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 2024. A total of 45 episodes have been broadcast, most recently in November 2024.
Last episode
1:00:00
1:00:00Great Continental Railway Journeys
Michael Portillo ventures on to the European rail network once again with his 1913 Bradshaw's guide, travelling through Russia from Tula to St Petersburg.
Catching up on Great Continental Railway Journeys?
Don't want to miss an episode anymore? Set up a free alarm and receive an email when new episodes are available. Handy!
1:00:00Michael Portillo embarks on a scenic thousand-mile rail journey from the Swedish capital, Stockholm, to Abisko in the Arctic Circle.
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.
Series 7 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels by train through Austria and the Czech Republic, beginning in the northern Austrian city of Linz, where Adolf Hitler lived as a boy.
Series 2 1:00:00
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.
Series 7 1:00:00
1:00:00On a railway journey from the capital Palermo to Europe's largest volcano, Mount Etna, Michael Portillo explores Sicilian life under Mussolini.
Series 2 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels through Scandinavia, crossing the bridge linking Denmark to Sweden to retrace the train journey of a revolutionary Russian passenger.
Series 7 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo goes on a rail journey through Germany, beginning in the vibrant city of Berlin, where he visits the Museum of Modern Art in Kreuzberg.
Series 2 1:00:00
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.
Series 7 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo travels from the chateaux of the Loire Valley to the heart of the Champagne region at Reims.
1:00:00Armed with a 1936 edition of Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo ventures onto the European rail network in Spain.
Series 2 1:00:00
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 6 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo takes in Georgia and Azerbaijan as he journeys through the former Russian empire. He visits a tea plantation and a museum dedicated to Joseph Stalin.
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.
Series 5 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo concludes his journey in the Netherlands, where he travels from Rotterdam to Utrecht, including a visit to the world's largest flower auction.
Series 1 1:00:00
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.
Series 5 1:00:00
1:00:00Michael Portillo finds medieval knights in Tallinn, grills sausages in Helsinki and samples cloudberry liqueur while travelling in Latvia, Finland and Estonia.