Joanna Lumley's Postcards - Season 1

First aired: 4/20/2017 6 episodes

Episodes

1. Egyptian Nile

Aired: 4/20/2017

The actress recalls some of her journeys to far-flung places across the globe, beginning with her journey along the Nile and her stop-offs along the way. Highlights of her trip include a camel ride to Egypt's most famous landmark, the pyramids at Giza, her tour of the ancient tomb of Queen Qalhata in Sudan, filled with fascinating hieroglyphics, and undergoing a Sudanese beauty treatment.

2. Greece

Aired: 4/27/2017

The actress recalls her journey around mainland Greece. She begins in Athens with a trip to the Parthenon, a temple to the goddess Athena built nearly 2,500 years ago. Joanna also visits a festival where fortunes are read out to large crowds, although the revelations are often quite shocking and rude, watches the singer Nana Mouskouri perform at the ancient Epidaurus theatre and ends her trip with a visit to the mountain monasteries of Meteora.

3. Russia

Aired: 5/4/2017

The actress recalls her mammoth journey across Russia - a country she visited as a young model - as part of her 6,000-mile trip along the Trans-Siberian Railway. Highlights include a tense border crossing and drinking gold-flaked vodka with an oligarch.

4. Greek Islands

Aired: 5/11/2017

The actress recalls her journey across the Greek islands. She starts out on the island of Evia, where she engages in an ancient language of whistling with the local people, and on Kos she visits the birthplace of Hippocrates, the father of modern medicine. Travelling to Nysros she carefully climbs a slumbering volcano, before setting sail for Crete, where she spends time in the mountains with shepherds and learns how their ancestors played a key role in the fight against Nazi occupation.

5. Trans-Siberian Adventure

Aired: 5/25/2017

The actress recalls her journey through China and Mongolia on board the Trans-Siberian Express, and her various stop-offs along the way. Highlights include walking the Great Wall of China at dawn, cruising through the streets of Beijing in a Rolls-Royce and a visit to a strange restaurant boasting a Chairman Mao cabaret. She also recalls milking horses with Mongolian nomads, and hearing the music of the Mongolian throat singers.

6. The African Nile

Aired: 6/8/2017

The actress recalls the second half of her journey along the Nile. She learns how the waters at the source of the river in Uganda are believed to have powers of healing - and gets accidentally baptised. Joanna also goes on safari, where she encounters shoebills, hippos, rhinos and crocodiles, attends an early morning service at one of the many monasteries and samples the national dish. Last in the series.