and her sister. However, the family dynamic shifted dramatically in 2019 when Julia’s health rapidly declined.
As Mark stepped into the role of full-time caregiver, he finally began to see Margo in a new light. Margo's visits became a lifeline, injecting much-needed fun and laughter into their darkest days.
"One of the things about caring for somebody is that it's very easy to just get lost and focus on caring for someone," Mark shared, acknowledging the unseen toll the process took on him. "People that are being cared for, they need to have fun and Margo provided that fun."
Before Julia passed away, she explicitly asked the pair to hold onto the unexpected friendship they had forged in her final years. Figuring out how to maintain that bond after decades of friction was a daunting task, until Margo saw a casting call for Race Across the World.
Julia had been an avid fan of the show, though she never would have dreamed of participating herself. For Margo, the advertisement felt like a sign. An inner voice urged her to ask her brother-in-law to join her. When she did, Mark agreed without a second thought.
While keeping the exact details of their trek to Mongolia under wraps, the pair revealed that the journey pushed them to their limits. The race brought extreme highs and devastating lows, but they discovered profound meaning in the struggle.
According to Margo, the epic adventure served as the ultimate tribute to her late sister, perfectly capturing the complex duality of human experience. It was an opportunity, she explained, to beautifully balance the heavy sorrow of grief with the vibrant, undeniable joy of living.