Great British Railway Journeys Catch up, Series 14: 3. Oldham to Wakefield on BBC 2

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 14: 3. Oldham to Wakefield

Greater Manchester’s Metrolink tram delivers Michael to the former cotton town of Oldham on the edge of the Peak District. In the stalls of the Oldham Coliseum, the town’s Victorian repertory theatre, Michael hears how the lifting of censorship allowed theatres to stage risqué productions from playwrights such as Tennessee Williams.\n\nMichael takes the Hope Valley Line to Edale in the Peak District with a hiking guide, who is encouraging black women to enjoy the national park. Next stop is Sheffield, where Michael visits Cutlers’ Hall and sharpens his skills at a knife-making workshop.\n\nMichael ends this part of his journey by admiring the striking postwar sculptures of Barbara Hepworth in the Yorkshire Sculpture Park.

Source: BBC 2

Most recent episodes of Great British Railway Journeys

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 13. Dudley To West Bromwich

Michael Portillo boards a barge on the Dudley Canal, built in 1775 as a vital transport link for the town’s coal and limestone mines. Travelling through the second-longest ...

21-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 12. Ironbridge To Coseley

Michael Portillo is in Ironbridge Gorge on the River Severn, where he discovers the Silicon Valley of the 18th century. Exploring this hotbed of industrial innovation, he takes ...

20-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 11. Shrewsbury To Telford

Sharp as an arrow and armed with a longbow, Michael Portillo re-enacts the Battle of Shrewsbury, fought at the Shropshire village of Battlefield in 1403. He hears how the rebel ...

19-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 10. Dumfries To Auchinleck

Michael concludes his journey from Cumbria to Dumfriesshire by crossing the Solway Firth into Scotland, where he visits the beautifully preserved last home of Scotland’s g ...

16-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 9. Aspatria To Carlisle

Michael Portillo’s railway journey through Cumbria and Dumfriesshire takes him to the rolling countryside around Aspatria to meet a couple who swapped their old life for o ...

15-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 8. Maryport To Penrith

Michael Portillo’s railway journey through Cumbria and Dumfriesshire heads to the hills as he follows in the footsteps of the Lakeland poets. In Keswick, he retraces the a ...

14-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 7. St Bees To Grange-over-sands

Michael Portillo’s railway tour of Cumbria and Dumfriesshire continues as he travels along the scenic Cumbrian Coast Line. Just outside Egremont, he visits Florence Mine, ...

13-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 6. Windermere To Sellafield

Michael Portillo begins a railway tour of the spectacular border counties of Cumbria and Dumfriesshire, starting in the stunning Lake District National Park, where he discovers ...

12-10-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 13: 5. Herne Bay To Leeds Castle, Kent

Armed with his interwar copy of Bradshaw’s Guide to the Railways, Michael reaches the Kent seaside resort of Herne Bay, where he learns about a pioneering aviatrix who beg ...

18-09-2026

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 13: 4. Deal To Margate

From the Kent Cinque Port of Deal, Michael heads to the splendid Walmer Castle, home during the 1920s to a Lord Warden of the Cinque Ports, Lord Beauchamp. Michael’s guide ...

17-09-2026

BBC 2

All episodes