Great British Railway Journeys: Season 9, Episode 5

9 - 5: Swanwick to Brownsea Island

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.