1 00:00:20,280 --> 00:00:21,960 Hidden crevices. 2 00:00:21,960 --> 00:00:24,560 Secret spots. 3 00:00:24,560 --> 00:00:26,880 Where the power of the sea 4 00:00:26,880 --> 00:00:28,960 meets the resistance of the land. 5 00:00:30,040 --> 00:00:34,680 Caves and coves are the fabric of our craggy coastline... 6 00:00:35,720 --> 00:00:37,640 ..one of the curviest in the world. 7 00:00:38,960 --> 00:00:42,320 Dark caverns, portals to our past, 8 00:00:42,320 --> 00:00:44,280 places of mystery. 9 00:00:47,080 --> 00:00:51,960 Secluded bays offer shelter and refuge. 10 00:00:51,960 --> 00:00:54,960 This is Coast! 11 00:00:56,040 --> 00:01:01,800 Our caves and coves reinforce the bond between sea and shore 12 00:01:01,800 --> 00:01:04,400 and shape our island story. 13 00:01:06,720 --> 00:01:10,160 I'm at my happiest at the edge of our isles, 14 00:01:10,160 --> 00:01:15,480 forging a path around the nooks and crannies of our coastline. 15 00:01:15,480 --> 00:01:22,040 There's one place that's a Mecca for sea caves and spectacular coves. 16 00:01:22,040 --> 00:01:23,600 Jersey. 17 00:01:23,600 --> 00:01:25,000 Let's go! 18 00:01:28,520 --> 00:01:31,120 I'm not travelling solo. 19 00:01:31,120 --> 00:01:32,600 Whilst I'm in Jersey, 20 00:01:32,600 --> 00:01:36,400 the rest of the team are embarking on their own island endeavours. 21 00:01:37,680 --> 00:01:41,920 To discover a wartime story of survival against the odds, 22 00:01:41,920 --> 00:01:44,600 Mark travels to a Cornish cove. 23 00:01:44,600 --> 00:01:46,800 Entering the cove 24 00:01:46,800 --> 00:01:50,640 meant running the gauntlet of treacherous currents and rocks. 25 00:01:50,640 --> 00:01:56,240 For men already half dead, this was an unequal struggle. 26 00:01:57,360 --> 00:02:02,440 Andy Torbot risks life and limb in an attempt to make caving history. 27 00:02:03,600 --> 00:02:06,000 It's just a mass of white water, isn't it? 28 00:02:07,640 --> 00:02:11,000 And Coast's resident storyteller, Ian McMillan, 29 00:02:11,000 --> 00:02:13,160 delves deep into one particular cave 30 00:02:13,160 --> 00:02:16,320 to unearth the legend of a Scottish cannibal. 31 00:02:16,320 --> 00:02:20,440 Sawney Bean. My dad was Scottish and if ever I was naughty, he'd say, 32 00:02:20,440 --> 00:02:22,400 "Sawney Bean's going to get you." 33 00:02:22,400 --> 00:02:25,120 And I thought he was making him up. 34 00:02:26,120 --> 00:02:29,120 Testing, spectacular, secret. 35 00:02:29,120 --> 00:02:33,400 These are the caves and the coves of our coast. 36 00:03:00,120 --> 00:03:03,160 Caves and coves are the natural wonders 37 00:03:03,160 --> 00:03:06,120 of our curved and twisting coastline. 38 00:03:06,120 --> 00:03:07,840 But how were they formed? 39 00:03:07,840 --> 00:03:11,720 And why have they lured visitors for so long? 40 00:03:11,720 --> 00:03:17,640 I'm on a journey to explore why caves and coves are so captivating. 41 00:03:19,240 --> 00:03:22,400 And I've come to Jersey - one of the Channel Islands - 42 00:03:22,400 --> 00:03:26,760 and a cave and cove hot spot, in search of answers. 43 00:03:27,760 --> 00:03:31,720 I'm starting on the north-east coast near Bouley Bay. 44 00:03:31,720 --> 00:03:35,080 From here, I'll wend my way towards an isolated cove 45 00:03:35,080 --> 00:03:37,040 on the south-west coast, 46 00:03:37,040 --> 00:03:41,440 before finally heading north to a cave with an ancient secret. 47 00:03:45,840 --> 00:03:49,960 Jersey is a place where geology and nature have conspired 48 00:03:49,960 --> 00:03:52,960 to create an extraordinary coastline. 49 00:03:55,040 --> 00:04:01,840 Atlantic waves have carved out 48 miles of sea-scooped bays of sand 50 00:04:01,840 --> 00:04:05,720 and more than 60 sea caves on the north coast alone. 51 00:04:07,320 --> 00:04:10,720 These ominous black holes at the base of cliffs 52 00:04:10,720 --> 00:04:14,480 are gateways to tunnel networks hundreds of metres long. 53 00:04:17,640 --> 00:04:23,800 The reason Jersey's coast is so craggy, so spectacular, is these... 54 00:04:23,800 --> 00:04:25,720 These towering cliffs of granite. 55 00:04:25,720 --> 00:04:27,880 They're majestic! 56 00:04:29,080 --> 00:04:32,480 This rock, made of crystallised volcanic magma, 57 00:04:32,480 --> 00:04:37,600 is so hard it stands like a fortress against the power of waves. 58 00:04:37,600 --> 00:04:40,760 It's these vertical joints in the rock, 59 00:04:40,760 --> 00:04:44,760 formed deep beneath the earth's crust as the magma cooled, 60 00:04:44,760 --> 00:04:48,520 that are the origins of Jersey's sea caves. 61 00:04:48,520 --> 00:04:53,120 Waves pounded these lines of weakness like hydraulic drills, 62 00:04:53,120 --> 00:04:56,200 removing the rock, boulder by boulder. 63 00:04:56,200 --> 00:04:59,000 But the surrounding granite is so sturdy 64 00:04:59,000 --> 00:05:02,080 that the walls and ceilings were left supported, 65 00:05:02,080 --> 00:05:06,160 and that's what forms these long, thin sea caves. 66 00:05:09,400 --> 00:05:13,240 These caves made Jersey otherworldly. 67 00:05:13,240 --> 00:05:17,720 One Victorian traveller described its natural wonders as 68 00:05:17,720 --> 00:05:21,120 "More inexhaustible than man's curiosity." 69 00:05:22,160 --> 00:05:25,160 In the 19th century, the island became a Mecca 70 00:05:25,160 --> 00:05:28,240 for a new breed of explorer tourist. 71 00:05:32,120 --> 00:05:34,560 Arriving on newfangled steamships, 72 00:05:34,560 --> 00:05:39,000 for the Victorians, Jersey offered a taste of the exotic. 73 00:05:39,000 --> 00:05:40,800 French place names, 74 00:05:40,800 --> 00:05:42,680 a warm climate, 75 00:05:42,680 --> 00:05:46,200 but all just 100 miles from mainland Britain. 76 00:05:47,440 --> 00:05:49,720 I'm following in Victorian footsteps 77 00:05:49,720 --> 00:05:52,640 to search out some of the sites that fascinated them. 78 00:05:59,360 --> 00:06:03,280 Historian Doug Ford is taking me to a sea cave 79 00:06:03,280 --> 00:06:06,080 at the base of Jersey's tallest sea cliff. 80 00:06:10,440 --> 00:06:13,840 This was a top tip in the Victorian guidebooks. 81 00:06:13,840 --> 00:06:15,840 But it takes an expert eye to spot it. 82 00:06:15,840 --> 00:06:17,480 Where's the cave? 83 00:06:17,480 --> 00:06:19,400 Well, the cave is just behind that rock 84 00:06:19,400 --> 00:06:21,800 on the right-hand side of the cove there. 85 00:06:21,800 --> 00:06:23,680 Some guy in the late-19th century, 86 00:06:23,680 --> 00:06:26,520 he zigzags a path all the way down 87 00:06:26,520 --> 00:06:28,800 and any tricky bits, he puts a ladder there. 88 00:06:28,800 --> 00:06:30,480 Now, it's quite difficult to see, 89 00:06:30,480 --> 00:06:33,200 but if you look at these photographs from the time... 90 00:06:33,200 --> 00:06:34,520 Oh, my, yes! 91 00:06:34,520 --> 00:06:38,040 And you can see the zigzag nature of the path all the way down. 92 00:06:39,320 --> 00:06:42,640 Fascinated by the emerging science of geology 93 00:06:42,640 --> 00:06:45,160 and Darwin's theories of evolution, 94 00:06:45,160 --> 00:06:50,120 Victorians let nothing stop them from exploring Jersey's sea caves. 95 00:06:50,120 --> 00:06:54,040 But the clothing! They're all dressed in long dresses and blouses, 96 00:06:54,040 --> 00:06:55,520 cloaks, hats... 97 00:06:55,520 --> 00:06:57,760 It's not exactly kind of cliff climbing gear, is it? 98 00:06:57,760 --> 00:06:59,480 This is their best holiday gear, 99 00:06:59,480 --> 00:07:02,120 so they're wearing their dresses down to their ankles. 100 00:07:02,120 --> 00:07:04,280 They would have been heavily corseted 101 00:07:04,280 --> 00:07:07,040 and they've got leather-soled shoes. You're kidding me! 102 00:07:07,040 --> 00:07:09,040 You'd never know, looking at it now, 103 00:07:09,040 --> 00:07:12,200 that there's a Victorian highway zigzagging down that cliff. 104 00:07:13,520 --> 00:07:18,280 Just around the headland lurks the wonderfully named Devil's Hole. 105 00:07:19,280 --> 00:07:22,320 Victorians risked life and limb to explore it. 106 00:07:22,320 --> 00:07:24,200 And I want to know why. 107 00:07:25,480 --> 00:07:27,840 The original entrance has now collapsed. 108 00:07:27,840 --> 00:07:30,400 We have to enter from the sea. 109 00:07:30,400 --> 00:07:32,960 This is pretty, pretty amazing, isn't it? 110 00:07:32,960 --> 00:07:35,840 We're just, like, threading the eye of a needle to get in here. 111 00:07:44,840 --> 00:07:46,760 We're deep inside the cave 112 00:07:46,760 --> 00:07:48,840 and, although we're still floating on the sea, 113 00:07:48,840 --> 00:07:50,880 it's very still and quite quiet. 114 00:07:50,880 --> 00:07:53,320 There's daylight visible at the far end of the tunnel, 115 00:07:53,320 --> 00:07:54,480 and daylight out there, 116 00:07:54,480 --> 00:07:57,040 and in here, a strange greenish tinge - 117 00:07:57,040 --> 00:07:58,960 multi-coloured rocks. 118 00:07:58,960 --> 00:08:03,480 This, for the Victorians, was THE journey to the centre of the earth. 119 00:08:06,080 --> 00:08:11,720 By the late 1800s, Jersey's caves had created their own tour business. 120 00:08:11,720 --> 00:08:14,160 Guides were employed to lead the way 121 00:08:14,160 --> 00:08:18,080 and ladies could even hire a local to help keep their skirts dry. 122 00:08:23,800 --> 00:08:28,120 After a hearty trek back up the hill, 123 00:08:28,120 --> 00:08:34,560 returning explorers would be greeted by a very welcome sight. 124 00:08:35,720 --> 00:08:40,040 Now, Devil's Hole had its very own pavilion - 125 00:08:40,040 --> 00:08:44,520 quite a grand name for a pit stop with a tin roof. 126 00:08:45,640 --> 00:08:49,400 Sadly, these days, the pavilion is no more, 127 00:08:49,400 --> 00:08:54,160 and so modern explorers have to rely on on-board refreshment... 128 00:08:55,400 --> 00:08:56,960 Water! 129 00:09:02,360 --> 00:09:04,520 For straight-laced Victorians, 130 00:09:04,520 --> 00:09:08,720 cave exploration took them into a totally different world - 131 00:09:08,720 --> 00:09:11,440 one of adventure and mystery. 132 00:09:20,600 --> 00:09:24,920 Our sea caves have lost none of their irresistible allure. 133 00:09:32,760 --> 00:09:35,400 They continue to pull in punters. 134 00:09:38,560 --> 00:09:41,520 Their power bound up in myths. 135 00:09:41,520 --> 00:09:44,160 The perfect setting for stories. 136 00:09:45,400 --> 00:09:50,200 Merlin's Cave in Cornwall, where an infant King Arthur washed ashore. 137 00:09:51,800 --> 00:09:53,960 Fingal's Cave on Staffa, 138 00:09:53,960 --> 00:09:57,640 inspiration for poets and musicians. 139 00:10:02,200 --> 00:10:07,000 The rocky hollows of our coast generate enduring legends. 140 00:10:12,240 --> 00:10:16,680 And at Bennane Head on the south-west coast of Scotland, 141 00:10:16,680 --> 00:10:21,760 a gruesome 17th-century tale with a whiff of truth haunts the shores. 142 00:10:23,200 --> 00:10:26,640 Storyteller Ian McMillan is investigating. 143 00:10:27,960 --> 00:10:31,440 I'm taking a voyage back in time, to a dark Scottish legend. 144 00:10:31,440 --> 00:10:35,000 I'm heading for the wild, rugged coast of Ayrshire, 145 00:10:35,000 --> 00:10:39,600 to a vast untamed shore with a secret that I want to explore. 146 00:10:42,680 --> 00:10:46,360 This remote coastline is home to an infamous cave 147 00:10:46,360 --> 00:10:47,920 and a ghoulish legend 148 00:10:47,920 --> 00:10:51,120 on which generations of Scots have been raised. 149 00:10:51,120 --> 00:10:52,560 Sawney Bean. 150 00:10:52,560 --> 00:10:55,200 Me Dad was Scottish and if ever I was naughty, he'd say, 151 00:10:55,200 --> 00:10:57,240 "Sawney Bean's going to get you." 152 00:10:57,240 --> 00:10:59,160 And I thought he was making him up! 153 00:11:01,800 --> 00:11:05,720 If you're not Scottish, then chances are you won't have heard of him. 154 00:11:05,720 --> 00:11:11,240 But Sawney was an infamous thief, murderer and cannibal. 155 00:11:13,480 --> 00:11:17,200 Him and his bloodthirsty brood lived in a dark Scottish sea cave 156 00:11:17,200 --> 00:11:18,800 at the turn of the 17th century. 157 00:11:18,800 --> 00:11:21,960 And according to this book, it's a true story. 158 00:11:21,960 --> 00:11:24,640 There's even a real cave to prove it. 159 00:11:24,640 --> 00:11:27,400 "The habitation of horrid cruelty," 160 00:11:27,400 --> 00:11:29,600 where Sawney made his lair. 161 00:11:33,040 --> 00:11:37,240 The Sawney story has spawned songs and poetry 162 00:11:37,240 --> 00:11:40,040 and, in doing so, has stood the test of time. 163 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:44,840 'There's naebody kens that he bides there, 164 00:11:44,840 --> 00:11:48,160 'for his face is seldom seen. 165 00:11:48,160 --> 00:11:51,280 'But to meet his eye is to meet your fate 166 00:11:51,280 --> 00:11:54,000 'at the hands of Sawney Bean.' 167 00:11:55,680 --> 00:11:58,840 As a storyteller, I'm fascinated by these folk tales. 168 00:11:58,840 --> 00:12:00,800 Is this book really a true account, 169 00:12:00,800 --> 00:12:04,400 or is it just the product of a wild, unfettered imagination? 170 00:12:04,400 --> 00:12:07,200 I'm going to turn storytelling sleuth to find out. 171 00:12:09,240 --> 00:12:11,720 'For Sawney he has taen a wife 172 00:12:11,720 --> 00:12:14,240 'and he's hungry bairns tae wean. 173 00:12:14,240 --> 00:12:17,760 'And he's raised them up on the flesh o' men 174 00:12:17,760 --> 00:12:20,320 'in the cave of Sawney Bean.' 175 00:12:22,240 --> 00:12:26,880 According to locals, this is Sawney Bean's actual cave. 176 00:12:26,880 --> 00:12:28,600 Let's go and have a look. 177 00:12:31,640 --> 00:12:33,120 Gosh, what a place! 178 00:12:33,120 --> 00:12:36,480 Suddenly it's dark, it feels damp, 179 00:12:36,480 --> 00:12:39,120 it's quiet and you can just hear the sea outside 180 00:12:39,120 --> 00:12:41,600 and there's a real sense of menace in here. 181 00:12:44,640 --> 00:12:48,840 Within this dark crevice, the story continues. 182 00:12:48,840 --> 00:12:52,040 "Sawney and his wife took shelter in this cave 183 00:12:52,040 --> 00:12:54,120 "to prevent the possibility of detection. 184 00:12:54,120 --> 00:12:57,600 "They murdered every person that they robbed. 185 00:12:57,600 --> 00:13:01,480 "Destitute also are the means of obtaining any other food, 186 00:13:01,480 --> 00:13:04,280 "they resolve to live upon human flesh. 187 00:13:04,280 --> 00:13:06,800 "In this manner they lived 188 00:13:06,800 --> 00:13:09,480 "until they had eight sons, six daughters, 189 00:13:09,480 --> 00:13:12,680 "18 grandsons and 14 granddaughters. 190 00:13:12,680 --> 00:13:14,400 "All the offspring of incest." 191 00:13:18,400 --> 00:13:20,360 Well, this is certainly atmospheric 192 00:13:20,360 --> 00:13:22,840 and it's a great place to set a story. 193 00:13:22,840 --> 00:13:25,360 But there's certain things about it that don't seem right. 194 00:13:25,360 --> 00:13:27,880 In the book, it says that, once you get past the entrance, 195 00:13:27,880 --> 00:13:30,600 there are many twistings and turnings. But there aren't. 196 00:13:30,600 --> 00:13:33,320 It also says that the cave's a mile long, and it isn't - 197 00:13:33,320 --> 00:13:35,040 because that's the end. 198 00:13:35,040 --> 00:13:38,880 And also it says that you can get 50 members of the Bean family in here. 199 00:13:38,880 --> 00:13:41,400 They'd never fit. It just doesn't add up. 200 00:13:45,280 --> 00:13:47,240 With the cave a literal dead-end, 201 00:13:47,240 --> 00:13:49,960 I want to hunt out more evidence for Sawney. 202 00:13:50,960 --> 00:13:54,000 So I'm turning to the history of these shores. 203 00:13:54,000 --> 00:13:56,240 In the book, it tells how the Beans lay in wait 204 00:13:56,240 --> 00:13:59,360 to ambush passers-by travelling along the coastal road. 205 00:13:59,360 --> 00:14:03,480 But then, one would-be victim escaped, and word reached the king. 206 00:14:03,480 --> 00:14:07,080 That king was King James VI of Scotland - 207 00:14:07,080 --> 00:14:08,880 King James I of England - 208 00:14:08,880 --> 00:14:12,920 who ruled between 1567 and 1625. 209 00:14:13,920 --> 00:14:17,280 This is the only clue we have to when Sawney Bean lived. 210 00:14:18,800 --> 00:14:20,280 I want to know what was happening 211 00:14:20,280 --> 00:14:22,480 at the time our cannibal was roaming this coast 212 00:14:22,480 --> 00:14:24,680 and to find out if any written records 213 00:14:24,680 --> 00:14:27,160 prove the existence of Sawney Bean. 214 00:14:27,160 --> 00:14:31,360 I'm meeting Professor Ted Cowan, an expert on Scottish history. 215 00:14:31,360 --> 00:14:35,480 We've come a few miles north of the cave to Dunure Castle - 216 00:14:35,480 --> 00:14:38,240 a stronghold perched on the coastal cliffs. 217 00:14:39,720 --> 00:14:42,280 What was Ayrshire like at the time we're talking about, Ted? 218 00:14:42,280 --> 00:14:45,200 Well, this is the period of James VI, King of Scots, 219 00:14:45,200 --> 00:14:49,560 and he ruled over a fairly rumbustious country, if you like. 220 00:14:49,560 --> 00:14:51,800 England was the same at the time. 221 00:14:51,800 --> 00:14:53,960 Lots of feuds, lots of fights and all the rest of it. 222 00:14:53,960 --> 00:14:56,360 But this was regarded as a particularly wild area 223 00:14:56,360 --> 00:14:58,000 here on the Ayrshire coast. 224 00:14:58,000 --> 00:15:00,720 Presiding over this lawless land, 225 00:15:00,720 --> 00:15:05,120 far away from the powerhouse of Edinburgh, were the Kennedy clan. 226 00:15:06,160 --> 00:15:08,560 Here they were, the most powerful family in Ayrshire. 227 00:15:08,560 --> 00:15:10,560 They were known as the Kings of Carrick. 228 00:15:10,560 --> 00:15:15,480 This whole area, they controlled it pretty, pretty tightly 229 00:15:15,480 --> 00:15:17,480 and made sure that they were top dog. 230 00:15:18,640 --> 00:15:21,280 The Kennedys claimed this region as their own, 231 00:15:21,280 --> 00:15:25,760 using intimidation and violence to stamp their authority over it. 232 00:15:25,760 --> 00:15:27,680 So how would they have reacted 233 00:15:27,680 --> 00:15:29,800 to having a cave-dwelling cannibal clan 234 00:15:29,800 --> 00:15:32,480 robbing and murdering on their turf? 235 00:15:33,600 --> 00:15:36,760 If Sawney Bean had been up to his antics 236 00:15:36,760 --> 00:15:39,040 anywhere up and down this coastline, 237 00:15:39,040 --> 00:15:42,040 the Kennedys would have known about it 238 00:15:42,040 --> 00:15:43,960 and they would have put a stop to it. 239 00:15:43,960 --> 00:15:47,640 Is there any evidence, then, that this story of Sawney Bean is true? 240 00:15:47,640 --> 00:15:49,520 There's no evidence at all, Ian. 241 00:15:49,520 --> 00:15:52,160 And if it had happened, it would have been recorded, 242 00:15:52,160 --> 00:15:56,040 because it would have been a pretty spectacular incident then, as now. 243 00:15:56,040 --> 00:15:59,120 I'd heard, though, that King James VI of Scotland came here 244 00:15:59,120 --> 00:16:01,080 and took Sawney Bean away. 245 00:16:01,080 --> 00:16:03,240 Yep, I've heard that story, too. 246 00:16:03,240 --> 00:16:06,480 But there's actually... Once again, if we go to the records, 247 00:16:06,480 --> 00:16:08,440 there's no evidence for that whatsoever. 248 00:16:09,360 --> 00:16:11,800 So neither the cave nor the history books 249 00:16:11,800 --> 00:16:14,880 throw up any clues to a real Sawney Bean. 250 00:16:14,880 --> 00:16:18,800 But in both, I've started to uncover why this tale is so compelling. 251 00:16:19,800 --> 00:16:21,680 This is classic storytelling. 252 00:16:21,680 --> 00:16:24,160 Rooting a tale in a real place and time, 253 00:16:24,160 --> 00:16:26,840 then claiming it's true, makes it more believable. 254 00:16:27,800 --> 00:16:31,680 Why did a simple cave have the power to create an enduring legend 255 00:16:31,680 --> 00:16:35,280 and who came up with the story in the first place? 256 00:16:35,280 --> 00:16:36,760 To answer that, 257 00:16:36,760 --> 00:16:39,840 I've enlisted some detective help to piece together the clues. 258 00:16:41,040 --> 00:16:44,920 Fiona Black has studied Sawney's place in Scottish literature, 259 00:16:44,920 --> 00:16:48,200 and she can reveal the origins of his unusual name. 260 00:16:50,000 --> 00:16:53,960 Well, it first appears in the Oxford English Dictionary in 1704 261 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:56,480 and it's a derogatory term for a Scotsman. 262 00:16:57,440 --> 00:16:58,640 Blimey! It is, look! 263 00:16:58,640 --> 00:17:01,760 "Sawney, a local variant of Sandy, short for Alexander. 264 00:17:01,760 --> 00:17:05,080 "Colloquial, a derisive nickname for a Scotchman". 265 00:17:05,080 --> 00:17:07,200 Apart from that - apart from the dictionary - 266 00:17:07,200 --> 00:17:09,320 when does the character of Sawney first appear? 267 00:17:09,320 --> 00:17:12,640 OK, so the story is set in the late-16th and early-17th century, 268 00:17:12,640 --> 00:17:15,640 but it's over a 100 years after that, in 1734, 269 00:17:15,640 --> 00:17:17,560 that Sawney first appears in print 270 00:17:17,560 --> 00:17:19,560 and that's the book you've got with you there. 271 00:17:19,560 --> 00:17:21,320 That's right, The History Of Highwaymen 272 00:17:21,320 --> 00:17:23,040 by Captain Charles Johnson. 273 00:17:23,040 --> 00:17:25,400 So, what do we know about Captain Charles Johnson? 274 00:17:25,400 --> 00:17:26,760 Was he a real captain? 275 00:17:26,760 --> 00:17:28,920 I imagine him going up and down the coastline here, 276 00:17:28,920 --> 00:17:30,440 collecting tales in taverns. 277 00:17:30,440 --> 00:17:32,040 Johnson's a bit of a mystery man. 278 00:17:32,040 --> 00:17:34,080 We don't know too much about him at all. 279 00:17:34,080 --> 00:17:36,840 Some people think that he could be a pseudonym 280 00:17:36,840 --> 00:17:39,360 for the English novelist Daniel Defoe. 281 00:17:39,360 --> 00:17:43,080 And it's alleged that Defoe was working in Scotland as a spy 282 00:17:43,080 --> 00:17:45,080 around the time of the union, and writing then. 283 00:17:45,080 --> 00:17:48,000 So there's this possibility that this story of Sawney 284 00:17:48,000 --> 00:17:50,120 was created by this English novelist 285 00:17:50,120 --> 00:17:52,840 as a political propaganda against the Scottish people. 286 00:17:52,840 --> 00:17:54,880 So, is the Sawney Bean that we know today 287 00:17:54,880 --> 00:17:56,880 due to Captain Johnson, do you think? 288 00:17:56,880 --> 00:17:59,440 No, it's actually a Scottish novelist. 289 00:17:59,440 --> 00:18:01,000 It's Samuel Rutherford Crockett, 290 00:18:01,000 --> 00:18:04,320 who was writing this novel, The Gray Man, in 1896. 291 00:18:04,320 --> 00:18:06,040 Crockett was really popular 292 00:18:06,040 --> 00:18:09,680 and it was him that literally put Sawney Bean and his cave 293 00:18:09,680 --> 00:18:12,320 here at Bennane Head in Ayrshire. 294 00:18:12,320 --> 00:18:15,960 So an Englishman created the Sawney Bean legend, 295 00:18:15,960 --> 00:18:18,560 a Scotsman popularised it 296 00:18:18,560 --> 00:18:22,600 and, eventually, an American turned it into a horror movie, 297 00:18:22,600 --> 00:18:24,800 The Hills Have Eyes. 298 00:18:26,120 --> 00:18:28,560 Come on, then! Kill me! 299 00:18:30,960 --> 00:18:33,560 Hollywood swapped the wild west coast of Scotland 300 00:18:33,560 --> 00:18:35,960 for the wild west deserts of America, 301 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:39,040 but their cave-dwelling cannibal family matched Sawney's 302 00:18:39,040 --> 00:18:40,960 for bloodshed and brutality. 303 00:18:44,000 --> 00:18:47,240 Sawney Bean really is the perfect story. 304 00:18:47,240 --> 00:18:50,320 A gruesome, gripping plot with a whiff of truth - 305 00:18:50,320 --> 00:18:54,080 a dark tale born of a dark place on a wild coast. 306 00:18:55,160 --> 00:18:57,680 In the shadowy crevices of desolate caves, 307 00:18:57,680 --> 00:18:59,560 your imagination can run riot. 308 00:18:59,560 --> 00:19:01,120 Mine certainly did. 309 00:19:01,120 --> 00:19:04,360 Without a suitably sombre cave, 310 00:19:04,360 --> 00:19:06,240 there'd be no Sawney Bean. 311 00:19:06,240 --> 00:19:08,560 'Beware o' Sawney Bean...' 312 00:19:22,240 --> 00:19:25,800 We're exploring the hidden recesses of our coast. 313 00:19:26,840 --> 00:19:30,240 Mysteries concealed within rocky shorelines. 314 00:19:31,360 --> 00:19:35,640 But it's not just our caves that offer seclusion and isolation. 315 00:19:40,360 --> 00:19:43,120 So do our coves. 316 00:19:43,120 --> 00:19:45,720 Sheltered from prying eyes, 317 00:19:45,720 --> 00:19:47,480 secret hideaways, 318 00:19:47,480 --> 00:19:49,320 natural shelters. 319 00:19:52,160 --> 00:19:56,840 Jersey is home to some simply stunning inlets and coves. 320 00:20:03,840 --> 00:20:07,880 Portelet Bay is one of the island's true beauties. 321 00:20:13,920 --> 00:20:15,600 What a view! 322 00:20:19,840 --> 00:20:24,520 Two perfect arcs of sand facing a small island. 323 00:20:24,520 --> 00:20:27,280 It's almost two coves within a cove. 324 00:20:29,600 --> 00:20:32,720 But they hide an intriguing story. 325 00:20:32,720 --> 00:20:37,680 The tiny Ile au Guerdain is joined to the beach only at low tide. 326 00:20:37,680 --> 00:20:41,600 Picture postcards call this isolated place Janvrin's Tomb, 327 00:20:41,600 --> 00:20:46,200 after a local sailor who was trapped at sea within sight of home. 328 00:20:46,200 --> 00:20:49,800 I want to discover why he was buried in this cove. 329 00:20:50,960 --> 00:20:53,880 Philippe Janvrin was captain of the Esther, 330 00:20:53,880 --> 00:20:56,680 a cod trading ship sailing regularly between 331 00:20:56,680 --> 00:20:59,840 Canada, South America, France and Jersey. 332 00:20:59,840 --> 00:21:05,760 But in September 1721, sailing home to Jersey, he wasn't allowed to land. 333 00:21:07,920 --> 00:21:12,480 I'm meeting local historian Sue Hardy to find out what happened. 334 00:21:12,480 --> 00:21:15,320 This is a picture, isn't it? And it's being made even more perfect. 335 00:21:15,320 --> 00:21:17,600 We have passing shipping. Oh, yes! 336 00:21:18,600 --> 00:21:20,320 So what happened to Janvrin? 337 00:21:20,320 --> 00:21:23,240 He'd been taken ill on the homeward part of the journey. 338 00:21:23,240 --> 00:21:26,080 He was thought to be on a plague-ridden vessel 339 00:21:26,080 --> 00:21:30,520 and until the ship had been declared free of any contagion, 340 00:21:30,520 --> 00:21:32,280 they had to stay out at anchor. 341 00:21:33,720 --> 00:21:38,160 Bubonic plague swept through Europe in the 18th century, 342 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:40,720 killing 100,000 people. 343 00:21:41,920 --> 00:21:44,200 Jersey didn't want it coming ashore. 344 00:21:44,200 --> 00:21:49,000 So, in sight of home, this cove became Janvrin's quarantine. 345 00:21:50,200 --> 00:21:52,640 Poor Janvrin, after two days, died. 346 00:21:52,640 --> 00:21:56,000 How incredibly tragic to be dying on a ship out in the bay, 347 00:21:56,000 --> 00:21:59,800 while your family in sight on shore and you are unable to communicate. 348 00:22:04,520 --> 00:22:07,600 The authorities, believing Janvrin had plague, 349 00:22:07,600 --> 00:22:10,640 decreed that he should be buried in isolation. 350 00:22:12,800 --> 00:22:16,400 They had a proper funeral service for him on the top of the cliff. 351 00:22:16,400 --> 00:22:19,440 So the burial service occurred on land... 352 00:22:19,440 --> 00:22:21,680 Up on the cliffs. ..up on Jersey... Yes. 353 00:22:21,680 --> 00:22:24,240 ..while the body is being lowered into a grave on the island. 354 00:22:24,240 --> 00:22:25,800 On this little island. 355 00:22:25,800 --> 00:22:28,680 The two being kept apart, so the mourners would not be infected. 356 00:22:28,680 --> 00:22:30,600 That's right. But, of course, in fact, 357 00:22:30,600 --> 00:22:32,600 it turned out he didn't have the plague. 358 00:22:35,880 --> 00:22:38,680 Janvrin died of a common fever. 359 00:22:38,680 --> 00:22:41,800 Medical treatment might have saved him. 360 00:22:45,640 --> 00:22:50,040 His wife erected a tombstone on the island in memory of her husband, 361 00:22:50,040 --> 00:22:53,160 now built over by this Napoleonic tower. 362 00:22:58,000 --> 00:23:04,200 Janvrin is gone. No tomb, no grave, no conventional memorial. 363 00:23:04,200 --> 00:23:05,920 Gone, but not forgotten. 364 00:23:05,920 --> 00:23:11,160 This is his memorial, an islet set in a beautiful cove. 365 00:23:14,560 --> 00:23:19,520 For many, coves offer the refuge and solitude they crave. 366 00:23:19,520 --> 00:23:23,120 For Janvrin, it offered enforced isolation, 367 00:23:23,120 --> 00:23:26,120 a curious no-man's land. 368 00:23:26,120 --> 00:23:27,640 Almost home. 369 00:23:35,080 --> 00:23:40,720 Across our entire isles, this coastal frontline is ever changing, 370 00:23:40,720 --> 00:23:44,920 thanks to the awesome power of nature. 371 00:23:48,960 --> 00:23:53,960 Pounding seas turn caves into blow holes and arches... 372 00:23:55,120 --> 00:23:56,520 ..sea stacks... 373 00:23:59,480 --> 00:24:01,520 ..and, finally, coves. 374 00:24:04,840 --> 00:24:09,560 But it's our sea caves that present the ultimate challenge. 375 00:24:09,560 --> 00:24:13,040 The more nature conspires to keep people out, 376 00:24:13,040 --> 00:24:15,760 the more we are drawn to explore. 377 00:24:17,840 --> 00:24:22,280 At Britain's sea cave capital, Papa Stour in the Shetland Islands, 378 00:24:22,280 --> 00:24:25,760 Andy Torbet's on a mission to push the boundaries of science, 379 00:24:25,760 --> 00:24:29,680 using the latest technology to make caving history. 380 00:24:32,240 --> 00:24:35,800 I've come to the most formidable environment in Britain, 381 00:24:35,800 --> 00:24:39,080 to attempt something never done before. 382 00:24:39,080 --> 00:24:43,680 To do a full survey of a sea cave, using completely new technology. 383 00:24:46,400 --> 00:24:48,000 And not just any cave. 384 00:24:49,040 --> 00:24:51,840 Hol o Bordie - Britain's longest sea cave. 385 00:24:53,840 --> 00:24:56,560 The Hol o Bordie runs all the way through here 386 00:24:56,560 --> 00:25:00,480 and it's only 130 feet, or 40 meters, beneath me now. 387 00:25:00,480 --> 00:25:02,800 And I'm itching to get in there. 388 00:25:05,640 --> 00:25:10,320 Believe it or not, in our high-tech world of maps and satellites and GPS, 389 00:25:10,320 --> 00:25:12,960 this cave has never officially been measured. 390 00:25:12,960 --> 00:25:16,080 It's like most of the caves on Papa Stour - 391 00:25:16,080 --> 00:25:18,240 treacherous and dangerous. 392 00:25:18,240 --> 00:25:21,720 There are only small weather windows when you can try and get in. 393 00:25:22,880 --> 00:25:26,080 Mapping caves began as far back as the 16th century. 394 00:25:26,080 --> 00:25:28,560 Then, it was done with a compass and measuring tape. 395 00:25:28,560 --> 00:25:31,960 It's part of a science known as speleology. 396 00:25:32,920 --> 00:25:35,400 To understand what I'm letting myself in for, 397 00:25:35,400 --> 00:25:38,600 I'm going to swim through one of the island's less turbulent caves. 398 00:25:54,040 --> 00:25:56,840 Natural obstacles are clear to see - 399 00:25:56,840 --> 00:26:01,640 sheer walls, precarious ledges, a collapsed roof. 400 00:26:01,640 --> 00:26:03,920 This geology is breathtaking. 401 00:26:12,480 --> 00:26:16,800 Believe it or not, this waterfall is all that remains of a lake. 402 00:26:16,800 --> 00:26:20,240 It used to be up there, but when the roof of the cave collapsed, 403 00:26:20,240 --> 00:26:23,480 the lake that sat on that roof drained completely into the sea. 404 00:26:23,480 --> 00:26:27,920 This cave represents what Hol o Bordie will one day become. 405 00:26:29,240 --> 00:26:33,520 Caves like this are an ideal home for a myriad of sea life, 406 00:26:33,520 --> 00:26:35,200 including dahlia anemones, 407 00:26:35,200 --> 00:26:37,520 dead man's fingers 408 00:26:37,520 --> 00:26:39,000 and star fish. 409 00:26:41,400 --> 00:26:44,120 But whilst this cave is relatively calm, 410 00:26:44,120 --> 00:26:48,480 Papa Stour's main attraction is notoriously difficult to access. 411 00:26:48,480 --> 00:26:51,440 So I've signed up a team of crack specialists. 412 00:26:55,360 --> 00:26:59,320 Surveyor and laser expert extraordinaire Kevin Dixon. 413 00:27:00,480 --> 00:27:04,480 To get us in and out in one piece, ace boatman Ryan Leith. 414 00:27:05,960 --> 00:27:07,600 And the final member of our team... 415 00:27:07,600 --> 00:27:09,120 Zebedee! 416 00:27:12,160 --> 00:27:16,040 There's a new piece of technology, that's out there now which is this - 417 00:27:16,040 --> 00:27:17,640 a 3D laser scanner. 418 00:27:18,560 --> 00:27:21,560 Obviously, I'm not laughing at your shiny piece of new kit. 419 00:27:21,560 --> 00:27:23,760 Well, I am actually laughing at your shiny new kit. 420 00:27:23,760 --> 00:27:26,440 I mean, it does look a little bit comic, mate, I've got to say. 421 00:27:26,440 --> 00:27:29,560 Yeah, yeah. I mean, the inventors, they call this Zebedee. 422 00:27:29,560 --> 00:27:32,520 I can see why. You can see why, yeah. Yeah. 423 00:27:32,520 --> 00:27:36,320 Zebedee is a new surveyor's assistant, 424 00:27:36,320 --> 00:27:38,440 designed to swing in all directions. 425 00:27:39,440 --> 00:27:41,840 In expert hands, he captures data 426 00:27:41,840 --> 00:27:44,360 from the walls, roof and floor 427 00:27:44,360 --> 00:27:46,720 to create a 3D model of his surroundings. 428 00:27:47,680 --> 00:27:50,320 But he's never been tested in this way before, 429 00:27:50,320 --> 00:27:52,080 so we're making history. 430 00:27:52,080 --> 00:27:55,360 It's never been done in a sea cave... 431 00:27:55,360 --> 00:27:57,520 Never? ..from a boat. 432 00:27:57,520 --> 00:27:59,880 OK. Yeah? So this is going to be a first. 433 00:28:02,360 --> 00:28:04,960 We have just a tiny window of opportunity 434 00:28:04,960 --> 00:28:06,920 when we can enter Hol o Bordie. 435 00:28:06,920 --> 00:28:09,760 Zebedee may look like something from The Magic Roundabout, 436 00:28:09,760 --> 00:28:12,960 but he's actually a masterpiece of robotic technology. 437 00:28:12,960 --> 00:28:15,720 He normally surveys buildings or mines. 438 00:28:15,720 --> 00:28:19,320 He's not used to being tossed around on the Atlantic Ocean. 439 00:28:19,320 --> 00:28:22,360 It's just a mass of white water, isn't it? Yeah, it is. 440 00:28:22,360 --> 00:28:25,480 This cave is in a danger league of its own. 441 00:28:28,560 --> 00:28:31,960 Whoa...! It's a bit like being inside a washing machine! 442 00:28:38,080 --> 00:28:41,560 Zebedee might be able to handle the treacherous conditions... 443 00:28:43,440 --> 00:28:45,120 ..but it's too risky for us. 444 00:28:45,120 --> 00:28:48,360 There's every chance of the swell upending our boat 445 00:28:48,360 --> 00:28:50,520 or smashing us against the ceiling. 446 00:28:53,240 --> 00:28:55,600 There's a narrower section around the dogleg 447 00:28:55,600 --> 00:28:58,240 and it would be really, really dangerous 448 00:28:58,240 --> 00:28:59,520 once you got back there. 449 00:28:59,520 --> 00:29:02,880 So I think this is about as far as we're going to get today, unfortunately. 450 00:29:02,880 --> 00:29:06,760 But you can understand why there isn't an accurate survey. 451 00:29:06,760 --> 00:29:09,360 You've got to have just the right condition 452 00:29:09,360 --> 00:29:12,160 to get in here with the equipment and measure this. 453 00:29:12,160 --> 00:29:13,560 Yeah. 454 00:29:14,720 --> 00:29:16,880 As you probably guess, 455 00:29:16,880 --> 00:29:19,040 we're not going to get all the way through today. 456 00:29:19,040 --> 00:29:20,920 The further in we go, the worst it gets. 457 00:29:20,920 --> 00:29:23,560 The conditions, even at the entrance, are pretty dangerous, 458 00:29:23,560 --> 00:29:28,560 so, unfortunately, we're not going to be able to do the survey today. 459 00:29:30,240 --> 00:29:31,760 I'm gutted. 460 00:29:31,760 --> 00:29:36,400 The very forces that created this cave are now forcing us out. 461 00:29:41,840 --> 00:29:43,600 But we're not giving up yet. 462 00:29:43,600 --> 00:29:47,000 We're determined to make cave mapping history. 463 00:29:47,000 --> 00:29:49,280 It's time to see what Zebedee can do. 464 00:29:51,160 --> 00:29:54,040 Papa Stour holds another secret cave 465 00:29:54,040 --> 00:29:57,840 that lies on a less exposed shore - Brei Holm. 466 00:29:57,840 --> 00:29:59,480 But it's no picnic. 467 00:29:59,480 --> 00:30:02,440 It twists and turns down numerous passageways. 468 00:30:02,440 --> 00:30:05,000 Its roof is partially collapsed. 469 00:30:05,000 --> 00:30:07,640 This assignment will test Zebedee to his limits. 470 00:30:07,640 --> 00:30:09,000 Got it! OK. 471 00:30:15,640 --> 00:30:18,200 We've just 30 minutes to get in and out. 472 00:30:18,200 --> 00:30:19,840 Got it? Yep. 473 00:30:20,840 --> 00:30:25,280 Zebedee takes over 40,000 accurate laser-point readings per second. 474 00:30:35,800 --> 00:30:39,520 The detail he can record could be crucial to science. 475 00:30:42,160 --> 00:30:44,240 Oh! A massive hole in the roof! 476 00:30:45,720 --> 00:30:48,160 If it works, surveys like this 477 00:30:48,160 --> 00:30:50,920 could be used to predict cave and tunnel collapse... 478 00:30:56,640 --> 00:30:59,840 .saving lives and transforming coastal management. 479 00:31:02,960 --> 00:31:05,240 Here you are. Got it. 480 00:31:05,240 --> 00:31:06,680 Excellent. 481 00:31:06,680 --> 00:31:09,440 Right, congratulations. It's a world first, I think. 482 00:31:09,440 --> 00:31:11,720 But have we been successful? 483 00:31:12,800 --> 00:31:14,160 We have a six-hour wait 484 00:31:14,160 --> 00:31:16,680 to automatically process Zebedee's data. 485 00:31:17,800 --> 00:31:21,160 When the results come through, they're fantastic. 486 00:31:21,160 --> 00:31:24,160 That is what we went through. 487 00:31:25,480 --> 00:31:27,800 OK, so this was where we came in originally? 488 00:31:27,800 --> 00:31:29,560 Yep, that's the main entrance. 489 00:31:29,560 --> 00:31:32,200 So is that the... That's the hole in the middle? 490 00:31:32,200 --> 00:31:35,120 That's the hole in the middle, yeah. Where the roof collapsed? Yeah. 491 00:31:35,120 --> 00:31:38,800 This is actually a lot more detailed than I expected it to be. Yeah. 492 00:31:38,800 --> 00:31:41,600 You can even work out, almost, the height of the walls, can't you? 493 00:31:41,600 --> 00:31:44,120 Yeah, and you can start to see the geology in there, as well. 494 00:31:44,120 --> 00:31:46,200 You know, the different layers of rocks. 495 00:31:52,640 --> 00:31:56,640 Our experiment is a breakthrough in cave exploration. 496 00:31:56,640 --> 00:32:00,320 In accomplishing our mission, we've achieved a world first. 497 00:32:02,400 --> 00:32:04,840 Cometh the hour, cometh the Zebedee. 498 00:32:04,840 --> 00:32:08,440 A superhero on the boundaries of science. 499 00:32:22,920 --> 00:32:26,120 Nature will always find a way to test us, 500 00:32:26,120 --> 00:32:28,440 put us back in our place. 501 00:32:28,440 --> 00:32:31,800 It's this challenge we find appealing. 502 00:32:31,800 --> 00:32:35,040 Our inquisitive nature means we always want to know 503 00:32:35,040 --> 00:32:37,480 what is round the next headland. 504 00:32:41,520 --> 00:32:44,480 We want to investigate every nook and cranny, 505 00:32:44,480 --> 00:32:46,760 every cave and cove. 506 00:32:47,840 --> 00:32:52,080 But as well as challenge us, nature can sometimes offer shelter. 507 00:32:57,080 --> 00:32:59,560 I'm on Jersey. 508 00:32:59,560 --> 00:33:03,040 It's a coast famed for its caves and coves. 509 00:33:04,280 --> 00:33:08,200 I'm exploring why these natural wonders hold such allure. 510 00:33:09,360 --> 00:33:12,800 As the sea tears away the rock, clues are revealed, 511 00:33:12,800 --> 00:33:16,040 showing how, thousands of years ago, 512 00:33:16,040 --> 00:33:21,160 these rugged walls became man's first basic home. 513 00:33:21,160 --> 00:33:24,920 At St Helier, some of the earliest cave dwellings in Europe 514 00:33:24,920 --> 00:33:27,120 have been found. 515 00:33:27,120 --> 00:33:30,560 They were revealed by chance in 1917, 516 00:33:30,560 --> 00:33:33,240 when a geologist's hat blew off his head 517 00:33:33,240 --> 00:33:35,840 and landed in a fissure at the base of a cliff. 518 00:33:37,240 --> 00:33:40,200 When he went to retrieve it, he discovered a cave 519 00:33:40,200 --> 00:33:44,880 that became one of the most important archaeological sites in Europe. 520 00:33:44,880 --> 00:33:47,040 Nearly 100 years on, 521 00:33:47,040 --> 00:33:50,880 Jersey's caves are still turning up ancient secrets. 522 00:33:52,440 --> 00:33:55,960 Including thousands of prehistoric artefacts. 523 00:33:57,120 --> 00:33:59,800 Finds which are transforming our understanding 524 00:33:59,800 --> 00:34:02,440 of our oldest ancestors. 525 00:34:02,440 --> 00:34:08,520 I'm headed for Goat Cave or, as it's known here, La Cotte a la Chevre. 526 00:34:10,600 --> 00:34:13,960 It's a cave that connects us to another world - 527 00:34:13,960 --> 00:34:18,960 one of ice ages, mammoths and Neanderthals. 528 00:34:18,960 --> 00:34:23,400 This is one of the earliest inhabited sites in Europe. 529 00:34:25,480 --> 00:34:28,840 Taking me on a journey back into the mists of time 530 00:34:28,840 --> 00:34:33,040 is an archaeologist on Jersey's Ice Age Project - Beccy Scott. 531 00:34:35,760 --> 00:34:39,000 Even though this cave is well above the high-water mark 532 00:34:39,000 --> 00:34:41,000 and doesn't require a boat, 533 00:34:41,000 --> 00:34:43,200 it's still a tricky place to reach. 534 00:34:44,320 --> 00:34:46,400 Have we arrived? Yes! 535 00:34:46,400 --> 00:34:48,200 Wow! There you go. 536 00:34:48,200 --> 00:34:49,960 How amazing! 537 00:34:51,040 --> 00:34:53,000 Isn't it? Gosh... 538 00:34:53,000 --> 00:34:55,040 It's much bigger than I thought. 539 00:34:56,080 --> 00:34:58,920 Unlike caves made of porous limestone 540 00:34:58,920 --> 00:35:01,720 that have streams and running water seeping through them, 541 00:35:01,720 --> 00:35:04,960 this cave, made of granite, is bone dry. 542 00:35:06,400 --> 00:35:09,960 This must have been really cosy 543 00:35:09,960 --> 00:35:13,400 when it's chucking down with rain and blowing a blizzard outside 544 00:35:13,400 --> 00:35:14,720 and you're in here with a fire. 545 00:35:14,720 --> 00:35:16,880 And the thing that strikes me is that it's actually 546 00:35:16,880 --> 00:35:18,200 the scale of a house, isn't it? 547 00:35:18,200 --> 00:35:22,360 What 18, 20 feet high, but it's the width of a room. 548 00:35:22,360 --> 00:35:24,360 It's got a couple of pebbles on the floor. 549 00:35:24,360 --> 00:35:28,080 I think it's more than cosy. There's a kind of strange aura in here 550 00:35:28,080 --> 00:35:30,360 It's kind of rather a magical spot, isn't it? 551 00:35:36,560 --> 00:35:39,600 So who was it, Beccy, who lived in this luxury abode? 552 00:35:39,600 --> 00:35:42,520 We think it was occupied by Neanderthals 553 00:35:42,520 --> 00:35:46,120 from about 240,000 years ago. 554 00:35:46,120 --> 00:35:50,680 Neanderthals were our closest extinct human relatives 555 00:35:50,680 --> 00:35:53,800 and the genetic makeup of most Europeans today 556 00:35:53,800 --> 00:35:57,480 still contains 2% of their DNA. 557 00:35:57,480 --> 00:36:00,160 What did they look like, these Neanderthals? Is this one here? 558 00:36:00,160 --> 00:36:02,360 Yeah, I've got a reconstruction here, 559 00:36:02,360 --> 00:36:03,960 which might give you some idea. 560 00:36:03,960 --> 00:36:06,760 In particular are these big brow ridges here. 561 00:36:06,760 --> 00:36:09,320 So not so very different. Not so different, no. 562 00:36:10,320 --> 00:36:15,000 It's these broad brows and weak chin that mark out the Neanderthal skull 563 00:36:15,000 --> 00:36:18,560 as being distinct from that of Homo sapiens. 564 00:36:22,040 --> 00:36:26,240 Neanderthals lived in Europe for over 200,000 years. 565 00:36:26,240 --> 00:36:28,160 Hunter gatherers, 566 00:36:28,160 --> 00:36:31,240 they moved from place to place in small family groups. 567 00:36:32,480 --> 00:36:35,960 Archaeologists believe they may have used language, 568 00:36:35,960 --> 00:36:40,120 buried their dead and cared for their sick and elderly. 569 00:36:40,120 --> 00:36:43,560 Behaviours we would easily recognise. 570 00:36:43,560 --> 00:36:45,200 This is a special place 571 00:36:45,200 --> 00:36:48,720 because of where it's situated in the landscape, 572 00:36:48,720 --> 00:36:50,960 because, not only does it offer you shelter, 573 00:36:50,960 --> 00:36:56,880 but also these amazing views out over what is now the sea, 574 00:36:56,880 --> 00:36:59,360 but would then have been an open landscape. 575 00:37:05,560 --> 00:37:08,240 You'd expect to see large herd animals - 576 00:37:08,240 --> 00:37:10,320 horse, maybe, herds of mammoth. 577 00:37:13,480 --> 00:37:17,880 And sat up here, you'd have the perfect strategic position 578 00:37:17,880 --> 00:37:20,240 to actually monitor what's going on 579 00:37:20,240 --> 00:37:23,000 and maybe move out and intercept them. 580 00:37:23,000 --> 00:37:24,640 This is a perfect hunting camp. 581 00:37:26,200 --> 00:37:30,520 Archaeologists have found the bones of hyena, wolf, horse, 582 00:37:30,520 --> 00:37:33,200 woolly mammoth and rhino in this area. 583 00:37:35,480 --> 00:37:37,480 If you think of Neanderthals 584 00:37:37,480 --> 00:37:40,040 as hunters acquiring carcasses down there, 585 00:37:40,040 --> 00:37:43,800 that's something hyenas are immediately going to track in on 586 00:37:43,800 --> 00:37:47,080 and you're going to have trouble defending a kill down there. 587 00:37:47,080 --> 00:37:49,720 If you can start bringing portions up here, 588 00:37:49,720 --> 00:37:53,040 where you're safe with a cave at your back and a fire at the front, 589 00:37:53,040 --> 00:37:55,360 then that whole relationship 590 00:37:55,360 --> 00:37:57,920 with the other carnivores totally changes. 591 00:37:59,080 --> 00:38:01,840 This cave served several purposes - 592 00:38:01,840 --> 00:38:05,320 shelter, vantage point and haven. 593 00:38:05,320 --> 00:38:07,040 But what else can it tell us 594 00:38:07,040 --> 00:38:10,040 about the lives of the Neanderthals who used it? 595 00:38:10,040 --> 00:38:13,560 Flint have been collected and excavated from the cave. 596 00:38:13,560 --> 00:38:16,560 And you know the big rounded boulders in the cave? 597 00:38:16,560 --> 00:38:18,960 There's flint flakes scattered, 598 00:38:18,960 --> 00:38:21,480 particularly around the base of some of those, 599 00:38:21,480 --> 00:38:25,160 which might even suggest that these were being used as furniture. 600 00:38:25,160 --> 00:38:28,400 People are sitting on these and working flints, 601 00:38:28,400 --> 00:38:32,040 as you and I might plonk ourselves down on them today. 602 00:38:32,040 --> 00:38:36,440 Flint was essential to the survival of the people who lived in the cave. 603 00:38:36,440 --> 00:38:41,200 I want to find out whether I can cut it as a prehistoric flintknapper, 604 00:38:41,200 --> 00:38:45,040 so I'm taking a lesson from Beccy's team-mate James Dilly. 605 00:38:45,040 --> 00:38:48,960 What we'll need to start off with is something like this... 606 00:38:50,000 --> 00:38:52,080 It's just a flake of flint. 607 00:38:52,080 --> 00:38:54,200 You'd generally start with a much larger nodule, 608 00:38:54,200 --> 00:38:56,840 but something like this would be highly useful and valuable, 609 00:38:56,840 --> 00:38:58,640 especially somewhere here like Jersey. 610 00:39:01,480 --> 00:39:04,560 Flint was the power tool of prehistory. 611 00:39:05,640 --> 00:39:07,360 Weapons to catch food, 612 00:39:07,360 --> 00:39:09,440 blades to cut wood, 613 00:39:09,440 --> 00:39:12,000 knives to carve meat. 614 00:39:12,000 --> 00:39:13,920 And archaeologists suggest 615 00:39:13,920 --> 00:39:18,160 Neanderthals found this essential rock over 12 miles away 616 00:39:18,160 --> 00:39:20,960 and brought it back to their caves. 617 00:39:20,960 --> 00:39:22,840 Yeah, good. 618 00:39:22,840 --> 00:39:24,600 Let's look underneath. Look at that. 619 00:39:24,600 --> 00:39:29,120 So you've already... You're on the way to making this symmetrical. 620 00:39:29,120 --> 00:39:33,480 You can see where this flaking appearance is starting to appear 621 00:39:33,480 --> 00:39:37,600 from that really blank, almost clean surface that we started with. 622 00:39:37,600 --> 00:39:39,560 It really won't take too much work. 623 00:39:39,560 --> 00:39:42,640 We've got that serrated edge appearing. Yeah, I can see. Yeah. 624 00:39:42,640 --> 00:39:44,680 OK, can I have a go? Mm-hm. 625 00:39:48,120 --> 00:39:52,160 We've lost a skill that would have been second nature to Neanderthals. 626 00:39:53,120 --> 00:39:56,280 God, you're just making it look stupidly simple. 627 00:39:56,280 --> 00:39:57,880 And all of these flakes 628 00:39:57,880 --> 00:40:00,320 are really, really useful cutting tools straightaway. 629 00:40:00,320 --> 00:40:04,080 Yeah. I mean, gosh, that's like a razor blade - really sharp. 630 00:40:04,080 --> 00:40:08,040 This is the sound that would have been so common 631 00:40:08,040 --> 00:40:09,840 200,000 years ago, isn't it? 632 00:40:09,840 --> 00:40:12,720 The sound of a flintknapper working. 633 00:40:12,720 --> 00:40:15,960 The tap, tap. The tap and the tinkle, tap and the tinkle. 634 00:40:15,960 --> 00:40:18,720 Right, we've got the hind quarters of a deer here. 635 00:40:18,720 --> 00:40:23,520 So let's see how James's axe head works. 636 00:40:23,520 --> 00:40:26,160 I'll tell you what, it's quite instinctive, isn't it? Yeah. 637 00:40:26,160 --> 00:40:29,240 A skilled butcher with one of these could dismantle these hind quarters 638 00:40:29,240 --> 00:40:31,840 in ten minutes, probably. Easily, yeah. Yeah, yeah. 639 00:40:32,880 --> 00:40:36,360 Well, I've got my homemade axe, my flint-sliced venison 640 00:40:36,360 --> 00:40:38,320 and, in the spirit of Coast, 641 00:40:38,320 --> 00:40:41,440 I'm going to bed down for the night in La Cotte de la Chevre, 642 00:40:41,440 --> 00:40:45,960 reconnect with our Neanderthal ancestors by sleeping out in a cave. 643 00:40:51,440 --> 00:40:54,800 Tonight, I'll be laying my head on ground 644 00:40:54,800 --> 00:41:00,000 used by some of our earliest ancestors over 200,000 years ago. 645 00:41:03,080 --> 00:41:06,280 For me, as for them, this cave is home - 646 00:41:06,280 --> 00:41:08,720 for one night, at least. 647 00:41:10,120 --> 00:41:13,560 Well, this is pretty comfortable. 648 00:41:13,560 --> 00:41:16,440 And no hyenas to worry about, either. 649 00:41:17,400 --> 00:41:18,880 Good night, mate! 650 00:41:31,560 --> 00:41:37,160 Along our rugged coast, concealed in our caves and coves, 651 00:41:37,160 --> 00:41:39,680 we find glimpses of the past... 652 00:41:44,120 --> 00:41:45,760 ..and the future. 653 00:41:46,720 --> 00:41:48,640 Man-made bays, 654 00:41:48,640 --> 00:41:51,720 caverns drilled through cliffs. 655 00:41:51,720 --> 00:41:54,520 But some caves go the extra mile. 656 00:41:56,800 --> 00:41:58,960 Near Saltburn-by-the-Sea, 657 00:41:58,960 --> 00:42:03,440 a man-made cave stretches deep into the earth's crust. 658 00:42:03,440 --> 00:42:06,120 An imposing potash mine, 659 00:42:06,120 --> 00:42:09,760 that holds more than valuable minerals. 660 00:42:09,760 --> 00:42:14,320 Physicist Helen Arney is finding out if it could hold the secret 661 00:42:14,320 --> 00:42:16,840 to solving a cosmic mystery. 662 00:42:16,840 --> 00:42:20,200 She's going in search of the holy grail of physics - 663 00:42:20,200 --> 00:42:21,840 dark matter. 664 00:42:21,840 --> 00:42:26,760 The question of how invisible forces shape our universe, 665 00:42:26,760 --> 00:42:30,160 the world around us, has always fascinated me. 666 00:42:30,160 --> 00:42:33,960 But a coastal cave in Yorkshire is the last place 667 00:42:33,960 --> 00:42:36,720 I expected to come in search of answers. 668 00:42:41,160 --> 00:42:44,480 But this is no ordinary cave. 669 00:42:44,480 --> 00:42:48,840 Over half a mile deep and extending more than six miles out to sea, 670 00:42:48,840 --> 00:42:51,760 this is Britain's deepest mine. 671 00:42:51,760 --> 00:42:55,560 It's also the home of one of the world's leading laboratories. 672 00:42:55,560 --> 00:42:57,920 Down there, dozens of scientists 673 00:42:57,920 --> 00:43:01,600 are trying to solve one of the biggest problems of the universe - 674 00:43:01,600 --> 00:43:03,760 what holds everything together? 675 00:43:05,200 --> 00:43:06,440 Gravity! 676 00:43:06,440 --> 00:43:08,440 Created by matter. 677 00:43:08,440 --> 00:43:10,360 And there are two types. 678 00:43:10,360 --> 00:43:13,680 Normal matter, things you can see and touch. 679 00:43:13,680 --> 00:43:17,720 But that makes up just 15% of the universe. 680 00:43:17,720 --> 00:43:21,040 So what makes up the remaining 85%? 681 00:43:21,040 --> 00:43:22,320 Dark matter. 682 00:43:23,560 --> 00:43:28,440 It's what binds galaxies together, like some sort of cosmic glue. 683 00:43:28,440 --> 00:43:30,920 Assuming the laws of physics are correct, 684 00:43:30,920 --> 00:43:34,360 there has to be an invisible force at work 685 00:43:34,360 --> 00:43:38,520 because, without it, galaxies would fly apart. 686 00:43:38,520 --> 00:43:41,080 There are just two catches - 687 00:43:41,080 --> 00:43:42,680 you can't see it, 688 00:43:42,680 --> 00:43:44,560 and, as yet, nobody's found it. 689 00:43:44,560 --> 00:43:47,120 But they are looking. 690 00:43:47,120 --> 00:43:49,600 Scientists have gone beyond our coast, 691 00:43:49,600 --> 00:43:51,400 building laboratories below the sea. 692 00:43:52,440 --> 00:43:55,560 That's where Dr Sean Paling spends most of his time. 693 00:43:55,560 --> 00:43:58,240 But today, he's come up for air. 694 00:43:58,240 --> 00:44:03,840 Why is a mine, a man-made cave, the place to look for dark matter? 695 00:44:03,840 --> 00:44:06,000 So we think dark matter is particles, 696 00:44:06,000 --> 00:44:08,240 subatomic particles all around us in space, 697 00:44:08,240 --> 00:44:10,120 up there, here, everywhere. 698 00:44:10,120 --> 00:44:12,960 But these particles, we think, are very, very hard to detect, 699 00:44:12,960 --> 00:44:15,000 so we need to go deep underground 700 00:44:15,000 --> 00:44:17,320 to get away from interference you get on the surface. 701 00:44:20,800 --> 00:44:23,200 Sean is taking me through the mine 702 00:44:23,200 --> 00:44:25,960 to the Boulby underground laboratory, 703 00:44:25,960 --> 00:44:30,200 which is at the forefront of the global race to find dark matter. 704 00:44:30,200 --> 00:44:32,720 I want to discover if the scientists there 705 00:44:32,720 --> 00:44:36,320 are any closer to finding the mysterious cosmic glue. 706 00:44:38,960 --> 00:44:43,480 The half-mile of rock above the laboratory acts as a filter, 707 00:44:43,480 --> 00:44:46,440 reducing the amount of interference from other particles 708 00:44:46,440 --> 00:44:51,640 and allowing the scientists to see the presence of dark matter more easily. 709 00:44:55,040 --> 00:44:58,280 The journey down is quite unnerving. 710 00:44:58,280 --> 00:45:02,400 Ten metres per second in a giant metal box. 711 00:45:04,440 --> 00:45:06,800 I do feel like I'm in the centre of the Earth! 712 00:45:08,360 --> 00:45:10,200 Finally, we reach the bottom. 713 00:45:12,480 --> 00:45:16,000 Eight minutes later, we're over a kilometre under the coast 714 00:45:16,000 --> 00:45:19,080 in this incredible cave. 715 00:45:22,040 --> 00:45:26,400 Nearly 1,000 people work in this city under the sea. 716 00:45:26,400 --> 00:45:28,760 But, despite all this activity, 717 00:45:28,760 --> 00:45:30,720 the dark matter lab is considered 718 00:45:30,720 --> 00:45:33,160 one the quietest places in the universe. 719 00:45:33,160 --> 00:45:35,040 Subatomically, that is! 720 00:45:37,360 --> 00:45:39,000 But it's not quite Star Trek. 721 00:45:39,000 --> 00:45:43,440 So this is one of the things you're using to find dark matter. 722 00:45:43,440 --> 00:45:45,680 So it's a dark matter detector. 723 00:45:45,680 --> 00:45:48,080 It's a machine that goes "Ping!" when a particle hits it. 724 00:45:48,080 --> 00:45:50,640 But what's different about it is, 725 00:45:50,640 --> 00:45:53,000 unlike other detectors around the world, 726 00:45:53,000 --> 00:45:55,520 this detector doesn't just go "Ping!", 727 00:45:55,520 --> 00:45:58,760 it can tell you the direction of the particle that hits it. 728 00:45:58,760 --> 00:46:01,000 Dark matter is tricky stuff to find, 729 00:46:01,000 --> 00:46:03,680 even in the depths of this man-made cave. 730 00:46:04,760 --> 00:46:06,720 20 years into the project, 731 00:46:06,720 --> 00:46:09,560 they are still waiting for the first dark-matter ping. 732 00:46:10,520 --> 00:46:13,920 The question still remains, have you found dark matter yet? 733 00:46:13,920 --> 00:46:17,120 So... Well, definitively, no, we haven't found any yet. 734 00:46:17,120 --> 00:46:18,760 But it doesn't mean it doesn't exist. 735 00:46:18,760 --> 00:46:21,200 It's like if you've lost your keys in your house somewhere 736 00:46:21,200 --> 00:46:22,560 and you're trying to find them. 737 00:46:22,560 --> 00:46:23,720 If you look in the kitchen, 738 00:46:23,720 --> 00:46:26,640 the lounge, and you haven't found it, it doesn't mean it's not there. 739 00:46:26,640 --> 00:46:28,600 You've still got the rest of the house to look. 740 00:46:28,600 --> 00:46:30,880 And the same is true with the search for dark matter. 741 00:46:30,880 --> 00:46:32,240 We haven't found it yet. 742 00:46:32,240 --> 00:46:34,800 It could be this year, it could be five years' time. 743 00:46:37,720 --> 00:46:40,080 It could be a long wait. 744 00:46:44,920 --> 00:46:48,240 But the scientists refuse to give up their search. 745 00:46:53,320 --> 00:46:56,960 The scientists working out there in that man-made cave 746 00:46:56,960 --> 00:46:59,960 are working at the cutting edge of physics. 747 00:46:59,960 --> 00:47:03,440 It's ironic that, to discover the secrets of the world up here 748 00:47:03,440 --> 00:47:05,400 and the universe up there, 749 00:47:05,400 --> 00:47:09,520 you have to delve into the darkest recesses of our coast. 750 00:47:31,040 --> 00:47:34,360 We're on a cave and cove adventure. 751 00:47:34,360 --> 00:47:37,120 Our playground is our coast. 752 00:47:37,120 --> 00:47:40,600 Home to thousands of sea caves 753 00:47:40,600 --> 00:47:42,840 and countless coves. 754 00:47:43,920 --> 00:47:47,520 Shelter for both man and beast. 755 00:47:49,920 --> 00:47:53,240 Where the sea has eaten away the coast's soft rock, 756 00:47:53,240 --> 00:47:55,600 horseshoe havens are formed. 757 00:47:55,600 --> 00:47:58,720 Coves - a refuge from the open sea. 758 00:48:00,080 --> 00:48:04,160 Mark Horton is on Cornwall's Lizard Peninsula - 759 00:48:04,160 --> 00:48:07,880 a coast famed for its breathtaking coves. 760 00:48:07,880 --> 00:48:10,520 A welcome sight for those in need. 761 00:48:10,520 --> 00:48:13,440 Never more so during times of war. 762 00:48:14,960 --> 00:48:19,360 It's Saturday March 1st, 1941. 763 00:48:19,360 --> 00:48:21,880 The Second World War is underway, 764 00:48:21,880 --> 00:48:24,000 and out on the deep ocean, 765 00:48:24,000 --> 00:48:27,640 the U-boat menace is taking its toll on ships 766 00:48:27,640 --> 00:48:30,320 carrying vital cargo to war-torn Britain. 767 00:48:31,320 --> 00:48:32,880 Many lives are lost, 768 00:48:32,880 --> 00:48:37,240 and those who survive face a desperate struggle to shore. 769 00:48:37,240 --> 00:48:42,160 A solitary lifeboat edges its way towards Caerthillian Cove, 770 00:48:42,160 --> 00:48:43,840 just over there. 771 00:48:45,320 --> 00:48:48,800 13 days adrift on the open seas, 772 00:48:48,800 --> 00:48:51,640 just seven men are left. 773 00:48:51,640 --> 00:48:54,920 Entering the cove meant running the gauntlet 774 00:48:54,920 --> 00:48:57,520 of treacherous currents and rocks 775 00:48:57,520 --> 00:49:00,160 for the men already half dead. 776 00:49:01,520 --> 00:49:03,520 Within reach of safety... 777 00:49:03,520 --> 00:49:04,720 disaster. 778 00:49:06,200 --> 00:49:10,200 A colossal wave plunges them into the raging seas... 779 00:49:11,760 --> 00:49:15,120 ..condemning six of them to a watery grave. 780 00:49:16,520 --> 00:49:19,560 Just one man remains alive. 781 00:49:19,560 --> 00:49:24,480 His struggle for survival is being watched by a group of onlookers 782 00:49:24,480 --> 00:49:26,840 on the cliffs above. 783 00:49:31,000 --> 00:49:33,880 Amongst those watching this struggle for life 784 00:49:33,880 --> 00:49:37,720 were child evacuees Betty and Denis Driver, 785 00:49:37,720 --> 00:49:40,520 sent to Cornwall to escape the Blitz. 786 00:49:40,520 --> 00:49:43,080 I just remember looking down here and seeing this lifeboat 787 00:49:43,080 --> 00:49:46,280 being crushed up against the rocks, 788 00:49:46,280 --> 00:49:48,880 and then back again and then back and forth 789 00:49:48,880 --> 00:49:50,840 and the waves were horrific. 790 00:49:52,160 --> 00:49:54,000 The alarm was raised. 791 00:49:54,000 --> 00:49:58,000 Local villagers hauled the sole survivor to the shore. 792 00:49:59,760 --> 00:50:02,920 He was absolutely freezing, wasn't he? Yes, he was. 793 00:50:02,920 --> 00:50:04,560 And were you able to help? 794 00:50:04,560 --> 00:50:08,320 I took my pixie hood off and put it around his feet. 795 00:50:08,320 --> 00:50:10,600 Whether that did any good, I don't know. 796 00:50:11,680 --> 00:50:13,480 Who was this man? 797 00:50:13,480 --> 00:50:17,600 Why was he washed up in a Cornish cove? 798 00:50:17,600 --> 00:50:21,760 He was a sailor on the SS Gairsoppa. 799 00:50:21,760 --> 00:50:26,400 Here she is, one of thousands of merchant vessels 800 00:50:26,400 --> 00:50:29,280 pressed into service during the Second World War. 801 00:50:31,160 --> 00:50:36,200 Carrying essential war supplies and targeted by German U-boats, 802 00:50:36,200 --> 00:50:41,240 the Gairsoppa had been part of a convoy bound for Liverpool. 803 00:50:41,240 --> 00:50:43,520 Setting sail from Calcutta, 804 00:50:43,520 --> 00:50:48,320 she was largely manned by an Indian crew and British officers. 805 00:50:49,720 --> 00:50:54,280 Falling behind the convoy, the Gairsoppa became separated. 806 00:50:54,280 --> 00:51:00,000 Stalked by German U-boat, one deadly torpedo struck her bow. 807 00:51:03,320 --> 00:51:06,960 In the chaos, the crew scrambled into lifeboats. 808 00:51:06,960 --> 00:51:10,680 But only one sailor - the ship's second officer, 809 00:51:10,680 --> 00:51:13,400 Richard Ayres - survived. 810 00:51:14,640 --> 00:51:17,440 I'm meeting his granddaughter, Carolyn, 811 00:51:17,440 --> 00:51:19,640 in the cove where the rescue occurred. 812 00:51:19,640 --> 00:51:21,240 Hello, Mark. Nice to meet you. 813 00:51:21,240 --> 00:51:23,960 Did your grandfather say much about his experiences? 814 00:51:23,960 --> 00:51:27,080 He didn't, no. He didn't talk about it very much at all. 815 00:51:27,080 --> 00:51:30,080 We have got some written accounts, though, that he left. 816 00:51:30,080 --> 00:51:33,920 "The vessel was torpedoed in number two hold on the starboard side. 817 00:51:33,920 --> 00:51:36,320 "The captain gave the order to abandon the ship, 818 00:51:36,320 --> 00:51:39,960 "but they were under fire from the submarine, which had surfaced." 819 00:51:41,240 --> 00:51:46,320 Within minutes, the Gairsoppa slipped beneath the icy waters. 820 00:51:46,320 --> 00:51:51,720 33 men made it into a lifeboat, with Richard in charge. 821 00:51:51,720 --> 00:51:55,360 So, does he say anything about the conditions on board the lifeboat? 822 00:51:55,360 --> 00:51:58,960 He says here that, after the fourth day, deaths occurred from frostbite 823 00:51:58,960 --> 00:52:01,280 and also the effects of drinking saltwater. 824 00:52:03,800 --> 00:52:08,600 They rowed 380 miles in search of shore. 825 00:52:09,680 --> 00:52:12,080 The fate of those who didn't make it 826 00:52:12,080 --> 00:52:15,200 can be found in a nearby churchyard. 827 00:52:23,280 --> 00:52:24,840 Robert Hampshire. 828 00:52:24,840 --> 00:52:27,360 He was just 18 when he died. 829 00:52:32,360 --> 00:52:36,720 "A sailor of the Second World War, SS Gairsoppa." 830 00:52:36,720 --> 00:52:39,320 I wonder whether that's one of the lascars, 831 00:52:39,320 --> 00:52:42,320 one of the Indian sailors who drowned. 832 00:52:44,440 --> 00:52:47,840 Nameless, and buried so far from home. 833 00:52:51,360 --> 00:52:54,680 The Gairsoppa wasn't carrying munitions. 834 00:52:54,680 --> 00:52:57,560 So what was her precious cargo? 835 00:52:58,800 --> 00:53:01,840 Silver bullion. 110 tonnes of it. 836 00:53:01,840 --> 00:53:06,280 Worth, in today's money, £60 million. 837 00:53:06,280 --> 00:53:10,880 But why was silver so vital to the British war effort? 838 00:53:10,880 --> 00:53:15,040 I'm hoping that Dr Kevin Clancy from the Royal Mint can tell me. 839 00:53:15,040 --> 00:53:19,080 So, Kevin, this is an actual ingot from the Gairsoppa? 840 00:53:19,080 --> 00:53:20,840 That's right. 841 00:53:20,840 --> 00:53:24,480 Why were they bringing silver all the way to Britain from India? 842 00:53:24,480 --> 00:53:25,800 The silver coinage of Britain 843 00:53:25,800 --> 00:53:27,760 had had silver in it for a thousand years. 844 00:53:27,760 --> 00:53:30,360 And so needing to maintain supplies of bullion - 845 00:53:30,360 --> 00:53:33,640 however that was done from across the world - that was very important. 846 00:53:33,640 --> 00:53:35,960 There are symbols of the nation that you trust, 847 00:53:35,960 --> 00:53:37,840 like the flag and the national anthem. 848 00:53:37,840 --> 00:53:39,920 And the coinage is one of those building blocks 849 00:53:39,920 --> 00:53:41,400 of national identity and trust. 850 00:53:41,400 --> 00:53:45,320 Britain's wartime economy was in desperate straits 851 00:53:45,320 --> 00:53:48,480 and people needed some sense of security. 852 00:53:48,480 --> 00:53:52,920 The silver coins in their pocket represented hard cash. 853 00:53:52,920 --> 00:53:56,840 But they also offered reassurance and continuity. 854 00:53:56,840 --> 00:54:00,760 For 70 years, the Gairsoppa's precious cargo 855 00:54:00,760 --> 00:54:03,720 lay in a watery grave. 856 00:54:03,720 --> 00:54:06,320 Three miles beneath the ocean - 857 00:54:06,320 --> 00:54:09,160 that's a mile deeper than the Titanic - 858 00:54:09,160 --> 00:54:12,680 the wreck of the Gairsoppa was found. 859 00:54:14,960 --> 00:54:17,600 Having found the Gairsoppa, 860 00:54:17,600 --> 00:54:22,920 Odyssey Marine Exploration launched the deepest precious metal recovery 861 00:54:22,920 --> 00:54:25,960 in maritime history to salvage the silver. 862 00:54:27,160 --> 00:54:29,440 Marine archaeologist Neil Dobson 863 00:54:29,440 --> 00:54:32,440 was part of the team that tracked the Gairsoppa 864 00:54:32,440 --> 00:54:35,800 to her final resting place in the Irish Sea. 865 00:54:37,240 --> 00:54:40,280 Good shipwrecks always start with good historical research, 866 00:54:40,280 --> 00:54:41,720 and we were able to find it. 867 00:54:41,720 --> 00:54:43,880 Gosh, you can see the ship so clearly, can't you? 868 00:54:43,880 --> 00:54:45,560 It looks like a photograph. 869 00:54:45,560 --> 00:54:47,600 The next part is to go down there and have a look. 870 00:54:47,600 --> 00:54:49,760 Well, what we do, we bring in another vessel 871 00:54:49,760 --> 00:54:51,480 and have a specialist ROV system - 872 00:54:51,480 --> 00:54:52,840 remotely operated vehicle - 873 00:54:52,840 --> 00:54:55,280 and it has specialist cameras on it. 874 00:55:01,160 --> 00:55:04,480 And we're starting on the bow here and we're moving aft down the side. 875 00:55:04,480 --> 00:55:06,080 You can see the railings. 876 00:55:10,560 --> 00:55:14,440 It's just, like, frozen in time and you can see this ship appear. 877 00:55:14,440 --> 00:55:16,680 It's just spooky. 878 00:55:17,720 --> 00:55:21,000 This ship was home to 84 men, 879 00:55:21,000 --> 00:55:22,760 who gave their lives 880 00:55:22,760 --> 00:55:26,160 attempting to bring the much-needed silver to Britain. 881 00:55:27,360 --> 00:55:30,600 And, of course, from all the features, all put together - 882 00:55:30,600 --> 00:55:33,720 and like a good detective story - it was the Gairsoppa. 883 00:55:35,080 --> 00:55:38,520 A specialist ship was brought in to recover the silver. 884 00:55:42,000 --> 00:55:47,840 2,792 ingots were brought to the surface. 885 00:55:49,760 --> 00:55:53,480 Over 70 years after that fateful voyage, 886 00:55:53,480 --> 00:55:57,720 the Royal Mint have issued a series of silver coins 887 00:55:57,720 --> 00:56:00,720 to commemorate the Gairsoppa's loss. 888 00:56:00,720 --> 00:56:05,240 Now, I'm on a journey back to Caerthillian Cove 889 00:56:05,240 --> 00:56:10,960 to tell the final chapter in this tale of wartime sacrifice. 890 00:56:11,920 --> 00:56:15,760 In the very cove where Carolyn's grandfather nearly perished 891 00:56:15,760 --> 00:56:17,960 all those years ago, 892 00:56:17,960 --> 00:56:21,640 I've brought her to meet Betty and Denis for the first time. 893 00:56:21,640 --> 00:56:24,440 I've brought along some photographs of his, as well, of the time, 894 00:56:24,440 --> 00:56:25,840 just shortly afterwards, 895 00:56:25,840 --> 00:56:29,280 when he was better and he had a tea party with you all. 896 00:56:29,280 --> 00:56:30,400 Yes. 897 00:56:30,400 --> 00:56:31,880 Look at that one! 898 00:56:32,880 --> 00:56:34,840 So, which is you? This one. 899 00:56:34,840 --> 00:56:36,080 There you are. 900 00:56:36,080 --> 00:56:37,600 You haven't changed. 901 00:56:38,720 --> 00:56:40,600 I've got another surprise for you, 902 00:56:40,600 --> 00:56:43,440 because Kevin is here from the Royal Mint 903 00:56:43,440 --> 00:56:45,360 to give you something really special. 904 00:56:45,360 --> 00:56:48,840 The purpose of the journey the Gairsoppa took all those years ago 905 00:56:48,840 --> 00:56:52,040 was to transport silver from India to make British coins. 906 00:56:52,040 --> 00:56:54,920 And, finally, we've been able to complete that journey. 907 00:56:54,920 --> 00:56:56,800 I couldn't be more honoured than to... 908 00:56:56,800 --> 00:56:59,000 Oh, lovely. Thank you very much. ..give you each... 909 00:56:59,000 --> 00:57:01,560 Oh, that's lovely, yes. Very nice. ..a specimen of the coin. 910 00:57:01,560 --> 00:57:03,160 And was this made from the silver 911 00:57:03,160 --> 00:57:05,120 that was actually from the Gairsoppa? 912 00:57:05,120 --> 00:57:07,080 It's the very silver from the ship 913 00:57:07,080 --> 00:57:09,320 and it's eventually been turned into coinage, 914 00:57:09,320 --> 00:57:10,840 as it was originally intended. 915 00:57:10,840 --> 00:57:12,400 BOTH: Thank you very much. 916 00:57:18,080 --> 00:57:19,320 Yes, lovely. 917 00:57:26,000 --> 00:57:30,560 The grave of the SS Gairsoppa may lie out there somewhere 918 00:57:30,560 --> 00:57:32,480 three miles beneath the ocean. 919 00:57:32,480 --> 00:57:35,080 But it's in this cove 920 00:57:35,080 --> 00:57:40,600 that the human story of wartime struggle and endeavour can be told. 921 00:57:41,880 --> 00:57:46,600 For Richard Ayres, the sole survivor of the Gairsoppa disaster, 922 00:57:46,600 --> 00:57:51,680 this cove offered refuge from the ravages of war. 923 00:57:58,400 --> 00:58:00,760 Caves and coves, 924 00:58:00,760 --> 00:58:02,880 sculpted by the sea, 925 00:58:02,880 --> 00:58:06,840 hold hidden secrets of the past. 926 00:58:11,760 --> 00:58:16,240 These natural wonders intrigue and entice us, 927 00:58:16,240 --> 00:58:18,120 offering seclusion... 928 00:58:20,200 --> 00:58:21,960 ..shelter... 929 00:58:23,680 --> 00:58:26,760 ..and stories that tell us who we are. 930 00:58:33,120 --> 00:58:35,680 The sea's calm, the sun's shining 931 00:58:35,680 --> 00:58:37,600 mine are the only footprints. 932 00:58:37,600 --> 00:58:41,880 One of those moments when the coast becomes your very own haven.