Michael Portillo begins a 1,000-mile journey across the vast Canadian Prairie aboard Canada's last trans-continental passenger line. From the very heart of the country he travels west to the majestic Rocky Mountains. Following his 1899 Appleton's Guidebook, on this leg, Michael explores the Manitoban capital, Winnipeg, the nation's chief railroad centre, known as the "gateway to the west". Joining the ranks of the 17,000 Canadian National students to have trained at the giant freight company's national training centre, Michael has a go at marshalling a wagon and is chuffed with his performance.

In the French quarter of Saint Boniface, he cashes in at the Canadian Royal Mint, where all the coins in circulation in Canada are made. And he discovers the origins of the half-million Canadians who today identify as Metis. Michael meets a descendant of the 19th-century rebel leader now known as the "Father of Manitoba", and enjoys their traditional fiddle music. Show less