Great British Railway Journeys Series 1

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[edit] General Information

Travel Documentary hosted by Michael Portillo and published by BBC in 2009 - English narration

[edit] Cover

[edit] Information

Documentary series in which Michael Portillo travels the length and breadth of Britain by train. Taking a copy of George Bradshaw's Victorian Railway Guidebook, he discovers how the railways changed us and what of Bradshaw's Britain remains.

[edit] Liverpool to Scarborough

Ep1: Liverpool to Eccles.
Michael begins his journey on the world's first passenger railway line, learns to speak Scouse in Liverpool, finds out about the first railway fatality and explores the origins of the Eccles cake.

Ep2: Manchester to Bury.
Michael is in Manchester to find out more about George Bradshaw himself. He also gets fitted for a trilby in Denton and learns how the railways helped to create a national institution - fish and chips.

Ep3: Todmorden to York.
On his first journey from Liverpool to Scarborough, Michael travels back in time on the Embsay and Bolton Abbey Steam Railway, finds out about the latest Roman discoveries in York and takes to the air in the Network Rail helicopter.

Ep4: Pontefract to Bridlington.
On his first journey from Liverpool to Scarborough, Michael searches for the last liquorice grower in Pontefract, discovers how the railways turned Hull into one of the largest white fish ports in the world and goes fishing for sea bass in Bridlington.

Ep5: Filey to Scarborough.
Michael goes bird-watching on the wild cliffs of Flamborough Head, learns to decipher traditional knitting patterns in Filey and meets one of Scarborough's oldest residents - a 4000-year-old skeleton called Gristhorpe Man.

[edit] Preston to Kirkcaldy

Ep6: Preston to Morecambe.
He explores the origins of the temperance movement in Preston, samples the attractions of Blackpool, a resort made by the railways, and takes a walk across Morecambe Bay with the official Keeper of the Sands.

Ep7: Settle to Garsdale.
He returns to the historic Settle-Carlisle line to find out what has happened to it since he helped save it in the 1980s. Along the way, he explores the magnificent Ribblehead viaduct, finds out about the navvies who helped to build it and catches a steam train along the line.

Ep8: Windermere to Kendal.
He takes a steamboat tour of Lake Windermere, visits Wordsworth's home village of Grasmere and makes sausages with a local Herdwick sheep farmer.

Ep9: Carlisle to Glasgow.
He meets the wild clansmen of Carlisle, the Border Reivers, witnesses a wedding in Gretna Green and visits a secret World War One munitions factory.

Ep10: Edinburgh to Kirkcaldy.
He makes apple juice in the Clyde valley orchards, pays a thrilling visit to the top of the Forth Rail Bridge and relives his childhood memories in his grandparents' home town of Kirkcaldy.

[edit] Swindon to Penzance

Ep11: Swindon to Bristol.
Michael finds out about free holiday trains for the GWR workers in Swindon, samples the Spa in Bath, and tries his hand at glass blowing in Bristol.

Ep12: Yatton to Weston Super Mare.
Michael samples local Cheddar strawberries, explores Cheddar Gorge and the famous caves, and visits one of the oldest piers in the country at Weston Super Mare.

Ep13: Torquay to Totnes.
Michael finds out about Torquay's micro climate, goes salmon fishing on the Dart estuary and spends some of Totnes' new local currency.

Ep14: Bugle to Mevagissey.
Michael visits the largest clay mine in the world near St Austell, goes pilchard fishing in Mevagissey and finds out how the estate of Heligan shaped British gardens.

Ep15: Truro to Penzance.
Michael searches for the lost church of St Piran, explores the last working tin mine in Cornwall and harvests oysters on the Helford River.

[edit] Buxton to London

Ep16: Buxton to Matlock.
Michael visits an architectural wonder, the Duke of Devonshire's stables in Buxton, helps to repair the ancient peat landscape of the Peak District and travels on the historic steam railway to Rowsley.

Ep17: Cromford to Burton-On-Trent.
Michael visits the oldest working factory in the world at Cromford, explores the country's first public park in Derby and finds out why Burton's beer is said to be the best.

Ep18: Walsall to Bournville.
Michael meets the queen's saddler in Walsall, learns how to cook an authentic Indian curry in Birmingham and visits Bournville, rumoured to be the best place to live in Britain.

Ep19: Coventry to Watford.
Michael relives the Coventry Blitz, meets the last pure breed Aylesbury duck farmer in Buckinghamshire and finds out how the trains helped to evacuate millions of children during World War II.

Ep20: Pancras to Westminister.
Michael explores one of the grandest railway stations and hotels in the country: St Pancras. He rides the world's first tube line to Smithfield market and climbs up the clock tower of the Houses of Parliament to hear Big Ben chime.