Joanna Lumley's Japan

Joanna’s trip begins in Hokkaidō, one of Japan’s four main islands, to find the majestic red-crowned crane – an important symbol in Japanese culture. Next she heads to Sapporo for its magical Snow Festival, and meets some of its indigenous Ainu community. Heading south, she visits an ancient brewery that’s been making sake since 1689 and one of the oldest, most breathtaking pagodas in the country.

Joanna takes in Tokyo, a city spanning over 5,000 square miles, by helicopter. It was bombed extensively by the US Army Air Forces in World War II; astonishingly, almost all of it has been built in the last 70 years. It’s now a symbol of Japan’s postwar boom and is the world’s second-largest economy. Back on her feet, Joanna heads out to see Kamem Joshi – a girl band with a largely male audience.

Joanna undertakes a pilgrimage of sorts to the island of Shikoku, visiting temples to elevate her understanding of Japanese Buddhism. She travels south to Nagasaki, where the second atomic bomb was dropped on Japan in 1945. Here, Joanna meets Matsuyoshi Ikeda – who was at school in the city on the day the bomb dropped. He shares his miraculous story of survival.