Off the Rails: A Love Story
One man in New Zealand is still passionate enough about its rails and the country they roll through, to put words into action. Train buff Marcus Lush heads "Off the Rails", from Bluff in the South to Opua in the North, on a remarkable array of railways - coal, freight, steam, railcars, even a jigger or two! A fascinating and entertaining journey full of quirky locals and spectacular scenery.
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Cast
Seasons
1.Home and Away
10-04-2005Marcus leaves his home in Bluff and embarks on the start of a 100-day journey around New Zealand by rail. From Invercargill - the most "trained-up" place in the country - he catche...
2.Survivor
17-04-200522mFrom Queenstown, Marcus follows the old Cromwell line to, Dunedin, variously using pedalo, bicycle, rubber dinghy and jigger. He stays in New Zealand's most spectácular farmstay an...
3.Cups and Madness
24-04-200523mMarcus investigates the Seacliff Lunatic Asylum fire, one of the least-known New Zealand disasters, despite it claiming 37 lives. He also gets a handle on railway cups, talking to...
4.Friends in High Places
01-05-200522mAfter arriving by train in Otira, Marcus spends some time helping to run the town with the couple that own it. He then heads to Denniston - a remarkable West Coast town above the c...
5.Coal Fields to Vineyards
08-05-200522mHeading out of the West Coast on a coal train, Marcus meets some miners in Reefton, finds out what happened to Nelson's trains, celebrates Kaikoura replacing rails with whales and...
6.Secrets and Lies
15-05-200522mFrom Wanganui, Marcus travels by steam boat and milk train to Whangamomona. He goes to bed in a town of 40 and wakes up the next day to find he's one of 6,000. He then catches his...
7.Heart of Darkness
22-05-200522mFrom Taumaranui to Palmerston North, Marcus celebrates the Main Trunk Line, ponders the perplexing Raurimu Spiral and talks to people still affected by New Zealand's worst rail dis...
8.Gliding On
29-05-200522mEvery day, hundreds of Palmerston North people catch the train to Wellington to work. Marcus partakes in some of their rituals and discovers that the capital is full of rail obsess...
9.Rail Rider
05-06-200523mIn Pahiatua, Marcus explains why railcars are the rolling stock that really spins his wheels. He spends the night half a metre from a busy rail line, rides on the country's most' s...
10.Good as Gold
12-06-200522mMarcus follows a log as it is felled in Kaingaroa Forest, loaded on to a train and taken to Mt Maunganui for export. He visits the historic gold trains of the Karangahake Gorge, me...
11.The Big Smoke
19-06-200521mMarcus hitches a ride on a loco from Hamilton through the Waikato. A visit to Glenbrook is followed by a morning with singer Jordan Reyne who lives in a campground and writes songs...
12.The Grande Finale
26-06-200522mMarcus gets to ride the one train that's eluded him until now. He heads for Northland via Helensville where he meets the women who used to run the station tearoom. He explains the...
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