0:00:02 > 0:00:03This is Absolute Genius.
0:00:03 > 0:00:08Dive into a world of action, adventure and explosions.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13Each show will introduce you to a different genius.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16An amazing person who had a genius idea which shaped the world.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19And they will inspire us to
0:00:19 > 0:00:22come up with our own genius idea at the end of each show.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25- But, will it be any good? - Will it be any good?
0:00:25 > 0:00:28- It'll be... - BOTH: Absolute Genius!
0:00:31 > 0:00:35On today's show, a genius who transformed the way we communicate.
0:00:37 > 0:00:39How wireless saves lives at sea.
0:00:39 > 0:00:40Mayday! Mayday!
0:00:40 > 0:00:45And Dick faces his biggest fear on live radio!
0:00:45 > 0:00:47I was so nervous just before the take off.
0:00:47 > 0:00:49Got the instruction, just...
0:00:49 > 0:00:50RADIO CRACKLES
0:00:50 > 0:00:51- Dick? Speak to us, Dick.- Hello?
0:01:25 > 0:01:28DAD, Genius Radio!
0:01:28 > 0:01:32And that was a number one hit back in 1982, don't you know?
0:01:32 > 0:01:33Welcome to the show.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36You're listening to DAD Radio and our special guest today
0:01:36 > 0:01:39really did change the way that we communicate.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42Thanks to him, we can send all sorts of information wirelessly,
0:01:42 > 0:01:44as if by magic.
0:01:44 > 0:01:46Please welcome live to the studio
0:01:46 > 0:01:49the Italian inventor who helped the world go wireless.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52It's Guglielmo Marconi.
0:01:52 > 0:01:54Buon giorno, boys!
0:01:54 > 0:01:58Inspired by his genius, we're going to be coming up with our own
0:01:58 > 0:01:59genius idea later on
0:01:59 > 0:02:03and careful kids, it might be mad!
0:02:03 > 0:02:07'Yes, we're going to attempt an extreme radio broadcast.'
0:02:07 > 0:02:10Aaargh!
0:02:10 > 0:02:11Not half!
0:02:11 > 0:02:13But first, let's find out how it all started.
0:02:13 > 0:02:15ELEPHANT TRUMPETS, HEN SQUAWKS
0:02:17 > 0:02:20Today, our whole world is connected.
0:02:20 > 0:02:23We can communicate with each other almost instantly,
0:02:23 > 0:02:25pretty much anywhere on the planet.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28From sending messages on your phone or laptop,
0:02:28 > 0:02:31to broadcasting live on TV and radio.
0:02:31 > 0:02:35We can even pick up and transmit signals to outer space!
0:02:35 > 0:02:39But, hundreds of years ago, these incredible forms of
0:02:39 > 0:02:42wireless communication didn't exist
0:02:42 > 0:02:46and sending simple information took a very long time.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48You could send smoke signals...
0:02:48 > 0:02:51- Do you want a burger?- What?
0:02:51 > 0:02:54The smoke's saying, "Do you want a burger?"
0:02:54 > 0:02:55What?
0:02:57 > 0:03:01Or, you could send your message by carrier pigeon,
0:03:01 > 0:03:02or even by ship.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04But that took forever -
0:03:04 > 0:03:06if you sent a letter to India in 1840,
0:03:06 > 0:03:09it would take two years to get a reply!
0:03:09 > 0:03:14By the time the Italian Marconi was born in 1874,
0:03:14 > 0:03:18scientists had worked out a much faster way of sending messages...
0:03:18 > 0:03:20Along wires running next to railway tracks.
0:03:20 > 0:03:23It was called the telegraph.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27Urgent messages could be sent by Morse code,
0:03:27 > 0:03:30using electrical signals to spell out words -
0:03:30 > 0:03:33short dots and long dashes instead of letters.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36Great invention, but the only problem with this
0:03:36 > 0:03:38was that it needed miles and miles of cable.
0:03:38 > 0:03:40Where shall I stick this?
0:03:41 > 0:03:43Then scientists began to discover
0:03:43 > 0:03:45the existence of something even better,
0:03:45 > 0:03:50something that's all around us - radio waves.
0:03:50 > 0:03:54And this is what excited Marconi.
0:03:54 > 0:03:56But what exactly ARE radio waves?
0:03:56 > 0:03:58- SIMULTANEOUSLY: Fran?- Fran?
0:03:58 > 0:04:00Our genius scientist Fran
0:04:00 > 0:04:03explains things in ways even we can understand.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05Best of all, she loves a good experiment.
0:04:05 > 0:04:06Argh!
0:04:06 > 0:04:10And she's guaranteed to pop up just when you need her most.
0:04:10 > 0:04:13Fran, what are radio waves?
0:04:13 > 0:04:16Well, the thing is, in the 1800s, scientists had started to think
0:04:16 > 0:04:20that there was some kind of invisible wave of energy
0:04:20 > 0:04:25that could travel from one place to another, without wires,
0:04:25 > 0:04:26through thin air.
0:04:26 > 0:04:29But to show you how this invisible wave of energy moves,
0:04:29 > 0:04:32I need...this.
0:04:32 > 0:04:33My jelly sweet wave machine.
0:04:33 > 0:04:36- Jelly sweet wave machine? - I like it!- All right, Wonka!
0:04:36 > 0:04:37Can we eat it?
0:04:37 > 0:04:38Not yet, not yet, no.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40But scientists had started to realise
0:04:40 > 0:04:42that if you had a sudden burst of energy,
0:04:42 > 0:04:47that energy could travel a distance, like a ripple or a wave.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49Just like this...
0:04:49 > 0:04:52Ah, Franny!
0:04:52 > 0:04:54It goes from place to place.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57And that was how the invisible wave of energy could travel.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00But if these waves of energy were invisible,
0:05:00 > 0:05:02how could scientists prove they were real?
0:05:02 > 0:05:06They built scientific machines a bit like this one.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08- Ah... - And look right there...
0:05:08 > 0:05:10SWITCH BUZZES
0:05:10 > 0:05:12- Oooh... - Bad boy! Look at that.
0:05:12 > 0:05:14Yeah, that's a lot of electricity.
0:05:14 > 0:05:16Now, scientists believed
0:05:16 > 0:05:18that coming out from that electric spark
0:05:18 > 0:05:21were invisible waves of energy
0:05:21 > 0:05:23and those were radio waves.
0:05:23 > 0:05:26But how did they prove that?
0:05:26 > 0:05:29Well, if they could make these radio waves do something,
0:05:29 > 0:05:32say like light up a bulb,
0:05:32 > 0:05:34then they would know that the radio waves were there
0:05:34 > 0:05:35and that they existed.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37Right. How does it work?
0:05:37 > 0:05:41OK, right, so when I turn it on, there's an electric spark.
0:05:41 > 0:05:46Then, from that electric spark, that will send out radio waves.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50- And those radio waves will go up to this aerial here.- Right.
0:05:50 > 0:05:52It'll be detected by that
0:05:52 > 0:05:56and they should make this bulb light up.
0:05:56 > 0:05:57It's quite hard to make work.
0:05:57 > 0:05:59There's nothing connecting it to that?
0:05:59 > 0:06:02No, there's no wires between these two at all.
0:06:02 > 0:06:04If you don't believe Fran, we shall prove it, look.
0:06:04 > 0:06:08- There's nothing in-between the two devices, no wires.- Uh-uh.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11- Right, shall we do it?- Yes. - OK - lights off.- OK...
0:06:11 > 0:06:13And hopefully, that light will go on.
0:06:13 > 0:06:15- Ready?- Yeah, yeah, yeah - ready.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18- Yeah!- Hey, look at that!
0:06:20 > 0:06:21Hang on, light on.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Are you telling me that, when you were pressing that button
0:06:24 > 0:06:26and simultaneously this was lighting up,
0:06:26 > 0:06:29there were invisible waves of energy passing from here to here,
0:06:29 > 0:06:31all within a split second?
0:06:31 > 0:06:33Like that was transmitting something to this aerial?
0:06:33 > 0:06:36Yeah - they were travelling at the speed of light, actually.
0:06:36 > 0:06:37They travel that fast, yep.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40And they're transmitted from here, received here -
0:06:40 > 0:06:43so this is called the receiver - and then that lit up the bulb.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45And then that proved that radio waves existed
0:06:45 > 0:06:48and you could do something useful with them.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50And so much technology that we use nowadays
0:06:50 > 0:06:52was originated from this principle.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55- Yes.- A radio station transmits the signal from one aerial
0:06:55 > 0:06:58- and our receiver picks it up on its aerial.- Exactly.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01So, just one more question Fran - about the whole...
0:07:01 > 0:07:02- Can we eat it?- Mm.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05- What, the jelly sweets?- Yes. - Go on, then.- Yep...
0:07:09 > 0:07:10Sorry, Fran.
0:07:10 > 0:07:12Hey! Save some for me!
0:07:14 > 0:07:16Marconi spotted a genius opportunity
0:07:16 > 0:07:20to use radio waves in a practical way -
0:07:20 > 0:07:23an idea that would revolutionise the way we communicate.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28Marconi's genius idea
0:07:28 > 0:07:32was to put radio waves to good use over long distances.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35He took existing bits of technology, improved them
0:07:35 > 0:07:37and built a brand-new wireless system -
0:07:37 > 0:07:42a way of using radio waves to send messages from one place to another.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45It's where modern wireless communication began,
0:07:45 > 0:07:48from TV and radio, to messaging on your mobile.
0:07:48 > 0:07:50Genius!
0:07:52 > 0:07:56Marconi needed to show what an amazing idea it was.
0:07:56 > 0:08:01So, in 1896, he came to the UK and set up a high-stakes demo
0:08:01 > 0:08:05to prove his wireless machine really did work.
0:08:05 > 0:08:06See ya, lads!
0:08:08 > 0:08:10And who better to spot a good idea when they saw it
0:08:10 > 0:08:12than the British Army?
0:08:12 > 0:08:13All right, lads?
0:08:14 > 0:08:17We're going to recreate that famous demo
0:08:17 > 0:08:18with these soldiers and...
0:08:21 > 0:08:23..Genius Helper Colonel Colin Cunningham,
0:08:23 > 0:08:26from the Royal Signals Museum at Blandford Camp.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30- Hi, Colin, how are you doing? - Hello.- You all right, Colin?
0:08:30 > 0:08:34Why would wireless technology change the British Army so much?
0:08:34 > 0:08:38Well, for 50 years, they'd been using wires to communicate with
0:08:38 > 0:08:40and you had to lay them and it took a long time to do it.
0:08:40 > 0:08:43And radio wireless, as it was called at the time,
0:08:43 > 0:08:46gave them the opportunity to go from point to point instantaneously.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50What did he really want to achieve with his genius idea?
0:08:50 > 0:08:51He wanted to make money.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54He could see the potential in this technique
0:08:54 > 0:08:57and he wanted to develop it to make money.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59So what are we going to try and do today?
0:08:59 > 0:09:02We are going to recreate the demonstration that he did
0:09:02 > 0:09:05on Salisbury Plain in July 1896.
0:09:05 > 0:09:07And he got together senior people
0:09:07 > 0:09:09from the Army, the Navy and the Post Office,
0:09:09 > 0:09:12all of whom were interested in long-distance communication.
0:09:12 > 0:09:15So, really, this was his Dragons' Den sales pitch.
0:09:15 > 0:09:17Uh, he was the entrepreneur trying to sell his idea
0:09:17 > 0:09:19and they were all the Dragons.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21Yeah, and he was going to try and demonstrate it
0:09:21 > 0:09:24over a significant distance - significant in those days.
0:09:24 > 0:09:27He had the vision and he knew he could make something work.
0:09:27 > 0:09:29And what he was going to do was develop it.
0:09:29 > 0:09:31Ah, right, so this is it.
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Colin, can you explain what we've got here?
0:09:33 > 0:09:35This is a recreation of Marconi's transmitter
0:09:35 > 0:09:37using modern components.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40So if I press this, I'll send a signal from here to there
0:09:40 > 0:09:42and you'll hear the switch make the bell ring.
0:09:42 > 0:09:43BELL RINGS
0:09:43 > 0:09:45Oh, yeah, I can hear it switching.
0:09:45 > 0:09:48Now lift it up, step back a couple of paces...
0:09:48 > 0:09:49SWITCH BUZZES WEAKLY
0:09:49 > 0:09:52- Ah! Isn't that weird? - Bring it back...
0:09:52 > 0:09:54BELL RINGS
0:09:54 > 0:09:56- Right!- So its range is only a third of a metre or something.
0:09:56 > 0:09:57Very short, yes.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01So this works in a similar way to Fran's demo.
0:10:01 > 0:10:05But we're going to try and send those radio waves even further.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08So then what did Marconi do? What was his genius?
0:10:08 > 0:10:12He put an aerial on the transmitter and an aerial on the receiver.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15These were bits of wire 70 or 80 feet long,
0:10:15 > 0:10:17and he held them up by kites.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20Ah, I see - so the higher the aerial, the longer the range.
0:10:20 > 0:10:23Now we don't have kites, but we are using a helium balloon.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26Look at the size of that one, Colin, it's a whopper.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28Mamma mia!
0:10:31 > 0:10:33Don't pop it! No!
0:10:33 > 0:10:35DICK LAUGHS
0:10:35 > 0:10:36What was that?
0:10:36 > 0:10:38I forgot we were at an army camp!
0:10:39 > 0:10:40That's great!
0:10:41 > 0:10:43So when we press this button,
0:10:43 > 0:10:45it's going to send a radio wave from here
0:10:45 > 0:10:47all the way down to the other antenna over there?
0:10:47 > 0:10:48And all the way round here.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50Oh, OK.
0:10:50 > 0:10:52OK, so it probably works out best if Rich stays here with you
0:10:52 > 0:10:55- and I go down there with the lads, yeah?- OK.
0:10:55 > 0:10:57Look at the lads - all right, lads?
0:10:57 > 0:10:59No, they're having none of it today, are they?
0:10:59 > 0:11:02No, I'll, er...just make my own way down there. See ya.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05Pot holes everywhere.
0:11:05 > 0:11:09- Marconi, ready? - Dick, I was born ready!
0:11:10 > 0:11:11Dudes...
0:11:12 > 0:11:13OK.
0:11:14 > 0:11:15Ready!
0:11:15 > 0:11:17Right, this is it, the big moment.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20Will the simple action of me pressing this Morse key
0:11:20 > 0:11:23send a radio signal 30m up in the air,
0:11:23 > 0:11:26100m that way, 30m back down and ring that bell?
0:11:26 > 0:11:27Let's find out.
0:11:27 > 0:11:31Three, two, one...
0:11:31 > 0:11:32SWITCH BUZZES
0:11:32 > 0:11:33BELL RINGS
0:11:33 > 0:11:36Ha! Yeah! It worked!
0:11:38 > 0:11:41That is actually unbelievable. It's instant.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43Do it again!
0:11:43 > 0:11:45SWITCH BUZZES AND BELL RINGS
0:11:45 > 0:11:48See that? It was amazing.
0:11:48 > 0:11:49I am gobsmacked.
0:11:49 > 0:11:51No wonder they were gobsmacked on the day,
0:11:51 > 0:11:53they thought this was total genius.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55Cos it is, Marconi - I mean, look...
0:11:55 > 0:11:57Just mechanical components.
0:11:57 > 0:11:58Right, can you stop it now?
0:12:00 > 0:12:01All right, I get the idea!
0:12:03 > 0:12:05By increasing the height of the aerials -
0:12:05 > 0:12:06just like Marconi -
0:12:06 > 0:12:11we've proved you can send messages over longer distances without wires.
0:12:11 > 0:12:12And after a few tweaks,
0:12:12 > 0:12:15Marconi's wireless system began to be used in combat
0:12:15 > 0:12:18by the Navy and the Army.
0:12:18 > 0:12:20But Marconi didn't stop there - in 1901,
0:12:20 > 0:12:26he attempted something many scientists thought was impossible.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29From my earliest experiments,
0:12:29 > 0:12:33I had always held a belief that a day would come
0:12:33 > 0:12:37when mankind would be able to send messages without wires
0:12:37 > 0:12:40between the furthermost ends of the earth.
0:12:42 > 0:12:46Marconi raised his transmitters and receivers more than 60m high
0:12:46 > 0:12:49and sent a wireless message from Cornwall
0:12:49 > 0:12:542,100 miles across the Atlantic Ocean to Canada.
0:12:54 > 0:12:59It was a genius moment. Marconi had reached new heights.
0:12:59 > 0:13:00And thanks to him,
0:13:00 > 0:13:04the whole world would one day become connected wirelessly.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07And here are some more wonderful wireless facts.
0:13:10 > 0:13:11It's the Genius Top Five!
0:13:11 > 0:13:15At five - radio waves make it round the planet
0:13:15 > 0:13:17because they bounce off the ionosphere,
0:13:17 > 0:13:19part of earth's atmosphere.
0:13:19 > 0:13:24That's how Marconi got his wireless signal across the Atlantic.
0:13:24 > 0:13:27At four - radio waves can travel at the speed of light,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30almost 186,000 miles per second!
0:13:30 > 0:13:31You're nicked!
0:13:31 > 0:13:36Three - on Christmas Eve 1906, Canadian inventor Reginald Fessenden
0:13:36 > 0:13:40transmitted the first wireless radio broadcast using the human voice.
0:13:40 > 0:13:43It was heard by ships hundreds of miles away.
0:13:43 > 0:13:45Can you hear me?!
0:13:45 > 0:13:48Two - objects in deep space can send out radio waves.
0:13:48 > 0:13:52So can the Sun and bolts of lightning!
0:13:52 > 0:13:56And at one - radio waves helped save more than 700 lives
0:13:56 > 0:13:59when the Titanic sunk in 1912.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02Marconi's wireless system was used to send distress signals,
0:14:02 > 0:14:04so survivors could be rescued.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12So Marconi's wireless system saved lives at sea - fact!
0:14:12 > 0:14:14And it was here in Cornwall
0:14:14 > 0:14:18where the very first ship's distress signal was received.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23To tell us more, Genius Helper David Barlow
0:14:23 > 0:14:25from the Lizard Marconi Wireless Station.
0:14:25 > 0:14:27He's a massive Marconi fan!
0:14:29 > 0:14:31Wow, look at this - this is incredible.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34So this is where all the magic happened?
0:14:34 > 0:14:37- This was called the Marconi Bungalow until recently.- No, really?
0:14:37 > 0:14:39Bogies!
0:14:39 > 0:14:41- Dick and Dom in the... - Marconi Bungalow.
0:14:41 > 0:14:43In the Marconi Bungalow - how about that?
0:14:43 > 0:14:46But what was the most significant thing that he did right at this spot?
0:14:46 > 0:14:48Well, one of the most significant things must be
0:14:48 > 0:14:52he received the first provable SOS ever sent.
0:14:52 > 0:14:56And this was before the Titanic, two years before the Titanic.
0:14:56 > 0:14:58A man was in this very hut
0:14:58 > 0:15:02and he was receiving signals from a ship called the SS Minnehaha.
0:15:02 > 0:15:03Minne-ha-ha - that's nice.
0:15:03 > 0:15:08He said "We might need help, stand by, SOS, SOS"
0:15:08 > 0:15:09and there it is.
0:15:09 > 0:15:12- Look at that! - So this was the first ever SOS?
0:15:12 > 0:15:15It was the first ever provable SOS that was ever sent.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20In days before Marconi, people got lost at sea.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23Today, you usually know where people are.
0:15:23 > 0:15:27- All because of that man's brains. - All because of that man's brains.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30We've got to go somewhere else to find out more
0:15:30 > 0:15:32about Marconi's SOS distress signals.
0:15:32 > 0:15:35And I've heard that Poole is very nice this time of year.
0:15:35 > 0:15:37- Poole?- Mm...
0:15:40 > 0:15:41I LOVE Poole!
0:15:41 > 0:15:43Poole in Dorset -
0:15:43 > 0:15:46home to Europe's largest natural harbour,
0:15:46 > 0:15:48the art of pottery,
0:15:48 > 0:15:52and the RNLI's Lifeboat College.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54The Royal National Lifeboat Institution
0:15:54 > 0:15:57runs a 24-hour search and rescue service.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59Humber Coastguard...
0:15:59 > 0:16:02Its volunteer lifeboat crews rely on radio
0:16:02 > 0:16:05to communicate with the coastguard and boats in distress -
0:16:05 > 0:16:08those radios are the modern-day version
0:16:08 > 0:16:10of Marconi's original wireless system.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13We're going to experience our own emergency
0:16:13 > 0:16:16in the RNLI's Sea Survival pool.
0:16:16 > 0:16:19We'll have to rely on a radio to call for help.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23And to assist us, it's Genius Helper
0:16:23 > 0:16:26and RNLI trainer Matt Cridland.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30But before we can put Marconi's genius to the test,
0:16:30 > 0:16:32we need to abandon ship.
0:16:32 > 0:16:34So this is our ship.
0:16:34 > 0:16:36It's had a little accident and it's sinking,
0:16:36 > 0:16:38and we need to get safely into the water.
0:16:38 > 0:16:39This is as high as it would be
0:16:39 > 0:16:41if you were about to jump off a ship?
0:16:41 > 0:16:43- Er, potentially, yeah. - Pretty high, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45What's the safest way of doing this?
0:16:45 > 0:16:47OK, so we have got a technique to look after ourselves
0:16:47 > 0:16:50and what we're going to do is clamp our noses
0:16:50 > 0:16:53and make a cup over our mouth.
0:16:53 > 0:16:54So we can't breath.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55And with our other hand,
0:16:55 > 0:16:59- we're going to hold that elbow in nice and tight.- Right
0:16:59 > 0:17:01And then a nice big safe step off.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04OK. What if your back leg freezes?
0:17:04 > 0:17:05You're going to fall.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08Take up our position, one final check
0:17:08 > 0:17:10and then just a nice step out.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16- Ready?- No. I'm not ready.
0:17:19 > 0:17:20Put your toes on the orange line.
0:17:20 > 0:17:23DICK AND DOM BABBLE
0:17:23 > 0:17:24Psych it up.
0:17:25 > 0:17:27I don't know how that's going to help.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32LAUGHTER
0:17:32 > 0:17:33Just get in!
0:17:34 > 0:17:37- Get back there!- OK. - Hold on to the railings.
0:17:37 > 0:17:39I'll count down from ten and you just do it.
0:17:39 > 0:17:41The more you think about it, the worse it's going to get.
0:17:41 > 0:17:43That's fine, don't worry about your feet.
0:17:43 > 0:17:46Look straight up, clamp your hands, look forward, step forwards,
0:17:46 > 0:17:48when you're ready, off you go.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50One...go!
0:17:55 > 0:17:58Ah! Argh...!
0:17:58 > 0:18:00- What was it like? - Brilliant!- Nice.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03When you're ready, look forwards, step forwards, off you go.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06Bizarre - I just stopped! Hang on a minute...
0:18:08 > 0:18:10I'll count like you did for me, cos that worked.
0:18:10 > 0:18:16Ready? Five, four, three, two, one.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20I can't do it! After all that I just said to you.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22I can't blooming jump off!
0:18:24 > 0:18:26It's literally like someone's got hold of a rope on my back
0:18:26 > 0:18:28and is just pulling me.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31And again - three, two, one...
0:18:31 > 0:18:33Argh...!
0:18:36 > 0:18:39'I can't believe it - Dick's the one who's scared of heights, not me!'
0:18:41 > 0:18:42Things are getting choppy -
0:18:42 > 0:18:44time to haul ourselves into the life raft.
0:18:57 > 0:18:58I'm in!
0:19:01 > 0:19:02Can we stop now, please?
0:19:02 > 0:19:05In the days before Marconi found a way for ships
0:19:05 > 0:19:07to send wireless SOS signals,
0:19:07 > 0:19:10there was little way of calling for help.
0:19:10 > 0:19:11He's in, he's in.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16When you left shore, you were on your own.
0:19:16 > 0:19:17It's gone all dark.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19Yeah, we've got a bit of rain starting now,
0:19:19 > 0:19:22the weather's starting to get a bit worse.
0:19:23 > 0:19:26Thanks to Marconi and his wireless invention,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28we're able to radio for help.
0:19:31 > 0:19:33Mayday, mayday!
0:19:33 > 0:19:36Help! Over.
0:19:36 > 0:19:37Now we can be saved.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40This is the coastguard - don't worry,
0:19:40 > 0:19:41we'll be tasking a helicopter.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43They'll be getting airborne very shortly
0:19:43 > 0:19:46and they'll be sent to your location, over.
0:19:46 > 0:19:48And not a moment too soon.
0:19:50 > 0:19:51What is it?
0:19:51 > 0:19:54I think we've just double inflated our jackets...
0:19:54 > 0:19:56DICK LAUGHS
0:20:07 > 0:20:09- Bye-bye.- See you up there.- Yeah.
0:20:13 > 0:20:18In 2012, RNLI lifeboat crews saved 328 lives,
0:20:18 > 0:20:21helped by modern radio communication.
0:20:21 > 0:20:25The coastguard, the RNLI and ships in distress -
0:20:25 > 0:20:28all able to communicate instantly during an emergency.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32Well, hopefully, that is the closest we're going to experience
0:20:32 > 0:20:36being in the sea in a thunderstorm, in a life raft,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39and being rescued by the RNLI and the coastguard.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42It was an incredible operation, but it was all down to that really.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45Yeah, all down to Marconi and his wireless radio system.
0:20:45 > 0:20:47- So, er, that's Dick and Dom.- Genius.
0:20:47 > 0:20:49AIR HISSES
0:20:49 > 0:20:51Over and out.
0:20:51 > 0:20:55We've seen how radio waves can send signals without wires...
0:20:55 > 0:20:57ELECTRICITY BUZZES
0:20:57 > 0:21:00..radioed for help using the modern-day version
0:21:00 > 0:21:02of Marconi's wireless system...
0:21:03 > 0:21:06..and discovered how height helps radio waves go further.
0:21:06 > 0:21:07BELL RINGS
0:21:07 > 0:21:09Yeah! It worked!
0:21:09 > 0:21:11That's inspired us to go even higher too
0:21:11 > 0:21:13with a wireless challenge.
0:21:13 > 0:21:16It's time to reveal our genius idea.
0:21:16 > 0:21:18We're going to take radio communication
0:21:18 > 0:21:19to the next level.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22We? We? No - WE aren't.
0:21:22 > 0:21:25YOU are. And here's how.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30Our Genius Idea - to do an extreme radio broadcast.
0:21:30 > 0:21:35Dick will transmit from a hang glider up to 150m high
0:21:35 > 0:21:39down to me on the ground, transmitting back to the studio
0:21:39 > 0:21:41and then LIVE all over Cornwall.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44My challenge - to keep talking, even though I'm petrified.
0:21:44 > 0:21:47Our problem - we might fall off air.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49And I might be too scared to speak.
0:21:50 > 0:21:51Getting Dick off the ground
0:21:51 > 0:21:54is Genius Helper and instructor Graham Phipps,
0:21:54 > 0:21:56who used to hang glide for Great Britain.
0:21:57 > 0:21:59- Hi, Graham, nice to meet you. - Hi, guys.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01- How are you doing?- Hiya, Dom.
0:22:01 > 0:22:03I've never done anything like this before.
0:22:03 > 0:22:04What do I need to know?
0:22:04 > 0:22:07All you need to know, Dick, is relax.
0:22:07 > 0:22:09- I don't feel relaxed. - No, you don't feel relaxed.- No.
0:22:09 > 0:22:11We'll make you relaxed in the air.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14I'm really scared of heights - I mean, how high will we be going?
0:22:14 > 0:22:16We're going to take you today...ooh,
0:22:16 > 0:22:20I would guess up to 400-500 feet, maybe a little more.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23Well, that's on par with the seagulls you see right up there, yeah?
0:22:23 > 0:22:26We'll be up with the seagulls, maybe even looking down on them.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29That is amazing - just out of interest,
0:22:29 > 0:22:31because we can't really tell from here,
0:22:31 > 0:22:34there's kind of a slight slope and then there's some green bushes.
0:22:34 > 0:22:36What's the other side of the green bushes?
0:22:36 > 0:22:40- The other side of the green bushes is a very steep slope.- Right.
0:22:40 > 0:22:41- That's a cliff?- That's a cliff.
0:22:41 > 0:22:44That's another word for it, but I didn't like to say that.
0:22:44 > 0:22:45I've seen a hang glider take off before
0:22:45 > 0:22:47and you kind of run and then off you go,
0:22:47 > 0:22:50but what if I panic and want you to stop before we get to the edge?
0:22:50 > 0:22:52- We don't stop.- We don't stop? - We don't stop, Dick, we keep going.
0:22:52 > 0:22:55- We will take off. Trust me.- Right.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58You do your part, I'll do mine. It'll be fine.
0:22:59 > 0:23:00Right...
0:23:00 > 0:23:02Rather you than me, Dickie boy.
0:23:03 > 0:23:05While Dick psychs himself up,
0:23:05 > 0:23:08here's a not so genius thing to do on live radio.
0:23:09 > 0:23:12It's the Not So Genius Idea.
0:23:12 > 0:23:18In 1938, a performance of the famous sci-fi story War Of The Worlds
0:23:18 > 0:23:19was broadcast live on radio.
0:23:21 > 0:23:24Fake news reports warned of Martians invading earth.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26But things got out of hand
0:23:26 > 0:23:30when frightened listeners mistakenly thought it was a real alien attack!
0:23:30 > 0:23:33It's the scariest thing ever...!
0:23:34 > 0:23:38Our broadcast is about to go out live on BBC Radio Cornwall,
0:23:38 > 0:23:41in one of the busiest programmes of the day - Drivetime.
0:23:43 > 0:23:46Dick will wear a small radio transmitter,
0:23:46 > 0:23:49which will send his voice down to our receiver and transmitter
0:23:49 > 0:23:51on the ground.
0:23:51 > 0:23:55And, thanks to modern wireless communication,
0:23:55 > 0:23:59our extreme radio report will be heard live all over Cornwall.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03Dick and Dom are attempting an extreme radio broadcast
0:24:03 > 0:24:06for their new series of CBBC's...
0:24:06 > 0:24:08Just a few seconds left now - how are you feeling?
0:24:08 > 0:24:10- Awful.- Awful?- Mm-hm.
0:24:11 > 0:24:12It's very windy.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14But for once, wind is Dick's friend,
0:24:14 > 0:24:19because he needs gusts of up to 28mph for take-off.
0:24:19 > 0:24:21I don't know whether I'm cold...
0:24:22 > 0:24:23..or absolutely bricking it.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27Hopefully, we can speak to them now.
0:24:27 > 0:24:28So how terrified are you?
0:24:28 > 0:24:33It's not me that's, er, you know, worried at all, it's my colleague,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35it's Dick who is absolutely terrified.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38Yes, I don't usually do these kind of stunts for the programme
0:24:38 > 0:24:41and I'm now standing next to a hang glider,
0:24:41 > 0:24:43ready to launch myself off a cliff over the sea.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45Are you ready, though?
0:24:45 > 0:24:46I think I am, but I just want to go for it.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48- Get it done. - Tell you what, Jo,
0:24:48 > 0:24:49would you be OK talking to me
0:24:49 > 0:24:52whilst we, er...strap Dick into the hang glider?
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Um, he's got a team of experts around him
0:24:56 > 0:24:58to make sure everything's going to be fine.
0:24:58 > 0:25:00'So far, so good.
0:25:00 > 0:25:02'But we need to get this broadcast off the ground,
0:25:02 > 0:25:05'before Dick changes his mind.'
0:25:05 > 0:25:07His hang glider is facing into the wind,
0:25:07 > 0:25:09he's right on the cliff edge.
0:25:10 > 0:25:11I'm so nervous.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13Here they go. They're running forward.
0:25:13 > 0:25:16They're going up in the air and...they're off!
0:25:18 > 0:25:21Wow, that is absolutely amazing!
0:25:24 > 0:25:26Jo, can you hear Dick?
0:25:27 > 0:25:28Ugh...!
0:25:28 > 0:25:31- Yes, I can now, yes. - Can you hear me, Dom?
0:25:31 > 0:25:34Yeah, I can hear you, Rich. And Jo, can you hear Rich?
0:25:34 > 0:25:36Oh, poor lad, yes.
0:25:36 > 0:25:40This...this is exhilarating to say the least.
0:25:40 > 0:25:41'It's working!
0:25:41 > 0:25:43'Dick is broadcasting over the radio waves
0:25:43 > 0:25:46'from 150m in the air.
0:25:46 > 0:25:49'And the studio is receiving him loud and clear.'
0:25:49 > 0:25:52Bellissimo, Dick! Bravo!
0:25:52 > 0:25:54Rich, how did the take-off feel?
0:25:54 > 0:25:57Well, I was so nervous just before the take-off,
0:25:57 > 0:25:58my heart was beating so fast.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01I had to close my eyes and got the instruction, just...
0:26:01 > 0:26:04- Oh.- He's just gone out of range, Jo, I think.
0:26:04 > 0:26:06'We spoke too soon.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09'The hang glider's flown too far from our receiver on the ground.
0:26:09 > 0:26:11'Too far for even today's technology.'
0:26:13 > 0:26:16'But just when they thought I'd gone for good...'
0:26:16 > 0:26:19Arrrrgggghhhh...!
0:26:19 > 0:26:20'What a relief!'
0:26:20 > 0:26:25- Speak to us, Dick. - Hello? Can you hear us, Rich?
0:26:25 > 0:26:27That is so high!
0:26:27 > 0:26:31- Are you actually enjoying it? - Weirdly, yes. I don't know why.
0:26:31 > 0:26:34But I suppose the most amazing thing about this is, Dom,
0:26:34 > 0:26:39that Marconi's wireless technology is shining through.
0:26:39 > 0:26:41Well done, mate. Listen, we're going to hand back to Jo now.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44You spend as much time as you want up there. We'll see you in a bit.
0:26:44 > 0:26:48- Thank you, boys. - Well done, mate. See you later. Bye.
0:26:48 > 0:26:49Splendid stuff.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00We've discovered how Marconi used radio waves
0:27:00 > 0:27:02to help the world go wireless...
0:27:02 > 0:27:03Mayday, mayday!
0:27:03 > 0:27:07'..seen for ourselves how his genius is still saving lives.'
0:27:07 > 0:27:10And pulled off an extreme wireless challenge,
0:27:10 > 0:27:13which might just have cured Dick's fear for heights.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16When you're trying to describe someone's genius ideas,
0:27:16 > 0:27:18sometimes words aren't enough.
0:27:18 > 0:27:20Sometimes you have to actually get out there and do it.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Mm - and I had to do that. But I actually loved it!
0:27:23 > 0:27:25So there's only one thing to say,
0:27:25 > 0:27:29and that is Guiglielmo Marconi, you are an absolute genius.
0:27:29 > 0:27:31Eh, grazie, Dick and Dom!
0:27:36 > 0:27:37Argh!
0:27:37 > 0:27:39Ah!
0:27:39 > 0:27:40Smacked me in the face!
0:27:40 > 0:27:42- Dom's...- Oh, no!
0:27:44 > 0:27:45What are you doing?!
0:27:46 > 0:27:47Let me get it straight!
0:27:48 > 0:27:49Oh!
0:27:49 > 0:27:51What's all that black stuff?!
0:27:51 > 0:27:53Hey-hey!
0:27:56 > 0:27:59RICH SCREAMS