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 2025. A total of 275 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in March 2026.
Last episode
25:00
25:00Great British Railway Journeys
Michael Portillo sets off on a trip through Britain's industrial heartlands in the footsteps of George V, beginning by travelling from Warrington to Preston.
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25:00In Snowdonia, Michael Portillo braves the fastest zip line in the world - 1,500 feet across a quarry - as he begins the last leg of his journey to Caernarfon.
35:00Michael Portillo travels between Liverpool and Wales, finding a miniature tank engine made by Frank Hornby and visiting the ruins of Gwrych Castle.
25:00Michael Portillo travels to the steel city of Sheffield where he discovers an early 20th century steam engine, before heading to Nantwich.
25:00Michael Portillo conducts important research in an historic York tea room, discovers Leeds' textile heritage, and investigates Bradford's musical heritage.
25:00Michael Portillo embarks on the first leg of a journey from East Yorkshire to Caernarfon, beginning by travelling from Hull to Malton.
35:00Travelling from Plymouth to the Lizard, Michael Portillo investigates the first radio signal to be sent across the Atlantic.
25:00Michael Portillo travels between Taunton and Newton Abbot, joining in with a fertility dance in Stogumber, and visiting a celebrated garden at Hestercombe.
25:00Michael Portillo arrives in Newport, where he learns about the heroism of a young boy who was awarded the Albert Medal.
25:00Michael Portillo travels from Pontyclun to Ebbw Vale in Wales, visiting the Royal Mint in Llantrisant and Cardiff Arms Park.
35:00Michael Portillo embarks on the first leg of a journey from the coalfields of South Wales to the southernmost tip of Cornwall.
25:00In Dorset, Michael Portillo visits Brownsea Island, where Robert Baden Powell began the scout movement in the early 20th century.
25:00Michael Portillo visits places of interest in West Sussex and Hampshire, including Southsea's King's Theatre.
25:00Michael Portillo travels from Croydon to Shoreham-by-Sea, hearing the story of a once-celebrated composer and visiting the oldest licensed airport in the UK.
35:00Michael Portillo explores Edwardian utopia in Letchworth, where he meets a fourth generation citizen who introduces him to the town's community spirit.
25:00Michael Portillo embarks on train journeys through Edwardian Britain, exploring the grand estates of Norfolk and a bivouac on Brownsea Island on the way.
Series 14
25:00
25:00Michael visits the fairy-tale 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.
25:00At the African and Caribbean Heritage Centre in Wolverhampton, Michael finds out about the impact of Enoch Powell's 1968 speech on immigration in Wolverhampton and across the nation.
35:00Michael Portillo’s railway journey reaches the heart of the Warwickshire countryside, where work is underway the biggest project of new railway infrastructure in Britain for a hundred years: HS2.
25:00In 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.