1 00:00:10,887 --> 00:00:14,721 NEIL OLIVER: Southwest Britain, where the Welsh and Cornish coastlines 2 00:00:14,807 --> 00:00:17,924 form the mouth of a huge natural funnel, 3 00:00:18,527 --> 00:00:21,121 which traps a vast body of water. 4 00:00:23,727 --> 00:00:27,606 As the AtIantic Ocean behind me surges aIong this coastIine, 5 00:00:27,687 --> 00:00:32,636 it gets squeezed towards the point over there where EngIand and WaIes meet. 6 00:00:32,727 --> 00:00:35,605 In EngIish, that's the Severn Estuary. 7 00:00:35,687 --> 00:00:39,965 In WeIsh, it's Mor Hafren, the Severn Sea. 8 00:00:40,047 --> 00:00:44,438 The Severn Sea, now that's a name that makes you want to expIore. 9 00:00:45,727 --> 00:00:51,085 On my expedition to the Severn Sea and beyond I'm joined by some familiar faces 10 00:00:51,167 --> 00:00:53,840 and a brand new addition to the team. 11 00:00:53,927 --> 00:00:57,476 Champion surfer Renee Godfrey swims with seals 12 00:00:57,567 --> 00:01:01,196 and explores the unspoilt marine habitats of Lundy. 13 00:01:01,287 --> 00:01:05,838 The water here is running wiId, as nature intended. 14 00:01:06,127 --> 00:01:07,196 (MEN CHATTERING) 15 00:01:07,287 --> 00:01:11,246 NEIL: Mark Horton discovers how painting a simple line on the side of ships 16 00:01:11,327 --> 00:01:13,238 has helped save countless lives . 17 00:01:13,327 --> 00:01:15,477 MARK HORTON: (LAUGHS) Fantastic! 18 00:01:15,567 --> 00:01:16,682 (GRUNTING) 19 00:01:16,767 --> 00:01:20,919 NEIL: Nick Crane gets the hang of climbing on Exmoor's treacherous sea cliffs. 20 00:01:21,007 --> 00:01:22,838 I'm cIinging on to everything I can, I can teII you. 21 00:01:24,567 --> 00:01:28,401 NEIL: And Hermione Cockburn visits an enchanted castle by the sea, 22 00:01:28,487 --> 00:01:32,162 where a millionaire media mogul let his imagination run wild. 23 00:01:32,407 --> 00:01:35,240 This is not something he wouId get away with today. 24 00:01:37,447 --> 00:01:39,278 This is Coast. 25 00:02:03,887 --> 00:02:07,846 Crossing from the north coast of France, we're back on home turf. 26 00:02:08,327 --> 00:02:11,239 Our journey continues, heading for Porthcawl 27 00:02:11,327 --> 00:02:14,046 starting at Botallack near Land's End. 28 00:02:16,927 --> 00:02:21,159 The jagged edge of Cornwall jabs defiantly into the Atlantic. 29 00:02:22,007 --> 00:02:25,602 Only the most durable rock can resist that ocean's pounding. 30 00:02:25,687 --> 00:02:26,881 (WAVES CRASHING) 31 00:02:26,967 --> 00:02:30,596 This tough coastline doesn't give up its treasures easily. 32 00:02:31,447 --> 00:02:34,883 But from the earliest times, men have been drawn here 33 00:02:34,967 --> 00:02:38,118 to pit themselves against the granite. 34 00:02:38,967 --> 00:02:42,164 Hidden inside the rock is a magicaI ingredient 35 00:02:42,247 --> 00:02:44,841 that brought the worId to the Cornish coast. 36 00:02:44,927 --> 00:02:48,966 They came in search of a rare metaI with remarkabIe properties. 37 00:02:49,487 --> 00:02:50,556 Tin. 38 00:02:52,927 --> 00:02:57,239 The relics of tin mining can be seen along the north coast of Cornwall. 39 00:02:58,007 --> 00:03:01,283 The engine houses and their chimneys may be derelict, 40 00:03:01,367 --> 00:03:05,326 but these ruins are reminders of an industry that connects us directly 41 00:03:05,407 --> 00:03:10,162 to the ancient world, thanks to a humble household object. 42 00:03:12,007 --> 00:03:14,521 How about this, a tin? 43 00:03:14,607 --> 00:03:19,123 Nowadays though, you'd probabIy caII it a can, made of aIuminium or steeI. 44 00:03:19,447 --> 00:03:23,440 But the originaIs started out in the 1800s and were made of iron, 45 00:03:23,527 --> 00:03:26,519 iron coated with a thin Iayer of tin. 46 00:03:27,127 --> 00:03:31,643 Tin doesn't rust. It's one of its many magicaI properties. 47 00:03:31,727 --> 00:03:36,084 And food kept in rust-free tin cans remained edibIe for ages. 48 00:03:36,687 --> 00:03:42,444 But ages and ages ago, tin was at the cutting edge of a much bigger revoIution. 49 00:03:46,207 --> 00:03:49,756 Mix tin with copper and you get bronze. 50 00:03:50,007 --> 00:03:53,761 The birth of the Bronze Age some three and a half thousand years ago 51 00:03:53,847 --> 00:03:56,759 owed a lot to the tin of the Cornish coast. 52 00:03:57,327 --> 00:04:01,400 Archaeologist Adam Sharpe has studied ancient bronze tools. 53 00:04:01,487 --> 00:04:04,160 -An axe head. -This is the sort of stapIe working tooI 54 00:04:04,247 --> 00:04:05,600 of the Bronze Age. 55 00:04:05,687 --> 00:04:07,996 VirtuaIIy every piece of bronze 56 00:04:08,247 --> 00:04:11,762 that you find in Western Europe has got Cornish tin in it. 57 00:04:11,847 --> 00:04:17,285 Once peopIe the worId over reaIise that tin is to be had here, 58 00:04:17,367 --> 00:04:18,766 CornwaII becomes pivotaI. 59 00:04:18,847 --> 00:04:21,884 AbsoIuteIy, in terms of distribution on the Earth's surface, 60 00:04:21,967 --> 00:04:26,438 tin is very rare indeed, even in terms of sort of Western Europe. 61 00:04:26,527 --> 00:04:29,405 Um, there's a bit in Iberia, in Spain, 62 00:04:29,487 --> 00:04:34,686 um, there's a IittIe bit on Sardinia, but aImost aII of it is in CornwaII and West Devon. 63 00:04:34,767 --> 00:04:37,440 And it means that the peopIe who controIIed that resource 64 00:04:37,527 --> 00:04:39,438 traded aII over Western Europe. 65 00:04:40,327 --> 00:04:41,646 NEIL: Thousands of years ago, 66 00:04:41,727 --> 00:04:45,197 long and perilous journeys were being made to this coast. 67 00:04:46,007 --> 00:04:49,761 As the Bronze Age boomed in Europe, they needed Cornish tin. 68 00:04:50,687 --> 00:04:54,566 The tin trade wasn't just with near neighbours across the Severn Sea, 69 00:04:54,647 --> 00:04:56,239 but with the wider world. 70 00:04:56,327 --> 00:04:58,887 Tin was travelling as far away as Ancient Greece 71 00:04:58,967 --> 00:05:00,719 and the Middle East. 72 00:05:02,967 --> 00:05:07,404 Bronze Age traders took great risks navigating this treacherous coastline, 73 00:05:07,487 --> 00:05:09,717 but the rewards were worth it. 74 00:05:10,887 --> 00:05:14,402 Copper tooI, it bIunts very, very easiIy. It's too bendy. 75 00:05:14,487 --> 00:05:18,036 Adding just the right amount of tin, 10, 1 1 percent of tin, makes it hard, 76 00:05:18,127 --> 00:05:21,517 makes it tough, it's sharpenabIe, it can be poIished. 77 00:05:21,647 --> 00:05:25,925 For what, in the main, is bronze being used to make? 78 00:05:26,007 --> 00:05:29,966 UtiIitarian tooIs, axes and knives and chiseIs and things Iike that. 79 00:05:30,047 --> 00:05:34,837 Enormous range of jeweIIery and weapons, of course, and it's the making of swords, 80 00:05:34,927 --> 00:05:38,806 which is, absoIuteIy typifies the Bronze... the Iater part of the Bronze Age. 81 00:05:38,887 --> 00:05:43,358 So, in a way, that puts CornwaII at the centre of an internationaI arms trade. 82 00:05:43,447 --> 00:05:45,483 ADAM: (LAUGHS) I'm afraid so, yes. 83 00:05:46,607 --> 00:05:50,680 NEIL: Throughout the Bronze Age, ancient armies relied on the Cornish coast 84 00:05:50,767 --> 00:05:52,678 for the raw materials of battle. 85 00:05:52,767 --> 00:05:53,961 -Hiya NeiI. -BURRIDGE: HeIIo. 86 00:05:54,047 --> 00:05:57,517 NEIL: To see why I'm meeting Neil Burridge who still practises 87 00:05:57,607 --> 00:06:00,565 the age-old art of forging bronze weapons. 88 00:06:00,647 --> 00:06:03,923 Just got the fire going. It's just starting to warm up. 89 00:06:04,007 --> 00:06:05,486 NEIL: As the temperature rises, 90 00:06:05,567 --> 00:06:10,118 Neil prepares a mould made of stone so we can cast our own bronze sword. 91 00:06:11,807 --> 00:06:15,083 BURRIDGE: So, that's it. NEIL: Oh, I'm so excited. 92 00:06:15,167 --> 00:06:16,316 -HoId that. -Okay. 93 00:06:16,407 --> 00:06:21,686 NEIL: Inside the fire is a crucible containing the two metals that together form bronze. 94 00:06:21,927 --> 00:06:25,158 Ninety percent copper will make our sword flexible. 95 00:06:25,247 --> 00:06:28,637 Ten percent tin will make it hard, with a cutting edge. 96 00:06:29,407 --> 00:06:33,366 Heated to 1,200 degrees Celsius, we're ready to pour. 97 00:06:33,447 --> 00:06:34,880 (BURRIDGE BLOWING) 98 00:06:34,967 --> 00:06:36,923 -That's good. -NEIL: Wow! 99 00:06:39,927 --> 00:06:41,406 Look at that! 100 00:06:44,287 --> 00:06:49,407 Wow, even that's a beautifuI thing. Look at the coIour of it. 101 00:06:52,127 --> 00:06:53,685 My first sword! 102 00:06:53,807 --> 00:06:57,322 BURRIDGE: What I'm going to do is take the cIamps off it now. 103 00:06:57,407 --> 00:07:00,683 -If we try to move it too quickIy, it'II snap. -Right. 104 00:07:00,767 --> 00:07:02,519 And if we Ieave it too Iong in the mouId, 105 00:07:02,607 --> 00:07:05,075 it gets stuck in the mouId and it won't come out. 106 00:07:05,167 --> 00:07:09,240 -So, it's a bit Iike ExcaIibur reaIIy. -NEIL: It sure is. 107 00:07:09,327 --> 00:07:12,080 Give it a IittIe wiggIe. 108 00:07:12,487 --> 00:07:15,047 I can feeI it, so you shouId be abIe to draw it out very sIowIy, 109 00:07:15,127 --> 00:07:17,766 but don't drop it. 110 00:07:24,887 --> 00:07:28,641 NEIL: Wow, Iook at that! 111 00:07:31,207 --> 00:07:34,005 That's how you draw a sword from a stone. 112 00:07:39,127 --> 00:07:42,802 The metal merchants have moved on in search of cheaper tin. 113 00:07:42,967 --> 00:07:46,437 But Cornwall is still trading on its natural resources, 114 00:07:46,727 --> 00:07:50,322 miles of spectacular craggy coves and beaches. 115 00:07:55,007 --> 00:08:00,604 St. Ives is a mecca for artists because of the special quality of its light. 116 00:08:04,447 --> 00:08:08,759 And some 30 miles on from St. Ives is Crantock. 117 00:08:10,007 --> 00:08:14,876 The beaches here offer another source of artistic inspiration. 118 00:08:16,087 --> 00:08:18,282 HeIIo, I'm Sarah Drew and I'm a jeweIIery designer. 119 00:08:18,367 --> 00:08:21,962 I'm going to show you why this beach in Cornwall inspires me. 120 00:08:22,047 --> 00:08:25,278 I use lots of found objects and recycling materials. 121 00:08:25,367 --> 00:08:26,561 And when I came down to Cornwall, 122 00:08:26,647 --> 00:08:30,799 it was lovely because there's so many places to go and find things like that. 123 00:08:30,887 --> 00:08:34,084 I've always liked using quite quirky and unusual little pieces, 124 00:08:34,167 --> 00:08:37,239 so I find things like sea glass, bits of slate pebbles, 125 00:08:37,327 --> 00:08:40,797 sea plastics which have been weathered and shaped nicely by the sea. 126 00:08:40,887 --> 00:08:44,800 Sea string, all sorts of things that I can make into jewellery. 127 00:08:44,887 --> 00:08:48,641 Right then, I've found this bucket Ioad of stuff. 128 00:08:49,167 --> 00:08:53,922 Some nice bits of sea string there, that I can crochet into some braceIets and neckIace. 129 00:08:54,007 --> 00:08:57,044 I do like putting things that other people see as rubbish 130 00:08:57,127 --> 00:09:01,040 with precious metals such as silver. So I quite like that contrast. 131 00:09:01,127 --> 00:09:04,676 I like to think that what I'm making is relevant to the place it's come from, 132 00:09:04,767 --> 00:09:08,521 and it's a way of expressing how I see the coastline myself. 133 00:09:08,967 --> 00:09:12,926 I do like to think about how far they've come and where they did originate. 134 00:09:13,047 --> 00:09:15,925 It's nice to think about what their first life was before I found them. 135 00:09:16,007 --> 00:09:18,760 They're having a second life now because I'm making them into jewellery. 136 00:09:18,847 --> 00:09:21,998 I quite Iike this messy Iook, so it Iooks a bit Iike a fisherman's net. 137 00:09:22,087 --> 00:09:25,875 That's what I'm after, that Iook. I'm quite pIeased with that. 138 00:09:29,367 --> 00:09:32,757 NEIL: Beyond the tourist honey pots of Newquay and Padstow, 139 00:09:32,847 --> 00:09:37,523 across the Camel Estuary, is an altogether more peaceful spot, 140 00:09:37,607 --> 00:09:40,519 St. Endoc's Church near Polzeath. 141 00:09:42,207 --> 00:09:46,359 With so much to see along the shore, a reliable guide book's a must. 142 00:09:46,727 --> 00:09:49,195 I've got a classic early example. 143 00:09:49,287 --> 00:09:54,600 The petrol company Shell produced this tourist companion in 1934. 144 00:09:54,687 --> 00:09:56,086 These Shell guides were aimed at 145 00:09:56,167 --> 00:10:00,285 a new generation of car owners with the freedom to explore. 146 00:10:02,687 --> 00:10:07,158 The Poet Laureate John Betjeman was one of the founding editors of the SheII guides 147 00:10:07,247 --> 00:10:09,841 and he wrote this one about CornwaII. 148 00:10:09,967 --> 00:10:14,643 But one site you won't find in his book, is here, his grave. 149 00:10:18,167 --> 00:10:21,398 Betjeman always wanted to be buried here at St. Endoc's. 150 00:10:21,487 --> 00:10:23,637 This was his spiritual home. 151 00:10:25,967 --> 00:10:30,404 He loved this church and was gently amused that by the time of his death 152 00:10:30,487 --> 00:10:32,955 it was surrounded by a golf course. 153 00:10:37,567 --> 00:10:40,445 Betjeman's book reaIIy was a Iabour of Iove. 154 00:10:40,527 --> 00:10:45,362 From his earIiest chiIdhood, he'd known that here was where his heart beIonged. 155 00:10:47,287 --> 00:10:51,599 Betjeman's words echo the feelings the coast inspires in so many of us. 156 00:10:52,007 --> 00:10:56,876 He captured his boyhood enthusiasm in the poem ''Summoned by Bells''. 157 00:10:57,487 --> 00:11:00,604 BETJEMAN: ''Down towards the sea I ran alone, 158 00:11:00,687 --> 00:11:03,201 ''Monarch of miles of sand, 159 00:11:03,287 --> 00:11:07,678 ''its shining stretches satin smooth and veined. 160 00:11:08,807 --> 00:11:12,561 ''I felt beneath bare feet the lugworm casts 161 00:11:13,007 --> 00:11:16,124 ''and walked where only gulls and oyster-catchers 162 00:11:16,207 --> 00:11:19,517 ''had stepped before me to the water's edge. '' 163 00:11:23,487 --> 00:11:26,399 NEIL: Although he wrote an early tourist guide to Cornwall, 164 00:11:26,487 --> 00:11:30,321 Betjeman wasn't too thrilled with the way the industry developed. 165 00:11:30,407 --> 00:11:31,920 He was thankful, he said, 166 00:11:32,007 --> 00:11:36,080 that no one yet had devised a means of building houses on the sea. 167 00:11:36,887 --> 00:11:41,244 BETJEMAN: ''Developers have had more than their fair share of the coast. 168 00:11:41,327 --> 00:11:45,115 ''We must keep the rest of it for the good of our souls. 169 00:11:45,247 --> 00:11:47,442 ''We need the seaside cure 170 00:11:47,527 --> 00:11:50,121 ''for relief from anxiety and tension. 171 00:11:51,167 --> 00:11:55,445 ''We need it to realise there's something greater than ourselves. 172 00:11:56,127 --> 00:12:00,166 ''That's where the cure is at the sea's edge. '' 173 00:12:11,207 --> 00:12:14,483 NEIL: A short distance up the coast, Tintagel Castle, 174 00:12:14,567 --> 00:12:17,604 long associated with the legendary King Arthur. 175 00:12:19,327 --> 00:12:22,797 Arthur and Merlin may be a magical myth. 176 00:12:24,287 --> 00:12:28,246 But just 35 miles across the water is a real magic kingdom. 177 00:12:28,687 --> 00:12:30,120 Lundy Island. 178 00:12:31,887 --> 00:12:34,082 This jewel on the edge of the Severn Sea 179 00:12:34,167 --> 00:12:37,284 is one of the most precious wildlife sites in Britain, 180 00:12:37,407 --> 00:12:39,716 now owned by the National Trust. 181 00:12:40,367 --> 00:12:45,441 North Atlantic storms batter little Lundy. It takes a special breed to survive. 182 00:12:46,367 --> 00:12:50,280 These hardy ponies were introduced by the island's previous owner. 183 00:12:50,367 --> 00:12:52,278 So were the Soay sheep. 184 00:12:52,967 --> 00:12:56,084 But the real lure of Lundy is beyond the cliffs. 185 00:12:56,367 --> 00:13:00,565 Some claim the surrounding waters are the wildest, most diverse habitat 186 00:13:00,647 --> 00:13:02,478 anywhere on our coast. 187 00:13:03,287 --> 00:13:09,522 Champion surfer, diver and Coast first timer, Renee Godfrey is a native of the Severn Sea, 188 00:13:10,007 --> 00:13:13,636 but has never ventured out to Lundy until now. 189 00:13:14,447 --> 00:13:16,563 I've surfed aII aIong the Devon coastIine 190 00:13:16,647 --> 00:13:18,956 and I know the WeIsh coast Iike the back of my hand. 191 00:13:19,047 --> 00:13:22,835 And Lundy's aIways just been there mysteriousIy on the horizon 192 00:13:22,927 --> 00:13:26,363 and now I'm finaIIy going to get the chance to come and expIore. 193 00:13:29,327 --> 00:13:32,364 RENEE: I'm really looking forward to swimming with the grey seals 194 00:13:32,447 --> 00:13:36,235 and getting a closer look at their unique underwater habitat. 195 00:13:37,207 --> 00:13:40,279 What makes the waters around Lundy so speciaI 196 00:13:40,367 --> 00:13:42,642 is that they're compIeteIy protected. 197 00:13:42,727 --> 00:13:46,402 Lundy is EngIand's first and onIy marine nature reserve, 198 00:13:46,487 --> 00:13:51,356 so the water here is running wiId, as nature intended. 199 00:13:53,127 --> 00:13:54,196 Hi, Keith, how are you? 200 00:13:54,287 --> 00:13:56,357 I'm weII. WeIcome to your first dive on Lundy . 201 00:13:56,447 --> 00:13:58,085 Thank you very much. I'm going to give you my kit. 202 00:13:58,167 --> 00:14:00,362 -Yup. -RENEE: Marine biologist, Keith Hiscock, 203 00:14:00,447 --> 00:14:03,837 has been diving off Lundy since the 1960s. 204 00:14:03,927 --> 00:14:07,806 Recently, the experience has become even more spectacular. 205 00:14:08,487 --> 00:14:13,356 In 2003, Lundy became Britain's first statutory No-Take Zone. 206 00:14:13,967 --> 00:14:17,482 That means it's now completely undisturbed by fishermen. 207 00:14:18,327 --> 00:14:22,081 I'm eager to see how nature gets on, left to its own devices. 208 00:14:29,327 --> 00:14:31,841 The first thing you notice is the plant life, 209 00:14:31,927 --> 00:14:34,521 like a garden gone wild. 210 00:14:34,607 --> 00:14:37,485 In deeper waters there are wonderful corals 211 00:14:37,567 --> 00:14:41,082 that you might expect to see only in much warmer climes. 212 00:14:44,887 --> 00:14:48,482 I'm hoping Keith can show me some of Lundy's hidden gems. 213 00:14:49,807 --> 00:14:52,446 KEITH: Now look at these Trumpet anemones. 214 00:14:52,527 --> 00:14:56,236 Lundy is one of the few places in Great Britain where they occur. 215 00:14:56,327 --> 00:15:00,479 RENEE: They look so delicate and as the water moves past them, 216 00:15:00,567 --> 00:15:03,718 they look like they're clapping their hands with their tentacles. 217 00:15:03,807 --> 00:15:07,038 KEITH: They're mostly a bag of water with stinging cells. 218 00:15:07,127 --> 00:15:12,406 The Trumpet anemones actually have photosynthetic algae in the tissue, 219 00:15:12,487 --> 00:15:14,364 just like tropical corals, 220 00:15:14,447 --> 00:15:19,646 so they only occur in shallow water, where there's enough light for the algae to thrive. 221 00:15:21,007 --> 00:15:25,364 RENEE: This anemone wouldn't look out of place in the warmer Mediterranean waters. 222 00:15:25,447 --> 00:15:29,360 That's the magic of Lundy, it's full of surprises. 223 00:15:29,727 --> 00:15:31,046 (BUBBLING) 224 00:15:32,487 --> 00:15:34,637 Beautiful Snakelock anemones. 225 00:15:34,727 --> 00:15:37,958 KEITH: They're very beautiful, but they're also very dangerous 226 00:15:38,047 --> 00:15:40,845 to any animals that stumble into them. 227 00:15:40,967 --> 00:15:46,041 Because, again, they've got stinging cells which paralyse the prey 228 00:15:46,447 --> 00:15:51,362 and so any clumsy shrimp or crab that clutches the tentacles 229 00:15:51,487 --> 00:15:52,920 is dead meat. 230 00:15:55,167 --> 00:15:59,240 RENEE: Lundy's lobsters, though, are armour-plated against such dangers. 231 00:15:59,327 --> 00:16:03,445 Since the No-Take Zone was established, there are more of them here than before, 232 00:16:03,527 --> 00:16:05,483 and they're much bigger. 233 00:16:05,767 --> 00:16:09,806 But what I really want to see in this underwater treasure trove is a tiny gem 234 00:16:09,887 --> 00:16:14,199 that's rare in British waters and all too easy to miss. 235 00:16:17,527 --> 00:16:21,440 KEITH: Here we are, I've got scarlet and gold star corals here. 236 00:16:21,727 --> 00:16:26,881 RENEE: Wow, they're so small. They're like little hidden jewels, aren't they? 237 00:16:26,967 --> 00:16:29,561 KEITH: Yes, that's a very good way to put it, it's hidden jewels, 238 00:16:29,647 --> 00:16:33,003 because we've had to look quite hard for these 239 00:16:33,087 --> 00:16:36,762 and you do have to know what sort of habitat they occur in. 240 00:16:40,847 --> 00:16:45,682 RENEE: These seas are absolutely bursting with life, 241 00:16:46,367 --> 00:16:49,882 completely untainted by man. 242 00:16:51,327 --> 00:16:55,798 The shores of Lundy are nourished by balmy currents from the Gulf Stream. 243 00:16:56,007 --> 00:16:58,999 Not only do warm water corals find a home here, 244 00:16:59,087 --> 00:17:02,045 all sorts of plant and animal life flourish. 245 00:17:02,767 --> 00:17:07,318 It's a rich source of food and an ideal environment for larger sea mammals. 246 00:17:07,847 --> 00:17:13,001 Island warden Nicola Saunders is taking me to see Lundy's amazing grey seals. 247 00:17:13,607 --> 00:17:16,075 Look, there's some over there on that rock there. 248 00:17:16,167 --> 00:17:18,362 They lead a truly wild life. 249 00:17:18,447 --> 00:17:21,280 Out here, I've got to play by their rules. 250 00:17:21,727 --> 00:17:23,718 They are wiId animaIs, so you've got to be carefuI 251 00:17:23,807 --> 00:17:24,876 -and treat them with respect. -Sure. 252 00:17:24,967 --> 00:17:28,755 But generaIIy, as Iong as you're fairIy passive in the water, 253 00:17:28,847 --> 00:17:31,315 you don't chase after them, then they're just inquisitive 254 00:17:31,407 --> 00:17:33,921 and they want to see what you're up to in their territory, reaIIy. 255 00:17:34,007 --> 00:17:35,963 RENEE: Great, weII, Iet's get in, okay? 256 00:18:04,807 --> 00:18:07,719 They're so big and cIumsy and cumbersome 257 00:18:07,807 --> 00:18:11,197 when they're Iying on the rocks, and the minute they get into the water, 258 00:18:11,287 --> 00:18:14,245 they're so agiIe and so quick, 259 00:18:14,327 --> 00:18:17,683 and they swim straight up to you, Iook you right in the eyes, 260 00:18:17,767 --> 00:18:20,486 try and gauge whether they Iike you or not, 261 00:18:20,567 --> 00:18:24,879 and then just swim away, Iike that, so fast, amazing! 262 00:18:25,447 --> 00:18:26,675 That was incredibIe. 263 00:18:30,847 --> 00:18:33,600 Lundy more than lives up to its promise. 264 00:18:33,687 --> 00:18:37,282 It's a rich and precious haven for marine life. 265 00:18:37,367 --> 00:18:40,723 A coastline where nature really runs wild. 266 00:18:43,647 --> 00:18:47,686 NEIL: Lundy's once remote paradise has been opened up to the public. 267 00:18:47,767 --> 00:18:52,477 Day trippers travel to and fro aboard the MS OIdenburg. 268 00:18:54,407 --> 00:19:00,004 Her route takes us back to the Devon coast to a resort town with a difference. 269 00:19:03,127 --> 00:19:06,881 200 years ago, the seaside holiday we take for granted 270 00:19:06,967 --> 00:19:09,117 was still being invented. 271 00:19:09,207 --> 00:19:10,765 In places like Illfracombe, 272 00:19:10,847 --> 00:19:16,001 they faced some formidable challenges, not least just getting to the beach. 273 00:19:16,527 --> 00:19:19,678 High cliffs stand all around the sheltered coves. 274 00:19:20,047 --> 00:19:24,518 So, in the 1820's, they looked across the Severn Sea for a solution. 275 00:19:24,687 --> 00:19:28,396 They brought in the real experts to break through the cliffs, 276 00:19:28,487 --> 00:19:30,443 miners from South Wales. 277 00:19:31,567 --> 00:19:34,240 I'm going to follow in the footsteps of those miners 278 00:19:34,327 --> 00:19:38,400 to explore how the Victorians learnt to love to be beside the sea. 279 00:19:38,687 --> 00:19:41,360 My guide is outdoor swimmer Kate Rew. 280 00:19:42,247 --> 00:19:46,206 Now, I'm amazed at this. This seems Iike an awfuI Iot of troubIe to go to for a swim, 281 00:19:46,287 --> 00:19:48,084 to actuaIIy dig a tunneI through a rock. 282 00:19:48,167 --> 00:19:51,239 KATE: It's amazing what peopIe wiII do to get to a nice beach. 283 00:19:51,327 --> 00:19:53,557 NEIL: Look at that, that's where it's been cut. 284 00:19:53,647 --> 00:19:56,719 That's maybe where they've driIIed for bIasting. 285 00:19:56,807 --> 00:19:59,526 And aII so that they couId get to a beach for a swim? 286 00:19:59,607 --> 00:20:01,677 Some of us are very desperate to get into the water. 287 00:20:03,527 --> 00:20:06,837 NEIL: Capitalising on the new-fangled fashion for taking a dip, 288 00:20:06,927 --> 00:20:10,806 the Ilfracombe Sea Bathing Company's Welsh miners dug four tunnels 289 00:20:10,887 --> 00:20:14,675 through solid rock, wide enough to take a horse and carriage. 290 00:20:16,447 --> 00:20:19,041 KATE: They swam in from bathing machines, they were caIIed, 291 00:20:19,127 --> 00:20:22,676 wooden huts on wheeIs that wouId be horse-drawn 292 00:20:22,767 --> 00:20:24,883 -aII the way through these tunneIs. -NEIL: AII right. 293 00:20:24,967 --> 00:20:29,245 KATE: And three foot into the water, where the Iadies wouId eIegantIy step out. 294 00:20:31,047 --> 00:20:33,880 NEIL: Bathing machines were portable changing rooms 295 00:20:33,967 --> 00:20:37,755 for preserving a lady's modesty in this novel environment. 296 00:20:39,967 --> 00:20:43,880 Once in the water, the novice bathers had to learn how to behave. 297 00:20:43,967 --> 00:20:46,640 The whole experience was stage managed. 298 00:20:48,407 --> 00:20:53,083 At Ilfracombe, they held back the rough seas by fencing off tidal pools. 299 00:20:53,167 --> 00:20:55,840 Walls were built to hold in calm water. 300 00:20:58,287 --> 00:21:01,279 Early bathers still needed some encouragement, 301 00:21:01,407 --> 00:21:03,967 and with the prospect of a swim here myself, 302 00:21:04,047 --> 00:21:05,844 I know how they felt. 303 00:21:08,127 --> 00:21:11,119 -Looking forward to your dip? -Let's taIk about that Iater. 304 00:21:11,207 --> 00:21:14,165 (LAUGHS) WeII, I've got an aIbum here, that I'd Iike to show you, 305 00:21:14,247 --> 00:21:19,560 of someone who was here at aII times, during Victorian times, to encourage peopIe, 306 00:21:19,967 --> 00:21:21,764 probabIy, maybe, peopIe Iike you, to go swimming. 307 00:21:21,847 --> 00:21:23,326 NEIL: He's not the kind of figure I expected. 308 00:21:23,407 --> 00:21:24,476 (BOTH CHUCKLING) 309 00:21:24,567 --> 00:21:28,719 KATE: This is Professor Harry Parker, who was quite a figure around here. 310 00:21:28,807 --> 00:21:30,240 NEIL: He certainIy was. That's quite a figure. 311 00:21:30,327 --> 00:21:32,682 KATE: With his top hat and his comedy nose, 312 00:21:32,767 --> 00:21:36,885 and he is one of EngIand's greatest natatoriaI artistes. 313 00:21:36,967 --> 00:21:38,116 -Easy for you to say. -AbsoIuteIy, 314 00:21:38,207 --> 00:21:42,485 and he wouId teach any good peopIe on the beach diving and fancy swimming. 315 00:21:42,567 --> 00:21:46,719 Tricks Iike Iighting a cigar whiIe swimming and drinking a gIass of champagne. 316 00:21:46,847 --> 00:21:50,601 This kind of comedy action showed how happy peopIe couId be in the water. 317 00:21:50,687 --> 00:21:52,484 Was it a famiIy affair? 318 00:21:52,567 --> 00:21:56,355 Very much not, actuaIIy. Even though the Victorians were very famiIy orientated, 319 00:21:56,447 --> 00:21:58,597 their beaches were strictIy segregated. 320 00:21:58,687 --> 00:22:02,600 So we're sitting here, on... This is the men's beach, so men onIy. 321 00:22:02,767 --> 00:22:06,362 Um, the women wouId be taken through the headIand to the other side 322 00:22:06,447 --> 00:22:08,722 and a bugIer wouId sit on the rocks in between 323 00:22:08,807 --> 00:22:12,641 and if any man dared swim out of the area enough to actuaIIy catch sight of the women, 324 00:22:12,727 --> 00:22:14,524 a horn wouId be bIown IoudIy. 325 00:22:14,607 --> 00:22:16,120 -Wow! -They wouId be ejected. 326 00:22:16,207 --> 00:22:18,562 There were newspaper reports saying that, you know, 327 00:22:18,647 --> 00:22:21,366 uh, if the men were named that had committed this crime, 328 00:22:21,447 --> 00:22:25,725 they wouId be thrown out of civiIised society. I mean, it was very strict. 329 00:22:25,807 --> 00:22:28,719 NEIL: Not only were they confined to separate beaches, 330 00:22:28,807 --> 00:22:31,275 there was a strict dress code, too. 331 00:22:31,367 --> 00:22:34,359 And quite a double standard for men and women. 332 00:22:34,847 --> 00:22:37,520 The Victorian Iady had to be very properIy dressed 333 00:22:37,607 --> 00:22:39,484 when she went into the water, 334 00:22:39,567 --> 00:22:42,798 and these are the kinds of things that they wore. 335 00:22:42,887 --> 00:22:44,161 Very nice. 336 00:22:44,247 --> 00:22:47,045 KATE: So you needed a good pair of pantaIoons, beIow the knee, 337 00:22:47,127 --> 00:22:49,038 obviousIy, to preserve her modesty. 338 00:22:49,127 --> 00:22:51,641 And then a kind of dress or smock over the top. 339 00:22:51,727 --> 00:22:53,957 And these were apparentIy sometimes weighed down 340 00:22:54,047 --> 00:22:57,119 with Iead peIIets around the hem to stop them fIoating up. 341 00:22:57,207 --> 00:22:59,880 Lead is what you want on a swimming costume in the open sea, isn't it? 342 00:22:59,967 --> 00:23:01,036 (LAUGHING) 343 00:23:01,127 --> 00:23:02,526 HaIf a pound of Iead shot. 344 00:23:02,607 --> 00:23:04,723 KATE: It wouId be Iike swimming in a sort of a hessian sack, 345 00:23:04,807 --> 00:23:06,445 I think, by the time it's wet. 346 00:23:06,527 --> 00:23:08,006 And what about me? What do I get? 347 00:23:08,087 --> 00:23:10,157 You, deIightfuIIy, get to swim in the buff! 348 00:23:10,447 --> 00:23:15,157 Oh, come on! I wanted a duffIe coat, weIIington boots and a hat. 349 00:23:16,567 --> 00:23:18,000 She's not joking. 350 00:23:18,087 --> 00:23:21,284 Away from the ladies, hidden behind the headland on their own beach, 351 00:23:21,367 --> 00:23:25,485 those Victorian gents were a lot less buttoned up than you might imagine. 352 00:23:25,567 --> 00:23:28,365 It wasn't uncommon for the men to swim in the nude, 353 00:23:28,447 --> 00:23:31,564 even if the women on the beach next door were covered up. 354 00:23:33,647 --> 00:23:37,356 Swimming in the buff? I thought Victorian gentIemen had more decorum. 355 00:23:37,447 --> 00:23:41,679 Where's Queen Victoria when you need her? That's what I want to know. 356 00:23:44,887 --> 00:23:47,401 The tidal pool is still used today. 357 00:23:47,807 --> 00:23:50,719 The water is calmer and warmer than the sea around it. 358 00:23:50,807 --> 00:23:53,401 It's still a bit chilly, all the same. 359 00:23:55,767 --> 00:23:57,598 Watch out, you might get arrested. 360 00:23:57,687 --> 00:23:59,962 I can definiteIy hear a bugIer! 361 00:24:00,167 --> 00:24:02,237 (BOTH LAUGHING) 362 00:24:06,927 --> 00:24:10,556 The Welsh miners who crossed the sea to open up the beaches of Ilfracombe 363 00:24:10,647 --> 00:24:15,163 were followed by waves of tourists on day trips between England and Wales. 364 00:24:17,727 --> 00:24:20,480 In the late 19th and early 20th century, 365 00:24:20,647 --> 00:24:23,525 pleasure boats crisscrossed the Severn Sea. 366 00:24:24,647 --> 00:24:27,445 The Motor Vessel BaImoraI is a relic of a time 367 00:24:27,527 --> 00:24:29,836 when foreign travel was, for some, 368 00:24:29,927 --> 00:24:34,000 a booze cruise between the resorts of South Wales and North Devon. 369 00:24:35,687 --> 00:24:38,997 By the 1960s, exotic locations overseas 370 00:24:39,087 --> 00:24:42,966 made the pleasure steamers look dated, and the opening of the Severn Bridge 371 00:24:43,047 --> 00:24:47,484 meant the sea was no longer the quickest route between England and Wales. 372 00:24:52,127 --> 00:24:55,597 Travelling along this coast, though, has always been a struggle. 373 00:24:55,687 --> 00:24:58,804 This is where Exmoor meets the Severn Sea. 374 00:24:59,887 --> 00:25:02,799 These imposing sea cliffs posed another challenge 375 00:25:02,887 --> 00:25:06,516 to Victorian engineers opening up this coast for tourists. 376 00:25:06,607 --> 00:25:11,556 In 1890, Lynmouth, by the sea, was linked with Lynton, up the hill, 377 00:25:11,647 --> 00:25:15,560 by a water-powered funicular railway that's still going strong. 378 00:25:18,487 --> 00:25:21,479 But not everyone wants to take the shortcut. 379 00:25:22,127 --> 00:25:24,516 Nick Crane is meeting some pioneers 380 00:25:24,607 --> 00:25:28,122 who were determined to tackle these cliffs the hard way. 381 00:25:31,207 --> 00:25:35,359 It's 1953 and the worId's highest mountain has been conquered 382 00:25:35,447 --> 00:25:38,883 in a breathtaking 29,000 foot ascent. 383 00:25:38,967 --> 00:25:42,642 The achievement prompted one mountaineer who'd missed out on the Everest adventure 384 00:25:42,727 --> 00:25:46,720 to pIan a conquest of his own, not up, but aIong. 385 00:25:46,807 --> 00:25:49,799 And it was a Iot more than 29,000 feet. 386 00:25:51,607 --> 00:25:54,599 In his younger days, Clement Archer had been working in India 387 00:25:54,687 --> 00:25:56,040 when Everest was conquered. 388 00:25:56,127 --> 00:25:59,961 It's thought that he'd secretly hoped to join that expedition. 389 00:26:00,407 --> 00:26:04,639 Instead, Archer pioneered a new concept here on the Exmoor coast. 390 00:26:05,167 --> 00:26:07,476 Nowadays we might call it coasteering, 391 00:26:07,567 --> 00:26:10,479 a 14-mile climb along sea cliffs 392 00:26:10,567 --> 00:26:14,116 sandwiched perilously between pounding sea and sky. 393 00:26:14,647 --> 00:26:17,923 The purists know this route as the Exmoor Traverse. 394 00:26:18,567 --> 00:26:21,639 It runs from Foreland Point to Combe Martin, 395 00:26:21,727 --> 00:26:25,083 nearly three times longer than the ascent of Everest. 396 00:26:26,367 --> 00:26:30,963 And this route wasn't completed until 25 years after Everest. 397 00:26:32,407 --> 00:26:36,878 In 1978, Terry Cheek and a team of three young police cadets 398 00:26:36,967 --> 00:26:39,117 finally conquered the Exmoor Traverse. 399 00:26:39,407 --> 00:26:41,284 It took them four days and nights. 400 00:26:41,727 --> 00:26:44,685 Their achievement has not been matched since. 401 00:26:45,687 --> 00:26:49,965 30 years later, Terry and two of his team are back at the Exmoor Traverse. 402 00:26:51,807 --> 00:26:53,479 Ah, now what is going on there? 403 00:26:53,567 --> 00:26:55,683 You've got no rope shift, you're creeping around 404 00:26:55,767 --> 00:26:57,723 -under an overhang above the water... -TERRY: Yeah, that's it. 405 00:26:57,807 --> 00:26:59,763 ...wearing what Iook Iike soggy jeans. 406 00:26:59,847 --> 00:27:03,157 Yeah, and of course it was fIares back 30 years ago. 407 00:27:03,247 --> 00:27:04,680 You did this in fIared jeans? 408 00:27:04,767 --> 00:27:06,246 (ALL LAUGHING) 409 00:27:06,647 --> 00:27:08,797 TERRY: Do you remember this part of it, Trevor, going round there? 410 00:27:08,887 --> 00:27:10,605 TREVOR: Yeah, I do, and you're taIking about the cIothing. 411 00:27:10,687 --> 00:27:14,236 I remember the boots were made of Iike pressed cardboard with a rubber soIe. 412 00:27:14,327 --> 00:27:18,878 They were very cheap and not very fIexibIe to begin with. 413 00:27:18,967 --> 00:27:21,083 And, of course, then they get saturated with water 414 00:27:21,167 --> 00:27:24,159 and it's aImost Iike wearing papier mache whiIe rock cIimbing. 415 00:27:24,247 --> 00:27:27,717 So, it's a reaI chaIIenge. If you don't get it right, then you're cut off. 416 00:27:27,807 --> 00:27:30,275 You know, and that may, you know, without being overdramatic about it, 417 00:27:30,367 --> 00:27:31,846 that may mean drowning. 418 00:27:31,927 --> 00:27:33,326 What they caII nowadays risk assessment, 419 00:27:33,407 --> 00:27:36,524 I don't remember us taIking about those words back then, 30 years ago. 420 00:27:36,607 --> 00:27:38,120 I'm not sure there was a risk assessment. 421 00:27:38,207 --> 00:27:39,799 AbsoIuteIy not, otherwise we wouIdn't have done it. 422 00:27:39,887 --> 00:27:41,366 (ALL LAUGHING) 423 00:27:42,327 --> 00:27:45,797 NICK: Terry was already an experienced climber in 1978. 424 00:27:45,887 --> 00:27:49,596 He's in his sixties now and still loves these cliffs. 425 00:27:51,047 --> 00:27:55,086 He's challenged me to take on a section of this daunting traverse. 426 00:27:55,167 --> 00:27:57,727 -The Exmoor Everest. -The Exmoor Everest, yes. 427 00:27:57,807 --> 00:28:00,241 -ShaII we go down? -Yes, certainIy. 428 00:28:04,087 --> 00:28:07,045 NICK: Doesn't sound Iike a waIk in the park. 429 00:28:08,167 --> 00:28:09,839 BeIow, beIow. 430 00:28:10,327 --> 00:28:13,603 I just kicked a rock down, which is not good when you've got somebody beIow. 431 00:28:17,487 --> 00:28:20,957 Terry, the nature of this route in rock-cIimbing terms 432 00:28:21,047 --> 00:28:23,481 is pretty bizarre reaIIy, it seems to me. 433 00:28:23,567 --> 00:28:26,320 Because I associate cIimbing with going up mountains, 434 00:28:26,407 --> 00:28:28,796 -not going horizontaIIy aIong sideways. -TERRY: HorizontaIIy sideways. 435 00:28:28,887 --> 00:28:32,960 The cIimbing is much the same. I mean, you reaIIy set your own ruIes. 436 00:28:33,047 --> 00:28:36,005 We set a ruIe of not entering the water 437 00:28:36,087 --> 00:28:39,602 and not cIimbing out onto the grass Iine above the rock. 438 00:28:40,327 --> 00:28:43,683 It's probabIy one of the harder spots, 439 00:28:45,207 --> 00:28:49,280 because we're onIy about three feet above the high-water mark now. 440 00:28:50,327 --> 00:28:52,045 NICK: So, I mean, onIy a coupIe of hours ago 441 00:28:52,127 --> 00:28:54,482 the waves were bashing at the bottom of this, weren't they? 442 00:28:54,567 --> 00:28:56,842 TERRY: Just beIow my feet, yes. 443 00:28:57,687 --> 00:29:00,759 This is a bit of a tricky move, isn't it, Terry? 444 00:29:00,847 --> 00:29:02,519 TERRY: It's quite difficuIt. 445 00:29:02,607 --> 00:29:03,926 (MEN GRUNTING) 446 00:29:04,007 --> 00:29:06,680 That's it, cIing your hands underneath that spike. 447 00:29:06,767 --> 00:29:08,246 I'm cIinging on to everything I can, I can teII you. 448 00:29:08,327 --> 00:29:10,557 TERRY: Look down at your feet, you'II be okay there. 449 00:29:10,647 --> 00:29:12,126 NICK: Under here it's aII wet and sIimy, isn't it? 450 00:29:12,207 --> 00:29:15,643 TERRY: Yes, I know. NICK: It's covered in sea water. 451 00:29:15,727 --> 00:29:19,083 Jam the hands up in that crack. I know it's wet and it's painfuI. 452 00:29:19,167 --> 00:29:20,680 (NICK GRUNTING) 453 00:29:20,767 --> 00:29:22,917 NICK: Very tricky. Now what? 454 00:29:24,247 --> 00:29:26,966 Some of the finger hoIes are reaIIy pretty minute, aren't they? 455 00:29:27,047 --> 00:29:28,958 (GRUNTING) 456 00:29:29,767 --> 00:29:33,442 It's not quite as easy as sitting at a desk, 457 00:29:34,887 --> 00:29:38,118 working on my Iaptop, it has to be said. 458 00:29:40,247 --> 00:29:44,286 If you get caught by a rising tide or a storm surge in the BristoI ChanneI, 459 00:29:44,367 --> 00:29:45,402 what do you do? 460 00:29:45,487 --> 00:29:48,285 TERRY: Once you've been driven above the high-water mark, 461 00:29:48,367 --> 00:29:50,642 then you are in unknown territory. 462 00:29:50,727 --> 00:29:53,321 You couId be in absoIute heII about 70 feet up 463 00:29:53,407 --> 00:29:55,921 on crumbIing rock and vegetation. 464 00:30:00,487 --> 00:30:05,641 We had to resort to cIimbing at nights, waiting on the cIiffs for the tide to recede 465 00:30:05,727 --> 00:30:10,198 to get past a difficuIt section, and it was freezing. 466 00:30:10,647 --> 00:30:13,525 We aIso discovered what barnacIes couId do to your hands. 467 00:30:13,607 --> 00:30:17,725 You know, it's Iike very rough, coarse sandpaper. It's very painfuI. 468 00:30:18,807 --> 00:30:20,843 NICK: I've only done a section of this climb, 469 00:30:20,927 --> 00:30:25,205 and as we haul ourselves up the cliff, I'm feeling pretty exhilarated. 470 00:30:25,407 --> 00:30:28,319 I've got nothing but admiration for the achievement of Terry 471 00:30:28,407 --> 00:30:30,682 and his team three decades ago. 472 00:30:31,287 --> 00:30:34,404 I'm left, too, with a new respect for the awesome cliffs 473 00:30:34,487 --> 00:30:37,320 and the fierce tides of the Severn Sea. 474 00:30:40,167 --> 00:30:44,843 NEIL: Eventually the imposing cliffs of North Devon give up their grip on the coast. 475 00:30:52,047 --> 00:30:54,481 At Bridgwater Bay, at low tide, 476 00:30:54,567 --> 00:30:57,923 the shallow water becomes a vast expanse of mud. 477 00:30:58,687 --> 00:31:01,406 On the edge of the Bay, in Stolford, 478 00:31:01,487 --> 00:31:06,561 there's a fishing family who, for generations, have earned their living from the mud. 479 00:31:08,407 --> 00:31:10,079 To come home with a decent catch, 480 00:31:10,167 --> 00:31:14,046 they rely on centuries-old skills, and ancient tools 481 00:31:14,167 --> 00:31:16,681 unique to the men of the mud flats. 482 00:31:17,447 --> 00:31:20,962 My name is Brendan, Brendan SeIIick, and I've been a mud-horse fisherman 483 00:31:21,047 --> 00:31:24,084 aII my working Iife, ever since I was a nipper. 484 00:31:24,687 --> 00:31:28,475 I used the mud horse right up tiII weII in my 70's. 485 00:31:29,487 --> 00:31:31,364 My son, Adrian, is now doing it. 486 00:31:31,447 --> 00:31:34,723 He's pushing the mud horse, because it's a very physical job. 487 00:31:34,807 --> 00:31:37,640 You've got to be fit, out there in the soft mud. 488 00:31:37,727 --> 00:31:41,276 If you tried to go and do that without a mud horse, 489 00:31:41,367 --> 00:31:43,562 some days you'd just disappear. 490 00:31:45,327 --> 00:31:48,319 It gets in your bones and, when I first started, 491 00:31:48,407 --> 00:31:51,444 there was quite a number of families in this estuary doing it. 492 00:31:51,527 --> 00:31:54,758 And not only here, all the way around the Bridgwater Bay. 493 00:31:54,847 --> 00:31:57,680 It's just now got that here's just us left. 494 00:31:58,487 --> 00:32:03,242 ADRIAN: We come out in aII weathers, even if it's snowing, sIeet, haiIstones. 495 00:32:03,527 --> 00:32:06,246 You do get worn down. It's Iike any other job, I suppose. 496 00:32:06,327 --> 00:32:10,479 But, this job, you've got to come out, otherwise your catch gets spoiIt. 497 00:32:10,567 --> 00:32:13,684 On a day Iike today, I know it's a bit drizzIy, 498 00:32:14,247 --> 00:32:16,078 but it's quite pIeasant. 499 00:32:16,167 --> 00:32:19,079 You feeI the breeze and then you know the tide's turned. 500 00:32:19,167 --> 00:32:21,601 ShouId be turning now in a minute. 501 00:32:21,927 --> 00:32:25,237 You work with the tide, not the tide works with you. 502 00:32:26,207 --> 00:32:28,323 You don't reaIIy know what you're going to catch with it. 503 00:32:28,407 --> 00:32:30,125 That's what I Iike about it. 504 00:32:30,207 --> 00:32:33,199 Brown shrimp, that's what we're mainIy after. 505 00:32:34,247 --> 00:32:39,401 WeII, I've got a few IittIe Dover soIes, sIip soIes, one or two prawns. 506 00:32:40,287 --> 00:32:44,599 We've caught aII sorts out here. I've had a IittIe Iobster, a seahorse. 507 00:32:44,687 --> 00:32:47,599 And what I do is give them a sieve, 508 00:32:49,247 --> 00:32:51,397 Iet aII the baby shrimps go, 509 00:32:54,687 --> 00:32:57,326 and pick the rubbish out I don't want. 510 00:33:00,887 --> 00:33:03,526 That's my favourite, IittIe sIip soIes. 511 00:33:03,607 --> 00:33:06,883 RoIIed in fIour, fried in butter. BeautifuI. 512 00:33:10,167 --> 00:33:11,964 There's a nice skate. 513 00:33:24,407 --> 00:33:28,525 Two hours ago that was swimming. How fresher do you want than that? 514 00:33:39,607 --> 00:33:43,156 NEIL: Onwards to one of Britain's great maritime cities. 515 00:33:45,047 --> 00:33:49,325 For centuries Bristol has thrived as a hub for international trade, 516 00:33:49,407 --> 00:33:51,796 the metropolis of the Severn Sea. 517 00:33:53,767 --> 00:33:58,204 In 1497, John Cabot connected Bristol to the New World 518 00:33:58,287 --> 00:34:00,357 by sailing to Newfoundland. 519 00:34:01,967 --> 00:34:07,200 A replica of Cabot's little ship sits next to the mighty SS Great Britain, 520 00:34:07,287 --> 00:34:10,006 the first ocean-going ship with an iron hull, 521 00:34:10,087 --> 00:34:12,806 brainchild of Isambard Kingdom Brunel. 522 00:34:15,367 --> 00:34:19,645 Bristol's famous sons are remembered by their historic ships. 523 00:34:19,727 --> 00:34:22,924 But Mark Horton's on the trail of the city's unsung hero, 524 00:34:23,047 --> 00:34:27,359 whose memorial is written on the side of modern ships worldwide. 525 00:34:30,447 --> 00:34:34,884 MARK: Bristol's port carries 12 million tons of cargo every year. 526 00:34:35,327 --> 00:34:39,320 Hundreds of steel containers are moved every day. 527 00:34:39,487 --> 00:34:42,126 So they have to run a tight ship here. 528 00:34:43,727 --> 00:34:46,605 To check that a vesseI is not overIoaded, 529 00:34:46,687 --> 00:34:50,760 every ship has to have a series of Iines painted on the side. 530 00:34:51,207 --> 00:34:53,516 They're known as the PIimsoII Iine 531 00:34:53,607 --> 00:34:58,397 and over the Iast 1 40 years, they've saved thousands of Iives. 532 00:34:59,247 --> 00:35:01,841 If the water comes over the Plimsoll line 533 00:35:01,927 --> 00:35:05,681 when the ship's being loaded, it's too heavy and might sink. 534 00:35:06,087 --> 00:35:10,717 This warning mark was the brainwave of Bristol-born Samuel Plimsoll. 535 00:35:11,127 --> 00:35:13,880 Remarkably, 140 years ago, 536 00:35:13,967 --> 00:35:18,563 a simple brush stroke made Plimsoll the most popular man in Britain 537 00:35:18,647 --> 00:35:21,480 and nearly brought down the government. 538 00:35:21,567 --> 00:35:23,478 But aside from a modest plaque, 539 00:35:23,567 --> 00:35:27,480 there's very little in Bristol to mark his extraordinary story. 540 00:35:27,927 --> 00:35:32,478 In the 19th century, there was a national scandal in our ports. 541 00:35:32,567 --> 00:35:35,684 Greedy owners deliberately overloaded ships 542 00:35:35,767 --> 00:35:41,285 to increase profits or claim on the insurance when their over-burdened ships sank. 543 00:35:42,167 --> 00:35:46,126 Samuel Plimsoll realised a line must be drawn. 544 00:35:46,207 --> 00:35:50,644 Now, though, the nation has all but forgotten his struggle. 545 00:35:51,007 --> 00:35:56,559 Writer Nicolette Jones is as passionate as I am about restoring Plimsoll's reputation. 546 00:35:57,687 --> 00:36:01,726 How big a probIem was overIoaded ships in the 19th century? 547 00:36:01,807 --> 00:36:03,718 Bigger than you'd think. 548 00:36:03,807 --> 00:36:09,404 The reports suggest that about 500 saiIors a year Iost their Iives unnecessariIy. 549 00:36:09,487 --> 00:36:12,684 Something Iike 856 ships went down 550 00:36:12,767 --> 00:36:15,679 within 10 miIes of the British coast in 187 1 551 00:36:15,767 --> 00:36:18,565 in conditions that were no worse than a strong breeze, 552 00:36:18,647 --> 00:36:23,038 which suggests that there was quite a prevaIence of avarice and negIect. 553 00:36:23,167 --> 00:36:25,442 -And I've got an exampIe here, the London... -Oh, yes. 554 00:36:25,567 --> 00:36:28,479 ... Times, March 1st, 1866, 555 00:36:28,567 --> 00:36:31,286 and it teIIs of the Ioss of the London. 556 00:36:31,447 --> 00:36:35,486 ''The ship is sinking. No hope of being saved. 557 00:36:35,567 --> 00:36:39,116 ''God bIess my poor orphans.'' Was this common? 558 00:36:39,207 --> 00:36:43,166 WeII, it was certainIy one of the sad events that triggered PIimsoII's campaign, 559 00:36:43,247 --> 00:36:46,364 because the London, which was a ship that was traveIIing to AustraIia, 560 00:36:46,447 --> 00:36:50,076 was partIy a passenger ship and aIso carried a great deaI of cargo. 561 00:36:50,167 --> 00:36:54,080 And a Iot of the witnesses who saw it Ieave said that it was conspicuousIy overIoaded, 562 00:36:54,167 --> 00:36:55,805 it was too Iow in the water. 563 00:36:55,887 --> 00:37:01,041 And 270 peopIe drowned, so it struck a chord with the pubIic. 564 00:37:01,127 --> 00:37:06,406 So, in many ways, the London was sort of the Titanic of an earIier generation. 565 00:37:06,487 --> 00:37:09,445 Yes, it was, and the enquiry afterwards did suggest that, 566 00:37:09,527 --> 00:37:14,555 perhaps, a Ioad Iine in future wouId avoid this kind of catastrophe. 567 00:37:15,127 --> 00:37:20,326 MARK: Plimsoll campaigned to get his safe load line painted on ships. 568 00:37:20,407 --> 00:37:25,561 But knowing exactly where to draw the line isn't as simple as it seems. 569 00:37:25,727 --> 00:37:27,922 It has a lot to do with salt. 570 00:37:28,207 --> 00:37:33,645 Scientist John Polatch has offered to give us a demonstration using two tanks of water, 571 00:37:33,727 --> 00:37:36,400 one salty and one fresh. 572 00:37:36,687 --> 00:37:38,359 -And we have some eggs here. -Yes. 573 00:37:38,447 --> 00:37:41,007 And we can show with the eggs that things fIoat differentIy 574 00:37:41,087 --> 00:37:42,918 in fresh water than they do in saIt water. 575 00:37:43,007 --> 00:37:46,238 So we pop an egg into the fresh water, it sinks. 576 00:37:46,327 --> 00:37:50,081 -And in the saIt water. -It fIoats! 577 00:37:50,167 --> 00:37:51,919 So we've got a coupIe of IittIe boats there. 578 00:37:52,007 --> 00:37:53,565 We've got some weights here which we can attach. 579 00:37:53,647 --> 00:37:56,798 Right, okay, I'm going to come down and have a Iook at this cIose up. 580 00:37:56,927 --> 00:37:58,406 (LAUGHS) Oh, boy. 581 00:37:58,487 --> 00:38:01,126 And we aIso have some cargo to Ioad into them. 582 00:38:01,207 --> 00:38:04,165 NICOLETTE: You've got to be carefuI it's baIanced. 583 00:38:04,247 --> 00:38:08,877 Now, that's Iooking good. So that's now fIoating pretty weII 584 00:38:08,967 --> 00:38:11,435 -on the edge there, isn't it? -Just on the water Iine. 585 00:38:11,527 --> 00:38:13,882 So, shaII we now take this one out 586 00:38:13,967 --> 00:38:16,356 and pop it in fresh water. 587 00:38:17,047 --> 00:38:18,446 It shouId sink. 588 00:38:19,407 --> 00:38:24,765 And that is preciseIy why the ship can saiI with heavier cargo in sea water, 589 00:38:24,847 --> 00:38:27,680 because it has more buoyancy in the water. 590 00:38:28,007 --> 00:38:33,639 MARK: So, ships are marked with different lines for salt and fresh water. 591 00:38:33,727 --> 00:38:35,718 But climate plays a part, too. 592 00:38:35,807 --> 00:38:40,358 Ship's pilot Paul Chase needs to know one line from another. 593 00:38:40,687 --> 00:38:43,645 -We have this for the summer. -Right. 594 00:38:43,727 --> 00:38:47,925 The regions of the worId have been spIit up. This is our summer Ioad Iine. 595 00:38:48,007 --> 00:38:49,156 MARK: Right, yes. PAUL: Okay. 596 00:38:49,247 --> 00:38:52,922 -If we go to tropicaI ''T'', T for TropicaI. -Yes. 597 00:38:53,047 --> 00:38:55,607 Better weather, therefore we can Ioad the ship deeper. 598 00:38:55,687 --> 00:38:58,440 -MARK: Right. -If we go to weather that's worse, 599 00:38:58,527 --> 00:39:01,280 we refer to it as winter, we have to Ioad it Iess. 600 00:39:01,367 --> 00:39:04,837 MARK: So it's temperature dependent, but saIt dependent as weII. 601 00:39:04,927 --> 00:39:06,883 PAUL: Yes, you're right. 602 00:39:07,407 --> 00:39:09,602 MARK: With so many lives at stake, 603 00:39:09,687 --> 00:39:13,646 you'd think painting a line on a ship wouldn't be controversial. 604 00:39:13,727 --> 00:39:16,764 But it took Plimsoll years of bitter struggle. 605 00:39:18,047 --> 00:39:21,881 There were too many vested interests. PIimsoII became an MP 606 00:39:21,967 --> 00:39:24,606 and found himseIf in a house fuII of ship-owning MPs 607 00:39:24,687 --> 00:39:26,598 who wanted to make as much profit as possibIe 608 00:39:26,687 --> 00:39:29,326 and who sabotaged his IegisIation at every stage. 609 00:39:29,407 --> 00:39:32,843 So there must have been immense parIiamentary battIes to achieve this, 610 00:39:32,927 --> 00:39:36,283 rather Iike the battIes to aboIish the sIave trade. 611 00:39:36,367 --> 00:39:38,483 Yes, preciseIy. PIimsoII's story is very much 612 00:39:38,567 --> 00:39:40,797 a story about machinations in the corridors of power. 613 00:39:40,887 --> 00:39:44,323 It reached its climax when Plimsoll lost his temper. 614 00:39:44,407 --> 00:39:49,242 He called ship owners murderers and the MPs who colluded with them villains. 615 00:39:49,367 --> 00:39:52,677 He shook his fist at DisraeIi. It was the most ceIebrated moment of his career, 616 00:39:52,767 --> 00:39:54,837 and it Ied to a huge nationaI outcry 617 00:39:54,927 --> 00:39:57,646 which nearIy ousted DisraeIi from government 618 00:39:57,727 --> 00:40:00,400 and Ied to a hasty merchant-shipping biII 619 00:40:00,487 --> 00:40:03,638 which introduced the PIimsoII mark as we know it. 620 00:40:03,727 --> 00:40:07,083 MARK: Plimsoll's triumph over the greed of ship owners 621 00:40:07,167 --> 00:40:12,685 and the corruption of MPs made him a national hero to the Victorians. 622 00:40:13,567 --> 00:40:19,278 It's ironic that today he's perhaps better known for the shoes 623 00:40:19,447 --> 00:40:21,881 that were named after him. 624 00:40:21,967 --> 00:40:26,324 I'm wearing a pair of pIimsoIIs, which are perfectIy dry, 625 00:40:26,407 --> 00:40:29,843 providing the water doesn't rise above the rubber. 626 00:40:35,967 --> 00:40:38,640 NEIL: We leave Bristol and head back out to sea 627 00:40:38,727 --> 00:40:43,039 over Portbury and Avonmouth docks and up the estuary to Purton 628 00:40:43,127 --> 00:40:45,197 on the banks of the Severn. 629 00:40:45,927 --> 00:40:48,725 I've come to the graveyard of the Severn Sea, 630 00:40:48,807 --> 00:40:50,445 the Purton Hulks, 631 00:40:51,087 --> 00:40:56,081 a collection of dead ships that lie sprawled for a mile and half along the estuary. 632 00:40:58,647 --> 00:41:02,481 They were brought here to stop erosion by the strong currents. 633 00:41:02,727 --> 00:41:07,243 Holes were knocked into their hulls so that they silted up and stayed put. 634 00:41:08,487 --> 00:41:10,796 A Iot of these vesseIs spent their working Iives 635 00:41:10,887 --> 00:41:12,957 pIying up and down the estuary. 636 00:41:13,047 --> 00:41:17,438 But now, they're just an eerie reminder of a time not so very Iong ago 637 00:41:17,527 --> 00:41:21,315 when the onIy way to cross that stretch of water was by boat. 638 00:41:22,847 --> 00:41:25,122 Its Welsh name, Mor Hafren, 639 00:41:25,207 --> 00:41:27,277 the Severn Sea, says it all. 640 00:41:27,967 --> 00:41:33,166 But now, that sea has been tamed by two great bridges across the estuary. 641 00:41:35,247 --> 00:41:37,636 Look hard alongside the first Severn bridge 642 00:41:37,727 --> 00:41:41,606 and there's still evidence of the earlier crossing between England and Wales, 643 00:41:41,687 --> 00:41:47,159 the car ramp for the ferry, abandoned when the service stopped in 1966. 644 00:41:48,647 --> 00:41:52,959 Back in the '60s, this crossing saved a 50-mile trip round the estuary. 645 00:41:53,447 --> 00:41:56,200 But you still had to wait for the ferry... 646 00:41:59,727 --> 00:42:03,515 long enough for one famous passenger to get caught on camera. 647 00:42:04,127 --> 00:42:07,802 In May 1966, Bob Dylan had just performed in Bristol 648 00:42:07,887 --> 00:42:11,516 on his Judas tour, so called because he'd gone electric. 649 00:42:12,647 --> 00:42:14,763 Dylan had been booed by some fans 650 00:42:14,847 --> 00:42:17,998 and was facing an uncertain reception in Cardiff. 651 00:42:18,687 --> 00:42:21,565 The times were changing for the ferry, too. 652 00:42:22,007 --> 00:42:26,319 In the background, the first Severn Bridge just weeks from completion. 653 00:42:27,567 --> 00:42:30,525 The day it opened, not everyone was cheering. 654 00:42:34,727 --> 00:42:37,958 Enoch Williams, the ferry owner, lost his livelihood. 655 00:42:38,487 --> 00:42:43,959 His passion for the old ferry still runs in the family and Enoch is not forgotten. 656 00:42:44,527 --> 00:42:46,438 My name is Richard Jones. 657 00:42:46,527 --> 00:42:49,041 I'm the eIdest grandson of Enoch WiIIiams, 658 00:42:49,127 --> 00:42:53,757 who was the founder of the Iast incarnation of the BeachIy Aust Ferry. 659 00:42:54,167 --> 00:42:58,479 This boat on which we're standing at the moment is the Severn Princess. 660 00:42:58,607 --> 00:43:00,359 This crossing was very important because 661 00:43:00,447 --> 00:43:03,644 it was the only crossing available for car traffic. 662 00:43:03,727 --> 00:43:07,003 It was a lifeline to many people in their daily business. 663 00:43:07,087 --> 00:43:09,442 Many people courted on the ferries. 664 00:43:09,527 --> 00:43:13,440 Girls in England meeting gentlemen from Wales and vice versa. 665 00:43:13,687 --> 00:43:15,996 Everybody knew the bridge was coming and indeed 666 00:43:16,087 --> 00:43:19,079 knew because they could see the bridge being built. 667 00:43:19,167 --> 00:43:21,556 I think Enoch still harboured thoughts of continuing, 668 00:43:21,647 --> 00:43:25,606 but it became obvious that the bridge really was going to be a very different proposition 669 00:43:25,687 --> 00:43:28,599 and so he decided that it would not be economical 670 00:43:28,687 --> 00:43:31,884 and there was really no point in fighting against it. 671 00:43:31,967 --> 00:43:33,639 He tried his best to make sure that 672 00:43:33,727 --> 00:43:36,446 the company obtained as much compensation as possibIe. 673 00:43:36,527 --> 00:43:39,325 How much do I think I'm going to get is a sore point. 674 00:43:39,407 --> 00:43:40,965 It is a question of what we are worth 675 00:43:41,047 --> 00:43:43,197 and what we are going to get are two different things. 676 00:43:43,287 --> 00:43:45,517 WouId you say you're going to get, what, 20 or 30,000? 677 00:43:45,607 --> 00:43:47,723 Oh, no, that isn't the price of a boat. 678 00:43:47,807 --> 00:43:49,479 INTERVIEWER: A Iot more than that? £100,000? 679 00:43:49,567 --> 00:43:51,046 And a bit more. 680 00:43:51,167 --> 00:43:56,002 RICHARD: The last day that the service carried cars was September 8th, 1966, 681 00:43:56,087 --> 00:43:58,237 the day that the first Severn Bridge opened. 682 00:43:58,327 --> 00:44:01,558 To commemorate the first crossing of the Severn Bridge, 683 00:44:01,647 --> 00:44:04,764 I have great pIeasure in unveiIing this pIaque. 684 00:44:05,247 --> 00:44:06,566 (PEOPLE CLAPPING) 685 00:44:06,647 --> 00:44:10,242 RICHARD: It was a joyous day in some ways, because everybody Iikes a party, 686 00:44:10,367 --> 00:44:12,483 but it was aIso very sad to see 687 00:44:12,567 --> 00:44:15,400 my grandfather's IifeIong work come to an end. 688 00:44:15,967 --> 00:44:19,926 I would not wish to be considered a traitor, but at age 17, 689 00:44:20,007 --> 00:44:22,840 the bridge opened up huge new possibilities. 690 00:44:22,927 --> 00:44:25,919 So, a great feeling of regret, but at the same time 691 00:44:26,007 --> 00:44:29,477 that was tempered somewhat by a feeling of new freedom. 692 00:44:33,287 --> 00:44:36,836 NEIL: Moving west, the deep-water ports of Newport and Cardiff 693 00:44:36,927 --> 00:44:40,761 were built to trade far beyond the confines of the Severn Sea. 694 00:44:42,287 --> 00:44:46,200 Exports of coal helped finance the building of resorts like Penarth 695 00:44:46,287 --> 00:44:48,926 for miners on day trips close to home. 696 00:44:52,367 --> 00:44:56,963 But the appeal of the South Wales coast stretches far beyond these shores. 697 00:44:57,047 --> 00:45:00,357 At St. Donat's, it's not hard to see the attraction.: 698 00:45:00,447 --> 00:45:03,962 a grand coastline and a grand castle. 699 00:45:07,487 --> 00:45:09,955 It boasts 800 years of history, 700 00:45:10,087 --> 00:45:11,998 but by the start of the 20th century, 701 00:45:12,087 --> 00:45:16,524 countless careless owners had left St. Donat's in need of a little love. 702 00:45:17,447 --> 00:45:22,521 In 1925, it was about to attract a wealthy overseas admirer. 703 00:45:24,007 --> 00:45:27,556 Hermione Cockburn's exploring how one of the world's richest men 704 00:45:27,647 --> 00:45:31,162 transformed this castle into a pleasure palace. 705 00:45:34,967 --> 00:45:38,198 This is an edition of Country Life from the earIy 1900s. 706 00:45:38,287 --> 00:45:42,360 And aIongside articIes of bird watching and trout fishing, 707 00:45:42,447 --> 00:45:46,679 there's an iIIustrated feature about a WeIsh castIe down on its Iuck. 708 00:45:47,487 --> 00:45:50,877 But St. Donat's wouId soon capture one reader's heart. 709 00:45:51,687 --> 00:45:53,643 The magazine attracted the attention 710 00:45:53,727 --> 00:45:59,006 of one America's great newspaper magnates, William Randolph Hearst. 711 00:45:59,087 --> 00:46:01,806 He was one of the most powerful men in the USA, 712 00:46:01,887 --> 00:46:05,402 calling the shots both in Washington and Hollywood. 713 00:46:05,487 --> 00:46:10,641 His media empire could make and break politicians and movie stars alike. 714 00:46:10,727 --> 00:46:14,481 Hearst, famously the inspiration for the film Citizen Kane, 715 00:46:14,567 --> 00:46:17,877 had a passion for excess and the money to indulge it. 716 00:46:17,967 --> 00:46:22,882 He'd already built one extravagant castle on the Californian coast at San Simeon, 717 00:46:22,967 --> 00:46:25,003 complete with its own zoo. 718 00:46:26,247 --> 00:46:28,681 But why, in 1925, 719 00:46:28,767 --> 00:46:33,204 was he hatching a new scheme thousands of miles away on the Welsh coast? 720 00:46:34,767 --> 00:46:36,485 Without ever coming to WaIes, 721 00:46:36,567 --> 00:46:40,560 he cabIed his staff in London, ''Buy St. Donat's castIe''. 722 00:46:40,647 --> 00:46:45,038 And so he acquired this modest piIe in need of a IittIe work. 723 00:46:49,607 --> 00:46:52,724 It was another three years before he set foot here, 724 00:46:52,807 --> 00:46:56,641 but when he did, he turned the place upside down. 725 00:46:56,767 --> 00:47:00,396 Before Hearst, St. Donat's boasted just three bathrooms. 726 00:47:00,487 --> 00:47:03,047 He fitted another 32. 727 00:47:03,127 --> 00:47:06,483 Like all good fixer-uppers, he installed central heating, 728 00:47:06,567 --> 00:47:09,525 as well as connecting the castle to the water mains. 729 00:47:09,607 --> 00:47:14,476 And he added not one, but three tennis courts and a heated pool. 730 00:47:15,567 --> 00:47:19,560 With the essentials fixed, Hearst really started to show off 731 00:47:19,647 --> 00:47:23,606 and decided the Welsh history of the house wasn't quite enough. 732 00:47:23,687 --> 00:47:26,645 To discover the full extent of Hearst's fantasies, 733 00:47:26,727 --> 00:47:31,403 I'm meeting Thea Osborne, who's studied the man and his dream castle. 734 00:47:31,487 --> 00:47:34,399 -Look at this room. -Yeah, it's amazing, isn't it? 735 00:47:34,487 --> 00:47:38,400 It is fantastic. And Iook at the ceiIing. 736 00:47:39,047 --> 00:47:43,279 It's absoIuteIy beautifuI. What's the history of this part of the castIe? 737 00:47:43,367 --> 00:47:45,323 Hearst actuaIIy buiIt this room himseIf. 738 00:47:45,407 --> 00:47:49,286 OriginaIIy, this was the outer waII and he added on these three extra waIIs 739 00:47:49,367 --> 00:47:53,599 and he imported the ceiIing from the Braydon Stoke Priory in WiItshire. 740 00:47:53,687 --> 00:47:56,838 It's a 1 4th-century ceiIing and he brought it in here and buiIt the room around it. 741 00:47:56,927 --> 00:47:58,042 HERMIONE: It's quite unbeIievabIe. 742 00:47:58,127 --> 00:47:59,799 I mean, you wouId never guess to Iook at it. 743 00:47:59,927 --> 00:48:02,725 I mean, it Iooks so weII integrated, doesn't it? 744 00:48:02,807 --> 00:48:06,004 The ceiIing and the windows both come from Braydon Stoke Priory. 745 00:48:06,087 --> 00:48:09,124 HERMIONE: But what kind of reaction did he get? 746 00:48:09,207 --> 00:48:11,641 This is not something he wouId get away with today. 747 00:48:11,727 --> 00:48:13,524 WeII, it did cause some controversy at the time. 748 00:48:13,607 --> 00:48:17,316 Various members of parIiament caIIed it vandaIism of historic buiIdings. 749 00:48:17,407 --> 00:48:20,046 But he had enough money and he was quite determined 750 00:48:20,127 --> 00:48:23,836 about what he wanted to do and create the right entertaining space for himseIf, so... 751 00:48:23,927 --> 00:48:26,395 Entertaining space? So what, was this IiteraIIy his party room? 752 00:48:26,487 --> 00:48:28,603 LiteraIIy, this was his party room, yeah, he'd sort of, um, 753 00:48:28,687 --> 00:48:31,759 have dance and dinners here for aII of his various famous guests. 754 00:48:31,847 --> 00:48:33,075 (HERMIONE LAUGHS) 755 00:48:33,167 --> 00:48:35,203 And what kind of peopIe wouId have come? 756 00:48:35,287 --> 00:48:39,519 WeII, he had members of the HoIIywood eIite, incIuding CharIie ChapIin 757 00:48:39,607 --> 00:48:41,006 and the Warner brothers. 758 00:48:41,087 --> 00:48:42,315 And then peopIe from the UK, 759 00:48:42,407 --> 00:48:46,605 Iike Winston ChurchiII, David LIoyd George, the Mountbattens, came and stayed. 760 00:48:46,687 --> 00:48:48,405 And what about the firepIaces? 761 00:48:48,487 --> 00:48:51,923 There's a beautifuI one at that end of the room and a very ornate one there. 762 00:48:52,007 --> 00:48:53,804 These presumabIy aren't originaI either? 763 00:48:53,887 --> 00:48:56,003 THEA: No, no, he had quite a thing for firepIaces. 764 00:48:56,087 --> 00:48:58,885 He brought in 18 in totaI and put them aII over the castIe. 765 00:48:59,007 --> 00:49:00,725 These ones are both from France. 766 00:49:00,807 --> 00:49:02,798 He pIucked them from various areas within France 767 00:49:02,887 --> 00:49:05,447 and the UK and wouId even cut them down to size 768 00:49:05,527 --> 00:49:08,599 so that they fitted into the room just in the way that he wanted. 769 00:49:08,727 --> 00:49:11,685 HERMIONE: Quite extraordinary. THEA: Yeah, it's amazing. 770 00:49:12,327 --> 00:49:15,125 HERMIONE: So what else did Hearst get away with? 771 00:49:15,207 --> 00:49:19,246 Gothic screens, ancient coats of arms 772 00:49:19,367 --> 00:49:21,722 and the gilded ceiling from St. Botolph's, 773 00:49:21,807 --> 00:49:25,277 a celebrated parish church in Boston, Lincolnshire, 774 00:49:25,367 --> 00:49:30,680 all found their way here to satisfy Hearst's insatiable appetite for history. 775 00:49:33,727 --> 00:49:37,402 In truth, Hearst wasn't just a Iover of history. 776 00:49:37,487 --> 00:49:40,604 He was a Iover, a man with a mistress. 777 00:49:40,687 --> 00:49:44,123 So a IittIe WeIsh hideaway a few thousand miIes from home 778 00:49:44,207 --> 00:49:46,437 suddenIy starts to make sense. 779 00:49:48,407 --> 00:49:51,843 Her name was Marion Davies, a Hollywood actress. 780 00:49:52,207 --> 00:49:55,677 Marion and Hearst loved to entertain the rich and famous 781 00:49:55,767 --> 00:49:58,645 and she was the reason for this private little scheme, 782 00:49:58,727 --> 00:50:01,116 well away from prying eyes. 783 00:50:03,407 --> 00:50:06,160 But for all the money he lavished on this castle, 784 00:50:06,247 --> 00:50:08,761 Hearst spent just a few months here. 785 00:50:08,967 --> 00:50:11,765 He lost control of his empire in the Great Depression, 786 00:50:11,847 --> 00:50:14,156 and, with it, most of his wealth. 787 00:50:14,567 --> 00:50:19,277 Hearst and Davies, the American Iovers, may have abandoned this WeIsh castIe, 788 00:50:19,487 --> 00:50:22,957 but the worId has moved in. 789 00:50:23,047 --> 00:50:24,765 (PEOPLE CHATTERING) 790 00:50:25,127 --> 00:50:30,121 St. Donat's is now home to Atlantic College, a private boarding school. 791 00:50:30,287 --> 00:50:35,156 350 sixth-formers from 75 countries Iive and study here. 792 00:50:37,007 --> 00:50:41,125 The students are encouraged to make the most of their coastal home. 793 00:50:42,167 --> 00:50:46,206 They even run their own inshore life boat with the RNLI. 794 00:50:52,287 --> 00:50:56,599 After a hard day on the water, they're probably grateful for the bathrooms 795 00:50:56,687 --> 00:51:00,475 and central heating put in by William Randolph Hearst. 796 00:51:06,727 --> 00:51:10,322 NEIL: Atlantic College attracts students from all over the world, 797 00:51:10,407 --> 00:51:14,958 but just a little further down the coast, near the vast Merthyr Mawr dune system, 798 00:51:15,047 --> 00:51:18,005 one group of visitors came a lot less willingly, 799 00:51:18,087 --> 00:51:20,681 and were a little too eager to leave. 800 00:51:21,567 --> 00:51:26,118 The wide, open spaces here are a good place to roam free, or to hide. 801 00:51:26,927 --> 00:51:28,360 Around 60 years ago, 802 00:51:28,447 --> 00:51:32,076 a deadly serious game of hide and seek was about to begin. 803 00:51:33,287 --> 00:51:37,599 It's the morning of Sunday, March 1 1th, 1945. 804 00:51:37,687 --> 00:51:38,961 (BELLS CHIMING) 805 00:51:39,047 --> 00:51:41,925 Listen carefully and you might hear the sound of bells 806 00:51:42,007 --> 00:51:44,567 carried on the wind across this coast. 807 00:51:44,647 --> 00:51:48,003 That ringing sound isn't a comforting call to prayer. 808 00:51:48,127 --> 00:51:50,197 It's a grim call to action. 809 00:51:50,647 --> 00:51:52,046 At the height of the war, 810 00:51:52,127 --> 00:51:55,836 church beIIs wouId onIy have been rung to signaI invasion. 811 00:51:55,927 --> 00:51:58,282 But now, in 1945, 812 00:51:58,367 --> 00:52:01,916 they were sounded in a desperate attempt to warn that there might be Germans 813 00:52:02,007 --> 00:52:06,444 at Ioose in these dunes, not trying to invade, but to escape. 814 00:52:07,887 --> 00:52:10,799 I've got a recording from the day the story broke. 815 00:52:10,887 --> 00:52:14,436 ALVAR LIDELL: ''Here is the midnight news for today, Sunday 1 1th March, 816 00:52:14,527 --> 00:52:16,722 ''and this is Alvar Lidell reading it. 817 00:52:16,807 --> 00:52:18,877 ''70 Germans escaped from 818 00:52:18,967 --> 00:52:22,243 ''a Prisoner of War Camp at Bridgend, Glamorgan, last night 819 00:52:22,327 --> 00:52:25,717 ''and it is thought that the men may have found cover in the Welsh hills 820 00:52:25,847 --> 00:52:27,758 ''and sparsely populated valleys 821 00:52:27,847 --> 00:52:32,238 ''or in the caves and sand dunes on the coast a few miles from the camp. '' 822 00:52:34,127 --> 00:52:38,200 So were there German prisoners of war roaming these sand dunes? 823 00:52:38,287 --> 00:52:40,960 Soon, a massive manhunt was underway. 824 00:52:41,047 --> 00:52:45,006 It seemed like every available man and woman had been mobilised. 825 00:52:45,407 --> 00:52:48,524 Even the IocaI girI guides wanted in on the act. 826 00:52:50,207 --> 00:52:51,959 The fear was real enough. 827 00:52:52,047 --> 00:52:56,199 By 1945, around 400,000 German prisoners of war 828 00:52:56,287 --> 00:52:59,245 were being held in camps up and down Britain. 829 00:52:59,767 --> 00:53:01,280 BROADCASTER: At one of the camps somewhere in Britain, 830 00:53:01,367 --> 00:53:03,927 ex-German sailors saved from sunken U-boats 831 00:53:04,007 --> 00:53:06,396 and ex-German airmen whose planes were brought down 832 00:53:06,487 --> 00:53:09,638 are learning to start life afresh in more peaceful jobs. 833 00:53:09,727 --> 00:53:14,403 NEIL: One of those camps was Island Farm near Bridgend, close to these dunes. 834 00:53:21,967 --> 00:53:23,195 (GATE CLANGING) 835 00:53:23,287 --> 00:53:25,323 By March 1945, 836 00:53:25,407 --> 00:53:29,719 there were around 1,600 German prisoners of war in the camp here. 837 00:53:30,287 --> 00:53:34,121 Most of it's been demoIished now. In fact, that hut is aII that remains. 838 00:53:34,207 --> 00:53:36,323 But that is hut number nine, 839 00:53:36,407 --> 00:53:38,762 the hut from which the escape attempt originated. 840 00:53:40,647 --> 00:53:44,117 One of the main problems for prisoners of war is boredom. 841 00:53:44,887 --> 00:53:49,278 So the men here spent time drawing sketches of naked women on the walls. 842 00:53:49,727 --> 00:53:52,321 But they weren't drawing just to pass the time. 843 00:53:52,407 --> 00:53:54,716 The racy paintings were there to distract the guards 844 00:53:54,807 --> 00:53:58,880 from a daring plan that was being hatched right under their noses. 845 00:53:59,767 --> 00:54:02,964 The prisoners were busy making other drawings, too. 846 00:54:03,047 --> 00:54:07,484 On this handkerchief, they sketched a plan of the Welsh and Irish coasts. 847 00:54:09,007 --> 00:54:12,761 And on a shirt tail, they drew a map of the English Channel. 848 00:54:13,927 --> 00:54:17,397 But the heavy work was happening silently, underground. 849 00:54:18,527 --> 00:54:23,317 This is an oId tin can. It was used for digging and for removing spoiI. 850 00:54:24,207 --> 00:54:27,597 This is a rough, extremeIy primitive digging tooI made from 851 00:54:27,687 --> 00:54:30,485 two Iengths of pipe tied together with string or wire, 852 00:54:30,567 --> 00:54:33,923 just enough to give them purchase to cut at the cIay. 853 00:54:36,247 --> 00:54:38,886 This is a bIock of the cIay, 854 00:54:38,967 --> 00:54:41,925 the actuaI cIay that was removed during the digging of the tunneI. 855 00:54:42,007 --> 00:54:45,124 In a Iaborious process they had to compact it into baIIs, 856 00:54:45,207 --> 00:54:46,640 carry it in their pockets 857 00:54:46,727 --> 00:54:49,844 and then hide the whoIe heap inside that buiIding, 858 00:54:49,927 --> 00:54:52,077 so that the guards wouId be none the wiser. 859 00:54:52,167 --> 00:54:56,365 But of course, after aII the eIaborate pIanning, the back-breaking work 860 00:54:56,447 --> 00:54:58,802 and the danger of it aII, there came the night 861 00:54:58,887 --> 00:55:02,675 when there was nothing Ieft to do but put it aII into action. 862 00:55:11,367 --> 00:55:14,165 So how many Germans hid here in the dunes? 863 00:55:15,887 --> 00:55:19,084 Writer and historian Herbert Williams knows the full story 864 00:55:19,167 --> 00:55:22,364 of the Great Escape from hut nine. 865 00:55:23,447 --> 00:55:24,926 Sixty-seven escaped. 866 00:55:25,007 --> 00:55:29,683 They dug a 60-foot tunneI under the barbed wire into a fieId beyond. 867 00:55:29,767 --> 00:55:32,679 Were they high-ranking officers? Rank and fiIe? 868 00:55:32,767 --> 00:55:35,486 They were young officers, they were determined reaIIy 869 00:55:35,567 --> 00:55:38,320 not to submit to being prisoners of war. 870 00:55:38,487 --> 00:55:43,641 Some of them were really devoted Nazis. They belonged to the Hitler Youth. 871 00:55:43,727 --> 00:55:46,639 This was a big, big story when it broke. 872 00:55:46,727 --> 00:55:49,400 All these Germans loose in South Wales. 873 00:55:49,767 --> 00:55:54,079 So Fleet Street gobbled up this story. It was big news all over Britain. 874 00:55:55,327 --> 00:55:56,965 So there's the notorious tunneI. 875 00:55:57,047 --> 00:55:59,197 HERBERT: There it is, yes. 876 00:55:59,287 --> 00:56:02,324 Some were captured quickly, close to the prison camp. 877 00:56:02,407 --> 00:56:06,161 Others were determined to make it across the sea to freedom. 878 00:56:06,327 --> 00:56:09,524 Four of the Germans planned to get to an airfield. 879 00:56:09,727 --> 00:56:12,446 They found a car, but it wouldn't start, 880 00:56:12,527 --> 00:56:17,157 so they persuaded prison guards coming home from the pub to give them a hand. 881 00:56:19,087 --> 00:56:24,002 These Germans, they said to them, ''We are Norwegians, engineers, 882 00:56:24,087 --> 00:56:28,205 ''on important war work. We must get to Croydon, but our car won't start. 883 00:56:28,287 --> 00:56:30,437 ''CouId you heIp us push-start it?'' 884 00:56:30,527 --> 00:56:33,246 And they were Iike, ''Yes, of course, boy, of course we'II get you. 885 00:56:33,327 --> 00:56:34,760 ''Get in the car. We'II push-start.'' 886 00:56:34,847 --> 00:56:37,441 So they push-started the car and off they went. 887 00:56:37,527 --> 00:56:38,926 And how far did they get? 888 00:56:39,007 --> 00:56:44,001 They got 130 miIes, to the outskirts of an airport, and hid in a wood there, 889 00:56:44,127 --> 00:56:47,915 and some farm workers found them in the edge of the wood and the game was up. 890 00:56:48,007 --> 00:56:50,123 But the furthest that anyone got 891 00:56:50,207 --> 00:56:53,961 were the coupIe of escaped prisoners that went to Southampton. 892 00:56:56,567 --> 00:57:00,242 NEIL: All of the Germans were recaptured before they could cross the Channel. 893 00:57:00,327 --> 00:57:04,798 The waters round our coastline, so long a barricade keeping the Nazis out, 894 00:57:04,887 --> 00:57:08,436 ultimately formed a stockade, holding them in. 895 00:57:11,327 --> 00:57:14,524 On this journey, I've been impressed how the people of this coast 896 00:57:14,607 --> 00:57:17,804 have reached out together across the Severn Sea. 897 00:57:18,927 --> 00:57:22,363 They've forged links overseas from the earliest times, 898 00:57:22,447 --> 00:57:26,076 like the early arms trade with warriors on distant shores, 899 00:57:27,607 --> 00:57:29,677 and cooperated closer to home, 900 00:57:29,767 --> 00:57:34,124 like the Welsh miners who cut tunnels through English rock at Ilfracombe. 901 00:57:34,207 --> 00:57:39,645 Steamers, ferries and bridges have transformed these two coastlines into one. 902 00:57:43,527 --> 00:57:45,722 Standing here on the WeIsh shoreIine 903 00:57:45,807 --> 00:57:49,197 Iooking out across Mor Hafren, the Severn Sea, 904 00:57:49,287 --> 00:57:53,041 it strikes me that the few miIes of water between WaIes and EngIand 905 00:57:53,127 --> 00:57:56,199 have done just as much to unite these two nations 906 00:57:56,287 --> 00:57:58,562 as they have to separate them. 907 00:57:59,607 --> 00:58:02,121 Next time, we're in Southern Ireland. 908 00:58:02,207 --> 00:58:04,482 I'll be joining the Irish Navy. 909 00:58:05,727 --> 00:58:08,560 Alice learns to write her name, old style. 910 00:58:09,167 --> 00:58:11,965 Miranda's away with the birds on the Wexford Slobs. 911 00:58:12,407 --> 00:58:15,444 And Hermione? She's making the earth move.