Great Railway Journeys
Encyclopedia
Great Railway Journeys, originally titled Great Railway Journeys of the World, is a recurring series of travel documentaries
produced by BBC Television
. The premise of each programme is that the presenter, typically a well-known figure from the arts or media, would make a journey by train, usually through a country or to a destination to which they had a personal connection. There were four series broadcast on BBC Two
between 1980 and 1999, with the shorter series title being used for all but the first. In 2010 a similar series also aired on BBC Two, Great British Railway Journeys
.
, a documentary with similar basic idea to Great Railway Journeys but with a different format. It focused on just Great Britain
and featured a single celebrity host, the politician and broadcaster Michael Portillo
. It detailed four railway journeys, split into a run of 20 separate episodes.
A second series of Great British Railway Journeys aired in January 2011.
, Michael Palin's 1980 and 1994 programmes are available individually (BBCDVD1626) and as part of a box set of his collected travel documentaries, The Michael Palin Collection (BBCDVD2214).
Books have been published to accompany the first three series, with a chapter by each of the presenters on their particular journey:
A similar book was also published on Great Little Railways:
Travel documentary
A travel documentary is a documentary film or television program that describes travel in general or tourist attractions in a non-commercial way....
produced by BBC Television
BBC Television
BBC Television is a service of the British Broadcasting Corporation. The corporation, which has operated in the United Kingdom under the terms of a Royal Charter since 1927, has produced television programmes from its own studios since 1932, although the start of its regular service of television...
. The premise of each programme is that the presenter, typically a well-known figure from the arts or media, would make a journey by train, usually through a country or to a destination to which they had a personal connection. There were four series broadcast on BBC Two
BBC Two
BBC Two is the second television channel operated by the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It covers a wide range of subject matter, but tending towards more 'highbrow' programmes than the more mainstream and popular BBC One. Like the BBC's other domestic TV and radio...
between 1980 and 1999, with the shorter series title being used for all but the first. In 2010 a similar series also aired on BBC Two, Great British Railway Journeys
Great British Railway Journeys
Great British Railway Journeys is a BBC travel documentary television series presented by Michael Portillo. The series premiered on 4 January 2010 on BBC Two, running for 20 half-hour episodes....
.
Series 1: Great Railway Journeys of the World (1980)
Episode summary for Series 1:| Episode No. | Episode Title | UK Broadcast Date | Presenter | Details of Journey | Countries Visited |
| #1.0 | Introduction (extracts from forthcoming episodes in the series) | 1980-10-23 | - | - | - |
| #1.1 | "Coast to Coast" | 1980-10-30 | Ludovic Kennedy Ludovic Kennedy Sir Ludovic Henry Coverley Kennedy was a British journalist, broadcaster, humanist and author best known for re-examining cases such as the Lindbergh kidnapping and the murder convictions of Timothy Evans and Derek Bentley, and for his role in the abolition of the death penalty in the United... |
New York New York New York is a state in the Northeastern region of the United States. It is the nation's third most populous state. New York is bordered by New Jersey and Pennsylvania to the south, and by Connecticut, Massachusetts and Vermont to the east... to Los Angeles Los Ángeles Los Ángeles is the capital of the province of Biobío, in the commune of the same name, in Region VIII , in the center-south of Chile. It is located between the Laja and Biobío rivers. The population is 123,445 inhabitants... |
USA |
| #1.2 | "The Long Straight" | 1980-11-06 | Michael Frayn Michael Frayn Michael J. Frayn is an English playwright and novelist. He is best known as the author of the farce Noises Off and the dramas Copenhagen and Democracy... |
Sydney Sydney Sydney is the most populous city in Australia and the state capital of New South Wales. Sydney is located on Australia's south-east coast of the Tasman Sea. As of June 2010, the greater metropolitan area had an approximate population of 4.6 million people... to Perth Perth, Western Australia Perth is the capital and largest city of the Australian state of Western Australia and the fourth most populous city in Australia. The Perth metropolitan area has an estimated population of almost 1,700,000.... |
Australia Australia Australia , officially the Commonwealth of Australia, is a country in the Southern Hemisphere comprising the mainland of the Australian continent, the island of Tasmania, and numerous smaller islands in the Indian and Pacific Oceans. It is the world's sixth-largest country by total area... |
| #1.3 | "Deccan" | 1980-11-13 | Brian B. Thompson Brian B. Thompson Brian B. Thompson is a British television and radio writer whose work includes BBC1 children's show Byker Grove, for which he penned over 50 episodes. He also created the continuing detective series Trueman and Riley, broadcast on BBC7 and BBC Radio 4... |
Bombay to Cochin | India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... |
| #1.4 | "Confessions of a Trainspotter" | 1980-11-27 | Michael Palin Michael Palin Michael Edward Palin, CBE FRGS is an English comedian, actor, writer and television presenter best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python and for his travel documentaries.... |
London London London is the capital city of :England and the :United Kingdom, the largest metropolitan area in the United Kingdom, and the largest urban zone in the European Union by most measures. Located on the River Thames, London has been a major settlement for two millennia, its history going back to its... to the Kyle of Lochalsh Kyle of Lochalsh Kyle of Lochalsh is a village on the northwest coast of Scotland, 63 miles west of Inverness. It is located at the entrance to Loch Alsh, opposite the village of Kyleakin on the Isle of Skye... |
England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... , Scotland Scotland Scotland is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. Occupying the northern third of the island of Great Britain, it shares a border with England to the south and is bounded by the North Sea to the east, the Atlantic Ocean to the north and west, and the North Channel and Irish Sea to the... |
| #1.5 | "Zambezi Express" | 1980-12-04 | Michael Wood | Cape Town Cape Town Cape Town is the second-most populous city in South Africa, and the provincial capital and primate city of the Western Cape. As the seat of the National Parliament, it is also the legislative capital of the country. It forms part of the City of Cape Town metropolitan municipality... to Victoria Falls Victoria Falls The Victoria Falls or Mosi-oa-Tunya is a waterfall located in southern Africa on the Zambezi River between the countries of Zambia and Zimbabwe.-Introduction:... |
South Africa South Africa The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans... , Botswana Botswana Botswana, officially the Republic of Botswana , is a landlocked country located in Southern Africa. The citizens are referred to as "Batswana" . Formerly the British protectorate of Bechuanaland, Botswana adopted its new name after becoming independent within the Commonwealth on 30 September 1966... , Zimbabwe-Rhodesia |
| #1.6 | "Three Miles High" | 1980-12-11 | Miles Kington Miles Kington Miles Beresford Kington was a British journalist, musician and broadcaster.-Early life :... |
Lima Lima Lima is the capital and the largest city of Peru. It is located in the valleys of the Chillón, Rímac and Lurín rivers, in the central part of the country, on a desert coast overlooking the Pacific Ocean. Together with the seaport of Callao, it forms a contiguous urban area known as the Lima... to La Paz La Paz Nuestra Señora de La Paz is the administrative capital of Bolivia, as well as the departmental capital of the La Paz Department, and the second largest city in the country after Santa Cruz de la Sierra... |
Peru Peru Peru , officially the Republic of Peru , is a country in western South America. It is bordered on the north by Ecuador and Colombia, on the east by Brazil, on the southeast by Bolivia, on the south by Chile, and on the west by the Pacific Ocean.... , Bolivia Bolivia Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America... |
| #1.7 | "Changing Trains" | 1980-12-18 | Eric Robson Eric Robson Eric Robson, born in Scotland, is a television broadcaster, author and documentary film maker who has lived for most of his life in Cumbria, where he has a sheep farm.-Career:... |
Paris Paris Paris is the capital and largest city in France, situated on the river Seine, in northern France, at the heart of the Île-de-France region... to Budapest Budapest Budapest is the capital of Hungary. As the largest city of Hungary, it is the country's principal political, cultural, commercial, industrial, and transportation centre. In 2011, Budapest had 1,733,685 inhabitants, down from its 1989 peak of 2,113,645 due to suburbanization. The Budapest Commuter... |
France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... , Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... , Austria Austria Austria , officially the Republic of Austria , is a landlocked country of roughly 8.4 million people in Central Europe. It is bordered by the Czech Republic and Germany to the north, Slovakia and Hungary to the east, Slovenia and Italy to the south, and Switzerland and Liechtenstein to the... , Hungary Hungary Hungary , officially the Republic of Hungary , is a landlocked country in Central Europe. It is situated in the Carpathian Basin and is bordered by Slovakia to the north, Ukraine and Romania to the east, Serbia and Croatia to the south, Slovenia to the southwest and Austria to the west. The... |
Series 2: Great Railway Journeys (1994)
Episode summary for Series 2:| Episode No. | Episode Title | UK Broadcast Date | Presenter | Countries Visited |
| #2.1 | "From Hong Kong to Ulaanbaatar" | 1994-01-13 | Clive Anderson Clive Anderson Clive Anderson is a British former barrister, best known for being a comedy writer as well as a radio and television presenter in the United Kingdom... |
Hong Kong Hong Kong Hong Kong is one of two Special Administrative Regions of the People's Republic of China , the other being Macau. A city-state situated on China's south coast and enclosed by the Pearl River Delta and South China Sea, it is renowned for its expansive skyline and deep natural harbour... , China China Chinese civilization may refer to:* China for more general discussion of the country.* Chinese culture* Greater China, the transnational community of ethnic Chinese.* History of China* Sinosphere, the area historically affected by Chinese culture... , Mongolia Mongolia Mongolia is a landlocked country in East and Central Asia. It is bordered by Russia to the north and China to the south, east and west. Although Mongolia does not share a border with Kazakhstan, its western-most point is only from Kazakhstan's eastern tip. Ulan Bator, the capital and largest... |
| #2.2 | "Cape Town to the Lost City" | 1994-01-20 | Rian Malan Rian Malan Rian Malan is a South African author, journalist, documentarist and songwriter of Afrikaner descent. He first rose to prominence as the author of the memoir My Traitor's Heart, which, like the bulk of his work, deals with South African society in a historical and contemporary perspective and... |
South Africa South Africa The Republic of South Africa is a country in southern Africa. Located at the southern tip of Africa, it is divided into nine provinces, with of coastline on the Atlantic and Indian oceans... |
| #2.3 | "St. Petersburg to Tashkent" | 1994-01-27 | Natalia Makarova Natalia Makarova Nataliya Romanovna Makarova is the legendary Soviet-Russian-born prima ballerina. The History of Dance, published in 1981, notes that “Her performances set standards of artistry and aristocracy of dance which mark her as the finest ballerina of her generation.” She has also won awards as an... |
Russia Russia Russia or , officially known as both Russia and the Russian Federation , is a country in northern Eurasia. It is a federal semi-presidential republic, comprising 83 federal subjects... , Uzbekistan Uzbekistan Uzbekistan , officially the Republic of Uzbekistan is a doubly landlocked country in Central Asia and one of the six independent Turkic states. It shares borders with Kazakhstan to the west and to the north, Kyrgyzstan and Tajikistan to the east, and Afghanistan and Turkmenistan to the south.... |
| #2.4 | "Derry to Kerry" | 1994-02-03 | Michael Palin Michael Palin Michael Edward Palin, CBE FRGS is an English comedian, actor, writer and television presenter best known for being one of the members of the comedy group Monty Python and for his travel documentaries.... |
Northern Ireland Northern Ireland Northern Ireland is one of the four countries of the United Kingdom. Situated in the north-east of the island of Ireland, it shares a border with the Republic of Ireland to the south and west... , Republic of Ireland Republic of Ireland Ireland , described as the Republic of Ireland , is a sovereign state in Europe occupying approximately five-sixths of the island of the same name. Its capital is Dublin. Ireland, which had a population of 4.58 million in 2011, is a constitutional republic governed as a parliamentary democracy,... |
| #2.5 | "Santos to Santa Cruz" | 1994-02-10 | Lisa St Aubin de Terán Lisa St Aubin de Terán Lisa St Aubin de Terán is an award-winning English novelist, writer of autobiographical fictions, and memoirist.Lisa St Aubin de Terán was born in 1953 and brought up in Clapham in South London. She attended the James Allen's Girls' School... |
Brazil Brazil Brazil , officially the Federative Republic of Brazil , is the largest country in South America. It is the world's fifth largest country, both by geographical area and by population with over 192 million people... , Bolivia Bolivia Bolivia officially known as Plurinational State of Bolivia , is a landlocked country in central South America. It is the poorest country in South America... |
| #2.6 | "Karachi to The Khyber Pass" | 1994-02-17 | Mark Tully Mark Tully Sir William "Mark" Tully, OBE is the former Chief of Bureau, BBC, New Delhi. He worked for BBC for a period of 30 years before resigning in July 1994. He held the position of Chief of Bureau, BBC, Delhi for 20 years. Since 1994 he has been working as a freelance journalist and broadcaster based in... |
Pakistan Pakistan Pakistan , officially the Islamic Republic of Pakistan is a sovereign state in South Asia. It has a coastline along the Arabian Sea and the Gulf of Oman in the south and is bordered by Afghanistan and Iran in the west, India in the east and China in the far northeast. In the north, Tajikistan... |
Series 3: Great Railway Journeys (1996)
Episode summary for Series 3:| Episode No. | Episode Title | UK Broadcast Date | Presenter | Countries Visited |
| #3.1 | "Crewe to Crewe" | 1996-09-04 | Victoria Wood Victoria Wood Victoria Wood CBE is a British comedienne, actress, singer-songwriter, screenwriter and director. Wood has written and starred in sketches, plays, films and sitcoms, and her live stand-up comedy act is interspersed with her own compositions, which she accompanies on piano... |
United Kingdom United Kingdom The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages... |
| #3.2 | "Aleppo to Aqaba" | 1996-09-11 | Alexei Sayle Alexei Sayle Alexei David Sayle is a British stand-up comedian, actor and author. He was a central part of the alternative comedy circuit in the early 1980s. He was voted the 18th greatest stand-up comic on Channel 4's 100 Greatest Stand-ups in 2007... |
Syria Syria Syria , officially the Syrian Arab Republic , is a country in Western Asia, bordering Lebanon and the Mediterranean Sea to the West, Turkey to the north, Iraq to the east, Jordan to the south, and Israel to the southwest.... , Jordan Jordan Jordan , officially the Hashemite Kingdom of Jordan , Al-Mamlaka al-Urduniyya al-Hashemiyya) is a kingdom on the East Bank of the River Jordan. The country borders Saudi Arabia to the east and south-east, Iraq to the north-east, Syria to the north and the West Bank and Israel to the west, sharing... |
| #3.3 | "Great Zimbabwe to Kilimatinde" | 1996-09-18 | Henry Louis Gates Jr. | Zimbabwe Zimbabwe Zimbabwe is a landlocked country located in the southern part of the African continent, between the Zambezi and Limpopo rivers. It is bordered by South Africa to the south, Botswana to the southwest, Zambia and a tip of Namibia to the northwest and Mozambique to the east. Zimbabwe has three... , Zambia Zambia Zambia , officially the Republic of Zambia, is a landlocked country in Southern Africa. The neighbouring countries are the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the north, Tanzania to the north-east, Malawi to the east, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, Botswana and Namibia to the south, and Angola to the west.... , Tanzania Tanzania The United Republic of Tanzania is a country in East Africa bordered by Kenya and Uganda to the north, Rwanda, Burundi, and the Democratic Republic of the Congo to the west, and Zambia, Malawi, and Mozambique to the south. The country's eastern borders lie on the Indian Ocean.Tanzania is a state... |
| #3.4 | "The High Andes to Patagonia" | 1996-09-25 | Buck Henry Buck Henry Henry Zuckerman, better known as Buck Henry , is an American actor, writer, film director, and television director.-Early life:... |
Argentina Argentina Argentina , officially the Argentine Republic , is the second largest country in South America by land area, after Brazil. It is constituted as a federation of 23 provinces and an autonomous city, Buenos Aires... |
| #3.5 | "Mombasa to the Mountains of the Moon" | 1996-10-02 | Benedict Allen Benedict Allen Benedict Colin Allen is a British traveller. He is best known for his survival modus operandi: tapping into local, indigenous knowledge above reliance on modern inventions. His approach is to present himself as ready to learn, like an infant; the communities that he visits take him under their... |
Kenya Kenya Kenya , officially known as the Republic of Kenya, is a country in East Africa that lies on the equator, with the Indian Ocean to its south-east... , Uganda Uganda Uganda , officially the Republic of Uganda, is a landlocked country in East Africa. Uganda is also known as the "Pearl of Africa". It is bordered on the east by Kenya, on the north by South Sudan, on the west by the Democratic Republic of the Congo, on the southwest by Rwanda, and on the south by... |
| #3.6 | "London to Arcadia" | 1996-10-09 | Ben Okri Ben Okri Ben Okri OBE FRSL is a Nigerian poet and novelist. Okri has become the leading figure of his generation of Nigerian writers who have largely abandoned the social and historical themes of Chinua Achebe, and brought together modernist narrative strategies and Nigerian oral and literary... |
England England England is a country that is part of the United Kingdom. It shares land borders with Scotland to the north and Wales to the west; the Irish Sea is to the north west, the Celtic Sea to the south west, with the North Sea to the east and the English Channel to the south separating it from continental... , France France The French Republic , The French Republic , The French Republic , (commonly known as France , is a unitary semi-presidential republic in Western Europe with several overseas territories and islands located on other continents and in the Indian, Pacific, and Atlantic oceans. Metropolitan France... , Switzerland Switzerland Switzerland name of one of the Swiss cantons. ; ; ; or ), in its full name the Swiss Confederation , is a federal republic consisting of 26 cantons, with Bern as the seat of the federal authorities. The country is situated in Western Europe,Or Central Europe depending on the definition.... , Italy Italy Italy , officially the Italian Republic languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Italy's official name is as follows:;;;;;;;;), is a unitary parliamentary republic in South-Central Europe. To the north it borders France, Switzerland, Austria and... , Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
| #3.7 | "Halifax to Porteau Cove" | 1996-10-16 | Chris Bonington Chris Bonington Sir Christian John Storey Bonington, CVO, CBE, DL is a British mountaineer.His career has included nineteen expeditions to the Himalayas, including four to Mount Everest and the first ascent of the south face of Annapurna.-Early life and expeditions:Educated at University College School in... |
Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
Series 4: Great Railway Journeys (1999)
Episode summary for Series 4:| Episode No. | Episode Title | UK Broadcast Date | Presenter | Details of Journey | Countries Visited |
| #4.1 | "India East to West" | 1999-01-05 | Ian Hislop Ian Hislop Ian David Hislop is a British journalist, satirist, comedian, writer, broadcaster and editor of the satirical magazine Private Eye... |
Calcutta to Rajasthan Rajasthan Rājasthān the land of Rajasthanis, , is the largest state of the Republic of India by area. It is located in the northwest of India. It encompasses most of the area of the large, inhospitable Great Indian Desert , which has an edge paralleling the Sutlej-Indus river valley along its border with... |
India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... |
| #4.2 | "Granada to Salamanca" | 1999-01-12 | Michael Portillo Michael Portillo Michael Denzil Xavier Portillo is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative Party politician and Cabinet Minister... |
See episode title | Spain Spain Spain , officially the Kingdom of Spain languages]] under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages. In each of these, Spain's official name is as follows:;;;;;;), is a country and member state of the European Union located in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula... |
| #4.3 | "Tokyo to Kagoshima" | 1999-01-19 | Fergal Keane Fergal Keane Fergal Patrick Keane , is an Irish writer and broadcaster. For many years, Keane was the BBC's correspondent in Southern Africa. He is the nephew of Irish author John B. Keane.... |
See episode title | Japan Japan Japan is an island nation in East Asia. Located in the Pacific Ocean, it lies to the east of the Sea of Japan, China, North Korea, South Korea and Russia, stretching from the Sea of Okhotsk in the north to the East China Sea and Taiwan in the south... |
| #4.4 | "Los Mochis to Veracruz" | 1999-01-26 | Rick Stein Rick Stein Christopher Richard "Rick" Stein OBE is an English chef, restaurateur and television presenter. He is currently the head chef and co-owner of "Rick Stein at Bannisters" at Mollymook, New South Wales, Australia, owns four restaurants in Padstow, a fish and chip shop in Falmouth, Cornwall and has... |
See episode title | Mexico Mexico The United Mexican States , commonly known as Mexico , is a federal constitutional republic in North America. It is bordered on the north by the United States; on the south and west by the Pacific Ocean; on the southeast by Guatemala, Belize, and the Caribbean Sea; and on the east by the Gulf of... |
| #4.5 | "Guantanamo to Pinar del Rio" | 1999-02-02 | Nick Hancock | See episode title | Cuba Cuba The Republic of Cuba is an island nation in the Caribbean. The nation of Cuba consists of the main island of Cuba, the Isla de la Juventud, and several archipelagos. Havana is the largest city in Cuba and the country's capital. Santiago de Cuba is the second largest city... |
| #4.6 | "St Louis to Dogon Country" | 1999-02-09 | Danny Glover Danny Glover Danny Lebern Glover is an American actor, film director, and political activist. Glover is perhaps best known for his role as Detective Roger Murtaugh in the Lethal Weapon film franchise.-Early life:... |
See episode title | Senegal Senegal Senegal , officially the Republic of Senegal , is a country in western Africa. It owes its name to the Sénégal River that borders it to the east and north... , Mali Mali Mali , officially the Republic of Mali , is a landlocked country in Western Africa. Mali borders Algeria on the north, Niger on the east, Burkina Faso and the Côte d'Ivoire on the south, Guinea on the south-west, and Senegal and Mauritania on the west. Its size is just over 1,240,000 km² with... |
| #4.7 | "Singapore to Bangkok" | 1999-04-06 | Stephen Tompkinson Stephen Tompkinson Stephen Tompkinson is a British actor. He is best known for his work in comedy and drama productions such as Drop the Dead Donkey, Ballykissangel, Grafters, In Deep, Wild at Heart and DCI Banks.... |
See episode title | Singapore Singapore Singapore , officially the Republic of Singapore, is a Southeast Asian city-state off the southern tip of the Malay Peninsula, north of the equator. An island country made up of 63 islands, it is separated from Malaysia by the Straits of Johor to its north and from Indonesia's Riau Islands by the... , Malaysia, Thailand Thailand Thailand , officially the Kingdom of Thailand , formerly known as Siam , is a country located at the centre of the Indochina peninsula and Southeast Asia. It is bordered to the north by Burma and Laos, to the east by Laos and Cambodia, to the south by the Gulf of Thailand and Malaysia, and to the... |
Great Little Railways
In 1983 the BBC made a further series on rail travel (entitled "Great Little Railways"), this time exclusively featuring narrow gauge railways. This series relied on narrators rather than presenters who appeared on camera. In some cases, the narrator did not partake in the train journey, and simply recited the writing of that episode's producer.| Episode No. | Episode Title | UK Broadcast Date | Narrator | Writer | Details of Journey | Countries Visited |
| 1 | "The Gold Rush Line" | 1983-02-15 | Simon Hoggart Simon Hoggart Simon David Hoggart is an English journalist and broadcaster. He writes on politics for The Guardian, and on wine for The Spectator. Until 2006 he presented The News Quiz on Radio 4... |
Simon Hoggart Simon Hoggart Simon David Hoggart is an English journalist and broadcaster. He writes on politics for The Guardian, and on wine for The Spectator. Until 2006 he presented The News Quiz on Radio 4... |
White Pass and Yukon Route White Pass and Yukon Route The White Pass and Yukon Route is a Canadian and U.S. Class II narrow gauge railroad linking the port of Skagway, Alaska, with Whitehorse, the capital of Yukon. An isolated system, it has no direct connection to any other railroad. Equipment, freight and passengers are ferried by ship through the... |
Alaska Alaska Alaska is the largest state in the United States by area. It is situated in the northwest extremity of the North American continent, with Canada to the east, the Arctic Ocean to the north, and the Pacific Ocean to the west and south, with Russia further west across the Bering Strait... , USA and Yukon Yukon Yukon is the westernmost and smallest of Canada's three federal territories. It was named after the Yukon River. The word Yukon means "Great River" in Gwich’in.... , Canada Canada Canada is a North American country consisting of ten provinces and three territories. Located in the northern part of the continent, it extends from the Atlantic Ocean in the east to the Pacific Ocean in the west, and northward into the Arctic Ocean... |
| 2 | "The Other Poland" | 1983-02-22 | Brian Blessed Brian Blessed Brian Blessed is an English actor, known for his sonorous voice and "hearty, king-sized portrayals".-Early life:The son of William Blessed, a socialist miner, and Hilda Wall, Blessed was born in the town of Goldthorpe, West Riding of Yorkshire, England... |
Lyn Webster | Nasielsk Nasielsk Nasielsk is a small town in Masovian Voivodeship, Poland. It is located on a major Warsaw-Gdańsk rail line and serves as a junction, with an additional connection to Sierpc.... to Pułtusk & Komańcza Komancza Komańcza is a village in the Sanok County, in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship of south-eastern Poland. It is situated in the Bukowsko Upland mountains, located near the towns of Medzilaborce and Palota .-History:... to Cisna Cisna Cisna is the main village of the Gmina Cisna in the Lesko County, in the Subcarpathian Voivodeship of south-eastern Poland. It lies in the Solinka valley in between the Bieszczady mountains.-History:... |
Poland Poland Poland , officially the Republic of Poland , is a country in Central Europe bordered by Germany to the west; the Czech Republic and Slovakia to the south; Ukraine, Belarus and Lithuania to the east; and the Baltic Sea and Kaliningrad Oblast, a Russian exclave, to the north... |
| 3 | "Slow Train to Olympia" | 1983-03-01 | Michael Wood | Michael Wood | Athens Athens Athens , is the capital and largest city of Greece. Athens dominates the Attica region and is one of the world's oldest cities, as its recorded history spans around 3,400 years. Classical Athens was a powerful city-state... to Olympia Olympia, Greece Olympia , a sanctuary of ancient Greece in Elis, is known for having been the site of the Olympic Games in classical times, comparable in importance to the Pythian Games held in Delphi. Both games were held every Olympiad , the Olympic Games dating back possibly further than 776 BC... |
Greece Greece Greece , officially the Hellenic Republic , and historically Hellas or the Republic of Greece in English, is a country in southeastern Europe.... |
| 4 | "The Dragons of Sugar Island" | 1983-03-08 | Colin Garratt | Colin Garratt | Negros Island | Philippines Philippines The Philippines , officially known as the Republic of the Philippines , is a country in Southeast Asia in the western Pacific Ocean. To its north across the Luzon Strait lies Taiwan. West across the South China Sea sits Vietnam... |
| 5 | "Line of Dreams" | 1983-03-15 | John Shrapnel John Shrapnel John Shrapnel is an English actor.Shrapnel was born in Birmingham, Warwickshire, the son of Mary Lillian Myfanwy and journalist/author Norman Shrapnel.... |
Gerry Troyna | Jodhpur Jodhpur Jodhpur , is the second largest city in the Indian state of Rajasthan. It is located west from the state capital, Jaipur and from the city of Ajmer. It was formerly the seat of a princely state of the same name, the capital of the kingdom known as Marwar... and Jaipur Jaipur Jaipur , also popularly known as the Pink City, is the capital and largest city of the Indian state of Rajasthan. Founded on 18 November 1727 by Maharaja Sawai Jai Singh II, the ruler of Amber, the city today has a population of more than 3.1 million.... |
India India India , officially the Republic of India , is a country in South Asia. It is the seventh-largest country by geographical area, the second-most populous country with over 1.2 billion people, and the most populous democracy in the world... |
| 6 | "Journey to the Land Behind the Mountains" | 1983-03-22 | Ray Gosling Ray Gosling Ray Gosling is an English journalist, author, broadcaster and gay rights activist. In February 2010, he claimed during a local BBC television programme to have killed a lover, in an act of euthanasia. He was arrested and released on police bail... |
Ray Gosling Ray Gosling Ray Gosling is an English journalist, author, broadcaster and gay rights activist. In February 2010, he claimed during a local BBC television programme to have killed a lover, in an act of euthanasia. He was arrested and released on police bail... |
Douro Valley | Portugal Portugal Portugal , officially the Portuguese Republic is a country situated in southwestern Europe on the Iberian Peninsula. Portugal is the westernmost country of Europe, and is bordered by the Atlantic Ocean to the West and South and by Spain to the North and East. The Atlantic archipelagos of the... |
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Great British Railway Journeys
In January 2010 BBC Two aired Great British Railway JourneysGreat British Railway Journeys
Great British Railway Journeys is a BBC travel documentary television series presented by Michael Portillo. The series premiered on 4 January 2010 on BBC Two, running for 20 half-hour episodes....
, a documentary with similar basic idea to Great Railway Journeys but with a different format. It focused on just Great Britain
Great Britain
Great Britain or Britain is an island situated to the northwest of Continental Europe. It is the ninth largest island in the world, and the largest European island, as well as the largest of the British Isles...
and featured a single celebrity host, the politician and broadcaster Michael Portillo
Michael Portillo
Michael Denzil Xavier Portillo is a British journalist, broadcaster, and former Conservative Party politician and Cabinet Minister...
. It detailed four railway journeys, split into a run of 20 separate episodes.
A second series of Great British Railway Journeys aired in January 2011.
DVD and books
Although there have been no complete series of Great Railway Journeys released on DVDDVD
A DVD is an optical disc storage media format, invented and developed by Philips, Sony, Toshiba, and Panasonic in 1995. DVDs offer higher storage capacity than Compact Discs while having the same dimensions....
, Michael Palin's 1980 and 1994 programmes are available individually (BBCDVD1626) and as part of a box set of his collected travel documentaries, The Michael Palin Collection (BBCDVD2214).
Books have been published to accompany the first three series, with a chapter by each of the presenters on their particular journey:
- Frayn, M. et al. (1981), Great Railway Journeys of the World, BBC BooksBBC BooksBBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
, hardcover, ISBN 0-563-17903-1 - Anderson, C. et al. (1994), Great Railway Journeys, BBC BooksBBC BooksBBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
, hardcover, ISBN 0-563-36944-2 - Allen, B. et al. (1996), More Great Railway Journeys, BBC BooksBBC BooksBBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
, hardcover, ISBN 0-563-38717-3
A similar book was also published on Great Little Railways:
- Chamberlin, E.R. et al. (1984) Great Little Railways, BBC BooksBBC BooksBBC Books is an imprint majority owned and managed by Random House. The minority shareholder is BBC Worldwide, the commercial subsidiary of the British Broadcasting Corporation...
, hardcover, ISBN 0-563-202114