Walks of Life

Mehreen Baig explores the gorgeous Kent countryside as she walks in the footsteps of the county's most famous son, Charles Dickens. Starting her journey in the Kent marshes, the setting for the opening scenes of Great Expectations, she visits the local pub where the author drank, the parish church where he worshipped and the home he died in, Gad's Hill House. She then ventures into Rochester, visiting several sites that inspired characters and scenes in his novels, the summer house where he used to work and the spot in the cathedral where he wanted to be buried, only for his dying wish to be overturned by Queen Victoria.

Along the way, Mehreen learns about the man and his beliefs, and finds out how the Kent landscape and the childhood experiences he had there would go on to influence not just his writing but his entire outlook on morality, ethics and social justice.

JB Gill heads north of the border to explore the hidden secrets that can be found amongst the familiar tourist sites of Edinburgh. Starting his walk on board Her Majesty's now retired Royal Yacht Britannia, he uncovers an ornate Bhuddist temple hidden inside an innocuous-looking bank building, discovers how one of Scotland's most important religious figures came to be buried in a car park, and sees a long-lost artistic masterpiece being uncovered more than two centuries after it was hidden from view. After a brush with the afterlife at the city's spiritualist centre, he ends his journey by taking in the awe-inspiring stonework in the magnificent Rosslyn Chapel.

Mehreen Baig is in stunning Staffordshire, walking the final section of the Two Saints Way, an ancient pilgrim trail that ends at the Shrine of St Chad near the magnificent Lichfield Cathedral. Starting her journey in the majestic woodlands of Cannock Chase, she visits a peaceful cemetery for German soldiers of the Second World War, then proceeds to the ruins of a magnificent country house to take in some breathtaking views of the landscape. Next, she joins some other walkers on the route to find out what the ancient practice of pilgrimage has to offer people all of all faiths today.

Eventually arriving in the city of Lichfield, Mehreen learns about the town's role in the Enlightenment and the life of its most famous son, Samuel Johnson, author of the first English-language dictionary. Inside the cathedral, she meets a team of artists from Bethlehem working to create a magnificent new cross for the knave, before heading to the shrine of St Chad itself, an unassuming well where centuries ago he baptised the converted into Christianity.

JB Gill journeys along a 12-mile stretch of the River Severn in Shropshire to discover the ways civilisations have lived and worshipped along its banks since the dawn of man. Starting in the shadow of the magnificent Ironbridge, he finds out how the family that constructed the bridge and kick-started the Industrial Revolution were guided by their strong Quaker faith, a religion that is still popular in those parts to this day. After a spot of coracling on the water, he stops at the ruins of the magnificent Buildwas Abbey and meets a modern day monk to find out how their penitent lifestyles have changed since the structure was in its prime. After sitting down for a chat and a cast-off with a self-styled ‘fishing vicar', JB visits the fascinating ruins of the Roman city of Wroxeter, before lending a helping hand at a local vineyard. As he heads towards his final destination in Shrewsbury, he stops off to admire the work of one of the UK's only living painters of religious icons, before arriving at the parish church of St Mary's, home of some of the UK's very finest stained glass windows.