Great Coastal Railway Journeys
Great Coastal Railway Journeys is a TV show on BBC2. All aboard! Weaving through charming seaside towns, historic landmarks and natural wonders, Michael Portillo explores the coastal communities the railways made. The program has been available since 2024. A total of 54 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in September 2025.
Last episode
Great Coastal Railway Journeys
Michael Portillo takes the train to the medieval walled town of Conwy on the last leg of his exploration of the shores of north Wales.
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Michael is on the Isle of Anglesey, where the briny waters of the Menai Strait are being used to create a Welsh gastronomic delight.
Michael Portillo steams through the glorious scenery of the Snowdonia National Park on one of Britain’s greatest heritage lines, the Welsh Highland Railway.
Michael Portillo continues his railway journey in north Wales, tracking the coastline north from Harlech to skirt the Llyn Peninsula.
Michael Portillo embarks on a railway journey around the western coast of Wales. He begins on the Victorian Cliff Railway at Aberystwyth, finishing the first leg in Tywyn.
Michael Portillo nears the end of his railway adventure tracking the rugged coast of south west England. He finishes in the westernmost reaches of England, in the Scillonian archipelago.
Michael reaches the pretty Cornish fishing village of St Mawes, today an exclusive holiday destination for connoisseurs of yachts, fine food and luxury hotels.
Michael leaves Devon for Cornwall and the rugged Atlantic coast of its northern shore, where the ruins of Tintagel Castle emerge from the mist and spray of the sea.
Michael Portillo reaches Devon’s county town, Exeter, dominated since the Middle Ages by its magnificent Gothic cathedral. He joins stonemasons charged with conserving its intricate Beer stonework.
Series 2
30:00
30:00The final leg of Michael Portillo's South Coast adventure begins in Fishbourne. He also visits Brighton, and the South Downs.
30:00Michael Portillo explores Lee on the Solent in Hampshire, the maritime city of Portsmouth, and Chichester's vast, natural harbour.
30:00Michael Portillo heads from Southampton to the Isle of Wight, where he rides the island's railway, made up of recycled London Underground trains.
30:00Michael Portillo visits Dorset's Jurassic Coast. He heads through Swanage, Poole and Sandbanks, before ending his journey on Brownsea Island.
30:00Michael Portillo travels across Dorset, beginning in Portland Harbour, the location for the 2012 Olympic sailing events.
30:00Michael Portillo travels from the capital of the Republic of Ireland, Dublin, on the DART suburban railway to the harbour town of Dun Laoghaire.
30:00Michael Portillo makes his way from the vast beaches of the Carlingford Peninsula to the capital of the Republic of Ireland, Dublin.
30:00Michael Portillo makes his way from Bangor to Belfast, along the way enjoying live music on a boat and visiting the parliament building at Stormont.
30:00Michael Portillo visits a museum in Belfast Lough telling the story of Ireland's railway heritage and learns of the important role of Carrickfergus.
30:00Michael Portillo heads to Northern Ireland's Causeway coast beginning a new journey along the north and east coasts through Ulster and Leinster.
30:00Michael Portillo reaches Lincolnshire, where his coastal railway journey ends. In Grimsby Town, he investigates a new stage in the town's history.