Great British Railway Journeys S16 E11-E15 (1080p, soft English subtitles)

Great British Railway Journeys S16 E11-E15 (1080p, soft English subtitles)

All aboard! Armed with his trusty Bradshaw's guide, Michael Portillo explores the UK the railways made. Uncover hidden gems and fascinating communities from across the nation.
E11 Shrewsbury to Telford
Sharp as an arrow and armed with a longbow, Michael Portillo re-enacts the Battle of Shrewsbury, fought at the Shropshire village of Battlefield in 1403. He hears how the rebel Harry Hotspur challenged King Henry IV for the throne of England and is impressed by the decisive role of the longbowmen. In the picturesque Shropshire county town of Shrewsbury, Michael explores the beautiful Gothic cathedral. He marvels at the youth of its designers: a teenage architect and a 20-something artist of stained-glass windows.
From one of the prettiest stations in Britain, at Horsehay and Dawlish near Telford, Michael rides the Telford Steam Railway’s flagship locomotive along the revived Wellington to Craven Arms line and meets a grandfather, father and son dedicated to restoring a 1959 diesel locomotive.

E12 Ironbridge to Coseley
Michael Portillo is in Ironbridge Gorge on the River Severn, where he discovers the Silicon Valley of the 18th century. Exploring this hotbed of industrial innovation, he takes in the iron bridge itself and the world’s first coke blast iron furnace. The list of 'firsts' in this valley is breathtaking, including the wild concept of locomotion, which Michael experiences on board an exact replica of the world’s first steam locomotive. Michael investigates the rich heritage of the Black Country in Wolverhampton with a lesson in 'yam yam' before heading to Coseley, where he discovers that one of the area’s most successful industries, brick making, continues at Ketley Brick. Michael visits the firm’s bespoke workshop – operating on the same site since 1805 - and makes a creditable bullnose brick.

E13 Dudley to West Bromwich
Michael Portillo boards a barge on the Dudley Canal, built in 1775 as a vital transport link for the town’s coal and limestone mines. Travelling through the second-longest navigable tunnel in the UK, he marvels at the beauty of a vast cave known as the Singing Cavern.
At nearby Wren’s Nest, a former limestone quarry that's now part of Unesco's Black Country Geopark, Michael discovers an ancient seabed where over 650 sea fossils have been found. He is introduced to the 428-million-year-old Dudley Bug, adopted as the emblem of 19th-century miners. Continuing east to the town of Smethwick, Michael explores how postwar Commonwealth immigration to fill factory jobs led to racial tension on the streets. The son of a 60s anti-racist activist tells him how the politically charged atmosphere hit the headlines and led to the visit of American civil rights campaigner Malcolm X.

E14 Birmingham New Street to Wednesbury
Arriving in Birmingham, Michael Portillo heads to Curzon Street for a tour of the HS2 terminus still under construction. He discovers that parts of the site’s 1838 station are being lovingly preserved and gets a bird’s eye view of where the 225 mph service will arrive in the heart of the city. In the Newtown area, Michael visits the oldest private manufacturing company in the UK. He finds out that Firmin and Sons, dating back to 1655, is still making buttons for the royal family and the military. In the company’s archive, he’s blown away by a button worn by Lord Nelson at the Battle of Trafalgar.
Just outside the city, Michael travels to the small town of Wednesbury to the headquarters of Birmingham’s tram service, the West Midlands Metro. In the control room, he finds out how the 14-mile network is monitored and takes a driving test on a tram simulator.

E15 Solihull to Birmingham International
On the final leg of his Midlands tour, Michael Portillo travels to Solihull, the home of iconic British brand Land Rover. He discovers that their factory, now owned by Indian Tata Motors, produced the first Land Rover model in the 1940s. Michael gets to put a modern Range Rover through its paces in a hair-raising off-road experience. Just south of the city, in Hall Green, he visits the childhood neighbourhood of legendary author JRR Tolkien. He learns how the peaceful rural setting of Sarehole Mill provided inspiration for the fantasy world of Middle Earth in The Hobbit and The Lord of the Rings. Michael finishes his tour at Britain’s first electric-only freight train operator, based at Birmingham International Station. He’s surprised to see how passenger trains that were new when he was minister for transport in the 1980s are now being used to carry parcels from Birmingham to Scotland.

First broadcast: 21 April 2025
Duration: 30 minutes per episode
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