Great British Railway Journeys - Season 5 - Eps 15: Cheltenham to Wolverhampton
On the final leg of his journey from Southampton to Wolverhampton, Michael's first destination is the elegant spa town of Cheltenham, where he discovers a very early locomotive carriage which ran not on rails but on the road and is lucky enough to get behind the wheel. His next stop is the medieval town of Tewkesbury, scene of a grisly battle during the Wars of the Roses. Armour-plated and sword at the ready, Michael joins a group of re-enactors for a taste of the action. Mercifully unscathed, he makes tracks for Droitwich to find out about how a lowly boatman became the King of Salt and lived in a beautiful chateau, an unexpected sight in the Midlands countryside. Michael's journey ends in Wolverhampton. He learns how the townspeople showed off their talents to the Queen, among them the lost art of Japanning, a speciality of Wolverhampton.
About Great British Railway Journeys
Title: Great British Railway Journeys
First Air Date: 2010-01-04
Last Air Date: 2024-04-05
Status: Returning Series
Rating: 7.3/10 (from 11 votes)
Language: EN
Seasons: 16
Total Episodes: 270
Network: BBC Two
Genres: Documentary
Production Companies: Talkback Thames, Fremantle UK
Synopsis
Michael Portillo takes to the tracks with a copy of George Bradshaw's Victorian Railway Guidebook. Portillo travels the length and breadth of the country to see how the railways changed us, and what of Bradshaw's Britain remains.
Cast
Michael Portillo
Self - Presenter
