Great Continental Railway Journeys Catch up, Series 8: 6. Bergen to Flåm on BBC 2

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 6. Bergen to Flåm

Michael Portillo embarks on a Scandinavian railway adventure from the Norwegian port of Bergen to the Danish capital of Copenhagen. Spectacular scenery lines his route along two of the most famous railway journeys in the world: the Bergen Line and the Flam Railway.\n\nIn Bergen, Michael investigates how Norway, which has gained great wealth from oil and gas, is today investing in sustainable energy. He discovers that cruise ships visiting Bergen turn off their engines to connect to shore power generated from renewable sources. He visits a villa built by the great Norwegian composer Edvard Grieg and enjoys a performance of one of his celebrated works.\n\nAboard the Flamsbana, one of the steepest standard gauge railways in the world, Michael snakes his way down the mountains to the coast to explore the longest and deepest fjord in Norway.

Source: BBC 2

Most recent episodes of Great Continental Railway Journeys

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 16. Nantes To Lorient

Michael Portillo’s rail travels take him to the north west corner of France, where he explores the beautiful and historic regions of Brittany and Normandy and learns of th ...

12-09-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 15. Zweisimmen To Lausanne

Aboard the Golden Pass Express, Michael Portillo wends his way in style down steep mountainsides from Interlaken to the Swiss Riviera.\n\nIn Lausanne, he contends with a knife-w ...

05-09-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 14. Rotkreuz To Brienz

Michael Portillo scales the Swiss Alps on one of the steepest cog railways in the world and marvels at the Pilatus Railway’s unique track design, which defies an astonishi ...

29-08-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 13. Zurich

In Zurich, Michael Portillo has a brush with the absurd in the anarchic paintings and artistic haunts of the Dadaists, a group of artists who found refuge in the city during the ...

22-08-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 12. Sedrun To Schwyz

Michael Portillo ventures into the bowels of an immense hydroelectric dam to learn how the Swiss use their mountainous environment to power the country.\n\nHe winds his way by r ...

15-08-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 11. Maienfeld To The Rhine Gorge

Michael Portillo is transported 150 years back in time to the tiny Alpine village home of Switzerland’s most famous child, Heidi. In Davos, he follows in the footsteps of ...

08-08-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 10. Roskilde To Copenhagen

Michael Portillo concludes his epic rail journey across southern Norway, the Jutland Peninsula and the Danish archipelago. He crosses one of Europe’s epic rail engineering ...

01-08-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 9. Aarhus To Odense

Michael Portillo’s Scandinavian rail adventure reaches Denmark’s second city, Aarhus, an architectural playground with dazzling contemporary buildings set alongside ...

25-07-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 8. Larvik To Holstebro

Michael Portillo’s saga through Norway and Denmark resumes in Larvik on Norway’s southern coast, where he investigates the city’s prized natural resource, a di ...

18-07-2025

BBC 2

All episodes

Great Continental Railway Journeys

Series 8: 7. Myrdal To Heddal

Michael Portillo’s rail journey continues on the Bergen Line, heading towards the Norwegian capital of Oslo. Carving through the mountains across some of Europe’s mo ...

11-07-2025

BBC 2

All episodes