The BEST episodes of Great British Railway Journeys

#1 - Tewkesbury to Filton

Season 14 - Episode 15 - Aired 7/21/2023

Michael visits the fairytale castle of Eastnor, at the foot of the Malvern Hills, before heading to the Severn Estuary and Filton, the centre of Britain's postwar aviation industry.

#2 - Newbridge to Roscrea

Season 4 - Episode 24 - Aired 2/7/2013

Michael Portillo takes to the tracks once again using his Bradshaw's 'Handbook for Tourists in Great Britain and Ireland' from the Victorian era. Portillo is on a railway journey through the Republic of Ireland travelling from the rugged beauty of County Kerry, across the rural Irish Midlands to end in the city of Galway on the Atlantic coast. In this episode, Michael visits the Irish National Stud, discovers how harsh life was for the Irish poor and uncovers an astronomical feat of Victorian engineering.

#3 - Brighton to Crystal Palace

Season 2 - Episode 1 - Aired 1/3/2011

Michael finds out about Brighton's Victorian aquarium

#4 - Canterbury to Alexandra Palace

Season 11 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/20/2020

Beginning in Canterbury in Kent, Michael treads the boards as he uncovers the political message behind a play, published in 1936, inspired by the 12th-century murder of Archbishop Thomas a Becket.

#5 - Deal to Margate

Season 13 - Episode 4 - Aired 5/20/2021

Michael heads to the splendid Walmer Castle, home during the 1920s to a Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, Lord Beauchamp, whose openly homosexual lifestyle led to his exile from the country.

#6 - Brandon to Cambridge

Season 14 - Episode 10 - Aired 6/30/2023

At RAF Lakenheath, Michael Portillo discovers a slice of America dropped into the British countryside. In the market town of Brandon on the border between Norfolk and Suffolk, he visits Quorn Foods to find how a seemingly modern meat substitute emerged out of a post-war food crisis. Michael ends his journey in Cambridge, where he studied during the 1970s.

#7 - Swanwick to Brownsea Island

Season 9 - Episode 5 - Aired 1/5/2018

Michael Portillo builds a bivouac with a group of scouts and learns about war horses.

#8 - Dundee to Aberdeen

Season 4 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/22/2013

Michael Portillo takes to the tracks with his copy of Bradshaw's Victorian railway guidebook, he travels the length and breadth of the British Isles to see what of Bradshaw's World remains. Michael is exploring the stunning scenery of rural and coastal Scotland, travelling from Stirling, through the industrial east coast and dramatic Highland landscapes, to the beauty of the western lochs, finally ending his journey in John O'Groats. Michael learns how Queen Victoria used to hide from her subjects, discovers how factory workers went deaf and goes out with a bang in Aberdeenshire.

#9 - Kingston upon Hull to Malton, North Yorkshire

Season 9 - Episode 11 - Aired 1/15/2018

#10 - York to Frizinghall

Season 9 - Episode 12 - Aired 1/16/2018

#11 - Plymouth to The Lizard

Season 9 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/12/2018

Michael Portillo boldly goes to the moon by the way of the Cornish Rivera Express!

#12 - Sheffield to Nantwich

Season 9 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/17/2018

#13 - Elgin to Loch Ness

Season 11 - Episode 5 - Aired 1/10/2020

Michael Portillo's journey ends at Loch Ness, where he joins the Deep Scan research team as they scour the deep for signs of the elusive monster.

#14 - Taunton to Salisbury Plain

Season 11 - Episode 10 - Aired 1/17/2020

Michael Portillo crosses the county line from Devon into Somerset. He sees first-hand how willow farmers sought to overcome the challenge from the production of synthetic plastics during the 1930s.

#15 - Witham to Felixstowe

Season 11 - Episode 13 - Aired 1/22/2020

Michael Portillo's railway journey reaches Witham in Essex. Here he visits the factory of the world's oldest supplier of metal framed windows which became popular in the 30s.

#16 - Farnborough to Winchester

Season 12 - Episode 5 - Aired 4/30/2021

Michael is heading for Farnborough, Hampshire, famous today for its airshow and home to what was then the Royal Aircraft Establishment.

#17 - Potters Bar to Cardington

Season 12 - Episode 8 - Aired 5/5/2021

Michael's Bradshaw travels resume in leafy Hertfordshire, where he attempts a canoe slalom course, visits the estate of Dame Barbara Cartland and hears the shocking story of the R101 airship.

#18 - Dagenham to Battersea

Season 13 - Episode 9 - Aired 5/27/2021

Armed with his 1930s Bradshaw’s guide, Michael is in London, where he tracks the River Thames from east to west. Starting in Dagenham, he ends up at the iconic Battersea Power Station.

#19 - Park Royal to Westminster

Season 13 - Episode 10 - Aired 5/28/2021

#20 - Paddington to Ongar

Season 14 - Episode 8 - Aired 6/28/2023

Michael Portillo ventures deep underground onto London's newest railway - the Elizabeth Line - enjoying a smooth ride from Paddington to Tottenham Court Road. Emerging into the sunshine in Bedford Square, Michael recalls the choking smogs which plagued the capital during the 1950s. He learns how smoke-free zones were introduced to tackle the problem and, high above the capital at the top of the BT Tower, discovers how the capital's air quality is monitored today.

#21 - Derby to Hinckley

Season 14 - Episode 11 - Aired 7/17/2023

Michael Portillo explores the postwar Britain of his youth on a railway journey from the Midlands to the West Country, beginning in the city of Derby.

#22 - Coventry to Leamington Spa

Season 14 - Episode 12 - Aired 7/18/2023

In Coventry, Michael recalls the destruction by the Luftwaffe of the city’s Gothic cathedral in November 1940, before heading to Leamington Spa to visit the Guide Dogs for the Blind National Centre.

#23 - Newport to Clevedon/Yatton/Bristol Channel

Season 9 - Episode 8 - Aired 1/10/2018

Michael Portillo prepares the Airbus 380 for a smooth landing at Fliton.

#24 - Amersham to Regent's Park

Season 6 - Episode 6 - Aired 1/12/2015

Michael Portillo embarks on a series of journeys through London. He travels on the capital's first underground railway, the Metropolitan Line, from Amersham, where he discovers the foundations for modern day suburbia

#25 - Cheltenham to Wolverhampton

Season 5 - Episode 15 - Aired 1/24/2014

On the final leg of his journey from Southampton to Wolverhampton, Michael Portillo's first destination is the elegant spa town of Cheltenham, where he discovers a very early locomotive carriage which ran not on rails but on the road and is lucky enough to get behind the wheel. His next stop is the medieval town of Tewkesbury, scene of a grisly battle during the Wars of the Roses. Armour-plated and sword at the ready, Michael joins a group of re-enactors for a taste of the action. Mercifully unscathed, he makes tracks for Droitwich to find out about how a lowly boatman became the King of Salt and lived in a beautiful chateau, an unexpected sight in the Midlands countryside. Michael's journey ends in Wolverhampton, where he hears Queen Victoria made an emotional visit which signalled the end of her exile from public life after mourning her husband, Prince Albert. He learns how the townspeople showed off their talents to the Queen, among them the lost art of Japanning, a speciality of Wolverhampton.