Fearne Cotton Who Do You Think You Are?


Fearne Cotton

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LineFromTo

-Right, can you crack, into this bowl, three eggs?

-OK.

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Family is everything to me.

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Look at that. That's fantastic.

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Since becoming a parent, I base my whole life around family.

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Honey, are you going to do some whisking, sweetie?

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It's opened my eyes to that amazing circular motion of life.

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Presenter Fearne Cotton began her career in children's television,

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before becoming a household name with her Radio 1 show.

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My parents definitely instilled a work ethic in me,

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which has gone on to, you know, help me out massively

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in, you know, how I view work and my career.

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I've got this drive, and it's a burning drive inside,

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and I know that comes from my ancestry.

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That's not just something that I've got,

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that comes from a whole heap of stuff behind me.

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Today, as well as broadcasting,

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Fearne writes books and looks after her two children

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at their home in South West London.

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My own upbringing, I guess, was...

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Well, it was pretty normal to me.

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Grew up thinking,

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there's nothing very exotic or exciting about this.

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So I think I'm actually looking forward

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to looking into those other stories

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and seeing if there was explosive dramas

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or strange jobs, lots of travelling...

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Mmm!

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All that sort of stuff that I felt

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wasn't really in my own childhood...

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Oh, you've done a great job there, guys.

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..and I think that will be a really wonderful gift

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to give to my children, and, sort of, pass on.

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I'm terrified!

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So excited - but I'm so nervous!

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Fearne is on her way to visit her parents, Mick and Linda,

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at their home in Buckinghamshire.

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I think I'm an even split of both parents.

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I've got my mum's tenacity and drive and fire...

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..but then, weirdly, I've got my dad's side,

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which is very calm and grounded, and I'm kind of a weird mix of both,

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depending on what I'm dealing with in life.

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Hello, guys!

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-Hello, what are you doing here, then?!

-Mwah!

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-Daddy.

-Hi, Fearney.

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Let's head in.

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So, I wanted to have a chat with you about something

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that's quite obvious, but I've never bothered asking you, really,

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and that's about your parents, my grandparents...

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Cos you don't really ever have those chats, do you?

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-We're kind of just going about our everyday business and...

-Mm-hm.

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-It's a good thing to do.

-I think so.

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Because I wish I'd quizzed my grandparents and parents more

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-when they were alive.

-I know.

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So catch us while we're still here.

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So, here's lovely Sylvia and Phil.

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And... I mean, my memories of...

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I mean, especially your dad -

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-I mean, he was hilarious and crazy, wasn't he?

-Mm.

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He would've loved nothing better than sat at a table

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with about half a dozen kids, eating blancmange and jelly...

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-Yeah, yeah!

-..and wearing a paper hat...

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-Yeah, I remember.

-..and just being ridiculous, yeah.

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He was such a funny man, wasn't it?

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-Yeah, he was great, actually.

-I do miss him, he was amazing.

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That's a lovely picture, that.

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What about Nan Sylvia's parents?

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Were they all London based?

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They were originated from Suffolk and Norfolk.

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-OK, I didn't know that.

-Yeah.

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Now, do I remember correctly, or have I made this up,

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that there's...because of a surname ending in BY, what would that be?

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Apparently - this is only sort of hearsay...

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-Yeah.

-..if your surname ended in BY, as theirs did, Wilby...

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-Wilby, that's it.

-Wilby.

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-I think BY is Norse for Viking settlement.

-OK.

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And then lovely Nan Ruby.

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So, Nan Ruby, your mum and dad.

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Obviously just come back from a holiday, by the look of it.

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Always. That's one of the things I remember about your mum is...

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Yeah, always on holiday.

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-Always...

-I think she had a hotline to Lunn Poly!

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She used to ring them and say, "What's...?

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"Have you got any last-minute cancellations?"

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-I know!

-And they'd go away the next day.

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What I know, I guess, about Nan, your mum,

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is that she was born in Wales.

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Yeah - and if we look at the birth certificate,

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you can see exactly where she was born.

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She was born in 1922, Evelyn Street, Abertillery.

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-Yeah.

-That's in South Wales...

-South Wales, yeah.

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-..and then her dad, Evan Meredith...

-Mm-hm.

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..and then her mum, Elsie Meredith -

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and that's so strange to read, because I didn't know their names,

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and I never got to meet Evan Meredith,

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because he died quite a long time before I was born.

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'72, yeah.

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Yeah, so sort of nine years before I was born.

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-What does that say?

-Coal hewer.

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So that was that whole area...

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-It's coal-mining, basically, yeah.

-..was a coal-mining area.

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What do you remember about your grandad?

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Well, he always had his face in a book.

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He'd had his own chemist shop, opticians.

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He developed into, you know, a very clever, intelligent man -

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having come from a coal miner.

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-Yeah. Have you got any pictures of Evan?

-Yes, yes.

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There's a very interesting one there.

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Oh, wow.

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Look how smart he is in that uniform.

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Over 100 years ago.

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Goodness me, so... This is 1913.

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It says, "Dad, St John's ambulance".

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Wow. So he was...

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How old, here, does that make him?

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'13... I think he was born '95, 1895, so 18ish?

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And I can see, look, cos I've never seen a picture of him in my life,

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but there's the family resemblance.

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-You can kind of see the nose...

-Not so much.

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-I can see it.

-Mm.

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-Definitely.

-Maybe.

-I can see Nan.

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-Mm.

-100% Nan Ruby.

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-Mm.

-Yeah, without a doubt.

-Yeah.

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-Yeah, maybe.

-Like, the nose and the mouth, the chin...

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..and so, if this was in 1913, and he was already putting himself

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-to great use, do you know what he did in the war?

-Not really.

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Never said, he never spoken about...

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not by my mum, or certainly by Grandad Evan.

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He wasn't around, I know that much,

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but what he did or where he was, I've actually got no idea.

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-Well, that would be really interesting to find out...

-Mm.

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-..I think, wouldn't it?

-Yes.

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-Do a bit more delving around Evan's story.

-Yes.

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Fearne has discovered that before becoming a chemist,

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her paternal grandmother Ruby's father, Evan Meredith,

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was a coal miner from South Wales.

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To find out more about Evan,

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Fearne has come to Abertillery to meet mining historian Ben Curtis.

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-Hi, Ben.

-Hi, Fearne.

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Welcome to Abertillery.

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-Thank you. How are you doing?

-Yeah, good, thanks. Lovely.

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What a lovely view of the Valleys.

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Land of my forefathers - and more specifically my great-grandfather,

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Evan Meredith. Am I saying Meredith right?

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I would say Mer-EDD-ith rather than MEH-redith, but, yeah...

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Evan Mer-EDD-ith.

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-Erm, who I know worked down the mines.

-Yes.

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I don't see any mines here now, though.

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No, no. There aren't any.

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I mean, the last mine closed 30 years ago now -

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but in the early 20th century

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when Evan Meredith was living and working here,

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it was an absolute hive of industry.

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Six Bells Colliery, which is where Evan worked,

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a bit further down the valley,

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just under 3,000 men and boys in 1913 working there,

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producing something like just over three quarters of a million tonnes

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of coal a year at that time.

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It's a tough life, isn't it, for a kid?

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-Very tough, very dangerous work for, kind of, anyone, yeah.

-Wow.

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Like most boys in the area,

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Evan went to work down the mines aged 13 after leaving school.

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It was physically hard work that risked serious injury

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and even death...

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..but there was a strong sense of solidarity

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in mining towns like Abertillery.

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Although the pits have gone,

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Fearne and Ben are visiting one of the last surviving reminders

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of that community spirit.

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OK, so here we are, Fearne, Llanhilleth Miners Institute.

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It's a lovely building.

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So, what year would this have been built?

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-1906.

-So it's sort of quite likely that Evan would have known

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about this building, maybe even visited it?

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Yeah, it's entirely likely he would've done.

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It's a lovely thought.

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-Thank you, Ben.

-No problem.

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This is the lovely picture that my dad gave me

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of my great-grandfather, Evan.

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Which is 1913, so just shortly before World War I.

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How would Evan's life have changed once the war begun?

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This is a period when cutting coal

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is an essential part of the war effort,

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and mining was deemed a reserved occupation,

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-so for most of the war, he would've been...

-Carrying on.

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..the work, the essential war effort, down the pits.

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The situation does change slightly towards the end of the war,

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with the need for even more men to be called up to go and fight,

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and that does necessitate a change of government policy

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with regards to the reserved occupations -

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and if you have a look at this document...

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-OK.

-..this gives you a sense of what this means for South Wales.

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So, this says "Miners & Comb-Out".

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"A conference of delegates representing the whole of the miners

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"of South Wales and Monmouthshire were held at the Cory Hall, Cardiff,

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"on Thursday, to consider the comb-out scheme, by which it is..."

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-Proposed.

-"..proposed to take 50,000 single men from the collieries

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"of the country, the quota of South Wales being 10,000,

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"or 5% of the workmen, for the Army."

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So, it says several times here, "comb-out". What's that?

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It's a selective process,

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whereby those who are deemed to best fit the criteria

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are taken from the industry,

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selected, "combed out", and sent off,

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called up to go and fight.

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So, I mean, my gut's saying that he probably ended up going to war.

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If you have a look there...

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And this is July the 6th, 1918.

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"Two conscientious objectors, WN Hulin, Abertillery,

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"and Evan Meredith, Six Bells,

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"were on Thursday at Abercarn Police-court

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"charged as absentees from the Army

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"and handed over to a military escort.

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"No fine was inflicted.

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"They were removed to Brecon Barracks next day."

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Right.

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So does that mean they would've been called up to the Army

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but refused, and then were, essentially, arrested?

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Yes.

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When conscription was introduced in 1916,

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men who refused to fight were known as conscientious objectors.

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Some objected to killing on religious grounds.

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Others opposed the war for political reasons.

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Whatever their beliefs, they faced hostile public demonstrations,

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the threat of imprisonment, and ridicule.

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Despite this, more than 16,000 men refused to join up and fight,

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including Evan Meredith.

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It's quite rebellious - but maybe he had a good reason.

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Yeah, this is 1918, this is getting towards the end of the war.

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I mean, the scale of slaughter really, on the Western front -

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-people know that it's been an absolute kind of slaughter.

-Yeah.

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I mean, what a...

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awful decision to have to make.

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God.

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I guess I'm quite shocked

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to hear about Evan's refusal to join the Army.

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I doubt that it's just sort of a simple act of rebellion,

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so I really want to try and understand more

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about his decision-making

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and the impact that had on Evan and the family -

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and I also want to find out what happened to him next.

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Fearne is meeting Welsh historian Aled Eirug at Brecon Barracks.

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I was quite shocked today, finding out that my great-grandfather, Evan,

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refused to join the army.

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I know from this document here that he was arrested

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and then he was brought with another objector here to the barracks...

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That's right, yes.

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So, what sort of thing would happen once you arrived at the barracks?

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They'd tried to persuade him to put on a uniform,

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to conform to regulations, which he refused -

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-and if you look down the list, his name is there.

-Yes, Meredith.

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-Yeah.

-Does that say six...?

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-Six months.

-Six months?

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-That's a long time.

-So he would've been sentenced on this day,

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and then the following day

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he would've been taken to a civil prison.

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-Where would he have gone?

-Well, we have this document here,

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-if you have a look.

-This is August 1918.

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-Yeah.

-"The following cases were decided at Wormwood."

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-Wormwood Scrubs prison?

-Yes, yes.

-In London?

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That's right. So that's where he goes next, and...

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That's quite a long way to go, from South Wales.

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-He does get a lift.

-Goodness me!

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But if you go down the list, you can see his name there.

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-OK. So, 5298 Evan Meredith.

-Yeah.

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So, the interesting thing about this is, they give him a Category B.

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Category A was where they thought the person opposed the war

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-on religious basis.

-OK.

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B suggests that Evan was seen as somebody who opposed the war

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on political grounds, which they didn't like,

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in that people argued that it was a capitalist war

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between imperialist powers,

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that it had nothing to do with the working classes.

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Men like Evan didn't accept why they should be fighting.

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They didn't see ordinary German soldiers as their enemy.

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They saw the war as reinforcing the inequalities

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they believed society should be getting rid of.

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I'm guessing now, from what you've said,

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he had such strong political beliefs

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that, you know, it was worth doing six months' time

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rather than going against his wishes.

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-Well...

-Gosh.

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But still, I'm sure the majority of people of Abertillery

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would've been very, very upset

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by the fact that he wasn't going to go to war,

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especially in a period when, you know,

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-families had lost their own loved ones...

-Yeah.

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-It's difficult to imagine how...

-It is.

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-What an awful decision to have to make, as well.

-Absolutely.

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So, he was in Wormwood Scrubs for six months

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-and then...

-That's right.

-..after that allotted time,

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would he have been sent back to South Wales?

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He would've been released from Wormwood Scrubs in December 1918,

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the end of the six months, but then, once he walked out of prison,

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there would be soldiers there from the Welsh Regiment to rearrest him,

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-take him back to Wales for another court martial.

-Oh, my goodness.

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It was like a catch 22 - you couldn't get out of it.

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If you have a look here...

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So, the 9th of May 1919 - so, by now, the First World War is done,

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-it's over...

-Absolutely.

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..but he's still got to serve his time,

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so, "Men still in the hands of the military and civil authorities..."

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-There we are.

-Meredith, Abertillery...

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and then it says Carmarthen.

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What's that about, then?

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-Well, Carmarthen in West Wales...

-Yeah.

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..is - or was - a garrison town.

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It had its own local prison.

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Wow. It kind of makes no sense, cos you want him, really,

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to get back to work and keep that mining community alive

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and put him to good use - but they were more adamant

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on just keeping him in there for the punishment.

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That was a very controversial issue at the time,

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and there were lots of protests from public figures

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about the treatment given to conscientious objectors -

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but Evan ended up right in the middle of that row.

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Yeah. Gosh.

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I didn't know anyone from my family had ever been in prison.

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What a revelation!

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I feel slightly confused and, I guess, in conflict

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about the information I've just learned.

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On one hand, I massively admire Evan's courage

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and his strong willed ways,

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the fact that he vehemently stuck to his moral reasons

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as to why he didn't want to go to war,

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even though he had these severe consequences,

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he still stuck by that and I really admire that,

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but then, on the other hand, there's so many families

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that obviously lost relatives at war in the same area

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and that's unbelievably heartbreaking.

0:17:560:17:58

So it's really hard to sort of digest it all

0:17:580:18:02

and work out how I feel.

0:18:020:18:03

Fearne has come to Carmarthen to find out Evan's fate

0:18:090:18:13

following his second court-martial.

0:18:130:18:15

She is meeting historian Professor Lois Bibbings.

0:18:150:18:18

Thank you, Lois.

0:18:180:18:19

What I know is that my great-grandfather Evan

0:18:210:18:24

was brought here to Carmarthen to serve his second sentence

0:18:240:18:27

for being an objector.

0:18:270:18:29

Do you know how long he would've been here?

0:18:290:18:31

Well, this is one of the original papers from Carmarthen prison.

0:18:310:18:37

OK. So, Evan Meredith, 14th of December 1918...

0:18:370:18:44

What's that date in reference to?

0:18:440:18:46

That looks like the date on which he was court-martialled and sentenced.

0:18:460:18:49

So this here says, "Disobeying a lawful command".

0:18:490:18:52

-Yes.

-So what would that have been?

0:18:520:18:54

So, yeah, something like not putting on a uniform, most probably.

0:18:540:18:57

Something fairly mundane.

0:18:570:18:59

One-year sentence.

0:18:590:19:01

Yes, so his six months has now become a second sentence,

0:19:010:19:04

one year and hard labour.

0:19:040:19:06

Oh, my goodness.

0:19:060:19:08

Prison regime at that time, as you might imagine, was fairly strict.

0:19:080:19:12

There'd be a single plank for him to sleep on.

0:19:120:19:14

For the first two weeks of his sentence,

0:19:140:19:16

he'd be lying on the plank with no mattress.

0:19:160:19:18

After two weeks he would have earned the right to a mattress.

0:19:180:19:22

He'd have a stool,

0:19:220:19:23

a small table and a few pots for drinking and...

0:19:230:19:28

-doing other things in.

-Got you. Got you, Lois.

-Mm-hm!

0:19:280:19:31

Um, and he would be adhering to the silence rule,

0:19:310:19:35

-so he wasn't allowed to communicate with other prisoners.

-Oh, my God.

0:19:350:19:39

He wasn't allowed to speak -

0:19:390:19:41

and that's what objectors found really the most hard.

0:19:410:19:43

So isolating.

0:19:430:19:45

-It's horrible.

-But prisoners, if they behaved well,

0:19:450:19:49

were automatically entitled to one sixth remission of sentence,

0:19:490:19:52

so two months off, effectively.

0:19:520:19:54

Oh, right. Do you know if Evan did behave well and he got out early?

0:19:540:19:57

Well, if you have a look at the next column...

0:19:570:20:00

So, it says "Remarks",

0:20:000:20:01

and Evan's got quite a lengthy section in there.

0:20:010:20:04

I guess the really important date to look at is the temporary discharge,

0:20:040:20:08

and to wonder why he was discharged at that point,

0:20:080:20:11

because it doesn't match either the end of his sentence

0:20:110:20:14

or the usual remission period.

0:20:140:20:15

Yeah, it's quite a way before both - so do you know why?

0:20:150:20:18

Well, we do have a little bit more information on Evan's case.

0:20:180:20:22

We are very lucky to have located a history of the Meredith family.

0:20:220:20:26

Chapter three of that history is written by Evan,

0:20:260:20:29

and it records what happened to him in prison in the First World War.

0:20:290:20:33

Wow.

0:20:330:20:34

"We had heard of hunger strikes in various parts of the country

0:20:360:20:40

"and some of them are beginning to think in these terms.

0:20:400:20:43

"Not only that, I was in the best position to organise such a move."

0:20:430:20:48

So I'm trying to get my head around this!

0:20:480:20:50

So, he was basically the person who started a hunger strike here

0:20:500:20:56

for a group of prisoners.

0:20:560:20:58

-Am I right?

-Pretty much.

0:20:580:20:59

There have been hunger strikes in some of the prisons

0:20:590:21:02

around the country from 1918 or onwards,

0:21:020:21:05

and they were largely about the conditions

0:21:050:21:07

in which the prisoners were being held.

0:21:070:21:09

By this time, post the Armistice,

0:21:090:21:11

they tended to be about release dates.

0:21:110:21:14

"By careful contact,

0:21:140:21:16

"I discovered that everyone was ready and waiting

0:21:160:21:19

"for me to fix the day.

0:21:190:21:20

"This I did on a day one week ahead,

0:21:200:21:22

"so that I would be sure of contacting each man

0:21:220:21:25

"individually beforehand.

0:21:250:21:26

"The appointed day arrived

0:21:260:21:28

"and every breakfast was returned to the kitchen..." Wow.

0:21:280:21:31

"..including my own.

0:21:310:21:33

"On the fourth day, the governor called in the evening

0:21:330:21:36

"to bring the news that I was to be released the next morning

0:21:360:21:40

"under the Cat And Mouse Act."

0:21:400:21:42

The Cat And Mouse Act had been introduced in 1913.

0:21:430:21:48

Officially known as the Prisoners (Temporary Discharge For Ill Health) Act,

0:21:480:21:52

the Government had passed it

0:21:520:21:54

to tackle the hunger strike protests by suffragettes held in prison.

0:21:540:21:57

Instead of force-feeding them,

0:21:590:22:01

the act allowed the early release of weakened prisoners

0:22:010:22:04

who might be at risk of dying, and their rearrest

0:22:040:22:07

once they had recovered.

0:22:070:22:09

So, when conscientious objectors like Evan began their hunger strikes

0:22:090:22:13

in 1918, they were treated the same way.

0:22:130:22:17

Do you know if he was then rearrested

0:22:180:22:20

-after that temporary time of discharge?

-We don't for sure,

0:22:200:22:24

but we don't have any evidence that he was picked up again.

0:22:240:22:27

I'll happily read through all of this. Thank you so much.

0:22:270:22:31

I mean, what is clear to me already is...

0:22:400:22:42

..which I didn't factually know...

0:22:440:22:47

is that he didn't want to go to war

0:22:470:22:50

because he didn't want to kill anyone.

0:22:500:22:52

It's that simple, really.

0:22:560:22:58

I'm really getting a picture of who he was.

0:23:010:23:04

You know, it's not necessarily jobs,

0:23:040:23:06

location that you continue in that lineage,

0:23:060:23:09

it's all of those traits and all those beliefs,

0:23:090:23:13

and they filter through in their own way,

0:23:130:23:15

so it's really, really special to read his words.

0:23:150:23:19

Fearne has one final visit to make to piece together Evan's life.

0:23:300:23:35

Evan's son, my great uncle Hayden, is still alive, and he's in his 90s,

0:23:350:23:41

and he's incredibly with it,

0:23:410:23:43

so it'd be really interesting to see what Hayden, you know,

0:23:430:23:48

makes of all this, and I guess how that impacted him as a son.

0:23:480:23:53

No! I don't believe it!

0:23:570:24:01

Liquid sunshine. Hello, there.

0:24:010:24:04

Liquid sunshine.

0:24:040:24:06

-So lovely to see you.

-And you.

0:24:060:24:08

I haven't been here for so long -

0:24:080:24:10

I must have been, I don't know, 12 or something last time I was here.

0:24:100:24:14

Yes, well...

0:24:140:24:15

I knew so little about Evan

0:24:150:24:18

before I, sort of, started on this exploration,

0:24:180:24:22

and I've learned that he was a conscientious objector...

0:24:220:24:25

-Yes, yes.

-And that he refused to go to war.

0:24:250:24:27

Did he ever talk about his time in prison?

0:24:270:24:29

Or was it just a no-go subject?

0:24:290:24:31

-No-go subject.

-Yeah.

-Never touched it.

-Mm-hm.

0:24:310:24:35

-Never touched it.

-Do you think that was because it was just too painful

0:24:350:24:38

-of a memory for him?

-Oh, yes, I think it...

0:24:380:24:40

-Yeah.

-..it was looked upon with disdain.

-Hmm.

0:24:400:24:45

But, of course, some of them out on the Western Front were shot....

0:24:450:24:48

-Yeah.

-For... For disobedience.

0:24:480:24:50

-Yeah.

-But, hopefully, there's a place in heaven...

0:24:500:24:55

-..where they don't judge in this way.

-No.

0:24:570:25:00

I guess there is, then, a bit of a gap that I need to fill,

0:25:000:25:04

-between him going back into the mining community...

-Yes.

0:25:040:25:08

And then him arriving as a real pillar of the community...

0:25:080:25:12

-Yeah.

-..out of Wales, in Kingsbury, and how that happened.

0:25:120:25:17

Yeah. He didn't talk to me about South Wales generally.

0:25:170:25:21

I used to love to go to Abertillery, because if you've been there,

0:25:210:25:26

there were these beautiful mountains.

0:25:260:25:28

-Yeah.

-It was such a wonderful place...

0:25:280:25:32

-Mm.

-..and out of the blue, my father said,

0:25:320:25:36

-"I worked damned hard to get out of that place."

-Yeah!

0:25:360:25:39

He did it by digging himself out of the pit.

0:25:390:25:42

Yeah, quite literally.

0:25:420:25:44

-Look at it that way.

-Yeah.

0:25:440:25:45

He dug himself out of the pit into pharmacy,

0:25:450:25:48

-and eventually into a chemist's shop.

-Wow.

0:25:480:25:51

I can remember him answering the phone, "Meredith the chemist",

0:25:510:25:55

he used to say. In a Welsh accent, "Meredith the chemist",

0:25:550:25:58

and, um, really, that was how it...

0:25:580:26:02

how it came about, because he was learning, learning, learning...

0:26:020:26:08

-He was very, very studious and driven?

-Absolutely -

0:26:080:26:11

and towards the final stages of his career as a pharmacist,

0:26:110:26:16

he was given a fellowship of the Pharmaceutical Society,

0:26:160:26:23

which very, very few pharmacists ever achieve.

0:26:230:26:26

-Really?

-Yeah.

0:26:260:26:28

But, I mean, so this was a really big moment for your dad, to...?

0:26:280:26:32

Oh, yes. Apart from a knighthood, there's not much else!

0:26:320:26:35

No! I mean, it's safe to say that Evan didn't do things by halves.

0:26:350:26:40

-Oh, no, he really...

-He...

0:26:400:26:42

-Once he got stuck into it...

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

0:26:420:26:44

What a lovely photo.

0:26:440:26:46

-So, looking back, do you feel a huge sense of pride?

-Yes.

-Yeah.

0:26:460:26:53

-I always did.

-Mm.

0:26:530:26:55

I was never without pride.

0:26:560:26:58

That's... You know, I used to tell people what he did

0:27:000:27:05

and what he was doing.

0:27:050:27:08

-All his life he's been giving, giving, giving.

-Yeah.

0:27:080:27:12

What an incredible man.

0:27:120:27:15

It's been such a pleasure learning about him.

0:27:150:27:17

-It's been a real treat.

-Yes.

0:27:170:27:21

It was really quite emotional talking to Hayden today

0:27:270:27:30

about his father, Evan.

0:27:300:27:32

There was this huge sense of pride about where his father had come from

0:27:320:27:37

and where he ended up,

0:27:370:27:39

working so hard and digging himself out of quite a hole,

0:27:390:27:42

and I can't help but feel completely bursting with pride about that.

0:27:420:27:47

So, next, on to my mum's side of the family, who I know so little about.

0:27:490:27:54

I've heard rumours of Viking blood and several surnames thrown around,

0:27:540:27:59

but really I know very little indeed,

0:27:590:28:01

so I'm really looking forward to getting my teeth into a new story.

0:28:010:28:04

Fearne is meeting genealogist Laura Berry,

0:28:090:28:12

who's been looking into her mother Linda's ancestors.

0:28:120:28:15

I don't know very much about my mum's side of the family.

0:28:150:28:18

I've heard a few rumours and stories.

0:28:180:28:21

The only thing my mum has ever said

0:28:210:28:23

is that there might have been a surname that ended in "BY" -

0:28:230:28:27

Wilby, something like that, along the way,

0:28:270:28:29

and that that could have been Viking related.

0:28:290:28:32

That sounds like a wild fairy tale to me,

0:28:320:28:34

and I don't know if there's any truth in it, but that's...

0:28:340:28:37

That's all I've ever heard.

0:28:370:28:38

Well, I've done quite a lot of digging

0:28:380:28:40

into your mum's family history, and actually there is, obviously,

0:28:400:28:44

a Wilby surname here on your nan's side, and you can see here

0:28:440:28:48

we've got you at the bottom, then there is your mum...

0:28:480:28:51

Oh, lovely Nan Sylvia.

0:28:510:28:53

..and then her dad.

0:28:530:28:55

Ronald! I had no idea he was called Ronald.

0:28:550:28:57

-Did you not know?

-No!

-Oh!

0:28:570:28:58

Well, Ronald's mother was a Wilby,

0:28:580:29:01

and that line has been traced back a few generations.

0:29:010:29:04

Yeah, I've heard Suffolk and Norfolk being knocked around a lot.

0:29:040:29:09

Like, it's that area of the country.

0:29:090:29:11

Whether or not it has Viking origins, it's hard to say.

0:29:110:29:15

Possibly, because that "BY" ending, like you say,

0:29:150:29:18

it's said to derive from old Scandinavian,

0:29:180:29:20

meaning farm or settlement -

0:29:200:29:22

but, I mean, we're talking, sort of, ten centuries...

0:29:220:29:25

-Yeah.

-..maybe even more, back...

0:29:250:29:26

-Yeah.

-..and unfortunately the records just don't go back that far,

0:29:260:29:30

but, as you can see, this tree shows lots of London-based ancestors,

0:29:300:29:33

as you suspected, until you, sort of,

0:29:330:29:36

work back further into the 19th century

0:29:360:29:38

and then you find that they are coming from the Home Counties

0:29:380:29:41

before they moved to London in search of work.

0:29:410:29:43

OK, so we've got here Middlesex and Essex, and Ipswich,

0:29:430:29:47

Essex again...but then Ireland -

0:29:470:29:50

I've never, ever heard of Ireland being connected to my family

0:29:500:29:54

in any way at all.

0:29:540:29:55

-Really?

-So that's really surprising, yeah.

0:29:550:29:57

I had no idea.

0:29:570:29:59

That's your four-times great-grandfather up there.

0:29:590:30:01

-Wow.

-William Gilmour.

0:30:010:30:02

Now, so, William was born in Garvagh,

0:30:020:30:05

which is in Northern Ireland, right back in the 1820s.

0:30:050:30:10

That's fascinating.

0:30:100:30:11

I would love to explore more about William Gilmour.

0:30:110:30:15

Fearne's discovered unexpected Irish roots on her mother's side.

0:30:180:30:23

Her four-times great-grandfather William Gilmour

0:30:230:30:25

was born in what is now Northern Ireland in the early 1820s.

0:30:250:30:29

Fearne has come to Northern Ireland to explore those Irish roots.

0:30:340:30:37

I am feeling really excited,

0:30:390:30:41

considering up until recently

0:30:410:30:43

I had never even heard the name William Gilmour,

0:30:430:30:46

my four-times great-grandfather,

0:30:460:30:47

and had no idea that my family were rooted in Ireland.

0:30:470:30:51

I'm so curious to find out more about William.

0:30:510:30:54

Fearne's meeting Irish historian Elaine Farrell

0:30:570:31:00

at the museum in William's hometown of Garvagh.

0:31:000:31:03

I know that my four-times great-grandfather William Gilmour

0:31:050:31:11

was born in Garvagh in around 1821.

0:31:110:31:15

I know nothing about him.

0:31:150:31:17

What would his early life have been like here?

0:31:170:31:20

Well, Garvagh would have been a predominantly rural town,

0:31:200:31:23

so most people would be employed in farming...

0:31:230:31:26

-Yeah.

-..and would have been involved in the textile industry, as well.

0:31:260:31:30

So, I suppose, for William, in terms of work,

0:31:300:31:32

-his choices would have actually been quite limited.

-Mmm.

0:31:320:31:35

So, our very first document actually shows us

0:31:350:31:38

that William Gilmour is not in Garvagh any more.

0:31:380:31:41

So it's the Londonderry Standard here from 1844.

0:31:410:31:46

-So he would have been 23ish, roughly?

-Exactly, yeah.

0:31:460:31:49

"We have much pleasure in stating that Mr William Gilmour,

0:31:490:31:56

"of Garvagh, has been appointed

0:31:560:31:58

-"apothecary to the Liverpool South Dispensary."

-Mm-hm.

0:31:580:32:02

So an apothecary is what we would understand as a chemist.

0:32:020:32:04

Yeah - there is a running theme in my family with this.

0:32:040:32:07

-Really?

-On both sides of the family now, which is peculiar.

0:32:070:32:11

So, his work has now taken him to Liverpool.

0:32:110:32:14

Yes, exactly - and obviously, if he's working in Liverpool,

0:32:140:32:17

he's quite close to the docks,

0:32:170:32:18

and there would have been a very busy port,

0:32:180:32:20

so he would be treating people maybe who got injuries

0:32:200:32:22

aboard some of those ships, and also treating people

0:32:220:32:25

who would have got diseases.

0:32:250:32:26

-So he's really learning on the job here.

-Wow.

0:32:260:32:29

-And such big news it made the paper, as well! Wow.

-Yeah.

0:32:290:32:32

So, the next document dates to 1851.

0:32:320:32:36

-What is this document?

-It's a census.

0:32:360:32:38

OK, right. So he's still in Liverpool...

0:32:380:32:41

-Yeah.

-..at 31, so he's been there for quite some time now.

0:32:410:32:43

-He has.

-William Gilmour, "Rank, profession or occupation,

0:32:430:32:48

"chemist and druggist."

0:32:480:32:50

Wow - and then, so... So, this is the rest of his family here?

0:32:500:32:53

Yeah. So we have - now he's married.

0:32:530:32:55

Elizabeth, wife, born Bucks Hulcott.

0:32:550:32:59

So, Buckinghamshire?

0:32:590:33:02

-Yeah.

-Wow. How did they meet?

0:33:020:33:05

SHE LAUGHS

0:33:050:33:06

-Must have been in Liverpool.

-She's having...

0:33:060:33:08

She's on a girls' weekend in Liverpool and meets William!

0:33:080:33:13

Goodness me -

0:33:130:33:15

-and then Bessie, I imagine that's his daughter...

-Exactly.

0:33:150:33:20

-Kate.

-Yeah - and you can see, as well,

0:33:200:33:23

he has an assistant working in the chemist, and he also has a servant.

0:33:230:33:29

That's incredible - cos that's not a huge amount of time.

0:33:290:33:32

So, he was 23 when he arrived in Liverpool

0:33:320:33:35

and then, by 31, he's found himself a wife, he's had children

0:33:350:33:39

and he's started up, seemingly, a successful career for himself.

0:33:390:33:44

-Yep.

-Wow.

0:33:440:33:46

So now we have the Coleraine Chronicle.

0:33:460:33:50

What a wonderful big book!

0:33:500:33:52

So, this is Saturday, May the 20th, 1854.

0:33:520:33:56

"Mr William Gilmour...

0:33:570:34:01

-"..surgeon"!

-Yeah -

0:34:010:34:03

so the term wouldn't be what we would understand as a surgeon,

0:34:030:34:06

-it'd be more of a GP.

-OK, wow.

0:34:060:34:08

Member of the Royal Pharmaceutical Society of Great Britain.

0:34:080:34:12

Bridge Street, Coleraine.

0:34:120:34:15

Coleraine would be quite close to us here in Garvagh.

0:34:150:34:18

So, he has now moved back with his...

0:34:180:34:21

-With his whole family.

-..English-born wife. Yeah.

0:34:210:34:23

So, at this point, in 1854,

0:34:230:34:25

he seems to have settled quite nicely back to his home region.

0:34:250:34:29

-Mm-hm. You would think that, Fearne, but...

-Oh!

0:34:290:34:32

-..let me show you the next...

-There's always another surprise,

0:34:320:34:35

isn't there? There's always another surprise!

0:34:350:34:38

So this is the Coleraine Chronicle again.

0:34:380:34:41

This is from 1855.

0:34:410:34:44

-So this is less than a year after the last newspaper.

-Yeah. Mm-hm.

0:34:440:34:50

"Medical appointment, we understand that Dr Gilmour,

0:34:500:34:53

"of this town, has been appointed medical superintendent

0:34:530:34:58

"of the screw steamship Great Britain,

0:34:580:35:01

"which has been chartered by Government

0:35:010:35:04

"as a transport to convey troops to the Crimea

0:35:040:35:07

"and bring back invalids."

0:35:070:35:10

Wow, so he's off on a ship.

0:35:100:35:11

He's on the SS Great Britain, yeah.

0:35:110:35:13

This is less a year after he was announcing himself

0:35:130:35:18

as setting up his practice in Coleraine, so, for whatever reason,

0:35:180:35:21

whether it didn't go well or he got itchy feet

0:35:210:35:24

and he decided to head off again -

0:35:240:35:26

but you'll remember that he had brought his wife and his children

0:35:260:35:29

-back to Coleraine...

-Yeah.

-..and now he's heading off on a ship.

0:35:290:35:32

I mean, if that were me,

0:35:320:35:34

and I'd just not only moved from where I was born,

0:35:340:35:37

but had just settled and I had young kids, I'd be livid.

0:35:370:35:40

-Absolutely.

-I'd be like, "You're not going on that ship, I'm afraid!"

0:35:400:35:42

-Yeah. It was a lot for her to take.

-I don't care about your certificates

0:35:420:35:45

-and your career, you're staying here.

-Yeah.

0:35:450:35:47

You're staying put. Get back in that surgery.

0:35:470:35:49

I'd be very angry...

0:35:490:35:52

but I'm very selfish.

0:35:520:35:53

SHE LAUGHS

0:35:530:35:55

The SS Great Britain was the largest ship in the world

0:35:580:36:00

when it launched in 1843

0:36:000:36:02

as a state-of-the-art passenger liner

0:36:020:36:05

to cross the Atlantic to New York...

0:36:050:36:08

but when the Crimean War began a decade later,

0:36:080:36:12

ships like the Great Britain were commandeered

0:36:120:36:15

to take troops and supplies to the Black Sea, 3,000 miles away,

0:36:150:36:18

and bring back injured and sick soldiers -

0:36:180:36:21

and the man responsible for their welfare

0:36:210:36:24

was the ship's surgeon, William Gilmour.

0:36:240:36:26

Fearne has travelled from Northern Ireland to Bristol,

0:36:330:36:35

where the SS Great Britain is now in dry dock,

0:36:350:36:38

to find out more about William Gilmour's time aboard.

0:36:380:36:41

She's meeting naval historian Professor Andrew Lambert.

0:36:410:36:45

-Hi, Andrew.

-Hi, Fearne.

0:36:450:36:47

-Lovely to meet you.

-Welcome to the SS Great Britain.

0:36:470:36:50

Thank you. It's such a beautifully restored ship.

0:36:500:36:52

-I would love to have a look around.

-Yeah, brilliant.

0:36:520:36:54

-Let's go below.

-Let's go.

0:36:540:36:56

During the Crimean War,

0:36:580:37:00

these...these cabins here were put up for the soldiers,

0:37:000:37:02

and they're packed in, four men in a little tiny space.

0:37:020:37:05

Oh, my goodness. Gosh.

0:37:050:37:07

-Tiny little beds.

-Yeah.

0:37:070:37:09

This was a soldiers' barrack that rolled from side to side,

0:37:090:37:12

-and people were being sick all the time, as well.

-Ugh!

0:37:120:37:14

-Sounds horrific.

-It was pretty grim.

0:37:140:37:16

This is where William would have worked.

0:37:190:37:21

This is the surgeon's cabin.

0:37:210:37:23

I mean, it's not very big, is it?

0:37:230:37:24

Considering he's got goodness knows how many men to look after,

0:37:240:37:27

it's a tiny room.

0:37:270:37:28

-It is - and it's also where he lives.

-Wow.

0:37:280:37:32

So what sort of injuries and illnesses

0:37:320:37:35

is he going to be working with?

0:37:350:37:37

As they're going out, he's got a lot of men,

0:37:370:37:40

most of whom are pretty healthy, and he's got to keep them healthy.

0:37:400:37:42

Once they get to theatre, musket-ball wounds,

0:37:420:37:45

-very large numbers of amputations...

-Ooh...

0:37:450:37:47

..and particularly major outbreaks of cholera, which is lethal,

0:37:470:37:51

-dysentery, which can be lethal...

-Mm.

0:37:510:37:54

So he's making those big decisions. He's the surgeon on board.

0:37:540:37:57

He's the man who is going to actually do those difficult jobs.

0:37:570:38:00

That's a huge undertaking, to do a job like that.

0:38:000:38:02

War is...is terrible, but it also creates opportunities,

0:38:020:38:06

and the fact that he volunteers for this

0:38:060:38:09

-means that he sees this as a step up.

-Mm.

0:38:090:38:11

-This is a man on a journey.

-Yeah.

0:38:110:38:14

Well, I'm very curious to learn how William

0:38:140:38:17

made the transition from quite a basic rural life in Ireland

0:38:170:38:21

to having really quite an important job here on the SS Great Britain.

0:38:210:38:26

I can't quite piece all of that transition together.

0:38:260:38:28

Well, what we're looking at is a classic example

0:38:280:38:31

of Victorian social progress. It's all about taking a chance,

0:38:310:38:35

finding another way of getting on.

0:38:350:38:37

I mean, that must have been quite terrifying,

0:38:370:38:39

slash also him not quite believing his luck...

0:38:390:38:41

-Yeah.

-..that he'd landed such a job.

0:38:410:38:43

I think there is a clue to that in, actually,

0:38:430:38:45

an entry that we have from the ship's logbook,

0:38:450:38:48

where he features in the day-to-day record of the ship.

0:38:480:38:52

Oh, so, William Gilmour, MD.

0:38:530:38:57

Medical degree.

0:38:570:38:59

So when would he have got that?

0:38:590:39:01

-On board?

-Whenever he fancied claiming to have been at university.

0:39:010:39:04

Oh, really? So he just made it up?

0:39:040:39:06

There is no evidence he attended any of the universities

0:39:060:39:09

that awarded medical degrees,

0:39:090:39:10

so other men serving in this capacity on other ships,

0:39:100:39:14

they've actually earned this.

0:39:140:39:16

He's assumed it.

0:39:160:39:17

And so he's flying by the seat of his pants.

0:39:170:39:20

-He is.

-He is going to have to get up to speed

0:39:200:39:22

with everyone else on board that boat,

0:39:220:39:24

with a really important and difficult job to do.

0:39:240:39:27

Yeah. You know, there's... There's an opportunity and he grabs it -

0:39:270:39:30

and, of course, this is a results-based industry,

0:39:300:39:32

so the key thing we need to know is, is he successful?

0:39:320:39:35

-Yeah.

-Can he actually make this claim stick?

0:39:350:39:37

Right, exactly.

0:39:370:39:38

Here we have the London Standard, and the ship has come home.

0:39:380:39:43

-So, this is 1855.

-Yeah, it's...

-November.

0:39:430:39:47

Yeah, it's the end of the voyage.

0:39:470:39:49

OK, so, "The Great Britain, iron screw transport,

0:39:490:39:53

"came into the harbour at noon and landed the following:

0:39:530:39:57

"30 invalided officers, five women, for children, 81 military invalids.

0:39:570:40:04

"They were under the medical charge of Dr Gilmour,

0:40:040:40:08

"belonging to the Great Britain.

0:40:080:40:10

"The unremitting care and attention of this gentleman

0:40:100:40:13

"to the wants and comforts of the sick are beyond all praise."

0:40:130:40:18

So, this is a success story for him.

0:40:180:40:22

-Yeah - MD? Who cares?

-So this, for him, is exactly what he wanted.

0:40:220:40:28

-Oh, yeah.

-He went there, he knew he was underqualified,

0:40:280:40:31

but he got the results, and they're in print for all to see.

0:40:310:40:34

And he gets even higher testimonials than that...

0:40:340:40:38

in the Coleraine Chronicle.

0:40:380:40:40

That is where he wanted the news to be spread, isn't it?

0:40:400:40:42

-He wanted that news to reach home.

-Yeah.

0:40:420:40:44

"The Great Britain was honoured by a visit by Her Majesty the Queen."

0:40:440:40:49

Wow!

0:40:490:40:51

"She went to enquire after the health of the invalids on board,

0:40:510:40:55

"and on the Sunday following, Doctor Gilmour, we understand,

0:40:550:40:58

"had the honour of lunching on board the Royal yacht,

0:40:580:41:02

"Victoria and Albert, by special invitation."

0:41:020:41:05

-Yeah.

-This is the dream.

0:41:060:41:09

-Yeah.

-Oh, my goodness.

0:41:090:41:11

"The Great Britain is now in Liverpool taking..."

0:41:110:41:13

Blah, blah, blah. Who cares about that bit?!

0:41:130:41:15

Oh, my goodness, he had lunch with the Queen!

0:41:150:41:17

He might not have a degree, but he's got better than that.

0:41:170:41:20

Oh, my goodness. I mean...that is huge news.

0:41:200:41:25

Huge news -

0:41:250:41:26

and for everybody to know that, to be sort of graced by royalty,

0:41:260:41:30

to be commended by royalty,

0:41:300:41:32

it doesn't get any better than that, does it?

0:41:320:41:34

-It doesn't.

-And rightly so, because what he did was incredible,

0:41:340:41:39

an amazing feat, and huge success,

0:41:390:41:41

and he took the biggest risk and the biggest chance and it all paid off,

0:41:410:41:45

and there he is on the yacht having lunch with Victoria.

0:41:450:41:48

-Yeah.

-Fab.

0:41:480:41:50

It's the ultimate success story,

0:41:530:41:56

someone who come from really quite humble beginnings

0:41:560:41:59

and had this vision, had an idea and made it happen.

0:41:590:42:03

He's a real chancer.

0:42:030:42:05

He had that self belief and confidence and did it -

0:42:050:42:08

and I've got a feeling there's probably more to come.

0:42:080:42:11

Fearne is on her way to meet historian Imogen Dickens

0:42:130:42:16

to find out what her four times great-grandfather

0:42:160:42:19

William Gilmour did next.

0:42:190:42:21

I'm trying to piece together this intricate puzzle

0:42:230:42:26

of my four times great-grandfather, William Gilmour.

0:42:260:42:28

I know he had a really successful voyage on the SS Great Britain

0:42:280:42:32

during the Crimean War - but I don't know what happened after that,

0:42:320:42:36

so I'm hoping that you can help me with this next leg of the journey.

0:42:360:42:39

Yes, so let me show you this poster.

0:42:390:42:43

So, "Liverpool and Australian Navigation Company.

0:42:430:42:46

"Steam from Liverpool to Australia in under 60 days."

0:42:460:42:51

Wow! So, he's gone back to sea.

0:42:510:42:53

He's gone back to sea aboard a different ship -

0:42:530:42:56

so it's not the SS Great Britain,

0:42:560:42:58

but it's the Royal Charter which is the SS Great Britain's sister ship.

0:42:580:43:02

So, it was designed by the same shipwright, the same shipbuilder.

0:43:020:43:06

So, "Including stewards fees

0:43:060:43:09

"and attendance of an experienced surgeon."

0:43:090:43:12

Wow, so that's part of your service going aboard this ship,

0:43:120:43:16

that you get a very experienced surgeon.

0:43:160:43:18

-Yeah.

-What I love about this is knowing a little bit more

0:43:180:43:22

about William now is that he's probably not as experienced

0:43:220:43:26

as they might have liked!

0:43:260:43:27

I'm wondering what has made William want to go back to sea.

0:43:270:43:32

Either he just liked it -

0:43:320:43:34

or would this have been a particularly well-paid job

0:43:340:43:37

to help out his family?

0:43:370:43:39

Because he's got a young family who is back in Ireland,

0:43:390:43:41

and I'm sure they are pretty reticent to let him go again.

0:43:410:43:45

Yeah, the wage would have been good,

0:43:450:43:46

but it wouldn't have been exceptional.

0:43:460:43:49

Of course, he would have got to visit

0:43:490:43:51

loads of really exciting places.

0:43:510:43:52

A lot of ship's surgeons tended to go to visit new places.

0:43:520:43:57

Yeah, they liked the adventure.

0:43:570:43:59

Yeah, maybe bitten by the travel bug.

0:43:590:44:01

Yeah, completely. So it's all working out rather nicely for him.

0:44:010:44:05

-Wow!

-Yeah, well, let me show you this.

0:44:050:44:07

So, "Ball's Cottage, Buckingham Road, Aylesbury.

0:44:070:44:11

"April the 25th, 1859.

0:44:110:44:14

"Gentleman, I beg most respectfully to tender you my resignation

0:44:140:44:19

"of the situation I have held as surgeon of the SSS Royal Charter.

0:44:190:44:25

"I'm going to commence the practice of my profession here in Aylesbury.

0:44:250:44:30

"I may succeed, and may not."

0:44:300:44:32

Right, so he's got himself a nice little practice in Aylesbury.

0:44:320:44:36

Yes, he's back on land, he's away from the ship.

0:44:360:44:38

Right, that's good. So that makes me feel relieved -

0:44:390:44:42

so he's kind of set up there, he's got his new practice,

0:44:420:44:46

the wife's happy.

0:44:460:44:48

His days on the sea were over.

0:44:480:44:50

-That's a relief.

-Yeah!

0:44:500:44:52

-Morning!

-All right, darling?

-Good, thank you. You OK?

0:44:560:44:59

Fearne has come to Aylesbury

0:44:590:45:00

to visit the house where William set up in private practice.

0:45:000:45:05

She's meeting historian Elaine Thomson.

0:45:050:45:07

-Hi.

-I'm Elaine.

0:45:080:45:09

Welcome to Aylesbury - and The Mount.

0:45:090:45:11

It's so pretty.

0:45:110:45:12

William, at this point, is in his 40s.

0:45:150:45:18

I'm imagining there were far less choppy waters living in Aylesbury

0:45:180:45:23

with his practice and his family.

0:45:230:45:25

I think when he came here, that was certainly his expectation.

0:45:250:45:28

He's moved into a beautiful house,

0:45:280:45:30

and it's here that he would have had his private practice.

0:45:300:45:33

Probably this room...

0:45:330:45:35

-Oh, really?!

-..would have been used to actually see the patients, yeah.

0:45:350:45:38

So they would be coming into a very...you know, a nice space

0:45:380:45:41

to be treated, to see the doctor sitting behind his desk

0:45:410:45:44

and it would all look very professional and proper.

0:45:440:45:47

Is there a "but" coming? I feel a "but".

0:45:470:45:49

Well, I think things maybe turned out slightly differently

0:45:490:45:54

-to how he expected them to be.

-Right.

0:45:540:45:57

So if I could just show you this.

0:45:570:45:59

The Bucks Herald.

0:45:590:46:02

"In bankruptcy."

0:46:020:46:03

-It's not a great start.

-It's not a good start.

0:46:030:46:06

So, "Castle Street, Aylesbury,

0:46:060:46:08

"150 lots of household furniture, books, medicines,

0:46:080:46:12

"bottles and other effects will be sold by auction

0:46:120:46:16

"by Mr Robert Gibbs.

0:46:160:46:18

"On the premises of Mr W Gilmour, surgeon, Castle Street, Aylesbury,

0:46:180:46:23

"by order of the Court of Bankruptcy."

0:46:230:46:27

-Oh, that's so sad.

-I know, it's terrible.

0:46:270:46:29

So he's just selling everything.

0:46:290:46:31

It's such a shame.

0:46:310:46:33

-Where did it all go wrong, William?

-It's tragic.

0:46:330:46:36

Everything he has worked so hard for

0:46:360:46:38

is now practically in a yard sale in Aylesbury in this very house.

0:46:380:46:43

So, I think it must have been very difficult, very shaming.

0:46:430:46:47

And almost, I guess, it felt for him less chancy setting up here,

0:46:470:46:52

rather than at sea where there is sort of trepidation and uncertainty.

0:46:520:46:55

I think that's what you would assume,

0:46:550:46:57

that this is a safer port, as it were,

0:46:570:46:59

that he can be with his family

0:46:590:47:01

and set up in private practice and do well -

0:47:010:47:03

but I think the people who tended to be particularly ill

0:47:030:47:06

-were the poor...

-Oh.

-..and they're of no use to you at all,

0:47:060:47:09

-because they can't pay you.

-Right.

0:47:090:47:10

Who you want, ideally, are the rich middle classes.

0:47:100:47:13

You know, some rich, constipated widows

0:47:130:47:16

who would come to you for laxatives,

0:47:160:47:18

or gouty old men who you could look after on a regular basis.

0:47:180:47:21

Simply not enough rich, constipated women in Aylesbury.

0:47:210:47:24

Not enough, yeah.

0:47:240:47:26

-And there's another...

-Poor William!

0:47:260:47:28

..sort of another bit of detail about the bankruptcy.

0:47:280:47:31

So, this is the Bucks Herald.

0:47:310:47:32

This is 1865.

0:47:320:47:35

"The bankruptcy of William Gilmour.

0:47:350:47:37

"The total amount of his debts is about £500..."

0:47:370:47:41

That must have been extortionate.

0:47:410:47:42

It's about 50...about £50,000.

0:47:420:47:45

"..and he ascribes his failure to the following causes -

0:47:450:47:50

"insufficiency of income to meet my necessary expenditure

0:47:500:47:54

"and pressure of creditors. My income has been very fluctuating,

0:47:540:47:58

-"and having a family of seven children..." by this point?!

-I know.

0:47:580:48:03

Oh, my goodness.

0:48:030:48:05

-I mean, that pressure is immense.

-Yeah.

0:48:050:48:09

So, he's scrambling to get himself out of quite a huge problem.

0:48:090:48:13

Yeah. So you really feel for him.

0:48:130:48:15

He's had an adventurous life...

0:48:150:48:16

-He's had a fall from grace.

-..he's done his best.

0:48:160:48:18

-I mean, he came back a hero at one point.

-Yeah.

0:48:180:48:20

But he's not a man to let these things grind him down.

0:48:200:48:23

-He doesn't give up, does he?

-He doesn't give up.

0:48:230:48:26

He never gives up - and he moves on and we see him listed in the Lancet.

0:48:260:48:31

You see, it's just the 1st of July.

0:48:310:48:34

This is a couple of months after bankruptcy.

0:48:340:48:35

Yeah, hardly any time has passed.

0:48:350:48:38

So, what's William up to now?

0:48:380:48:39

There he is.

0:48:390:48:41

So, "William Gilmour, LRCP Ed, has been elected medical officer

0:48:410:48:46

"and public vaccinator for district number one of Ongar Union, Essex."

0:48:460:48:52

Do you know what the Ongar Union is?

0:48:520:48:53

-No.

-It's a workhouse.

0:48:530:48:55

-OK.

-It's maybe not the most fantastic opportunity...

0:48:550:48:59

-But it's a job.

-It's a job -

0:48:590:49:01

but I think it was the kind of job you would do

0:49:010:49:04

-when you couldn't find too much else.

-Yeah, yeah.

0:49:040:49:06

I think, at this stage in his career,

0:49:060:49:08

he would probably be very disappointed to end up in the Union.

0:49:080:49:11

-But desperate times!

-He's not given up.

0:49:110:49:13

He's not in prison, and his family aren't on their own in poverty,

0:49:130:49:16

so he's still all he could, I guess, at this point.

0:49:160:49:18

He meets his responsibilities.

0:49:180:49:20

-I think, an impressive man.

-Mm.

0:49:200:49:22

It seems terribly sad now,

0:49:220:49:24

thinking back to William's resignation letter,

0:49:240:49:26

there is this one line saying about his move to Aylesbury,

0:49:260:49:30

"it may work out, it may not,"

0:49:300:49:33

and it hasn't - and I'm sure he wasn't particularly expecting that.

0:49:330:49:36

It's very poignant, now, looking back at that.

0:49:360:49:39

I like that he doesn't give up, though.

0:49:390:49:41

-I like that a lot.

-No - he is not a quitter, is he?

0:49:410:49:44

-Persistent.

-Yeah.

-Yeah.

0:49:440:49:45

That trait's in our family, for sure.

0:49:450:49:47

I think, for William,

0:49:530:49:55

he might just have one more roll of the dice in him.

0:49:550:49:59

He's a chancer, and so far it's worked out pretty well,

0:49:590:50:03

so I'm hoping at this point he can really pick himself back up

0:50:030:50:06

and get his career back on the straight

0:50:060:50:09

and support his family and get a better life for them all.

0:50:090:50:13

Fearne has come to the former Ongar Union workhouse in Essex.

0:50:170:50:21

She's meeting historian Peter Higginbotham.

0:50:210:50:24

Mind the steps.

0:50:240:50:25

It's an amazing building, this.

0:50:250:50:27

The fact it is largely untouched

0:50:270:50:28

-since it actually was a workhouse.

-Yeah.

0:50:280:50:30

So, how many people would William have been looking after?

0:50:300:50:34

Although he was kind of based here,

0:50:340:50:36

he was a district medical officer, was his job title,

0:50:360:50:39

that meant he looks after people in their own homes.

0:50:390:50:42

Technically, he probably had a couple of thousand people...

0:50:420:50:45

-Mm-hm!

-..that potentially could be patients.

0:50:450:50:47

Considering William now had seven children to feed, and a wife,

0:50:470:50:50

do you think he was making a sufficient wage to live on?

0:50:500:50:53

Um, quite possibly not.

0:50:530:50:55

First of all, the salary was not very good.

0:50:550:50:58

There were lots of things, lots of outgoings,

0:50:580:51:00

that you had to take out of that salary.

0:51:000:51:02

So, the doctor had to pay for all the medicines

0:51:020:51:04

that he dispensed to his patients. Which could make quite a big hole...

0:51:040:51:08

-Yeah.

-..in his salary.

-Absolutely.

0:51:080:51:10

If you were ill or you wanted time off,

0:51:100:51:13

then you had to arrange a standing as a sort of substitute

0:51:130:51:16

and you had to pay their costs.

0:51:160:51:19

So you could end up working virtually for nothing.

0:51:190:51:22

I guess, although this was a very hard life for William,

0:51:220:51:24

there were some pluses.

0:51:240:51:26

You know, he's in a beautiful sort of rural area,

0:51:260:51:29

perhaps reminiscent of where he's from, Garvagh,

0:51:290:51:31

where he had a very rural existence.

0:51:310:51:33

Nice for the children to be able to run around freely

0:51:330:51:36

and not be in a stuffy city with lots of disease.

0:51:360:51:39

He's managed to just about keep everything afloat

0:51:390:51:42

and keep some sort of stability.

0:51:420:51:44

When I first found out about William's life here,

0:51:500:51:53

I was relatively concerned,

0:51:530:51:54

but I feel like it wasn't as bad as I initially thought,

0:51:540:51:58

his life and his work here.

0:51:580:52:00

That's true. I mean, he settled into the job -

0:52:000:52:02

but life is never simple,

0:52:020:52:04

and in 1871, something happened that was to change

0:52:040:52:09

how things were going for him.

0:52:090:52:11

This is an entry from the Guardian's meeting minutes.

0:52:110:52:15

"Dr Gilmour, medical officer of district number one

0:52:150:52:20

"attended this board to answer a charge of neglect

0:52:200:52:24

"for not attending the child of a pauper at Fyfield,

0:52:240:52:28

"named Rose Madle when first requested to do so

0:52:280:52:32

"on the 8th of September last,

0:52:320:52:34

"and that such child died a few hours

0:52:340:52:37

"after his attendance the next morning."

0:52:370:52:40

So that's pretty serious.

0:52:400:52:43

"Mr Gilmour, having explained that he was ill

0:52:440:52:47

"on the evening of the 8th of September last,

0:52:470:52:49

"but that he attended at seven o'clock on the following morning,

0:52:490:52:53

"that his substitute had left this neighbourhood

0:52:530:52:55

"and that he had been, and still was,

0:52:550:52:58

"unable to obtain another medical substitute."

0:52:580:53:01

So, as you said, that would have been his responsibility

0:53:010:53:04

to therefore pay for someone else to go and do his job.

0:53:040:53:07

Yeah, that was one of the key responsibilities.

0:53:070:53:09

No matter what, you have to provide a service.

0:53:090:53:11

-And he didn't.

-He didn't.

0:53:110:53:13

-And a kid died.

-Yeah.

0:53:130:53:15

I mean, I don't know how you ever recover from that.

0:53:160:53:19

Do we know if he lost his job?

0:53:190:53:21

We're not absolutely sure.

0:53:210:53:23

-We do know he moved on from Ongar fairly soon after this event.

-Mm.

0:53:230:53:30

-We do know where he was in 1880, in fact.

-OK.

0:53:300:53:33

We've now moved on to the Bethnal Green workhouse in London,

0:53:330:53:39

so he's now the workhouse dispenser making up the drugs and potions

0:53:390:53:45

that were prescribed for the workhouse inmates.

0:53:450:53:49

So, "Gilmour, dispenser.

0:53:490:53:51

"Clerk read a letter from Mr Gilmour asking the guardians

0:53:510:53:55

"if they would pay him his salary weekly."

0:53:550:53:59

So what's going on here, then?

0:53:590:54:01

The fact he wanted his salary weekly, I guess,

0:54:010:54:04

sort of implies he didn't really have the savings

0:54:040:54:07

-to keep him going...

-Yeah, he's in trouble.

0:54:070:54:09

..throughout, to the next pay cheque.

0:54:090:54:11

It's literally hand to mouth.

0:54:110:54:13

He needs to get that money and get that food on the table for the kids.

0:54:130:54:17

-Goodness me.

-So, just a few months later,

0:54:170:54:21

early 1881, again, he crops up in the minutes.

0:54:210:54:27

I'm imagining at this point it's more bad news.

0:54:270:54:29

Let's have a look.

0:54:300:54:32

"The medical officer reported that there was no improvement

0:54:320:54:34

"in the health of Mr Gilmour, dispenser."

0:54:340:54:37

-So he's ill now?

-That's right.

0:54:370:54:39

Do we know what was wrong with him?

0:54:390:54:40

We could move forward another few weeks.

0:54:400:54:44

Another entry in the minute book.

0:54:450:54:48

This is the 22nd of March 1881.

0:54:480:54:52

"Mr Knox reported that Mr Gilmour, the dispenser, died on Monday."

0:54:520:54:58

Oh, gosh, how sad.

0:55:000:55:01

Do we know what William died of?

0:55:030:55:06

Well, final piece of paper.

0:55:060:55:10

So this is certified copy of an entry of death.

0:55:100:55:15

"William Gilmour, 60 years old, cause of death, bronchitis."

0:55:150:55:19

So, three months.

0:55:190:55:22

So, it could have been something that he caught from a patient,

0:55:220:55:26

or someone he was dispensing drugs to,

0:55:260:55:28

or is that quite common of that era?

0:55:280:55:30

-I think it's probably a reflection of his living conditions.

-Mm.

0:55:300:55:35

-It was a typical workhouse kind of condition.

-Mm!

0:55:350:55:39

He had such high hopes, and he kept on trudging and battling away,

0:55:390:55:44

and...and never quite made it.

0:55:440:55:47

So, he finished his life in quite a humble way -

0:55:470:55:51

-as it had started, I guess, really.

-Mm.

0:55:510:55:54

-As far as we know, there weren't any obituaries.

-No.

0:55:540:55:57

No, he just seems to have...

0:55:570:55:58

-Just drifted away. That was it.

-Yeah, really sad.

-Mm.

0:55:580:56:01

Poor, poor William -

0:56:020:56:06

and his poor wife.

0:56:060:56:07

"Widow...

0:56:070:56:09

"present at the death."

0:56:090:56:10

Gosh, how sad.

0:56:100:56:12

Good story, though. He had a great story.

0:56:160:56:18

He definitely wasn't boring.

0:56:180:56:20

That's for sure.

0:56:200:56:22

Definitely wasn't boring.

0:56:220:56:24

He was never prepared to surrender.

0:56:260:56:29

He had huge dreams, and...

0:56:300:56:33

..it just didn't work out for him.

0:56:340:56:36

He was made of strong stuff,

0:56:380:56:39

and I think that's what I'm going to take away from this story

0:56:390:56:42

more than anything.

0:56:420:56:44

I really hoped when I was starting out that I would discover

0:56:470:56:51

some real hard-working characters who had grit and passion

0:56:510:56:55

and determination.

0:56:550:56:57

Evan, who went from coalminer to chemist.

0:56:570:57:01

Sure, he had his ups and downs, but it was a real success story -

0:57:010:57:04

and then poor William, who tried so hard.

0:57:040:57:08

He was relentless in his efforts to do well for himself and his family,

0:57:080:57:13

and he had these wonderful glimmers of hope and great moments,

0:57:130:57:17

but the end of the tale was really quite heartbreaking.

0:57:170:57:20

I really want my kids to understand these brilliant stories

0:57:200:57:23

when they get older and see the determination

0:57:230:57:26

and the grit and the passion there.

0:57:260:57:28

So, on that note, I'm off to go home to give my kids a big hug.

0:57:310:57:34

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