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Britain is crisscrossed
by an amazing network

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of ancient track ways.

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These remarkable routes
are our oldest roads

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and have been travelled
for more than 5,000 years.

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He's quite small, isn't he?

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He is small, but he's mighty.

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Small but mighty. I like that.

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Walked by pilgrims and traders,
hunters and invaders,

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Celts and Romans,
Saxons and Vikings,

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each track is bound up
in myth, mystery and legend.

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Of all the archaeological finds I've
come across, when I heard about it,

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my jaw actually dropped.

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I'm on a quest to connect the clues
and rediscover the stories

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hidden among Britain's
ancient pathways.

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I want to find out what it is

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that tempts today's travellers
to go back in time

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and rediscover these mystic tracks.

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Do you reckon that's the North Star?

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It's not the brightest
star in the sky but it's probably

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one of the most useful.
It's a bit like me.

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Smell the leather -
you can still smell it.

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1,900-year-old leather.

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Isn't that absolutely amazing?

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This week I'm trekking
the ancient earthwork frontier

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that straddles the border
between England and Wales -

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Offa's Dyke.

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Inspired by legends
that transcend time itself,

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my walk along this remarkable route

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will reveal a mythical monarch,
romantic scribes,

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and a fearsome dragon.

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These are the paths
our ancestors once followed,

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the ancient tracks that we in
Britain can still walk today.

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My journey begins in England,

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on the shore
at Sedbury, Gloucestershire,

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and the southern starting point
of something quite remarkable.

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This is the mighty River Severn.

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You've got Wales over there,
England over there,

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and since 1966 they've been linked
by that beautiful, elegant bridge.

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I actually feel quite at home here

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because I used to live

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just beyond that big stanchion,
there, in Bristol.

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And I still support Bristol City.

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Come on you Reds!

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But that isn't the boundary
that we're interested in today.

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Just beyond that big cliff, there,

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is another boundary
between England and Wales,

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one that's existed
for over 1,000 years

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and is full of myth and legend.

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It's time to explore Offa's Dyke.

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Offa was an 8th century king
who ruled over a large part

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of the English midlands
then known as the Kingdom of Mercia.

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Offa's Dyke stretches
more than 80 miles,

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dividing the two great nations
of England and Wales.

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Through centuries
of tribal conflict,

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religious strife and local legends,

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this ancient border
has helped define

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what it means to be
English and Welsh.

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I'm going to walk north
from the Severn estuary,

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along the Offa's Dyke pass -
a modern reinstated version

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that follows the course of
much of its ancient namesake.

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On my trek I'll explore
the borderlands between

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the ancient English and Welsh
kingdoms of Mercia and Powys,

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finishing my walk as the dyke
crosses the River Severn again

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near Welshpool.

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Along the way I'll walk in the wake
of romantic poet William Wordsworth,

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explore the subterranean
resting place of King Arthur,

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confront Wales's
fearsome mythical emblem,

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and ponder the priceless gold coin

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issued by King Offa
in praise of Allah.

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Offa's Dyke, a massive
ditch and bank structure,

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has been around for
more than 1,200 years.

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The earliest records of this
formidable frontier

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come as early as the 9th century

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when the Welsh monk Asser wrote,

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"There was in Mercia
in fairly recent time

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"a certain vigorous king
called Offa,

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"who had a great dyke built
between Wales and Mercia

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"from sea to sea."

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A lot of people have never even
heard of Offa's Dyke

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or have only got a vague
idea where it is.

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And, indeed, it is quite
difficult to find in the landscape

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for many of its miles.

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Although when you climb up on a bit
like this and get to the top,

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you are at the top of one of
the most important monuments
in Britain.

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This took hundreds of man hours,
thousands of people,

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in order to make it.

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In fact, it's such a great piece
of ancient engineering

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that a lot of people compare it
with the building of the pyramids.

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But unlike the pyramids, King Offa's
extraordinary achievements have

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in recent times faded from view.

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It wasn't always this way.

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Offa created this massive earthwork

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but he also created something else
which is much smaller

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but is still remembered.

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And it's this.

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We've all got them floating around
in our pockets, haven't we?

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The humble penny.

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Offa established the English penny,

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which still exists
over 1,000 years later.

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At the time of his death in 796AD,

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the penny had pronounced Offa
Rex Anglorum - king of the English.

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But it actually represented this
visionary ruler's global ambitions

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when it came
to currency and commerce.

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I'll reveal more about this later.

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Few written records were kept
of the dyke's build,

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though inevitably
legends have flourished,

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and the path over time has become
an inspiration for an illustrious

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roll call of authors and artists -
before me that is -

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who have walked its route.

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At this next ominously-named stop
on my journey,

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I've been promised

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a certain devilish sightseer,

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and a feast for the eyes at one of

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Britain's most awe-inspiring views.

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Can you see that beautiful
ruin over there?

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That, of course, is Tintern Abbey,

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and just below me down this
rather hairy little path...

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Yeah, there it is.

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That is the Devil's Pulpit.

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This book was written
in the 1880s by Wirt Sikes

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and he says, "Near Tintern Abbey
there is a jutting crag,

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"overhung by gloomy branches of
the yew, called the Devil's Pulpit.

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"His Eminence," ie the devil,

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"used in other days and wickeder
days to preach atrocious morals

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"or immorals to the white-robed
Cistercian monks of the abbey

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"from this rock pulpit."

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In other words, here he'd be,
looking down at the monks,

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trying to seduce them into doing
all sorts of disgusting things,

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but they were
good and holy and noble

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so they didn't get juiced up at all

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and in frustration
he stamped his feet

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and you can still see the marks
on the top of the pulpit.

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Whereas if he'd been a little bit
more cool, he could have enjoyed

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the spectacular view, couldn't he?

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For the rather more serious-minded
William Wordsworth,

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the magnificent Tintern

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and the epic walking tour
that would lead him there

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were inspirations for his poetry.

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But it wasn't any old poem.

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He wrote it in the meter
of someone walking along,

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so he was reminding himself
of how he felt when he saw it.

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I've got the first few lines
on this postcard here.

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It's actually called Lines Composed
A Few Miles Above Tintern Abbey

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On Revisiting The Banks
Of The Wye During A Tour.

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Not the punchiest of titles,
but I think you'll get what I mean

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about the rhythm of it.

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Five years have passed -
five summers with the length

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Of five long winters!
And again I hear

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These waters, rolling
from their mountain springs

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With a soft inland murmur
Once again

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Do I behold these
steep and lofty cliffs

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That on a wild, secluded scene
impress

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Thoughts of more deep seclusion
and connect

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The landscape
with the quiet of the sky.

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Dum, dum, dum, dum. See what I mean?

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I wonder if I like
the Tintern Abbey poem so much

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because I'm an actor and
the words in it are so muscular.

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Was Wordsworth consciously
recreating the way he walked

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in the meter of this poem?

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Yes, because he wasn't a person
who sat down at his desk and wrote.

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This poem was written a few miles
above Tintern, very specifically,

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and the dates prove that,

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so we know that he was
composing as he went along,

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and Wordsworth would
dictate his poetry,

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like Milton used to do.

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So he wasn't a desk poet.

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He was very much an action poet in
the sense that he would be,

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as he was walking, he would
use the rhythm of his walk.

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He was a prodigious walker,
wasn't he? Yes, he was.

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I mean, he was
a very athletic walker.

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He walked 1,000 miles across
Europe one summer

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in a kind of cheap grand tour

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and he could walk 20 miles
without thinking about it.

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What would Tintern Abbey
have been like in those days?

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Well, the ruins would not have
been as quiet as they were now.

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For example, I mean,
when Wordsworth was here

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there were beggars living
in the ruins of the Abbey.

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Poor people who he wouldn't have met

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if he hadn't just got
out there on the road?

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That's right. On that note,
I think I will say goodbye.

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Now, if I cross that bridge,
am I still in England?

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No, I think that's
the gateway into Wales,

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so I wish you no blisters
and good weather.

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It was lovely to see you.
Yeah, nice to meet you. Cheers, bye.

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As I cross the border and take
my first steps into Wales,

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I'm hungry for a close-up experience

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of this glorious vision
of Gothic architecture.

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The quite stunning Tintern Abbey
was founded in 1131

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and nestles in a valley surrounded
by misty green mountains.

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Its dramatic ruins never fail
to provide travellers

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with an unforgettable spectacle.

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CHORAL SINGING:
Guide Me, O Thou Great Jehovah

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William Wordsworth wasn't the only
young artist to come here -

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Turner painted it,

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and in the early 18th century,

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a host of artistic
young people flocked here

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when it was rediscovered

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as a sort of wild and
magnificent cultural icon.

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It's not difficult to see
why they were drawn here.

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We call them the Romantics

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and if there's one thing this
place is, it's absurdly romantic.

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It's like a beautiful dreamscape

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which they've recreated in
words and oils and poetry.

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Who wouldn't be inspired
by Tintern Abbey?

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# I will ever give to Thee

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THEY CONTINUE IN WELSH

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HYMN ENDS

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Offa's Dyke is Britain's
longest ancient monument

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and even after 1,200 years is
still walked by today's travellers,

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wanting to explore the rich history

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of this ancient border
between England and Wales.

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I'm now following the track

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00:14:27,330 --> 00:14:30,490
back across the river
and back into England.

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This is The Doward in Herefordshire,

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a limestone hill around
which the River Wye

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has carved a steep-sided gorge.

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I'm in search of
yet another regal legend,

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but this time it's
King Arthur, not Offa, I seek.

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Sometime around the end
of the 17th century

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there was a poor elderly woman
who lived near here

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and she'd lost her goat

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and eventually she came to
a woodcutter's camp which was here.

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She asked the woodcutters
if they'd seen her goat

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and they said,
"Well, we're not quite sure

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"but there is a cave just here

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"and we think we might have heard
a bit of bleating from inside it."

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And in those days
it was really closed up

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and she said,
"Well, I can't see anything.

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"Can you hack a bit
of the cave down?"

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So they did.

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But what they did find...

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was a gigantic skeleton
of a man about 12 foot long.

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And I don't know whether or not they
managed to find the goat,

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but they carried the skeleton out

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and it became the talk
of the local area

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and I would have to be able
to show it to you,

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but I can't because they eventually
took it down to Bristol,

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00:15:56,890 --> 00:15:58,810
gave it to a chap called Mr Pye,

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who was just about to go off on
his ship to the West Indies,

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and stupidly he took
the skeleton with him,

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and the ship foundered and
the skeleton was lost.

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00:16:10,090 --> 00:16:14,410
So there is no tangible evidence,
but everybody around here

243
00:16:14,410 --> 00:16:20,370
believes that skeleton did exist and
it was the skeleton of King Arthur.

244
00:16:20,370 --> 00:16:22,770
Now, whether or not it really was,
I have no idea.

245
00:16:22,770 --> 00:16:24,330
But I'm not on my own today.

246
00:16:24,330 --> 00:16:26,770
I've got a friend with me -
Sarah, Sarah Peverley.

247
00:16:26,770 --> 00:16:27,730
Sarah. Hello.

248
00:16:28,930 --> 00:16:32,970
Do you reckon those bones could have
been the bones of King Arthur?

249
00:16:32,970 --> 00:16:35,730
It would be amazing to think
that they were, wouldn't it?

250
00:16:35,730 --> 00:16:37,290
It would be absolutely wonderful,

251
00:16:37,290 --> 00:16:41,810
cos there's so many connections in
this area with the Arthurian myth.

252
00:16:41,810 --> 00:16:46,130
You can almost tangibly sense Arthur
here, can't you? Yeah, you can.

253
00:16:46,130 --> 00:16:50,410
I mean, the Arthurian myth has
a pull on our islands generally.

254
00:16:50,410 --> 00:16:52,490
It crops up, it gets rewritten

255
00:16:52,490 --> 00:16:55,450
lots and lots of times
in moments of crises.

256
00:16:55,450 --> 00:16:58,650
So whenever there's a big
conflict in the country,

257
00:16:58,650 --> 00:17:00,690
the Arthurian myth flourishes again.

258
00:17:00,690 --> 00:17:03,970
It's a way of reminding people
that unification is important.

259
00:17:03,970 --> 00:17:06,930
And, of course, sites like this
are absolutely integral

260
00:17:06,930 --> 00:17:08,610
to keeping that myth alive

261
00:17:08,610 --> 00:17:11,570
because you've got that kind
of otherworldliness about it.

262
00:17:11,570 --> 00:17:14,010
It certainly does feel very
otherworldly round here.

263
00:17:14,010 --> 00:17:15,250
It's incredible, isn't it?

264
00:17:15,250 --> 00:17:18,650
You can really imagine
Lancelot and Guinevere

265
00:17:18,650 --> 00:17:21,490
cantering through this environment.
Absolutely.

266
00:17:21,490 --> 00:17:24,090
I mean, this place is just
so evocative, isn't it?

267
00:17:24,090 --> 00:17:26,530
It's got a kind of
liminal feel to it,

268
00:17:26,530 --> 00:17:30,970
where you've got the supernatural
and the natural worlds colliding.

269
00:17:30,970 --> 00:17:35,210
You can imagine a fairy or a dragon
living in such a cave.

270
00:17:35,210 --> 00:17:37,210
I love that word liminal.

271
00:17:37,210 --> 00:17:41,330
You've got the line between
the mystery inside a cave

272
00:17:41,330 --> 00:17:44,010
and the reality of the outside,

273
00:17:44,010 --> 00:17:48,450
you've got the two countries,
Wales and England,

274
00:17:48,450 --> 00:17:51,250
marked by that line of Offa's Dyke.

275
00:17:51,250 --> 00:17:54,770
This area is quivering with
liminality, isn't it? It is, yes.

276
00:17:54,770 --> 00:17:57,090
Let's get out of here before we
fall to pieces. OK.

277
00:17:58,850 --> 00:18:02,490
We may not have found King Arthur
in the cave that bears his name,

278
00:18:02,490 --> 00:18:06,130
but there are bones hidden
in its dark interior.

279
00:18:11,970 --> 00:18:15,690
Stone Age people used
these caves as shelter

280
00:18:15,690 --> 00:18:21,250
and flints used by hunters can be
dated to more than 10,000 years ago.

281
00:18:21,250 --> 00:18:25,410
It's these remnants of
fantastic ancient beasts,

282
00:18:25,410 --> 00:18:31,130
such as mammoths, woolly rhino,
the jawbone of a wolf,

283
00:18:31,130 --> 00:18:33,890
and these extraordinary
hyenas' teeth,

284
00:18:33,890 --> 00:18:36,210
that really fire the imagination.

285
00:18:38,330 --> 00:18:41,930
But I want to know if there's any
scientific evidence to back up

286
00:18:41,930 --> 00:18:45,010
claims of King Arthur's existence.

287
00:18:45,010 --> 00:18:48,770
I have a feeling that news of
some archaeological discoveries

288
00:18:48,770 --> 00:18:51,770
in a cave up ahead
may give me some answers.

289
00:18:57,290 --> 00:18:59,810
It's a killer path, this.
It's so skiddy.

290
00:18:59,810 --> 00:19:02,810
it's only a few hundred feet down
there but it must have taken me

291
00:19:02,810 --> 00:19:06,490
the best part of 20 minutes
to get up here.

292
00:19:06,490 --> 00:19:07,690
Tim?

293
00:19:07,690 --> 00:19:09,490
What are you doing, mate?

294
00:19:09,490 --> 00:19:10,890
Trying to stand upright!

295
00:19:10,890 --> 00:19:11,850
THEY LAUGH

296
00:19:14,370 --> 00:19:18,690
This is really extreme archaeology,
isn't it? It certainly is. Yes.

297
00:19:18,690 --> 00:19:21,330
It does look pretty spectacular.

298
00:19:21,330 --> 00:19:23,530
It's an amazing cave.

299
00:19:23,530 --> 00:19:26,010
Are there any human beings
associated with it?

300
00:19:26,010 --> 00:19:28,050
Yes, there are - lots.

301
00:19:28,050 --> 00:19:32,370
And two in particular -
the remains of two male individuals

302
00:19:32,370 --> 00:19:35,930
that date from about 600AD.

303
00:19:35,930 --> 00:19:39,170
600AD? Well, that's perfect time
for Arthur, isn't it? Isn't it?

304
00:19:39,170 --> 00:19:43,290
The Romans have just left. Yes.
The Saxons have yet to arrive. Yes.

305
00:19:43,290 --> 00:19:46,970
And it's a period for Herefordshire
and the Welsh borders

306
00:19:46,970 --> 00:19:49,010
about which we know very little.

307
00:19:49,010 --> 00:19:54,450
So we were very, very surprised when
the date came back as 580-610AD.

308
00:19:54,450 --> 00:19:56,330
Now, what might that be
at your feet?

309
00:19:56,330 --> 00:19:59,330
Well, these are some
of the finds, Tony.

310
00:19:59,330 --> 00:20:01,930
It's like a comedy bone!
It certainly is, isn't it?

311
00:20:01,930 --> 00:20:04,890
I mean, it tells you
how well preserved he was.

312
00:20:04,890 --> 00:20:06,730
It's a femur. It is.

313
00:20:06,730 --> 00:20:09,650
That's a bit bigger than mine.

314
00:20:09,650 --> 00:20:12,530
Definitely.
He was over six foot in his socks.

315
00:20:12,530 --> 00:20:15,370
Wow. What about in the bag?
This is most of his head.

316
00:20:16,730 --> 00:20:21,810
So, again, typical of the age.

317
00:20:21,810 --> 00:20:24,890
His teeth are very, very worn.

318
00:20:26,010 --> 00:20:27,290
Wow.

319
00:20:27,290 --> 00:20:30,410
You know, when you've got your
teeth for 65 years plus

320
00:20:30,410 --> 00:20:33,090
and stone ground bread,
you're going to get through it.

321
00:20:33,090 --> 00:20:36,010
But beautifully preserved.

322
00:20:36,010 --> 00:20:37,650
Well, we may not have King Arthur,

323
00:20:37,650 --> 00:20:40,570
but we've got someone from
the time of King Arthur

324
00:20:40,570 --> 00:20:42,370
and that's good enough for me.

325
00:20:43,490 --> 00:20:45,410
What an amazing find.

326
00:20:45,410 --> 00:20:47,410
And yet more historical finds

327
00:20:47,410 --> 00:20:48,730
and ancient tales,

328
00:20:48,730 --> 00:20:51,890
both real and imagined, lie ahead.

329
00:20:51,890 --> 00:20:56,450
I'm following the path north,
recrossing the border into Wales

330
00:20:56,450 --> 00:20:59,330
and travelling forwards
several centuries

331
00:20:59,330 --> 00:21:03,490
to discover the three castles
built in the Monnow Valley

332
00:21:03,490 --> 00:21:06,890
as part of the Norman Conquest
of South Wales.

333
00:21:06,890 --> 00:21:08,450
INDISTINCT SHOUTING

334
00:21:08,450 --> 00:21:12,450
Offa built his 8th century dyke
through the Marches,

335
00:21:12,450 --> 00:21:15,970
the border country
between England and Wales.

336
00:21:15,970 --> 00:21:19,290
But it was William the Conqueror
who resolved to add

337
00:21:19,290 --> 00:21:22,610
an extra impenetrable layer
to Offa's mighty dyke

338
00:21:22,610 --> 00:21:25,450
to sort out those lawless Welsh
once and for all.

339
00:21:29,690 --> 00:21:32,930
When William the Conqueror
came to Britain from France,

340
00:21:32,930 --> 00:21:35,770
he upgraded Offa's defensive line

341
00:21:35,770 --> 00:21:39,410
by putting in a load of castles
along the dyke.

342
00:21:39,410 --> 00:21:42,130
He knew that their
sheer bulk and height

343
00:21:42,130 --> 00:21:45,050
would prevent his Norman soldiers

344
00:21:45,050 --> 00:21:48,890
from being hammered by the force
of the mighty Welsh bowmen.

345
00:21:51,770 --> 00:21:55,810
These deadly arrows tore through
the air and chain mail,

346
00:21:55,810 --> 00:21:58,690
to strike fear into
the Norman invaders.

347
00:21:58,690 --> 00:22:01,610
I'm intrigued that such
a seemingly primitive weapon

348
00:22:01,610 --> 00:22:03,490
could create so much carnage.

349
00:22:05,570 --> 00:22:10,570
I know the Normans were terrified by
the Welsh bow and the Welsh bowmen

350
00:22:10,570 --> 00:22:12,330
but what was a Welsh bow?

351
00:22:13,570 --> 00:22:16,010
Well, if we put aside
the starry-eyed romanticism

352
00:22:16,010 --> 00:22:18,650
of there being a Welsh longbow,

353
00:22:18,650 --> 00:22:21,930
there isn't really a great
difference in the actual bow itself.

354
00:22:21,930 --> 00:22:24,050
It's more from
the material that it's made

355
00:22:24,050 --> 00:22:27,050
but, more importantly, the use
of the bow - how they were actually

356
00:22:27,050 --> 00:22:30,690
deployed by the Welsh, basically
rebels, guerrilla warfare fighting.

357
00:22:30,690 --> 00:22:32,690
So this is a real guerrilla weapon.

358
00:22:32,690 --> 00:22:35,090
Yes. It's not like
King Arthur's Excalibur

359
00:22:35,090 --> 00:22:36,610
that unites the whole country.

360
00:22:36,610 --> 00:22:38,450
This is like your AK47 of its day.

361
00:22:38,450 --> 00:22:40,370
It's not a precise sniper rifle,

362
00:22:40,370 --> 00:22:43,090
but it does its job
for a fight very quickly.

363
00:22:43,090 --> 00:22:46,010
So are you going to have a pop
at our little square bloke?

364
00:22:46,010 --> 00:22:49,010
I think I can do that for you, yes.
I'd like to see that. OK.

365
00:22:59,490 --> 00:23:00,450
Oh!

366
00:23:07,410 --> 00:23:11,890
The bows, battlements and the
skirmishes along this border

367
00:23:11,890 --> 00:23:16,050
were indeed unrelenting
in those lawless times.

368
00:23:16,050 --> 00:23:20,530
Walking Offa's Dyke today
offers a sort of no-man's land,

369
00:23:20,530 --> 00:23:24,170
a chance to meditate
about ancient warring nations

370
00:23:24,170 --> 00:23:26,490
and the nature of borders.

371
00:23:26,490 --> 00:23:30,490
And then on to St Cadoc's Church
at Llangattock Lingoed,

372
00:23:30,490 --> 00:23:32,290
which is in Monmouthshire.

373
00:23:33,530 --> 00:23:37,930
This beautiful whitewashed exterior
may seem serene,

374
00:23:37,930 --> 00:23:40,130
but within lurks
yet another reminder

375
00:23:40,130 --> 00:23:42,250
of the bloodthirsty conflicts

376
00:23:42,250 --> 00:23:45,050
and the return of
another legendary warrior.

377
00:23:56,290 --> 00:24:00,330
So all that white on the outside
seems pretty authentic,

378
00:24:00,330 --> 00:24:03,770
but inside it would have been a
completely different kettle of fish.

379
00:24:03,770 --> 00:24:07,170
You see this fresco, which was
discovered fairly recently.

380
00:24:07,170 --> 00:24:09,170
All those reds and oranges.

381
00:24:09,170 --> 00:24:12,930
I think, in here, it would
have been a riot of colour.

382
00:24:12,930 --> 00:24:15,330
Now, that is St George.

383
00:24:15,330 --> 00:24:19,650
See his helmet and see
the plume coming out of it,

384
00:24:19,650 --> 00:24:23,730
which is called a panache, which
I think is pretty appropriate.

385
00:24:23,730 --> 00:24:29,810
And he is treading - just about make
it out, I think - on the red dragon.

386
00:24:29,810 --> 00:24:35,370
Now, whether that is simply a symbol
of good triumphing over evil

387
00:24:35,370 --> 00:24:38,930
or whether it's the English
stomping all over the Welsh,

388
00:24:38,930 --> 00:24:41,530
I have absolutely no idea.

389
00:24:41,530 --> 00:24:43,650
You can be the judge of that.

390
00:24:43,650 --> 00:24:45,290
I'm not going there.

391
00:24:49,290 --> 00:24:52,730
DEEP ROAR
HORSE WHINNIES

392
00:24:52,730 --> 00:24:56,530
This is a hugely symbolic picture
in so many ways.

393
00:24:56,530 --> 00:24:58,970
It may be faded and parts of it lost

394
00:24:58,970 --> 00:25:02,970
but it's still extremely
impressive and elaborate.

395
00:25:02,970 --> 00:25:06,570
There's no denying how iconic
the dragon is for Wales

396
00:25:06,570 --> 00:25:08,610
as an antagonist to England.

397
00:25:08,610 --> 00:25:13,290
Offa's Dyke really is a place
potent in myth and legend,

398
00:25:13,290 --> 00:25:16,170
where these
national identities unfold.

399
00:25:17,690 --> 00:25:22,650
A frontier for the imagination
captured in folklore and verse.

400
00:25:22,650 --> 00:25:24,850
And further along Offa's Dyke,

401
00:25:24,850 --> 00:25:29,850
literary giants, international
artists and a fantastic forest

402
00:25:29,850 --> 00:25:34,250
will proclaim the enigmatic beauty
of this enchanted land.

403
00:25:44,980 --> 00:25:48,220
Stretching up to
an impressive 18 metres wide

404
00:25:48,220 --> 00:25:50,140
and three metres deep,

405
00:25:50,140 --> 00:25:54,060
Offa's Dyke is the immense
eighth century frontier

406
00:25:54,060 --> 00:25:57,060
that divides England and Wales.

407
00:25:57,060 --> 00:26:00,300
As I walk the path that follows
much of its course,

408
00:26:00,300 --> 00:26:05,340
legendary and literary heroes weave
stories that collectively define

409
00:26:05,340 --> 00:26:09,700
the relationship between
these two proud nations.

410
00:26:09,700 --> 00:26:13,420
And no place better celebrates
this storytelling tradition

411
00:26:13,420 --> 00:26:14,700
than my next stop.

412
00:26:17,740 --> 00:26:19,780
I've reached Hay Bluff,

413
00:26:19,780 --> 00:26:23,100
a prominent hill at the northern
tip of the Black Mountains

414
00:26:23,100 --> 00:26:27,540
which straddles the border
between England and southeast Wales.

415
00:26:28,740 --> 00:26:30,900
I'm just coming down

416
00:26:30,900 --> 00:26:34,740
off Hay Bluff,
which is the highest point

417
00:26:34,740 --> 00:26:38,220
on the Offa's Dyke path.

418
00:26:38,220 --> 00:26:40,180
It's a bit of a slog,

419
00:26:40,180 --> 00:26:45,420
but it's really worth it because
you can see all over Herefordshire.

420
00:26:45,420 --> 00:26:47,100
Great views.

421
00:26:47,100 --> 00:26:50,380
And now I'm going down there

422
00:26:50,380 --> 00:26:53,620
to visit one of my favourite events,

423
00:26:53,620 --> 00:26:57,300
certainly my favourite festival
in the whole world.

424
00:27:00,660 --> 00:27:03,980
The dyke has led me to Hay-on-Wye.

425
00:27:06,220 --> 00:27:08,380
The town of books.

426
00:27:08,380 --> 00:27:10,340
Half-English, half-Welsh

427
00:27:10,340 --> 00:27:13,860
and a modern Mecca for lovers
of the written word.

428
00:27:13,860 --> 00:27:18,780
In a setting that has itself
inspired so many wonderful writers,

429
00:27:18,780 --> 00:27:22,820
could there be any more perfect
place to celebrate the book?

430
00:27:28,580 --> 00:27:32,900
This has got to be the biggest,
the most influential,

431
00:27:32,900 --> 00:27:38,220
the best organised literary
festival in the whole world.

432
00:27:38,220 --> 00:27:40,700
I've been coming here
every year for years,

433
00:27:40,700 --> 00:27:45,780
sometimes just as a punter,
sometimes to speak or perform,

434
00:27:45,780 --> 00:27:48,220
but I always find it quite
intoxicating.

435
00:27:48,220 --> 00:27:51,500
In every tent,
there's a philosopher,

436
00:27:51,500 --> 00:27:55,020
a political thinker, a writer.

437
00:27:55,020 --> 00:27:58,860
It's an assertion of ideas,

438
00:27:58,860 --> 00:28:02,660
of discourse, of talking, of...

439
00:28:02,660 --> 00:28:04,100
..freedom and hope, really.

440
00:28:07,500 --> 00:28:10,500
Just as each step builds a journey,

441
00:28:10,500 --> 00:28:14,500
each word comes together
to create a story.

442
00:28:14,500 --> 00:28:16,820
And there's one particular
travel writer

443
00:28:16,820 --> 00:28:20,420
who held the spirit of this
land close to his heart,

444
00:28:20,420 --> 00:28:22,260
no matter where he roamed.

445
00:28:24,500 --> 00:28:25,700
I'm on a mission.

446
00:28:26,780 --> 00:28:29,140
Hay is all about book shops.

447
00:28:30,940 --> 00:28:33,580
This one's wonderful, it's like a...

448
00:28:33,580 --> 00:28:36,460
..a book shop of your dreams.

449
00:28:36,460 --> 00:28:39,540
And I'm looking...

450
00:28:39,540 --> 00:28:42,660
..for travel writers.
Here's travel writers...

451
00:28:42,660 --> 00:28:47,300
..along here. A, B, C...

452
00:28:47,300 --> 00:28:49,260
Yes, there we go.

453
00:28:49,260 --> 00:28:51,660
Ooh. Of course it would be
right up high, wouldn't it?

454
00:28:51,660 --> 00:28:53,220
Bruce Chatwin.

455
00:28:54,940 --> 00:28:56,900
One of our greatest travel writers,

456
00:28:56,900 --> 00:29:00,300
English but inspired by

457
00:29:00,300 --> 00:29:03,700
the history and heritage of Wales.

458
00:29:03,700 --> 00:29:09,260
Bruce Chatwin's award-winning
1982 novel On The Black Hill

459
00:29:09,260 --> 00:29:13,460
told the story of twin brothers
living in a bleak Welsh farmhouse

460
00:29:13,460 --> 00:29:15,980
straddling the English-Welsh border.

461
00:29:15,980 --> 00:29:21,780
And Chatwin's insatiable wanderlust
inspired much of his writings.

462
00:29:21,780 --> 00:29:27,500
He once said, "Man's real house
isn't his home, it's the road

463
00:29:27,500 --> 00:29:32,820
"and life itself is a journey
to be walked on foot."

464
00:29:32,820 --> 00:29:34,740
I couldn't agree more.

465
00:29:39,340 --> 00:29:44,820
Chatwin died aged just 48,
having only published five books.

466
00:29:44,820 --> 00:29:49,180
But his reputation as one of our
finest writers was already secured

467
00:29:49,180 --> 00:29:52,980
and his literary influence
continues to this day.

468
00:29:56,140 --> 00:29:58,540
You've written about this place,
haven't you? I have.

469
00:29:58,540 --> 00:30:00,780
I wrote Running For The Hills
and if I could've done,

470
00:30:00,780 --> 00:30:04,020
I would've called it On The Black
Hill but, unfortunately...

471
00:30:04,020 --> 00:30:06,260
Someone got there before you.

472
00:30:06,260 --> 00:30:08,900
Bruce Chatwin nicked my title
20 years before, yes.

473
00:30:08,900 --> 00:30:12,820
And he dug up the dirt, the stories,
the myths and the legends

474
00:30:12,820 --> 00:30:16,620
of a whole swathe of Herefordshire
and this side of Powys

475
00:30:16,620 --> 00:30:20,100
and he takes it all and he
puts it into On The Black Hill.

476
00:30:20,100 --> 00:30:23,340
And it's wonderful in that
it's the story of the place

477
00:30:23,340 --> 00:30:27,100
in terms of time,
which isn't linear but cyclical

478
00:30:27,100 --> 00:30:28,500
and goes with the seasons,

479
00:30:28,500 --> 00:30:30,940
and that's how I experienced
growing up here.

480
00:30:30,940 --> 00:30:34,220
I think there is a deep truth
there about how time happens

481
00:30:34,220 --> 00:30:37,580
in this region. There must be loads
of stories about this place.

482
00:30:37,580 --> 00:30:40,220
It's thick with stories,
so we could start over there

483
00:30:40,220 --> 00:30:42,820
with the Neolithic and
we can move through the Romans,

484
00:30:42,820 --> 00:30:45,260
the Normans, the Second World War

485
00:30:45,260 --> 00:30:46,940
and right up to the current.

486
00:30:46,940 --> 00:30:49,020
Those are the best fields
in the valley because

487
00:30:49,020 --> 00:30:51,020
there was an almighty battle
between the English

488
00:30:51,020 --> 00:30:52,220
and the Welsh down there.

489
00:30:52,220 --> 00:30:55,300
And, of course, the blood,
according to my godfather,

490
00:30:55,300 --> 00:30:56,740
soaked into the soil and made it...

491
00:30:56,740 --> 00:30:58,700
I'm so conflicted about Offa's Dyke.

492
00:30:58,700 --> 00:31:03,180
On one hand, it seems to me
this very old, ancient thing

493
00:31:03,180 --> 00:31:06,060
and on the other hand,
it's really quite young

494
00:31:06,060 --> 00:31:08,820
compared with an awful lot
of British history, isn't it?

495
00:31:08,820 --> 00:31:10,100
It sounds old, doesn't it?

496
00:31:10,100 --> 00:31:12,780
The Offa is old, Old English.

497
00:31:12,780 --> 00:31:15,940
Yeah, it sounds like a way back
but then compared to around here,

498
00:31:15,940 --> 00:31:18,700
I mean, we measure time
in quite different ways.

499
00:31:18,700 --> 00:31:21,780
I mean, so this is
Old Red Devonian Sandstone

500
00:31:21,780 --> 00:31:25,060
that we're standing on.
I think it's 365 million years old.

501
00:31:25,060 --> 00:31:28,140
And all this would've been
a sort of shallow lake at one point

502
00:31:28,140 --> 00:31:29,500
in the Pliocene.

503
00:31:29,500 --> 00:31:33,060
So, no, he's really quite recent,
isn't he, old Offa? Yeah.

504
00:31:33,060 --> 00:31:35,900
Where's the border?
The border's directly behind us.

505
00:31:35,900 --> 00:31:38,580
You can feel the weight
of the mountain behind us.

506
00:31:38,580 --> 00:31:41,380
But the border here is partly
a function of geography

507
00:31:41,380 --> 00:31:43,060
and partly a function of the mind.

508
00:31:43,060 --> 00:31:46,260
There's always something odd
about borderlands, isn't there?

509
00:31:46,260 --> 00:31:49,380
It is, it's like the edge of
an island, really.

510
00:31:49,380 --> 00:31:52,500
It's a shore between two cultures.
And you know what?

511
00:31:52,500 --> 00:31:56,260
If we'd been up here
2,000 years ago...

512
00:31:56,260 --> 00:32:00,500
..I bet someone like you would be
telling someone like me

513
00:32:00,500 --> 00:32:03,700
similar stories from
the previous 2,000 or 3,000 years.

514
00:32:03,700 --> 00:32:05,460
It's a lovely thought, yeah.

515
00:32:08,180 --> 00:32:10,180
As well as On The Black Hill,

516
00:32:10,180 --> 00:32:14,300
borderlands also inspired
Bruce Chatwin's seminal travel book

517
00:32:14,300 --> 00:32:17,900
In Patagonia,
with its tales of Welsh immigrants

518
00:32:17,900 --> 00:32:20,860
settled in the vast
South American region

519
00:32:20,860 --> 00:32:23,980
that straddles Chile and Argentina.

520
00:32:23,980 --> 00:32:28,340
And here on the crest of Hergest
Ridge, high up on the path,

521
00:32:28,340 --> 00:32:31,580
there's a little piece of Wales
that will be forever...

522
00:32:33,180 --> 00:32:34,740
..well, we shall see.

523
00:32:40,220 --> 00:32:42,380
This is typical borders country,
isn't it?

524
00:32:42,380 --> 00:32:45,380
A really brisk wind blowing,

525
00:32:45,380 --> 00:32:49,740
got these fantastic views
as far as the eye can see.

526
00:32:49,740 --> 00:32:52,700
Nothing at all growing but bracken.

527
00:32:52,700 --> 00:32:57,620
Well, not quite nothing,
actually, cos look at this!

528
00:32:57,620 --> 00:33:03,700
You've got this absurd clump
of monkey puzzle trees.

529
00:33:03,700 --> 00:33:07,100
Why? Well, apparently,
about half a century ago,

530
00:33:07,100 --> 00:33:08,860
there was a local gardener

531
00:33:08,860 --> 00:33:12,180
who realised that the winter
temperature around here

532
00:33:12,180 --> 00:33:16,060
is very similar to the
winter temperature in Argentina,

533
00:33:16,060 --> 00:33:19,940
which is where the monkey
puzzle trees grow naturally.

534
00:33:19,940 --> 00:33:23,980
So he planted them and
they've certainly flourished.

535
00:33:23,980 --> 00:33:27,220
So, in this funny little oasis
you're suddenly...

536
00:33:28,620 --> 00:33:30,340
..in Patagonia.

537
00:33:30,340 --> 00:33:33,820
I'm sure Bruce Chatwin
would really have approved.

538
00:33:40,780 --> 00:33:44,220
Leaving this puzzling patch
of forest behind,

539
00:33:44,220 --> 00:33:47,380
I'm in search of a section
of the dyke regarded by many

540
00:33:47,380 --> 00:33:49,380
as the finest on the route,

541
00:33:49,380 --> 00:33:51,300
both for views of the dyke

542
00:33:51,300 --> 00:33:54,100
and the surrounding
spectacular landscape

543
00:33:54,100 --> 00:33:56,340
that leads to Llanfair Hill.

544
00:34:00,140 --> 00:34:05,860
But before I get there, I'm stopped
in my tracks by a beautiful oasis,

545
00:34:05,860 --> 00:34:10,660
a riot of colour on
an otherwise verdant landscape.

546
00:34:10,660 --> 00:34:13,340
And the woman behind
this stunning floral scene

547
00:34:13,340 --> 00:34:17,420
connects yet another
distant land with Offa's Dyke.

548
00:34:20,900 --> 00:34:23,180
There's this gorgeous
little cottage.

549
00:34:23,180 --> 00:34:24,460
Hello?

550
00:34:24,460 --> 00:34:26,620
Oh, hello! Hello!

551
00:34:26,620 --> 00:34:28,500
Hiya!

552
00:34:28,500 --> 00:34:30,460
It's fantastic.
How long have you lived here?

553
00:34:30,460 --> 00:34:32,940
Er, 30 years. Wow!

554
00:34:32,940 --> 00:34:36,340
Did you create this garden yourself?
Yes. Yes, I did.

555
00:34:36,340 --> 00:34:39,100
With my family.
It's staggeringly beautiful.

556
00:34:39,100 --> 00:34:40,500
Thank you. It's a bit wild.

557
00:34:40,500 --> 00:34:44,460
Oh, the two things I can see
are the dazzle of colour

558
00:34:44,460 --> 00:34:46,180
and the big open sky.

559
00:34:46,180 --> 00:34:47,620
Wonderful open skies

560
00:34:47,620 --> 00:34:51,620
and I always say I live here
because the earth meets the sky

561
00:34:51,620 --> 00:34:53,380
without interruption.

562
00:34:53,380 --> 00:34:55,300
It's absolutely true.

563
00:34:55,300 --> 00:34:56,540
Were you born in England?

564
00:34:56,540 --> 00:34:58,660
No, I was actually born in Uganda

565
00:34:58,660 --> 00:35:01,780
and I was a Ugandan refugee
when I was a child.

566
00:35:01,780 --> 00:35:04,620
So, my family were
kicked out of Uganda

567
00:35:04,620 --> 00:35:07,900
and then I grew up in
west London, Southall.

568
00:35:07,900 --> 00:35:10,340
Southall, a Southall girl.

569
00:35:10,340 --> 00:35:14,580
But I couldn't wait to get back
to somewhere that was rural...

570
00:35:14,580 --> 00:35:18,820
Sure. ..because we'd come from
rural Africa, Entebbe, by the lake.

571
00:35:18,820 --> 00:35:21,780
And so I just longed to go...

572
00:35:21,780 --> 00:35:24,100
..go somewhere that reminded me
of home and was home.

573
00:35:24,100 --> 00:35:26,620
Sure. One of many.

574
00:35:26,620 --> 00:35:28,860
Tell me where Llanfair Hill is,
how do I get there?

575
00:35:28,860 --> 00:35:31,660
Er, down this track... Yeah.
..and down the hill.

576
00:35:31,660 --> 00:35:34,140
That's great. Hope you
didn't mind me popping in.

577
00:35:34,140 --> 00:35:36,540
No, it's fantastic.
It's a bit unexpected, that.

578
00:35:36,540 --> 00:35:38,700
See you. Thank you. Bye!

579
00:35:40,420 --> 00:35:43,580
From Uganda via London
to Offa's Dyke,

580
00:35:43,580 --> 00:35:47,780
Tahira has certainly come a long
way to find her perfect home.

581
00:35:47,780 --> 00:35:50,660
But the beautiful familiarity
of the landscape

582
00:35:50,660 --> 00:35:54,660
belies the ambition of the man
who gave the dyke its name.

583
00:35:54,660 --> 00:35:56,780
King Offa had a vision,

584
00:35:56,780 --> 00:35:59,500
a desire to reach
into the Arab world

585
00:35:59,500 --> 00:36:03,700
and establish an alliance far
beyond the borders of Britain.

586
00:36:13,450 --> 00:36:16,690
Offa's Dyke is a spectacular
ancient earthwork

587
00:36:16,690 --> 00:36:20,570
that splits the nations
of England and Wales.

588
00:36:20,570 --> 00:36:22,890
Many believe it's
a defensive structure,

589
00:36:22,890 --> 00:36:26,930
others a show of strength made
by the king behind its name.

590
00:36:28,090 --> 00:36:32,450
While the 8th century King Arthur
led the English Kingdom of Mercia

591
00:36:32,450 --> 00:36:34,210
through a golden age,

592
00:36:34,210 --> 00:36:38,170
this progressive ruler had
ambitions to spread his Midas touch

593
00:36:38,170 --> 00:36:39,730
much further afield.

594
00:36:44,610 --> 00:36:47,530
Because we've got virtually
nothing written down,

595
00:36:47,530 --> 00:36:52,410
precisely who Offa was and what
he did remains a bit of a shadow.

596
00:36:52,410 --> 00:36:55,850
But we do have two tangible
pieces of evidence -

597
00:36:55,850 --> 00:36:58,290
the dyke and a coin.

598
00:36:58,290 --> 00:37:00,090
Not the cute little penny

599
00:37:00,090 --> 00:37:03,570
which I showed you at
the beginning of the programme,

600
00:37:03,570 --> 00:37:05,690
but an extraordinary gold one

601
00:37:05,690 --> 00:37:08,370
which is lodged
at the British Museum.

602
00:37:10,450 --> 00:37:14,010
The gold coin of Offa
is a very significant object

603
00:37:14,010 --> 00:37:16,890
in the history of ancient Britain.

604
00:37:16,890 --> 00:37:21,610
The coin's design at first glance
resembles the gold dinar

605
00:37:21,610 --> 00:37:24,850
but it is, in fact,
not of Arabic origin.

606
00:37:24,850 --> 00:37:29,090
It was actually engraved, struck
and issued in England by King Offa.

607
00:37:29,090 --> 00:37:33,370
I'm enthralled about how this
incredible centuries-old link

608
00:37:33,370 --> 00:37:35,970
with the Arabic world came about.

609
00:37:37,370 --> 00:37:39,850
You know, of all
the archaeological finds

610
00:37:39,850 --> 00:37:42,130
that I've handled over the years,

611
00:37:42,130 --> 00:37:47,450
this is one of the two or three
that, when I saw about it,

612
00:37:47,450 --> 00:37:50,050
my jaw absolutely dropped. Really.

613
00:37:50,050 --> 00:37:52,050
I just think it's amazing.

614
00:37:52,050 --> 00:37:54,210
And then what's written
around the outside?

615
00:37:54,210 --> 00:37:56,090
It says, "Muhammadun rasulu llah,"

616
00:37:56,090 --> 00:37:59,290
which basically means,
"Mohammed is the prophet of God."

617
00:37:59,290 --> 00:38:01,770
That is so extraordinary.

618
00:38:01,770 --> 00:38:05,330
8th century, and you've got
this Mercian king,

619
00:38:05,330 --> 00:38:07,970
king of a third of England
or whatever,

620
00:38:07,970 --> 00:38:12,970
and he's got, round his name
on a coin that he's produced,

621
00:38:12,970 --> 00:38:15,290
"Mohammed is the prophet of God."
Yeah.

622
00:38:15,290 --> 00:38:17,610
Was he a convert to Islam?

623
00:38:17,610 --> 00:38:20,970
There's a theory that that happened
but I think it's baseless, really.

624
00:38:20,970 --> 00:38:22,410
What do you think?

625
00:38:22,410 --> 00:38:26,410
If you wanted to trade
with a civilisation

626
00:38:26,410 --> 00:38:30,570
that controlled the land
around the Mediterranean,

627
00:38:30,570 --> 00:38:33,490
you wouldn't need
to use a gold coin.

628
00:38:33,490 --> 00:38:36,810
So he thought,
"Well, you know, they use dinars.

629
00:38:36,810 --> 00:38:38,770
"Possibly I can use one too."

630
00:38:38,770 --> 00:38:42,810
So as far as Offa was concerned,
looking across the English Channel,

631
00:38:42,810 --> 00:38:45,970
the Muslim empire would have
been massive, wouldn't it?

632
00:38:45,970 --> 00:38:50,090
Well, you're talking from Portugal
and Spain, South of France,

633
00:38:50,090 --> 00:38:53,850
all the way across the top of
Africa, Middle East as we know it,

634
00:38:53,850 --> 00:38:56,650
Central Asia, all the
way across to Pakistan.

635
00:38:56,650 --> 00:38:57,810
That's huge.

636
00:38:57,810 --> 00:38:59,570
Isn't it wonderful that you've got

637
00:38:59,570 --> 00:39:02,010
this tiny, little window
into Offa's life?

638
00:39:02,010 --> 00:39:03,770
Here we are, standing on the dyke,

639
00:39:03,770 --> 00:39:08,650
and we now know that Offa
recognised that the Muslim empire

640
00:39:08,650 --> 00:39:14,210
was out there and, for some
reason, maybe a bit diplomatic,

641
00:39:14,210 --> 00:39:15,410
he acknowledged it

642
00:39:15,410 --> 00:39:19,210
by writing about it on the outside
of one of his coins. Exactly.

643
00:39:19,210 --> 00:39:21,530
I think it's been lost in time.

644
00:39:21,530 --> 00:39:24,210
It's a tragedy that
we don't know our past

645
00:39:24,210 --> 00:39:26,570
and our European history, really.

646
00:39:26,570 --> 00:39:31,650
Now, in the 21st century we still
think Muslims and Islam is new

647
00:39:31,650 --> 00:39:35,250
but 1,200 years ago it was there,
you know,

648
00:39:35,250 --> 00:39:37,930
at the doorstep, really,
and inside Europe.

649
00:39:37,930 --> 00:39:40,730
Right here on this dyke they were
aware of it. That's right. Amazing.

650
00:39:52,490 --> 00:39:55,330
One of the annoying things about
doing a long walk like this

651
00:39:55,330 --> 00:39:59,930
is that the whole procedure
does tend to get a bit insular.

652
00:39:59,930 --> 00:40:04,450
You're constantly being confronted
by the things close to you

653
00:40:04,450 --> 00:40:08,930
and even the horizon looks like
you're looking at the whole world.

654
00:40:08,930 --> 00:40:14,130
So it was really reassuring to come
face-to-face with Offa's coin

655
00:40:14,130 --> 00:40:19,450
and know that the man who built this
dyke was not only thinking about

656
00:40:19,450 --> 00:40:24,730
this area, but was in some way
engaging with Rome,

657
00:40:24,730 --> 00:40:27,130
the far side of the Mediterranean,

658
00:40:27,130 --> 00:40:29,690
and maybe even Baghdad and beyond.

659
00:40:31,290 --> 00:40:33,930
The idea is tantalising.

660
00:40:33,930 --> 00:40:37,690
Offa's gold coin connects
cultures across continents

661
00:40:37,690 --> 00:40:41,010
in an age 1,200 years ago
when such an achievement

662
00:40:41,010 --> 00:40:43,810
might be thought improbable.

663
00:40:43,810 --> 00:40:47,690
To think what little we know
of this enigmatic ruler.

664
00:40:47,690 --> 00:40:50,130
If only his story had been
written down.

665
00:40:50,130 --> 00:40:51,570
But it wasn't,

666
00:40:51,570 --> 00:40:53,850
and I must satisfy my curiosity

667
00:40:53,850 --> 00:40:58,130
with a walk along the great dyke
that honours his name.

668
00:40:58,130 --> 00:41:03,090
What lies ahead is a link that
honours a much more modern monarch.

669
00:41:07,410 --> 00:41:10,570
Northwest of the town of
Knighton in central Powys,

670
00:41:10,570 --> 00:41:14,130
the county named after
the ancient Welsh kingdom,

671
00:41:14,130 --> 00:41:17,890
I approach the vantage
point of Beacon Ring

672
00:41:17,890 --> 00:41:22,370
and I have time at last to reflect
on this beautiful, fertile land,

673
00:41:22,370 --> 00:41:24,690
and my journey along Offa's Dyke.

674
00:41:26,130 --> 00:41:29,050
My intriguing final destination
lies ahead.

675
00:41:31,770 --> 00:41:35,050
At first glance, this hill
is just a dense, circular wood

676
00:41:35,050 --> 00:41:38,450
flanked by jarring modern day
transmitter masts.

677
00:41:38,450 --> 00:41:40,370
But there's more to it than that.

678
00:41:40,370 --> 00:41:44,290
This would have been
an amazing strategic viewing point

679
00:41:44,290 --> 00:41:46,050
in the old days.

680
00:41:46,050 --> 00:41:49,690
Look. You've got England laid
out in front of you there,

681
00:41:49,690 --> 00:41:52,810
then you've got the border and
you've got Wales

682
00:41:52,810 --> 00:41:55,130
all the way along there.

683
00:41:55,130 --> 00:41:56,970
It's called Beacon Ring,

684
00:41:56,970 --> 00:41:58,730
but there's something rather curious
about it.

685
00:42:02,690 --> 00:42:07,530
It's an old hill fort, but it
wasn't just used in the Iron Age.

686
00:42:07,530 --> 00:42:09,610
It's crammed full of history.

687
00:42:09,610 --> 00:42:12,530
The Britons fought
the Northumbrians here,

688
00:42:12,530 --> 00:42:15,730
it was used in the War of the Roses.

689
00:42:15,730 --> 00:42:20,570
But look -
it's jam packed full of trees.

690
00:42:20,570 --> 00:42:23,410
You've got beeches,
you've got conifers.

691
00:42:23,410 --> 00:42:26,850
What is the forest doing in the
middle of an Iron Age hill fort?

692
00:42:31,650 --> 00:42:33,570
And as I'm about to find out

693
00:42:33,570 --> 00:42:37,410
from a custodian of this
beautiful Welsh landscape,

694
00:42:37,410 --> 00:42:41,490
this peculiar juxtaposition
of the old with the new

695
00:42:41,490 --> 00:42:44,610
crowns this elevation
in more ways than one.

696
00:42:46,930 --> 00:42:50,170
Paul, I'm sorry to
disturb your work

697
00:42:50,170 --> 00:42:53,170
but this does seem a bit odd to me.

698
00:42:53,170 --> 00:42:56,130
I've seen hill forts
with one or two trees in,

699
00:42:56,130 --> 00:42:59,770
but you've got a whole copse
in here, haven't you?

700
00:42:59,770 --> 00:43:02,890
Well, it's actually a plantation
that was put here in 1953,

701
00:43:02,890 --> 00:43:06,490
partly to commemorate the coronation
of Her Majesty the Queen.

702
00:43:06,490 --> 00:43:08,050
And what would it have looked like?

703
00:43:08,050 --> 00:43:11,930
Well, it's a combination
of spruce and beech trees

704
00:43:11,930 --> 00:43:14,130
and the monogram E II R
is picked out

705
00:43:14,130 --> 00:43:16,290
so you can see that from the air.

706
00:43:16,290 --> 00:43:18,170
You say it can be seen from the air

707
00:43:18,170 --> 00:43:21,210
but it just looks like
a great, big mound of trees now.

708
00:43:21,210 --> 00:43:23,330
It does from here and it is
slightly overgrown.

709
00:43:23,330 --> 00:43:26,890
They've reached maturity, and our
programme over the next few years

710
00:43:26,890 --> 00:43:29,050
is to try and remove them gradually,

711
00:43:29,050 --> 00:43:32,570
as we have done here with the
vegetation on the ramparts,

712
00:43:32,570 --> 00:43:34,810
and return it to its natural
grassland state.

713
00:43:34,810 --> 00:43:36,210
It's intriguing, isn't it?

714
00:43:36,210 --> 00:43:39,570
We've got a bold statement by one
monarch in the dyke,

715
00:43:39,570 --> 00:43:44,370
and then we've got a bold statement
about another one on the hill fort,

716
00:43:44,370 --> 00:43:46,490
which you're about to rip out.

717
00:43:46,490 --> 00:43:50,490
We're going to gradually return it
to its earlier natural state,

718
00:43:50,490 --> 00:43:52,170
I think is how I would put it.

719
00:43:52,170 --> 00:43:55,130
Have you mentioned it to the Palace?
I'm afraid not, no.

720
00:43:55,130 --> 00:43:57,810
I should. OK.
I mean, I really should.

721
00:43:57,810 --> 00:43:58,810
THEY LAUGH

722
00:44:00,850 --> 00:44:03,850
On the ground,
the effect is invisible,

723
00:44:03,850 --> 00:44:06,410
but from the air, it's remarkable.

724
00:44:06,410 --> 00:44:08,730
Enjoy this unique view
while it lasts.

725
00:44:15,650 --> 00:44:20,210
The trees spell out E II R,

726
00:44:20,210 --> 00:44:21,810
for Elizabeth Regina.

727
00:44:27,210 --> 00:44:31,250
These trees are mere saplings
when compared with Offa's Dyke's

728
00:44:31,250 --> 00:44:34,530
amazing 1,200-year history.

729
00:44:34,530 --> 00:44:38,490
As I've discovered on my walk,
this ancient route defines

730
00:44:38,490 --> 00:44:42,490
the very essence of what it means
to be English and Welsh,

731
00:44:42,490 --> 00:44:47,930
and will no doubt continue to do
so for many generations to come.

732
00:44:47,930 --> 00:44:51,850
This impressive frontier may
have been built to draw a line

733
00:44:51,850 --> 00:44:55,170
between England's
sword-wielding patron saint

734
00:44:55,170 --> 00:44:58,930
and the fiery red dragon of Wales,

735
00:44:58,930 --> 00:45:03,410
but over the centuries it's served
to strengthen the national pride

736
00:45:03,410 --> 00:45:07,810
and cultural identities
of both these border peoples,

737
00:45:07,810 --> 00:45:10,410
and allowed us, step by step,

738
00:45:10,410 --> 00:45:13,290
to truly celebrate
this historic boundary.

739
00:45:15,930 --> 00:45:18,210
I'm finishing my journey here,

740
00:45:18,210 --> 00:45:22,770
where the flow of history meets
the flow of a river.

741
00:45:22,770 --> 00:45:24,810
And, like the ancient dyke,

742
00:45:24,810 --> 00:45:29,250
the slow-moving river meanders
between both countries,

743
00:45:29,250 --> 00:45:32,130
blissfully oblivious
to any modern border.

744
00:45:33,210 --> 00:45:35,730
I'm at the end of my journey now.

745
00:45:35,730 --> 00:45:39,450
This is Welshpool, and over here

746
00:45:39,450 --> 00:45:44,970
is the largest sheep market
in the whole of Europe.

747
00:45:44,970 --> 00:45:46,450
Doesn't look much at the moment,

748
00:45:46,450 --> 00:45:48,650
but it's Sunday so it's closed.

749
00:45:48,650 --> 00:45:51,370
Over here is the River Severn.

750
00:45:52,850 --> 00:45:54,770
I've walked 90 miles or so

751
00:45:54,770 --> 00:45:59,290
and, ironically, I've ended up
by the side of the same river

752
00:45:59,290 --> 00:46:02,490
as the one where I started.

753
00:46:02,490 --> 00:46:05,130
This walk has been about
trying to discover something

754
00:46:05,130 --> 00:46:09,610
about the strange border country
that we call the Marches

755
00:46:09,610 --> 00:46:14,330
and also to learn a bit more
about King Offa.

756
00:46:14,330 --> 00:46:16,130
Have I succeeded?

757
00:46:16,130 --> 00:46:19,170
Well, as Winston Churchill
once said,

758
00:46:19,170 --> 00:46:22,050
in studying Offa we're rather like

759
00:46:22,050 --> 00:46:27,370
a geologist who, instead of finding
a fossil, finds only a hollow shape

760
00:46:27,370 --> 00:46:31,730
in which a creature of unusual
strength and size

761
00:46:31,730 --> 00:46:33,490
undoubtedly resided.

762
00:46:37,850 --> 00:46:40,810
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