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Series 12: 12. Rhyl to Anglesey

Michael Portillo’s 1930s Bradshaw’s-inspired railway tour of north Wales takes him to a coast lined by magnificent castles and sweeping bays.\n\nIn Colwyn Bay, he hears how an army of civil servants from the Ministries of Food and Agriculture in London invaded the quiet seaside town and masterminded a groundbreaking campaign to feed the nation. 'Dig for Victory' urged people to grow their own vegetables. Michael helps out at an allotment.\n\nIn the holiday resort of Rhyl, Michael discovers how its amusement park and lake were created and makes a delightful excursion aboard the oldest miniature railway in Britain.\n\nHeading west to Gwynedd, Michael reaches the university city of Bangor, where he finds the largest number of Welsh speakers in the country. Michael investigates the Welsh tongue at the city’s BBC studios and makes a radio announcement in Welsh.\n\nCrossing the Menai Strait by the Britannia Bridge, Michael arrives on Anglesey and the elegant seat of the Marquesses of the island. Michael is excited to find in their elegant mansion an impressive mural on a grand scale by the artist Rex Whistler and to hear how it was painted.

Source: BBC 2