Like so many other grammar schools that flourished in Britain before they were abolished through a mix of ideology and political folly, Harrow County was a fiercely competitive institution, where all boys were taught to strive for excellence. It was precisely because of this demanding regime that results were so good.

Michael Portillo

It's not as if I've ever been to prison or been close to going to prison. The closest I've got is knowing people who have been in jail - after all, I was a member of Parliament - and visiting them there during their sentence.

Michael Portillo

I have Spanish ancestry and, indeed, speak the language, up to a point.

Michael Portillo

You never quite know what you do in life that leaves a seed behind that grows into an oak tree.

Michael Portillo

Music turns the world upside down.

Michael Portillo

What's extraordinary about Cobra Mist, and so much of what went on at Orford, was that the public were completely oblivious to it.

Michael Portillo

Travelling the railways of Europe with a century-old guidebook can be disconcerting: fares, food, and drink seem shockingly expensive compared with what they were; trains and paddle-steamers run to unexpected timetables (assuming they're still running at all); and not only states but whole empires have been wiped from the map.

Michael Portillo

Personal responsibility matters.

Michael Portillo

I do rather rejoice when people come up to talk to me about railways.

Michael Portillo

I look back on my schooldays with a warm glow of nostalgia.

Michael Portillo

Three letters send a chill down the spine of the enemy: SAS. Those letters spell out one clear message. Don't mess with Britain!

Michael Portillo

I don't think I've got a thick skin, but I've not felt particularly humiliated by the things which people think I would have felt humiliated by, such as losing my seat in 1997 and not being elected leader in 2001. In the second case, I felt relieved.

Michael Portillo

My favourite British line is the West Highland line. It was built across moorland where no one had succeeded in building a road. So everything in that area is there because of the railway line.

Michael Portillo

People are obviously very interested in travel, including travel in Britain.

Michael Portillo

No restaurant, however brilliantly situated, can give you the constantly changing views that you can see from a railway. Revolving restaurants at the tops of tall buildings try to compete, but spinning around is no substitute for speeding along.

Michael Portillo

My Scottish grandfather, John W. Blyth, was a man addicted to paintings. A manufacturer of linen, he spent all his surplus money on pictures.

Michael Portillo

My grandfather, who was always keen to promote living artists, staged an unprecedented exhibition of Peploe's works at Kirkcaldy in 1928.

Michael Portillo

I love a good meal on a train, and if I'm travelling on a discount ticket, the challenge is to eat more than the price of the fare.

Michael Portillo

For all those who experienced it, the Spanish Civil War was devastating.

Michael Portillo

The advantage of trains over planes is that there is much less hassle. You can get up from your seat and stroll about; you're more likely to meet people, and, particularly if you're making a long journey, you can actually see the terrain.

Michael Portillo

My eyes are at different levels, and my right ear's a bit bigger than my left - which showed up particularly in school photographs - so my mother used to call me her 'little Picasso.'

Michael Portillo