0 00:00:05,760 --> 00:00:10,436 In 1 840, one man transformed travel In BrItaIn. 1 00:00:10,560 --> 00:00:13,028 HIs name was George Bradshaw 2 00:00:13,160 --> 00:00:17,551 and hIs raIlway guIdes InspIred the VIctorIans to take to the tracks. 3 00:00:18,320 --> 00:00:19,594 Stop by stop, 4 00:00:19,720 --> 00:00:21,597 he told them where to travel, 5 00:00:21,720 --> 00:00:23,950 what to see and where to stay. 6 00:00:25,440 --> 00:00:27,795 Now, 1 70 years later, 7 00:00:27,920 --> 00:00:31,708 I'm makIng a serIes ofjourneys across the length and breadth of the country 8 00:00:31,840 --> 00:00:34,718 to see what of Bradshaw's BrItaIn remaIns. 9 00:00:57,160 --> 00:01:00,436 I've embarked on a new journey across northern EngIand. 10 00:01:00,560 --> 00:01:04,030 My Bradshaw's GuIde has brought me to the border Iands 11 00:01:04,160 --> 00:01:08,438 where, for hundreds of years, confIict between the EngIish and the Scots 12 00:01:08,560 --> 00:01:11,233 shaped the identities of both peopIes. 13 00:01:11,360 --> 00:01:16,992 In the 19th century, raiIway engineers pIayed their part in bridging the guIf. 14 00:01:19,200 --> 00:01:20,838 On the fIrst part of my newjourney, 15 00:01:20,960 --> 00:01:25,431 I'll be seeIng how the raIlway joIned those two restless kIngdoms... 16 00:01:25,560 --> 00:01:28,438 This reaIIy is the most beautifuI bridge. 17 00:01:28,560 --> 00:01:33,395 ..dIscoverIng an exceptIonal art class that Illustrates a bygone way of lIfe... 18 00:01:33,520 --> 00:01:36,432 It's something which nobody wouId have thought of recording, 19 00:01:36,560 --> 00:01:40,075 nobody has ever recorded or iII record now because it's aII vanished. 20 00:01:40,200 --> 00:01:42,919 ..and hearIng just how perIlous work was 21 00:01:43,040 --> 00:01:45,634 on the IndustrIal raIlways of the north east. 22 00:01:45,760 --> 00:01:50,038 So if it's your job to get that rope off and you happen to trip, 23 00:01:50,160 --> 00:01:52,151 - what's the consequence? - You're dead. 24 00:01:54,360 --> 00:01:57,636 StartIng In the border lands, thIsjourney takes me south 25 00:01:57,760 --> 00:02:00,832 through some of northern England's most dramatIc scenery 26 00:02:00,960 --> 00:02:05,909 to cross the PennInes and fInIsh up on the beautIful and unIque Isle of Man. 27 00:02:08,160 --> 00:02:11,038 Today's stretch begIns In BerwIck-upon-Tweed. 28 00:02:11,160 --> 00:02:14,436 Then I'll travel through the NorthumbrIan countrysIde to Morpeth 29 00:02:14,560 --> 00:02:17,711 and the VIctorIan heartlands of the IndustrIal north east. 30 00:02:21,360 --> 00:02:24,238 My first stop iII be Berwck-upon-Tweed. 31 00:02:24,360 --> 00:02:25,873 My Bradshaw's GuIde says, 32 00:02:26,000 --> 00:02:30,039 ''Before the Act of Union, it was an important frontier town.'' 33 00:02:30,160 --> 00:02:33,630 ''It is stiII a garrison town having a miIitary governor, 34 00:02:33,760 --> 00:02:37,036 barracks and fortified waIIs.'' 35 00:02:37,160 --> 00:02:43,474 Berwck is a stronghoId that straddIed the fauIt Iine between warring peopIes. 36 00:02:47,560 --> 00:02:50,438 Just two-and-a-haIf mIles south of the ScottIsh border, 37 00:02:50,560 --> 00:02:54,155 BerwIck-upon-Tweed Is the northernmost town In England. 38 00:02:54,280 --> 00:02:58,592 AstonIshIngly, It's changed hands between the EnglIsh and the Scots 39 00:02:58,720 --> 00:03:00,995 at least 13 tImes In Its hIstory. 40 00:03:02,160 --> 00:03:05,232 But the comIng of the raIlway In the 19th century 41 00:03:05,360 --> 00:03:09,239 helped to smooth across the fault lIne of a fractIous dIvIde 42 00:03:09,360 --> 00:03:12,796 to lInk two often antagonIstIc peoples. 43 00:03:16,960 --> 00:03:19,713 It seems quite peacefuI. No sign of war today. 44 00:03:21,760 --> 00:03:24,228 I'm headIng off to BerwIck's Tudor ramparts 45 00:03:24,360 --> 00:03:27,989 buIlt In the 16th century by Queen ElIzabeth I. 46 00:03:29,160 --> 00:03:31,435 WIth many CatholIc enemIes In northern England 47 00:03:31,560 --> 00:03:34,632 who wanted to see her replaced by Mary Queen of Scots, 48 00:03:34,760 --> 00:03:38,833 the Queen needed to control BerwIck and to contaIn Scotland. 49 00:03:38,960 --> 00:03:42,032 Hence these colossal defences. 50 00:03:42,160 --> 00:03:44,037 Local hIstorIan Derek Sharman 51 00:03:44,160 --> 00:03:48,517 Is my guIde to one of the most complete fortIfIed towns In Europe. 52 00:03:49,760 --> 00:03:51,034 Derek. 53 00:03:51,160 --> 00:03:53,628 - Good morning. WeIcome to Berwck. - HeIIo. 54 00:03:53,760 --> 00:03:57,196 It's been the scene of confIict 55 00:03:57,320 --> 00:04:00,551 between the EngIish and the Scots for an awfuIIy Iong time, hasn't it? 56 00:04:00,680 --> 00:04:03,035 My Bradshaw's says that Edward I 57 00:04:03,160 --> 00:04:06,232 barbarousIy exposed the Iimbs of WiIIiam WaIIace here. 58 00:04:06,360 --> 00:04:08,510 - It's been going on a Iong time. - It has indeed. 59 00:04:08,640 --> 00:04:13,430 In the 13th century, Berwck was the biggest, most rich seaport in ScotIand. 60 00:04:13,560 --> 00:04:16,597 So when Edward I captured the pIace, WaIIace wanted it back. 61 00:04:16,720 --> 00:04:18,199 Next year he recaptured Berwck 62 00:04:18,320 --> 00:04:21,437 and began 300 years of warfare between the two countries. 63 00:04:21,560 --> 00:04:24,996 This confIict continued for centuries. Berwck was the key to ScotIand. 64 00:04:25,120 --> 00:04:27,634 Its food suppIy, its popuIation, aII its economy. 65 00:04:27,760 --> 00:04:30,672 So hoIding Berwck was hoIding the keys to ScotIand. 66 00:04:30,800 --> 00:04:32,756 One of the things that reaIIy surprised me 67 00:04:32,880 --> 00:04:36,031 was that Bradshaw's GuIde, taIking about the 1860s, 68 00:04:36,160 --> 00:04:39,152 says that it's stiII a garrison town. Can that possibIy be true? 69 00:04:39,280 --> 00:04:42,317 Oh, yes. Berwck has the first infantry barracks in the country, 70 00:04:42,440 --> 00:04:44,431 buiIt at the beginning of the 18th century, 71 00:04:44,560 --> 00:04:48,030 and right through untiI 1964 this was stiII a garrison town. 72 00:04:49,160 --> 00:04:50,832 As an Important mIlItary town, 73 00:04:50,960 --> 00:04:54,032 soldIers had been statIoned In BerwIck for centurIes, 74 00:04:54,160 --> 00:04:55,639 bIlleted In people's homes. 75 00:04:55,760 --> 00:04:59,833 But the burden of thIs standIng army weIghed heavIly on the town, 76 00:04:59,960 --> 00:05:05,637 and as a result of complaInts, the government buIlt the barracks In 1 7 19. 77 00:05:05,760 --> 00:05:10,436 It was the model for subsequent barracks across BrItaIn and Indeed the EmpIre. 78 00:05:10,560 --> 00:05:12,835 And my ''Bradshaw's'' of the 1 860s 79 00:05:12,960 --> 00:05:16,919 records that the town stIll had Its own mIlItary governor. 80 00:05:19,560 --> 00:05:21,551 What part did the raiIways pIay? 81 00:05:21,680 --> 00:05:23,955 It finaIIy cemented the two countries together. 82 00:05:24,080 --> 00:05:26,640 It aIso made a great improvement to the town's economy. 83 00:05:26,760 --> 00:05:30,230 By then, we'd settIed into a normaI, everyday sort of market town. 84 00:05:30,360 --> 00:05:32,999 The raiIway brought great weaIth to the town again. 85 00:05:33,120 --> 00:05:37,033 (MIchael) So you think the raiIway has a symboIic or cuIturaI effect? 86 00:05:37,160 --> 00:05:41,233 It certainIy does. The town itseIf had been a ping-pong baII for centuries 87 00:05:41,360 --> 00:05:43,954 and now it's just the centre of two great nations. 88 00:05:46,360 --> 00:05:52,435 A raIlway lIne from EdInburgh to BerwIck was buIlt by ScottIsh engIneers In 1 846. 89 00:05:52,560 --> 00:05:56,439 The lIne from London reached Tweedmouth on the opposIte bank of the RIver Tweed 90 00:05:56,560 --> 00:05:57,959 a year later. 91 00:05:59,560 --> 00:06:01,835 But fInally to unIte England and Scotland 92 00:06:01,960 --> 00:06:07,318 requIred a monumental pIece of VIctorIan engIneerIng by Robert Stephenson. 93 00:06:07,440 --> 00:06:09,396 The Royal Border BrIdge. 94 00:06:31,560 --> 00:06:34,438 Derek, this reaIIy is the most beautifuI bridge. 95 00:06:34,560 --> 00:06:36,994 My Bradshaw's says it's 96 00:06:37,120 --> 00:06:41,238 ''Stephenson's RoyaI Border Bridge or viaduct for the raiIway.'' 97 00:06:41,360 --> 00:06:45,399 ''216ft Iong on 28 brick arches.'' 98 00:06:45,520 --> 00:06:47,829 It is a wonderfuI thing, isn't it? 99 00:06:47,960 --> 00:06:50,428 What was the history of the buiIding of this bridge? 100 00:06:50,560 --> 00:06:54,030 (Derek) It's the Iast Iink in what is now the East Coast Main Line. 101 00:06:54,160 --> 00:06:58,233 It was finished in 1850, opened officiaIIy by Queen Victoria. 102 00:06:58,360 --> 00:06:59,918 She onIy spent 12 minutes here. 103 00:07:00,040 --> 00:07:02,713 She opened the centraI station in NewcastIe the same day. 104 00:07:02,840 --> 00:07:06,389 The festivities there were so great that she onIy had 12 minutes Ieft. 105 00:07:06,520 --> 00:07:08,351 But nonetheIess, she opened the bridge 106 00:07:08,480 --> 00:07:12,837 and from this time you couId say genuineIy it was a United Kingdom. 107 00:07:12,960 --> 00:07:17,829 The buIldIng of thIs majestIc structure, 38 metres above the RIver Tweed, 108 00:07:17,960 --> 00:07:21,635 was the catalyst for stronger polItIcal and cultural tIes 109 00:07:21,760 --> 00:07:26,629 wIth a lIne dIrectly lInkIng London to EdInburgh for the fIrst tIme. 110 00:07:26,760 --> 00:07:32,232 EscapIng from the past was evIdently a conscIous feature of the project. 111 00:07:32,360 --> 00:07:33,839 Derek, what's amazing to me here 112 00:07:33,960 --> 00:07:36,633 is I can see the castIe waII on either side of the raiIway. 113 00:07:36,760 --> 00:07:40,639 CIearIy, the raiIway was just punched straight through the oId waIIs. 114 00:07:40,760 --> 00:07:44,116 (Derek) Yes. The Victorians wanted progress, not historic buiIdings. 115 00:07:44,240 --> 00:07:47,232 They had pIenty of castIes and this was just one more, so it went. 116 00:07:47,360 --> 00:07:50,955 We're Iooking at a waII that runs down to the river side caIIed the White WaII. 117 00:07:51,080 --> 00:07:54,277 That was buiIt by Edward I in 1296 when the EngIish captured the pIace 118 00:07:54,400 --> 00:07:57,039 and began these centuries of warfare. 119 00:07:57,160 --> 00:08:01,631 The castle had featured In war between the EnglIsh and Scots over centurIes. 120 00:08:01,760 --> 00:08:07,232 Its fortIfIcatIons had been repaIred and Improved after each devastatIng battle. 121 00:08:07,360 --> 00:08:10,432 But the advent of the raIlway fInally demolIshed It, 122 00:08:10,560 --> 00:08:14,155 symbolIcally sweepIng away centurIes of conflIct. 123 00:08:14,280 --> 00:08:17,636 Very typicaI of the Victorians. You find it aII the time in Bradshaw's. 124 00:08:17,760 --> 00:08:21,753 This absoIute confidence in progress. 125 00:08:21,880 --> 00:08:24,917 And therefore, perhaps, a IittIe bit of disrespect for history. 126 00:08:30,960 --> 00:08:35,033 BerwIck's very sIngular hIstory has left Its mark notjust on the landscape 127 00:08:35,160 --> 00:08:36,479 but also on Its InhabItants. 128 00:08:36,600 --> 00:08:39,194 So often under sIege In theIr hIstory, 129 00:08:39,320 --> 00:08:43,393 BerwIckers have developed a strong and dIstInctIve IdentIty. 130 00:08:43,520 --> 00:08:46,637 - HeIIo. Are you from Berwck? - I am. 131 00:08:46,760 --> 00:08:48,079 I'm very interested to know. 132 00:08:48,200 --> 00:08:52,239 WouId you regard yourseIf as EngIish, Scottish or Berwcker? 133 00:08:52,360 --> 00:08:53,156 Berwcker. 134 00:08:53,280 --> 00:08:57,319 TeII me, do you regard yourseIf as EngIish, Scottish or Berwckers? 135 00:08:57,440 --> 00:09:01,433 - Berwckers. - Berwckers? Now, why wouId that be? 136 00:09:01,560 --> 00:09:03,551 Because we're neither one nor the other. 137 00:09:03,680 --> 00:09:06,638 - HeIIo, are you from Berwck? - Hi. 138 00:09:06,760 --> 00:09:08,318 Yeah. I've Iived here aII my Iife. 139 00:09:08,440 --> 00:09:11,432 Do you regard yourseIf as EngIish, Scottish or Berwcker? 140 00:09:11,560 --> 00:09:16,190 Erm... EngIish, but I wouId caII myseIf Berwcker if peopIe ask. 141 00:09:16,320 --> 00:09:21,440 (MIchael) Do you think peopIe who Iive here have to be pretty tough? 142 00:09:21,560 --> 00:09:23,039 You do take quite a bit of beating 143 00:09:23,160 --> 00:09:25,674 because you go up to ScotIand you get caIIed a Geordie, 144 00:09:25,800 --> 00:09:29,839 you go further down south in EngIand, you get caIIed a Scot, but you're not. 145 00:09:29,960 --> 00:09:31,313 You're on the EngIish border. 146 00:09:31,440 --> 00:09:33,795 That's the way it is and the way it's aIways been. 147 00:09:35,360 --> 00:09:38,432 BerwIck Is clearly shaped by Its tumultuous past. 148 00:09:38,560 --> 00:09:41,836 As I leave on the raIlway that tIed together these old warrIng foes, 149 00:09:41,960 --> 00:09:46,317 Scotland and England, there's one more exhIlaratIng sIght. 150 00:09:48,680 --> 00:09:50,272 I'm reaIIy Iooking forward to this 151 00:09:50,400 --> 00:09:54,234 because as soon as the train Ieaves Berwck-upon-Tweed station, 152 00:09:54,360 --> 00:10:00,310 it's going to pass over Stephenson's magnificent RoyaI Border Bridge. 153 00:10:14,040 --> 00:10:15,951 What a sensationaI view. 154 00:10:18,360 --> 00:10:20,316 Just beautifuI. 155 00:10:29,360 --> 00:10:33,638 I'm now headIng due south on Stephenson's East Coast MaIn LIne 156 00:10:33,760 --> 00:10:36,513 through the stunnIng NorthumbrIan countrysIde. 157 00:10:39,760 --> 00:10:41,352 My next stop is AInmouth. 158 00:10:41,480 --> 00:10:46,634 I'm disembarking there for AInick, another garrison town. 159 00:10:46,760 --> 00:10:50,753 Another wonderfuI castIe, as recommended by my Bradshaw's GuIde. 160 00:10:54,760 --> 00:10:57,433 AlnwIck Castle Is the second largest In England, 161 00:10:57,560 --> 00:10:59,073 and In Bradshaw's day, 162 00:10:59,200 --> 00:11:03,955 the Dowager Duchess was dIstInguIshed by beIng Queen VIctorIa's former governess. 163 00:11:05,520 --> 00:11:07,954 The town was nIcknamed the WIndsor of the North 164 00:11:08,080 --> 00:11:12,119 because of the sheer deluge of royalty arrIvIng by traIn. 165 00:11:12,240 --> 00:11:13,958 The Duke of Northumberland was buIlt 166 00:11:14,080 --> 00:11:18,835 a suItably grand twIn barrelled 32,000 square foot raIlway statIon. 167 00:11:19,960 --> 00:11:23,032 Sadly, AlnwIck was closed In the late 1960s. 168 00:11:23,160 --> 00:11:24,275 But wonderfully for me, 169 00:11:24,400 --> 00:11:28,632 a second-hand bookshop saved some of the rooms of the old statIon. 170 00:11:28,760 --> 00:11:34,915 And so, to my delIght, I can step back In tIme wIth co-owner Mary Manley. 171 00:11:36,760 --> 00:11:39,433 MichaeI, pIease come in. 172 00:11:39,560 --> 00:11:42,233 - Thank you very much. It's IoveIy. - Thank you. 173 00:11:42,360 --> 00:11:44,078 I Iove the open fire here. 174 00:11:44,200 --> 00:11:46,839 (Mary) That is one of the most popuIar parts of the shop. 175 00:11:46,960 --> 00:11:48,837 It's reaI and it's coaI. 176 00:11:51,080 --> 00:11:54,629 It was remarked In the paper at the tIme that the statIon was 177 00:11:54,760 --> 00:11:59,038 ''a model of completeness and none superIor In regard to constructIon 178 00:11:59,160 --> 00:12:02,436 or furnIshIng Is to be met wIth on the north-eastern sectIon''. 179 00:12:02,560 --> 00:12:05,632 The fIne features of thIs VIctorIan raIlway statIon 180 00:12:05,760 --> 00:12:08,149 have been affectIonately restored 181 00:12:08,280 --> 00:12:13,229 to thejoy of both book lovers and raIlway enthusIasts. 182 00:12:13,360 --> 00:12:16,591 I can't heIp noticing that you've got a very beautifuI train, as weII. 183 00:12:16,720 --> 00:12:17,869 What's the story of that? 184 00:12:18,000 --> 00:12:21,629 When we put up these book coIumns, I had to have some way of connecting them, 185 00:12:21,760 --> 00:12:25,230 otherwse they Iooked Iike they were free-standing and rather IoneIy. 186 00:12:25,360 --> 00:12:29,239 So I thought having a modeI train circIe around them might be an effective idea. 187 00:12:29,360 --> 00:12:33,239 I have to say, peopIe Iove it. Not just chiIdren, but grown-ups. 188 00:12:33,360 --> 00:12:35,237 No, I'm a grown-up and I Iove it, too. 189 00:12:35,360 --> 00:12:39,319 It's just so compIeteIy in character ith what the buiIding used to be. 190 00:12:44,800 --> 00:12:48,634 As well as brIngIng love and lIght back to AlnwIck StatIon, 191 00:12:48,760 --> 00:12:52,309 Mary's added her own touches to honour the raIlway staff. 192 00:12:55,160 --> 00:12:59,233 AII these names on the waII, what does that represent? 193 00:12:59,360 --> 00:13:02,033 (Mary) They're aII the names of peopIe who we couId find 194 00:13:02,160 --> 00:13:07,280 who worked in AInick Station from 1858 tiII its cIosure in 1968. 195 00:13:07,400 --> 00:13:10,949 It's a famiIy. It's Iike coaIminers, reaIIy, the raiIway men. 196 00:13:11,080 --> 00:13:16,438 We were very aware of the voices that go unheard in the station. 197 00:13:16,560 --> 00:13:18,039 It's their voices. 198 00:13:18,160 --> 00:13:20,833 (MIchael) So even though you've estabIished a bookshop, 199 00:13:20,960 --> 00:13:23,076 you're very aware that it's in a station. 200 00:13:23,200 --> 00:13:25,839 We're very aware of the station 201 00:13:25,960 --> 00:13:30,431 and wanted to restore everything we couId to keep it aIive as that. 202 00:13:30,560 --> 00:13:34,235 In fact, our bookshop has the same resonance, I think, 203 00:13:34,360 --> 00:13:35,634 as a raiIway station. 204 00:13:35,760 --> 00:13:39,833 AII cIasses, aII ages, stories, heIIos and goodbyes. 205 00:13:43,760 --> 00:13:45,239 In the raIlway books sectIon, 206 00:13:45,360 --> 00:13:48,955 whIch has become a magnet for raIl enthusIasts from all over the world, 207 00:13:49,080 --> 00:13:53,631 Mary's husband Stuart has somethIng of Interest. 208 00:13:53,760 --> 00:13:56,035 - HeIIo, Stuart. - HeIIo. 209 00:13:56,160 --> 00:13:57,559 What are you reading there? 210 00:13:57,680 --> 00:14:00,831 We have here a very earIy raiI book 211 00:14:00,960 --> 00:14:06,114 of the NewcastIe to CarIisIe Iine buiIt in 1836, 212 00:14:06,240 --> 00:14:10,950 and it has these wonderfuI pictures in it of the Iine just after it was buiIt. 213 00:14:11,080 --> 00:14:15,232 - (MIchael) These are stunning. - (Stuart) The quaIity is terrific. 214 00:14:15,360 --> 00:14:19,638 - Is the book dated? - The book is dated 1836. 215 00:14:19,760 --> 00:14:22,035 (MIchael) So immediateIy the Iine has been buiIt 216 00:14:22,160 --> 00:14:26,631 they bring out this beautifuI book shoing that from the earIiest days 217 00:14:26,760 --> 00:14:30,230 they understood that the raiIways were a thing of beauty to be ceIebrated. 218 00:14:30,360 --> 00:14:32,032 (Stuart) That's seIf-evident. 219 00:14:32,160 --> 00:14:34,833 It's not just the raiIway viaducts, which are beautifuI, 220 00:14:34,960 --> 00:14:36,757 but they put the scenery around them 221 00:14:36,880 --> 00:14:40,475 to reaIIy show this is part of the countryside now and isn't it great? 222 00:14:40,600 --> 00:14:42,830 (MIchael) From one raiIway book to another, 223 00:14:42,960 --> 00:14:46,635 do you have many Bradshaw's Handbooks? 224 00:14:46,760 --> 00:14:49,638 CuriousIy enough, you're entireIy to bIame for this. 225 00:14:49,760 --> 00:14:53,435 There's hardIy a Bradshaw's Handbook to be had anywhere in the country. 226 00:14:53,560 --> 00:14:56,757 Not onIy have we soId out, but so has virtuaIIy everyone eIse. 227 00:14:56,880 --> 00:14:58,233 It's amazing. 228 00:14:59,560 --> 00:15:03,519 I thInk George Bradshaw would have been humbled and rather amused to know 229 00:15:03,640 --> 00:15:07,155 that over 1 70 years sInce Its fIrst publIcatIon 230 00:15:07,280 --> 00:15:10,716 hIs raIlway guIdes are flyIng off the sheIf once more. 231 00:15:12,280 --> 00:15:16,637 After a glorIous day, I'm headIng off to fInd my bed for the nIght 232 00:15:16,760 --> 00:15:20,036 courtesy, of course, of good old George. 233 00:15:20,160 --> 00:15:24,438 For my hoteI tonight, Bradshaw's mentions the White Swan. 234 00:15:24,560 --> 00:15:27,711 After aII these decades, it's stiII here. 235 00:15:29,760 --> 00:15:33,230 Wealthy VIctorIan and early 20th-century travellers 236 00:15:33,360 --> 00:15:36,830 demanded luxury and opulence on a grand scale. 237 00:15:36,960 --> 00:15:39,030 And notjust on the raIlways. 238 00:15:39,160 --> 00:15:42,038 One of the most ostentatIous examples of thIs 239 00:15:42,160 --> 00:15:45,038 was the TItanIc's sIster shIp, the OlympIc. 240 00:15:45,160 --> 00:15:47,230 It was unsurpassed In grandeur, 241 00:15:47,360 --> 00:15:50,432 havIng the fIrst swImmIng pool on a transatlantIc lIner 242 00:15:50,560 --> 00:15:55,111 and a staIrcase that was saId to be somethIng beyond beautIful. 243 00:15:56,160 --> 00:16:00,233 Unusually, after she was wIthdrawn from servIce In 1935, 244 00:16:00,360 --> 00:16:05,036 her fIttIngs and fIxtures weren't scrapped but sold at auctIon. 245 00:16:05,160 --> 00:16:08,232 The fIrst class lounge was bought for the WhIte Swan Hotel 246 00:16:08,360 --> 00:16:10,635 for Its patrons'Indulgence. 247 00:16:13,360 --> 00:16:16,238 What a wonderfuIIy eIegant dining room. 248 00:16:16,360 --> 00:16:22,629 Tonight I can swap the pIeasures of raiIway traveI standard cIass 249 00:16:22,760 --> 00:16:27,515 for the Iuxury of transatIantic cruising first cIass. 250 00:16:40,760 --> 00:16:43,832 A new day, and I'm up early, 251 00:16:43,960 --> 00:16:47,077 leavIng behInd the dIsputed terrItorIes of the border 252 00:16:47,200 --> 00:16:51,034 of travel south to the IndustrIal heartlands of north-eastern England. 253 00:16:51,160 --> 00:16:53,833 The progress of the IndustrIal RevolutIon 254 00:16:53,960 --> 00:16:55,632 from the end of the 1 8th century 255 00:16:55,760 --> 00:17:01,517 saw large-scale use of coal as steam engInes supplanted water wheels. 256 00:17:01,640 --> 00:17:03,232 In the VIctorIan era, 257 00:17:03,360 --> 00:17:07,239 steam-powered shIps and raIlways spread across the world, 258 00:17:07,360 --> 00:17:10,830 and the demand for coal was at Its zenIth. 259 00:17:10,960 --> 00:17:14,635 My Bradshaw's says, ''ithin a circIe of eight or ten miIes, 260 00:17:14,760 --> 00:17:17,638 more than 50 important coIIieries are open, 261 00:17:17,760 --> 00:17:22,038 empIoying between 10,000 to 15,000 hands.'' 262 00:17:22,160 --> 00:17:26,836 ''The great northern fieId covers about 500 square miIes of NorthumberIand 263 00:17:26,960 --> 00:17:31,636 and Durham and may be 1 ,800ft deep.'' 264 00:17:31,800 --> 00:17:37,750 The raiIways heIped to convert hamIets into viIIages, pit viIIages. 265 00:17:40,360 --> 00:17:43,193 ThIs economIc growth based on coal 266 00:17:43,320 --> 00:17:45,914 converted parts of Northumberland from agrIculture 267 00:17:46,040 --> 00:17:49,669 to create one of the fIrst 19th-century IndustrIal landscapes. 268 00:17:49,800 --> 00:17:53,759 (announcement) LadIes and gentlemen, servIce now arrIvIng at Morpeth. 269 00:17:55,000 --> 00:17:56,353 I've left the traIn at Morpeth 270 00:17:56,480 --> 00:17:59,756 to make an excursIon to the centre of the Northumberland collIerIes, 271 00:17:59,880 --> 00:18:01,836 the town of AshIngton. 272 00:18:04,360 --> 00:18:07,830 By the late 1 840s, as a result of the coal-mInIng Industry, 273 00:18:07,960 --> 00:18:10,428 AshIngton had developed from a rural backwater 274 00:18:10,560 --> 00:18:13,711 to a populatIon of over 25,000. 275 00:18:15,280 --> 00:18:17,236 The raIlways also grew exponentIally, 276 00:18:17,360 --> 00:18:21,433 carryIng the coal to the expandIng docks of Newcastle, Sunderland and Jarrow 277 00:18:21,560 --> 00:18:24,120 on the Northumberland and Durham coasts. 278 00:18:27,360 --> 00:18:33,230 In these former pit viIIages, you can taste the history of the coaI industry. 279 00:18:33,360 --> 00:18:35,828 These were very tightIy-knit communities. 280 00:18:35,960 --> 00:18:37,598 Miners and their famiIies 281 00:18:37,720 --> 00:18:41,235 Iiving cheek-by-jol ith other miners and their famiIies. 282 00:18:41,360 --> 00:18:45,399 I'm Interested to dIscover what these pItmen dId In theIr spare tIme 283 00:18:45,520 --> 00:18:50,116 to escape theIr often dangerous and grImy workIng lIves at the coaIface. 284 00:18:52,680 --> 00:18:58,198 I've come to the Woodhorn CollIery Museum to meet author WIllIam Feaver. 285 00:18:58,320 --> 00:19:00,515 - BiII, heIIo. - HeIIo, MichaeI. 286 00:19:00,640 --> 00:19:03,632 So here we are at Woodhorn CoIIiery, which is now a museum. 287 00:19:03,760 --> 00:19:07,036 But describe it to me in its heyday of production. 288 00:19:07,160 --> 00:19:10,835 WeII, trains of convoys of coaI wagons 289 00:19:10,960 --> 00:19:13,428 going up and down, backwards and forwards. 290 00:19:13,560 --> 00:19:17,439 It was Iike a great traffic junction. This was the middIe of the coaI yard. 291 00:19:17,560 --> 00:19:22,031 Pithead above us where everything went down, everything came up. 292 00:19:22,160 --> 00:19:24,037 Remember, coaI ran the country. 293 00:19:24,160 --> 00:19:27,357 Without coaI, there wouIdn't have been any trains and nothing eIse. 294 00:19:27,480 --> 00:19:31,473 No power, in effect. So this was an industriaI hub. 295 00:19:31,600 --> 00:19:34,956 How wouId you describe the Iife of the miners in those days? 296 00:19:35,080 --> 00:19:38,470 The Iife of a pitman was very hard at the best of times. 297 00:19:38,600 --> 00:19:42,639 Apart from anything eIse, you spent most of your working Iife in the dark. 298 00:19:42,760 --> 00:19:45,877 Dangerous Iife. Death was a possibiIity. 299 00:19:46,000 --> 00:19:49,436 One per cent fataIities per year was considered rather a good statistic. 300 00:19:49,560 --> 00:19:52,028 Think of that ith that number of peopIe working. 301 00:19:52,160 --> 00:19:56,631 It was not just a hard Iife but it was a Iife in which there was no aIternative. 302 00:19:56,760 --> 00:19:59,672 Ashington was a one industry pIace. 303 00:19:59,800 --> 00:20:02,394 Because of that, both a great pride in the industry, 304 00:20:02,520 --> 00:20:04,192 as it was a great skiIIed industry, 305 00:20:04,320 --> 00:20:10,236 and a sense of, I think, being captive, Iimited by this hard drudgery. 306 00:20:10,360 --> 00:20:14,069 (MIchael) The miners came together ith this sense of camaraderie, 307 00:20:14,200 --> 00:20:17,397 this idea that they had to put their Ieisure time to good use. 308 00:20:17,520 --> 00:20:20,830 And an idea that they wanted to make something better of their Iives. 309 00:20:20,960 --> 00:20:23,428 There was a huge appetite for seIf-improvement. 310 00:20:23,560 --> 00:20:26,313 This is from the Iate-19th century onwards. 311 00:20:26,440 --> 00:20:28,317 The Workers' EducationaI Association, 312 00:20:28,440 --> 00:20:32,797 which was a further education system, set up cIasses wherever needed. 313 00:20:32,920 --> 00:20:35,150 And here the cIasses were particuIarIy active. 314 00:20:35,280 --> 00:20:39,068 There's one particuIar cIass which, reaIIy, has now gone down in history. 315 00:20:40,560 --> 00:20:44,633 The AshIngton Group, or PItmen PaInters as they're affectIonately known, 316 00:20:44,760 --> 00:20:49,629 are specIal because they offer us a unIque vIew of mIners' lIves. 317 00:20:49,760 --> 00:20:55,039 The PItmen fIrst came together In 1934 to study somethIng dIfferent. 318 00:20:55,160 --> 00:20:56,991 Art apprecIatIon. 319 00:20:57,760 --> 00:21:01,958 Robert Lyon, a lecturer from Durham UnIversIty, became theIr tutor. 320 00:21:02,080 --> 00:21:05,868 The results of those classes now hang In the Woodhorn Museum. 321 00:21:16,360 --> 00:21:17,793 Gosh. 322 00:21:19,160 --> 00:21:23,073 How powerfuI, how... how extraordinary. 323 00:21:23,200 --> 00:21:26,237 How very, very moving, very, very sensitive, aren't they? 324 00:21:26,360 --> 00:21:29,432 So... so reaI. And these were done by pitmen. 325 00:21:29,560 --> 00:21:31,073 (BIll) These were done by pitmen 326 00:21:31,200 --> 00:21:38,038 and they were done starting in 1934 and going right through untiI the 1980s. 327 00:21:38,160 --> 00:21:42,278 InItIally, the men paInted subjects whIch reflected theIr pastImes. 328 00:21:42,400 --> 00:21:46,029 GrowIng food on theIr allotments, racIng whIppets and pIgeons. 329 00:21:46,160 --> 00:21:47,513 But It soon became clear that 330 00:21:47,640 --> 00:21:51,428 the greatest art would sprIng from theIr daIly workIng lIves 331 00:21:51,560 --> 00:21:55,439 and IncreasIngly they paInted how It was to work In the mInes. 332 00:21:55,560 --> 00:21:58,393 In those days, you hardIy took photographs underground. 333 00:21:58,520 --> 00:22:02,229 If you did, they were big pIate camera type jobs and they were bIack and white. 334 00:22:02,360 --> 00:22:05,033 This is underground in coIour. 335 00:22:05,160 --> 00:22:07,037 It wasn't bIack and white down there. 336 00:22:07,160 --> 00:22:11,631 It was brown and russet and shadowy and subtIe. 337 00:22:11,760 --> 00:22:14,035 Because they worked there aII their daiIy Iives, 338 00:22:14,160 --> 00:22:19,234 they couId do images which were compIeteIy unknown to peopIe outside. 339 00:22:19,360 --> 00:22:21,635 This is what it was Iike in the '30s 340 00:22:21,760 --> 00:22:27,630 when the second stage of jobs for someone going down the pit at age 13 341 00:22:27,760 --> 00:22:30,035 wouId be to Iook after pit ponies. 342 00:22:30,160 --> 00:22:32,833 Jimmy FIoyd shows a rather iIIicit thing going on, 343 00:22:32,960 --> 00:22:36,236 which is feeding the pony in his break. 344 00:22:36,360 --> 00:22:39,511 It's something which nobody eIse wouId have thought of recording, 345 00:22:39,640 --> 00:22:43,428 nobody has ever recorded or iII record now because it's aII vanished. 346 00:22:43,560 --> 00:22:46,711 The paIntIngs that survIved were collected together by the mIners 347 00:22:46,840 --> 00:22:50,230 and stored In a small hut for over 30 years. 348 00:22:50,360 --> 00:22:55,229 (BIll) The pictures hung together are exactIy as I think the group is. 349 00:22:55,360 --> 00:22:56,588 Not individuaIs. 350 00:22:56,720 --> 00:22:59,518 It's a group that echoes and re-echoes, 351 00:22:59,640 --> 00:23:03,030 taIks among itseIves, back chats, Iaughs, shares the memories. 352 00:23:03,160 --> 00:23:07,233 The amazing thing is that nowhere in the worId is there anything Iike this. 353 00:23:07,360 --> 00:23:13,230 There's never been a working men's movement that's kept its best pictures, 354 00:23:13,360 --> 00:23:18,639 kept them together and had such an extraordinary, touching, 355 00:23:18,760 --> 00:23:20,239 and now historic subject. 356 00:23:20,360 --> 00:23:23,830 The coaI industry is virtuaIIy gone. These pictures are here. 357 00:23:23,960 --> 00:23:27,839 Sadly, the AshIngton PItmen PaInters are all dead now. 358 00:23:27,960 --> 00:23:32,670 I'm moved by these paIntIngs. An unsentImental depIctIon of theIr lIves 359 00:23:32,800 --> 00:23:35,189 hewIng the stubborn coal from the earth. 360 00:23:35,320 --> 00:23:39,074 The very coal that powered the mIlls and the locomotIves. 361 00:23:44,080 --> 00:23:45,672 To reach the last stop on thIs leg, 362 00:23:45,800 --> 00:23:49,429 I must return to the maIn lIne that runs south from EdInburgh. 363 00:23:49,560 --> 00:23:53,235 To leave behInd Northumberland and enter Tyne and Wear. 364 00:23:54,480 --> 00:23:58,598 A quIck change at Newcastle affords me a real treat. 365 00:24:00,360 --> 00:24:05,229 Now, this is one of my favourite views from a train in Britain. 366 00:24:05,360 --> 00:24:09,638 Down the River Tyne between NewcastIe and Gateshead. 367 00:24:09,760 --> 00:24:11,432 Isn't that fabuIous? 368 00:24:20,080 --> 00:24:24,039 I often mention how the raiIways spurred the deveIopment of coaI. 369 00:24:24,160 --> 00:24:27,232 But, of course, the converse was just as true. 370 00:24:27,360 --> 00:24:31,239 Many of the important breakthroughs in raiI technoIogy 371 00:24:31,360 --> 00:24:33,635 were made by mining engineers. 372 00:24:33,760 --> 00:24:37,230 The pits were using trucks on tracks 373 00:24:37,360 --> 00:24:41,911 Iong before the invention of the moving steam engine or Iocomotive. 374 00:24:43,760 --> 00:24:45,239 As early as 1620, 375 00:24:45,360 --> 00:24:49,831 mInes were usIng raIls and trucks wIthIn the pIts to move coal. 376 00:24:49,960 --> 00:24:52,349 As the IndustrIal RevolutIon burgeoned, 377 00:24:52,480 --> 00:24:56,268 the VIctorIans IncreasIngly demanded steam power for Industry and raIlways, 378 00:24:56,400 --> 00:25:00,518 requIrIng huge quantItIes of coal to be moved from pIthead to dock. 379 00:25:02,960 --> 00:25:08,114 One of the earlIest InnovatIons for thIs work was the rope-hauled raIlway. 380 00:25:08,240 --> 00:25:12,916 I've come to the Bowes RaIlway Museum near Gateshead wIth engIneer John Young 381 00:25:13,040 --> 00:25:16,589 to see the only survIvIng example In the world. 382 00:25:17,400 --> 00:25:20,710 John, if I understand it, you have brought me to this spectacuIar pIace 383 00:25:20,840 --> 00:25:25,038 because this is one of George Stephenson's earIy raiIway miracIes? 384 00:25:25,160 --> 00:25:27,515 We're on the site of SpringweII CoIIiery. 385 00:25:27,640 --> 00:25:30,677 This is the top of the hiII where the fuII wagons going down 386 00:25:30,800 --> 00:25:33,712 wouId puII empty wagons up powered by gravity. 387 00:25:33,840 --> 00:25:35,319 If I understand this correctIy, 388 00:25:35,440 --> 00:25:38,238 this is operating by gravity and it's operating by baIance. 389 00:25:38,360 --> 00:25:41,238 You've got six fuII wagons going down 390 00:25:41,360 --> 00:25:44,909 and they are puIIing up six empty wagons to the summit. 391 00:25:45,040 --> 00:25:47,235 Yes. A very unique system. 392 00:25:47,360 --> 00:25:50,830 CouIdn't be bettered from 1826 to when it shut in '7 4. 393 00:25:52,160 --> 00:25:55,596 DesIgned by George Stephenson when he was a collIery engIneer, 394 00:25:55,720 --> 00:25:59,952 the rope haulage covered nIne mIles from pIthead to port. 395 00:26:00,080 --> 00:26:03,231 GravIty alone allowed the full wagons to move downhIll 396 00:26:03,360 --> 00:26:07,035 and, as they descended, to pull the empty ones up. 397 00:26:07,160 --> 00:26:09,628 Where coal-laden trucks had to travel uphIll, 398 00:26:09,760 --> 00:26:12,638 a statIonary steam-powered wInch was used. 399 00:26:12,760 --> 00:26:15,320 ThIs system was saId to be so effIcIent 400 00:26:15,440 --> 00:26:17,715 that the fIrst load of coal through In the mornIng 401 00:26:17,840 --> 00:26:19,273 would be enough to pay the wages 402 00:26:19,400 --> 00:26:22,790 of every man workIng on the raIlway that day. 403 00:26:22,920 --> 00:26:25,229 This must have been a dangerous pIace to work. 404 00:26:25,360 --> 00:26:28,318 Very. The death Iist for this site is in its hundreds. 405 00:26:28,440 --> 00:26:33,036 Banksmen wouId have to run in front of fuII wagons to take the ropes off 406 00:26:33,160 --> 00:26:36,436 and other men to run aIongside to put brakes on. 407 00:26:36,560 --> 00:26:41,236 So if it's your job to run down in front of six fuIIy-Ioaded wagons of coaI 408 00:26:41,360 --> 00:26:43,828 as they're gaining speed to get that rope off 409 00:26:43,960 --> 00:26:46,952 and you happen to trip, what's the consequence? 410 00:26:47,080 --> 00:26:48,035 You're dead. 411 00:26:49,360 --> 00:26:52,432 Although the Bowes system closed In 197 4, 412 00:26:52,560 --> 00:26:56,439 the technology was In operatIon much as Stephenson had desIgned It 413 00:26:56,560 --> 00:26:58,596 forjust shy of 150 years. 414 00:27:01,160 --> 00:27:04,630 So they're now running down just on gravity, are they? 415 00:27:04,760 --> 00:27:09,515 Gravity puIIing them out. What I'm having to do is controI the rope speed. 416 00:27:09,640 --> 00:27:11,756 As you can see, the rope's jumping up and down. 417 00:27:11,880 --> 00:27:14,440 If you Iet it pay out under its own weight, 418 00:27:14,560 --> 00:27:18,109 the wagons wouId just go out of controI and fIy off down the yard. 419 00:27:18,240 --> 00:27:20,037 AII cIear! 420 00:27:23,160 --> 00:27:28,792 WIthout the IngenuIty of engIneers workIng on mInIng and shIppIng coal, 421 00:27:28,920 --> 00:27:31,832 It's doubtful whether the key developments of the locomotIve 422 00:27:31,960 --> 00:27:35,873 and the raIlway could have evolved wIth the extraordInary speed that they dId. 423 00:27:37,160 --> 00:27:39,549 The raiIway was an awesome technoIogy, 424 00:27:39,680 --> 00:27:44,834 powerfuI enough to rub out borders and Iink previousIy hostiIe cuItures. 425 00:27:44,960 --> 00:27:47,428 But as it stimuIated the IndustriaI RevoIution, 426 00:27:47,560 --> 00:27:51,439 it created new communities based on coaI. 427 00:27:51,560 --> 00:27:56,315 And they had their own distinct and ceIebrated cuItures. 428 00:27:59,880 --> 00:28:01,791 On the next step of my journey, 429 00:28:01,920 --> 00:28:05,151 I'll be gettIng down and dIrty In a Roman barracks... 430 00:28:05,280 --> 00:28:09,512 - WeII, I am your sIave. Back to work. - Back to work. Quite right, as weII. 431 00:28:09,640 --> 00:28:11,198 ..dIscoverIng a small InventIon 432 00:28:11,320 --> 00:28:13,754 that made a bIg dIfference to the publIc... 433 00:28:13,880 --> 00:28:17,236 Let me do the dog ticket first. That's easy enough. 434 00:28:17,360 --> 00:28:19,635 One dog ticket. 435 00:28:19,760 --> 00:28:23,036 ..and drInkIng In spectacular engIneerIng trIumphs 436 00:28:23,160 --> 00:28:25,037 In the CumbrIan countrysIde. 437 00:28:25,160 --> 00:28:28,118 Thank you for going so sIoly. Isn't that a beautifuI thing? 438 00:28:28,240 --> 00:28:29,195 Aye.