:00:02. > :00:10.out of Baghdad when we can. Now it's time for On The Road
:00:10. > :00:13.With... The Chief Beefeater. John Keoghan is at the Tower of London.
:00:13. > :00:18.Built on the banks of the Thames, the Tower of London is over 900
:00:18. > :00:28.years old. Monarchs have lived here, queens have been executed here.
:00:28. > :00:32.
:00:32. > :00:35.Last year, around two-and-a-half million people visited. Beefeaters
:00:35. > :00:41.have been guarding it for more than 500 years. John Keohane was the
:00:41. > :00:44.second longest serving Chief Beefeater. The Beefeater is the
:00:44. > :00:47.nickname for the Queen's bodyguard, the Yeoman warders, it probably
:00:47. > :00:51.came from the Tudor time when beef was not a common meat, it was a
:00:51. > :01:01.luxury item and the Yeoman Warders were able to take home the beef
:01:01. > :01:04.
:01:04. > :01:14.Attention! I spent a couple of days with the Chief during his final
:01:14. > :01:19.
:01:19. > :01:23.I am meeting with him at home as he prepares for a ceremony. So, how
:01:23. > :01:28.long have you been Chief Yeoman Warder? I was appointed to the
:01:28. > :01:35.position in August 2004. Just over seven years. How long have you been
:01:35. > :01:38.a Beefeater? That is the nickname. Yes. The correct title is Yeoman
:01:38. > :01:46.Warder. But Beefeater is the nickname by which all of the Yeoman
:01:46. > :01:52.Warders are often referred to. how long have you been one? I came
:01:53. > :02:02.here in September 1991, started off at the bottom,baby Beefeater.
:02:03. > :02:03.
:02:03. > :02:07.you live here at the Tower? Yes, we do, I always say, welcome to my
:02:07. > :02:13.little house on the river. Today is one of three state church parades.
:02:13. > :02:15.We parade in full regalia on Easter, Whitsun and Christmas.
:02:15. > :02:18.We will have the privilege of escorting the resident governor,
:02:18. > :02:28.the Queen's representative at the Tower, to church for the carol
:02:28. > :02:33.
:02:33. > :02:36.service. Is it quite fiddly? It can be, but once you have the knack...
:02:36. > :02:46.The Chief is putting on his state dress uniform, which he wears on
:02:46. > :02:53.
:02:53. > :03:03.Is it heavy? Yes, it is fairly heavy. But once you have got into
:03:03. > :03:07.
:03:07. > :03:10.it, it is all right. Will you help me do the buttons up? This is one
:03:10. > :03:17.of the reasons why in days gone past, members of the royal family
:03:17. > :03:23.used to have dressers. There are three more at the top there. They
:03:23. > :03:28.should be easier. What are the medals for? They are from my
:03:28. > :03:31.service in the armed forces. And recently, the most senior medal,
:03:31. > :03:39.the one with the cross, is the member of the Victorian Order,
:03:39. > :03:44.which I was awarded in the Queen's Birthday Honours. This is the final
:03:44. > :03:54.part, the belt. And the sword I carry, which in days gone by would
:03:54. > :03:55.
:03:55. > :04:04.have been for protecting the monarch. Does it work, the sword?
:04:04. > :04:14.Absolutely. If I needed to. That's it. It is perfectly... Can I hold
:04:14. > :04:28.
:04:28. > :04:32.It is operational... Part of our role is to defend the
:04:32. > :04:42.monarch. If things went pear-shaped, we would have no hesitation in
:04:42. > :04:49.
:04:49. > :04:52.The Chief is off to meet the Governor of the Tower of London for
:04:52. > :04:58.a sherry at the Queen's House which was built for Anne Boleyn. She was
:04:58. > :05:01.executed before she could live in it. The resident governor, Colonel
:05:01. > :05:11.Richard Harold. The Governor here at the Tower of London. The
:05:11. > :05:11.
:05:11. > :05:21.gentleman I am taking to church this morning. Happy Christmas!
:05:21. > :05:23.
:05:23. > :05:26.Yeoman Warders, attention! How do you become a Beefeater? It is a
:05:26. > :05:36.process of qualifications that you have to earn by being in the
:05:36. > :05:40.
:05:40. > :05:43.military. 22 years of military service. Having achieved the
:05:43. > :05:45.minimum rank of warrant officer during that time, which is middle-
:05:45. > :05:48.management in the armed service, you must have been awarded the
:05:48. > :05:51.Conduct Medal during your career and ideally be between 40 and 55
:05:51. > :06:01.years old. The chaplain at the Tower is serving whisky before the
:06:01. > :06:04.
:06:04. > :06:09.Christmas service begins. Good morning and welcome. Please pass
:06:09. > :06:19.this to one of these gentlemen. Happy Christmas to you all. Happy
:06:19. > :06:47.
:06:47. > :06:57.Christmas and welcome. Lovely stuff. The Chief is reading a lesson at
:06:57. > :07:00.
:07:00. > :07:03.his final carol service as a Beefeater. But thou, Bethlehem
:07:03. > :07:07.Ephratah, though thou be little among the thousands of Judah, yet
:07:07. > :07:17.out of thee shall he come forth unto me that is to be ruler in
:07:17. > :07:34.
:07:34. > :07:44.Israel, whose goings forth have Yeoman body, hold! The Beefeaters
:07:44. > :07:49.
:07:49. > :07:59.are employed by Historic Royal Palaces. Right turn! Yeoman body,
:07:59. > :08:00.
:08:00. > :08:10.to your duties, dismissed! Chris Morton is the Yeoman Gaoler. Would
:08:10. > :08:14.
:08:14. > :08:24.you explain that to me? This is the staff of Office, the
:08:24. > :08:24.
:08:25. > :08:28.Yeoman Warder. What it was was in the past when prisoners went to the
:08:28. > :08:31.trials at Westminster, the jailer would sit on the front of the boat
:08:31. > :08:34.so when they came back and the verdict was guilty, the blade would
:08:34. > :08:38.be pointing towards the prisoner and if they were not guilty, the
:08:38. > :08:41.blade would be facing away from the prisoner. It was a way of spreading
:08:41. > :08:45.the news about the trial that had taken place and what the verdict
:08:45. > :08:49.was. It is purely ceremonial, this did not chop anybody's head off. It
:08:49. > :08:53.is quite fragile. The Chief is going back home to change uniforms.
:08:53. > :09:03.How many times do you think you have had your photograph taken as a
:09:03. > :09:09.
:09:09. > :09:13.Hundreds and hundreds of thousands. When I first came here, I got a
:09:13. > :09:18.clicking machine and I worked out in a day I had over 400 photographs.
:09:18. > :09:28.About 200 days a year, 20 odd years, that is a lot of photographs.
:09:28. > :09:28.
:09:28. > :09:37.you feel like a celebrity? suppose you do, in some respects. I
:09:37. > :09:40.know that I felt humble when I first put on the uniform. I
:09:40. > :09:44.wondered what it was, but I realised straight away that it is
:09:44. > :09:51.the uniform people want to take pictures of, not me. Will you talk
:09:51. > :09:55.us through it? This is the blue undress uniform. This is for normal
:09:55. > :10:05.working days. It bears the Queen's cipher, E 11 R, Elizabeth Secunda
:10:05. > :10:06.
:10:06. > :10:15.Regina. The White Tower is one of 20 that make up the Tower of London.
:10:15. > :10:18.Who was the last monarch to stay in the tour? James I, or as he was
:10:18. > :10:24.originally, James VI of Scotland, who came down here and became James
:10:24. > :10:29.I of England. What is the significance of the ravens?
:10:29. > :10:32.ravens have lived here for over 900 years. There is a legend which has
:10:32. > :10:35.grown up about them that simply states that if the ravens ever
:10:35. > :10:45.leave the Tower, the White Tower will crumble and fall, and so will
:10:45. > :10:46.
:10:46. > :10:56.the monarchy. How do you make sure the monarchy. How do you make sure
:10:56. > :11:05.
:11:05. > :11:08.the monarchy. How do you make sure the ravens stay here?
:11:08. > :11:17.My raven master and his assistant trims them. That stops them from
:11:17. > :11:22.lifting of the ground. Is it by royal decree that you keep them
:11:22. > :11:29.here? We are by royal decree, we have to keep a minimum of six
:11:29. > :11:33.ravens here at the Tower at all times. It is January and I am back
:11:33. > :11:36.with the Chief who's going to let me film some other sides to his job.
:11:36. > :11:46.Right. What are these? These are the keys that will open up the
:11:46. > :11:47.
:11:47. > :11:49.Palace with. The one key that works is that one. You will see me
:11:49. > :11:53.putting that into the gates, opening up the gates, then walking
:11:53. > :11:59.back through with my escort. So you are the first line of defence if
:11:59. > :12:03.there is a threat that manifests itself? Yes, we have the privilege
:12:03. > :12:06.of living here as part of our job, and in the event, we are available
:12:06. > :12:09.24 hours a day and could be called out if any major disaster happens
:12:09. > :12:16.to the Tower. And if there is a need for armed response, what
:12:16. > :12:19.happens? We have the military here, of course. There has always been a
:12:19. > :12:22.garrison here at the Tower. They are the armed response at their
:12:22. > :12:27.prime responsibility is the guardian of the Crown Jewels.
:12:27. > :12:31.important is tradition to you? important. It is part of my life.
:12:31. > :12:35.It is part of what the Yeomen body are here for, to try and help the
:12:35. > :12:38.public that come and visit the tower, to understand the 900 years
:12:38. > :12:41.of our history, the 500 years of the Yeomen body that came here
:12:41. > :12:48.after the Battle of Bosworth Field in 1485. We have been carrying out
:12:48. > :12:55.her duties here inside this World Heritage Site. That was rather
:12:55. > :13:03.energetic for this time of the morning. It happens every day. We
:13:03. > :13:06.are now open to the public. The soldiers will now go and post two
:13:06. > :13:08.sentries. They will remain there for the rest of the day, changing
:13:08. > :13:18.every two hours. Basically, my normal day is eight o'clock until
:13:18. > :13:18.
:13:19. > :13:21.five o'clock in the winter and eight until six in the summer. But
:13:22. > :13:30.I can work up until midnight, we have corporate receptions and all
:13:30. > :13:38.the rest. My hours are flexible. I have to work as and when required.
:13:38. > :13:46.The Chief is in charge of 36 Beefeaters, 35 men and one woman.
:13:46. > :13:54.We are going to his office. Hello, John. This is your office as chief?
:13:54. > :13:58.I have had the pleasure of working from here as head of operations.
:13:58. > :14:03.January 31st is my last day in office. Alan will be taking over
:14:03. > :14:13.from me as Chief Yeoman Warder. much of your time is spent here?
:14:13. > :14:18.
:14:18. > :14:20.come up here at about nine in the morning. The normal routine would
:14:20. > :14:30.be working with paperwork, we schedule meetings throughout the
:14:30. > :14:33.
:14:33. > :14:43.day. I spend probably at least four Do you think more women that will
:14:43. > :14:44.
:14:44. > :14:47.join in the future? Yes, I am sure they will. We are at the beginning
:14:47. > :14:50.of the time when females are staying in the army long enough to
:14:50. > :14:53.allow them to be qualified to come and do this job. The chief is
:14:53. > :15:02.preparing for the ceremony with John Beech, an assistant major with
:15:02. > :15:06.the Marines. They come to this position. You will be stopped here
:15:06. > :15:10.with the band. A microphone there and there. The table will be set up
:15:10. > :15:19.on the road. The company holds and turn inwards to face the Queen's
:15:19. > :15:22.House. What is the ceremony of the Constables? It is a traditional
:15:22. > :15:25.ceremony that has taken place, and in the past the, constable
:15:25. > :15:29.responsible for the security of the area, a ship coming into the Port
:15:29. > :15:39.of London would be required to pay part of the cargo as a payment to
:15:39. > :15:41.
:15:41. > :15:43.the constable for being looked after. Today, it is no more than a
:15:43. > :15:46.simple ceremony and on this occasion a ship of Her Majesty's
:15:46. > :15:56.Royal Navy, HMS Liverpool is paying her last visit before she is
:15:56. > :16:03.decommissioned. They will present a barrel of wine to the constable to
:16:03. > :16:06.celebrate that occasion. That will be presented by the ship's company
:16:06. > :16:16.and the barrel of wine will be paraded throughout the town where,
:16:16. > :16:19.
:16:19. > :16:28.fastened, the barrel will be slung Let's take you into the Bloody
:16:28. > :16:31.Would you tell me about the Prince's captive. Yes, the boy
:16:31. > :16:37.princes, Edward VI and his brother Richard Duke of York were kept in
:16:37. > :16:46.this tower, not exactly as it is today. This exhibition is about Sir
:16:46. > :16:49.Walter Raleigh. He was kept here between 1603 - 1616. When the boy
:16:49. > :16:51.princes were kept here, this is where they were looked after by
:16:51. > :16:55.their uncle, Richard Duke of Gloucester and the story is they
:16:55. > :17:04.were seen less and less and they finally disappeared off the face of
:17:04. > :17:07.the Earth. Nobody knows what happened to them. This portcullis
:17:07. > :17:11.is over the gateway between the outer ward of the tower and the
:17:11. > :17:14.inner ward. With all the prisoners living on the inside, the
:17:14. > :17:24.portcullis was dropped down onto the floor and that protected the
:17:24. > :17:34.gateway entrance. This is a memorial to Anne Boleyn who was
:17:34. > :17:35.
:17:35. > :17:44.executed here. Was it a privilege to be executed inside the tower
:17:44. > :17:50.rather than outside? I suppose you could say that. A strange privilege.
:17:50. > :17:52.It was more private. That is the important thing. Only a few people
:17:52. > :17:55.would have witnessed the event whereas the public execution was
:17:55. > :18:05.all the fun of the fair, hundreds and hundreds would have been on
:18:05. > :18:06.
:18:06. > :18:16.Tower Hill to watch the public The chief is taking me to look at
:18:16. > :18:21.
:18:21. > :18:28.Here we have an inscription from a prisoner kept in the Tower. This
:18:28. > :18:31.one, the simple chain is of course Lady Jane Grey. She was a young
:18:31. > :18:34.crowned Queen of nine days was imprisoned here in the Tower but
:18:34. > :18:44.her husband Lord Guildford Dudley was the man who was imprisoned in
:18:44. > :18:47.
:18:48. > :18:57.this tower. If you come through, let's make our way up here. This is
:18:58. > :19:01.
:19:01. > :19:05.the outer wall. We are on the outer Where are we now? The bedroom of
:19:05. > :19:15.Edward I. The bed you see is typical of what he would have slept
:19:15. > :19:27.
:19:27. > :19:33.in when he was on the throne in the Good afternoon. Nice to have you
:19:33. > :19:37.with this. Here I have the word what it for you. That has the
:19:37. > :19:47.password in it. Take that to the control room and it will sort
:19:47. > :19:48.
:19:49. > :19:54.things out for you. What you have witnessed is one of the daily
:19:54. > :19:57.traditions in the Tower. This is the ceremony of the word. It takes
:19:57. > :20:01.place every day at 3pm and I as duty supervisor hand over to the
:20:01. > :20:04.officer of the day the password which will be used in the event of
:20:04. > :20:07.any major emergency in the Tower because between midnight and six am
:20:07. > :20:09.the tower is completely sealed and if any incident took place which
:20:09. > :20:19.would have a higher state of emergency, they would issue the
:20:19. > :20:25.
:20:26. > :20:30.password to the soldiers who would And that would mean only people who
:20:30. > :20:34.knew the password could come and go. Exactly right. We have residents
:20:34. > :20:37.living here who would be issued a password and as they made their way
:20:37. > :20:47.to their residence they could be challenged by the members of the
:20:47. > :20:47.
:20:47. > :20:57.Irish Guards who carry out guarding the Tower tonight. The chief is
:20:57. > :21:03.
:21:03. > :21:07.accompanying the Governor on his This is the word wallet. I have
:21:07. > :21:10.retrieved it from the office of the guard and will take it back to the
:21:10. > :21:17.Byward Tower where it remains and it will have the password for
:21:17. > :21:21.tomorrow placed inside and at 3 o'clock the officer again collects.
:21:21. > :21:31.There is no password at the moment. No, I can show you quite simply it
:21:31. > :21:33.
:21:33. > :21:42.is completely empty. Have you had a good day? Thank you. Jim has got
:21:42. > :21:45.the keys. Thank you very much. Thank you very much. Traitors' Gate.
:21:45. > :21:48.This is the world famous Traitors' Gate where many prisoners were
:21:48. > :21:58.brought through, it no longer has water in it but that has been
:21:58. > :22:02.blocked up. This is where many famous prisoners came including the
:22:02. > :22:04.queens of England. They were brought through here, they were met
:22:04. > :22:08.by the Yeoman gaoler and taken straight through to the Bloody
:22:08. > :22:18.Tower archway which in those days was the only way in and out of the
:22:18. > :22:19.
:22:19. > :22:28.inner ward of the tower. That is where the prisoners were kept. Have
:22:28. > :22:38.the toilets been left open? Lights on. I'll keep these because I am
:22:38. > :22:47.
:22:47. > :22:51.doing the tour tonight. We needed chains left up. Thanks very much.
:22:51. > :22:57.He is about to ring the curfew bell on the top of the bell tower, you
:22:57. > :23:07.will hear it in a moment. That is to signify the tower is closed to
:23:07. > :23:14.
:23:14. > :23:18.members of the public. Right on cue! There it is. That is the bell
:23:18. > :23:21.tower which is one of the 13 towers on the inner wall. The other thing
:23:21. > :23:26.which you may be interested in, the arrow slit behind there is the
:23:26. > :23:30.chamber where Sir Thomas More was held in 1534. George, have you had
:23:30. > :23:40.a good day? A very good day, nice and busy. Lots of different things
:23:40. > :23:43.
:23:43. > :23:47.to do. How was the office today? will get it right. This is where I
:23:47. > :23:52.take over from George. He has been the supervisor during the day and I
:23:52. > :23:55.take over throughout the night. This ceremony we will take part in,
:23:55. > :23:59.the ceremony of the keys has been taking place every night of the
:23:59. > :24:02.year for over 700 years. Since 1280 when the gates behind me were
:24:02. > :24:10.fitted for the first time, some form of locking up as taken place
:24:10. > :24:13.here on each and every night. We invite 80 members of the public
:24:13. > :24:23.every night to come into the tower to witness the ceremony and the
:24:23. > :24:28.locking up of the tower. This is a rehearsal. Yes. We are not allowed
:24:28. > :24:32.to film the real thing. Only those that are invited to come and see
:24:32. > :24:41.the ceremony at 10 o'clock take home the memories of what it is
:24:41. > :24:48.they have seen. How many times have you done the ceremony as chief?
:24:48. > :24:58.started this in 1996. Acting as the chief in this role so I do two
:24:58. > :25:01.
:25:01. > :25:11.evenings a week. Goodness knows how many. It is certainly into its
:25:11. > :25:11.
:25:11. > :25:58.Apology for the loss of subtitles for 46 seconds