Britain's Lost Routes with Griff Rhys Jones - Season 1

Griff Rhys Jones goes on a Tudor adventure as he retraces the route that Queen Elizabeth I took through the Cotswolds and into the West Country on what was one of her regular 'progresses' through her realm.

Winding through the heart of some of England's most stunning countryside he tracks her journey from Windsor to Bristol. Griff reconstructs the enormous baggage train the queen took with her, he tries out some Elizabethan forms of transport, and visits some of the stunning castles and stately homes she visited.

Griff Rhys Jones joins the crew of a Thames sailing barge to recreate the precarious journey that thousands of similar vessels once made as they brought produce including hay, beer, fish and even bricks from the east coast into London.

Griff throws himself back into the early 19th century, joining a herd of Highland cows and two sturdy farmers to retrace an ancient droving route once taken by thousands as they trudged 250 miles through the Scottish Highlands from the Isle of Skye to market in Falkirk.

In a spectacular journey through the Welsh countryside, Griff picks up the staff of the medieval pilgrim to retrace the steps that thousands of worshippers made in medieval times from Holywell to St Davids.

Walking with five hardy companions, he rediscovers a once well-trodden route that passes through remote mountain ranges and was exposed to attacks from bandits and many other dangers.