1 00:00:04,287 --> 00:00:06,243 The great British countryside - 2 00:00:06,287 --> 00:00:10,246 setting for one of the most pivotaI battIes of the Second WorId War. 3 00:00:12,047 --> 00:00:14,880 ChurchiII caIIed it the ''front Iine of freedom''. 4 00:00:18,007 --> 00:00:20,726 It was fought by the farmers of Britain. 5 00:00:26,367 --> 00:00:29,837 When war broke out, the Nazis attacked British shipping, 6 00:00:29,887 --> 00:00:32,242 attempting to cut off food imports. 7 00:00:34,447 --> 00:00:38,838 The government turned to farmers to doubIe home-grown food production. 8 00:00:38,887 --> 00:00:40,957 The plough had become a weapon ot war. 9 00:00:41,007 --> 00:00:43,316 lt was the Farmers' principal weapon ot war. 10 00:00:43,367 --> 00:00:47,042 If they faiIed, the nation couId be starved into surrender. 11 00:00:51,807 --> 00:00:55,083 Now archaeoIogists AIex LangIands and Peter Ginn... 12 00:00:56,487 --> 00:00:58,955 ..and historian Ruth Goodman... 13 00:00:59,647 --> 00:01:01,399 ..are turning back the cIock... 14 00:01:02,247 --> 00:01:04,238 ..working Manor Farm in Hampshire 15 00:01:04,287 --> 00:01:07,006 as it wouId have been in the Second WorId War. 16 00:01:08,887 --> 00:01:10,036 Yes! 17 00:01:11,527 --> 00:01:16,442 By 1 942, Britain had endured three years of bIockades. 18 00:01:16,487 --> 00:01:20,241 Farmers were struggIing to deIiver food targets 19 00:01:20,287 --> 00:01:23,279 and raw materiaIs were becoming scarce. 20 00:01:24,087 --> 00:01:28,046 So the team must Iearn how to cope with shortages of fueI... 21 00:01:29,447 --> 00:01:32,120 ..wood...and animaI feed. 22 00:01:32,887 --> 00:01:37,005 They must aIso address the hardship that came with the bombing of our cities 23 00:01:37,047 --> 00:01:39,083 by setting up an emergency feeding centre. 24 00:01:39,127 --> 00:01:40,640 - Gravy, sir? - Yes, please. 25 00:01:40,687 --> 00:01:45,283 This is the untoId story of the countryside at war. 26 00:01:47,407 --> 00:01:49,398 (Air-raid siren) 27 00:01:57,007 --> 00:02:01,398 By the third year of war, Britain's food imports had hit a new Iow. 28 00:02:03,167 --> 00:02:05,920 In 1 94 1, America had entered the war, 29 00:02:05,967 --> 00:02:09,277 which meant they had fewer ships to export food to Britain, 30 00:02:09,327 --> 00:02:11,363 increasing the strain on farmers. 31 00:02:15,207 --> 00:02:17,402 To save the country from starvation, 32 00:02:17,447 --> 00:02:23,283 the Minister of Food demanded that an extra 840,000 tons of wheat be produced. 33 00:02:27,687 --> 00:02:30,997 Even more grassIand was pIoughed up to meet the demand 34 00:02:31,047 --> 00:02:32,924 but it stiII wasn't enough. 35 00:02:35,527 --> 00:02:38,325 With aII these fieIds given over to producing cereaIs, 36 00:02:38,367 --> 00:02:41,484 farmers struggIed to find the space for other crops. 37 00:02:42,567 --> 00:02:48,403 The Minister of AgricuIture insisted that every spare scrap of Iand be put to good use. 38 00:02:48,447 --> 00:02:53,043 Even Leicester Square and Regent's Park were dug over to grow vegetabIes. 39 00:02:53,727 --> 00:02:58,198 We're gonna get rid ot all this scrap metal, which can be used in the munitions tactories, 40 00:02:58,247 --> 00:03:00,124 to build tanks and planes. 41 00:03:00,167 --> 00:03:02,044 We're gonna tree up a patch ot land. 42 00:03:02,087 --> 00:03:05,796 lt doesn't look like much now but once we get this cleared - it we ever do... 43 00:03:05,847 --> 00:03:07,326 - Want a hand? - Probably. 44 00:03:07,367 --> 00:03:10,837 Once we get it cleared, we will be able to put a crop in 45 00:03:10,887 --> 00:03:12,366 tor harvest later in the year. 46 00:03:12,407 --> 00:03:14,159 But we've got to work quickly. 47 00:03:15,247 --> 00:03:20,196 AIex and Peter are going to grow a bean crop to suppIement the feed for the dairy herd. 48 00:03:20,247 --> 00:03:21,839 But there's a probIem. 49 00:03:21,887 --> 00:03:25,402 SmaII pieces of Iand Iike this had never been cuItivated, 50 00:03:25,447 --> 00:03:27,005 so we're in need of pIoughing. 51 00:03:27,047 --> 00:03:28,719 Wow! This is in good nick. 52 00:03:28,767 --> 00:03:33,921 But their size and awkward shape meant that an ordinary tractor couIdn't do the job. 53 00:03:33,967 --> 00:03:37,801 So we're looking tor something that can plough that land 54 00:03:37,847 --> 00:03:39,997 and harrow that land. 55 00:03:40,047 --> 00:03:42,038 The government had a soIution, 56 00:03:42,087 --> 00:03:45,124 a scheme where farmers couId Iease speciaIist equipment 57 00:03:45,167 --> 00:03:47,203 to heIp maximise output. 58 00:03:48,327 --> 00:03:51,763 And the ministry ot Agriculture are encouraging us to do these things. 59 00:03:51,807 --> 00:03:55,595 They're actually offering these things on hire. So let's take our pick. 60 00:03:55,647 --> 00:03:57,365 Let's see what we've got. 61 00:03:57,407 --> 00:03:59,762 Obviously something like that is too big. 62 00:04:01,007 --> 00:04:03,202 What's that? ''The Trusty tractor. 63 00:04:03,247 --> 00:04:05,283 lt does the work ot two horses. 64 00:04:05,327 --> 00:04:07,363 lt ploughs over an acre per day, 65 00:04:07,407 --> 00:04:09,363 using only two gallons ot petrol. 66 00:04:09,407 --> 00:04:12,558 A Land Girl can start it and it steers itselt.'' 67 00:04:12,607 --> 00:04:14,563 - Wow. - We're onto a winner. 68 00:04:14,607 --> 00:04:18,282 ALEX: lt a Land Girl can start it, maybe even we can start it. 69 00:04:21,967 --> 00:04:25,437 By 1 942, there wasn't just a food shortage. 70 00:04:25,487 --> 00:04:28,160 Timber was in short suppIy, too. 71 00:04:28,207 --> 00:04:31,836 Wood imports decIined as shipping Ianes were cut off. 72 00:04:33,567 --> 00:04:38,277 At the outbreak ot war, Britain was importing almost all her timber. 73 00:04:39,407 --> 00:04:44,401 l think it was only tour per cent ot that timber that we needed and used in Britain 74 00:04:44,447 --> 00:04:47,041 that could be sourced trom Britain. 75 00:04:47,087 --> 00:04:48,884 ln tact, once we looked round us, 76 00:04:48,927 --> 00:04:52,920 we realised that the problem was not so much, where was the wood going to come trom, 77 00:04:52,967 --> 00:04:55,481 but who the heck was going to get it? 78 00:04:55,527 --> 00:04:58,997 With many maIe forestry workers being drafted to fight, 79 00:04:59,047 --> 00:05:02,835 the Ministry of Labour caIIed on the nation's women to step in. 80 00:05:02,887 --> 00:05:05,082 They formed the Women's Timber Corps 81 00:05:05,127 --> 00:05:10,247 and femaIe tree feIIers soon became known as ''IumberjiIIs''. 82 00:05:11,967 --> 00:05:13,559 Timber! 83 00:05:15,487 --> 00:05:18,923 Nowadays you might think to yourselt, ''What's the big deal? Wood? 84 00:05:18,967 --> 00:05:21,356 What's it mostly used tor? Paper. Furniture.'' 85 00:05:22,047 --> 00:05:25,642 But in the wartime, it had a really important tunction. 86 00:05:25,687 --> 00:05:29,566 For a start, many ot our best tighter aircraft were made ot wood. 87 00:05:31,487 --> 00:05:34,479 Wartime industry aIso depended on wood. 88 00:05:34,527 --> 00:05:37,678 The Iargest consumers of timber were coaI mines, 89 00:05:37,727 --> 00:05:40,719 which required wooden pit props to keep them stabIe. 90 00:05:42,047 --> 00:05:45,722 lt looks pretty hard work. l should imagine you'd get pretty tit. 91 00:05:45,767 --> 00:05:49,999 Jo Mason and Tracy Anderson work for the Forestry Commission 92 00:05:50,047 --> 00:05:53,198 and have enIisted the heIp of Ruth and her daughter Eve. 93 00:05:53,247 --> 00:05:57,160 Basically, it you just pull and don't push. 94 00:05:57,207 --> 00:06:00,438 - Pull, don't push. - Right, this is to you, to me, isn't it? 95 00:06:00,487 --> 00:06:02,478 To you tirst. 96 00:06:02,527 --> 00:06:06,236 GirIs as young as 1 4 were recruited to work in the forests. 97 00:06:06,927 --> 00:06:09,122 The toughest job was feIIing the trees - 98 00:06:09,167 --> 00:06:13,365 something the government was initiaIIy reIuctant to aIIow women to do. 99 00:06:14,327 --> 00:06:18,718 lt's hard work but it's not the tull-body thing l was sort ot expecting it to be. 100 00:06:19,447 --> 00:06:22,120 When you look at who joined the Timber Corps, 101 00:06:22,167 --> 00:06:25,842 you tind it's girls who worked in shops, 102 00:06:25,887 --> 00:06:27,639 secretaries. 103 00:06:27,687 --> 00:06:32,715 l think it must have given a lot ot young women a real teeling ot selt-contidence, selt-respect, 104 00:06:32,767 --> 00:06:34,678 that they could be out there, 105 00:06:34,727 --> 00:06:37,764 be doing something truly helptul tor the war effort, 106 00:06:37,807 --> 00:06:41,083 something tor your country in a really practical way. 107 00:06:41,127 --> 00:06:43,766 Exactly the sorts ot things that we're proving. 108 00:06:43,807 --> 00:06:45,525 That girls were just as good as boys. 109 00:06:49,127 --> 00:06:53,803 The Second WorId War saw a surge in the mechanisation of British farms 110 00:06:53,847 --> 00:06:57,396 as the Ministry of AgricuIture encouraged farmers to use machines 111 00:06:57,447 --> 00:06:59,278 to increase efficiency. 112 00:07:00,167 --> 00:07:02,123 With animaI feed in short suppIy, 113 00:07:02,167 --> 00:07:05,079 AIex and Peter are using their cIeared patch of Iand 114 00:07:05,127 --> 00:07:07,482 to grow beans for the cattIe - 115 00:07:07,527 --> 00:07:10,405 with the heIp of a trio of tractor enthusiasts, 116 00:07:10,447 --> 00:07:13,359 Richard Louden, Geoff RavenhaII and Shane Parry. 117 00:07:15,287 --> 00:07:19,360 - Hello. Peter, what have we got here? - Oh, a little beast, isn't it? 118 00:07:19,927 --> 00:07:23,044 That's the sort ot tractor l could probably work with. 119 00:07:23,087 --> 00:07:25,840 - This is your Trusty tractor tor the next week. - Right. 120 00:07:25,887 --> 00:07:28,276 - ''Trusty tractor''? - Yeah. 121 00:07:28,327 --> 00:07:31,876 Best-selling small tractor ot its type at the moment. 122 00:07:32,607 --> 00:07:35,883 The Trusty tractor, once confined to market gardens, 123 00:07:35,927 --> 00:07:40,557 was ideaI for answering the wartime need to cuItivate awkward patches of Iand. 124 00:07:42,327 --> 00:07:45,524 You've got it tor a week, with a range ot attachments. 125 00:07:45,567 --> 00:07:48,445 l've got a book here with all the attachments in. 126 00:07:48,487 --> 00:07:52,605 You've got a plough with it and disc harrows and all sorts. 127 00:07:52,647 --> 00:07:55,002 - So l should think that will do you. - Excellent. 128 00:07:55,047 --> 00:07:57,686 A bit ot privy reading tor you there, Peter. 129 00:07:58,367 --> 00:08:01,086 OriginaIIy designed in 1 933, 130 00:08:01,127 --> 00:08:03,721 the Trusty was modified during the war 131 00:08:03,767 --> 00:08:08,124 to reduce the amount of steeI it required as suppIies ran short. 132 00:08:08,167 --> 00:08:12,080 But this is the kind ot thing, that tor our patch ot land, would be ideal. 133 00:08:12,127 --> 00:08:15,483 Small patches like this were exactly what was needed 134 00:08:15,527 --> 00:08:17,518 to be put into production. 135 00:08:17,567 --> 00:08:19,046 Well, let's hope so. 136 00:08:19,087 --> 00:08:23,683 And we've got something here that's sort ot halt way in between me and a spade... 137 00:08:24,407 --> 00:08:26,523 ..and the tractor and the plough. 138 00:08:26,567 --> 00:08:28,239 - This is kind ot... - Exactly. 139 00:08:29,447 --> 00:08:32,519 The first job is to prepare the tractor for pIoughing. 140 00:08:32,567 --> 00:08:37,436 Rather than being towed, the pIoughing attachment forms one unit with the tractor. 141 00:08:38,687 --> 00:08:42,805 - lt should be a one-man operation, this, so... - Right. 142 00:08:42,847 --> 00:08:45,839 You only need tive people when you put it in that hedge. 143 00:08:47,367 --> 00:08:50,837 - Do you want to start this? - Yeah. You'd better show me how to start it. 144 00:08:50,887 --> 00:08:52,639 OK, tuel's on. 145 00:08:52,687 --> 00:08:55,326 So this is like starting the old lawnmower. 146 00:08:55,367 --> 00:08:57,358 Here we go. 147 00:08:57,407 --> 00:08:59,398 (Engine chugs) 148 00:09:00,767 --> 00:09:01,916 Oh! 149 00:09:03,087 --> 00:09:04,918 That's a dream. 150 00:09:04,967 --> 00:09:06,958 Your tield awaits. 151 00:09:12,767 --> 00:09:17,204 Over haIf a biIIion cubic feet of wood was needed during the war, 152 00:09:17,247 --> 00:09:20,876 for everything from aircraft to ships and rifIes. 153 00:09:24,967 --> 00:09:28,004 Ruth and Eve have hit a common stumbIing bIock. 154 00:09:28,047 --> 00:09:30,959 The weight of the tree is causing the saw to jam. 155 00:09:31,007 --> 00:09:33,123 l think we detinitely need to... 156 00:09:33,167 --> 00:09:34,919 - Tree's pinching, isn't it? - Yeah. 157 00:09:36,327 --> 00:09:38,124 We need a wedge. 158 00:09:38,847 --> 00:09:41,315 might be the satest option at this point. 159 00:09:42,527 --> 00:09:46,486 - Can we just have a little look? - We're starting to pinch. (Laughs) 160 00:09:46,527 --> 00:09:50,440 Well, it's got quite a big crown on it, this one, so it's gonna catch the wind. 161 00:09:50,487 --> 00:09:53,718 You can see it rocking, and when it rocks, it'll come back and jam the saw 162 00:09:53,767 --> 00:09:55,564 and you won't be able to do anything. 163 00:09:55,607 --> 00:09:59,122 So the best thing we can do to help you is put a wedge in the back. 164 00:09:59,167 --> 00:10:03,080 That'll keep the cut open and the saw will move treely through. 165 00:10:03,127 --> 00:10:07,279 Bang the wedge in at the back here, taking care not to bang it into the saw. 166 00:10:08,567 --> 00:10:11,479 That is so much treer with that wedge in. 167 00:10:13,007 --> 00:10:14,599 (Groaning) 168 00:10:17,087 --> 00:10:18,679 Whoa, that's moving. 169 00:10:18,727 --> 00:10:21,844 l think we're nearly there. She's beginning to really wobble. 170 00:10:21,887 --> 00:10:25,243 You can see the gap opening and closing and the wedge bobbing up and down. 171 00:10:25,287 --> 00:10:27,642 When she goes, we need to get out ot the way. 172 00:10:27,687 --> 00:10:30,724 And shout ''timber'' when it goes cos they worked in groups. 173 00:10:30,767 --> 00:10:33,565 You'd want everybody else to know that the tree's about to go. 174 00:10:33,607 --> 00:10:34,676 Yes! 175 00:10:42,887 --> 00:10:44,400 She's going. 176 00:10:44,447 --> 00:10:46,244 She's going! Going! 177 00:10:46,287 --> 00:10:48,118 Timber! 178 00:10:52,527 --> 00:10:54,518 (Laughter) 179 00:10:55,767 --> 00:10:57,803 Well done. 180 00:11:00,327 --> 00:11:01,646 Yeah. 181 00:11:02,807 --> 00:11:03,842 OK. 182 00:11:03,887 --> 00:11:06,276 The Trusty tractor is ready to go. 183 00:11:07,967 --> 00:11:10,037 lt's now time to start ploughing. 184 00:11:12,087 --> 00:11:15,966 The depth of the pIough couId be easiIy controIIed by a crank handIe. 185 00:11:17,607 --> 00:11:21,839 Experienced farmers couId even set the tractor running on its own, 186 00:11:21,887 --> 00:11:24,959 onIy needing to turn it around at each end of the pIot. 187 00:11:29,727 --> 00:11:34,323 At tirst appearance, this is a pretty heavy-looking piece ot kit, 188 00:11:34,367 --> 00:11:36,278 but actually... 189 00:11:36,327 --> 00:11:38,079 with it set right... 190 00:11:39,287 --> 00:11:41,642 ..you can let the engine do all ot the work. 191 00:11:42,527 --> 00:11:45,485 And l'm actually now just guiding it, you know. 192 00:11:47,927 --> 00:11:49,918 But it's still quite cumbersome 193 00:11:49,967 --> 00:11:52,356 and l'm territied ot hitting a stone. 194 00:11:55,407 --> 00:11:59,923 The Trusty tractor was entireIy British-made untiI 1 943, 195 00:11:59,967 --> 00:12:03,676 when wartime shortages resuIted in the use of American engines. 196 00:12:06,607 --> 00:12:11,522 With the Iand pIoughed, the finaI job is to smooth out the soiI ready for sowing. 197 00:12:13,007 --> 00:12:16,283 The pIough couId be easiIy repIaced with a harrow attachment, 198 00:12:16,327 --> 00:12:19,842 one of over 20 accessories that came with the Trusty tractor. 199 00:12:20,527 --> 00:12:22,245 So that's the tield done. 200 00:12:22,287 --> 00:12:25,404 Time to get the beans in while the sun's still shining. 201 00:12:26,287 --> 00:12:28,676 Right. Here we go. 202 00:12:37,807 --> 00:12:42,927 The next stage for Ruth and Eve is to remove aII the smaIIer branches from the tree, 203 00:12:42,967 --> 00:12:44,958 a process known as snedding. 204 00:12:46,247 --> 00:12:49,842 When you joined the Timber Corps, you went off on tour weeks' training. 205 00:12:49,887 --> 00:12:53,357 The tirst couple ot weeks you did a little ot absolutely everything. 206 00:12:53,407 --> 00:12:56,240 Then you were allowed to choose which things you were best at 207 00:12:56,287 --> 00:12:59,643 and tor the second two weeks ot training, you concentrated on them. 208 00:12:59,687 --> 00:13:04,124 Whether it be the measuring, the surveying, the telling itselt, the snedding 209 00:13:04,167 --> 00:13:06,476 or indeed bark peeling. 210 00:13:06,527 --> 00:13:08,279 This is the wrong species tor that 211 00:13:08,327 --> 00:13:11,763 but it you were interested in making explosives, 212 00:13:11,807 --> 00:13:15,117 a really usetul thing was the bark ot an old buckthorn tree. 213 00:13:15,167 --> 00:13:19,001 So anything like that was caretully peeled and debarked. 214 00:13:19,047 --> 00:13:22,926 The bark to be made into charcoal, that was then part ot the explosives industry. 215 00:13:25,127 --> 00:13:28,676 GirIs couId be sent anywhere in the country to be biIIeted with IocaIs 216 00:13:28,727 --> 00:13:31,116 or to stay in hosteIs or camps. 217 00:13:32,167 --> 00:13:37,002 One person who knows first-hand the triaIs of being in the Women's Timber Corps 218 00:13:37,047 --> 00:13:41,006 is Irene HoweII who became a IumberjiII in 1 943. 219 00:13:41,047 --> 00:13:43,720 What were you doing betorehand, lrene? 220 00:13:43,767 --> 00:13:45,917 - Upstairs, downstairs. - Really? 221 00:13:45,967 --> 00:13:48,925 So a complete change trom what you'd been doing betore. 222 00:13:48,967 --> 00:13:51,401 That must have been quite nice, actually. 223 00:13:51,447 --> 00:13:53,836 - Out in the... - Out doing something different. 224 00:13:53,887 --> 00:13:56,481 Rather than upstairs and downstairs. Yes. 225 00:13:57,607 --> 00:13:59,757 Not a very nice job, l'm atraid. 226 00:13:59,807 --> 00:14:03,516 Yeah, so the Women's Timber Corps was, in a sense, sort ot a step up? 227 00:14:03,567 --> 00:14:04,602 Yes. 228 00:14:05,367 --> 00:14:07,323 But conditions were tough. 229 00:14:07,367 --> 00:14:10,120 Rheumatism was a common aiIment amongst IumberjiIIs, 230 00:14:10,167 --> 00:14:14,445 resuIting from Iong periods working in the forest in damp conditions. 231 00:14:15,767 --> 00:14:18,327 - Oh, is this you? - Yes. 232 00:14:18,367 --> 00:14:22,645 What did you like best about being a member ot the Timber Corps? 233 00:14:22,687 --> 00:14:26,726 Being with the other girls, really. l wasn't used to being with a lot ot girls. 234 00:14:26,767 --> 00:14:29,076 We used to have a good time. We used to enjoy it. 235 00:14:29,127 --> 00:14:32,881 Did you teel you were part ot the war effort when you were out in the woods? 236 00:14:32,927 --> 00:14:34,645 Well, yes. 237 00:14:34,687 --> 00:14:37,326 Yes, you were certainly part ot the war effort. 238 00:14:37,367 --> 00:14:38,846 We had to do something. 239 00:14:38,887 --> 00:14:43,802 After 1 8, you all had to do something, so you just got on with it. 240 00:14:43,847 --> 00:14:44,836 Yeah. 241 00:14:45,607 --> 00:14:49,043 Just as important as feIIing a tree, was measuring it. 242 00:14:51,527 --> 00:14:54,564 - So this is to work out how everybody gets paid. - Yes. 243 00:14:54,607 --> 00:14:58,520 The Women's Timber Corps got paid by results. Okey-doke. 244 00:14:58,567 --> 00:15:02,162 So let's measure us off a ten-toot length and see how much we get, shall we? 245 00:15:02,207 --> 00:15:06,883 CaIcuIating the amount of wood in a tree was the most inteIIectuaIIy demanding job. 246 00:15:06,927 --> 00:15:09,646 It was vitaI to ensure that nothing was wasted. 247 00:15:09,687 --> 00:15:12,042 - There we go. Ten toot. - Ten toot. 248 00:15:12,767 --> 00:15:16,316 It normaIIy went to weII-educated girIs who exceIIed at maths. 249 00:15:17,007 --> 00:15:17,996 OK? 250 00:15:18,047 --> 00:15:20,322 We'll take the circumterence ot the tree now. 251 00:15:20,367 --> 00:15:22,756 Not aII the timber in the tree is usabIe. 252 00:15:22,807 --> 00:15:26,641 The curved sides must be removed, Ieaving just a centraI portion. 253 00:15:27,887 --> 00:15:30,355 To caIcuIate the amount of usabIe timber, 254 00:15:30,407 --> 00:15:32,875 a Hoppus conversion tabIe was used. 255 00:15:33,927 --> 00:15:36,395 So that's nine...something nine... 256 00:15:36,447 --> 00:15:38,756 l can't see what. Four toot, nine. 257 00:15:38,807 --> 00:15:40,559 Four toot, nine. 258 00:15:40,607 --> 00:15:45,601 So ten toot lengths, we're looking at a girth ot tour toot, nine. 259 00:15:45,647 --> 00:15:47,126 Ten toot log. 260 00:15:47,167 --> 00:15:49,840 - You just read across there to the number... 1 4.1 . 261 00:15:49,887 --> 00:15:52,560 1 4.1 square teet in that piece ot timber. 262 00:15:53,767 --> 00:15:57,476 Now the tree is ready to be sent to the sawmiII for finaI processing. 263 00:15:59,967 --> 00:16:04,358 Before the war, onIy four per cent of the timber used in Britain was home-grown. 264 00:16:04,407 --> 00:16:06,921 By the end, it was 60 per cent - 265 00:16:06,967 --> 00:16:09,083 over 1 8 miIIion tons. 266 00:16:14,447 --> 00:16:15,926 (Bicycle bell) 267 00:16:16,727 --> 00:16:19,924 Throughout the war, miIk was seen by the government 268 00:16:19,967 --> 00:16:21,923 as essentiaI for the nation's heaIth, 269 00:16:21,967 --> 00:16:25,516 a much-needed source of nutrition, especiaIIy for chiIdren. 270 00:16:26,647 --> 00:16:29,036 To produce enough for the popuIation, 271 00:16:29,087 --> 00:16:32,557 caIves were removed from their mothers very soon after birth 272 00:16:32,607 --> 00:16:37,203 and fed with artificiaI miIk, Ieaving the fresh miIk for human consumption. 273 00:16:37,247 --> 00:16:39,078 lt's up to you. 274 00:16:39,127 --> 00:16:42,597 Manor Farm's caIves have been taught to feed from bottIes 275 00:16:42,647 --> 00:16:44,956 but bottIe-feeding is time consuming, 276 00:16:45,007 --> 00:16:48,079 so AIex and Peter must train them to drink from a bucket. 277 00:16:49,647 --> 00:16:52,115 Ooh, this one's got teeth, Peter. 278 00:16:52,167 --> 00:16:53,646 Nearly. 279 00:16:55,167 --> 00:16:56,520 Ooh! 280 00:16:56,567 --> 00:16:58,285 (Chuckles) 281 00:16:58,327 --> 00:17:00,318 Not stupid, that one. 282 00:17:00,367 --> 00:17:05,077 What we'll do is remove these trom the equation entirely. 283 00:17:05,127 --> 00:17:06,606 Yeah. 284 00:17:07,847 --> 00:17:10,486 Come on, there we go. You're so close. 285 00:17:10,527 --> 00:17:13,963 Yeah, yeah, yeah. Nearly. Nearly. 286 00:17:14,327 --> 00:17:16,887 - He's still sucking trom my tingers. - Yeah. 287 00:17:16,927 --> 00:17:19,077 lt needs to learn to lap. 288 00:17:19,127 --> 00:17:20,799 Here we are. Here we are. 289 00:17:23,447 --> 00:17:25,517 lt's like a milk bonanza. 290 00:17:26,207 --> 00:17:28,004 This is where the good stuff is. 291 00:17:30,207 --> 00:17:32,198 And there we go. 292 00:17:34,607 --> 00:17:36,882 There we go. 293 00:17:36,927 --> 00:17:39,760 lt's one ot those moments on a tarm - on any tarm - 294 00:17:39,807 --> 00:17:43,482 when you get that moment ot independence in an animal. 295 00:17:43,527 --> 00:17:47,281 You know it's got just a much better chance in lite. 296 00:17:48,687 --> 00:17:51,679 Improved methods of dairy farming paid off. 297 00:17:51,727 --> 00:17:56,084 In 1 942, saIes of miIk hit over a biIIion gaIIons, 298 00:17:56,127 --> 00:17:58,766 40 per cent above pre-war IeveIs. 299 00:18:01,807 --> 00:18:05,686 But with imported feed scarce and Iess miIk for the caIves, 300 00:18:05,727 --> 00:18:09,322 they needed an additionaI source of protein in their diet. 301 00:18:09,367 --> 00:18:11,835 One soIution was beans. 302 00:18:13,887 --> 00:18:18,199 AIex and Peter have ordered a new seed driII to sow the beans more quickIy. 303 00:18:18,247 --> 00:18:21,239 But their efforts have been thwarted by the weather. 304 00:18:22,087 --> 00:18:23,918 Well, here we are. 305 00:18:24,607 --> 00:18:26,325 Not as dry as it could be. 306 00:18:26,367 --> 00:18:29,404 lt's not. And the problem is the rain isn't letting up. 307 00:18:29,447 --> 00:18:34,043 We've got clouds in the sky. We're expecting more rain on top ot what we've had. 308 00:18:34,087 --> 00:18:37,762 You can see there's water sitting on the ground but we've got an afternoon ot dry 309 00:18:37,807 --> 00:18:40,685 and we've just got to get these beans in the ground. 310 00:18:40,727 --> 00:18:42,877 - You ready tor it, Peter? - l am. 311 00:18:42,927 --> 00:18:46,715 But the main thing is, in the context ot the war, this was bonus ground. 312 00:18:46,767 --> 00:18:50,999 This was turning every inch ot your tarm into something that could produce a crop. 313 00:18:58,647 --> 00:19:00,603 - That's enough in there? - That's enough. 314 00:19:00,647 --> 00:19:04,925 OK. That's the hopper tull. lt's a tantastic piece ot kit, this. 315 00:19:04,967 --> 00:19:08,596 This is really versatile. You can sow virtually any type ot seed. 316 00:19:08,647 --> 00:19:12,117 At the moment, we've got it set up so that it's tor beans. 317 00:19:12,167 --> 00:19:16,365 There's a regulator on the back which determines how often 318 00:19:16,407 --> 00:19:18,079 it drops the beans out at. 319 00:19:18,127 --> 00:19:20,357 - We've got it set up tor six inches? - Yeah. 320 00:19:20,407 --> 00:19:22,238 The only problem is, Peter, 321 00:19:22,287 --> 00:19:25,199 is as you're pushing this through this claggy, tilthy clay, 322 00:19:25,247 --> 00:19:27,602 you'll struggle to get traction with this wheel. 323 00:19:27,647 --> 00:19:29,205 my only concern. 324 00:19:29,247 --> 00:19:32,478 So you're going to walk in tront, throwing sawdust down? 325 00:19:32,527 --> 00:19:35,883 No, l'm going to stand here on the dry and watch you. 326 00:19:40,887 --> 00:19:44,436 As the wheeI rotates, it turns two chambers. 327 00:19:44,487 --> 00:19:48,605 One removes the bean from the hopper and sends it into the second chamber, 328 00:19:48,647 --> 00:19:52,322 which drops the bean into the ground, producing a cIicking sound. 329 00:19:52,367 --> 00:19:57,202 That is...going, going. lt's good. But we're sowing quite thin to start with. 330 00:19:57,247 --> 00:19:59,761 So we know we've got enough beans to do the whole patch, 331 00:19:59,807 --> 00:20:01,445 then we can come over and sow again. 332 00:20:01,487 --> 00:20:03,125 But this should... Oh. 333 00:20:03,167 --> 00:20:04,964 (Laughs) Oh, no. 334 00:20:06,287 --> 00:20:07,959 Oops. 335 00:20:08,007 --> 00:20:10,202 That hopper's not tixed shut. 336 00:20:12,407 --> 00:20:14,079 What are you doing? 337 00:20:14,127 --> 00:20:16,357 Shall l just put them on the road? 338 00:20:17,167 --> 00:20:19,681 Yeah, put them on the road, Peter. 339 00:20:20,887 --> 00:20:22,286 Oops. 340 00:20:22,327 --> 00:20:25,046 We're in tor a long afternoon, l think. 341 00:20:26,367 --> 00:20:29,723 The waterIogged soiI is making the job difficuIt, 342 00:20:29,767 --> 00:20:31,837 but the boys need to persevere. 343 00:20:39,447 --> 00:20:41,403 - All done? - All done. 344 00:20:41,447 --> 00:20:44,245 Bit ot a struggle but we got there. How's it looking? 345 00:20:44,287 --> 00:20:47,484 Well, it's looking like they're evenly drilled here. 346 00:20:47,527 --> 00:20:50,599 Let's just hope they're evenly drilled across the whole patch. 347 00:20:50,647 --> 00:20:54,276 But the main problem we'll have here is that we don't have very good drainage 348 00:20:54,327 --> 00:20:56,158 and this clay soil is holding the water. 349 00:20:56,207 --> 00:20:58,516 So it's gonna be a tough call. 350 00:21:02,447 --> 00:21:05,439 The wartime reduction in imported animaI feed 351 00:21:05,487 --> 00:21:07,603 was especiaIIy tough on pigs. 352 00:21:08,287 --> 00:21:12,678 Without enough food to sustain them, the government ordered a massive cuII 353 00:21:12,727 --> 00:21:14,843 and pig meat became scarce. 354 00:21:16,727 --> 00:21:18,957 One soIution from the Ministry of Food 355 00:21:19,007 --> 00:21:21,123 was to estabIish pig cIubs 356 00:21:21,167 --> 00:21:23,965 where communities coIIected their kitchen Ieftovers 357 00:21:24,007 --> 00:21:25,565 to feed a shared animaI, 358 00:21:25,607 --> 00:21:27,757 turning waste into meat. 359 00:21:28,847 --> 00:21:32,920 Six months ago, Ruth started a cIub with a pigIet caIIed Shorty. 360 00:21:34,447 --> 00:21:37,280 Now Ruth and stockwoman Debbie Underwood 361 00:21:37,327 --> 00:21:40,842 have come to check whether Shorty has grown Iarge enough for sIaughter. 362 00:21:40,887 --> 00:21:42,445 Hello, girl. 363 00:21:43,087 --> 00:21:45,601 - She's tatter, isn't she? - She is. 364 00:21:45,647 --> 00:21:47,126 Sorry. mind me. 365 00:21:47,167 --> 00:21:50,716 Hello, Shorty. How you doing, girl? Yeah. 366 00:21:50,767 --> 00:21:52,723 - So she's about six months old now? - Yeah. 367 00:21:52,767 --> 00:21:57,045 Six months she's been eating our pig club scraps and enjoying herselt. 368 00:21:57,087 --> 00:22:01,558 - l don't think she's ready tor slaughter yet. - No, she's still on the small side. 369 00:22:02,287 --> 00:22:04,278 - lt you teel her back... - Yeah. 370 00:22:04,327 --> 00:22:09,276 That's the way we do things now. ln years gone by, they did things differently. 371 00:22:09,327 --> 00:22:13,081 One way they used to teel how much weight they had on them, 372 00:22:13,127 --> 00:22:15,277 they'd put a thumb up the pig's bottom 373 00:22:15,327 --> 00:22:18,683 and you could pinch and see how much meat was there. 374 00:22:18,727 --> 00:22:21,719 - We don't do that nowadays. - That doesn't sound terribly lovely. 375 00:22:21,767 --> 00:22:25,442 No, l'm not offering to do that now, but that is one way ot doing it. 376 00:22:25,487 --> 00:22:27,717 So can you teel, it you push down... 377 00:22:27,767 --> 00:22:30,679 - You can teel... - You can teel where the bones are. 378 00:22:30,727 --> 00:22:35,881 And it gives you a good idea ot how much covering ot tat there is on there. 379 00:22:36,887 --> 00:22:39,685 But they also love a good back scratch as well. 380 00:22:39,727 --> 00:22:42,878 So she's really tirm-tleshed, which is good. 381 00:22:42,927 --> 00:22:47,045 That means muscle is building there but there's not a great deal ot tat. 382 00:22:48,127 --> 00:22:50,846 Nowadays people don't want too much tat on their pigs, 383 00:22:50,887 --> 00:22:54,880 but during the war we were desperate tor any animal tats we could get our hands on. 384 00:22:54,927 --> 00:22:57,236 A nice tat pig gives you lots ot lard. 385 00:22:57,287 --> 00:23:00,359 So it wouldn't be a bad thing it she put on a bit. 386 00:23:00,407 --> 00:23:03,205 lnteresting that now we're getting close to slaughter, 387 00:23:03,247 --> 00:23:04,726 we're sizing her up. 388 00:23:04,767 --> 00:23:08,726 We've got to share her. Halt ot her has to go back to the government. 389 00:23:09,487 --> 00:23:13,162 We get the other halt. So that's halt ot a pig between tour ot us. 390 00:23:13,207 --> 00:23:15,562 lt might not seem like very much, 391 00:23:15,607 --> 00:23:19,725 but when you're so extremely short ot absolutely everything, 392 00:23:19,767 --> 00:23:22,122 every little bit helps. 393 00:23:24,327 --> 00:23:26,124 As weII as bacon, 394 00:23:26,167 --> 00:23:30,524 petroI and dieseI had aIso been rationed since the start of the war. 395 00:23:30,567 --> 00:23:34,606 But in 1 942, the shortages grew even more extreme. 396 00:23:36,447 --> 00:23:39,564 FueI for the armed forces was prioritised, 397 00:23:39,607 --> 00:23:42,326 so those who didn't need their cars for vitaI work 398 00:23:42,367 --> 00:23:44,403 couId no Ionger buy petroI. 399 00:23:46,407 --> 00:23:50,719 Farmers were aIIowed smaII rations of petroI, primariIy for their tractors. 400 00:23:50,767 --> 00:23:54,760 But they needed to Iook for aIternative options for other farm vehicIes. 401 00:23:55,447 --> 00:23:58,723 The boys have found inspiration from an unIikeIy contraption. 402 00:23:58,767 --> 00:24:01,042 Are you breaking something? 403 00:24:01,087 --> 00:24:02,805 Have a look at this. 404 00:24:03,567 --> 00:24:07,162 - massey-Harris... - massey-Harris tractor but what else? 405 00:24:07,207 --> 00:24:11,439 Well, it's obviously been moditied to run off ot...some other torm ot tuel. 406 00:24:11,487 --> 00:24:13,717 Yes, exactly. Solid tuel. 407 00:24:13,767 --> 00:24:15,883 So wood and coal. 408 00:24:16,647 --> 00:24:20,481 Fighting in North Africa severeIy disrupted petroI imports. 409 00:24:21,167 --> 00:24:24,682 But there was an aIternative fueI that was abundant in Britain. 410 00:24:24,727 --> 00:24:26,877 CoaI. 411 00:24:26,927 --> 00:24:29,919 So you've got all ot your solid tuel burning in here, 412 00:24:29,967 --> 00:24:33,642 but that isn't what's providing the power source. 413 00:24:33,687 --> 00:24:37,726 lt's merely providing the gas that you're then gonna burn tor the power source. 414 00:24:37,767 --> 00:24:40,201 So coal and wood contains caloritic value. 415 00:24:40,247 --> 00:24:44,684 A lot ot that caloritic value is turning into gas and that's what we're trying to capture. 416 00:24:44,727 --> 00:24:46,843 - This is a tilter chamber. - lt must be. 417 00:24:46,887 --> 00:24:48,957 So we've got a rough idea ot how this works. 418 00:24:49,007 --> 00:24:51,567 You can tind us a vehicle and convert it. 419 00:24:51,607 --> 00:24:53,359 l can try. 420 00:24:54,047 --> 00:24:57,119 Well, look, l'll tell you what. Try and get your head around this. 421 00:24:57,167 --> 00:24:59,203 See it you can knock something up. 422 00:24:59,247 --> 00:25:02,683 l'll see it l can get my hands on some wartime tuel with which to power it. 423 00:25:02,727 --> 00:25:03,716 Perfect. 424 00:25:04,447 --> 00:25:06,324 With petroI in short suppIy, 425 00:25:06,367 --> 00:25:09,359 gas-powered engines grew more popuIar in the 1 940s. 426 00:25:11,407 --> 00:25:15,116 In cities, town gas was avaiIabIe via a mains suppIy 427 00:25:15,167 --> 00:25:18,364 and was carried in a baIIoon on the chassis to power the vehicIe. 428 00:25:20,607 --> 00:25:24,282 But many areas of the countryside weren't Iinked up to the mains, 429 00:25:24,327 --> 00:25:26,716 so the boys wiII have to make their own coaI gas. 430 00:25:28,727 --> 00:25:33,005 Peter has enIisted the heIp of conservation officer CoIin Richards, 431 00:25:33,047 --> 00:25:35,322 who has a 1 930s ambuIance. 432 00:25:36,087 --> 00:25:38,078 He's hoping to convert its engine 433 00:25:38,127 --> 00:25:41,437 so the vehicIe can be used for important jobs on the farm. 434 00:25:41,487 --> 00:25:43,762 Well, this is it. This is our vehicle. 435 00:25:43,807 --> 00:25:45,286 Colin's just bringing it in. 436 00:25:45,327 --> 00:25:49,764 lt's currently running off petrol and we will convert this to run off coal gas. 437 00:25:50,807 --> 00:25:52,923 This is the machine. 438 00:25:52,967 --> 00:25:57,677 Once the task is done, the ambuIance shouId be abIe to traveI for 30 miIes 439 00:25:57,727 --> 00:25:59,638 on one Ioad of coaI. 440 00:25:59,687 --> 00:26:01,837 - Have you ever done this betore? - No. 441 00:26:03,367 --> 00:26:05,244 l know the theory. 442 00:26:05,287 --> 00:26:09,838 lt's not easy but l think, between us, we can sort ot... 443 00:26:10,527 --> 00:26:12,165 ..have a go at making it work. 444 00:26:15,367 --> 00:26:17,722 The first job is to make a furnace. 445 00:26:17,767 --> 00:26:22,682 CoIin is using an oId metaI container with waIIs thick enough to survive the heat. 446 00:26:22,727 --> 00:26:24,843 There we go. 447 00:26:26,447 --> 00:26:29,200 We have an engine that's currently running off petrol. 448 00:26:29,247 --> 00:26:32,557 We need to convert it to run off the gas that's coming trom coal. 449 00:26:32,607 --> 00:26:36,566 So on the tront, l'm going to put essentially a hopper 450 00:26:36,607 --> 00:26:38,837 into which we will put our coal. 451 00:26:39,527 --> 00:26:41,916 And this coal will be on tire. 452 00:26:42,727 --> 00:26:46,879 And this tire will be giving off gas. 453 00:26:46,927 --> 00:26:48,918 Off the coal. 454 00:26:48,967 --> 00:26:51,037 And we're going to... 455 00:26:51,807 --> 00:26:53,923 ..collect this gas... 456 00:26:55,767 --> 00:26:58,600 ..and teed it down into another container... 457 00:27:01,407 --> 00:27:06,640 This is just gonna take out all those impurities in the smoke... 458 00:27:06,687 --> 00:27:09,440 so what eventually gets ted into our engine... 459 00:27:10,407 --> 00:27:14,241 ..is good, clean gas. 460 00:27:15,447 --> 00:27:20,157 When burning coaI, onIy 40 per cent of the energy in the coaI goes into heating. 461 00:27:20,887 --> 00:27:23,959 The other 60 per cent escapes as coaI gas. 462 00:27:24,007 --> 00:27:27,044 And it's this that wiII power the engine. 463 00:27:28,327 --> 00:27:30,636 Next, CoIin begins work on the hopper. 464 00:27:31,367 --> 00:27:33,597 Made from an oId boiIer hammered into shape, 465 00:27:34,287 --> 00:27:37,563 it wiII sit near the top of the furnace and carry the coaI. 466 00:27:37,607 --> 00:27:41,316 The reason that we need this dome shape 467 00:27:41,367 --> 00:27:47,203 is so that as the vehicle is moving along and it's sort ot shaking around, 468 00:27:47,247 --> 00:27:50,876 it actually shakes the coal down into the tire because ot this shape. 469 00:27:50,927 --> 00:27:53,043 - lt's very hot. - Yeah, it is. 470 00:27:53,087 --> 00:27:56,363 - l'm going to go tor another quench. - Another quench. 471 00:28:00,967 --> 00:28:05,722 During the war, 200 miIIion tons of coaI was needed each year 472 00:28:05,767 --> 00:28:10,602 to keep the country running and power the factories invoIved in the war effort. 473 00:28:10,647 --> 00:28:14,879 AIex has come to a mine in the Forest Of Dean, owned by Robin Morgan. 474 00:28:15,567 --> 00:28:17,717 How tar down are we going, Robin? 475 00:28:17,767 --> 00:28:22,363 Um...l would say the cover you've got here is somewhere around 200 toot. 476 00:28:22,407 --> 00:28:23,886 - 200 toot? - Yeah. 477 00:28:23,927 --> 00:28:25,918 - Vertical, that is. - Right. 478 00:28:25,967 --> 00:28:28,162 CoaI was pIentifuI in Britain. 479 00:28:28,207 --> 00:28:30,801 The probIem was how to get it out of the ground. 480 00:28:31,727 --> 00:28:36,005 Before the war, British mining was hugeIy dependent on manuaI Iabour. 481 00:28:36,047 --> 00:28:39,119 Less than ten per cent of coaI was cut by machine. 482 00:28:41,647 --> 00:28:45,083 Robin, was this mine open during the Second World War? 483 00:28:45,127 --> 00:28:48,517 This mine was open, actually, 200 years ago. Parts ot this mine was. 484 00:28:48,567 --> 00:28:54,164 Right. OK. So some ot these workings here were worked during the Second World War? 485 00:28:54,207 --> 00:28:56,004 Detinitely. Yes. 486 00:28:57,127 --> 00:29:00,278 But skiIIed miners were Ieaving for the battIefieId 487 00:29:00,327 --> 00:29:05,606 and there was a reaI danger that coaI, vitaI to the war effort, wouId run short. 488 00:29:06,527 --> 00:29:09,599 - OK, so where are we now? - Nearly down to the coaltace. 489 00:29:09,647 --> 00:29:11,717 l can hear people working away. 490 00:29:12,327 --> 00:29:15,319 The government appeaIed for voIunteer miners 491 00:29:15,367 --> 00:29:19,440 but conditions in the mines were so notoriousIy bad that few signed up. 492 00:29:20,167 --> 00:29:24,604 So in 1 943, Ernest Bevin, the Minister for Labour, 493 00:29:24,647 --> 00:29:27,923 resorted to conscripting young men to work in the mines. 494 00:29:29,847 --> 00:29:33,726 Ten per cent of aII those caIIed up for war went underground. 495 00:29:33,767 --> 00:29:36,804 They became known as the Bevin Boys. 496 00:29:36,847 --> 00:29:39,600 - There's not a lot ot room up there. - No, there's not. 497 00:29:39,647 --> 00:29:44,118 But it's surprising how you can adapt yourselt to work in places like that. 498 00:29:44,167 --> 00:29:47,557 When l tirst came into the mines, years ago, 499 00:29:47,607 --> 00:29:52,283 it used to territy me to look up these coaltaces. ''l wouldn't even put my toot in there,'' l thought. 500 00:29:52,327 --> 00:29:54,477 But you get so used to it after... 501 00:29:54,527 --> 00:29:56,961 lt's not so dangerous as you think. 502 00:29:57,007 --> 00:30:00,761 So the Bevin Boys would have come down the mine and telt like you did the tirst time. 503 00:30:00,807 --> 00:30:02,399 They'd be territied. Yes. 504 00:30:02,447 --> 00:30:05,007 - Absolutely territied? - Without a doubt. Yeah. 505 00:30:05,047 --> 00:30:07,641 You want us to go up there and have a go, then? 506 00:30:07,687 --> 00:30:09,678 Yeah, by all means. See what it's like. 507 00:30:09,727 --> 00:30:12,366 You'll tind it's a bit awkward to start with, you know. 508 00:30:14,087 --> 00:30:18,603 Mining expert Rick Stewart has come to heIp AIex extract some coaI. 509 00:30:19,927 --> 00:30:23,124 He's really loving this and l'm not so certain. 510 00:30:25,087 --> 00:30:26,918 - OK. - lt's quite roomy here. 511 00:30:26,967 --> 00:30:29,003 You're joking, aren't you? 512 00:30:29,047 --> 00:30:30,196 Right. 513 00:30:30,247 --> 00:30:32,078 So, Rick, this is the coaltace? 514 00:30:32,127 --> 00:30:34,846 Absolutely. You can see the black coal there. 515 00:30:35,567 --> 00:30:37,603 lt's our job to take this out. 516 00:30:37,647 --> 00:30:41,242 So what's the strategy here? Picking it out by hand? 517 00:30:41,287 --> 00:30:45,121 No. We're going to use a pick, but just put a small hole in the tace. 518 00:30:45,167 --> 00:30:48,204 Then we're gonna use our air boring machine. 519 00:30:48,247 --> 00:30:51,478 So it you want to crawl in where that dish is, 520 00:30:51,527 --> 00:30:55,759 and just put a hole in... a couple ot inches deep, yeah? 521 00:30:56,527 --> 00:30:59,405 The hoIes made in the waII wouId be fiIIed with geIignite 522 00:30:59,447 --> 00:31:01,278 to bIast away the coaIface. 523 00:31:03,567 --> 00:31:07,355 l've just cracked my knuckles on this pit prop here, digging this hole. 524 00:31:07,407 --> 00:31:12,322 This is working in the most extreme conditions, it has to be said. 525 00:31:12,367 --> 00:31:14,039 l think l'm pretty much there. 526 00:31:14,087 --> 00:31:16,157 - That's not bad. - OK. 527 00:31:16,207 --> 00:31:17,686 Not bad tor a tirst-timer. 528 00:31:17,727 --> 00:31:21,242 - So the next thing we do... - You want to get this thing set up? 529 00:31:21,287 --> 00:31:24,757 - That's a pretty mean-looking drill bit. - lt is, isn't it? 530 00:31:24,807 --> 00:31:26,923 - So that's now in. - Yeah. 531 00:31:26,967 --> 00:31:29,879 So once we've got the air on, we're more or less ready to drill. 532 00:31:29,927 --> 00:31:32,316 - Robin, could you oblige with the air? - l will. 533 00:31:34,007 --> 00:31:35,998 (Whirring) 534 00:31:44,927 --> 00:31:47,316 - That is a beast! - Whoa. 535 00:31:47,367 --> 00:31:49,278 That is a bit ot kit. 536 00:31:49,327 --> 00:31:54,845 And we just put in a two-toot shot hole in 1 0 to 1 5 seconds. 537 00:31:55,967 --> 00:31:59,880 AImost 22,000 Bevin Boys were conscripted, 538 00:31:59,927 --> 00:32:02,282 news that many found devastating. 539 00:32:03,207 --> 00:32:06,244 Pre the end ot 1 943, they would have gone into the army, 540 00:32:06,287 --> 00:32:08,676 the air torce, the navy. 541 00:32:08,727 --> 00:32:11,002 After December 1 943, 542 00:32:11,767 --> 00:32:15,203 ten per cent ot those boys would come down those mines. 543 00:32:15,247 --> 00:32:18,364 And that was done, effectively, on a random ballot. 544 00:32:18,887 --> 00:32:23,244 40 per cent of those caIIed into the mines appeaIed against their fate... 545 00:32:23,287 --> 00:32:25,403 but their cries feII on deaf ears. 546 00:32:26,167 --> 00:32:29,682 500 men were prosecuted for refusing to work 547 00:32:29,727 --> 00:32:32,844 and many paid a high price for their dissent. 548 00:32:32,887 --> 00:32:35,685 There were many who, rather than coming underground, 549 00:32:35,727 --> 00:32:37,763 actually went to jail instead. 550 00:32:38,527 --> 00:32:40,563 What sort ot choice is that? 551 00:32:41,727 --> 00:32:45,402 So we've now drilled the hole, the next thing we'll do is charge it. 552 00:32:45,447 --> 00:32:47,756 - ls this an electric charge? - Yeah, absolutely. 553 00:32:47,807 --> 00:32:50,037 We're using electric detonators here. 554 00:32:50,087 --> 00:32:53,397 So the tirst thing we do is put the charge into the hole. 555 00:32:54,087 --> 00:32:57,443 Once we've got the charge itselt in, we then put the stemming in. 556 00:32:58,247 --> 00:33:02,286 The stemming is a piece of cIay which hoIds the charge in the hoIe, 557 00:33:02,327 --> 00:33:04,477 directing the bIast into the coaIface. 558 00:33:04,527 --> 00:33:07,246 The next job is to connect up the tiring wires. 559 00:33:08,927 --> 00:33:12,715 When we're satistied that everything's OK, when we've tested our circuit, 560 00:33:12,767 --> 00:33:14,917 we then tire our charge. 561 00:33:16,727 --> 00:33:21,118 Back at the forge, Peter and CoIin have made the furnace for burning the coaI. 562 00:33:21,847 --> 00:33:26,443 This wiII produce coaI gas to power the engine of their 1 930s ambuIance. 563 00:33:27,727 --> 00:33:30,195 The next stage is to make the gas cooIer, 564 00:33:30,247 --> 00:33:34,798 a Iong pipe which wiII transport the coaI gas between the furnace and the fiIter. 565 00:33:35,767 --> 00:33:38,406 - We've got to bend this pipe, yeah? - Yeah. 566 00:33:38,447 --> 00:33:41,644 - To do this, we're gonna till it with sand? - Yeah. 567 00:33:41,687 --> 00:33:46,044 Because it's a hollow tube and once we heat it up, 568 00:33:46,087 --> 00:33:50,524 this gets very soft and it we bend it, it'll just kink. 569 00:33:50,567 --> 00:33:56,324 And what we want is the gas to be able to tlow evenly through the pipework. 570 00:33:56,367 --> 00:34:02,237 So we have to till it with something which is tlexible but can take the heat in the tire. 571 00:34:02,287 --> 00:34:04,323 And that is kiln-dried sand. 572 00:34:04,367 --> 00:34:08,883 Using sand to bend pipework is a very traditionaI technique 573 00:34:08,927 --> 00:34:10,963 dating back hundreds of years. 574 00:34:11,887 --> 00:34:16,199 This is the tormer that we've made to bend the pipe, 575 00:34:16,247 --> 00:34:20,684 to give us a sweeping curve trom the top ot the turnace... 576 00:34:20,727 --> 00:34:22,877 down into the tilter. 577 00:34:23,847 --> 00:34:26,042 Right. OK. 578 00:34:26,767 --> 00:34:28,917 In order to be fIexibIe enough to bend, 579 00:34:28,967 --> 00:34:32,277 the pipe must be heated to 800 degrees CeIsius. 580 00:34:33,047 --> 00:34:35,277 That's OK. Keep going. Keep going. 581 00:34:35,967 --> 00:34:38,037 Keep going. OK. 582 00:34:39,727 --> 00:34:41,638 Look at that. 583 00:34:41,687 --> 00:34:43,598 - Good bend? - Yeah. 584 00:34:46,367 --> 00:34:49,006 The pipe wiII be shaped into a concertina, 585 00:34:49,047 --> 00:34:51,845 increasing the distance the gas has to traveI. 586 00:34:51,887 --> 00:34:56,756 As it passes through, the gas cooIs, becoming denser and more combustibIe. 587 00:35:01,007 --> 00:35:02,486 Right. 588 00:35:05,247 --> 00:35:07,761 - Job done? - Yeah. Yeah. Well done. 589 00:35:07,807 --> 00:35:09,798 - Right. - OK. 590 00:35:11,047 --> 00:35:13,038 Just work it back. 591 00:35:13,847 --> 00:35:16,805 Politicians can only dream ot a U like that. 592 00:35:18,927 --> 00:35:20,519 (Hissing) 593 00:35:21,287 --> 00:35:27,078 UnIike farming, where the women's Land Army and conscientious objectors couId provide heIp, 594 00:35:27,127 --> 00:35:30,915 the mines reIied soIeIy on Bevin Boys for extra Iabour. 595 00:35:32,327 --> 00:35:35,956 Part of the reason that mining was such an unpopuIar occupation 596 00:35:36,007 --> 00:35:37,998 was the danger invoIved. 597 00:35:38,727 --> 00:35:43,084 Around a quarter of aII wartime miners wouId suffer a serious injury 598 00:35:43,127 --> 00:35:45,163 during their time underground. 599 00:35:45,927 --> 00:35:49,806 BIasting the coaIface was a particuIarIy hazardous task. 600 00:35:52,007 --> 00:35:54,646 - What do we do? - This is the exploder. 601 00:35:54,687 --> 00:35:58,600 So tirst job...is to connect up the tiring wires. 602 00:35:59,327 --> 00:36:02,842 - Bit like a car battery. - Exactly, yeah. Exactly. 603 00:36:02,887 --> 00:36:05,481 - The tiring handle's in. - Yeah. 604 00:36:05,527 --> 00:36:07,518 You're waiting tor that light to come on, 605 00:36:07,567 --> 00:36:12,004 which tells us that we've got enough charge in there to tire. 606 00:36:12,047 --> 00:36:13,036 OK. 607 00:36:13,087 --> 00:36:15,078 Give that a wind. 608 00:36:16,927 --> 00:36:19,236 There we go. lt's building up the charge. 609 00:36:19,287 --> 00:36:22,404 - You've got enough charge there. - Yeah. 610 00:36:22,447 --> 00:36:25,484 - When you're ready, press the tire button. - That one? 611 00:36:25,527 --> 00:36:27,165 - Yeah. - So l can press that now? 612 00:36:27,207 --> 00:36:28,037 Yeah. 613 00:36:31,647 --> 00:36:33,638 (Explosion) 614 00:36:38,887 --> 00:36:41,117 Once the coaI was bIasted from the face, 615 00:36:41,167 --> 00:36:44,364 the Bevin Boys had the hard task of cIearing it away. 616 00:36:46,047 --> 00:36:49,926 So, being an experienced miner, it would be up to you to set the charges, 617 00:36:49,967 --> 00:36:52,686 but the Bevin Boys would be the ones charged with 618 00:36:52,727 --> 00:36:55,446 taking all the coal away trom the tace and out ot the mine? 619 00:36:55,487 --> 00:36:58,206 Yeah. They'd be doing the less-skilled work, 620 00:36:58,247 --> 00:37:00,602 pulling the coal down trom the tace 621 00:37:00,647 --> 00:37:03,480 and also then tramming it up to surface. 622 00:37:03,527 --> 00:37:07,725 So dangerous work but it wasn't technically difficult. 623 00:37:07,767 --> 00:37:09,758 No. No. And not glamorous either. 624 00:37:12,167 --> 00:37:16,206 UnIike miIitary conscripts, there was no Iet-up for the Bevin Boys, 625 00:37:16,247 --> 00:37:18,966 even after the war ended in 1 945. 626 00:37:19,767 --> 00:37:25,046 Britain stiII needed coaI and the Bevin Boys were not demobiIised for another three years. 627 00:37:26,927 --> 00:37:29,839 So a big thank you, it you like, is long overdue 628 00:37:29,887 --> 00:37:33,163 tor all ot those men that were torced to come down here and mine. 629 00:37:33,207 --> 00:37:38,327 Absolutely. The 20,000 Bevin Boys, many ot them are dead now - 630 00:37:38,367 --> 00:37:39,925 most ot whom are dead - 631 00:37:39,967 --> 00:37:42,162 they deserve a huge thank you trom the nation. 632 00:37:48,367 --> 00:37:50,085 Right. 633 00:37:50,127 --> 00:37:52,083 (Groans) We've made this very heavy. 634 00:37:52,127 --> 00:37:56,643 Peter and CoIin are at Iast ready to assembIe their coaI-powered creation. 635 00:38:02,887 --> 00:38:06,277 One ot the things that this sort ot characterises 636 00:38:06,327 --> 00:38:11,321 is the tact that a lot ot the sort ot blacksmiths and engineers had gone away to war 637 00:38:11,367 --> 00:38:14,086 and it was the tarmhands who were having to turn their hand 638 00:38:14,127 --> 00:38:17,119 to engineering and improvisation 639 00:38:17,167 --> 00:38:19,681 using whatever lay around the tarm. 640 00:38:19,727 --> 00:38:22,560 And the problems that we've encountered 641 00:38:22,607 --> 00:38:27,237 and the sheer effort involved in making this work, 642 00:38:27,287 --> 00:38:30,677 is exactly what would have happened during the 1 940s. 643 00:38:33,607 --> 00:38:35,598 As CoIin weIds the pieces together, 644 00:38:35,647 --> 00:38:39,356 Peter has one more job to do before they can test the engine. 645 00:38:44,247 --> 00:38:46,283 We need to till up our tilter. 646 00:38:46,327 --> 00:38:50,400 This is gonna take all the particles that are coming through - 647 00:38:50,447 --> 00:38:52,085 essentially just smoke - 648 00:38:52,127 --> 00:38:55,403 it's gonna tilter those out so all we're left with is gas. 649 00:38:55,447 --> 00:38:59,599 Now, l've got some heather. We're gonna start putting this in. 650 00:38:59,647 --> 00:39:02,445 The leaves and the tlowers are highly absorbent. 651 00:39:02,487 --> 00:39:07,003 And the particles will stick to the very large surface area. 652 00:39:07,047 --> 00:39:09,561 - l haven't pushed it down too much? - No, that's tine. 653 00:39:09,607 --> 00:39:12,121 - lt's just sort ot... - Just lightly packed. 654 00:39:13,287 --> 00:39:15,721 Lid on. lt's been absolutely knackering. 655 00:39:15,767 --> 00:39:17,962 Three-day marathon, Alex. 656 00:39:18,007 --> 00:39:21,841 You look like you've just done a three-day marathon. 657 00:39:21,887 --> 00:39:23,878 Here's your coal. 658 00:39:25,527 --> 00:39:28,325 - This... - l can barely recognise you in there. 659 00:39:29,087 --> 00:39:31,237 Filthy - as usual. 660 00:39:32,007 --> 00:39:34,123 This looks absolutely amazing. 661 00:39:35,887 --> 00:39:39,323 This is Colin's vision come to lite. 662 00:39:42,047 --> 00:39:46,916 With the coaI in the hopper, a fire is Iit in the furnace to start producing gas. 663 00:39:50,927 --> 00:39:54,602 Ruth has arrived, to give the ambuIance its first test drive. 664 00:39:55,487 --> 00:39:58,001 Are you gonna talk me through this? (Laughs) 665 00:39:58,727 --> 00:40:01,082 - OK? - OK. l'm in. 666 00:40:01,847 --> 00:40:04,315 There's a starter button underneath. 667 00:40:04,367 --> 00:40:06,517 (Engine turns but tails to start) 668 00:40:08,367 --> 00:40:10,358 Right. Put the choke on. 669 00:40:11,847 --> 00:40:14,441 (Engine starts but stops again) 670 00:40:16,247 --> 00:40:18,317 Nearly! (Laughs) 671 00:40:23,647 --> 00:40:24,966 Partly on. 672 00:40:25,007 --> 00:40:30,127 my grandtather drove lorries throughout the war. l wonder it he had this sort ot bother. 673 00:40:30,167 --> 00:40:33,125 lt's amazing how many women did the driving during the war. 674 00:40:33,167 --> 00:40:36,284 One ot the easiest groups to train up were young women. 675 00:40:36,327 --> 00:40:39,478 So tor a briet period in the early history ot motoring - 676 00:40:39,527 --> 00:40:43,406 wartime motoring was surprisingly teminine. 677 00:40:43,447 --> 00:40:46,325 Perhaps the most famous wartime ambuIance driver 678 00:40:46,367 --> 00:40:49,404 was the future Queen herseIf. 679 00:40:52,487 --> 00:40:56,241 With everything finaIIy in pIace, now for the moment of truth. 680 00:40:58,767 --> 00:41:00,758 (Engine starts) 681 00:41:00,807 --> 00:41:02,525 Yay! 682 00:41:07,447 --> 00:41:12,157 Three days and a Iot of hard work have paid off. The coaI-powered ambuIance works. 683 00:41:14,167 --> 00:41:16,965 Now aII that's Ieft is to take it for a spin. 684 00:41:17,887 --> 00:41:19,605 This is looking promising. 685 00:41:19,647 --> 00:41:24,675 - Whoa. She's so heavy on the steering. - Steady there. mind that as well. 686 00:41:24,727 --> 00:41:27,082 We have added a lot ot weight, haven't we? 687 00:41:28,567 --> 00:41:32,640 Well, l have to say, Peter, this is an absolute thrill. 688 00:41:32,687 --> 00:41:36,236 lt's not the tastest ride in wartime Britain 689 00:41:36,287 --> 00:41:39,518 - but it's certainly one ot the most exciting. - l love it! 690 00:41:39,567 --> 00:41:43,003 You have to hold the door shut while you're driving. 691 00:41:43,967 --> 00:41:48,199 This is a vehicle that we can use around the tarm tor pretty much anything. 692 00:41:50,247 --> 00:41:52,238 Whoa. All aboard. 693 00:41:53,127 --> 00:41:56,802 VehicIes Iike this were a fueI-saving godsend... 694 00:41:56,847 --> 00:41:58,485 That's right, tella. 695 00:41:58,527 --> 00:42:00,597 ..moving Iivestock... 696 00:42:04,767 --> 00:42:07,440 You'll be all right in the back, Peter, with him? 697 00:42:10,087 --> 00:42:12,681 He's off to a nice tlock ot ewes, the lucky boy. 698 00:42:15,687 --> 00:42:17,803 ..carting animaI feed... 699 00:42:17,847 --> 00:42:22,523 The ambulance can do us the good service ot running them around tor us. 700 00:42:29,607 --> 00:42:31,677 ..and even cooking dinner. 701 00:42:32,447 --> 00:42:34,438 Come on, Ruth. Let's get some tood. 702 00:42:34,487 --> 00:42:36,523 No heat must be wasted. 703 00:42:36,567 --> 00:42:40,685 (Laughs) l love it. Camp cooking. A whole new way ot doing it. 704 00:42:41,447 --> 00:42:43,517 - Camp cooking. - One, two, three. 705 00:42:43,567 --> 00:42:45,000 Whoa. 706 00:42:45,767 --> 00:42:47,883 Pan. Fantastic. 707 00:42:48,767 --> 00:42:50,758 How many cars can you cook your dinner on? 708 00:42:50,807 --> 00:42:52,877 Right. One tin ot Spam... 709 00:42:53,687 --> 00:42:56,281 ..a couple ot eggs and a bit ot bread. 710 00:42:56,327 --> 00:42:57,965 - Alex! - Yeah? 711 00:42:58,007 --> 00:43:00,157 - Din-dins! - Wow. 712 00:43:00,207 --> 00:43:02,357 Oh, joy ot joys. 713 00:43:02,407 --> 00:43:04,967 Oh, throw us another one into the pan, Ruth. 714 00:43:05,807 --> 00:43:08,480 You know, l used to hate Spam as a kid. 715 00:43:09,327 --> 00:43:13,206 But that is absolutely delicious. l must have been mad. 716 00:43:16,567 --> 00:43:19,206 After months of being fattened on scraps, 717 00:43:19,247 --> 00:43:23,035 Shorty has reached the size a wartime pig wouId have been at sIaughter. 718 00:43:23,087 --> 00:43:24,884 This is it, then, Shorty. 719 00:43:24,927 --> 00:43:26,918 Time to say goodbye. 720 00:43:26,967 --> 00:43:31,324 A member ot the local constabulary here to make sure we do it all above board. Fair play. 721 00:43:32,207 --> 00:43:34,880 Because meat was so vaIuabIe during the war, 722 00:43:34,927 --> 00:43:37,600 a Iicence was required to sIaughter pigs. 723 00:43:38,567 --> 00:43:43,846 Every time a pig club slaughtered a pig, you were supposed to have a police officer present 724 00:43:43,887 --> 00:43:45,718 to ensure that it was all done properly. 725 00:43:45,767 --> 00:43:47,678 Only the one per licence, yes. 726 00:43:47,727 --> 00:43:51,561 The licence. So that we can't be sneaking off any extras. 727 00:43:51,607 --> 00:43:53,882 lt would be contiscated it you did. 728 00:43:55,327 --> 00:43:58,603 l think she's done really well, considering what she's been eating. 729 00:43:58,647 --> 00:44:01,480 - She's not in bad shape. - She's looking quite good. 730 00:44:01,527 --> 00:44:03,483 She's really put on weight. 731 00:44:03,527 --> 00:44:05,483 Come on, then. Let's get you gone. 732 00:44:06,487 --> 00:44:08,557 Come on, girl. 733 00:44:11,487 --> 00:44:13,523 Come on, then, girl. 734 00:44:14,567 --> 00:44:17,365 HaIf of every pig sIaughtered from a pig cIub 735 00:44:17,407 --> 00:44:21,320 was taken by the government to be distributed as part of the war effort. 736 00:44:22,767 --> 00:44:25,361 WhiIe much of this went into the rationing system, 737 00:44:25,407 --> 00:44:29,685 some aIso went to provide emergency reIief for the victims of air raids. 738 00:44:31,887 --> 00:44:35,038 Southampton, just six miIes from the farm, 739 00:44:35,087 --> 00:44:38,841 was a strategic target for German bombers throughout the war. 740 00:44:39,967 --> 00:44:42,435 Those who survived were often Ieft homeIess. 741 00:44:45,487 --> 00:44:48,797 So the Ministry of Food set up emergency feeding centres, 742 00:44:48,847 --> 00:44:52,760 often using meat from sources Iike pig cIubs to feed the victims. 743 00:44:55,167 --> 00:44:58,443 Ruth has come to Iend a hand at a IocaI centre. 744 00:44:59,127 --> 00:45:03,359 The prices were cheap and were kept capped 745 00:45:03,407 --> 00:45:07,719 in order to ensure that tood really was available to everyone. 746 00:45:07,767 --> 00:45:11,442 So, tor example, a starter like soup would be two pence. 747 00:45:11,487 --> 00:45:16,607 And a main course with meat, potatoes and two veg, you're talking about eight pence. 748 00:45:16,647 --> 00:45:19,798 That really was dirt cheap tor tood. 749 00:45:22,207 --> 00:45:24,516 As with aII restaurants during the war, 750 00:45:24,567 --> 00:45:27,445 you didn't need a ration book to eat at the centres. 751 00:45:28,887 --> 00:45:34,325 Here l've got the stock ot a local emergency teeding station 752 00:45:34,367 --> 00:45:36,597 and it is really quite grim reading. 753 00:45:36,647 --> 00:45:41,562 They had 1 3 cases ot baked beans, with 24 cans in each case. 754 00:45:41,607 --> 00:45:46,078 They had beet hash, biscuit, cocoa, tea and sugar, condensed milk, 755 00:45:46,127 --> 00:45:49,597 meat roll, rice pudding and soup - and that was it. 756 00:45:55,087 --> 00:46:00,241 For severaI weeks, the caIves have been fed on a diet of artificiaI miIk and oats. 757 00:46:01,247 --> 00:46:03,886 But with imported feed strictIy rationed, 758 00:46:03,927 --> 00:46:08,284 farmers often used fodder crops such as swede to suppIement their diets. 759 00:46:10,327 --> 00:46:13,956 To save petroI, the boys are resorting to oId technoIogy 760 00:46:14,007 --> 00:46:15,838 to prepare the feed. 761 00:46:17,807 --> 00:46:20,560 This is our horse gin, or our horse engine. 762 00:46:21,847 --> 00:46:26,557 Like many a wartime tarmer, l haven't used one ot these tor a long time. 763 00:46:27,607 --> 00:46:31,600 A gin is a geared mechanism which is turned by a horse, 764 00:46:31,647 --> 00:46:36,277 transferring power through a series of shafts to any machine a farmer chooses. 765 00:46:37,407 --> 00:46:41,400 All the machinery would have been driven by one ot these during the Victorian period. 766 00:46:41,447 --> 00:46:45,440 But they were phased out and they were replaced by Lister engines. 767 00:46:45,487 --> 00:46:49,241 Obviously, they run on petrol and during the war there was a tuel shortage. 768 00:46:49,287 --> 00:46:55,203 So kit like this was being dug out, put back together to see it it worked 769 00:46:55,247 --> 00:46:58,000 and it it did, it could drive machines like this. 770 00:46:58,047 --> 00:47:00,083 This is just a beet slicer. 771 00:47:00,127 --> 00:47:02,436 lt's going to slice up our roots 772 00:47:02,487 --> 00:47:06,275 and hopetully we can wean our cattle onto solid toods. 773 00:47:06,327 --> 00:47:10,718 WhiIe Peter fixes the gin, AIex is tacking up the horse. 774 00:47:11,567 --> 00:47:13,080 OK, Ben. 775 00:47:17,127 --> 00:47:23,475 Always the hardest bit ot getting a horse tacked up is throwing all ot this stuff over his backside. 776 00:47:24,487 --> 00:47:26,603 By the time you get to 1 942, 777 00:47:26,647 --> 00:47:29,764 the numbers ot tractors have more than doubled 778 00:47:29,807 --> 00:47:32,924 but l'm sure many old-boy Farmers, as well, 779 00:47:32,967 --> 00:47:35,845 would have tound themselves in this situation. 780 00:47:35,887 --> 00:47:38,685 lt must have been lovely tor them, l think, to have brought 781 00:47:38,727 --> 00:47:40,763 old, taithtul animals back into service 782 00:47:40,807 --> 00:47:45,039 and to have seen them working once again tor British agriculture. 783 00:47:45,887 --> 00:47:47,843 Get this belly-band on. 784 00:47:47,887 --> 00:47:52,199 Personally, l relish the opportunity to get a heavy horse in on the tarm 785 00:47:52,247 --> 00:47:55,762 because they really are a tantastic torm ot power. 786 00:47:55,807 --> 00:47:57,638 OK. 787 00:47:57,687 --> 00:48:00,645 With his bridle on now, he's ready to go. 788 00:48:00,687 --> 00:48:03,326 Peter has finished assembIing the gin. 789 00:48:04,887 --> 00:48:09,358 l think we're ready to get the horse on this and slice up some roots. 790 00:48:09,407 --> 00:48:12,638 - How are you doing, Peter? - We're looking good. lt's all there. 791 00:48:12,687 --> 00:48:15,155 - lt's all connected. - You're happy with it? 792 00:48:15,207 --> 00:48:17,516 - As happy as l'll ever be. - Jolly good. 793 00:48:18,207 --> 00:48:22,280 The horse is hooked up to the main drive shaft which wiII turn the gears. 794 00:48:23,047 --> 00:48:25,322 Well, here we go. Let's see how he gets on. 795 00:48:25,367 --> 00:48:26,959 Walk on. 796 00:48:27,007 --> 00:48:28,679 Walk on. 797 00:48:36,007 --> 00:48:39,556 This is the tricky bit. We're gonna walk over this, Ben. 798 00:48:39,607 --> 00:48:42,405 Come on. Walk on. Walk on. 799 00:48:43,087 --> 00:48:45,396 Steady. Steady. Good lad. 800 00:48:45,447 --> 00:48:47,039 Good lad. 801 00:48:47,727 --> 00:48:51,242 OK, Alex, l'm gonna start introducing some roots. 802 00:48:53,927 --> 00:48:57,761 The use of fodder crops rose by a third during the war. 803 00:48:59,367 --> 00:49:01,164 lt's slicing. 804 00:49:05,687 --> 00:49:07,359 He's doing really well. 805 00:49:07,407 --> 00:49:09,921 Really pleased with him. This is the tricky bit. 806 00:49:09,967 --> 00:49:11,958 And step up. 807 00:49:12,007 --> 00:49:13,599 And there we go. Easy. 808 00:49:13,647 --> 00:49:17,356 lt just goes to show that horses could still do a job on wartime tarms. 809 00:49:17,407 --> 00:49:18,635 Good lad. 810 00:49:20,967 --> 00:49:22,480 And step up. 811 00:49:25,967 --> 00:49:30,597 Emergency feeding centres empIoyed voIunteers to make and serve the food, 812 00:49:30,647 --> 00:49:32,126 especiaIIy in ruraI areas. 813 00:49:33,967 --> 00:49:37,516 GiII Dicks has voIunteered to heIp Ruth with the cooking, 814 00:49:37,567 --> 00:49:39,603 but their ingredients are Iimited. 815 00:49:41,207 --> 00:49:43,926 So the menu today is boiled onions with white sauce. 816 00:49:43,967 --> 00:49:47,039 Gill's making the white sauce. lt looks very exciting. 817 00:49:47,087 --> 00:49:49,760 (Laughs) mostly corntlour. 818 00:49:49,807 --> 00:49:55,803 Erm...pork roll, made with pork, and the beans and the bread to pad it out. 819 00:49:55,847 --> 00:49:58,725 And then the pudding - plum duff and custard. 820 00:50:00,087 --> 00:50:05,559 The meat itselt was supplied by the government tor such teeding centres off ration. 821 00:50:05,607 --> 00:50:08,326 But where it originally came trom 822 00:50:08,367 --> 00:50:13,361 is all that pork that has been collected trom the pig clubs up and down the country. 823 00:50:17,527 --> 00:50:19,518 You having tun with that white sauce? 824 00:50:19,567 --> 00:50:23,924 lt would be much more tun with a nice dollop ot margarine and some proper tlour. 825 00:50:23,967 --> 00:50:25,958 But it's thickening. 826 00:50:26,967 --> 00:50:31,245 The next stage is to mix the pork, beans and breadcrumbs together. 827 00:50:32,887 --> 00:50:36,596 l think it's quite interesting that the cheap tood ot wartime was, in many ways, 828 00:50:36,647 --> 00:50:40,356 exactly the polar opposite ot modern cheap tood. 829 00:50:40,407 --> 00:50:41,886 modern tast tood. 830 00:50:41,927 --> 00:50:46,205 This is tood almost entirely without tat and without sugar. 831 00:50:46,247 --> 00:50:51,002 And that pretty much is exactly what modern tast tood is not. 832 00:50:53,487 --> 00:50:57,162 The mixture is wrapped in fIoured cIoth, ready for boiIing. 833 00:50:57,727 --> 00:51:00,036 The advantage ot boiling everything - 834 00:51:00,087 --> 00:51:03,636 and an awful lot ot tood in these British Restaurants was boiled - 835 00:51:03,687 --> 00:51:06,121 is that you can do mass catering very easily. 836 00:51:06,167 --> 00:51:09,477 And those who are eating it haven't seen it made. 837 00:51:09,527 --> 00:51:12,917 - That is a good point. - lt does look like something the cat... 838 00:51:12,967 --> 00:51:15,606 Don't say it. Don't say it. l know. lt does. 839 00:51:17,327 --> 00:51:21,718 The meat roII wiII be boiIed for three hours and then coated in breadcrumbs. 840 00:51:23,367 --> 00:51:25,483 Dessert is plum duff. 841 00:51:25,527 --> 00:51:28,200 Which, ot course, is sort ot...spotted dick. 842 00:51:30,087 --> 00:51:33,682 The pIum duff is made from fIour, breadcrumbs, suet, 843 00:51:33,727 --> 00:51:37,117 raisins for sweetness...and powdered eggs. 844 00:51:37,607 --> 00:51:39,962 (Laughs) l was going to mix up the egg powder. 845 00:51:40,007 --> 00:51:42,760 This was something that was new, coming in trom America. 846 00:51:42,807 --> 00:51:47,039 Eggs were rationed whether they were in powder torm or tresh torm. 847 00:51:47,087 --> 00:51:49,476 The powdered eggs are mixed with water. 848 00:51:49,527 --> 00:51:52,963 The equivaIent of two eggs made dessert for 1 2 peopIe. 849 00:51:54,567 --> 00:51:59,516 The war is the sort ot height ot processed toods in many ways. 850 00:51:59,567 --> 00:52:04,880 Powdered milk - which we're making the sauces out ot rather than tresh milk - powdered egg. 851 00:52:04,927 --> 00:52:10,559 Partly because it was a way ot concentrating nutritional value into a very tiny space, 852 00:52:10,607 --> 00:52:12,325 tor the ships. 853 00:52:12,367 --> 00:52:15,325 lt you can get the nutritional value ot... 854 00:52:16,567 --> 00:52:20,082 ..1 2 eggs into a packet that size, why would you move tresh eggs around? 855 00:52:21,607 --> 00:52:23,962 However lacking in meat the main course may be, 856 00:52:24,007 --> 00:52:28,717 however tired you're teeling, a stodgy pudding and custard cheers a person up. 857 00:52:32,927 --> 00:52:37,842 AIex and Peter have finished miIIing the swede and are ready to try it on the caIves. 858 00:52:39,407 --> 00:52:42,126 - Smells good. - They don't smell too bad, actually. 859 00:52:42,887 --> 00:52:47,119 - Now, l'm quite contident here because... - Eating everything in sight. 860 00:52:50,207 --> 00:52:52,198 Haven't had my bath today. 861 00:52:54,367 --> 00:52:55,846 OK. Go on, then, Peter. 862 00:52:55,887 --> 00:52:57,605 Hey, what's that? 863 00:53:00,967 --> 00:53:02,958 He's just licking it, is he? 864 00:53:03,767 --> 00:53:05,803 - No, he's not. Listen. - He's eating it. 865 00:53:05,847 --> 00:53:08,315 - He's eating it. - (Crunching) 866 00:53:08,367 --> 00:53:12,519 You can hear him putting those molars to work, grinding down the teed. 867 00:53:13,847 --> 00:53:16,919 ln wartime, Farmers would be looking to balance the diet 868 00:53:16,967 --> 00:53:19,686 so they don't miss out trom not having their mother's milk - 869 00:53:19,727 --> 00:53:24,721 they still put on bulk, put on the weight... and will go on and become good dairy cows. 870 00:53:25,927 --> 00:53:30,398 ln a wartime situation, you'd have no choice because you don't have the teed 871 00:53:30,447 --> 00:53:32,961 and the ministry ot Food is demanding all ot your milk. 872 00:53:33,007 --> 00:53:36,079 You just have to wean them earlier than you would otherwise. 873 00:53:36,127 --> 00:53:39,802 l hadn't really considered how much the Second World War 874 00:53:39,847 --> 00:53:41,724 encroached upon the countryside. 875 00:53:41,767 --> 00:53:45,282 l've always seen it very much in terms ot city lite and the Blitz, 876 00:53:45,327 --> 00:53:49,479 but it really was being tought in these tields out here in Hampshire. 877 00:53:52,967 --> 00:53:57,165 Emergency feeding centres soon became permanent fixtures 878 00:53:57,207 --> 00:54:00,119 and ChurchiII renamed them British Restaurants. 879 00:54:01,927 --> 00:54:05,715 UntiI 1 942, most working peopIe onIy ate at home. 880 00:54:05,767 --> 00:54:08,918 Eating in pubIic was regarded as embarrassing. 881 00:54:10,567 --> 00:54:15,322 But after the government introduced a price cap of five shiIIings for three courses, 882 00:54:15,367 --> 00:54:19,076 for the first time, ordinary peopIe had the option to eat out. 883 00:54:20,527 --> 00:54:24,805 British Restaurants wouId become a Iasting sociaI phenomenon 884 00:54:24,847 --> 00:54:27,486 and signaIIed the start of high-street dining. 885 00:54:27,527 --> 00:54:31,122 Righto. Are you going to be needing a lump ot bread with that, sir? 886 00:54:31,167 --> 00:54:34,079 Ruth's feeding centre is open for business. 887 00:54:35,487 --> 00:54:36,636 Beans. 888 00:54:36,687 --> 00:54:39,918 The meat roII is being served with baked beans, 889 00:54:39,967 --> 00:54:43,755 which were considered to be such a stapIe part of the British diet 890 00:54:43,807 --> 00:54:47,197 that they were off ration for the duration of the war. 891 00:54:47,967 --> 00:54:50,527 - What would you like, sir? - A boiled onion, please. 892 00:54:50,567 --> 00:54:54,526 Ruth's father Geoff used to eat in British Restaurants as a chiId. 893 00:54:54,567 --> 00:54:57,843 He's come to the feeding centre to sampIe Ruth's efforts. 894 00:54:58,927 --> 00:55:00,519 Dad! 895 00:55:00,567 --> 00:55:02,956 l'm having one ot those onions, please. 896 00:55:03,007 --> 00:55:05,077 - Oh, my goodness. - Yes, one ot those. 897 00:55:05,127 --> 00:55:08,119 - So you're testing out... - That it's the real thing. 898 00:55:08,167 --> 00:55:13,685 By the end of the war, British Restaurants were serving 600,000 meaIs a day. 899 00:55:15,607 --> 00:55:22,046 British Restaurants really mark a turning point in British eating culture, too. 900 00:55:22,087 --> 00:55:26,524 This is a time when affordable, basic catering 901 00:55:26,567 --> 00:55:30,480 is suddenly available to a wide number ot people. 902 00:55:30,527 --> 00:55:35,123 British Restaurants really sort ot opened up the catering industry in many ways. 903 00:55:35,167 --> 00:55:36,998 Oh, yes. Yes, l think that's true. 904 00:55:37,047 --> 00:55:40,039 One or two, like the ones l knew in Oxford, 905 00:55:40,087 --> 00:55:43,716 stayed right up until about the '50s - well into the '50s. 906 00:55:43,767 --> 00:55:47,601 People got used to eating out. They got used to the idea ot eating out. 907 00:55:47,647 --> 00:55:51,435 And l think caterers got used to the idea that there was money to be made 908 00:55:51,487 --> 00:55:52,966 out ot doing cheap tood. 909 00:55:53,007 --> 00:55:57,558 Well, as a kid, l didn't know what the money side ot it really was. 910 00:55:57,607 --> 00:56:00,724 That's not as bad as l thought it would be, the meat roll. 911 00:56:00,767 --> 00:56:04,362 lt's actually quite edible. lt really is quite edible. 912 00:56:04,407 --> 00:56:07,160 - But you still like boiled onions. l'm amazed. - Oh, yeah. 913 00:56:07,207 --> 00:56:09,402 - They're all right. - They're very nice. 914 00:56:09,447 --> 00:56:12,120 - l don't know who's cooked them this time... - me. 915 00:56:12,167 --> 00:56:15,443 - You. Right, OK. Well, they're very nice. - They're all right. 916 00:56:17,367 --> 00:56:18,880 Lovely. 917 00:56:18,927 --> 00:56:23,079 Ruth's emergency feeding centre aIso seems to be a hit with the boys. 918 00:56:24,287 --> 00:56:26,198 (She groans) 919 00:56:26,247 --> 00:56:28,477 - Sorry. - You look knackered. 920 00:56:28,527 --> 00:56:31,963 l've been stood up tor l don't know how long. You ate it, then? 921 00:56:32,007 --> 00:56:35,682 That, l mean, that was really good. l loved the meatloat. 922 00:56:35,727 --> 00:56:38,002 - mm. lt was all right, wasn't it. - Delicious. 923 00:56:38,047 --> 00:56:40,242 l mean, it is quite healthy tood. 924 00:56:40,287 --> 00:56:43,040 - The tittest we've ever been as a nation. - So they say. 925 00:56:43,087 --> 00:56:44,440 - So they say. - So they say. 926 00:56:44,487 --> 00:56:47,923 But also we can't relate to it in terms ot er... 927 00:56:47,967 --> 00:56:52,324 it's so rare in our lives that we ever see a tood shortage in this country. 928 00:56:52,367 --> 00:56:54,005 lt really gives you an insight. 929 00:56:54,047 --> 00:56:58,165 lt's not just a shortage ot one thing. lt's a shortage right across the board. 930 00:56:58,207 --> 00:57:00,038 - Ot everything. - Every single thing. 931 00:57:03,367 --> 00:57:05,323 - Pub? - l think so. 932 00:57:05,367 --> 00:57:08,484 - Betore they rope us into the washing up. - Yeah. 933 00:57:13,407 --> 00:57:17,400 From the need for women to fiII new roIes in the workpIace... 934 00:57:18,567 --> 00:57:20,956 ..to the necessity for communaI eating... 935 00:57:22,287 --> 00:57:25,563 ..the great hardships experienced in 1 942 936 00:57:25,607 --> 00:57:28,280 and the way Britain sought to overcome them, 937 00:57:28,327 --> 00:57:32,445 wouId have an impact stretching far beyond the years of war.