Halifax to Prince Edward Island

Season 4Episode 660 minFeb. 29, 2020
Halifax to Prince Edward Island

Michael Portillo begins a new journey on the tracks of the Ocean line to explore Canada's maritime provinces en route to Quebec City. 

Clutching his 1899 Appleton's Guide to Canada, he begins in the Atlantic port of Halifax, Nova Scotia, where he discovers an 18th-century British hilltop citadel, manned at the time of his guide by the 78th Highland Regiment. Michael joins the men who recreate the roles of those Scottish soldiers today. 

At the mercy of the young 'sergeant major', Michael learns the drill in kilt and sporran. 

Michael follows his Appleton's to a vast Victorian dry dock, still in use today by shipbuilders for the Royal Canadian Navy and finds out what it takes to build a state-of-the-art Arctic Patrol vessel. He learns of a catastrophic explosion in Halifax harbour in 1917, which killed 2,000 people and left 25,000 homeless. Former residents of an African-Canadian community torn in two by the railway tell Michael of their struggle for redress. 

Paddling along the Shubenacadie Canal, he discovers a 'marine railway', and on Banook Lake, he joins 15 'warriors' preparing for battle in a war canoe. 

In the picturesque harbour town of Pictou, Nova Scotia, Michael discovers the first wave of Scots to settle in the region, who arrived on board a ship named Hector. Aboard a replica of the 18th-century vessel, he hears of their gruelling 11-week voyage across the Atlantic and is invited to join young dancers in a Scottish reel. At the Northumberland Fisheries Museum, Michael investigates what it takes to keep Nova Scotia's top export on the menu. 

From Caribou, Michael catches the ferry to Prince Edward Island to meet its most famous resident at her beautifully kept home. Charmed by the red-haired Anne of Green Gables and her fiery temper, he heads to the island's provincial capital, Charlottetown, to see her record-breaking musical. 

Following the island's famous red roads, Michael arrives at the Red Shores racetrack, where they're preparing for an evening harness race. Champion driver Kenny Arsenault takes Michael out for a hair-raising spin.

Halifax to Prince Edward Island has aired on Feb. 29, 2020 at 20:00
Previous EpisodeNext Episode

Trailer

We do not have any trailers for this episode

Recently Updated Shows

Recently updated shows that might be of your interest.
The Pitt
Running

The Pitt

The Pitt is a realistic examination of the challenges facing healthcare workers in today's America as seen through the lens of the frontline heroes working in a modern-day hospital in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania. Each episode follows an hour of Dr. Robby's 15-hour shift as the chief attendant in Pittsburgh Trauma Medical Hospital's emergency room.

Mrs. Brown's Boys
Running

Mrs. Brown's Boys

Comedy starring Brendan O'Carroll as loud-mouthed Irish matriarch Agnes Brown, whose favourite pastime is meddling in the lives of her six children.

GenreComedy
Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches
Running

Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches

Anne Rice's Mayfair Witches centers on an intuitive young neurosurgeon who discovers that she is the unlikely heir to a family of witches. As she grapples with her newfound powers, she must contend with a sinister presence that has haunted her family for generations.

The Ark
Running

The Ark

The Ark takes place 100 years in the future when planetary colonization missions have begun as a necessity to help secure the survival of the human race. The first of these missions on a spacecraft known as Ark One encounters a catastrophic event causing massive destruction and loss of life. With more than a year left to go before reaching their target planet, a lack of life-sustaining supplies and loss of leadership, the remaining crew must become the best versions of themselves to stay on course and survive.

The Diplomat
Running

The Diplomat

In the midst of an international crisis, a career diplomat lands in a high-profile job she's unsuited for, with tectonic implications for her marriage and her political future.