Brian Sewell embarks on the Italian leg of the Grand Tour, a trip that young aristocrats used to take in the 18th century, in a search for art and culture.

For the post-Oxbridge men of the 1700s, such as the poet Lord Byron and artist JMW Turner, the tour was an opportunity for drinking, gambling and womanising. But for the brutally frank art critic, there will be no such revelry. Tracing their route in a lefthand drive Mercedes Benz, Brian has his umbrella in hand and his opinions at the ready: “It’s either late wedding cake or early water closet,” he remarks, glaring up at the San Miniato in Florence.

But even he can’t deny that during his series he visits some of the most romantic places in Italy: Venice, Rome, Tuscany, Siena and Naples, taking in some of the most awe-inspiring architecture and artwork from the classical Roman to the wonders of The Renaissance. Marvelling at the architecture of Andrea Palladio in Vicenza, pilgrimaging to Michelangelo’s tomb in Florence and even recreating his own youthful spirit, driving down the piazza steps in the Renaissance town of Todi, Brian is in his element, delivering expert knowledge on the artists and periods he has studied all his life.

He starts in Turin, where he examines the 18thcentury architecture before siding with an ill-fated animal when he observes a ritual boar culling. His next stop is Milan, where he notices the dandyism of the Italians in the fashion capital and can not fail to be impressed by da Vinci’s The Last Supper.