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Philadelphia to Atlantic City

Michael Portillo rides the railroads of America. Michael runs past Philadelphia's famous landmarks in homage to Rocky Balboa.

Michael Portillo embarks on a new railroad journey following his 1879 Appleton's guidebook from the city of brotherly love, Philadelphia, south to the first permanent English colonial settlement in North America, Jamestown.

He feasts on a gargantuan Philly cheesesteak, then looks to work off the calories with a run past the city's famous landmarks in homage to one of Philadelphia's most famous sons, Rocky Balboa. All pumped up, he heads to Pennsylvania University to tackle the football team under the instruction of its fearsome coach.

In the cradle of American independence, Michael discovers how, in 1776, liberty was proclaimed throughout the land yet millions remained enslaved. Alone in a cell, Michael reflects on the 19th-century Pennsylvania system of incarceration at the Eastern State Penitentiary, before heading to the gambling resort of Atlantic City and its famous boardwalk.

29 minutes

Credits

Role Contributor
Presenter Michael Portillo
Executive Producer John Comerford
Series Producer Alison Kreps
Production Company Boundless Productions

Broadcasts

Steam Railways: Watch programmes from the archive collection

Shows from the 麻豆官网首页入口 archives celebrating the beauty of locomotives.