Synopsis

Following his Edwardian Bradshaw’s guide, Michael Portillo undertakes detailed investigations, beginning in a historic York tea room constructed by an immigrant from the Edwardian era. His research then takes a more serious turn as he explores the origins of Britain's modern welfare state through the work of an early 20th-century Quaker investigator—a man whose family had built a chocolate empire. The journey continues to Leeds, where Michael uncovers the city’s textile heritage and learns how,