Because Michael Portillo is essentially a human cat—he has multiple territories. He also owns a cottage in the South of France, in the sun-baked region of Provence. He bought it with his wife, Carolyn Eadie, who is a former accountant and, presumably, the only person who can tell him “no” when he suggests wallpapering the spare room with a diagram of the London Underground.
The French cottage is where he goes to escape the relentless clicking of train tracks. But let’s be real: he probably still takes a portable model railway with him. You can imagine him sitting on the terrace, sipping rosé, and muttering, “This viaduct in the valley… it’s a disgrace. They should have used rivets, not bolts.”
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Does He Actually Live on a Train?
Here’s a hilarious truth: for six months of the year, Michael basically lives on a train. When filming Great British Railway Journeys, he spends weeks criss-crossing the country in first-class carriages. He has a favourite seat (seat 4A, facing forward, window on the right—obviously). He once told a journalist that he “sleeps better on a Pendolino than in his own bed.” That man is committed.
And his diet? It’s exclusively purchased from station cafés. He’s famously addicted to Ginsters pasties and mint Aeros. If you ever spot him in Paddington Station, he’ll be holding a paper bag of snacks, looking both regal and lost, like a peacock that accidentally wandered into a Greggs.
