Canal Boat Diaries
Canal Boat Diaries is a TV show on BBC4. Robbie Cumming offers a look at life on his narrowboat while travelling through England. The program has been available since 2026. A total of 47 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in July 2026.
Last episode
30:00
30:00Canal Boat Diaries
Robbie Cumming explores a Victorian village in West Yorkshire, moors up in Leeds Dock, and goes in search of an abandoned Aire and Calder Navigation waterway.
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30:00Robbie Cumming crosses the Pennines on the picturesque Leeds and Liverpool Canal before lending a hand to hire boaters in Gargrave in North Yorkshire.
30:00Robbie Cumming begins a new 170-mile journey across the north of England but soon runs into difficulty with a problem with his craft's propeller in Wigan.
Series 2
30:00
30:00Robbie crosses an epic aqueduct near Stratford-upon-Avon and gets stuck in a lock in central Birmingham.
Series 6 1:00:00
1:00:00Robbie mends a leaky pump on the Naughty Lass on the Grand Union Canal. In Watford, he visits a TV legend's home and buys gas from a friendly fuel boat.
1:00:00While exploring the Wey and Godalming Navigations, Robbie gets caught in a storm and falls off his narrowboat. He also uncovers rock history in Guildford.
1:00:00Robbie returns to where his boating life began, exploring London's canals on Naughty Lass. He travels through Little Venice and moors in Paddington Basin.
Series 5 1:00:00
1:00:00Robbie Cumming discovers a mysterious message in a bottle on the Ashby Canal and calls in to meet a mate who lives on an old narrowboat.
1:00:00Disaster strikes when the Naughty Lass collides with a low bridge on the Bumble Hole Canal Branch damaging a chimney.
Series 6 1:00:00
1:00:00Robbie moors by Hampton Court Palace, but disaster strikes when a tree branch smashes a window. His dad joins to help through Hanwell locks.
1:00:00Robbie's narrowboat gets stuck under a low bridge on the challenging Basingstoke Canal as he battles through water weed. Can he make it to journey's end?
1:00:00Robbie visits a former Beatle's home in Henley, uncovers horror history in Marlow and struggles to find a mooring in Maidenhead on the River Thames.
1:00:00Robbie's narrowboat gets a makeover before he explores the River Thames, he moors in Abingdon and tackles an emergency DIY repair to fix a leak.
1:00:00Robbie navigates the Oxford Canal, bumps into a hire boat and a hedge and tackles large river locks on the scenic Upper River Thames.
Series 1 30:00
30:00Robbie Cumming concludes his journey by travelling from Barton Swing Aqueduct to Liverpool Docks - but experiences engine problems on the way.
30:00Robbie Cumming continues across the Pennines from Marple to Huddersfield, where his journey is hampered by a fallen tree and a leaking lock pound.
30:00Robbie Cumming explores the English canal network. A low canal tunnel in Staffordshire proves to be problematic and Robbie helps out a stranded boater.
30:00Robbie Cumming journeys from Shardlow to Etruria Junction, Stoke on Trent, exploring the Trent and Mersey Canal.
Series 6 1:00:00
1:00:00Robbie Cumming navigates the scenic Oxford Canal onboard Naughty Lass, explores its twists and turns, and helps tow a stranded broken-down boater.
Series 5 1:00:00
1:00:00During a cold snap Robbie Cumming gets iced in on the Grand Union Canal. Later, his parents pay a visit and help him through Marsworth Locks.