Returning: Great Coastal Railway Journeys

Break out your best colourful wardrobe, Season Two of Great Coastal Railway Journeys is back on SBS with Michael Portillo travelling around the coasts of the British Isles.

From the Giant’s Causeway to the Jurassic Coast of Dorset, our seasoned train traveller immerses himself in the magnificent scenery of the United Kingdom’s coastal regions. Meeting each region’s inhabitants, he discovers passion and pride in their history, culture and identity and seeks to understand the challenges each region faces today.

Episode One: Douglas To Port Erin
Michael Portillo embarks on a new railway adventure beyond the United Kingdom beginning on the self-governing Isle of Man – a paradise for rail lovers. His first stop on the wonderful Manx Electric Railway is the capital, Douglas, where he discovers the island’s Parliament, the Tynwald, is older than Westminster. Michael hears from its president how the three chambers of the legislature work and admires the twelfth-century Sword of State.

Episode Two: Liverpool To Blackpool
From the Isle of Man, Michael Portillo crosses the Irish Sea bound for the mighty port of Liverpool and its historic waterfront. Deep underground, Michael discovers one of the most important and secret rooms of the war – the Royal Navy’s Western Approaches Headquarters, from where the Battle of the Atlantic was monitored and controlled. Michael is amazed to find, apparently undisturbed, huge wall maps and charts showing the positions of merchant convoys and their Royal Naval and Royal Air Force escorts.

7:30pm tonight on SBS.