Documentary series about the resurgence of steam power on the Welsh railways, including the ambitious Welsh Highland Railway in Snowdonia.
Social & External
How four iconic British-built trains revolutionised rail travel and inspired incredible railway projects the world over.
Michael Portillo takes to the tracks with a copy of George Bradshaw's Victorian Railway Guidebook. Portillo travels the length and breadth of the country to see how the railways changed us, and what of Bradshaw's Britain remains.
Old friends Wynne Evans and Joanna Page set sail to explore the coast of south Wales.
Intercity 125 – Britain's own original high-speed train – rules the rails today, but this national icon is set to give way to hi-tech imports. It's time to celebrate the heroic story of a design classic that saved Britain's railways from terminal decline.
A major political, historical, human and economic fact of the 20th century, the Gulag, the extremely punitive Soviet concentration camp system, remains largely unknown.
Series about striking railways in the world. Each episode travels along a number of special locations, where the train serves as a guide and there is also attention for the landscape and culture.
Michael Portillo examines the role of the railways in World War I and travels through Britain and Europe uncovering stories from the Great War.
The railway age in the Austrian Empire began with the construction of the horse-drawn railway from Linz to Budweis. Plans soon followed to connect the imperial capital of Vienna with the iron and coal deposits in northern Moravia and with the port city of Trieste. In 1837 the Kaiser Ferdinands Nordbahn was opened, in 1857 the Semmeringbahn planned by Karl Ritter von Ghega, overcoming one of the most difficult obstacles on the way to the Adriatic. The crossing of the Alps by train, such as over the Arlberg or the Brenner, is still considered a unique engineering masterpiece. The expansion of the railway network brought epochal changes. Goods and people circulated on an unprecedented scale – life accelerated. It had succeeded in connecting the northern crown lands such as Silesia or Bohemia and Moravia with Carinthia, Tyrol or the coastal region.
Michael Portillo is in Southeast Asia, armed with his 1913 Bradshaw's Handbook. It will lead him on a spectacular 2,500-mile railway adventure across six countries. He explores towering megacities and magnificent mosques.
Iolo Williams explores four of Wales’s most stunning river valleys from sea to source, uncovering their hidden wonders and remarkable wildlife.
Iolo Williams explores the behaviour of birds in Wales, revealing all aspects of their lives from surviving harsh winters and avoiding predators, to living alongside us in our towns and cities.
Climb up on the footplate and join historian and host Dan Cruickshank for a railway adventure like no other as he investigates how trains helped shape modern Britain. This three-part series resurrects an exhilarating age and kicks off by focusing on the railways' role in defeating Hitler, before unearthing the incredible engineering achievements of Isambard Brunel and embarking on a trip on the earliest steam engines.
The mere mention of the Orient Express brings to mind evocative images of opulent carriages, stylish passengers and thrilling destinations all wrapped up in the romance of train travel. Jonathan Phang, a self-confessed bon viveur with a passion for gastronomy, feels the allure of old world glamour and sets off on a gourmet journey crossing continents aboard some of the world’s most elegant trains. Along the way he stops off in extraordinary culinary destinations, such as Venice, Paris and Istanbul to explore some modern fine dining. However, it is aboard the fabulous trains that Jonathan truly tests the old adage that sometimes it can be better to travel than to arrive.
Travelogue of England, Ireland and Wales, presented by Billy Connolly, including clips from his stand-up performances.
In this five-part series, comedy legend Sir David Jason hits the West Coast of the USA. He’s on a revealing and entertaining journey of a lifetime by planes, trains and automobiles, discovering the machines that made America and changed the world.
Over two years, International Designer Sibella Court, follows the trials and tribulations of 7 groups of Australians committed to the daunting task of restoring heritage ruins into living homes. From Georgian mansions to colonial pug and pine huts, these Aussie battlers attempt to restore the buildings to their former glory.
British comedian and travel enthusiast Griff Rhys Jones hops on some of Australia's most impressive long distance trains, travelling across the expansive outback and along spectacular coastlines.
Professor Alice Roberts travels across Greece and thousands of years back to our collective past, tracing how the Ancient Greeks developed philosophy, art, theatre and democracy.
