Great Indian Railway Journeys

The documentary captures a series of the famous railway journeys across India, and talking in brief detail about the cities and towns which fall in between, covering the history and significance of those very places while referencing the famous Bradshaw's Manual published almost a century ago during the British Raj. Highly recommended. Love the presentation style by Micheal!

This is a BBC series presented by Michael Portillo armed with a copy of Bradshaw's Through Routes, a guidebook from over 100 years ago. He's an odd duck and apparently a former conservative politician. Whether it's his reddish face, bulbous nose, or his gaudy pants, he gives the sense of a know-it-all clown. That could be very effective as a travelog presenter but I can do without some of his conversations with the regular people. As for the reading from the book, it would be more effective to do a montage of the subject place as he does it. In the end, India is the star and is what makes this series fascinating. Portillo gives the needed British history in India and at least, he doesn't make excuses for any of the bad stuff. All in all, it's an interesting travelog but I do find myself fast-forwarding some of more tedious conversations.

Very solid series. No melodrama but lot of info provided. Enjoyed this show a lot as there were moments that reminded of time spent in India.

Have watched other series, but in this one Portillo is toe curlingly condescending, spoils a good programme, and when not playing fancy dress, is he wearing some sort of incontinence device? Would love to watch more, but can't because of his presentation.