Michael Portillo's Long Weekends

In this first episode, Michael visits one of his favourite European cities, the vibrant and bustling Spanish capital, Madrid.

A short flight from the UK, renowned as a city that never sleeps, Madrid is somewhere Michael knows well having visited it regularly for over 60 years. And this weekend will be one to remember, with spies in hotel bars, delicate suckling pig and exquisite charcoal grilled seafood, and an outrageous bespoke Spanish cape. There's even his boyhood home in the heart of the city.

Michael's weekend begins in the city centre on the busy Gran Via boulevard, which connects the city's east end, home to Madrid's famous Golden Triangle of art museums and El Retiro Park, with the western side, where the opulent Royal Palace sits.

Michael heads for an early lunch at a restaurant he knows well in the Old Town. Madrid is home to around 10,000 restaurants, and this institution was founded in 1725 making it the world's oldest restaurant with a wood fired oven that hasn't gone out in 300 years, apparently. There's only one dish on the menu: suckling pig.

For the more adventurous there are plenty of surprises in store. Hotel bars with a shady history of espionage, a traditional confectioner who makes a classic Spanish nougat, and a bespoke tailor specialising in a very stylish cape, all come into play.

For the culture vultures, Madrid doesn't disappoint either. Michael goes behind-the-scenes of the opera house El Teatro Real, open to the public seven days a week. He visits one of the world's greatest art collections, and finds time for the Royal Palace, one of Europe's largest with almost 3500 rooms, many of which are open to the public. Perfect on a Long Weekend getaway.

During his Long Weekend Michael also enjoys an Ecuadorian feast in the bohemian neighbourhood of Malasaňa, and a fantastic seafood lunch, grilled fresh over charcoal, in a little-known suburb outside the centre.

In between the hustle and bustle, Michael finds time to relax in the inner-city oasis that is El Retiro Park, once exclusive to the King and royal court, before squeezing in a visit to the family flat where he stayed as a boy, in the years after the Spanish Civil War.

Join Michael Portillo as he takes us on a Long Weekend in Prague, the capital of the Czech Republic and city of a hundred spires.

Michael first visited Prague 40 years ago when Czechoslovakia, as it was known then, was behind the Iron Curtain. But now it's totally transformed into a vibrant must-see city with amazing castles, wonderful gas-lit streets and beautiful eateries and places to see.

But beneath the buzzing surface, the city's darker past also makes it a must-visit for a long weekend. From the discovery of a secret nuclear bunker under his hotel and rebirth of Czech cold war cuisine, to daredevil circus acrobatics and hidden Soviet art, Michael takes us through a city where he finds so much has changed since he first went there.

Michael begins by crossing the stunning 13th century Charles Bridge heading to the British Embassy which he last visited in the 1980s when the city was under constant Soviet surveillance and meetings took place in the Embassy's garden to avoid being spied upon.

At Prague Castle, the world's largest ancient castle, Michael explores the striking St Vitus cathedral before stopping for lunch at the city's oldest deli to make a ‘Chlebicky' – a messy but delicious open sandwich, smothered in cured meats, and pickled vegetables.

Michael's hotel reveals an entertaining relic from darker days – a nuclear bunker complete with spying control room. He also takes a deep breath learning how to blow 600-degree hot glass as tries to create some of the city's world famous glassware before taking the culinary plunge by sampling local delicacies – raw steak tartar and bone marrow – as old school cuisine makes a comeback.

He then gains access to the workings behind the amazing 15th-century astronomical street clock – which anyone can get for a tenner – and then it's off to the historic Jewish Quarter where Michael finds surprise after surprise, including lighting the city's gas street lamps with the world's tallest street lamp lighter – at over 2.5m.

Michael also manages to squeeze in a night in a one room hotel dubbed Europe's ugliest building, visits the country's oldest monastery where the monks' beer has been brewed for 1000 years, and laps up the thrills and spills behind the scenes of a dramatic night at the world-famous Prague circus.
 

Join Michael Portillo as he takes us on a Long Weekend to Italy's capital of fashion, design and industry: the dynamic, northern powerhouse of Milan.
Michael's weekend begins on the back of a classic 1960's Lambretta, the iconic Italian scooter that was invented in the city. Meeting a group of biker aficionados, Michael soaks up La Dolce Vita as he's whisked off to see some of Milan's must-see landmarks.

Michael is then given a crash-course on the strict rules of Italian coffee drinking etiquette, before he's given a dressing down by a personal shopper keen to improve his fashion sense.

Feeling courageous, Michael climbs to the roof of the spectacular Duomo Cathedral, the jewel in Milan's crown which is open to the public, and ventures into the "city of the dead" with its impressive graves and tombs in the Cimitero Monumentale. He's also let loose racing a vintage Alfa Romeo, every petrolhead's dream, before taking on all-comers in a game of Bocce, an ancient Italian equivalent to bowls.

Michael soaks up more Milanese culture by going behind the scenes at the Leonardo Da Vinci museum, where one of the master's original 15 century drawings is bought to life in the shape of a huge mechanised lion.

During this action-packed Long Weekend, Michael also learns how to cook the perfect risotto before turning cocktail maker by mixing a Negroni Sbagliato at Bar Basso, the home of this universally popular aperitvo.

He also visits the Torre Branca, the highest point in the breathtaking Sempione Park, spins himself good luck at Galleria Vittorio Emanuele II, Italy's oldest shopping arcade, and spends the night in Nivigli, the vibrant, Venice-like canal quarter of the city.