0:00:02 > 0:00:06At the turn of the 20th century, Britain's urban transport system
0:00:06 > 0:00:09was still powered by the source it had relied on for centuries -
0:00:09 > 0:00:10the horse.
0:00:12 > 0:00:15The idea of travelling through the air at supersonic speeds
0:00:15 > 0:00:18would have seemed like a fantasy.
0:00:18 > 0:00:23But, within just a few decades, Britain would be transformed
0:00:23 > 0:00:26from a place of horse and cart to the land of Concorde.
0:00:28 > 0:00:30There it was, crackling and roaring,
0:00:30 > 0:00:33the air in our chest made to resonate almost painfully
0:00:33 > 0:00:35by the power of the Olympus engines.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40Momentous technological and engineering breakthroughs
0:00:40 > 0:00:44would revolutionise life in our towns and cities.
0:00:44 > 0:00:48In a golden age of travel, we fell in love with ever-faster trains,
0:00:48 > 0:00:51thrilling cars and beautiful planes.
0:00:51 > 0:00:55The machines that made the modern world.
0:01:19 > 0:01:22In Edwardian times, horse-drawn trams were the favourite
0:01:22 > 0:01:25mode of transport of the suburban commuter.
0:01:25 > 0:01:30Fares were cheap, and passengers could sit anywhere.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33There weren't any class systems.
0:01:33 > 0:01:35There was just the lower saloon and the upper deck, but there
0:01:35 > 0:01:38wasn't any place that first class, second class, third class could sit.
0:01:38 > 0:01:39It was all a mix.
0:01:41 > 0:01:4540,000 horses toiled daily on the streets of London
0:01:45 > 0:01:48to power the city's trams.
0:01:48 > 0:01:53It was hard work for the horses to pull the coaches
0:01:53 > 0:01:56along on the lousy roads, so then they hit upon the idea
0:01:56 > 0:02:00to put the trams on some sort of rails
0:02:00 > 0:02:03that ran along the street.
0:02:03 > 0:02:08Travelling on rails meant a much more comfortable ride for the commuter.
0:02:08 > 0:02:11By the early 1900s, tram tracks had been laid in every major
0:02:11 > 0:02:16British city, carrying over five million passengers a year.
0:02:16 > 0:02:17Trams were very important,
0:02:17 > 0:02:20because they allowed workers to get to their job,
0:02:20 > 0:02:22like at the shipyards or railway yards,
0:02:22 > 0:02:25they allowed shoppers to get into towns to do their daily shop.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29But they also allowed tourists to see the sights around the city.
0:02:29 > 0:02:31Although they were very popular,
0:02:31 > 0:02:35trams only reached as far as city boundaries.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38Travelling cross-country required the services of the other
0:02:38 > 0:02:43main form of public transport then available - the steam train.
0:02:56 > 0:02:59Britain's railway network was the envy of the world.
0:03:05 > 0:03:11By 1910, the nation was covered by more than 19,000 miles of track.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15Essentially, almost half the network of what we have today was built
0:03:15 > 0:03:21in 20 years, and that had a profound effect across the whole of Britain.
0:03:21 > 0:03:26Suddenly, what might take two or three days on a stagecoach
0:03:26 > 0:03:30and be a fantastically uncomfortable journey, say between London
0:03:30 > 0:03:35and York, or London and Edinburgh, even, could be done in a day.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43The railways changed travel fundamentally, but also society.
0:03:43 > 0:03:47In a way, they were like a three-dimensional Internet
0:03:47 > 0:03:49of the 19th century, early 20th century.
0:03:49 > 0:03:50They allowed people to move.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53Today, the computer allows us to explore the world -
0:03:53 > 0:03:55then, the train allowed you to explore Britain.
0:03:59 > 0:04:02People who had never travelled outside small villages
0:04:02 > 0:04:04suddenly were able to go to big cities.
0:04:04 > 0:04:06That was a gigantic change.
0:04:06 > 0:04:11The speed and elegance of steam engines fired people's imagination.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14The latest trains became a source of national pride.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17NEWSREADER: 'British railways mean to keep their world reputation
0:04:17 > 0:04:19'for speed. Meet King Henry VII,
0:04:19 > 0:04:22'crack locomotive of the Great Western Railway.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25'He's been given a little something that other engines haven't got.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28'At Swindon Works, he's been given a streamlined body
0:04:28 > 0:04:30'and a bullet nose, designed to reduce wind resistance.'
0:04:31 > 0:04:37Steam was king, queen, monarch, all princes of the railways.
0:04:37 > 0:04:41A steam locomotive breathes. It feels as if it's alive.
0:04:41 > 0:04:44There's great plumes of steam coming from the funnels of engines
0:04:44 > 0:04:46racing through the countryside.
0:04:52 > 0:04:54They have a lot of expression.
0:04:54 > 0:04:56They breathe, they sigh, they chuff, they puff.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59Steam was glorious.
0:04:59 > 0:05:01It was a wonderful way to travel on the rails,
0:05:01 > 0:05:04with this living, breathing machine at the front,
0:05:04 > 0:05:08and they were just simply stunningly beautiful things,
0:05:08 > 0:05:10made with great love and care by the workers,
0:05:10 > 0:05:12designed with great love and care by the engineers.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16There was nothing cynical ever about a steam railway locomotive.
0:05:17 > 0:05:20When it's moving, almost all the external parts,
0:05:20 > 0:05:24all the moving parts are on the outside, the heat from the boiler,
0:05:24 > 0:05:27the heat from the steam, you can look into the fire.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31There's a lot to associate that with the romantic nature of transport.
0:05:33 > 0:05:37The trains were a democratic as well as romantic form of transport.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39When rail was state-owned,
0:05:39 > 0:05:42fares were kept low, so the system was used by everyone.
0:05:45 > 0:05:49But the motorcar was a different story.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57Early cars were usually slow, uncomfortable and unwieldy.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00Right from the start,
0:06:00 > 0:06:05these quirky contraptions became prestigious playthings of the elite.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11Owning one was the ultimate status symbol.
0:06:13 > 0:06:16Driving cars in the early period and owning them,
0:06:16 > 0:06:18and fettling them like a horse, really, was a sport,
0:06:18 > 0:06:20because they were very difficult things to drive.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23Quite difficult and expensive things to own.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25They weren't something you could just get in,
0:06:25 > 0:06:28turn the key and drive off to the shops.
0:06:28 > 0:06:32By the 1920s, early British cars like the bull-nosed Morris
0:06:32 > 0:06:34were rolling off the production lines.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37Manufacturers vied with each other
0:06:37 > 0:06:39to produce the most desirable models.
0:06:39 > 0:06:41For the aspiring middle classes,
0:06:41 > 0:06:45the car was the most sought-after object of desire.
0:06:47 > 0:06:51By 1932, 1.2 million Britons owned one.
0:06:51 > 0:06:52As roads grew more congested,
0:06:52 > 0:06:57it was obvious that people didn't understand basic driving etiquette.
0:06:57 > 0:07:00Britain desperately needed to introduce some rules of the road.
0:07:00 > 0:07:01'He's trying to pass on a bend,
0:07:01 > 0:07:04'and it's quite impossible for him to see what's approaching.
0:07:04 > 0:07:06'Then there's the careless driver,
0:07:06 > 0:07:09'who pulls out without seeing if anything's coming up behind.'
0:07:09 > 0:07:10Introducing road markings
0:07:10 > 0:07:12and traffic lights improved matters for drivers,
0:07:12 > 0:07:16but protective measures for pedestrians like the safety scoop
0:07:16 > 0:07:18didn't quite catch on.
0:07:18 > 0:07:21'They can be fitted to bumpers, or take the place of them.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23'And it folds neatly away when it isn't eating pedestrians.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26'The inventors are confident enough to demonstrate it themselves.
0:07:26 > 0:07:30'A flick of a lever, and the scoop has another mouthful.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35'When the scoop is open, a jaywalker simply can't get run over,
0:07:35 > 0:07:38'and sometimes that's more than he deserves.'
0:07:38 > 0:07:41These comical inventions were a response
0:07:41 > 0:07:43to a very unfunny statistic.
0:07:43 > 0:07:46By the 1920s in London alone,
0:07:46 > 0:07:50three people were dying in road traffic accidents every day.
0:07:50 > 0:07:52Yet enthusiasm for cars never wavered.
0:07:52 > 0:07:55They tapped into Britain's love affair with the mechanical.
0:07:55 > 0:07:58Owners adored playing with their new toys.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02Early Pathe newsreels show all sorts of cars chasing through,
0:08:02 > 0:08:06up hills in the mud, round racing circuits, trying to break
0:08:06 > 0:08:11speed records, and there's one glorious one which is so enchanting,
0:08:11 > 0:08:13about the time of the First World War,
0:08:13 > 0:08:16where a group of people are trying to take an open-top sports car
0:08:16 > 0:08:18to the top of Mount Snowdon.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21They're so keen to prove that the modern English sports car
0:08:21 > 0:08:24can go anywhere - even to the top of a mountain.
0:08:26 > 0:08:29Motor racing quickly became a glamorous sport.
0:08:29 > 0:08:33Spectators flocked to watch their favourite drivers at rallies.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36But for some avid thrill seekers,
0:08:36 > 0:08:38there were even more intrepid pursuits available.
0:08:40 > 0:08:42Before the Great War, flying started to take off.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Huge crowds gathered to watch the pioneering aviators
0:08:49 > 0:08:50and witness the miracle of flight.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57Seeing an aeroplane was an extraordinary thing in those days.
0:08:57 > 0:09:01It was still quite extraordinary after the First World War, even.
0:09:01 > 0:09:04People out in the sticks, you only saw an aeroplane
0:09:04 > 0:09:07if it happened to fly over, or if it force-landed in the field nearby.
0:09:07 > 0:09:11Flying attracted those with the spirit of adventure.
0:09:11 > 0:09:15Dare devils prepared to fly in flimsy planes cobbled together
0:09:15 > 0:09:18from scraps of fabric and bits of bamboo.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22Newspapers offered huge incentives to those pilots prepared
0:09:22 > 0:09:24to fly further and faster.
0:09:26 > 0:09:30Very few of the aviators in the first two or three years survived
0:09:30 > 0:09:34even to see the First World War.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37It really was a very dangerous business.
0:09:38 > 0:09:42Yet the lure of huge prize funds proved irresistible.
0:09:42 > 0:09:46Flyers were prepared to take on ever more daring feats.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49In June 1919, Jack Alcock and Arthur Whitten Brown
0:09:49 > 0:09:52completed the first non-stop transatlantic flight.
0:09:52 > 0:09:55It took less than 16 hours.
0:09:55 > 0:09:57After a forced landing in Ireland,
0:09:57 > 0:10:00they pocketed £10,000 from the Daily Mail.
0:10:03 > 0:10:07In the same year as Alcock and Brown's record-breaking effort,
0:10:07 > 0:10:09the first international commercial air service
0:10:09 > 0:10:12between London and Paris was launched.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16The maiden flight carried only a few passengers, some newspapers,
0:10:16 > 0:10:18Devonshire cream and a grouse.
0:10:18 > 0:10:22In the 1920s, you were starting to get commercial flights
0:10:22 > 0:10:25as we would recognise them now. Still hugely expensive,
0:10:25 > 0:10:29and only the absolute richest people could afford it,
0:10:29 > 0:10:32because these were aircraft that would only be carrying
0:10:32 > 0:10:33a dozen or 20 passengers.
0:10:33 > 0:10:37Early flying wasn't that comfortable, for the most part.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40You would have earplugs put into your ears,
0:10:40 > 0:10:42a blanket over your knees,
0:10:42 > 0:10:45quite some experience, and a sickbag to hold for many passengers here.
0:10:45 > 0:10:47The noise, the vibration,
0:10:47 > 0:10:50all quite difficult for most people to cope with.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53One of the first domestic commercial services
0:10:53 > 0:10:56was Imperial Airways' sightseeing tours.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59'The object is to take people over London,
0:10:59 > 0:11:01'that Londoners may see London.
0:11:01 > 0:11:04'It is made at a very cheap price of 12 and sixpence,
0:11:04 > 0:11:07'with the sole object that poor and rich alike
0:11:07 > 0:11:10'can see their own London from the air.'
0:11:10 > 0:11:13The flight lasted only 30 minutes, but for the fortunate few aboard,
0:11:13 > 0:11:17London from above was an enthralling spectacle.
0:11:19 > 0:11:24In 1932, one of Britain's most celebrated aviators launched
0:11:24 > 0:11:28an initiative intended to introduce the nation to the exciting
0:11:28 > 0:11:30possibilities of air travel.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34The famous flyer Alan Cobham established National Aviation Day.
0:11:35 > 0:11:37The importance of flying
0:11:37 > 0:11:42or the development of flying to the British cannot be exaggerated.
0:11:42 > 0:11:48It is so essential that the public of Britain should become air-minded.
0:11:48 > 0:11:53Already we are cruising with aircraft at 150mph.
0:11:53 > 0:11:58In a couple of years' time, probably we shall be cruising at 250mph.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01And when we're going at that speed,
0:12:01 > 0:12:04Scotland will only be a couple of hours from London.
0:12:04 > 0:12:06Paris will be under the hour away.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12Cobham was just one of the high flyers promoting aviation.
0:12:12 > 0:12:16Amy Johnson and her husband Jim Mollison had become household names
0:12:16 > 0:12:19after competing, often against each other,
0:12:19 > 0:12:22in a series of record attempts.
0:12:22 > 0:12:28Jim Mollison and Amy Johnson were superstars of the 1930s.
0:12:28 > 0:12:32Probably the nearest modern equivalent would be David Beckham
0:12:32 > 0:12:33and Posh Spice.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36Just after her wedding in 1932,
0:12:36 > 0:12:39Johnson flew to South Africa in record time.
0:12:40 > 0:12:43'Just imagine Amy's thoughts then.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47'A goal in sight after a flight of over 6,000 perilous miles.
0:12:47 > 0:12:50'She knew she'd broken the record held by her husband
0:12:50 > 0:12:51'by more than ten hours.
0:12:51 > 0:12:55'She admitted that she'd powdered her nose just before landing.'
0:12:56 > 0:12:58Amy Johnson died in January 1941,
0:12:58 > 0:13:02when her RAF aircraft plunged into the Thames during bad weather.
0:13:03 > 0:13:07Just a few months earlier, the Battle of Britain had proved
0:13:07 > 0:13:10how crucial aircraft were to the security of the nation.
0:13:11 > 0:13:15During the war, important technological breakthroughs
0:13:15 > 0:13:19would have a profound effect on the future of aviation, in particular
0:13:19 > 0:13:22the development of the jet engine by the RAF engineer Frank Whittle.
0:13:24 > 0:13:30He was a genius, and the engine he created totally changed
0:13:30 > 0:13:33travel for people all around the world.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38If you look at aircraft, particularly civil aircraft,
0:13:38 > 0:13:40passenger aircraft,
0:13:40 > 0:13:44flying immediately before the Second World War, and those flying
0:13:44 > 0:13:48just after the Second World War, there was an extraordinary change.
0:13:48 > 0:13:51Quick to exploit Whittle's revolutionary design
0:13:51 > 0:13:55were the British manufacturers De Havilland.
0:13:55 > 0:13:59In 1950, they launched the Comet, the world's first commercial jet.
0:13:59 > 0:14:02Its maiden flight was greeted with optimism and pride.
0:14:03 > 0:14:07'When the 36-seater, jet-propelled De Havilland Comet
0:14:07 > 0:14:09'opened the latest act in man's conquest of the heavens,
0:14:09 > 0:14:13'the eyes of many nations were focused upon it.
0:14:15 > 0:14:19'The jets will enable Britain's future airliners to do twice the work
0:14:19 > 0:14:23'in almost half the time at four fifths of the cost.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25'Tails up for Britain!'
0:14:27 > 0:14:29Soon after its launch,
0:14:29 > 0:14:33the first Comet model was grounded due to structural problems.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36The Comet had ushered in Britain's jet age,
0:14:36 > 0:14:41but De Havilland's American competitors were poised to move in.
0:14:41 > 0:14:44Boeing's airliners brought new levels of passenger comfort
0:14:44 > 0:14:46and sophistication.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50The seductive image of jet travel they created
0:14:50 > 0:14:55stimulated the public's appetite for modern methods of transport.
0:14:55 > 0:14:57Down on the ground,
0:14:57 > 0:15:02traditional steam trains were being displaced by newer, faster engines.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Diesel engines and electric engines had become powerful enough
0:15:14 > 0:15:17and economical enough to be put into a locomotive,
0:15:17 > 0:15:20especially after the Second World War.
0:15:20 > 0:15:24Diesel and electric engines were seen as easier to use,
0:15:24 > 0:15:28they weren't as dirty as steam locomotives were perceived to be,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30and also easier to maintain.
0:15:30 > 0:15:32For steam, the end was nigh.
0:15:32 > 0:15:37Many of the old engines were consigned to the scrap yard.
0:15:37 > 0:15:39'A sad thought for small boys, perhaps, but a glad thought
0:15:39 > 0:15:43'for most, who welcome the diesel locomotive as steam's successor.
0:15:43 > 0:15:47'The familiar sight of the overall-clad crew is being replaced.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49'If not exactly white-collar workers,
0:15:49 > 0:15:54'they can certainly dress in accordance with the relatively clean conditions the job now provides.'
0:15:54 > 0:15:57Diesels were claimed to be faster,
0:15:57 > 0:15:59cleaner and equipped with all the mod cons.
0:15:59 > 0:16:01Steam trains may have been more elegant,
0:16:01 > 0:16:03but they had no place in a modern railway.
0:16:09 > 0:16:12'British Railways don't call Project XP64 a luxury train.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15'But if there's anything better in the world, they'd like to see it.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19'Passenger comfort is started from the moment of entering through
0:16:19 > 0:16:23'doors wide enough for a fat man with two suitcases, until journey's end.
0:16:23 > 0:16:25'Aiming at maximum passenger comfort,
0:16:25 > 0:16:28'the designers consulted medical experts.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31'Glare can be banished without gloom taking its place,
0:16:31 > 0:16:33'and forced air ventilation pleases everybody.
0:16:33 > 0:16:37'They say the lighting is pretty well perfect.
0:16:37 > 0:16:39'If you must try out the new alarm, it'll only cost you £5.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42'British Railways are doing all possible
0:16:42 > 0:16:44'to make our journeys really comfortable.'
0:16:44 > 0:16:47The railways needed to modernise
0:16:47 > 0:16:50because by the late '50s they were facing serious competition
0:16:50 > 0:16:53from an increasingly popular and affordable rival.
0:16:55 > 0:16:57In the post-war years, car sales grew sharply,
0:16:57 > 0:17:01as disposable incomes rose and petrol rationing ended.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04For the Austin motor company, it was boom time.
0:17:09 > 0:17:13It was the biggest exporter of cars in the world.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16Now, the company prepared to conquer the domestic market too.
0:17:18 > 0:17:23Many companies made a pitch for an economy car.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27Many bubble cars appeared on the market in the mid or late '50s.
0:17:27 > 0:17:33These really weren't the answer, and it was decided to produce
0:17:33 > 0:17:37a proper motorcar, although a very small and compact one,
0:17:37 > 0:17:42that would seat four people in pretty reasonable comfort.
0:17:42 > 0:17:46The car invented by Austin went on to become a true British classic.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50We realised it was something special.
0:17:50 > 0:17:53The press were very suspicious to begin with,
0:17:53 > 0:17:56until they realised what it was like to drive.
0:17:56 > 0:17:59'These motoring correspondents took the new cars
0:17:59 > 0:18:02'and drove them and saw for themselves how the clever suspension
0:18:02 > 0:18:07'and new engine position gave them a spacious car with such
0:18:07 > 0:18:11'a wonderful ability to hold the road that they were a zippy joy to drive.'
0:18:12 > 0:18:15The Mini was a completely revolutionary car.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18This tiny little ten-foot four-seater can seat four adults,
0:18:18 > 0:18:21could go 70mph, didn't use much fuel
0:18:21 > 0:18:23and could drive remarkably like a go-kart.
0:18:25 > 0:18:28'Even jam-packed London's no real problem.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31'You thread your way through the traffic with complete ease.'
0:18:34 > 0:18:37The Mini could be seen anywhere in any company,
0:18:37 > 0:18:43and it could be used by a member of royalty, as it was, frequently,
0:18:43 > 0:18:45or it could be used by the owner
0:18:45 > 0:18:48just able to afford his first new car.
0:18:48 > 0:18:51With an inspired design by Alec Issigonis, the Mini went on
0:18:51 > 0:18:56to become the best-selling British-made car of all time.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59It brought motoring to the masses.
0:19:01 > 0:19:05By the mid '60s, Britain's roads were getting ever busier.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09In London, the Mini was competing for space with another
0:19:09 > 0:19:12transport icon - the Routemaster bus.
0:19:12 > 0:19:18The Routemaster epitomised fantastic design.
0:19:18 > 0:19:25It also made bus transport in London look modern,
0:19:25 > 0:19:27and also exciting.
0:19:27 > 0:19:31The Routemaster was seen as the solution to the burgeoning
0:19:31 > 0:19:33problem of congestion.
0:19:33 > 0:19:35Lord Brabazon, 1,000 new Routemasters is all very well,
0:19:35 > 0:19:38but I imagine from the ordinary motorist's point of view,
0:19:38 > 0:19:40who travels a lot in central London, it's 1,000 too many.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42Do you think that's a fair attitude?
0:19:42 > 0:19:45Well, from the point of view of circulation of people in London,
0:19:45 > 0:19:47the more go in buses and the less in cars,
0:19:47 > 0:19:49the better for the circulation of traffic.
0:19:49 > 0:19:51With an idiosyncratic design,
0:19:51 > 0:19:55it had several advantages for the passenger.
0:19:55 > 0:19:57You could hop on and off the bus whenever you liked.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01If there was a bus moving off and you were a little bit behind time,
0:20:01 > 0:20:03you could run for it and jump on.
0:20:04 > 0:20:08The Routemaster has a very friendly face.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11It comes along, it looks so friendly, and when you're getting on,
0:20:11 > 0:20:15there's somebody standing on the platform ready to welcome you,
0:20:15 > 0:20:17you go through a sort of lobby,
0:20:17 > 0:20:20and then you go into the sitting area,
0:20:20 > 0:20:25and it's all like being at home, and very reassuring.
0:20:25 > 0:20:26Please hold tight now.
0:20:26 > 0:20:29Despite affection for the Routemaster,
0:20:29 > 0:20:33Londoners were still in love with the freedom of owning a car.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36Britain certainly went car-crazy in the '60s.
0:20:36 > 0:20:38You just have to look at advertising,
0:20:38 > 0:20:41and you see this great love of motoring.
0:20:41 > 0:20:43It's an obsession.
0:20:43 > 0:20:45There were all sorts of attempts in the 1950s
0:20:45 > 0:20:49and '60s from Britain making makeshift cars.
0:20:49 > 0:20:50People made DIY cars.
0:20:50 > 0:20:52It was partly because of a lack of money,
0:20:52 > 0:20:54and partly because of, I think,
0:20:54 > 0:20:56a sense of innocence, optimism and fun.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00'Motoring correspondents like Denis Holmes of the Daily Mail reckon
0:21:00 > 0:21:04'these car kits are going to set a new trend for young people about town
0:21:04 > 0:21:07'because, as you see, you can put together your own unique hotrod.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10'The chassis's been designed to take a variety of engines
0:21:10 > 0:21:12'and etceteras built for production line models,
0:21:12 > 0:21:15'which means that your do-it-yourself fun car
0:21:15 > 0:21:17'can be tailor-made to your own taste.
0:21:18 > 0:21:21'You can make it from all sorts of second-hand spare parts.'
0:21:21 > 0:21:24Pathe also made a newsreel about a student who made a bath
0:21:24 > 0:21:26into a car, a motorised bath.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29This was in 1960. It was a lovely idea.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31I suppose it was just a bit of fun, really.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37'On her first outing,
0:21:37 > 0:21:41'the bath established a world record with a run from Bath to London,
0:21:41 > 0:21:45'but, as the saying goes, roughly, you can't live on past glories, and
0:21:45 > 0:21:48'these days, the students are reduced to using her for going to the market.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51'Although, no doubt, if it came to a matter of national prestige -
0:21:51 > 0:21:55'if, say, the Americans or Russians came up with a jet-propelled bath -
0:21:55 > 0:21:57'they'd soon get her in racing trim again.'
0:22:01 > 0:22:06I think it expresses that tremendous innocence of the age,
0:22:06 > 0:22:10that you could get out onto the roads, travel where you wanted to,
0:22:10 > 0:22:11even in the bath.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14Was it legal? I doubt it, but it certainly made a good film.
0:22:14 > 0:22:20These hand-made creations contrast sharply with the high-tech
0:22:20 > 0:22:23developments emerging from the cutting edge of British industry.
0:22:23 > 0:22:27By the early '60s, some of our finest engineers were trying
0:22:27 > 0:22:30to build the fastest plane in the world.
0:22:30 > 0:22:33In November 1962, the British and French governments
0:22:33 > 0:22:36agreed to collaborate on the production
0:22:36 > 0:22:41of the world's first supersonic jet plane, Concorde.
0:22:45 > 0:22:49Hugely complex and dauntingly ambitious, Concorde was to be built
0:22:49 > 0:22:52by hundreds of firms on both sides of the Channel.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58The French Concorde first took flight from a runway
0:22:58 > 0:23:01at Toulouse on March 2nd, 1969.
0:23:03 > 0:23:07'We'd waited two days for the weather to clear and the decision
0:23:07 > 0:23:10'to be made, yet there it was, crackling and roaring,
0:23:10 > 0:23:13'the air in our chest made to resonate almost painfully
0:23:13 > 0:23:16'by the power of the Olympus engines.'
0:23:16 > 0:23:17Five weeks later,
0:23:17 > 0:23:21the people of Britain had their chance to hear Concorde's roar.
0:23:27 > 0:23:30'The red, white and blue of Britain's supersonic jet giant was
0:23:30 > 0:23:35'a proud sight as she made her 22 minute maiden flight to RAF Fairford,
0:23:35 > 0:23:39'where the 10,000 foot runway, one of the longest in the country, waited
0:23:39 > 0:23:42'invitingly for the Anglo-French super jet to return to Earth.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45'Gracefully, like a prehistoric winged monster,
0:23:45 > 0:23:47'002 felt for the ground.'
0:23:51 > 0:23:53Concorde was, in every way, a magnificent technological
0:23:53 > 0:23:57achievement, and no-one should ever take that away from the British
0:23:57 > 0:24:00and the French, who worked so brilliantly together and so
0:24:00 > 0:24:05harmoniously together on producing a machine that is, in a way, peerless.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14It's like a perfect paper dart folded up
0:24:14 > 0:24:17and just hurled into the sky.
0:24:17 > 0:24:21It's just one of those machines that, if you added anything to its
0:24:21 > 0:24:25design, the slightest extra touch or line or detail could spoil it.
0:24:25 > 0:24:27If you take anything away, you'd spoil it.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31It was a design perfect in every way.
0:24:34 > 0:24:39Concorde was poetry in aerial motion. Those lucky enough to work
0:24:39 > 0:24:43on the plane were beguiled by its beauty, grace and power.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48Concorde was an absolute joy to fly.
0:24:48 > 0:24:50She was rather like a fighter than a bomber,
0:24:50 > 0:24:54or a thoroughbred racehorse rather than a riding school one.
0:24:54 > 0:24:57You could control her with your fingertips all the way through
0:24:57 > 0:24:59the flight regime. Take off, climb, acceleration,
0:24:59 > 0:25:01supersonic speed, descent and landing.
0:25:01 > 0:25:03She was an absolute pilot's joy.
0:25:03 > 0:25:07I remember sitting at door 3, at the back of the aeroplane,
0:25:07 > 0:25:10and the power was on,
0:25:10 > 0:25:14and we just went up like a rocket.
0:25:20 > 0:25:24One of the most exciting memories is seeing
0:25:24 > 0:25:27Concorde following the eclipse.
0:25:27 > 0:25:31The type of passenger was very different indeed on the Concorde.
0:25:31 > 0:25:37In the very early days, we had a lot of British gentry,
0:25:37 > 0:25:40if you like, and then we had very high business people.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43They had the money, and they wanted to get there quickly,
0:25:43 > 0:25:47so it was a complete mix of passenger styles.
0:25:47 > 0:25:51Like many of its high-flying passengers,
0:25:51 > 0:25:53Concorde was an international superstar,
0:25:53 > 0:25:56but commercially, the plane was a failure,
0:25:56 > 0:26:00suffering from crippling running costs and limited passenger space.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03Sadly, the story of Concorde ended
0:26:03 > 0:26:06after a tragic accident in the year 2000.
0:26:07 > 0:26:13'Air France Concorde has crashed near Paris, killing everybody on board.
0:26:13 > 0:26:14'113 are dead.'
0:26:17 > 0:26:23In 2003, Concorde was withdrawn from service for ever.
0:26:23 > 0:26:26Now that Concorde no longer flies,
0:26:26 > 0:26:27there are so many things we can't do.
0:26:27 > 0:26:32We can't arrive before we leave, we can't fly on the edge of space,
0:26:32 > 0:26:35where the sky gets dark, where you can see the curvature of the Earth.
0:26:35 > 0:26:38We can't travel faster than a rifle bullet.
0:26:38 > 0:26:41We can't travel at 22.5 miles a minute.
0:26:41 > 0:26:43So much has been lost, and those days
0:26:43 > 0:26:46when we could do those things made Concorde so special.
0:26:54 > 0:26:5625 years after Concorde's launch,
0:26:56 > 0:27:02another Anglo-French collaboration would also break records, creating
0:27:02 > 0:27:06the longest undersea transport link in the world, the Channel Tunnel.
0:27:08 > 0:27:12'The historic journey begins, as her Majesty leaves Waterloo
0:27:12 > 0:27:15'bound for Calais, and a meeting with President Francois Mitterrand.'
0:27:19 > 0:27:21Our island nation was now joined umbilically
0:27:21 > 0:27:23to our European neighbours.
0:27:27 > 0:27:28An engineering marvel,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31the Channel Tunnel was one of the more successful achievements
0:27:31 > 0:27:33of the 1990s.
0:27:34 > 0:27:37Other developments in Britain's transport systems
0:27:37 > 0:27:39have been less successful.
0:27:41 > 0:27:46Today's passengers face congested roads, cancelled trains
0:27:46 > 0:27:48and overcrowded airports.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51The experience lacks the glamour, romance and excitement
0:27:51 > 0:27:55that many felt during the golden age of travel.
0:27:56 > 0:28:00A time when there was something heroic about our failures.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04When there were triumphs against the odds,
0:28:04 > 0:28:07and Britain's creative genius was gloriously realised.
0:28:08 > 0:28:12A time when Britain willed herself to go faster,
0:28:12 > 0:28:14further and higher than ever before.
0:28:43 > 0:28:46Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd