Michael Portillo

It took Michael Portillo little more than 10 years to get a seat in the Commons and then rise in power and esteem to a point where he was a favoured leader of his party and possible future PM.

A track record like that suggests to many a privileged friend of the rich and famous with little or no understanding of or care for the ordinary citizen.

But since leaving the house a decade ago Michael has endeared himself to many with his obvious respect for solid workmanship and creative energy, as found in our great Victorian Railways, and the daily toil of the working man.

A historian at heart, he has used a Victorian railway guide to take millions of viewers on a historical voyage of discovery throughout the UK, Ireland, the USA and Europe.

Listen to his extraordinary story and then feel free to question him about it.