Great Continental Railway Journeys
Great Continental Railway Journeys is a TV show on BBC2. Michael Portillo ventures onto the European rail network. The program has been available since 2026. A total of 65 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in October 2026.
Last episode
44:19
44:19Great Continental Railway Journeys
Michael Portillo travels the Habsburg imperial line from Vienna across the impressive Semmering Pass, a railway line through the Alps, as he heads toward Trieste.
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44:13Armed with his 1913 Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo travels from Sofia to Istanbul along part of the route taken by the Orient Express.
Series 3
44:08
44:08Michael Portillo travels through France from Lyon down to Marseille on the Mediterranean coast, where he joins a pilot boat leading a supertanker to its berth.
44:31Michael Portillo travels through Israel and Palestine, visiting Jerusalem's Christian, Jewish and Muslim quarters and Bethlehem in the West Bank.
44:08Michael Portillo travels through Spain and Portugal, meeting people from all over the world on the pilgrims' trail to Santiago de Compostela in Galicia.
43:44Michael Portillo uses his 1913 copy of Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide to explore Poland, visiting Warsaw, Lodz, Poznan, Wroclaw and Krakow along the way.
50:00Michael Portillo ventures on to the European rail network once again with his 1913 Bradshaw's guide, travelling through Russia from Tula to St Petersburg.
Series 2 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels from Bordeaux to Bilbao, exploring the industrial ties between France and Spain and learning how to cook a traditional Basque dish.
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels through Bohemia and Bavaria, test driving a state-of-the-art passenger train in Pilsen and sampling the spa waters of Marianske Lazne.
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels through Scandinavia, crossing the bridge linking Denmark to Sweden to retrace the train journey of a revolutionary Russian passenger.
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels through Germany, revealing how British yachtsmen spied on the German navy in the early 20th century.
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels from Turin to Venice, recreating a scene from The Italian Job and investigating the British love affair with Lake Como in the 20th century.
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels through Spain as he once again ventures onto the European rail network, visiting Madrid, Cordoba, Seville, Algeciras and Gibraltar.
Series 1 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels through Holland and Belgium and ends his journey in France's Forest of Compiegne, where the WWI armistice was signed.
1:00:00Michael Portillo makes the spectacular ascent by train to Europe's highest station.
1:00:00Passing through the Harz Mountains, Michael Portillo travels from Berlin to the Rheingau.
1:00:00Michael Portillo explores the once-great empire of Austria-Hungary.
1:00:00Armed with his 1913 guide, Michael Portillo follows the most popular Edwardian route through France, stopping at Paris and the Cote D'Azur along the way.
Series 9
On the last leg of his journey, Michael Portillo arrives in the historic city of Eger. At its famous castle, he discovers how Ottoman invaders were defeated by an outnumbered Hungarian force.
At Budapest’s historic Nyugati station, Michael Portillo explores its sumptuous royal waiting room, built specially for the Austro-Hungarian emperor Franz Joseph I and his empress, Elizabeth.