Michael Portillo reaches Birmingham and discovers how a radical reformer would make his mark on the city of a thousand trades. At Highbury Hall, he finds Joseph Chamberlain's splendid mansion home and hears how he established a political dynasty including a prime minister and a foreign secretary. Next stop is Cradley Heath, at the time of his Bradshaw's one of five chain-making towns in the West Midlands. Michael learns how 90 percent of the chain workshops in England and Wales were located here and that female workers earned a pittance to produce goods in their homes.

Michael Portillo continues his rail journey through Northern Ireland. In Belfast's grand Edwardian City Hall, Michael investigates the scene of a watershed moment in Irish history.