0:00:04 > 0:00:09For centuries, the sea has protected us and provided for us.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17It's been a source of food, wealth, opportunity -
0:00:17 > 0:00:20and our front-line of defence against invasion.
0:00:24 > 0:00:28But over the last 200 years, our view of the sea has changed.
0:00:32 > 0:00:35It has become our playground,
0:00:35 > 0:00:38a place of pleasure and relaxation.
0:00:38 > 0:00:40Aghhh!
0:00:41 > 0:00:43- I like the houses along there.- Yeah.
0:00:46 > 0:00:52I'm setting out on my boat, Rocket, along the coast of East Anglia,
0:00:52 > 0:00:54to chart this transformation.
0:00:56 > 0:01:00I will see how a day at the seaside became an irresistible
0:01:00 > 0:01:02subject for artists...
0:01:02 > 0:01:03I'm stopping now.
0:01:03 > 0:01:05..artists of all kinds...
0:01:05 > 0:01:08She looks like one of those pilots, you know. Argh!
0:01:08 > 0:01:11..how it transformed our coastal architecture...
0:01:11 > 0:01:12Mmm!
0:01:13 > 0:01:20..and how it created a seaside culture that is uniquely British.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23HIGH-PITCHED VOICE: That's the way to do it!
0:01:38 > 0:01:40DOG BARKS
0:01:52 > 0:01:56For this journey, I am going to sail from Gorleston-on-Sea,
0:01:56 > 0:02:01down the Suffolk and Essex coasts, and into the Thames.
0:02:01 > 0:02:07Ending at the very heart of our maritime power - Greenwich.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09BUSTLING VOICES
0:02:22 > 0:02:26This is our idea of a seaside resort.
0:02:26 > 0:02:30The wide sandy beaches, the deckchairs, windshields,
0:02:30 > 0:02:35children playing, the grand hotels, the B&Bs, the music hall.
0:02:35 > 0:02:38And it's all the creation of the Victorians,
0:02:38 > 0:02:41to make the ideal place for a family holiday.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45Not Majorca, not Florida...but Gorleston.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54Gorleston-on-Sea is a small seaside town on the southern edge
0:02:54 > 0:02:56of Great Yarmouth.
0:02:56 > 0:03:01And, like its neighbour, it was transformed in the Victorian age.
0:03:09 > 0:03:15By the mid-1800s, 80,000 visitors were heading to Great Yarmouth
0:03:15 > 0:03:17and Gorleston each summer.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23And they all came by the new creation of industrial genius -
0:03:23 > 0:03:24the railway.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32Tempting though it is to stay, I have a boat to board.
0:03:37 > 0:03:42Rocket, the gaff cutter I've owned for over 30 years,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45is anchored just off the beach, awaiting my arrival.
0:03:45 > 0:03:47- Hi, John.- Hi.
0:03:47 > 0:03:51'And on board, my crew.' Thanks very much.
0:03:51 > 0:03:52- Are you coming up?- Yeah.
0:03:55 > 0:03:57Can you move, Stanley?
0:03:57 > 0:04:03'Stanley the dog - always happy to get under my feet.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05'John Holden, Stanley's owner,
0:04:05 > 0:04:09'who has spent his life around boats and looks after Rocket.'
0:04:09 > 0:04:11OK, Cally, get the anchor up.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13Anchor up!
0:04:13 > 0:04:16'And Cally Stubbs - a local sailor
0:04:16 > 0:04:20'who brings valuable experience of these tricky waters.'
0:04:20 > 0:04:23- John, I'll hold ahead to wind... - OK.- ..and we can get the sails up.
0:04:23 > 0:04:27'Sails up, anchor up, and it's time to go.'
0:04:42 > 0:04:46Our first stop is just a few miles along the coast -
0:04:46 > 0:04:49we're heading to the port of Lowestoft.
0:04:54 > 0:04:59During the 19th century, all along this coastline, people flocked
0:04:59 > 0:05:04to the seaside, keen to escape the dirt of the cities, even for a day.
0:05:07 > 0:05:12It was a spectacle that captivated artists and writers of the time.
0:05:14 > 0:05:19In 1851, the painter William Frith went down with his canvasses
0:05:19 > 0:05:23to Ramsgate in Kent. He did a series of sketches and then a huge
0:05:23 > 0:05:27painting called Ramsgate Sands: Life At The Seaside.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34The painting was controversial.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38Frith had captured the confusion of social classes.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41The sands were open to all.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44The beaches swarmed with a variety of characters, all muddled up
0:05:44 > 0:05:49together - people who would never normally have thought of mixing.
0:05:51 > 0:05:56And the seaside was an open invitation to abandon convention.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01For years, artists had delighted in it, with all its scope
0:06:01 > 0:06:05for social embarrassment and sexual titillation.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Welcome to Lowestoft. Have you been through here?
0:06:18 > 0:06:21- Yeah, about 20 years ago. - Oh, right.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25We're safely into Lowestoft,
0:06:25 > 0:06:29but our destination is just a little further upriver.
0:06:29 > 0:06:31Where are we going? I can see a swan.
0:06:31 > 0:06:33- We're looking for a bald man waving at us.- OK.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Oulton Broad lies on the outskirts of Lowestoft,
0:06:40 > 0:06:43right on edge of the Norfolk broads.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45Lovely, thank you.
0:06:45 > 0:06:48Thanks very much, Cally. Thanks, John.
0:06:48 > 0:06:50- Thank you.- OK, David. - Brilliant manoeuvre, I thought.
0:06:50 > 0:06:53- Yeah, well, ten out of ten for that one.- Ten out of ten!
0:06:53 > 0:06:54Bye-bye, see you.
0:06:56 > 0:07:01The Victorians may have created our image of the traditional
0:07:01 > 0:07:02seaside holiday,
0:07:02 > 0:07:06but I've come to see evidence that Lowestoft was attracting
0:07:06 > 0:07:09tourists long before the reign of Queen Victoria.
0:07:18 > 0:07:23This is Lowestoft Porcelain, among the earliest porcelain
0:07:23 > 0:07:28produced in Britain, much of it dating from the 1760s onwards.
0:07:32 > 0:07:34There are some very fine examples here.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38This is a tankard, made in about 1790,
0:07:38 > 0:07:41showing the entrance to the beach at Lowestoft,
0:07:41 > 0:07:43with cottages along the front.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47On one side, the lighthouse on the hill,
0:07:47 > 0:07:49a stone lighthouse which still stands.
0:07:49 > 0:07:52And an interesting little lighthouse here
0:07:52 > 0:07:56that was moveable, it could go along the beach to show the smaller boats
0:07:56 > 0:07:58the right channel to come up.
0:07:58 > 0:08:01Big ships at that time couldn't come in, there was no proper harbour,
0:08:01 > 0:08:03they had to go up to Great Yarmouth.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06And then this, a brandy flask.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09Fairly conventional picture on one side,
0:08:09 > 0:08:11merchant ships flying the Red Ensign, but what's really
0:08:11 > 0:08:16interesting on the other side, it's proof that Lowestoft was
0:08:16 > 0:08:20already like all the resorts along this coast, being used for holidays.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22Here's a bathing machine.
0:08:22 > 0:08:27A man here with his long coat going up into the bathing machine,
0:08:27 > 0:08:30he had changed there. Well, not changed, he stripped naked.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33Because it was thought very important that you should go
0:08:33 > 0:08:35naked into the sea, not have any clothes on,
0:08:35 > 0:08:38nothing to prevent the sea salt water getting into you.
0:08:38 > 0:08:41That was the cure they wanted for their health.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45And then on this end, a funny kind of three-ribbed tent which
0:08:45 > 0:08:47went down into the water.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49You hid inside this thing so nobody could see you.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53So you couldn't swim, you just stood in the water and washed yourself.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56And this is obviously an ink pot.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59Ink in there, quill pens, four places for them.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01And this is its twin, really.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05This was to dry the ink before blotting paper.
0:09:05 > 0:09:09Would've had sand or a combination of sand and flour in it,
0:09:09 > 0:09:11and you just shook it out on the wet ink
0:09:11 > 0:09:15and blew it off and the ink would dry.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19But what's significant is, look - "A Trifle from Lowestoft."
0:09:19 > 0:09:22Each of them has written on them "A Trifle from Lowestoft."
0:09:22 > 0:09:26Hundreds and hundreds of these, "A Trifle from Lowestoft."
0:09:26 > 0:09:29Proving that this place was a holiday resort and these were,
0:09:29 > 0:09:31in effect, souvenirs.
0:09:31 > 0:09:36A reminder of a few days away from the rat-race of the 18th century.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39- Can I take this off now? - Yeah, that's fine.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44I never thought Rocket would go on the Broads, John.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49We're heading back downriver to Lowestoft,
0:09:49 > 0:09:53and the British seaside at its most traditional.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03Along the seafront, there's just time to catch a show.
0:10:07 > 0:10:11Ohhh! That was good. Let's all sing.
0:10:13 > 0:10:17Punch and Judy is a seaside favourite.
0:10:17 > 0:10:23Just the other day, it was voted one of the top icons of Englishness.
0:10:23 > 0:10:27Except Mr Punch is not English at all.
0:10:27 > 0:10:28Snap!
0:10:28 > 0:10:31He's actually Italian,
0:10:31 > 0:10:33a mischievous character who used to entertain
0:10:33 > 0:10:36the crowds in the streets and squares.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41He was imported to Britain in the 17th century,
0:10:41 > 0:10:43first performing in Covent Garden.
0:10:43 > 0:10:47It was the Victorians who moved him to the coast and turned
0:10:47 > 0:10:53a raucous street show for adults into a children's seaside treat.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55Here we go! Here we go!
0:10:55 > 0:10:56CHEERING
0:10:56 > 0:10:59Every Punch and Judy show has its own characters,
0:10:59 > 0:11:02this one has got the crocodile, we've already had the ghost,
0:11:02 > 0:11:04we've had the policeman.
0:11:04 > 0:11:07And there's a lot of slapstick and hitting and all the rest of it.
0:11:07 > 0:11:10It's not actually nearly as fierce as the original Punch and Judy.
0:11:10 > 0:11:15In the true story, Punch kills the wife, kills anybody who comes near,
0:11:15 > 0:11:18he kills the policeman, the hangman comes to hang Mr Punch
0:11:18 > 0:11:22and Mr Punch tricks the hangman into hanging himself instead of Mr Punch.
0:11:22 > 0:11:24And finally, he kills the devil.
0:11:24 > 0:11:26It looks as though he's about to be killed here.
0:11:26 > 0:11:29But what the appeal of it is is very interesting because it's not
0:11:29 > 0:11:34exactly...funny, it's quite cruel and yet children seem to love it.
0:11:34 > 0:11:36ALL: Mr Punch!
0:11:36 > 0:11:40MUSICAL TUNE: "I Do Like To Be Beside The Seaside"
0:11:43 > 0:11:47The man behind the curtain is Bryan Clarke.
0:11:47 > 0:11:51He has been a Punch and Judy man for over 60 years,
0:11:51 > 0:11:54and he's been working these beaches since he was a boy.
0:11:56 > 0:12:02But he's not just a performer. He is also a craftsman.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06- So this is where they're all made? - Yes, this is the workshop.
0:12:06 > 0:12:10'At his home near Lowestoft, Bryan carves his own Punch
0:12:10 > 0:12:12'and Judy puppets.
0:12:12 > 0:12:15'He's made and sold hundreds over the years.'
0:12:17 > 0:12:21Is there a particular look that Mr Punch has to have?
0:12:21 > 0:12:23Cos they're slightly different, all of them.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26Yeah. The hook nose, hook chin, red nose, red chin.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29This is called a sugarloaf hat.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32He's clowny-looking, he's sort of jester-looking.
0:12:32 > 0:12:34And he's Italian. And he comes from Italy.
0:12:34 > 0:12:37We get all our pictures from this book here,
0:12:37 > 0:12:40which was illustrated by that wonderful illustrator called
0:12:40 > 0:12:43George Cruikshank in about 1840.
0:12:43 > 0:12:47It was like the Bible for the Punch and Judy man.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52He saw a Punch and Judy show and he did the drawings,
0:12:52 > 0:12:56which are in the book, and from that we got this Punch.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59But over the years, Punch has become more stylized,
0:12:59 > 0:13:01he's become more sort of friendly.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04But basically, we still sort of keep him
0:13:04 > 0:13:07Italian with all his goggle-eyes.
0:13:07 > 0:13:09Some people are very frightened of clowns.
0:13:09 > 0:13:11There's something eerie about the clown.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13- But they're never frightened of Punch.- Are they not?
0:13:13 > 0:13:18I think the distinctive voice, the children love it.
0:13:18 > 0:13:19How do you do that voice?
0:13:19 > 0:13:23It's made by these things, which is called a swazzle.
0:13:23 > 0:13:26- A swazzle?- A swazzle.
0:13:26 > 0:13:30And it's a little reed like this and then we place it in our mouth,
0:13:30 > 0:13:32like that, on our tongue.
0:13:32 > 0:13:34And then it goes to the roof of your mouth.
0:13:34 > 0:13:37HIGH-PITCHED VOICE: Ha-ha-ha, that's the way to do it!
0:13:37 > 0:13:40NORMAL VOICE: That's the distinctive voice, and I can talk to you...
0:13:40 > 0:13:44When we're learning, we go... "One, two, three, four, five, six,"
0:13:44 > 0:13:47and so you get that alternate voice coming in with each number.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50NORMAL VOICE: You're very nice, Mr Punch! HIGH-PITCHED: Very good.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52NORMAL VOICE: You've got a very nice gentleman here.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55ALTERNATING VOICES: Who's he? I don't know. Hit him with snapstick.
0:13:55 > 0:13:57NORMAL VOICE: You can't hit him with that. So, you know...
0:13:57 > 0:13:59And it's just fun, isn't it?
0:13:59 > 0:14:01- My Mr Punch is a bit like that, I think.- Yeah, yeah.
0:14:01 > 0:14:04But he's certainly got a big hook nose. He looks a bit like you!
0:14:04 > 0:14:06Yeah, thank you, yes!
0:14:06 > 0:14:10Well...no, they do say that, you know, like a dog,
0:14:10 > 0:14:14people grow like their dogs. Well, you grow like the puppets, you know.
0:14:14 > 0:14:16I don't think my eyes are quite goggle-eyes like them!
0:14:16 > 0:14:17THEY LAUGH
0:14:27 > 0:14:32Another sunny morning, and we're setting off early to catch the tide.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36- Is Stanley all right? - Yeah, he's good.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38He just likes to see where he's going,
0:14:38 > 0:14:41but I don't want him going out on the side deck.
0:14:49 > 0:14:54Our next destination is the seaside village of Walberswick.
0:15:02 > 0:15:07Today, Walberswick is a tranquil and rather exclusive place.
0:15:07 > 0:15:11In the late 1800s, it was the site of an artistic revolution.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20In 1884, a young artist, Philip Wilson Steer,
0:15:20 > 0:15:22came to Walberswick to paint.
0:15:22 > 0:15:24He stayed here at Valley Farm.
0:15:26 > 0:15:28He'd been studying in Paris,
0:15:28 > 0:15:30and there he'd come under the influence of the French
0:15:30 > 0:15:34Impressionists with their intense study of the effect of light
0:15:34 > 0:15:38on landscape, and it was that that he found here in Walberswick,
0:15:38 > 0:15:40making a new stage in his career
0:15:40 > 0:15:44and the beginning of British Impressionism.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58It was in this marshy estuary, and the beach beyond,
0:15:58 > 0:16:02that Steer found his artistic inspiration.
0:16:10 > 0:16:17His canvasses are shimmering landscapes and figure studies,
0:16:17 > 0:16:22fleeting moments of youthful freedom captured in brilliant
0:16:22 > 0:16:23dots of colour.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30A fellow artist said, "I have never seen a canvas which is
0:16:30 > 0:16:36"more like sun and wind. You feel like sunshine and wind and youth
0:16:36 > 0:16:42"are glorious things, and that life is a gift to be grateful for."
0:16:56 > 0:17:01Even today, Walberswick is a Mecca for artists.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03Jason Bowyer is a professional painter,
0:17:03 > 0:17:06who has been coming here for 30 years.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11So what was it that brought Steer to Walberswick?
0:17:11 > 0:17:14I think that when he was here, he felt that the shackles were off.
0:17:14 > 0:17:18You know, and I'm sure that was the opportunity to experiment.
0:17:18 > 0:17:23You know, it's a beautiful little estuary and I think he loved
0:17:23 > 0:17:30the light that came off, obviously, the wonderful, sparkling sea.
0:17:30 > 0:17:31The movement, the wind.
0:17:38 > 0:17:43Is the light similar to the light the French Impressionists got?
0:17:43 > 0:17:45Is this Britain's French Impressionist scenery?
0:17:45 > 0:17:48Yeah, I mean, this is... You know,
0:17:48 > 0:17:52a lot of paintings of this type are painted against the light.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54There's wonderful roofs at the end of the harbour wall
0:17:54 > 0:17:56there on the left-hand side, now,
0:17:56 > 0:18:01and then the fishing boat just with that little delicacy of line.
0:18:02 > 0:18:05And then this landing stage in front of us,
0:18:05 > 0:18:09you get a sense which is a time it is now, but it transcends
0:18:09 > 0:18:14you into something which is...which I suppose is much more eternal.
0:18:17 > 0:18:20You haven't given me any brown, I can't do these browns.
0:18:20 > 0:18:21JASON LAUGHS
0:18:21 > 0:18:23I've only got blues and yellows here.
0:18:23 > 0:18:26You're getting on further than me, you've got paint on canvas.
0:18:26 > 0:18:28- Yeah, well, I'm just... - THEY LAUGH
0:18:28 > 0:18:31- I'm talking more than you. - I've done enough!
0:18:43 > 0:18:46Next day, we're back on Rocket,
0:18:46 > 0:18:49but our luck with the weather seems to be running out.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52It's not exactly plain sailing.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57It's a bit frustrating today because the way we want to go
0:18:57 > 0:19:00is dead into the wind and, of course, you can't
0:19:00 > 0:19:05sail dead into the wind, your sails just flap like our ensign is.
0:19:05 > 0:19:07What you like is the wind, well, ideally for Rocket,
0:19:07 > 0:19:11the wind on the side or behind you, then you can go roaring along.
0:19:11 > 0:19:12But she's designed for sailing.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16But still, you can't do anything about the weather, you can't do
0:19:16 > 0:19:20anything about the tide, you can't do anything about the wind.
0:19:20 > 0:19:25Which is why sailing is one of the most...frustrating
0:19:25 > 0:19:27and difficult sports.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32Fun, nevertheless. Now the sun's coming out, which is great.
0:19:32 > 0:19:33Beautiful.
0:19:40 > 0:19:44Our next stop is just a little way down the Suffolk coast.
0:19:44 > 0:19:47We're heading for Aldeburgh.
0:19:55 > 0:19:59This town, with its long beach washed by the cold North Sea,
0:19:59 > 0:20:02has attracted artists for generations.
0:20:04 > 0:20:06At the beginning of the 20th century,
0:20:06 > 0:20:09one man in particular was drawn to it
0:20:09 > 0:20:13and inspired by it to compose some of our greatest music.
0:20:17 > 0:20:21Musicians often talk about the things that stir their imagination.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24For one of our most famous composers, Benjamin Britten,
0:20:24 > 0:20:26it was the sea.
0:20:26 > 0:20:30He was brought up back up the coast there at Lowestoft
0:20:30 > 0:20:32and he remembers as a child his whole life being
0:20:32 > 0:20:37coloured by fierce storms which drove ships ashore,
0:20:37 > 0:20:40which ate away great sections of the neighbouring cliffs.
0:20:40 > 0:20:45He left all that and went to the balmy sunlight of California
0:20:45 > 0:20:48just before the Second World War, but halfway through the war,
0:20:48 > 0:20:52he suddenly realised that this place was his real home. And at some
0:20:52 > 0:20:57risk to himself, he came back across the Atlantic, daring the U-boats,
0:20:57 > 0:21:02and arrived here in Aldeburgh and settled here, because he knew
0:21:02 > 0:21:09that this place, these beaches, this sea, was his real inspiration.
0:21:13 > 0:21:18Even from a very young age, Britten had been drawn to the sound
0:21:18 > 0:21:20and movement of the sea.
0:21:24 > 0:21:29Here at the Red House, now a museum to Benjamin Britten's life,
0:21:29 > 0:21:32there are passionate devotees of his work.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34- This is Britten's piano, his Steinway.- His own piano?
0:21:34 > 0:21:37Yes, from the late 1960s.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40'Lucy Walker explains how, even as a young man,
0:21:40 > 0:21:44'he was fascinated by the changing moods of the sea.'
0:21:45 > 0:21:48SHE PLAYS A GENTLE MELODY
0:21:51 > 0:21:55This piece, Sailing, starts in a very peaceful way.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06- Just slipping along in a gentle breeze, really, isn't it?- Exactly.
0:22:08 > 0:22:11That's lovely. It's like Rocket on a calm sea.
0:22:11 > 0:22:13Then what happens?
0:22:13 > 0:22:16Then this middle section where the sea is much more turbulent.
0:22:16 > 0:22:19MELODY CONTINUES TUMULTUOUSLY
0:22:25 > 0:22:29Everybody's madly rushing around, pulling at the ropes, "Help!"
0:22:29 > 0:22:33- Yes, exactly.- And then is peace restored or do they sink?
0:22:33 > 0:22:36SHE LAUGHS Peace is restored towards the end
0:22:36 > 0:22:39where the same peaceful music comes back.
0:22:39 > 0:22:41It's just towards the end here.
0:22:41 > 0:22:43GENTLE MELODY RESUMES
0:22:50 > 0:22:52- That's lovely.- And then it...
0:22:52 > 0:22:54How old was he when he wrote that?
0:22:54 > 0:22:57He was just shy of his 21st birthday.
0:22:57 > 0:23:00Oh, really? So one of his first compositions?
0:23:00 > 0:23:01One of his early mature compositions.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04- He'd already written huge amounts as a child already.- Called Holiday?
0:23:04 > 0:23:07Well, this, he called it... The published score,
0:23:07 > 0:23:10it's gone through several changes in title. This is called Sailing.
0:23:10 > 0:23:12On the manuscript, it's called Yachting.
0:23:12 > 0:23:15- Because he swam, didn't he, a lot? - It seemed that way,
0:23:15 > 0:23:17and his diaries from this time, while he was composing this piece,
0:23:17 > 0:23:21are full of tales of him having a rough sea bathe in the North Sea.
0:23:21 > 0:23:23And it happens on regular occasions. Or long walks...
0:23:23 > 0:23:27Yes, so you can't take the sea out of Britten, really.
0:23:27 > 0:23:29I don't think you can, no.
0:23:41 > 0:23:45The next leg of our journey takes us across one of the busiest
0:23:45 > 0:23:49shipping lanes in Britain, heading to Harwich.
0:23:59 > 0:24:02So, Cally, this is your country we're coming into, Harwich?
0:24:02 > 0:24:04Yes, it's quite an old town.
0:24:04 > 0:24:07Harwich looks rather beautiful from here. I've never seen it like that.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11- The first time I ever, ever went to sea was from Harwich.- Oh, really?
0:24:11 > 0:24:14When I was about 12, I went from here to Holland...
0:24:14 > 0:24:17- Yeah, to Holland. - ..on the night ferry,
0:24:17 > 0:24:20with a bicycle, with my mum.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22I remember the excitement of coming to Harwich because it
0:24:22 > 0:24:24was dark when we got here,
0:24:24 > 0:24:27- it was ten o'clock the ferry left or something.- Mm.
0:24:27 > 0:24:30And we were on one of those old-fashioned Pullman cars where
0:24:30 > 0:24:35- you had real china on the tables and armchairs to sit in on the train.- Oh, fabulous.
0:24:35 > 0:24:38We got on board and I can't remember a thing until we arrived in Holland.
0:24:38 > 0:24:41And I'd never been abroad before, the first time I'd ever been abroad.
0:24:41 > 0:24:43- How old were you then?- 12.
0:24:43 > 0:24:46It was just after we'd smashed the Germans, you know.
0:24:52 > 0:24:56Today, Harwich is dominated by the container port of Felixstowe,
0:24:56 > 0:24:58just across the estuary.
0:25:00 > 0:25:03But at the turn of the 20th century, these waters were better known
0:25:03 > 0:25:08for the rather more leisurely pursuit of yachting.
0:25:08 > 0:25:10A hobby brought to Britain by a king.
0:25:13 > 0:25:19In 1660, the Dutch presented King Charles II with a gift -
0:25:19 > 0:25:24a 52-foot sailing boat, built solely for pleasure.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28For amateur yachtsmen, this is where it all began.
0:25:32 > 0:25:36Here at the Harwich Low Lighthouse - now their maritime museum -
0:25:36 > 0:25:40I've come to see a remarkable record of this craft.
0:25:45 > 0:25:50This is a model of the first Royal Yacht.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52She was called the Mary.
0:25:52 > 0:25:56She was presented to Charles II by the city of Amsterdam. The very
0:25:56 > 0:26:00word "yacht" comes from the Dutch "jacht", which was the word used for
0:26:00 > 0:26:04a sort of small working boat that flitted in and out among the fleet
0:26:04 > 0:26:08carrying people and provisions and doing jobs. And in the Dutch design,
0:26:08 > 0:26:12of course, with these leeboards here, like the Thames barges have,
0:26:12 > 0:26:16but with little elaborate touches to demonstrate that this is
0:26:16 > 0:26:18a private yacht, in effect.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22A unicorn gilded at the bow there.
0:26:22 > 0:26:27And little gilding around the cannons.
0:26:27 > 0:26:34And then an elaborate stern with a coat of arms of the King of England.
0:26:34 > 0:26:37So a very fine boat and he was very fond of her.
0:26:37 > 0:26:40In fact, he sort of became addicted to yachting.
0:26:40 > 0:26:46In the 25 years of his reign, he had 26 Royal Yachts built.
0:26:46 > 0:26:47And this is one of the finest.
0:26:47 > 0:26:51This is a model thought to be of a ship called the Catherine.
0:26:51 > 0:26:54And this model itself is very precious.
0:26:54 > 0:26:58It was made in the late 1600s, and this shows how
0:26:58 > 0:27:02the Royal Yacht gradually became more and more elaborate.
0:27:04 > 0:27:06The detail is really fine, and it's only possible
0:27:06 > 0:27:09because the wood they've used for the carving is fruitwood -
0:27:09 > 0:27:13apple, pearwood - which grows very, very slowly
0:27:13 > 0:27:16and so has no grain. It's like carving marble, and you can get
0:27:16 > 0:27:21this absolute exquisite detail of tiny little bits.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24The figurehead has got two figures.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29The wreaths are very elaborate around the gunports,
0:27:29 > 0:27:33and as we come back down the side here, this great
0:27:33 > 0:27:39frieze of acanthus leaves, very elaborate Baroque decoration.
0:27:39 > 0:27:44Poseidon here, trampling a monster.
0:27:44 > 0:27:46Lamps on the stern.
0:27:47 > 0:27:53And then two putti with anchors on the back here.
0:27:55 > 0:28:00If you peer over down there, there's golden steps to the cabins.
0:28:00 > 0:28:05Inside there, again, four-poster bed, paintings on the walls,
0:28:05 > 0:28:11fine furniture - entirely a sort of pleasure dome for the King.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17Charles II loved the sea. He'd go to sea at any excuse.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21He'd take his court to sea, he'd meet his admirals on the sea,
0:28:21 > 0:28:26he took up racing his "jacht", or his yacht, for pleasure.
0:28:26 > 0:28:29It was the beginning of a whole industry that started, rather
0:28:29 > 0:28:33like horse racing, started with the monarch and then trickled down.
0:28:39 > 0:28:41For the first time,
0:28:41 > 0:28:44boats became about more than fighting and fishing.
0:28:44 > 0:28:46They were built for fun.
0:28:48 > 0:28:53- John...- Yes?- ..why do you like sailing?- Why?- Yeah.
0:28:53 > 0:28:57I like that feel when you're still and then the wind picks up,
0:28:57 > 0:29:00and you just lean over and accelerate. Nothing better than that.
0:29:00 > 0:29:05I think the strange thing about it is that you take it out to sea
0:29:05 > 0:29:08and you're completely at the mercy of the winds...
0:29:08 > 0:29:10the winds and the tide.
0:29:10 > 0:29:13And it's like having a little...
0:29:13 > 0:29:19a little sort of domestic sea that you suddenly cast onto the wild sea.
0:29:25 > 0:29:30Not far up the River Orwell from Harwich is the tiny village
0:29:30 > 0:29:33and boat yard of Pin Mill.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49I think there was a seal there.
0:29:49 > 0:29:50Just there.
0:29:59 > 0:30:04In 1935 this idyllic stretch of river became the home of a man
0:30:04 > 0:30:07who probably did more than anybody else to introduce generations
0:30:07 > 0:30:12of children to the pleasures and the excitements of sailing and the sea.
0:30:12 > 0:30:17His name was Arthur Ransome and he wrote Swallows and Amazons.
0:30:23 > 0:30:27Swallows and Amazons is a children's classic.
0:30:27 > 0:30:28Golly, it's a pirate.
0:30:29 > 0:30:3212 novels recount the innocent adventures of the children
0:30:32 > 0:30:36of two families during carefree summer holidays...
0:30:36 > 0:30:38Land ahoy!
0:30:38 > 0:30:40..mostly spent sailing dinghies.
0:30:43 > 0:30:47A keen sailor himself, Ransome turned sailing into the ideal
0:30:47 > 0:30:50image of childhood fun and escape.
0:30:50 > 0:30:51Nearly there! Nearly there!
0:30:51 > 0:30:52Nearly there!
0:30:54 > 0:30:56The early novels are set in the Lake District,
0:30:56 > 0:31:02but he later moved the action to the coastal waters of Suffolk and Essex.
0:31:16 > 0:31:19Pin Mill hasn't really changed much since the 1930s.
0:31:21 > 0:31:25This little village captivated Ransome,
0:31:25 > 0:31:29and he used to come here, to the Butt & Oyster, for a pint.
0:31:34 > 0:31:37In 1937 he wrote a famous book that's based here,
0:31:37 > 0:31:40it's called We Didn't Mean To Go To Sea.
0:31:40 > 0:31:43It's actually rather a terrifying story of a group of children
0:31:43 > 0:31:47who get landed on a boat alone, the owner having gone ashore, and then
0:31:47 > 0:31:54drift out to sea and are forced to sail in a gale at night to Holland.
0:31:54 > 0:31:55So it's quite an alarming story.
0:31:55 > 0:31:59But it's very Arthur Ransome, it has his own illustrations.
0:31:59 > 0:32:02The Hard here, for instance, is the first picture
0:32:02 > 0:32:04and there are pictures of how to tie bowlines
0:32:04 > 0:32:07and how to work an anchor and all sorts of things.
0:32:07 > 0:32:12And a very obsessive attention to the detail of sailing -
0:32:12 > 0:32:15he doesn't mind boring you silly with two or three pages of,
0:32:15 > 0:32:18you know, how to hoist a sail or how to take in a reef.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21But it was this book and these books that really entranced children.
0:32:21 > 0:32:23I think also frightened them.
0:32:23 > 0:32:26I was so, when I first read them I thought I'd never go to sea
0:32:26 > 0:32:30if it was like this but that's clearly the secret of what
0:32:30 > 0:32:33he did to dramatize sailing.
0:32:51 > 0:32:54The boat that the children were in when they didn't mean to go
0:32:54 > 0:32:58to sea was based on a real boat that Arthur Ransome had bought
0:32:58 > 0:33:01and which he renamed the Nancy Blackett after the main
0:33:01 > 0:33:04character in Swallows and Amazons.
0:33:04 > 0:33:07Nancy Blackett, who had been called Ruth Blackett
0:33:07 > 0:33:11but she wanted to be the chief of the pirates, and she was told
0:33:11 > 0:33:16that pirates were ruth-less, so she changed her name to Nancy.
0:33:16 > 0:33:21And the Nancy Blackett, the real boat, has been found and restored
0:33:21 > 0:33:24and is here now at Pin Mill and I'm just on my way to see her.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34- Hi, Peter. - Hello!
0:33:34 > 0:33:39'On board is Peter Willis. The man responsible for looking after her.'
0:33:39 > 0:33:40I borrowed this dinghy to get out here
0:33:40 > 0:33:44- and it's a bit of a bathtub. - Bit of string.
0:33:44 > 0:33:47- OK.- Have you got her? - Yeah, yeah.
0:33:47 > 0:33:53Good. Is this strong? OK, great, thank you very much indeed.
0:33:53 > 0:33:55- Yep. Welcome aboard. - Thank you.
0:33:55 > 0:33:57- Come below.- Have you had to do a lot of work to her?
0:33:57 > 0:34:00This is all the original wood, is it?
0:34:00 > 0:34:01Some of it is.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05The interior was totally reshaped to bring her back as she would
0:34:05 > 0:34:06have been when Ransome owned her.
0:34:06 > 0:34:10Lots of space, isn't there? What's the picture there?
0:34:10 > 0:34:14That's himself sailing. The bald man, see.
0:34:14 > 0:34:16Galley here.
0:34:16 > 0:34:17Galley there, sink there.
0:34:17 > 0:34:18Yeah.
0:34:18 > 0:34:20She's quite heavy inside.
0:34:20 > 0:34:22I mean, wooden drawers and all that...
0:34:22 > 0:34:25- Solid. Solid construction, yeah. - Yes, nice. Very nice.
0:34:28 > 0:34:33What do you think Ransome saw in this boat and in the sea?
0:34:33 > 0:34:37For this boat he just felt totally at home in her.
0:34:37 > 0:34:41She's was a good sea boat, she's all he ever wanted.
0:34:41 > 0:34:46He went onto bigger boats and wider boats and all sorts of boats
0:34:46 > 0:34:49but this was the best boat he ever owned, he said.
0:34:49 > 0:34:53Very nice to see a boat that carries so many memories!
0:34:53 > 0:34:54I mean, I remember reading
0:34:54 > 0:34:56We Didn't Want to Go to Sea as a child.
0:34:58 > 0:35:00Scared the living daylights out of me.
0:35:00 > 0:35:02- Did you read it as a child? - Oh, yes.
0:35:02 > 0:35:05- Have you always been a Ransome fan? - Yes, very much.- Why so?
0:35:07 > 0:35:10I think for the reason practically everybody is.
0:35:10 > 0:35:14You get totally sucked into the world of these children,
0:35:14 > 0:35:19of sailing. It turned me onto sailing totally, Ransome.
0:35:20 > 0:35:24That's why I have never lost the fondness for the books.
0:35:47 > 0:35:51'With plenty of wind to fill our sails, and the tide running
0:35:51 > 0:35:56'in our favour, we're leaving Suffolk behind us and crossing into Essex.'
0:36:01 > 0:36:03What speed are we doing as a matter of curiosity?
0:36:03 > 0:36:07- Seven knots. - Seven knots. Maximum speed!
0:36:11 > 0:36:13It's just a few hours to our next destination,
0:36:13 > 0:36:16the little town of Frinton-on-Sea.
0:36:27 > 0:36:29'Frinton is a small,
0:36:29 > 0:36:33'rather old-fashioned town on the Essex coast.'
0:36:40 > 0:36:45Between the wars, it was a byword for genteel seaside holidays.
0:36:50 > 0:36:54'But I'm here to see a more recent addition to Frinton's seafront.
0:36:55 > 0:36:59'It's a surprise, already attracting a crowd of onlookers.
0:37:01 > 0:37:04'This is the original art of the seaside,
0:37:04 > 0:37:06'taken to its extreme.
0:37:09 > 0:37:11'Nicola Wood is a sand sculptor
0:37:11 > 0:37:16'and she and her team have been hard at work since dawn.'
0:37:16 > 0:37:18Just caught you before you finished.
0:37:18 > 0:37:19Yes.
0:37:19 > 0:37:24My sand castles never looked like this. It's so small!
0:37:24 > 0:37:27How do you get this smoothness, first of all?
0:37:27 > 0:37:30Well, the sand itself is very dense and very compact.
0:37:30 > 0:37:34So you can apply quite a lot of pressure onto it to make
0:37:34 > 0:37:35a smooth surface.
0:37:35 > 0:37:39You can...kind of massage the grains into position, I suppose.
0:37:39 > 0:37:41Yes.
0:37:41 > 0:37:44And just a variety of different tools and smoothing devices.
0:37:44 > 0:37:48This is tips for children on the beach....if you want to make
0:37:48 > 0:37:49the perfect sand castle.
0:37:49 > 0:37:51If you want to make the perfect sand castle
0:37:51 > 0:37:53the trick is in the preparation.
0:37:53 > 0:37:54You need a lot of water,
0:37:54 > 0:37:58and you need to prepare your pile of sand in layers.
0:37:58 > 0:38:00Is this... What sand is this?
0:38:00 > 0:38:02This is Frinton beach sand, there's quite
0:38:02 > 0:38:05a lot of stones in it, so it makes it quite difficult for carving with.
0:38:05 > 0:38:08But it is beautiful beach sand. I mean, it's really, really old.
0:38:08 > 0:38:11But tell me about how you make the look of it right.
0:38:11 > 0:38:14Because she is the most wonderful shape.
0:38:14 > 0:38:16That's one way of putting it.
0:38:16 > 0:38:18Yeah, well, she is! But where did you begin?
0:38:18 > 0:38:21How do you get the height? How do you get all the angles right?
0:38:21 > 0:38:24Is there something inside there, a framework, or just sand?
0:38:24 > 0:38:26There's nothing inside, a lot of people think that there is.
0:38:26 > 0:38:30But this was, when we arrived, just a big blob of sand.
0:38:30 > 0:38:33And this is what we did for the head, make a big wooden box,
0:38:33 > 0:38:36compressed it down, put loads and loads of water in it,
0:38:36 > 0:38:39remove the wood, and you've got a solid block, almost like sandstone.
0:38:39 > 0:38:41And we made a kind of wedding cake
0:38:41 > 0:38:44if you can imagine different levels of steps going up.
0:38:44 > 0:38:47And on each step we would pour water and make a kind of moat.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57Did you start with an idea in your mind of exactly what
0:38:57 > 0:38:59this would be like?
0:38:59 > 0:39:01Or have you done it as it's gone along? Developed it...
0:39:01 > 0:39:04You just kind of adapt and evolve it as you carve.
0:39:04 > 0:39:06And I've got lots of source material, I've got
0:39:06 > 0:39:10pictures of old-fashioned postcards here that I've been referring to.
0:39:10 > 0:39:11Oh, yes.
0:39:11 > 0:39:13And the idea was originally to do a fun, cartoon,
0:39:13 > 0:39:17seaside old-fashioned postcard type thing.
0:39:17 > 0:39:18But because the sand is not
0:39:18 > 0:39:22so strong, it left little room for elaborate shapes.
0:39:22 > 0:39:24- But she is elaborate! - She is really elaborate!
0:39:24 > 0:39:28She's got sunglasses. Wacky hair. A sour-looking mouth, slightly.
0:39:28 > 0:39:32She looks like one of those pilot things, you know, ahh!
0:39:32 > 0:39:34Ice cream cone, melting...
0:39:34 > 0:39:35Yes.
0:39:35 > 0:39:39..huge thunder thighs. And a beach ball!
0:39:39 > 0:39:41- Yes!- Got everything you want!
0:39:41 > 0:39:43- More than you want, I think. - More than you want!
0:39:43 > 0:39:45And a swimming costume with polka dots on it.
0:39:45 > 0:39:47What happens at the end?
0:39:47 > 0:39:50I mean, traditionally with a sand castle you kick it down,
0:39:50 > 0:39:52don't you, before the tide comes in.
0:39:52 > 0:39:55Yeah, you do. I mean, they are... it is temporary art.
0:39:55 > 0:39:58They are transient. So they don't last for ever
0:39:58 > 0:40:01and if they're not taken away by the elements then they're often
0:40:01 > 0:40:03bulldozed down and the sand is recycled for another
0:40:03 > 0:40:06sculpture or put back on the beach like this one will be.
0:40:06 > 0:40:09I've never seen anything like this.
0:40:09 > 0:40:11I'm absolutely gobsmacked by it, I think it's wonderful.
0:40:27 > 0:40:31Our next stop is a town that went to extraordinary lengths to
0:40:31 > 0:40:32attract visitors.
0:40:33 > 0:40:36We're heading to Southend-on-Sea.
0:40:36 > 0:40:40Home to the boldest pier on the British coast.
0:40:48 > 0:40:52John, we're really at the mouth of the Thames, aren't we here?
0:40:52 > 0:40:54It feels like it now to me, yes.
0:40:54 > 0:40:56The longest pier in the world.
0:40:57 > 0:40:58Has it always been the same length?
0:40:58 > 0:41:00Or did they make it gradually longer?
0:41:00 > 0:41:01No, it's grown. It's grown.
0:41:01 > 0:41:04The Victorians had a wooden pier at the very end and then it grew
0:41:04 > 0:41:05and grew and grew.
0:41:05 > 0:41:09But it's always in trouble because boats collide with it,
0:41:09 > 0:41:10don't they, in the past?
0:41:10 > 0:41:13They have collided with it, over the past few years boats have.
0:41:13 > 0:41:15Gone through the middle of it.
0:41:15 > 0:41:18It's not a very easy entry. It's a bit rough.
0:41:25 > 0:41:27The pier at Southend stretches almost
0:41:27 > 0:41:30a mile and a half into the Thames estuary.
0:41:31 > 0:41:35The original iron structure was completed in 1889
0:41:35 > 0:41:38but it's been extended twice in the years
0:41:38 > 0:41:41since to accommodate growing numbers of visitors.
0:41:42 > 0:41:46It stands like a barometer of Southend's changing fortunes.
0:41:50 > 0:41:54When this pier was threatened with demolition in the late '70s,
0:41:54 > 0:41:57the poet laureate Sir John Betjeman, along with others, came to the rescue,
0:41:57 > 0:42:01he said, "I love this place, to lose it would be like losing a limb.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04"The pier is Southend and Southend is the pier."
0:42:04 > 0:42:05And he was dead right,
0:42:05 > 0:42:08it was the Victorians who had discovered the pleasures of
0:42:08 > 0:42:13the pier. The illusion of being out at sea, but in perfect safety and no
0:42:13 > 0:42:17risk of sea-sickness, or as another writer, William Thackeray, put it,
0:42:17 > 0:42:23"To pace these vast decks without the need of a steward with a basin."
0:42:28 > 0:42:32The Victorians loved walking up and down seaside pleasure piers
0:42:32 > 0:42:36and they were soon being built at resort towns all around Britain.
0:42:39 > 0:42:44In 1883 the American artist, James McNeill Whistler, came here,
0:42:44 > 0:42:45to Southend.
0:42:47 > 0:42:49He captured the scene on a busy Bank Holiday,
0:42:49 > 0:42:53with Victorian day-trippers promenading along the seafront.
0:43:08 > 0:43:11This is the face of today's seaside - loud music,
0:43:11 > 0:43:14rides that are more and more terrifying.
0:43:14 > 0:43:17The Victorians would have absolutely loved it.
0:43:17 > 0:43:20I'm on one of the gentlest of the rides,
0:43:20 > 0:43:24but this has all taken the place of promenading on the pier,
0:43:24 > 0:43:29of Punch and Judy, of tea dances and music hall shows.
0:43:29 > 0:43:33This is a trend that actually began here, at Southend.
0:43:44 > 0:43:48It all started in a building just half a mile along the seafront.
0:43:56 > 0:44:02This ornate interior was once the lavish entrance hall to the Kursaal,
0:44:02 > 0:44:07which claims to be the first purpose-built theme park in the world.
0:44:09 > 0:44:14Beyond these walls lay 20 acres of funfair.
0:44:16 > 0:44:21It was this great hall, a cinema, a ballroom which was used
0:44:21 > 0:44:24for all kinds of exhibitions and sports as well as for dancing and
0:44:24 > 0:44:29eating, an arcade there with side shows all the way down, disguised as
0:44:29 > 0:44:33a Cairo street. There was everything you could think of, from roller coasters,
0:44:33 > 0:44:37there was a trotting track, and then there were weirder ones. In the
0:44:37 > 0:44:42middle of the First World War there was a reconstruction of an Ypres
0:44:42 > 0:44:44trench and there was a side show
0:44:44 > 0:44:48where you could knock the Kaiser's head off, which was very popular,
0:44:48 > 0:44:50the man who had that made a fortune.
0:45:01 > 0:45:03It's difficult now to imagine all that,
0:45:03 > 0:45:07but this Kursaal in the years between the wars was
0:45:07 > 0:45:10everything that Southend had to offer, all the excitements,
0:45:10 > 0:45:13all the attractions, constant novelties,
0:45:13 > 0:45:17come and see Al Capone's car, come and see the fattest man,
0:45:17 > 0:45:19come and see the thinnest man,
0:45:19 > 0:45:24watch the first lady lion tamer - just what you want on a day out.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37Yeah, that's a good view of the pier, isn't it?
0:45:37 > 0:45:39See how long it is from there.
0:45:39 > 0:45:43As we leave Southend's magnificent pier behind,
0:45:43 > 0:45:45the light is starting to fade.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49Fortunately, our next stop is nearby.
0:45:51 > 0:45:55Just a few miles to the west lies a strip of land
0:45:55 > 0:45:59separated from the coast of Essex by a series of creeks.
0:46:01 > 0:46:02Canvey Island.
0:46:09 > 0:46:12You might not think it at first glance,
0:46:12 > 0:46:15but this was once Britain's top holiday destination.
0:46:19 > 0:46:22Extraordinarily, in the 40 years leading up to 1950,
0:46:22 > 0:46:27Canvey Island was the fastest growing seaside resort in Britain.
0:46:27 > 0:46:30The Victorians came to the seaside for the beach
0:46:30 > 0:46:33and swimming in the sea, but in the '30s what people wanted was
0:46:33 > 0:46:39fresh air and sunshine, and Canvey Island provided both.
0:46:39 > 0:46:43And it had two advantages - it was close to London, and it was cheap.
0:46:48 > 0:46:51The 1930s were really Canvey Island's Golden Age.
0:46:59 > 0:47:03You can still see the evidence today. Standing on the beach
0:47:03 > 0:47:07overlooking the Thames estuary is the Labworth Cafe.
0:47:13 > 0:47:18The Labworth was built in 1932, one of the first modern buildings
0:47:18 > 0:47:20to be put up just after the First World War.
0:47:20 > 0:47:23It's in what is called the Art Deco style, decorative style,
0:47:23 > 0:47:26and it was built by famous engineer Ove Arup,
0:47:26 > 0:47:29who went on the build the Sydney Opera House,
0:47:29 > 0:47:32rather grander than this. But this design is said to be
0:47:32 > 0:47:35based on the bridge of the Queen Mary,
0:47:35 > 0:47:39the bridge above, and then cocktail lounge below to sip
0:47:39 > 0:47:41your drink while the sea rolled past.
0:47:44 > 0:47:49In the 1930s, Art Deco was all the rage at the seaside.
0:47:50 > 0:47:54It was the architecture of sunshine and light.
0:47:56 > 0:48:00Seafronts and coastal towns were redeveloped with the sun
0:48:00 > 0:48:02and leisure in mind.
0:48:05 > 0:48:08The Labworth cafe tells the story of the British seaside,
0:48:08 > 0:48:11hugely popular in the 1930s,
0:48:11 > 0:48:15falling into disrepair in the 1960s and now being revived once again
0:48:15 > 0:48:19as people come back to this kind of place, the cafe downstairs,
0:48:19 > 0:48:20a restaurant upstairs
0:48:20 > 0:48:23and sitting here reminds me of being on the Queen Mary,
0:48:23 > 0:48:25and it's cocktail time.
0:48:25 > 0:48:28Pina Colada, top of the list, excellent!
0:48:33 > 0:48:35Here's to the British seaside.
0:48:43 > 0:48:48The final leg of our journey brings us into the Thames proper.
0:48:48 > 0:48:52The royal river on which London's fortunes were built.
0:48:52 > 0:48:54We're heading for Greenwich.
0:48:59 > 0:49:03'But the weather, it seems, has turned against us.
0:49:03 > 0:49:06'This feels rather more like the great British summer we know
0:49:06 > 0:49:09'and love...or love to complain about.'
0:49:09 > 0:49:13- Looking for Thames Haven. That's the next place to look for.- Yeah.
0:49:13 > 0:49:15I was hoping we'd be able to sail up here
0:49:15 > 0:49:18but I don't think it looks very likely, does it?
0:49:18 > 0:49:22My dream was to sail up the Thames, past Greenwich,
0:49:22 > 0:49:25under Tower Bridge, all under sail.
0:49:25 > 0:49:31But instead we've got drizzle and grey skies. No sign of wind at all.
0:49:31 > 0:49:33It may come.
0:49:37 > 0:49:39'Even for experienced sailors,
0:49:39 > 0:49:42'the Thames can be a daunting waterway to navigate.'
0:49:42 > 0:49:44Can't really see very much, really.
0:49:44 > 0:49:48'It has strong tides, narrow channels and sandbanks.
0:49:49 > 0:49:52'And it is one of the busiest shipping lanes in Britain -
0:49:52 > 0:49:56'handling some 45 million tonnes of cargo every year.'
0:49:56 > 0:49:58Okay...and up.
0:50:00 > 0:50:04Here, a little local knowledge goes a very long way.
0:50:04 > 0:50:06- How does that look? - All right, I think.
0:50:07 > 0:50:11'We're going to take on board a Thames Pilot to guide us
0:50:11 > 0:50:13'safely upriver.'
0:50:13 > 0:50:16Good morning! Where do you want to get down?
0:50:16 > 0:50:19- On the shrouds? - Yeah, I'll go here...yes.
0:50:19 > 0:50:23'John Stafford has been a river pilot for 18 years.
0:50:24 > 0:50:29'There have been men like him working these waters for generations.'
0:50:29 > 0:50:32- Good morning! - Good morning! And welcome.
0:50:32 > 0:50:35- Thank you very much. - And thank you very much for coming.
0:50:35 > 0:50:39Since the time of Henry VIII, local sailors have been boarding
0:50:39 > 0:50:43ships on the river to deliver them safely to their destination.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45Pilots deal with traffic control.
0:50:46 > 0:50:52If you only had the one ship on the river, life would be a dawdle.
0:50:52 > 0:50:54But you don't, you have multiple ships.
0:50:54 > 0:50:57You'll hear it just as we go up and I'm listening to the port
0:50:57 > 0:51:00control radio...you'll hear lots of ships calling.
0:51:00 > 0:51:03And they're all doing something, there are ships going onto berths,
0:51:03 > 0:51:07off berths and you don't want to be in the same place at the same time.
0:51:07 > 0:51:10So you're, as a pilot, you're adjusting the speed to make sure
0:51:10 > 0:51:13that everything matches and it's choreography, really.
0:51:13 > 0:51:15- Marine choreography of the Thames. - Really, so you're,
0:51:15 > 0:51:19- the ballet is being organized... - The dance orchestrator!
0:51:19 > 0:51:22..a dance orchestrator.
0:51:31 > 0:51:36On this river, it's hard to escape the weight of history.
0:51:36 > 0:51:39For centuries, sailors have navigated these waters.
0:51:41 > 0:51:44Generations united by a passion for the sea,
0:51:44 > 0:51:47and the simple power of wind and sail.
0:51:59 > 0:52:01There's Canary Wharf.
0:52:01 > 0:52:03Yeah, this is Blackwell Point.
0:52:03 > 0:52:06Yeah, and this is just the beginning of the city.
0:52:06 > 0:52:08Now, how far have we got to go until we get to Greenwich?
0:52:08 > 0:52:11- Just around this corner, yes? - Just around the corner.
0:52:17 > 0:52:18Greenwich.
0:52:20 > 0:52:22For five centuries this place has been at the heart
0:52:22 > 0:52:25of our relationship with the sea.
0:52:25 > 0:52:29A home to maritime science, history and art.
0:52:32 > 0:52:34Can you slow down?
0:52:34 > 0:52:36Watch the bowsprit!
0:52:36 > 0:52:40'The river entrance to Greenwich is a flight of slippery steps,
0:52:40 > 0:52:43'where grandees used to disembark.'
0:52:43 > 0:52:44That was dodgy!
0:52:50 > 0:52:54'Today, Greenwich is a monument to some of our greatest sailors
0:52:54 > 0:52:56'and their mastery of the seas.'
0:53:07 > 0:53:11Of all the places we've visited in our journey around Britain's
0:53:11 > 0:53:14shores, Greenwich is the most powerful
0:53:14 > 0:53:16symbol of our relationship with the sea.
0:53:17 > 0:53:22It was here that Henry VIII was born, the father of the Royal Navy.
0:53:22 > 0:53:25It was here that Queen Elizabeth was born.
0:53:25 > 0:53:28It was here that she welcomed Francis Drake
0:53:28 > 0:53:31back from his circumnavigation of the world in the Golden Hind.
0:53:31 > 0:53:34And it was here that Lord Nelson lay in state
0:53:34 > 0:53:36after his death at the Battle of Trafalgar.
0:53:36 > 0:53:41This great palace with Christopher Wren's buildings there,
0:53:41 > 0:53:44the old hospital, and then the Royal Naval College.
0:53:44 > 0:53:48But the building I'm going to see is the oldest building on this site,
0:53:48 > 0:53:52and the most delicate one - the Queen's House.
0:54:03 > 0:54:10The Queen's House was built in 1616 as a royal waterside retreat,
0:54:10 > 0:54:11close to the river.
0:54:17 > 0:54:21'Now it's home to the National Maritime Museum -
0:54:21 > 0:54:24'and our greatest collection of maritime art.
0:54:41 > 0:54:45'It's been a fascinating journey around Britain.
0:54:45 > 0:54:50'But for me, one tiny object captures the spirit of the seafaring
0:54:50 > 0:54:52'past we've been looking at.
0:54:52 > 0:54:56'It's a treasure from Britain's first great era of sea travel,
0:54:56 > 0:54:57'the Elizabethan age.'
0:55:00 > 0:55:02This is the most extraordinary object,
0:55:02 > 0:55:09it looks like a large pocket watch. It's gilded brass.
0:55:09 > 0:55:16It was made in 1569, it's said to have been made for Francis Drake
0:55:16 > 0:55:21to take to the West Indies in 1570, it's called 'Cole's Compendium.'
0:55:21 > 0:55:26It's actually a present for a sailor who has everything,
0:55:26 > 0:55:29because this really does have everything you could need.
0:55:29 > 0:55:33It's very delicate and I have to open it up rather carefully.
0:55:33 > 0:55:39It has a series of dials on the inside, the first one is to
0:55:39 > 0:55:45tell you the phases of the moon, and then the next dial to it here
0:55:45 > 0:55:51is a perpetual calendar, giving you dates year-on-year-on-year,
0:55:51 > 0:55:54then we come to the key measurement for sailors, the measurement
0:55:54 > 0:56:01of latitude, and this one, I have to put spectacles on to see this.
0:56:03 > 0:56:07This one gives various places and the latitudes that they're at,
0:56:07 > 0:56:14Antwerp, Venice, Lisbon, Naples and so on.
0:56:14 > 0:56:17Now this is the most complex
0:56:17 > 0:56:19and difficult bit, if I can do it like this.
0:56:21 > 0:56:24It folds up and that way.
0:56:24 > 0:56:30Don't ask me how but it helps you tell the latitude that you're at.
0:56:30 > 0:56:35And it reveals beneath it a little tiny compass in the centre there.
0:56:35 > 0:56:37How you do it in a rough sea, I can't imagine.
0:56:37 > 0:56:42And then we fold the whole thing up and open the other side, the back.
0:56:45 > 0:56:50Rather mysterious dial of seaports and the inscription says
0:56:50 > 0:56:57"The names of principle portes and havens of Europe."
0:56:57 > 0:57:01And finally in the last leaf this very beautiful device,
0:57:01 > 0:57:04almost incomprehensible to a layman's eyes,
0:57:04 > 0:57:07which allows you to work out the tides.
0:57:07 > 0:57:09All important, of course, when you're sailing.
0:57:09 > 0:57:13What time the tides are high and low and therefore
0:57:13 > 0:57:14also which way they're flowing.
0:57:17 > 0:57:19And there it is, Cole's Compendium.
0:57:21 > 0:57:23In a way this beautiful,
0:57:23 > 0:57:29complex object perfectly illustrates our island's story. How we,
0:57:29 > 0:57:33who the Romans thought of as the furthest people in the world,
0:57:33 > 0:57:39living on the island set in an unknown sea, became, by conquering
0:57:39 > 0:57:44that sea, among the richest and most powerful nations on Earth.
0:57:56 > 0:58:01If we successfully navigate Tower Bridge it'll be my dream come
0:58:01 > 0:58:02- true, Cally. - How exciting!
0:58:02 > 0:58:06For me, it's the perfect end to a journey to all the four corners
0:58:06 > 0:58:12of Britain, is to end up in the heart of London,
0:58:12 > 0:58:13going under Tower Bridge.
0:59:11 > 0:59:13Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd