Great British Railway Journeys
Great British Railway Journeys is a TV show on BBC4. Documentary series in which Michael Portillo travels the country by train. The program has been available since 2026. A total of 120 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in November 2026.
Last episode
22:39
22:39Great British Railway Journeys
Michael Portillo explores Snowdonia, the town of Porthmadog, and the village Portmeirion, crafted by Bertram Clough Williams-Ellis.
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22:21Michael Portillo is in Northumbria, discovering what lay behind a national initiative to plant one of the largest manmade woodlands in Europe.
Series 12
22:57
22:57Michael Portillo continues his railway tour of north Wales in the coastal city of Bangor, before turning south to Betws y Coed, the gateway to Snowdonia.
Series 11 22:22
22:22Beginning in Jarrow, Michael uncovers the desperation which led 200 men to march 300miles to Westminster in order to petition the Government for work.
Series 16
Michael's exploration of Essex is drawing to a close. He visits Colchester, which was first mentioned in AD77 and proudly claims to be Britain’s oldest recorded town.
Arriving in the Essex market town of Witham, Michael heads into the countryside to visit Terling Place, one of the county’s great country houses.
Michael’s exploration of Essex reaches Chelmsford, where the city's bishop relates her story of escape from Iran after the Islamic revolution of 1979.
Michael’s exploration of Essex continues in Romford, where he visits a state-of-the-art rail-operating centre. On the River Blackwater, he visits the Ross Revenge, home of Radio Caroline.
Michael Portillo embarks on a journey across Essex. He heads to the ancient woodland of Epping Forest and learns of Audley End House's role as a secret wartime military school.
On the final leg of his Midlands tour, Michael Portillo travels to Solihull, the home of iconic British brand Land Rover. Later, he visits the childhood neighbourhood of JRR Tolkien.
Arriving in Birmingham, Michael Portillo heads to Curzon Street for a tour of the HS2 terminus still under construction. In the Newtown area, he visits the oldest private manufacturing firm in the UK.
Michael Portillo boards a barge on the Dudley Canal, discovers an ancient seabed and explores racial tension in 1960s Smethwick.
Michael Portillo is in Ironbridge Gorge on the River Severn, a hotbed of 18th-century innovation which features the world's first coke blast iron furnace.
Michael Portillo re-enacts the Battle of Shrewsbury, explores the town's beautiful Gothic cathedral and rides the Telford Steam Railway’s flagship locomotive.
Michael concludes his journey from Cumbria to Dumfriesshire by crossing the Solway Firth into Scotland, where he visits the beautifully preserved last home of Scotland’s greatest poet, Robert Burns.
Michael Portillo’s railway journey through Cumbria and Dumfriesshire takes him to the rolling countryside around Aspatria to meet a couple who swapped their old life for organic dairy farming.
Michael Portillo’s railway journey through Cumbria and Dumfriesshire heads to the hills as he follows in the footsteps of the Lakeland poets.
Michael Portillo’s railway tour continues as he travels along the scenic Cumbrian Coast Line. He visits an iron ore mine turned into an arts centre and discovers the cradle of Quakerism.
Michael Portillo begins a railway tour of the spectacular border counties of Cumbria and Dumfriesshire, starting in the stunning Lake District National Park.
Series 13 25:00
25:00Armed with his interwar copy of Bradshaw’s Guide to the Railways, Michael reaches the Kent seaside resort of Herne Bay, where he learns about a pioneering aviatrix.