Great British Railway Journeys Catch up, Series 14: 6. Tilbury to Barbican on BBC 2

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 14: 6. Tilbury to Barbican

Michael Portillo travels through the Britain of his youth from London’s Docklands and East End to the ‘city within a city’, the Barbican. \n\nAt Tilbury, he traces the arrival in 1948 of the Empire Windrush, bringing over a thousand passengers from the Caribbean to work in Britain. Taking the Docklands Light Railway to the Royal Docks, he visit one of the capital’s oldest industrial sites: Tate and Lyle’s huge sugar refinery. \n\nIn Limehouse, Michael recalls the Labour Party’s landslide victory at the post-war general election of 1945 and hears what drove prime minister Clement Attlee to strive for social change. \n\nMichael heads next to what was one of the largest bomb sites in London. The 40-acre mound of rubble was transformed during the 1960s and 1970s into the Barbican, a huge residential estate with schools, shops and an arts centre.

Source: BBC 2

Most recent episodes of Great British Railway Journeys

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 ...

12-08-2025

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 ...

05-08-2025

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 ...

29-07-2025

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, ...

22-07-2025

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 ...

15-07-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 5. Chichester To Amberley

Michael Portillo’s railway tour of the green and pleasant landscape between the North and South Downs, known as the Weald, nears its conclusion.\n\nNear Chichester, Michae ...

08-07-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 4. Gatwick Airport To Royal Tunbridge Wells

Michael Portillo’s rail exploration of the spectacular countryside of the Weald in Surrey, Sussex and Kent continues - this time, aboard the Gatwick Express train, which c ...

01-07-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 3. Dorking To Lingfield

Michael Portillo’s railway tour of the Weald reaches the spectacular Surrey countryside, where he finds a surprising connection to the darker reaches of the universe.\n\nI ...

24-06-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 2. Hildenborough To Robertsbridge

Michael Portillo’s rail exploration of the historic wooded region of south east England, known as the Weald, continues from Tonbridge, at the heart of the area's rail netw ...

19-06-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great British Railway Journeys

Series 16: 1. Paddock Wood To Frant

Michael Portillo takes to the rails to explore one of Britain’s oldest surviving landscapes, the woods and pasture of the Weald in south east England. Between the chalk hi ...

12-06-2025

BBC 2

All episodes