Great British Railway Journeys - Series 2 [DVD]

Bought for my stepdads birthday. Great price and speedy delivery. He’s really enjoyed watching the dvds

I liked the personal touches which show how clearly Portillo knows his subject. A labour of love in every respect. Pity then that the producers have chosen to begin every short episode with upwards of five minutes of repetitive introduction, using footage seen at the beginning of every episode, which is why I have given only four stars to my assessment. After one or two episodes we have clearly understood that the series is based on the works of Victorian writer and map maker George Bradshaw. This does not need repeating. Similarly, the last few minutes of each episode are spent in previewing the following episode. A waste of time.This second series is an improvement on series one, mainly because Michael Portillo is more relaxed and is able to talk more freely to the interesting people he meets. These conversations add to the overall quality of the series and reduce the impression of it being a Portillo monologue.I now look forward to the forthcoming series on continental European rail routes.

These are so wonderful. Michael Portillo has a great personality and his travels are fun highlighting such a wonder that the British Isles are. We live to watch these are travel so beautifully wishing we were millionaires and could simply jet over the Atlantic and take these trips. Much to husband's delight I ordered him a Bradshaw's and love the writing--it truly reads like literature just a Mr. portillo has stated so often. The filmography is simply marvelous, too which truly makes the trip such a rich visual experience. The history of certain places and people is also often of such emotional depth and history that tears spring to the eyes. These trips are a marvellous way to travel and to explore where to travel when one has the money, Sadly both are lacking in our case but for the mere cost of a these DVDs we can travel in comfort, poetically, and in the beauty of an artistic filmographer's hands. Then to top it all the travel companion and host Michael Portillo is a delight and so utterly personable. Cannot recommend these DVDs enough. We have ordered our 4th set!!!!

everthing what a lovely man very clever full marks for great shows

Gives some good ideas of places to go and see when out and about. Worth a watch.

Bought as a gift, being very much enjoyed, Michael Portillo makes it very interesting.

The second series features the following journeys: 1. Brighton to Cromer; 2. Ledbury to Holyhead; 3. Newcastle to Melton Mowbray; 4. London to Hastings; and 5. Ayr to Skye.This second series is better than the first as Portillo concentrates more on the Victorian era in which Bradshaw’s was published and on the railways and the effects of the railways themselves. But it still remains a superficial exercise, failing to do any justice to all these places in just a few minutes each.Portillo starts straight off with his bright green jacket and soon he’s into his pink shirt. His sartorial taste we can put up with, but what annoys are the absolutelys: everything is absolutely stunning, absolutely amazing, absolutely perfect, absolutely wonderful … provide your own adjective. Everything is so wonderful and amazing throughout this series that one has serious concerns about any objectivity!And we’ll ignore the errors, such as Portillo claiming that travelling from Newcastle to Melton Mowbray means crossing the Pennines, or that pilgrims having been going to Canterbury for millennia. And his meeting Bradshaw’s great-great-granddaughter in Sheffield’s City Hall (it’s the Town Hall: Sheffield’s City Hall is a different structure altogether). But I was impressed with his natural spoken Italian.Alas there are no extras on the DVD set. One had hoped for some of the aerial shots to be provided.

George Bradshaw would be thrilled to see how Michael Portillo has brought to life his railway guides which he wrote in the 19th century. With fantastic arial photography of trains in action at scenic spots along the route of each journey. Each stop along the way is described in detail with visits to places in the book and interviews with people who live and work today in many of the industries associated with the railways then and now.This series is a joy to watch with a format that leaves you eager to watch the next leg of the journey after each half hour programme ends. Michael Portillo does a brilliant job of presenting this series which I am sure will go down in TV history as one of the best produced documentary collection of all time, bring on series 3 and more!