UK TV programmes to watch this week : 30/12/2017

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Great British Railway Journeys (BBC 2/HD | 6:30pm to 7:00pm | Monday 1st January 2018)

Michael Portillo fast tracks to the early 20th century to embark on a new series of railway journeys through Edwardian Britain. His “new” guide book, published over a hundred years ago, unlocks Britain’s railways at their zenith, when some 20,000 miles of track reached into every corner of the country. His first journey follows in the footsteps of the new monarch for the new century, King Edward VII, from the grand estates of Norfolk to a bivouac on Brownsea Island. Michael takes a pot shot at the sport of kings at a country estate, where the king dallied with his mistress. He learns the ropes aboard an Edwardian wherry on the Norfolk Broads and joins variety performers to tap dance on Cromer Pier. In Cambridge, he investigates the student days of the young Prince of Wales and the novelist EM Forster.

Grandpa’s Great Escape (BBC 1/HD | 6:55pm 8:00pm | Monday 1st January 2018)

Heartwarming comedy drama about a former WWII flying ace with Alzheimer’s who is admitted to an old people’s home when his family are

Great British Railway Journeys (BBC 2/HD | 6:30pm to 7:00pm | Tuesday 2nd January 2018)

Armed with his early 20th-century Bradshaw’s guide, Michael Portillo explores an Edwardian utopia with a radical plan at its heart. Michael joins a garden party where a fourth-generation citizen of Letchworth introduces him to the city’s community spirit. Heading into the capital, Michael discovers a favoured haunt of King Edward VII and samples the monarch’s favourite tipple, the King’s Ginger, invented to keep him warm in his horseless carriage.

Great British Railway Journeys (BBC 2/HD | 6:30pm to 7:00pm | Wednesday 3rd January 2018)

Steered by his Edwardian Bradshaw’s guide, Michael Portillo arrives in west Croydon, where he uncovers a once-celebrated, now forgotten, mixed-race composer with an uncannily familiar name. With the modern British rail network now half the size of the Edwardian one, Michael is delighted to discover a railway renaissance in Three Bridges. After inspecting a new depot and its fleet of new Class 700 trains, Michael is accorded the great honour of washing one down. Next stop Lewes, where Michael makes a beeline for Charleston, the beautiful home of the artists Vanessa Bell and Duncan Grant, where he finds every surface exquisitely decorated by the inhabitants. At Shoreham-by-Sea, Michael discovers that magnificent Edwardians in flying machines took off from the oldest licensed airport in the country. Michael takes to the skies.

Great British Railway Journeys (BBC 2/HD | 6:30pm to 7:00pm | Thursday 4th January 2018)

His early 20th-century Bradshaw’s guide in hand, Michael Portillo is in Chichester, West Sussex, where he encounters an Edwardian motoring duo patronised by King Edward VII. After a grand tour of their factory, he is treated to some R&R in one of their finest vehicles. Arriving in the seaside resort of Southsea, Hampshire, Michael heads for the majestic King’s Theatre, built by a renowned theatre designer of the day. He treads the boards with a group of true thespians, in a community production of Lads in the Village. Crossing the Solent with a ticket to Ryde, Michael boards the Island Line to travel along the pier in a 1930s London Underground carriage, then hops on to the Isle of Wight heritage line bound for Wootton.

Death in Paradise (BBC 1/HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Thursday 4th January 2018)

Detective drama series set on a Caribbean island. DI Mooney and his team are tested when a hotel billionaire’s fiancee falls from a balcony the day before her lavish wedding and everything points to suicide… except for the fact that the victim only painted one fingernail.

Great British Railway Journeys (BBC 2/HD | 6:30pm to 7:00pm | Friday 5th January 2018)

Steered by his Edwardian Bradshaw’s guide, Michael Portillo promises to do his best on the island where Robert Baden Powell began the Scout movement in the early 20th century. Joining a group of modern Scouts he learns to build a bivouac and finds out what it is about Scouting that still appeals to boys – and girls – today. In the New Forest, Michael searches out some unsung heroes of the First World War, the ponies who became war horses, and hears their story from a commoner who runs a stable and riding school. Plus, in Bournemouth, he investigates a very British institution: the beach hut.

All TV guide information taken from DigiGuide — www.getdigiguide.tv/?p=1&r=15119.

Walk : Water track, Glengoyne Distillery, West Highland Way

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That sure was a great 7.1 mile walk with Neil. The walk started and ended in Killearn. We left the village using the water track, then walked down to the Glengoyne Distillery, then walked along part of the West Highland Way, then up Station Road and back to the start point in Killearn.

The full route we took can be found over at www.strava.com/activities/1331741555.

Love Glasgow! Best City in the UK!

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This is the only photo I took, while Neil and myself were in Glasgow today! I can’t believe how much the travelator between Buchanan Street subway station and Queen Street railway station has changed!

Vlog: Campsie Fells walk wearing 2XU A:1 Active wetsuit

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Here is my very first vlog wearing my new 2XU A:1 Active wetsuit! Just to make it even more fun, I went a walk up the Campsie Fells in the snow!

UK TV programmes to watch this week : 23/12/2017

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Doctor Who (BBC 1/HD | 5:30pm to 6:30pm | Monday 25th December 2017)

Two Doctors stranded in a forbidding snowscape, refusing to face regeneration. A British army captain, seemingly destined to die in the First World War but taken from the trenches to play his part in the Doctor’s story. In the final chapter of the Twelfth Doctor’s epic adventure, he must face his past to decide his future. Along the way he realises the resilience of humanity, discovering hope in his darkest frozen moment. It is the end of an era, but the Doctor’s journey is only just beginning.

Call the Midwife (BBC 1/HD | 7:40pm to 9:00pm | Monday 25th December 2017)

Drama about a group of midwives in 1960s London, based on the memoirs of Jennifer Worth. Boxing Day brings a large snowfall that covers the country. The adverse weather causes major disruption across Poplar as roads become blocked and pipes freeze. Trixie’s holiday with Christopher is cancelled due to the snow. Valerie helps an unmarried couple living in a caravan prepare for their baby. As the labour progresses, unforeseen complications knock Valerie’s confidence in her ability as a midwife. Tom is offered a new position in Birmingham, but it would mean him and Barbara leaving Poplar for at least six months. It’s all hands on deck to help during the weather crisis, so Shelagh comes back to work. Nurse Crane meets her match in Sergeant Woolf as he challenges her driving ability and Akela leadership.

Roads Less Travelled – The Heart of Scotland (BBC 2 Scotland & BBC iPlayer only | 7:00pm to 8:00pm | Wednesday 27th December 2017)

First of two Adventure Show specials in which Cameron McNeish journeys over 300 miles through some of Scotland’s most impressive wild places. Travelling on foot, by bike, by pack-raft and with his beloved camper van, Cameron begins his journey in the whisky country around Ben Rinnes before heading over the wild Dava Moor and into the Cairngorm mountains and glens that have shaped his life. He finishes this part of his journey in the remote splendour around Loch Rannoch, and along the way he meets scientists, historians and outdoor enthusiasts, and finds the only railway station in Scotland that hosts regular ceilidhs.

Roads Less Travelled – The Heart of Scotland (BBC 2 Scotland & BBC iPlayer only | 7:00pm to 8:00pm | Thursday 28th December 2017)

Second of two Adventure Show specials in which Cameron McNeish journeys over 300 miles through some of Scotland’s most impressive wild places. The second part of his journey takes him from the Falls of Bruar, south east to the magnificent Angus Glens before turning north to Deeside and finishing in the Cromdale Hills. During his travels he joins a descendent of the travelling folk, meets a collector of traditional songs and has first-hand experience of how illicit whisky stills once worked. He also meets two people whose lives have been changed by the outdoors.

All TV guide information taken from DigiGuide — www.getdigiguide.tv/?p=1&r=15119.

Yep my Garmin Connect stats show how, ill I was…

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You can see by the data below from my Garmin Connect profile, just how ill I was!!

In the last 7 days, I only did 6.1 miles of recording walking. When most weeks, it’s around 25 to 30 miles! Also my weekly step avg, was very poor indeed!

UK TV programmes to watch this week : 16/12/2017

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Coastal Railways with Julie Walters (Channel 4/HD | 8:00pm to 9:00pm | Sunday 17th December 2017)

Julie travels from Cardigan Bay to Liverpool. Her trips starts in Aberystwyth, Wales, where she was once ‘banned from every pub.’ Travelling north, she arrives at Tywyn, famous for its heritage steam railway and the inspiration behind Thomas the Tank Engine. She visits Llwyngwril, where the tiny community is literally trying to knit itself famous. Julie tries her hand at carriage painting in Boston Lodge, before catching the famous Ffestiniog railway through Snowdonia. There’s also the fastest zip wire in Europe and a lucky sheep farmer in Llandudno. Later, Julie visits the largest pet cemetery in Europe in Flint, before her final stop in Liverpool.

The Secret Life of the Zoo at Christmas (Channel 4/HD | 8:00pm to 9:00pm | Wednesday 20th December 2017)

It’s Christmas time and Chester Zoo’s keepers are busy making gifts for all the animals. But it’s a chaotic time for the chimps. With leader Dylan otherwise occupied by female attention, it’s a free-for-all when the group seek out their parcels. And with Mandy left out, not everyone ends up in a festive mood. Horned rhino couple Beni and Asha are also experiencing family dysfunction. With Asha attacking and then ignoring Beni, he’s left to find solace in the company of a deer. The zoo’s new thousand-strong family of leaf cutter ants work together to build a new home for themselves out of their Christmas bounty. And can dwarf mongoose couple Cooper and Mini deliver some new babies in time for Christmas?

The Channel (Channel 4/HD 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Wednesday 20th December 2017)

For 9000 years the English Channel was Britain’s natural border. But a decade ago, a treaty was signed that effectively moved our border to France. It turned a checkpoint into a flashpoint. This episode follows the struggle at Britain’s border during the first summer since the camp known as the Jungle was demolished, and the first since Britain decided to leave Europe. For how much longer can Britain keep people who want to come here over there? Cross-Channel ferry captain Mark and his crew guard their ship from migrants desperate to board it. The programme also meets Stuart, a businessman from Surrey who runs a private high-security truck stop in Calais where drivers can have their vehicles checked for migrants.

Penelope Keith’s Coastal Villages (more4 | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Wednesday 20th December 2017)

Penelope Keith sets forth on a special seaside journey to discover the coastal villages of the UK: villages that cling to the side of cliffs, snuggle around harbours, proudly guard estuaries, or lounge along beaches. In this second episode, Penelope discovers the seaside villages of Northumberland and the Scottish Borders, and finds herself swept up by coastal tales of epic heroism, intrepid horticulture and smoked herring. On Lindisfarne, Penelope discovers how the architect Edwin Lutyens and garden designer Gertrude Jekyll designed a home on the exposed coastline. There are trips to Low Newton and its stunning golden beach and the medieval village of Warkworth. There’s also the story of Grace Darling at Longstone Lighthouse; a bracing battle of the sexes at Craster; and a high-speed lifeboat rescue off St Abbs.

The Last Leg Christmas Special (Channel 4/HD | 9:00pm to 10:00pm | Friday 22nd December 2017)

The award-winning show rounds off the 12th series with their unique brand of irreverent satire, topical comedy and a sprinkle of festive cheer. The final instalment of the year is a merriment-packed live Christmas edition where the boys are joined by some special guests live in the studio, including writer, actor and comedian Stephen Merchant and Georgia ‘Toff’ Toffolo from I’m A Celebrity.

All TV guide information taken from DigiGuide — www.getdigiguide.tv/?p=1&r=15119.

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