In Cordoba, Michael dances with an unusual partner and enjoys all the fun of the feria. Skirting disputed Georgian territory occupied by Russians today, Michael discovers that a Briton was the first to conquer the highest mountain in the Caucasus range. Michael takes a spin around the track at Le Mans in a French-built car, which won two endurance races during the 1920s. The point of no return came at 3.10am with a return no one had been expecting. In Spains beautiful capital city, Madrid, Michael visits the 1930s art deco Telefonica Building and discovers what happened there during the civil war. Bradshaw's 1913 Continental Railway Guide in hand, Michael Portillo makes a grand tour of a favourite Edwardian destination - Italy - where he experiences first-hand the nation's need for speed in a state-of-the-art Maserati sports car. Heading east to Avila, Michael overnights in a historic parador and learns how 1930s Spain positioned herself as a tourist destination. After a 14-year hiatus, a further three series were broadcast between 1994 and 1999, using the shorter series title. In Salamanca, the millions of records kept by Franco on his potential enemies a potent symbol of the scale of the nationalist movement and atrocities committed, and potentially a window into our own increasingly surveilled and right-moving state were paid lip service before Portillo homed in on that of his father. The overnight service from Tbilisi to Baku delivers Michael to Azerbaijan, the so-called 'land of fire' because of the natural gas which seeps from the ground and ignites the hills. Genres: Chamber Music, Television Music. There he seeks the protection of a local historian as he traces the story behind this notorious mafia hideout of the 1930s. Aboard the high-speed Sapsan to St Petersburg, Michael discovers the history behind the line, once the longest double-tracked railway in the world. His journey ends at the gateway to the former French empire, Marseilles. Michael discovers from a British engineer how the leaning tower of Pisa was rescued from near collapse. Described by the New Grove Dictionary of Music and Musicians as "probably the first ever railway song", Glinka's express Travelling Song is a . Heading south again on the long journey to Reggio Calabria, Michael shares lunch on board with fellow British travellers before their train is loaded onto a ferry for the short sail to Sicily. Michael bags a ride in a high performance Porsche to the manufacturers Stuttgart headquarters and discovers that, in the 1930s, the founder designed an affordable car for mass production the Beetle. Michael begins in the port of Batumi on the dazzling Caucasian Riviera. Despite it having no direct connection to the European railway network, a chapter was devoted to Gibraltar in the 1913 guidebook.[3]. Armed with his 1913 Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo ventures to the northernmost reaches of Europe. In Verona, Michael discovers the 'House of the Capulets', bought to attract Edwardian tourists to the scene of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Great British Railway Journeys soundtrack music, videos, stats, and photos | Last.fm Search Live Music Charts Log In Sign Up Great British Railway Journeys soundtrack Play artist More actions Listeners 6 Scrobbles 501 Join others and track this artist Scrobble, find and rediscover music with a Last.fm account Sign Up to Last.fm Across the border in San Sebastian, Michael learns how diplomacy brought Britain and Spain closer together and rides on a hair-raising scenic railway. Aboard the high-speed Sapsan to St Petersburg, Michael discovers the history behind the line, once the longest double-tracked railway in the world. He refers to a 1913 copy of Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide, as he describes how the places he visits have changed since Edwardian times. . Great Continental Railway Journeys is a British television documentary series presented by Michael Portillo. , tracks: At La Spezia, an important Italian naval base, Michael discovers how Italy's imperial ambitions put her at the forefront of modern aerial warfare. Armed with his trusty copy of Bradshaw's 1913 edition of the Continental Railway Guide, the elegantly attired MICHAEL PORTILLO continues to criss-cross the Continent leaving, it seems, no fascinating city unvisited. From there, he travels to Salzburg, before heading to the magnificent scenery of the Salzkammergut region to visit the emperor's Austrian summer house at Bad Ischl, where in 1914 European history changed course forever. Great British Railway Journeys - Season 9 Episode 12. Making history in contemporary art at the Venice Biennale, Sensationalists: The Bad Girls and Boys of British Art. [6] This series relied on narrators rather than presenters who appeared on camera. Michael then crosses the separation barrier between Jerusalem and the West Bank in the company of his Palestinian guide and meets the embroiderers of the Arab Women's Union in Bethlehem, before finishing his journey in the Negev desert. In Bologna, he embarks on a doomed search for spaghetti Bolognese until a cookery teacher shows him how to make a much more authentic tagliatelle al ragu. After a picnic of chewy dried fish and beer on board a Soviet-era train, Michael arrives in Estonia where, in the magical setting of a ruined 13th-century cathedral, he hears a choir sing the nation's most important song and learns how, more recently, the Baltic countries demonstrated their desire for independence from the Soviet Union with a Singing Revolution. Featured peformers: Jon Wygens (composer). In Palermo, Michael takes in the art and architecture of the futurists. He travels to Leipzig on a historic railway line, built by British engineers in 1839. Michael ends his journey in Thessaloniki where, in 1913, Greece's King George I was assassinated. In 1983, the BBC made a further series on rail travel entitled Great Little Railways, this time exclusively featuring narrow gauge railways. In Baku, Michael explores the thousand-year-old walled quarter and is treated to a thrilling display of Chovgan, the national horseback game of Azerbaijan. He visits the beautiful country estate of Yasnaya Polyana, where Tolstoy wrote his masterpieces, and learns how the author's life and works were inextricably entwined with the railways. The Atlantic coast of France and Spain, Bordeaux, claret, trams. / Great Continental Railway Journeys. He also visits the forest of Compiegne, to hear how, after four years of conflict, the Armistice was finally signed in a railway carriage. He then travels the Habsburg imperial line across the Semmering Pass, a line blasted through the Alps. About sixty singers and dancers gave a magnificent performance in astrakhan hats and colourful waistcoats and bodices. But the interwar guide book also tells Michael that the head of government in Italy is the fascist leader Signor Benito Mussolini. Michael Portillo, the treasury secretary with the curiously collapsed yet labile face and shoo-in for next Tory leader, lost the seat he had held comfortably five years before, to a Labour unknown, Stephen Twigg. Michael celebrates Midsummer in Marielund, learns to decorate a Dala horse in Mora and takes an icy dip in one of the countrys 96,000 lakes. Armed with his 1913 Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo embarks on a Greek odyssey from Athens's port of Piraeus north to the city of Thessaloniki, captured the year before from the Ottoman Turks, who had ruled much of Greece for 400 years. The fourth series aired in 2015. Striking north, Michael boards the long distance train which runs from the Caspian Sea to the capital. On this leg Michael explores the once-great empire of Austria-Hungary, domain of the famous Habsburg monarchs. He learns from the buffet car cooks how to prepare a supper of meat-filled dumplings - Dagestani specialities called pylmeni. Season 2. Michael makes a scenic journey from Stockholm to Abisko. Steered by his 1913 railway guide, Michael journeys through a prosperous prewar Europe of emperors, kings, pomp and elegance. Along the way, Michael discovers the parlous state of Greek finances at the time of his guidebook. Athens to Thessaloniki In the northern town of Huesca, Michael meets the son of author George Orwell, who fought against Franco on what was the front line between Nationalist and Republican forces. He finds that the first constitution of the Netherlands was signed here and hears what the locals think about Dutch tolerance today. To capture his own view of the mighty Mount Kazbek Michael boards a helicopter to soar above the 5,000 metre peak first climbed in 1868. The first series was originally broadcast on BBC Two in 2012, and the seventh series was first aired in 2020. He learns how an aristocratic English poet became a Greek national hero and relives Greek athletic victory at the first modern Olympic games. From the Grand Hotel Europe, advertised in his Bradshaw's, Michael explores the beauty and history of St Petersburg, from the great Nevsky Prospekt to the magnificent Winter Palace with its Hermitage Museum, then rides the first railway ever built in Russia between the city and the Tsar's village - Tsarskoye Selo. Bordeaux to Bilbao. His father fled to Oxford and got to know his future wife, who was looking after refugee children. Armed with his 1913 Continental Railway Guide, Michael Portillo ventures deep into the Black Forest on a quest to discover the essence of Germany and discovers how Hansel and Gretel helped to unify the nation. He begins by weaving among the capital city's landmarks on the back of a 1950s Vespa, before boarding the train south to Naples, where he finds out about the first railway to be built in the country, and ventures into the crater of Mount Vesuvius. Michael Portillo follows in the footsteps of Edwardian travellers to trace a route recommended in his Bradshaw's guide, journeying from the heart of France to the Mediterranean coast. I was at university and in bed, but heard the cheers going up from streets around. From 2012, BBC Two has also broadcast series of Great Continental Railway Journeys, a documentary with the same idea as Great British Railway Journeys, also presented by Portillo. The image of the teenage warrior endures as a symbol of resistance, and her life is celebrated in an annual parade. The title Great Continental Railway Journeys has led some to believe that the series is designed solely for train spotters. Great Continental Railway Journeys. All seven of the 1980 Series 1 programs, including Palin's Confessions of a Train Spotter, were released in 1986 in cooperation with the BBC on VHS tapes by Pentrex, a California railroad video company. Leaving Paris behind, Michael travels south to the Cote D'Azur to learn why the area attracted the rich and artistic alike and samples the Edwardian highlife before ending his journey at the gaming tables in glamorous Monte Carlo. Other similar series followed: Great Indian Railway Journeys in 2018 and Great Alaskan and Canadian Railroad Journeys and Great Australian Railway Journeys in 2019. Armed with his 1913 railway guide, Michael Portillo travels the Habsburg imperial line from Vienna across the awe-inspiring Semmering Pass, a handmade railway line blasted through the Alps. Leaving London behind, armed with his 1913 railway guide, Michael Portillo follows the most popular route of the Edwardian traveller through France. Boarding one of the narrowest gauge railways in the world, the Little Train of Pelion, Michael travels to the village of Milies, where he learns about the place of the Orthodox Church in Greek national life. Michael Portillo embarks on a railway adventure which takes him across the heart of Europe. Michael Portillo continues his railway adventure which takes him across the heart of Europe. Crossing the border from Bohemia to Bavaria, Michael encounters a fire breathing dragon in Furth-im-Wald and in Nuremberg he rides German railway history - made in Britain. In Delphi, he discovers how at the turn of the 20th century an entire village was removed in order to excavate the site of the oracle. Although there have been no complete series of Great Railway Journeys released on DVD, 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). In Vienna, he encounters a pre-Cold War spy and hears for himself the concert that caused a riot in 1913. In Carrara, he finds out how the marble used by Michelangelo is still quarried today and is invited to chip away at a contemporary sculpture. On the island, Michael finds out about apocalyptic scenes at Messina only five years prior to publication of his guidebook and marvels at the survival - and beauty - of the ancient hilltop town of Taormina, in the shadow of Mount Etna. In Verona, Michael discovers the 'House of the Capulets', bought to attract Edwardian tourists to the scene of Shakespeare's Romeo and Juliet. Following in the footsteps of Bradshaw's travellers, Michael explores the cradle of the Renaissance through Edwardian eyes but learns in Florence that the tourists' 'Italietta' was far removed from the new Italy envisaged by the futurists of the time. Michael Portillo sports a modern edition of his Bradshaw's Handbook as he heads for Spain. His journey begins in Sofia, capital of Bulgaria, and includes stops in the ancient city of Plovdiv, the region of Rumelia, and former capital of the Ottoman Empire Edirne. Following in the footsteps of King Edward VII, who visited his cousin King Carlos in 1903, Michael explores the city from the Santa Justa lift to the harbour at Belem. Relax. Striking north on the fast train across the Po Valley, Michael heads towards the Alps. He encounters a bloodsucking vampire in Transylvania and brown bears in the Carpathian forest before visiting a fairy tale castle with modern conveniences in Sinaia, striking oil in Ploesti. He is at his best and most comfortable with the ex cathedra element of presenting. In Vienna, Michael Portillo encounters a pre-Cold War spy and learns about the concert that caused a riot in 1913. Vrai, More Hope, Efficient, Having Doubts (AlbumModern string ensemble). Steered by his 1913 railway guide, Michael Portillo takes the train from the former political capital of Italy, Turin, to Casanova's capital of romance, Venice. BBC Two Great Continental Railway Journeys Home Episodes Clips Michael Portillo travels on the great train routes of Europe, as he retraces the journeys featured in George Bradshaw's 1913. Your current browser isn't compatible with SoundCloud. The scenery was unrelentingly, heart-swellingly beautiful the golden sandstone of Salamanca; the best of Roman, Christian and Islamic art and architecture poured into Zaragoza; the enclosed medieval citadel of vila seemingly glowing with centuries of stored sunlight. In the ancient city of Plovdiv, Michael discovers a Roman amphitheatre built in the 2nd century AD and still in use today. Michael, mate youre a Tory on a jolly. He begins in the capital Warsaw, where he takes to the floor to dance to one of Chopin's polonaises with high-school students rehearsing for their leavers' ball, before discovering how the former industrial city of Lodz supplied the vast Russian empire of the early 20th century. Arriving in Istanbul, Michael orients himself with a boat trip on the Bosphorus, samples some Turkish delight and crosses from Europe to Asia on the Marmaray metro line which now joins the two continents. The seat of power beckons in Kutaisi, home to the wonderful glass dome built for the Parliament of Georgia when it moved here from the capital, Tbilisi, in 2012. I was drawn to it because when Jonathan Harker first encounters the vampire he is reading "of all things an English Bradshaw's guide" (studying the timetable between Whitby and King's Cross, the line that will carry Draculas coffins of earth!). Gaud perished on the tracks, hit by a tram. Forsaking the saddle, Michael takes to the skies and pilots a light aircraft as he learns of one of France's pioneering aviators. Great Asian Railway Journeys. Ever keen to try his hand, Michael takes instruction from a top chef on how to make an omelette, but his efforts fail to impress. Michael learns how diplomacy brought Britain and Spain closer together and rides on a hair-raising scenic railway. Is your network connection unstable or browser outdated? In Bologna, he embarks on a doomed search for spaghetti bolognese - until a cookery teacher takes pity on him and shows him how to make a much more authentic tagliatelle al ragu. :https://www.buymeacoffee.com/journeysPlease Subscribe to Motivate:)This Will Enable me to Optimize my Creative Production to Showcase Journeys of Various . Please download one of our supported browsers. 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. Michael's journey ends with a spectacular ascent by train to Europe's highest station, perched atop Switzerland's dramatic Jungfraujoch mountain. Forsaking the saddle, Michael takes to the skies and pilots a light aircraft as he learns of one of France's pioneering aviators. In Graz, the former politician ventures underground at the Lurgrotte Caves to find out about a famous rescue operation of the past, then in Slovenia discovers how an earthquake in Ljubljana prompted its citizens to assert their national identity in architecture and art. Michael Portillo braves the freezing temperatures of the Baltic Sea and finds peace paddling a canoe on the Lakes of Finland. Sofia to Istanbul Arriving in Italy at the empire's southern port of Trieste, Michael savours the imported coffee which fuelled the cafe culture of its elegant capital, Vienna. He begins in Israel, learning about the Baha'i faith and how it spread to Britain in the Edwardian era, hearing the story of the origins of Tel Aviv, and visiting the Christian, Jewish and Muslim quarters of the capital Jerusalem. The bodies of two lovers are entwined and the female figure is clearly in ecstasy. At the Bolshoi Theatre, Michael performs an important role in one of Russia's most dramatic operas. Find many great new & used options and get the best deals for Great Continental Railway Journeys, Portillo, Michael, Used; Good Book at the best online prices at eBay! Similarly, his main comment when standing before Picassos Guernica in Madrid was that without that event the bombing of civilians by Nazi and fascist troops that drew worldwide outrage Michael would never have existed. To think that there is now a generation to whom such a question means nothing more than whether you stayed up to watch that television presenter with the terrible wardrobe take another of his train trips across a miscellany of countries is quite a thing. Second is the increasing awareness . Crossing the border again into Norway, Michael discovers how in 1913 this young nation expressed its own distinctively modern identity in plays, paintings and polar exploration. In the vast port, Michael joins a pilot boat as it leads a supertanker to its berth. Braving the traffic, Michael begins his Roman holiday by weaving among the capital city's magnificent landmarks on the back of a 1950s Vespa. Michael Portillo continues his railway adventure which takes him across the heart of Europe. Title screen for most episodes from Series 2 onward. Arriving in Tbilisi Michael is struck by the warm welcome of Georgians and is invited to a wedding, where he experiences the legendary feast, known as a supra. Michael Portillo, I said, seemed slimy . Michael is in his element in The Hague as he discovers the beautiful government buildings known as the Binnenhof and begins to understand the origins of the Netherlands' famous reputation for tolerance. In Carrara, he finds out how the marble used by Michelangelo is still quarried today and is invited to chip away at a contemporary sculpture.