Great Continental Railway Journeys: Series 2 DVD

Please note this is a region 2 DVD and will require a region 2 (Europe) or region Free DVD Player in order to play. 

In 1913, Europe was criss-crossed by a network of railways stretching from Finland in the North, to Constantinople in the East, and Cadiz in the West, all of them described in Bradshaw's Continental Railway Guide and General Handbook. This comprehensive guidebook opened up an exotic world of foreign travel to the Edwardian British tourist glittering cosmopolitan cities, dramatic Alpine landscapes, warm sparkling seas and picturesque villages.

Building on the success of Great British Railway Journeys and the first series of Great Continental Railway Journeys, Michael Portillo embarks on a further 6 journeys across Europe. Armed with his 1913 Bradshaw's Guide, he will travel from station to station, visiting the towns and villages described by the Guide, following the suggested itineraries, staying in the recommended hotels, exploring the sights, sampling local traditions while telling the story of Europe in 1913.

The 6 episodes are: Madrid to Gibraltar Turin to Venice Dresden to Kiel Copenhagen to Oslo Prague to Munich Bordeaux to Bilbao

In this series, Michael returns to his native Spain to discover what the intrepid tourists of the Belle Epoque experienced on their travels through the fading Spanish empire. He travels South from Madrid and finishes with tales of British espionage on the Rock of Gibraltar. The second journey takes Michael from the former political capital of Italy, Turin, to Casanova's capital of romance, Venice. Continuing to follow his Bradshaw's, in the third journey, Michael explores Germany and learns how tourists in the early 20th century would have been visiting quite a new country, which they admired and envied but also feared.

Michael then travels north into Scandinavia and discovers the royal roots of those Edwardian travellers' close dynastic ties with the kingdoms of Denmark and Norway. He also visits the final resting place of George Bradshaw in Oslo. For his fourth journey, Michael explores the stunning art nouveau architecture of Prague, then travels through the Czech Republic crossing into Bavaria, arriving in Munich and discovers an early 20th century pioneer who laid the foundations for the city's pre-eminence in science and technology today. In his fi nal journey, Michael sets off to sample the delights of the French and Spanish Atlantic coast heading first to Bordeaux and finishing in Bilbao in the Spanish Basque country.

Actors Michael Portillo
Certificate Exempt from Classification
Year 2014
Languages English
Duration 6 hours (approx)