:00:27. > :00:29.Baker. And Alex Jones. We are going back to school with a couple of
:00:30. > :00:37.actors who can teach you about comedy. We asked them to bring in a
:00:38. > :00:48.couple of old photographs. One of them, " couldn't be bothered". The
:00:49. > :00:52.other one did, and wasn't he cute. Catherine Tate and David Walliams.
:00:53. > :01:00.You didn't just ring in one photo rushed to market I was as to bring
:01:01. > :01:09.in a few. Not like you, Catherine. I don't have any, and I could not get
:01:10. > :01:15.to my mum's. Why would you have photos of yourself as a child? I
:01:16. > :01:26.just have them. We have one way you have grown into your face is a bit
:01:27. > :01:33.more. Awkward teenager. Beautiful! I have had a lot of work done since
:01:34. > :01:40.then. What will you like at school then, David? Quite annoying. I did
:01:41. > :01:52.not like being taught, I wanted to entertain people. It was more of a
:01:53. > :02:02.social thing for you? I think the teachers found me annoying. I was
:02:03. > :02:12.very shy, I think we would have hated each other. Where you front or
:02:13. > :02:19.back of the class? Was that a euphemism. I don't think I was a
:02:20. > :02:24.loudmouth. You were very shy rushed to mark when did you come out of
:02:25. > :02:30.your shell? I am asking all of your questions! When I was about 16. This
:02:31. > :02:42.is your second series of the ships clock -- sitcom set in a school.
:02:43. > :02:46.Without the teacher, we would not have got into university. Without Mr
:02:47. > :02:53.Maguire, my school day would have been traumatic. Without my music
:02:54. > :03:00.teacher, I would not be the musician I am now. The teacher drummed into
:03:01. > :03:08.us, the person doesn't make the school, the school makes the person.
:03:09. > :03:12.You can achieve your goals. I became the first person in the school's
:03:13. > :03:16.history to make it to Oxford University and my sister became the
:03:17. > :03:31.first person in the school's history to do medicine. We did a song, by
:03:32. > :03:37.Jessie J, money, money, money... They discriminate or a degree. He
:03:38. > :03:43.was an exceptional teacher. He went above and beyond for the students.
:03:44. > :03:51.My junior school was in a small village outside Leeds. Corpus
:03:52. > :04:02.Christi high school was brutal. Lots of bullying. Mrs Maguire was my form
:04:03. > :04:15.teacher. She saw that I was slightly a fish out of water in the class and
:04:16. > :04:21.she saw there was something in me. It was a crucial way of making me
:04:22. > :04:23.feel at home. I will never forget the moment she had been stabbed by
:04:24. > :04:27.one of her pupils in a classroom. It made me think about the lives she
:04:28. > :04:38.had touched over the years. Aside from playing music, I am not the
:04:39. > :04:48.most confident person. Before I met my teacher, I was reluctant to play
:04:49. > :04:58.the guitar. He was one of the first people to give me some positive
:04:59. > :05:09.account he said, I am not going to let you stop considering music has a
:05:10. > :05:13.career, because you are too good. Since I left school I have been
:05:14. > :05:14.recording and doing big shows all over the north-east with some
:05:15. > :05:16.popular local groups, which would not have been feasible if it wasn't
:05:17. > :05:20.for the confidence boost my teacher gave to me. I just want to say,
:05:21. > :05:29.thanks a lot for helping me to come out of my shell and give me the
:05:30. > :05:34.confidence to share my music with everybody and be the musician I am
:05:35. > :05:37.today. Mrs Maguire, I want to thank you for being a great teacher you
:05:38. > :05:39.were and giving so much to ceremony people over the years. Thank you so
:05:40. > :05:41.much, you have really changed our lives. For me, it was the form
:05:42. > :05:44.tutor. David, you have been back to your school? Yes, I met Keith
:05:45. > :05:52.Shipton who was my English teacher. He spotted something in me and
:05:53. > :06:06.offered me a part in the school play. A boy had dropped out. Do
:06:07. > :06:12.explain? We were making a documentary. I played the Queen in
:06:13. > :06:18.an upper and he spotted something in me that he thought I would be good
:06:19. > :06:29.to play the Queen. Is that you? There I am. The act hasn't changed.
:06:30. > :06:33.What was your vivid memory of a school play, Catherine? My most
:06:34. > :06:41.vivid memory is of the only one I did! I did a couple, arsenic and old
:06:42. > :06:55.Lace. That sounds serious for a school play? It is a comedy. I
:06:56. > :07:03.played a drunk, male teacher in a play called up our town. Again, the
:07:04. > :07:07.act not changed much. Friday sees the start of the second series of
:07:08. > :07:16.Big School, how have things changed since last time? Not very much. R ?
:07:17. > :07:20.does, they danced around each other romantically and I have got a big
:07:21. > :07:25.crush on Catherine's character but we can never seem to get it
:07:26. > :07:31.together. Philip Glenister is the games master and he is always
:07:32. > :07:36.getting in the way of our loves. Here you are talking about a date
:07:37. > :07:50.that never was. You could have known the town had two Bella Italia 's. I
:07:51. > :07:57.gave you the address. But you could have got it wrong. But I didn't get
:07:58. > :08:04.it wrong. Did you enjoy your meal? Of course I didn't, I hate eating
:08:05. > :08:09.alone. So do I, it was very reasonably priced. We should go
:08:10. > :08:25.again. Same restaurants or separate ones? The same one this time. I went
:08:26. > :08:40.to Bella Italia about two weeks ago. You play the French teacher. The
:08:41. > :08:57.weird thing is, you do speak fluent French in real life but you have had
:08:58. > :09:10.to dump it down because this teacher is not very good? She is not very
:09:11. > :09:22.good. Is it true? I can speak a bit of French. I was good at languages.
:09:23. > :09:35.She has never been to France. It is not a requirement. She is not a very
:09:36. > :09:59.good teacher. She thinks people should be up to speed and she is not
:10:00. > :10:06.teaching to a crowd of kids who want to be taught anything, let alone
:10:07. > :10:18.French. We know you will be watching this show together and you are
:10:19. > :10:29.looking forward to hearing how the programme is going to be introduced
:10:30. > :10:37.on BBC One? It makes it exciting. Listen to this. This is Philip, the
:10:38. > :10:39.BBC One continuity announcer. A little bird told me you like hearing
:10:40. > :10:42.the announcements before your programmes. I will be introducing
:10:43. > :10:50.Big School on Friday but I need help on working out what to say. The
:10:51. > :11:00.school holidays are almost over, now on BBC One, you know what that
:11:01. > :11:07.means? It is time to go back to school, Big School. I would be
:11:08. > :11:16.happier if you mentioned my name. Friday night comedy now on BBC One,
:11:17. > :11:22.if only my school had been as funny as this one, it is the new term at
:11:23. > :11:30.ex-school. , again no name. Now on BBC One, the return of David
:11:31. > :11:32.Walliams' Big School. They might accuse me of being teacher's pats,
:11:33. > :11:37.but this is the best show on television and my favourite teacher
:11:38. > :11:40.is definitely missed Church. No mention of Catherine? We know
:11:41. > :11:48.they'll is definitely watching, so you want option number three? Philip
:11:49. > :11:56.Glenister is in the Casa and you have written a part but someone on
:11:57. > :12:02.Britain's got talent. Yes, Jack Carol. He is a superstar. One day he
:12:03. > :12:12.will be bigger than Peter K. Literally? Yes, if he keeps eating
:12:13. > :12:18.at the rate he does. No, he is such a talent and a lovely guy and a
:12:19. > :12:26.really good actor. He giggles a lot on set. So am I, so it was a real
:12:27. > :12:31.problem. What episode is he in? We know what one it is because the
:12:32. > :12:37.announcer man will say, Jack Carol's ex-school. Big School
:12:38. > :12:39.returns on Friday. You are famous for transforming yourselves into
:12:40. > :12:49.some of the most memorable comedy ? does on television. The lady. Emily
:12:50. > :12:58.Howard in Little Britain. Here's Giles with the story of a remarkable
:12:59. > :13:01.character called William Mera Lees. 90 years ago, law enforcement
:13:02. > :13:13.required big names -- big men who were fast on their feet. But one
:13:14. > :13:24.pint-size month became a giant of the force. In Leith during the tough
:13:25. > :13:36.interwar years, a policeman's lot was seldom happy. You had to be as
:13:37. > :13:47.hard as the villains you chased and the number one requirement was an
:13:48. > :13:53.imposing his equality. A pipe at six inches, William Mera Lees was four
:13:54. > :14:05.inches below the regulation height. He became a master of disguise and
:14:06. > :14:20.dressed as an old lady, a porter and even it is said, as a baby in order
:14:21. > :14:25.to arrest criminals. He was shot at, busted safe crackers and napped
:14:26. > :14:26.burglars. He inches, William Mera Lees was four
:14:27. > :14:30.inches below the retired as... Locally some had their doubts about
:14:31. > :14:40.some of his stories. We know he was born in poverty in Leith in nine --
:14:41. > :14:43.1888. He left school at 18. Months into the job his sleeve fought in a
:14:44. > :14:45.winding mechanism and lost four of the fingers on his left hand.
:14:46. > :14:51.Refusing to be defined by his disability, he returned and masted a
:14:52. > :14:59.two-handed drill. But even more remarkable with the eight times he
:15:00. > :15:13.dived into the icy waters to save the lives of workers who had fallen
:15:14. > :15:16.in. He was asked to show his mugshot of unwanted man around town and
:15:17. > :15:20.displayed would have it, one of the first people he should too was the
:15:21. > :15:26.villain but he chased him and he had his first cholera. From then on,
:15:27. > :15:30.nothing could stop him. His height and flair for the theatrical meant
:15:31. > :15:36.that he surprised the denizens of the underworld in unexpected
:15:37. > :15:40.clothes. He dressed as real web Porter and arrested a suspected
:15:41. > :15:46.German spy. And he pretended to be an old lady to foil a gang. But his
:15:47. > :15:51.mastery was the time he dressed as a baby and waited in a pram for a
:15:52. > :15:55.mugger. Willie soon became nationally famous as the pocket
:15:56. > :16:01.sized detective with the battleship reputation. Unconventional but
:16:02. > :16:06.charismatic, he raised the eyebrows of superiors and he had the respect
:16:07. > :16:11.of the officers that he rose through the ranks to lead. He will be
:16:12. > :16:15.honoured with the ultimate accolade. There is no table of his
:16:16. > :16:21.appearance, but he did start in an amateur film that followed him on a
:16:22. > :16:27.very peculiar afternoon. His granddaughter, Margaret, has fond
:16:28. > :16:33.memories of her grandad's exploits but she has never seen this footage.
:16:34. > :16:43.Here is your grandfather. This is the first time I have seen him in a
:16:44. > :16:49.film. There he is, singing to the penguins. He was quite flamboyant?
:16:50. > :16:55.He would do anything to catch the criminal. He was honest,
:16:56. > :17:00.hard-working and unconventional. Frightened of anything? He said the
:17:01. > :17:10.one thing that he feared was dying alone. So we made sure he did not.
:17:11. > :17:14.Policing today is largely unrecognisable from the time when
:17:15. > :17:18.William Merrilees was waging war. But even if you take some of his
:17:19. > :17:28.stories with a pinch of salt, he was undoubtedly a small hero who made a
:17:29. > :17:34.huge difference. What a character! There is a film and that! We were
:17:35. > :17:41.having that conversation. Very short actor. His motivation was catching
:17:42. > :17:48.criminals but when it comes to you, where do they come from? Listen up!
:17:49. > :17:55.Do you start with the voice? Catchphrase? He cannot start with
:17:56. > :18:07.the catchphrase. But the voice, I suppose. The mannerisms are a very
:18:08. > :18:11.big part of it? Especially with Nan? That comes from observing people and
:18:12. > :18:16.stealing stuff from various people. As long as they do not know it is
:18:17. > :18:23.them! And people tend not to know as long as you change your hairstyle! I
:18:24. > :18:26.had a character that's it you were not believe what has happened to me!
:18:27. > :18:35.I know that person and she says that. Because she has long, dark
:18:36. > :18:43.hair, she has no idea! Unbelievable! People see themselves physically
:18:44. > :18:48.rather than with their mannerisms. Little Britain started on the radio?
:18:49. > :18:52.Some of it was people we had observed, some of it was from the
:18:53. > :18:57.imagination and we were differently, Matt Lucas is very instinctive so he
:18:58. > :19:01.would just get the voice like Vicky pollard. And he would write those
:19:02. > :19:07.sketches. We would have a situation where the man in love with his
:19:08. > :19:14.friend's grandmother, that sick and disturbing one. Quite disturbing. It
:19:15. > :19:21.comes from different places but it is great if you meet someone and you
:19:22. > :19:29.can steal their life and ruin it! Interesting that Britain has become
:19:30. > :19:32.a nation of ratepayers. But big businesses and the public sector are
:19:33. > :19:37.not paying small companies on time either. And Dom Littlewood will join
:19:38. > :19:47.us afterwards for a small business masterclass. Britain has been
:19:48. > :19:52.accused of developing a culture in which it has become acceptable for
:19:53. > :19:55.larger companies to take their time paying smaller ones. The problem is
:19:56. > :20:02.so bad that in the last Queen's Speech, the government promised to
:20:03. > :20:06.do something. Although this has been welcomed by small businesses, there
:20:07. > :20:10.are those who argue the government should start closer to home when
:20:11. > :20:16.talking -- looking into tackling this. A recent survey found that on
:20:17. > :20:21.average, a small business is waiting for ?38,000 in overdue payments. It
:20:22. > :20:26.also claimed that on average, ?50,000 with tip that small-business
:20:27. > :20:33.into administration, so a lot of businesses are only ?12,000 from
:20:34. > :20:37.folding. Trudy and her husband run a first aid training company in
:20:38. > :20:41.Worcestershire and they work on private and public contracts across
:20:42. > :20:48.the country. They are currently owed ?12,000 in overdue payments. About
:20:49. > :20:52.10% of the annual turnover. 50% of this is from public sector
:20:53. > :20:57.contracts. The only thing that kept us in business was the good working
:20:58. > :21:00.relationship we have with the bank manager and my worry from that point
:21:01. > :21:07.of view is if this manager we worked with moves away and we get someone
:21:08. > :21:10.else, we may not have that level of understanding and should be get into
:21:11. > :21:15.another situation, it could kill us. Julie was to show me how she
:21:16. > :21:19.spends her time chasing payments, from both public and private
:21:20. > :21:23.contracts. Is anyone available in the accounts department? It should
:21:24. > :21:35.have been paid some time ago. Nobody available? OK. Thank you. She is on
:21:36. > :21:39.holiday? I am aware of that. Apparently he is not available.
:21:40. > :21:45.Neither is she. You were the last hope. This is the fourth time I have
:21:46. > :21:56.called about this. Could you leave a note? Goodbye. Have you ever come
:21:57. > :22:03.close to jacking this in? Yes, but you think, why should I? I will not
:22:04. > :22:07.have this taken away. When a government department or council
:22:08. > :22:11.pays a large firm, those companies often employ smaller ones to carry
:22:12. > :22:17.out the work. When complete, the smaller business invoices them and,
:22:18. > :22:21.in theory, should get paid. But the larger firms are not paying up and
:22:22. > :22:28.they are accused of using that money to fund their own business. Leaving
:22:29. > :22:33.the subcontractor for months. Even when there is no middle man, the
:22:34. > :22:39.effect can be the same. Andrew is Chief Executive of a high-tech
:22:40. > :22:51.radical manufacturing firm. 100 is days... The total value is ?507,000.
:22:52. > :22:56.-- 106 days. Andrew tells me he could employ three more office
:22:57. > :23:00.staff, three salespeople and one more warehouse worker for the year
:23:01. > :23:06.with that. This has the potential to increase turnover by around ?1.5
:23:07. > :23:13.million. This is a significant amount when the turnover last year
:23:14. > :23:17.was ?3 million. If you have not got a bank that will back you and with
:23:18. > :23:23.orders on the books, and no cash in the bank, you will go bust. Andrew
:23:24. > :23:28.has been working with ministers and the industry to introduce an agreed
:23:29. > :23:34.business standard that requires companies to pay bills on time.
:23:35. > :23:38.Companies that do not comply may not be able to apply for a government
:23:39. > :23:45.contract is in future. Dominic Littlewood is here. Is this a big
:23:46. > :23:50.problem? It is massive. If you take into account how many businesses
:23:51. > :23:57.there are, 5 million, 3 million, 60%, must wait up to six months for
:23:58. > :24:01.payment. Some of them have been stretched even longer and that
:24:02. > :24:04.forces a log into administration and they are forced into overdrafts or
:24:05. > :24:10.they might not be able to pay their own suppliers. That is a massive
:24:11. > :24:18.effect. Both companies spent ten hours every week chasing invoices.
:24:19. > :24:21.That is just wasted time. The government is trying to step in to
:24:22. > :24:26.help smaller companies. What are they planning? In 2008 the
:24:27. > :24:33.introduced the Prompt Payment Code but it was wondering and of those
:24:34. > :24:41.businesses, less than 1700 actually signed up and the top companies,
:24:42. > :24:47.only 74 of them actually did so. What is happening is in November,
:24:48. > :24:51.they are bringing in legislation. This is a huge leap forward but it
:24:52. > :24:55.is not the answer. It is forcing public contracts to be paid within
:24:56. > :25:01.30 days, or those people who have not paid will be fined. 8% every day
:25:02. > :25:10.plus inflation. Hopefully this will have an effect. Thank you. George is
:25:11. > :25:15.investigating a flying menace that can spoil the summer's day. Emerging
:25:16. > :25:24.from the underground lair, and insect army of vast proportions.
:25:25. > :25:31.Billions of ants emerging across the entire country. Covering patios,
:25:32. > :25:37.scaling the walls. Crawling up from pavements. In the last few years it
:25:38. > :25:44.has become known to many as flying and day. But what triggers these
:25:45. > :25:50.normally unobtrusive insects to sprout wings? And doesn't really
:25:51. > :25:58.happen for just one day every year? -- does it. Two years ago, Rebecca
:25:59. > :26:06.set out to find some answers. Before this research began, what did we
:26:07. > :26:09.know about this? It was very anecdotal, we did not know if it was
:26:10. > :26:15.only one day around the country and what triggers it. So far, the study
:26:16. > :26:21.has confirmed that this always occurs on a warm, humid day at the
:26:22. > :26:28.height of summer. Most times when people look into ant colonies, they
:26:29. > :26:33.will only see wingless workers. Exactly, throughout the year, when
:26:34. > :26:39.West ants and as an adult, it will be foraging food for the colony.
:26:40. > :26:43.Overworking and predation means it will only live for about one month.
:26:44. > :26:49.The Queen could live for ten years. Having her own colony. For most of
:26:50. > :26:56.the year, the offspring are worker females, until the summer. Then she
:26:57. > :26:59.produces immature queens and meals, both of which have wings and their
:27:00. > :27:06.job is not to provide food but to multiply. These immature virgin
:27:07. > :27:13.queens have only one chance to make. And that is flying and day. If all
:27:14. > :27:21.of the ants in the area leave on the same day, this has positive effects.
:27:22. > :27:26.Firstly, the chance of meeting and made from another nest. It also
:27:27. > :27:33.causes a glut, overwhelming any predators. The men usually live for
:27:34. > :27:39.only one day after mating. The females will lose their wings and by
:27:40. > :27:43.making just once on the day, she will be able to start on colony.
:27:44. > :27:49.That is on the strength of just one mating. With one male. And they can
:27:50. > :27:53.continue laying eggs for about ten years. Producing hundreds of
:27:54. > :27:58.thousands of eggs, just from that one time. Rebecca's team have
:27:59. > :28:03.discovered that although this is a national event, it does not only
:28:04. > :28:10.happen once every summer. In fact, there were four different pics. This
:28:11. > :28:15.year, there has already been two of them and quite possibly more to
:28:16. > :28:19.come. Flying ants might not be everybody's cup of tea but this is a
:28:20. > :28:24.crucial part of their life cycle and it is not going to stop any time
:28:25. > :28:30.soon. But thanks to the conspicuous nature, and the reaction they
:28:31. > :28:37.generate, were beginning to get the information that science needs to
:28:38. > :28:41.unravel the mystery. Company that has made things clearer. That is all
:28:42. > :28:46.we have got time for. We have been through a lot! Thank you to David
:28:47. > :28:55.Walliams and Katherine Tate, Big School starts on Friday at 9:30pm on
:28:56. > :28:59.BBC One. Tomorrow, we will go through the keyhole with Keith
:29:00. > :29:08.Lemon. Anything could happen! Goodbye.
:29:09. > :29:19.Have somebody play bagpipe at the airport to welcome you? Possible.
:29:20. > :29:23.Whichever car you like, with Wi-Fi inside? Possible.
:29:24. > :29:25.Can I get you a pink elephant? I'll try!
:29:26. > :29:29.See, the Indian philosophy dictates that