Great British Railway Journeys - Season 13 - Eps 3: Rye to Dungeness
Michael Portillo follows his 1930s Bradshaw’s guide to the unspoilt East Sussex port of Rye, where he learns about the loss of a generation of lifeboatmen in 1928 and explores a wartime pillbox. On the beaches at Rye, Michael explores one of 28,000 pillboxes constructed around the British coastline during World War II and hears from a military historian about how the nation prepared for an expected German invasion. Train heaven beckons as Michael boards the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch railway to cross Romney Marsh en route to Dungeness. Along the way, he hears about the eccentric inventor of the railway, Count Louis Zborowski. From Dungeness, Michael heads to the former RAF base of Denge, where he discovers a cluster of giant concrete structures with an intriguing name, Sound Mirrors. The RSPB warden in whose nature reserve they stand explains their history to Michael.
About Great British Railway Journeys
Title: Great British Railway Journeys
First Air Date: 2010-01-04
Last Air Date: 2025-04-09
Status: Returning Series
Rating: 7.3/10 (from 11 votes)
Language: EN
Seasons: 17
Total Episodes: 280
Network: BBC Two
Genres: Documentary
Production Companies: Talkback Thames, Fremantle UK
Synopsis
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.
Cast
Michael Portillo
Self - Presenter
