The Escape: The Tour, the Cyclist and Me

by David Walsh

A unique memoir from British cycling’s most fascinating competitor

In the summer of 2020 sportswriter David Walsh asked Pippa York if she’d be interested to be his travelling companion for the Tour de France. The deal was that he would sort out the logistics beforehand, the hotels, the transport details and she would do the day to day tasks of getting them about and adding her insight occasionally. It would also mean she would return to the race she had ridden eleven times as Robert Millar.

This is the resulting a unique and entertaining sporting odyssey, The Escape uses the minutiae of Pippa and David’s trip, and the iconic landmarks of the Tour de France, to explore her early life growing up in working class Glasgow; her entry into racing; the psychological aspects of the sport and how that manifested itself in her personality; her ups and downs as a competitor; her post-career and her eventual transition in her 40s.

Touching on doping, gender in sport and the unique wonders and day-to-day challenges of the Tour, The Escape is both an unforgettable travelogue through the world’s greatest cycling event and a one-of-a-kind memoir from arguably the sport’s most enigmatic and fascinating competitors.

Genres: Cycling, Nonfiction, Biography, Sports, Autobiography, Audiobook, Queer

320 pages, Hardcover

First published June 19, 2025

Reviews

[Stuart Bird]

I've never read a sports book like this before

This book is about 3 things:

The story of Robert Millar, the story of her transition to Pippa York, and the Tour de France. Chapters vary between a standard narrative and excerpts of conversations between York and David Walsh, the cycling journalist, as they travel around France during the Tours de France 2020-2023

All three overlap. Sometimes we hear from Walsh, narrating the story of Millar/York. Sometimes it's York herself telling her story. Elsewhere we have a transcript of the pairs' conversations whilst travelling from French town to another stage destination

I don't think I've read a sports biography/book that has been an enlightening about a subject I know little about. The sections on gender dysphoria are far more informative, empathetic, sensitivity written and moving than anything you'll read in the UK media about the trans issue

The relationship between York and Walsh is nice, they don't always agree, they may not even be the best of friends but there's a real affection there

Elsewhere there's lots of cycling content, the highlights of Millar/York's career are covered, as well as the major moments from the recent Tours De France.

I came away respecting Millar the cyclist but with an even greater level of respect and affection for York the person.

[Paul Fulcher]

The William Hill Sports Book of the Year 2025

The Escape: The Tour, the Cyclist and Me is co-authored by

- cycling journalist David Walsh, most famous for his role in exposing Lance Amstrong, but for me significant as author of my favourite every sporting biography, Kelly: A Biography of Sean Kelly, and a book that changed by sports-watching life

and, more importantly

- Pippa York who, as she introduces herself:

My name is Pippa York.

It's quite a nice name. You've a better chance when you choose your own name. And my name choice is all the better for not being a consequence of marriage or being part of a witness protection programme, although you might end up thinking that the latter would have been appropriate for me.

I rode the Tour de France 11 times, and it wasn't the female edition. As Robert Millar I was the first British rider to win a major Tour de France classification, the polka dot jersey in 1984.

I was Robert Millar then.
I am Pippa York now.

Parts of Robert Millar remain, and there are other parts that - looking back - I barely recognise. Being trans is complicated; sometimes it's awful. But I understand that people find it interesting. Even I find it fascinating.

The book stemmed from York and Walsh travelling together to cover the 2020-2022 Tours de France, York for Cyclingnews and Walsh for The Times.

A key part the book is the transcripts of their conversations, and Walsh's accounts of their time together but it also includes interludes from York (in particularly describing the last stage of her transition) and Walsh's history of Millar's career (told in a series of rather non-linear and somewhat random vignettes).

York's gender dysphoria began as a young child and the book suggests it could have played a part in the attraction of the cycling world:

Cycling just wouldn't let go of him. He was still doing his paper round, he was buying girls' clothes and he was buying bike bits. What he spent his money on depended on what the priority was in his head on a given Saturday. It all made no sense.

Then he discovered that top cyclists shaved their legs. You didn't have to wear two pairs of tights to bide your hairy legs? You could shave your legs and no busybody could say boo to you? This was acceptable? You were a cyclist and you just got a shaved-leg pass? Ye have to shave yer bloody legs because when ye fell off yer bike ye could get infections and ye need your sticky plasters to stick to yer smooth calves and all the rest of it, so there, ye bampot.

OK, he thought, that's an advantage. A young man could fit riding a bike into the whole business of wanting to be a girl.

But the macho world of cycling meant a need to conceal this, and the book dwells at considerable length on Robert Millar's, as he was then, taciturn even hostile nature, particularly to journalists (Walsh admits to being scared to approach Millar) part a function of the focus of a professional athlete, and part a function of a confused and very private identity.

York explains how, post retirement and having transitioned, her and her family's privacy was threatened by the dreadfully ill-conceived book by Richard Moore In Search of Robert Millar: Unravelling the Mystery Surrounding Britain's Most Successful Tour De France Cyclist - as York comments, 'the author is deceased now, so the less said the better', and York's partner has described how the book led to "humiliation, depression, anxiety, anger and sadness, also fear".

That book in turn led to a crude Daily Mail 'gotcha' expose, as the paper unfortunately succeeded where the book's author had (thankfully) failed "Britain's vanished Tour de France champion reappears - as a woman", followed by years of misery.

Then, and as she comments "I love this bit", ten years to the day later from the Mail article, Pippa York took control of her own story her own story in a article on Cyclingnews, with the help of that publication's Dan Benson and advice from William Fotheringham of the Guardian, annoucing her return to the Tour, as a commentator on ITV4.

Perhaps the part of the book that worked least well for me was it's organising principle - the conversations between Walsh and York can at times it can get into banal details of hotel plumbing, and their insights on the racing itself aren't particularly compelling and at times don't ring true e.g. this conversation apparently on the evening after the Col du Granon stage of the 2022 Tour (but how does David's last comment then work?):

DAVID: I don't think we quite realised how good Vingegaard is. For the first time, he's made us reconsider the question of who's the best Tour de France rider. Before today, everyone would have said Pogačar. Now, you've got to think that maybe Vingegaard is the man.
PIPPA: True, today the balance of power shifted. I can't see Vingegaard not winning this Tour.
DAVID: From that point to the finish, Jonas Vingegaard defended his yellow jersey. Pogačar recovered from his nightmare on the Col du Granon and rode well all the way to Paris, but without landing a blow on an exceptional rival.

(both also seem to be sanguine about the current extent of PED use in the peloton, although York is open about the scene during her racing days, including Millar's own use)

But the book's true hearty is in a powerful, candid and compassionate, portrayal of gender dysphoria and a much needed corrective to the trans-phobia that is increasingly infecting society and indeed professional sport.

[Mise Enda]

Really enjoyed this. I know precious little about cycling, but for me, it was still such an engaging and interesting read.

As with all good sports books, it has very little to do with the rehashing of past glories.

It's despairing how far people will go out of their own way, in order to punch down on minorities in the manner that Pippa has experienced.

[Daniel Sevitt]

I get that there are two stories being told here and that one informs the other, but one of these stories was clinical (literally and figuratively) while the other was full of warmth, depth and humanity. I was just less engaged by the facts of Pippa York's physical transition than I was by her philosophical one from inward-facing rider at odds with her team and the press, to a self-aware writer and empathizer with the current crop of professional cyclists. As with the best sports bios for a sport for which I have no particular love or understanding, the backroom mechanics were fascinating.

Much of the book is told in conversation between Pippa and David Walsh a veteran journalist who has been following the Tour de France since the time when Pippa was a participant through to these three years where they traveled together to report on it. The dialogue doesn't always work cleanly, but the overarching sensibility is positive, kind, and interesting.

[Louis]

Great book, very thoughtful and informative but in an entertaining and accessible way. Pippa's sections talking about David Millar's childhood were very well written, but overall the book is mostly a long-form journalism kind of style

[Chris]

Audio book: the narration was a big let down and distracted from the book. Mis pronounced names was a killer for me.
The book itself is very unique, but not really of interest to me for the most part. I’d give it 2.5 stars. Sounds like a depressing life.

[Marguerite Kaye]

I am a massive fan of the Tour de France, though I came to it late, and though I've always loved cycling, I've come to road cycling even later (just bought my first road bike about 3 months ago and I'm still slightly terrified of it). I confess, I'd never heard of Robert Millar who is now Pippa York, and though of course I knew about the Lance Armstrong scandal, I didn't know that David Walsh was the one to break it. I thoroughly enjoyed their collaboration on this book.

It's an odd book. Two journalists travelling in a car together during two recent Tours (both of which I watched back to back on tv). So of course it's about the Tour, the first one where Tadej Pogacar rose to fame, the beginning of the still-being-played-out duel between him and Jonas Vingegaard. It's about behind the scenes, from Walsh's point of view, as a journalist who was ostracised for his perceived vendetta against Armstrong, and for York who, as Millar, raced in the 80s and won the King of the Mountains jersey. It's about the fabulous scenery, the iconic mountains, the famous victories. But it's also about York's story from growing up in Glasgow's Gorbals to becoming an elite rider to transitioning and moving on to what she does now, which is cycling journalism. And all of it, I found utterly fascinating.

The narrative flits between long screeds of dialogue as the pair are in the car, to Walsh narrating, and to York's own voice describing transition. It's a very, very easy read. It's compulsive. You don't have to love cycling, in fact there were times when the overwhelmingly male/macho-ness is utterly distasteful, but it gives you a real insight into what drives elite athletes, and how selfish and focused they have to be. It also gives a fascinating insight into Millar's struggles with his gender, atestosterone-fuelled sportsman who wanted to live as a woman from a very young age, and the various ways he's dealt with suppressing that over the years until he gave up the fight. I have no idea how 'typical' his feelings were/are - but my goodness, the courage of him is awesome. What's more, the way he deals with adversity, and there's been so much of it, tremendous backlash when he was outed in a vile way, is admirable. Yes, he suffered big time, but here he is. What struck me, and what struck Walsh in the conversations, is that the same qualities of strength, inner knowledge, that kept him going as a cyclist, kept him going through transition and out the other side.

What is also fascinating to a reader and to Walsh, was that though the essence of Millar helped him become York, he is essentially changed. As Millar, Walsh was actually afraid of him, left him alone, watched and tracked his success from a distance. As York, he approached, conversed, liked.

I really enjoyed this. So much, I'm going to find the book on Armstrong now.

[Nicola C]

The greatest book not just about cycling and journalism but of admiration and struggle and respect for each other,the story of a cyclist a journalist and the journey of one to become who is all they ever wanted to be,sometimes destiny calls and greatness is bestowed through actions but destiny calls and greatness isn't just in actions but in the fragility of being human and the changes that are upon us,the escape is in cycling but biology and time catch up with us all and that race can't be outrun but it can be won and pippa york writes well about her transition and experiences which makes this book all the more fascinating and hard to put down,there are truly wonderful moments where David Walsh the journalist who brought down Lance Armstrong writes from a witness to a truly wonderful moment between friends.
this book isn't for sceptics or people with their own negative views on trans gender people but maybe the reader can understand and empathize that all everyone is is a human trying to live their life and be happy.
I loved this book and I hope that both authors come together again.

[Paul Convery]

David Walsh and Pippa York have put together a brilliant book with The Escape, with it structured around them traveling around France today covering the Tour de France and using the conversations they had with each other in the process to give some interesting insights into the events going at those Tours, but most importantly to dive in Pippa York's past as Robert Millar, one Britain's greatest ever road cyclists and the transition to Pippa York, the woman who has reemerged as a brilliant cyclist journalist and pundit.

The one slight downside is maybe in the structure of the book in regards to the current events (early 2020s) that are happening over the three Tours that David and Pippa spent travelling together to cover the race. The book just pulls out key events that happened in those races, but they aren't in any sort of order so it is easy to lose track of what edition of the Tour they are talking about, but they are really just a vehicle to provide some insight into the authors thoughts on them and how they compared to past events from David and Pippa's careers as the journalist and former pro cyclist.

The real heart of the book is as a memoir of Pippa York's life and the format works really well for that. It provides some long form pieces written by Pippa about various different portions of her life, from being a young boy in Glasgow wishing he was one of the girls at his school and splitting the money from his paper rounds on new parts for his bicycle and on girls clothes that he could sneak out in to let himself feel more like a girl, and on through to searching for medical help to transition into the woman who finally finds herself happy in her body.

David Walsh also provides long form pieces about Pippa's cycling career as Robert Millar, including performances on the bike that made Robert Millar one the greatest climbers in the pro peloton in the 1980s and resulted in being the first British rider to ever win the mountain classification in the Tour de France, and some truly epic battles that came very close to winning the Vuelta a Espana, one of the sports three Grand Tours (along with the Tour and Giro).

The shorter form pieces take the shape of transcripts of David and Pippa's conversations they had while travelling around France following the Tour and often have David asking questions of Pippa about the various different experiences she has had due to her transition, as well as her insight into the events of the race.

Overall a great read for any fan of some cycling history, while also being an extremely personal memoir of someones process of going through gender transition, from the young kid struggling to understand themselves, to the professional athlete trying to act "normal" because it might make life easier, to the ex pro suffering with depression and who finally realises what it will take to make them feel happy with themselves and also the unfortunate treatment by some people and very unsavoury attention that having been a professional athlete brought when she did transition to Pippa York and how the tabloid media stripped away her and her families peace that they had found. Thankfully Pippa has come through all that, and found her confidence to step back into the public spotlight as a journalist and pundit.

[Philippa]

What a fabulous book! As a trans woman (coincidentally also called Pippa!) and a cyclist (medals from the World Gay Games, Paris 2018 - ok, ok not the Tour de France like Pippa York!) I was hoping to get this in my Christmas presents, heaven knows I dropped enough hints!!! It was there and I read it in two days. It is possibly my favourite book of 2025 - and I've read some pretty good ones.
Told as David and Pippa follow the Tour de France, driving between the various towns on the route and writing for their respective media publications, the conversations between them are fascinating and illuminating. I shed tears at some of the passages dealing with Pippa's transition (remembering my own of course), laughed out loud at various stories about the Tour de France and the characters of the peloton, from Mark Cavendish, Lance Armstrong (who the co-author David Walsh so brilliantly exposed as a cheat over so many years) to many, many others. Pippa and David have a friendship that is wonderful, they may not agree on everything but that makes the book more interesting. But what also comes across is the respect that David Walsh has for Pippa, well done you if you read this review.
It's not all about cycling, nor is it all about Pippa's transition from Robert Millar. to Philippa York, it is a beautiful blend of interwoven stories and chats, uplifting and informative and a book that anyone could read and come away with a better understanding of what it takes to be a world class sportsperson and a person who needed to undertake a journey to be their true self. Beautiful.

[Peter]

This book caught my interest from the start, and it did not disappoint. It explores many aspects of Pippa York’s life and the long journey to becoming the person she is today. The story ranges from growing up in Glasgow, through the struggle to become a professional cyclist, to the success that followed — including riding the Tour de France eleven times — and finally her transition to a woman after retirement from racing.
The accounts of the Tour de France and other races are particularly engaging, giving a vivid sense of life inside the professional peloton. Another important strand of the book is the friendship between Pippa York and David Walsh. Many passages made me laugh, and Walsh’s contribution is clear throughout. As senior sportswriter for The Times, his descriptive writing is excellent and highly evocative.
Pippa York does not hold back when describing what she went through during her transition, and the honesty is striking. The book also highlights how some attitudes towards women remain rooted in the past.
Overall, this is a professionally written, interesting, entertaining, and informative book.

[Andrew Owen]

Pippa York’s professional cycling career overlapped with the start of Channel 4’s coverage of the Tour de France and at the time I was a big fan of her (then known as Robert Millar). 20+ years later, having read books about other cyclists (Armstrong, Cavendish and others) I came across the book ‘In Search of Robert Millar’ which pieced together some of their career and speculated about what had happened to the reclusive cyclist.

This book flits between excerpts from Pippa’s life and career, highlights from Le Tour’s 2020-2022 editions and conversations with travelling companion David Walsh, the veteran cycling journalist.

As such it’s a fascinating collection of insights rather than the usual biography/autobiography. If you’re not a fan of cycling you might not enjoy it quite as much as I did. However, it is also an insight into one person’s struggle with their gender identity, the process and how Pippa has also switched from publicity shy professional cyclist to cycling journalist and occasional tv presenter. Quite a transformation on multiple levels.

[Ceri]

What a fabulous book. In 2020 David Walsh and Pippa York join forces to follow the Tour de France in their capacity as journalists. The book combines iconic stages from that Covid struck year and subsequent Tours, a realistic picture of some of the trials of following the Tour and the fascinating and candid story of Pippa's career in the men's peloton as the great Robert Millar and the feelings that led to the decision to transition at the end of that career to live life as a woman and to transition fully to be Pippa York. Some of the stories are hard to read, the inner pull towards being a girl, the attempt to push that to one side by pursuing a tough and successful career as a professional cyclist and then long process of transitioning, with the consequences for relationships with family and friends, the appalling treatment by tabloids and the final return to the cycle racing world as a journalist and TV summariser. It was eye opening and heartfelt and I loved every minute of it.

[Matt]

Truly outstanding. This is the story of Philippa York (born Robert Millar) and her story of dealing with gender dysphoria that led to transitioning to becoming a woman. Robert Millar was a great British cyclist and pioneer well before Wiggins, Cavendish etal put Britain on the cycling map. Philippa York, working with her friend David Walsh (great sports journo and writer) tells the real story of her life. It’s told in a smart and accessible way. Her story juxtaposed with Millar’s racing past and the Tour de France’s of 2020 - 2022. There’s an emotional depth to the story and the writing and a deep understanding of the real and human challenges of being born in the wrong body. Deeply moving and equally illuminating. A courageous story.

[Rauno Villberg]

Fascinating and important story, it hasn't been easy for Pippa.
The old cycling stories are great and the duo reflecting on both stories of old and covering the recent Tours is great fun, they have great chemistry and the banter is enjoyable - and heartfelt, when the tougher/sadder topics come up (and, unfortunately for Pippa, there's quite a few of those)

The main thing I found annoying with this book is how much it jumps between different times, so at times it feels like a collection of short stories instead of one, linear narrative.

[Roberta Westwood]

Excellent

I preordered this book when it was first announced, and hung in as it was delayed a few times. Well, it was well worth the wait. How David and Pippa travelled together to the Tour de France over several seasons, using the time to chat, was a brilliant way to explore Pippa’s story, and turn their discussion into the narrative, worked so well. This made it one of the most interesting Tour de France books I’ve read, but also a frank and honest look at gender reassignment. Highly recommended.

[Simon Clydesdale]

Mind opening insight into the challenging transition of Pippa York from one of the world's greatest cycling climbers to a place of happiness and success covering a sport that when she was at her peak as a cyclist would never understand or accept her journey.

Only caveat is the format of the book is a little odd - reminiscences and reportage of Pippa's cycling career, interspersed with touching accounts of a childhood coming to terms with her gender dysphoria, sprinkled with conversations between Pippa and cycling journo David Walsh.

[Richard]

A poignant, raw and honest insight into the life of Pippa York, previously the former Tour De France King of the Mountains cyclist Robert Millar.

The book feels like three books, a frank journey about a man transitioning into a woman, the autobiography of one of Britain’s best ever cyclists and surprisingly an oddball couple road trip across France.

David Walsh brings a level of understanding and care during the more conversational parts of the book and helps to brings Pippas remarkable journey to life.

Highly recommend.

[Elin]

A great concept, this book takes the form of a long interview with flashbacks between David Walsh, a brilliant sports journalist, and Pippa York, the transgender cyclist who used to ride as Robert Millar.
I love cycling and the Tour de France particularly, and I was excited for some interesting discussion on gender and sport and doping. This book did deliver some of that but the flashbacks especially fell a bit flat for me and seemed to Peter out

[Chloe Paton]

Read for Book Club.

Ultimately this was quite an interesting discussion on Cycling, the Tour de France, doping, and being transgender. I was expecting some of it based on the cover, but I actually found the conversations on doping in elite cycling super interesting.

Some of the back/forth in the timeline was a bit confusing. But it ultimately felt like I was listening in on a conversation which was what was needed.

[Paul]

Conversations between journalist David Walsh, and journalist and former cyclist Pippa York as they travel around France reporting on the Tour de France. A welcome antidote to previous hatchet jobs on the life of Pippa York, and they cover some glorious Tours en route, with the arrival of Pogacar and the renaissance of Mark Cavendish. Any professional cyclist's reflections of life on a pro-team in the 1980s always sounds grim.

[Darkpool]

A really entertaining and super interesting book. Not sure who the conversational style of some of the sections would go in the written form, but in leant itself to audio, where I felt I was listening in on the conversation in the car - especially with the navigation butted in. Pippa's story was fascinating, and I'm glad to have heard it through her own words.

[Alan]

This is as interesting to non-cycling fans as well as cycling fans. It details the transition of Pippa York and is very moving and gives a true insight into the difficulties and prejudices of people towards anyone who wants to transition. It is written with humour and honesty by Pippa and David Walsh who is one of the best sports writers ever.

[Sam Pratt]

A fascinating cycling memoir, Tour de France travelogue and Pippa York’s personal story. The conversations between Pippa York and David Walsh make for an easy, intimate read.

Great insights into professional cycling and the Tour de France are very interesting.

An engaging, moving and genuinely different cycling book well worth a read.

[R L]

Self indulgent tripe.

How many conversations can they have on gender, sex, estrogen, testosterone.... Unlimited it seems.

What defines Robert Millar is the Cycling - not the fact Robert is Pippa.

Expected better from David Walsh.

[Emma]

Interesting read. Didn’t quite connect with the cycling stories as I have no clue about anything in that world but I liked the format of this book and Pippa’s personal stories. Quite repetitive and felt it ended abruptly.

[The Master]

One of the best cycling books I've ever read. I liked the kaleidoscopic arrangement of autobiography, history, journalism and banter. Something to discover on each page.

[Mark Salmon]

What a fascinating read. Mixing up the old and the new . A remarkable story of bravery and conviction .

[MR TW]

A story that needed telling. A heartbreaking tale of ignorance and intolerance, with lessons for us all.

[Stuart Sellers]

Not sure the conversational format and jumping around of time periods always worked, but a fascinating insight into an inspirational person.