Tashkent

Michael Portillo embarks on a thrilling new railway adventure following the Silk Road through the most populous country of Central Asia, Uzbekistan.

At the meeting point of east and west, this region has been home to some of the world’s greatest empires: ruled by the Mongols, the ferocious conqueror, Tamerlane, imperial Russia and the Soviet Union.

Michael begins in the capital, Tashkent, where he takes in its vast, vibrant market and samples popular Uzbek delicacies. He travels on the lavishly decorated Soviet-era metro, which was hidden from the outside world until 2018, when a ban on photographing it was lifted. Michael hears how an earthquake resulted in Tashkent becoming the capital of Soviet modernist architecture, and he makes his TikTok debut with a globally famous Uzbek social media star.