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The Great Tours: England, Scotland and Wales
Whether you are searching for the past or want to better understand the world as it is today, travel—even virtually, from the comfort of home—offers a unique opportunity to see the world in new ways. Perhaps you would like to wander the cosmopolitan streets of London, roam the 1,000-year-old campuses of Oxford and Cambridge, or tour world-famous museums like the Tate Modern and the National Railway Museum. Or maybe you are aiming for a more pastoral adventure, like an expedition across the romantic wilds of the Scottish Highlands, or a journey to see the breathtaking vistas of the Jurassic coast. No matter what experience you are hoping to find, a tour of England, Scotland, and Wales rewards visitors with an astonishing array of historical, cultural, and scenic pleasures and reveals the heritage of a nation that has influenced the world immeasurably.
With so many beautiful and fascinating places to see, where do you start? What famous sites are most worth seeing—and where are the hidden gems that many tourists miss? Let us help you get the most out of your journey across this superb island.
No matter what you are hoping to discover in this magnificent region, The Great Tours: England, Scotland, and Wales is the perfect guide. Taught by acclaimed Professor Patrick Allitt, a British-born scholar who teaches at Emory University, these 36 engrossing lectures give you an insider’s take on traveling through Great Britain. Whether you are planning a week-long vacation; a month-long grand tour; or just want to experience England, Scotland, and Wales from afar, this visually immersive course brings Great Britain into your living room and gives you all the background you need to plan the trip of a lifetime.
With so many beautiful and fascinating places to see, where do you start? What famous sites are most worth seeing—and where are the hidden gems that many tourists miss? Let us help you get the most out of your journey across this superb island.
No matter what you are hoping to discover in this magnificent region, The Great Tours: England, Scotland, and Wales is the perfect guide. Taught by acclaimed Professor Patrick Allitt, a British-born scholar who teaches at Emory University, these 36 engrossing lectures give you an insider’s take on traveling through Great Britain. Whether you are planning a week-long vacation; a month-long grand tour; or just want to experience England, Scotland, and Wales from afar, this visually immersive course brings Great Britain into your living room and gives you all the background you need to plan the trip of a lifetime.
18 pages, Audible Audio
First published November 8, 2018
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Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews
August 3, 2020
This series of lectures out-performed my expectations. I was looking for history as well as travel and I got plenty of both.
November 27, 2021
Interesting, informative, and - as always - engaginly told by Professor Allitt. He is my favourite The Great Courses narrator, always combining his calm delivery and quiet sense of humour with extensive, in-depth knowlege of the subject matter.
There are 36 30-minute lectures altogether, divided into three parts, each one devoted to visiting Britain from a different perspective: history - from the prehistoric period until the 20th century, geography - from Scotland through Wales to England (with three lectures about London), and finally, culture and contemporary life.
This set of lecture is best followed with the accompanying course guidebook, which contains the most important elements of the lectures together with numerous pictures and maps - it will help you remember more. Unfortunately, I did not do it this way and now I wish I had. I think this course is mostly directed at the US audience so some references might not be clear for non-American listeners (e.g. explaining cricket with reference to baseball was not helpful in my case at all and I still have no idea how either of these sports works ;)).Despite that, I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in learning more about Britain. A word of warning, though - listening to these lectures during the Covid pandemic might be extremely frustrating at times, when you realize how impossible it is now to travel and discover all those beautiful places for yourself...
There are 36 30-minute lectures altogether, divided into three parts, each one devoted to visiting Britain from a different perspective: history - from the prehistoric period until the 20th century, geography - from Scotland through Wales to England (with three lectures about London), and finally, culture and contemporary life.
This set of lecture is best followed with the accompanying course guidebook, which contains the most important elements of the lectures together with numerous pictures and maps - it will help you remember more. Unfortunately, I did not do it this way and now I wish I had. I think this course is mostly directed at the US audience so some references might not be clear for non-American listeners (e.g. explaining cricket with reference to baseball was not helpful in my case at all and I still have no idea how either of these sports works ;)).Despite that, I highly recommend this course to anyone interested in learning more about Britain. A word of warning, though - listening to these lectures during the Covid pandemic might be extremely frustrating at times, when you realize how impossible it is now to travel and discover all those beautiful places for yourself...
February 18, 2020
This was a fun course on traveling to England, Scotland and Wales. Professor Allitt hits all of the hot spots plus some fairly obscure places. Beatrix Potter's house and Welsh cities that speak both languages.
I like his advice on the different places you might enjoy seeing but didn't know existed. He has a lecture just on the poets, or Dickens fans, or museums you might wish to see when it gets wet outside.
I may never get to England but I feel like I have already been because Allitt makes you see the many places he describes.
I borrowed this book from my local library and I highly recommend it.
I like his advice on the different places you might enjoy seeing but didn't know existed. He has a lecture just on the poets, or Dickens fans, or museums you might wish to see when it gets wet outside.
I may never get to England but I feel like I have already been because Allitt makes you see the many places he describes.
I borrowed this book from my local library and I highly recommend it.
January 26, 2022
I thoroughly enjoyed this, more than any other Great Course I've watched so far. If possible I'd give it 10 stars! It couldn't have been better -- thank you, Dr. Allitt!
I watched the video version, streamed free on Kanopy. I would definitely urge anyone interested in this to watch, rather than listen to audio, as the vivid images throughout--of scenery and historic buildings--add so much.
I watched the video version, streamed free on Kanopy. I would definitely urge anyone interested in this to watch, rather than listen to audio, as the vivid images throughout--of scenery and historic buildings--add so much.
May 5, 2023
This was a delightful read! Professor Allitt did a wonderful job throughout all 36 lectures. Every lecture was packed full of travel, history, and little tidbits of knowledge, so much so, that I can’t wait to listen to it again and possibly find something I missed. I could listen to this many more times and not tire of it.
November 23, 2024
Fascinating, informative, and engaging, this course was enjoyable and we looked forward to it each day that it was on our schedule! From geography to history to architecture to literature to sports, these lectures gave a great overview of Britain, especially for those who are planning to visit; but certainly for the armchair travelers, as well!
The professor was grandfatherly and kindly, or as my sophomore put it, like a nice old uncle that is sharing with you what he knows. He has been our favorite Great Courses presenter thus far and we wish he had more "Great Tours" courses to offer!
This series seems most likely to have been created for adults and perhaps high-schoolers. There are occasional references to mature themes in some lectures, especially historical violence and immorality in the personal lives of some of the featured literary/historical figures. The references are fairly brief and subtle, typically. There is one part near the beginning of the series with an awkward and not-subtle anatomical reference based on a geographical outline created by ancient people.
We used this title as part of our homeschool high school geography course, and had a preschooler sitting in on all but the first handful of lectures. All three of us were sad to finish the course because we found it relaxing and enjoyable. The professor ended his last lecture with acknowledgements and thanks and we found those (especially the one about Mrs. Allitt) to be particularly endearing.
We scheduled this three days a week and finished the course over one 12-week term (36 lectures, approximately half an hour each).
As a side note, it paired well with jigsaw puzzles and handicrafts projects. We all kept our hands busy while watching/listening and that probably contributed to our enjoyment.
The professor was grandfatherly and kindly, or as my sophomore put it, like a nice old uncle that is sharing with you what he knows. He has been our favorite Great Courses presenter thus far and we wish he had more "Great Tours" courses to offer!
This series seems most likely to have been created for adults and perhaps high-schoolers. There are occasional references to mature themes in some lectures, especially historical violence and immorality in the personal lives of some of the featured literary/historical figures. The references are fairly brief and subtle, typically. There is one part near the beginning of the series with an awkward and not-subtle anatomical reference based on a geographical outline created by ancient people.
We used this title as part of our homeschool high school geography course, and had a preschooler sitting in on all but the first handful of lectures. All three of us were sad to finish the course because we found it relaxing and enjoyable. The professor ended his last lecture with acknowledgements and thanks and we found those (especially the one about Mrs. Allitt) to be particularly endearing.
We scheduled this three days a week and finished the course over one 12-week term (36 lectures, approximately half an hour each).
As a side note, it paired well with jigsaw puzzles and handicrafts projects. We all kept our hands busy while watching/listening and that probably contributed to our enjoyment.
abandoned-dnf
November 3, 2023DNF after three lectures. Not often I can't finish a GC, especially when I'm really interested in the topic, but this professor didn't do it for me one bit. Pedantic and just boring to listen to.
June 7, 2021
Within the Great Courses, there are two other "The Great Tours" titles that I have consumed: The Great Tours: Experiencing Medieval Europe and The Great Tours: Greece and Turkey, from Athens to Istanbul. Both were decently enjoyable and informative tours of their respective regions, with the main problem being that they are somewhat older and therefore feature stock-footage and graphics that feel rather dated. In both courses, the tendency was to move around, rather like a tour; locations might be given more than one lecture, but then it is on to the next location. This series was quite a contrast then: it is much newer and features gorgeous stock-footage and modern graphics (especially making use of fancy options in Google Maps to display an area, and even features like buildings at times), and the structure of the lectures is quite different, since it repeatedly covers the same places through different lenses: sites associated with different historical periods, sites in different geographical/political regions, and sites associated with different cultural aspects, like authors or artists. This builds a sense of familiarity which I found enjoyable, despite its false nature.
High points for me were the beautiful images and the way that the first dozen lectures helped me get a better sense of the progression of British history; I was previously familiar with various periods, but mostly in isolation, and those lectures, structured around places linked to historical periods, helped me to link together different events and periods. What I appreciated much less is the lecturer's obvious conservative bias. The first lecture in particular was full of statements that felt akin to white nationalist dog whistles, or more a pro-Anglo-Euro vision that is inherently dismissive of other cultures.
I didn't actually get through the whole series. In particular, I only watched parts of the final disk since many of the lectures weren't of particular interest to me, like sports, actually planning a trip to Britain (the motivation to watch this was as a substitute to having the chance to actually visit), or Nautical Britain (though I did catch the parts about scenic lighthouses). Still, I think it was complete enough to count as finished. And because I'm fiddly about these things, the version I watched is not the version included here, but rather one with ISBN 1629975915.
High points for me were the beautiful images and the way that the first dozen lectures helped me get a better sense of the progression of British history; I was previously familiar with various periods, but mostly in isolation, and those lectures, structured around places linked to historical periods, helped me to link together different events and periods. What I appreciated much less is the lecturer's obvious conservative bias. The first lecture in particular was full of statements that felt akin to white nationalist dog whistles, or more a pro-Anglo-Euro vision that is inherently dismissive of other cultures.
I didn't actually get through the whole series. In particular, I only watched parts of the final disk since many of the lectures weren't of particular interest to me, like sports, actually planning a trip to Britain (the motivation to watch this was as a substitute to having the chance to actually visit), or Nautical Britain (though I did catch the parts about scenic lighthouses). Still, I think it was complete enough to count as finished. And because I'm fiddly about these things, the version I watched is not the version included here, but rather one with ISBN 1629975915.
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January 1, 2023If you are at all thinking about visiting Great Britain, England, Scotland or Wales then this love story to that part of the world is well worth reading. I love the history combined with what you can go and see now in those countries. Allitt ties the present, past, and historical landmarks together in a beautiful ode to his homeland. As he lives and works in the US he has a great deal of appeal to my American sensibilities and is able to tie the history of his part of the world to my knowledge, and the gaps in my knowledge. This ode to the area goes through history, literature, sports, and other activities and points out places of interest for all of these different specialized interests. If I were planning a tour in the near future I would certainly take the time to re listen to this book to find places that are off the beaten path to look at. He does not mention specific establishments, as with the tourist trade they might become obsolete before one would get to tour there. This Great Courses is a couple of years old so there are mentions of Queen Elizabeth as the ruling monarch. If you have an interest in this part of the world, this is well worth the listen.
March 6, 2020
The Great Tours surprised me because it is more than just a tour guide. It begins with a few hours of shortened British history, continues with a suggested tour that takes the listener to places that are less crowded and finishes with places to visit for those with special interests, such as music, art, sports, nature, books, and more. The audio tour refreshed my memory of places that I've visited and whet my interest in experiencing much more. It is a good introduction for those who have not crossed the pond.
The creator and narrator, Patrick N. Allitt, is a Brit who teaches at Emory University and takes pleasure in sharing his native country. I liked his personal twist on various locations. Hey, Allitt, may I go with you the next time you return home?
The creator and narrator, Patrick N. Allitt, is a Brit who teaches at Emory University and takes pleasure in sharing his native country. I liked his personal twist on various locations. Hey, Allitt, may I go with you the next time you return home?
August 31, 2020
An exhaustive review of information about Great Britain. The review is long -Very long. The author obviously extremely knowledgeable and equally opinionated with a decidedly liberal bent. If perhaps the gratuitous comments were extracted, this long and useful travel guide would most probably be at least 25 percent shorter. After each set of facts and historical bits of information about location of interest or piece of history, the author quips some opinion of criticism or point of view. it is hard to tell of the author a professor of history and culture or a frustrated professor of political science. This proves to be distracting in the overall work. It is not entirely surprising that although the author and Englishman- he perhaps has some unresolved conflicts
with his motherland , no longer lives in the U.K. and had educational diplomas from not entirely surprising places consistent with this bent. It misses any useful information about medical care in U.K. should someone be in need of that while traveling there.
Overall this could be a good travel encyclopedia if the reader can overlook the overstated political commentaries that follow each paragraph or fifth sentence.
with his motherland , no longer lives in the U.K. and had educational diplomas from not entirely surprising places consistent with this bent. It misses any useful information about medical care in U.K. should someone be in need of that while traveling there.
Overall this could be a good travel encyclopedia if the reader can overlook the overstated political commentaries that follow each paragraph or fifth sentence.
November 18, 2019
I enjoyed this tour of England that included a breadth of geographical place along with places of interest. There is enough depth about particular sites and areas that it can help direct specific plans for a visit to the British Isles. If this isn't tied directly to a visit, it still serves as a fun "visit" to this interesting country. I particularly enjoyed the several lectures that covered literary locations. I could easily listen to an entire lecture series based just on this sort of literary travel.
July 28, 2022
It's been a few years since my last trip to the UK, and there are numerous destinations there that remain on my list of places to visit. This was an informative and - sometimes more, sometimes less - interesting tour through sites in England, Scotland and Wales grouped according to a variety of themes. Some of these I've been to, some were already on the list, and a few others were new to me. Looking forward to the next journey!
October 28, 2020
It's actually 18 discs, not 18 pages. I enjoyed this lecture/audio book. It was very informative, had wonderful pictures and the professor spoke plainly, and was easy to understand. I will look for more talks by this professor and one day may plan a trip to England or Scotland to visit some of the suggested sites.
February 13, 2024
I love all the Great Courses by this author/lecturer! Allitt has a comfortable speaking style, making any topic interesting! This course covers the architecture, history, geography, and artefacts of these three countries, in great detail. He offers suggestions for travel in them, with specific topics of sport, hiking, literary tours, and historical tours. Recommended to all Anglophiles!
April 26, 2023
Interesting details within every chapter heading including art, architecture, poets, castles and kings, trains, walking paths, and history.
Eighteen hours of listening but I learned new information and feel more prepared for my trip there, soon.
Eighteen hours of listening but I learned new information and feel more prepared for my trip there, soon.
January 7, 2024
Really insightful if you’re interested in traveling to Britain. I enjoyed specially the sections on the castles and medieval England as well as the final chapters dealing with the hiking trails found throughout England.
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March 6, 2019In Great Courses. Very good overview of England.
August 21, 2019
very informative, loved the reader
February 10, 2020
Great prep materials for my upcoming trip to England and Scotland.
July 4, 2020
Patrick Allitt is such a great guide on this "tour". I think I benefited more from this than if I had the money to wonder around aimlessly in the British Isles.
May 25, 2022
This was not as intriguing as I had hoped it would be, but I was able to listen to it free and the kids enjoyed hearing about the castles and things we will see when in England next month.
April 30, 2024
Excellent series of lectures
August 29, 2024
More history than travel. Somewhat repetitive.
February 17, 2022
I am not the target audience for this book (an American visiting Britain for the first time), but I still enjoyed this book immensely! Patrick Allitt is an excellent and natural speaker and educator - 18 hours felt like mere minutes.
Displaying 1 - 25 of 25 reviews