Los Angeles to Laguna Beach
Michael Portillo strikes oil in the suburbs of Los Angeles, contemplates his navel in the orange groves of Riverside, makes a California Roll and paints a pretty picture in Laguna Beach.
It is Mexican Independence Day and the locals are celebrating the country's hard-won independence from Spain in the early 19th century. There is dancing, singing and feasting in the streets and Michael is up for joining the party. He learns that one in two of the population of LA is Latino, mainly of Mexican descent, and hears after only a few decades, Mexico lost half its territory and California became part of the United States. Michael learns the secrets of backyard oil drilling in Los Angeles, home to the largest urban oil field in the United States. Nodding donkeys are everywhere - in residential neighbourhoods, parking lots and burger joints.
Michael sports a zesty orange jacket to visit the Citrus Variety Collection and learns the difference between a pummelo and a papeda. Alongside oil, the citrus fruit industry, he discovers, is one of the bedrocks of the state's economy. At Laguna Beach, Michael learns how artists from the east coast travelled west on the Transcontinental Railroad to found a colony of 'plein air' painters attracted by the beautiful coastline and glorious light to paint outside.
Trailer
Recently Updated Shows
Happy's Place
Happy's Place follows Bobbie who inherits her father's restaurant and is less than thrilled to discover that she has a new business partner in the half-sister she never knew she had.
QI XL
Sandi Toksvig, Alan Davies and comedy stars swap even more funny facts on every subject under the sun. It doesn't matter if they're right, as long as they're quite interesting.
Citadel
Eight years ago, Citadel, an independent global spy agency, was destroyed by a new syndicate, Manticore. With their memories wiped, elite agents Mason Kane and Nadia Sinh barely escaped with their lives. Eight years later, Mason's former colleague, Bernard Orlick, asks for his help to prevent Manticore from establishing a new world order.
SurrealEstate
SurrealEstate revolves around real estate agent Nick Roman and an elite team of specialists who handle the cases that no one else can: haunted and possessed houses that literally scare would-be buyers away. Researching, investigating and "fixing" the things that go bump in the night, the team works to create closure — and closings — as they struggle with demons of their own.
Abbott Elementary
In this workplace comedy, a group of dedicated, passionate teachers — and a slightly tone-deaf principal — are brought together in a Philadelphia public school where, despite the odds stacked against them, they are determined to help their students succeed in life. Though these incredible public servants may be outnumbered and underfunded, they love what they do — even if they don't love the school district's less-than-stellar attitude toward educating children.