From the Isle of Man, Michael Portillo crosses the Irish Sea, bound for the mighty port of Liverpool and its historic waterfront.At the International Slavery Museum in Royal Albert Dock, he reflects on the city's part in the transatlantic trade in enslaved people. He takes Merseyrail to Birkenhead, where he inspects a German U-boat before seeing the underground room where the Battle of the Atlantic was monitored and controlled.In Crosby, he encounters dozens of west-facing iron men before heading off to Blackpool, where he learns about the city's wartime experiences.

Michael Portillo continues his rail journey. He looks out across the vast and beautiful Morecambe Bay and joins one of the town's last shrimpers to learn how potted shrimp is made. At Arnside, he visits a quirky 17th-century garden at Levens Hall, helping to clip its vast topiaries into shape.Across the Arnside viaduct, Michael reaches Cartmel, with its 12th-century priory and Michelin-starred restaurant.

Michael Portillo is in Cumbria, enjoying one of the most spectacular coastal railway journeys in Britain.In Ulverston, he sets sail in a small craft with a lifelong devotee of Arthur Ransome's Swallows and Amazons. At Barrow-in-Furness, Michael investigates the mountains of scrap left behind as iron ore was turned into ships, trains and railway tracks.From Silecroft, Michael hikes up Black Combe to join a champion endurance athlete as she navigates and runs across the fells. Pressing north, he reaches the delightful Ravenglass and Eskdale heritage railway.