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The stunning coastline of Northumberland is the setting for Michael Portillo鈥檚 rail adventure from the city of Newcastle to England鈥檚 northernmost town, Berwick-upon-Tweed. Travelling aboard the metro, the East Coast Main Line and the Tyne Valley line, Michael marvels at the scenery and admires the architectural and engineering legacy of the railways in the region where they were invented.

His route takes in the River Tyne, Hadrian鈥檚 Wall, a former mining village and the fishing port of Amble. Along the way, Michael visits Bamburgh Castle and the holy island of Lindisfarne.

In Tynemouth, Michael discovers one of the most treacherous coastlines in Britain and hears of a 19th-century tragedy at sea that inspired 140 local men to set up a coastal rescue service. The Tynemouth Volunteer Life Brigade trained rescuers to operate an ingenious apparatus called a breeches buoy from the shore. Michael finds out how it works and enjoys a pint and a sea shanty with long-serving volunteers.

At Long Sands beach, Michael rolls up his sleeves to help volunteers caring for sick and injured seals at the Tynemouth Aquarium Seal Hospital. A young pup called Gandalf needs to have his temperature taken.

From Newcastle Central, Michael boards The Passage to India train service, a curry express, which takes him 20 miles along the Tyne Valley line to the station house at Corbridge, now an Indian restaurant.

Back on the Tyne Valley line, Michael's train traces the course of the mighty Hadrian鈥檚 Wall. At Bardon Mill, he discovers some of the richest Roman archaeological sites in Britain at Vindolanda. Michael joins volunteer excavators to hear about some of their intriguing finds.