0:00:02 > 0:00:05Argyll on the west coast of Scotland.
0:00:05 > 0:00:10This ancient landscape of mountains, islands and long sea lochs
0:00:10 > 0:00:13was once the cradle of the Scottish nation.
0:00:13 > 0:00:16It's also a place that's inspired visitors and tourists
0:00:16 > 0:00:18for the last 200 years,
0:00:18 > 0:00:21drawn here by the incomparable scenery
0:00:21 > 0:00:26and a haunting atmosphere shaped by 2,000 years of myth and legend.
0:00:26 > 0:00:31I've always said that if you want to experience the real Scotland,
0:00:31 > 0:00:33the true spiritual heart of the country,
0:00:33 > 0:00:36then you should come here to Argyll.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38And even on a grey, windy day like today,
0:00:38 > 0:00:41this place has a magic all of its own.
0:00:41 > 0:00:46But then I would say that, wouldn't I? This is where I grew up.
0:00:47 > 0:00:50As a child, Scotland remained a mystery to me
0:00:50 > 0:00:52until my father rediscovered
0:00:52 > 0:00:56an old copy of Black's Picturesque Guide To Scotland.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00It had been in my family for generations
0:01:00 > 0:01:01and, in Victorian times,
0:01:01 > 0:01:04was the most influential tourist guide book of all.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10'Inspired by the route suggested by Black's, my father took us
0:01:10 > 0:01:11'all over the country,
0:01:11 > 0:01:15'searching for Scotland's special places.
0:01:15 > 0:01:17'Now, four decades on,
0:01:17 > 0:01:20'I'm letting the pages of Black's guide me again,
0:01:20 > 0:01:23'as I follow in the footsteps of the early tourists.
0:01:23 > 0:01:25'On my grand tour,
0:01:25 > 0:01:28'I'll also discover the works of some early travel writers
0:01:28 > 0:01:31'who came in search of the true spirit of Scotland.'
0:01:44 > 0:01:48My grand tour begins just north of the Firth of Clyde in Cowal
0:01:48 > 0:01:52and follows a network of now-forgotten steamer routes
0:01:52 > 0:01:56from loch to loch, finally reaching the fabled island of Islay -
0:01:56 > 0:02:00the whisky capital of the west.
0:02:01 > 0:02:03This is Loch Eck.
0:02:04 > 0:02:06According to Black's guide,
0:02:06 > 0:02:09"Loch Eck is a very pleasing miniature lake
0:02:09 > 0:02:13"embosomed in green mountains of graceful and rounded outline.
0:02:13 > 0:02:16"Soft it seems to lie and tenderly protected
0:02:16 > 0:02:20"amongst the green hills of Cowal."
0:02:20 > 0:02:22In the spirit of adventure,
0:02:22 > 0:02:25I'm "paddling my own canoe", as they say.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29In this case, a beautiful replica of the original Rob Roy canoe
0:02:29 > 0:02:32built in the 1890s.
0:02:34 > 0:02:37'Although Black's guide book doesn't have anything to say
0:02:37 > 0:02:39'about canoeing as a pastime,
0:02:39 > 0:02:42'increasing numbers of Victorian gentlemen
0:02:42 > 0:02:47'were inspired by the daring adventures of a canoeing Scot.'
0:02:47 > 0:02:52John MacGregor, inventor of the Rob Roy leisure canoe.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56As a young man, John MacGregor had travelled in the wilds of Canada
0:02:56 > 0:03:00and was inspired by the Native American canoes he saw there.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03When he got back to Scotland, he decided to build his own
0:03:03 > 0:03:09and named it Rob Roy in honour of his illustrious MacGregor ancestors.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15He wrote about his travels in a ripping yarn called
0:03:15 > 0:03:17A Thousand Miles In The Rob Roy Canoe.
0:03:18 > 0:03:23"After taking on supplies, I shoved off into the tide,
0:03:23 > 0:03:27"lit a cigar and felt I had really started.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30"But then began a strange feeling of freedom and novelty.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34"I was in a canoe which could be paddled or sailed
0:03:34 > 0:03:37"to Rome or Hong Kong if I liked."
0:03:37 > 0:03:40Ah, the freedom of the open water!
0:03:40 > 0:03:43'The illustrious John MacGregor'
0:03:43 > 0:03:46had much to say on the subject of canoeing,
0:03:46 > 0:03:50including tips on the best attire for the budding paddler.
0:03:50 > 0:03:54For the gentleman, he recommends a flannel Norfolk jacket,
0:03:54 > 0:03:56flannel shirt and a straw hat,
0:03:56 > 0:04:00which he says is the best of all for boating.
0:04:01 > 0:04:05'With my own hat firmly clamped over my ears,
0:04:05 > 0:04:08'there can be no better way of exploring these secluded waterways
0:04:08 > 0:04:13'than by paddling one of Mr MacGregor's famous canoes.'
0:04:13 > 0:04:16I grew up close to the shores of Loch Eck,
0:04:16 > 0:04:18so I'm naturally a wee bit biased,
0:04:18 > 0:04:22but for me this has to be one of the prettiest stretches of water
0:04:22 > 0:04:24to be found anywhere in Scotland.
0:04:28 > 0:04:30'When I was a boy, I didn't realise the role
0:04:30 > 0:04:33'that Loch Eck once played in the development of Scottish tourism.'
0:04:33 > 0:04:39In 1827, the genius and pioneering marine engineer David Napier
0:04:39 > 0:04:43built one of the world's first iron ships
0:04:43 > 0:04:46to carry tourists on the sheltered waters of Loch Eck.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50Napier was a real innovator.
0:04:50 > 0:04:54He wanted to open up a new route from the Clyde to the Hebrides
0:04:54 > 0:04:56and saw Loch Eck as a short cut.
0:04:57 > 0:05:02Napier built hotels, piers, boats and even a steam carriage
0:05:02 > 0:05:04to carry his passengers on overland sections
0:05:04 > 0:05:07of what became known as the famous Loch Eck route.
0:05:10 > 0:05:12'Changed days.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16'All that's left of Napier's dream are a few rotting wooden piers.'
0:05:18 > 0:05:20The Loch Eck route could never compete
0:05:20 > 0:05:21with the bulk of tourist traffic
0:05:21 > 0:05:25using steamers on the Clyde as a way out to the west
0:05:25 > 0:05:26and, sadly, Napier's boats
0:05:26 > 0:05:29were hauled ashore and abandoned to the elements
0:05:29 > 0:05:33and there hasn't been a steamer on Loch Eck for over 70 years.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39For the next leg of my journey,
0:05:39 > 0:05:42I follow Napier's Loch Eck route northwards,
0:05:42 > 0:05:44finally emerging at the sea
0:05:44 > 0:05:47and into lovely Loch Fyne.
0:05:47 > 0:05:50Although the adventurous Scot John MacGregor
0:05:50 > 0:05:53was the first to bring canoeing, or should I say kayaking,
0:05:53 > 0:05:55to public attention,
0:05:55 > 0:05:58the sport remained in the doldrums for decades.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02But then, in 1936, a couple of idealistic Scotsmen
0:06:02 > 0:06:06rediscovered the delights of paddling your own canoe
0:06:06 > 0:06:09for themselves when they embarked on a daring trip
0:06:09 > 0:06:13to discover the true spirit of Scotland.
0:06:14 > 0:06:17Alastair Dunnett and his friend James Adam,
0:06:17 > 0:06:19otherwise known as Seumas,
0:06:19 > 0:06:21were barely out of their teens
0:06:21 > 0:06:23when they embarked on their great expedition
0:06:23 > 0:06:27and became known to the world as the Canoe Boys.
0:06:28 > 0:06:30Clad in kilts and as keen as mustard,
0:06:30 > 0:06:33Alastair and Seumas set off on their eleven-week adventure
0:06:33 > 0:06:37kayaking from the Clyde to the Isle of Skye.
0:06:40 > 0:06:43Theirs was a boys' own adventure par excellence
0:06:43 > 0:06:48'and, to find out more, I've joined kayaking expert Duncan Winning
0:06:48 > 0:06:51'on a short section of the Canoe Boys' original route,
0:06:51 > 0:06:53'coming ashore in a bay on Loch Fyne.'
0:06:54 > 0:06:58Duncan, the Canoe Boys have become legendary.
0:06:58 > 0:07:00Who were they and what were they trying to do?
0:07:00 > 0:07:03Well, they were a couple of young journalists
0:07:03 > 0:07:05and they were trying to, er...
0:07:05 > 0:07:06do two things I think, mainly.
0:07:06 > 0:07:11One was trying to run a magazine for boys called The Claymore,
0:07:11 > 0:07:15to encourage the youth of Scotland in the great outdoors
0:07:15 > 0:07:19and the things that were available for them to do on their doorstep.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22And one of the, er...the other things they were trying to do
0:07:22 > 0:07:23through their trip
0:07:23 > 0:07:26was they were very keen in promoting
0:07:26 > 0:07:30a revival in the economic activity
0:07:30 > 0:07:33in the islands and in the Highlands.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38The Canoe Boys weren't interested in the Scotland of the guide books.
0:07:38 > 0:07:42They were concerned with the plight of the modern Highlander,
0:07:42 > 0:07:44not the romantic image.
0:07:44 > 0:07:47But the reading public cared less for their politics
0:07:47 > 0:07:50than the novelty of their great adventure.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53The excitement of two canoeing novices
0:07:53 > 0:07:58braving the elements in boats held together by screws and wire.
0:07:58 > 0:08:02I think it was something like September they set off, from memory,
0:08:02 > 0:08:04and as they progressed up the west coast,
0:08:04 > 0:08:07of course the weather deteriorated and deteriorated,
0:08:07 > 0:08:12and they ended up finishing their epic journey at Kyle of Lochalsh.
0:08:12 > 0:08:15It seems to me that the Canoe Boys were pretty brave in what they did.
0:08:15 > 0:08:17Er, they were indeed.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20Compared to modern canoeists, they roughed it.
0:08:20 > 0:08:23They put up with a lot of harsh conditions.
0:08:23 > 0:08:27They threw themselves in at the deep end. So, yes, it's...
0:08:27 > 0:08:28- Almost literally there.- Yes!
0:08:28 > 0:08:32Let's put it this way, I don't think I'd have done what they did.
0:08:32 > 0:08:33Don't think I would have, either!
0:08:36 > 0:08:38Leaving Duncan to paddle home,
0:08:38 > 0:08:42I make my watery way across Loch Fyne to Inveraray,
0:08:42 > 0:08:45the Highland capital of Argyll.
0:08:47 > 0:08:49According to Black's,
0:08:49 > 0:08:52"Its situation is exceedingly beautiful.
0:08:52 > 0:08:54"Here nature is so vast and grand
0:08:54 > 0:08:58"that works of art diminish in her awful presence."
0:09:00 > 0:09:04Black's was not alone in admiring Inveraray.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08The eminent philosopher Edmund Burke considered the landscape here
0:09:08 > 0:09:11to represent the quintessence of sublime beauty.
0:09:11 > 0:09:14'He thought the scenery was stunning.'
0:09:15 > 0:09:17So too did the artist Turner,
0:09:17 > 0:09:20who captured the magic of the scene in watercolours.
0:09:20 > 0:09:25And in 1796, the early travel writer, Sarah Murray,
0:09:25 > 0:09:30considered Inveraray to be, "The noblest place in Scotland."
0:09:30 > 0:09:33Although she was dismayed by the miserable weather!
0:09:33 > 0:09:37Inveraray Castle, home to the Campbell Dukes of Argyll,
0:09:37 > 0:09:40has been attracting tourists for almost 200 years.
0:09:40 > 0:09:44In fact, it's Black's number one recommendation -
0:09:44 > 0:09:47although I have to say, the tone adopted by my old guide
0:09:47 > 0:09:49is a bit obsequious.
0:09:49 > 0:09:53In fact, a bit grovelling. For example, it says here,
0:09:53 > 0:09:55"The castle is reached through the grounds which,
0:09:55 > 0:09:59"by the liberality of the noble proprietor, are open to the public."
0:10:02 > 0:10:06But not all visitors were overawed by the Ducal pile.
0:10:06 > 0:10:09In 1787, the poet Robert Burns visited the town
0:10:09 > 0:10:14and wrote pointedly about the social divisions he found here.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17"Who e'er he be who sojourns here
0:10:17 > 0:10:19"I pity much his case
0:10:19 > 0:10:22"Unless he's come to wait upon
0:10:22 > 0:10:25"The Lord, their God, His Grace."
0:10:25 > 0:10:29A few years later, the poet William Wordsworth and his sister Dorothy
0:10:29 > 0:10:32visited the town on their Highland tour,
0:10:32 > 0:10:34and they too saw the contrast
0:10:34 > 0:10:36between the wealth of the Duke in his castle
0:10:36 > 0:10:39and the poverty in the streets.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42"We passed through the town
0:10:42 > 0:10:46"which is a doleful example of Scotch filth.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48"A melancholy spectacle,
0:10:48 > 0:10:52"giving the notion of either vice or extreme wretchedness."
0:10:52 > 0:10:55Happily, there's no sign of "Scotch filth"
0:10:55 > 0:10:57on the windy streets of Inveraray today,
0:10:57 > 0:11:00which seems spotlessly clean
0:11:00 > 0:11:03and peopled exclusively by the virtuous.
0:11:03 > 0:11:05But to find out more about the gulf
0:11:05 > 0:11:08between vice and virtue, rich and poor,
0:11:08 > 0:11:12I've come to another popular tourist attraction - the jail.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17I'm met by the formidable figure of Hannah Nixon.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20- Hello, Hannah.- Good afternoon. - Lovely to meet you.
0:11:20 > 0:11:22'In her role as prison matron,
0:11:22 > 0:11:26'it's Hannah's job to educate and entertain modern tourists
0:11:26 > 0:11:29'on visits to this once grim penal institution.'
0:11:29 > 0:11:32This is the old prison. I'll take you to a cell
0:11:32 > 0:11:35which shows you how it really was in the early days.
0:11:35 > 0:11:39- You're talking about 1820, when we first opened.- Right.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42You would have had three, four prisoners in every cell originally.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45- You can see here this. - In this small space?
0:11:45 > 0:11:48- In this small space.- Right. - You know, sleeping on the floor.
0:11:48 > 0:11:52Men, women, children, criminally insane, all together in the prison.
0:11:52 > 0:11:55You've got a good example here of a prisoner that was in in 1820.
0:11:55 > 0:11:59He's a prisoner with a sense of humour. He's written on the wall,
0:11:59 > 0:12:03"A room to let to the 26th day of June.
0:12:03 > 0:12:05"Application to be made to Duncan Campbell, jailer.
0:12:05 > 0:12:08- "Hugh Currie is off forever."- Right.
0:12:08 > 0:12:10So if you're wanting a cell to live in, he's off.
0:12:10 > 0:12:12You can have this if you make the application.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18'Role-play at Inveraray is part of a modern tourist experience.
0:12:18 > 0:12:21'Not only is there a prison matron,
0:12:21 > 0:12:23'I'm about to meet one of the inmates too.'
0:12:23 > 0:12:26- Another cell and a prisoner. - And a prisoner. This is Elizabeth.
0:12:26 > 0:12:29This is a good example of the reforms kicking in now.
0:12:29 > 0:12:341841 and the cleanliness prisoners would have to endure, really.
0:12:34 > 0:12:38- Right. She doesn't look very happy. - Well, unfortunately she had lice.
0:12:38 > 0:12:42She wouldn't wash properly, so we have had to go to drastic measures.
0:12:42 > 0:12:44I hope you've not got a weak stomach.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48- I've a slightly weak one.- Elizabeth, take your bonnet off, please.
0:12:48 > 0:12:49We have had to shave her head.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52If you don't wash properly, this is what will happen.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54- Right.- It's to teach you a lesson. All right?
0:12:54 > 0:12:56- Behaving yourself?- Yes, Matron.
0:12:56 > 0:12:58- She's in for theft. - She's in for theft.
0:12:58 > 0:12:59So what did you steal?
0:12:59 > 0:13:03I stole two silver jugs from a hotel in Dunoon where I was working.
0:13:03 > 0:13:05Right. And how long did you get?
0:13:05 > 0:13:07- I got 2½ years, sir.- 2½ years.
0:13:07 > 0:13:10So that's one year and three months per jug.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14- Is it, sir?- Do you think that was worth it?- It was at the time, sir.
0:13:14 > 0:13:16'Despite prison reforms,
0:13:16 > 0:13:21'crime was still harshly punished in Victorian times.'
0:13:21 > 0:13:26So this is an example of punishments set with the Reforms of Scotland.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28- This is the whipping table. - A whipping table?
0:13:28 > 0:13:31So if you disobey our rules here, you will be beaten.
0:13:31 > 0:13:34- Now, it is just for the males. Boys as well.- Boys?
0:13:34 > 0:13:36Children as young as seven would come to this prison.
0:13:36 > 0:13:39If you disobey our rules, a child may well be beaten.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42- And beaten with this? - Yes, that's the birch.
0:13:42 > 0:13:46- So how did this contraption work? - The best way is to demonstrate, sir.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49- If I take that and you'd like to lie up there.- OK.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51- It looks quite innocuous. - On your stomach.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54It's a bit like a, I don't know, a massage table or something.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57It won't feel like a massage, sir.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00- I put my arms through here? - Straight through.- OK.
0:14:00 > 0:14:03'At Inveraray Jail, visitors are encouraged to sample
0:14:03 > 0:14:05'even the grimmest aspects of prison life.
0:14:05 > 0:14:09'The experience can sometimes take quite a beating.'
0:14:09 > 0:14:12Ooh! Please! Ooh!
0:14:12 > 0:14:15That was painful. That was painful.
0:14:15 > 0:14:20Er...slightly risible, but I suppose what I find curious
0:14:20 > 0:14:24is why people on holiday want to come to a prison.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27Is there a kind of misery tourism going on here, do you think?
0:14:27 > 0:14:31There is. People have always been interested in the macabre.
0:14:31 > 0:14:34Anything to do with death, torture, damnation.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36People like to come, have a go, see what it was like,
0:14:36 > 0:14:39try all the different things that we have here.
0:14:39 > 0:14:43Today, yes, it is humorous for them, but it does give them an idea of what went on in the past.
0:14:43 > 0:14:48'As Matron leads me back through the prison to freedom,
0:14:48 > 0:14:50'she tells me that in Victorian times,
0:14:50 > 0:14:54'people would go on holiday and visit prisons like this.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57'It's amusing to think that a century later,
0:14:57 > 0:15:00'modern tourists are still doing the same thing.
0:15:00 > 0:15:03'Back on the streets of Inveraray,
0:15:03 > 0:15:07'it looks as if were in for a spot of rain.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09'Before I catch the worst of the weather,
0:15:09 > 0:15:14'it's time to move on and over the hills to my next destination -
0:15:14 > 0:15:15'Loch Awe.'
0:15:19 > 0:15:22Loch Awe is the longest freshwater loch in Scotland
0:15:22 > 0:15:24and is, without question,
0:15:24 > 0:15:27an absolute treasure, whatever the weather.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31Black's is fulsome in its praises, describing the loch as,
0:15:31 > 0:15:35"A glittering jewel with green bowered islands
0:15:35 > 0:15:38"nestling on the bosom of the lake."
0:15:38 > 0:15:39Not today it isn't!
0:15:41 > 0:15:45Come rain or shine, the Victorians were quick to see
0:15:45 > 0:15:48the tourist potential of lovely Loch Awe.
0:15:48 > 0:15:52And at one time, as many as 15 steamers
0:15:52 > 0:15:55sailed among the wooded islands.
0:15:55 > 0:15:56But of course progress has meant
0:15:56 > 0:15:59these elegant little ships suffered the same fate
0:15:59 > 0:16:03as nearly all the other steamers on Scotland's lochs.
0:16:03 > 0:16:06They were scrapped years ago.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08The steamer may have gone,
0:16:08 > 0:16:12but the landscape is just as spectacular and wild
0:16:12 > 0:16:14as it was when Victorian tourists
0:16:14 > 0:16:17were told enthralling legends about the landscape,
0:16:17 > 0:16:20as they sailed amongst the islands of the loch.
0:16:22 > 0:16:25'Hearing these romantic tales told to them
0:16:25 > 0:16:27'by their kilted Highland guides,
0:16:27 > 0:16:29'in this wonderful setting,
0:16:29 > 0:16:34'made Victorian tourists feel close to the true spirit of Scotland.'
0:16:36 > 0:16:42'Here, every island, every inlet and bay, has a tale of its own.
0:16:42 > 0:16:45'Part of a tradition that connects Loch Awe to an epic past.'
0:16:47 > 0:16:50As I make my way down the loch,
0:16:50 > 0:16:53I am passing through 2,000 years of history,
0:16:53 > 0:16:56heading for the cradle of the nation.
0:16:58 > 0:17:01This is Kilmartin Glen.
0:17:01 > 0:17:05I've always thought that this part of Argyll has a magic of its own.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08There's something about the quality of light here,
0:17:08 > 0:17:10the distant views to the islands,
0:17:10 > 0:17:13the long sea lochs and the roughly wooded hillsides,
0:17:13 > 0:17:16that's particularly atmospheric.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18It's also a place with a special significance
0:17:18 > 0:17:21in the history of the Scottish nation.
0:17:24 > 0:17:28Kilmartin Glen has one of the most important concentrations
0:17:28 > 0:17:32of Neolithic and Bronze Age remains in Scotland.
0:17:32 > 0:17:37Within just a few miles, there are over 350 ancient monuments,
0:17:37 > 0:17:40making this a unique ceremonial landscape
0:17:40 > 0:17:42that was once sacred to our ancestors.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48For 3,000 years, this tiny, damp corner of Scotland
0:17:48 > 0:17:51was an important centre for different people
0:17:51 > 0:17:52and different cultures,
0:17:52 > 0:17:55from the Stone Age right up to the early Christian period
0:17:55 > 0:17:59when the country we now call Scotland was coming into being.
0:17:59 > 0:18:03The most striking and significant of all the ancient monuments
0:18:03 > 0:18:09associated with this story can be found right here at Dunadd.
0:18:09 > 0:18:11Now, it might not look much,
0:18:11 > 0:18:15but this small rocky hill is where the story of the nation begins.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18This is the cradle of Scotland.
0:18:18 > 0:18:241,600 years ago, a fort stood at the top of this hill.
0:18:24 > 0:18:29Over the years, it's become a place of pilgrimage for tourists.
0:18:29 > 0:18:32And it was up here on a sacred stone
0:18:32 > 0:18:38that the Kings of Dal Riada were invested with their royal powers.
0:18:38 > 0:18:41Now, this is where it's all said to have taken place.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45Over here is a stone footprint cut into the rock.
0:18:45 > 0:18:47And according to archaeologists,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50this is where the King to be would have placed his own foot
0:18:50 > 0:18:56in a ritual act that symbolised the union of the human world with the divine.
0:18:56 > 0:18:58Now, I'm not the first person to have noticed
0:18:58 > 0:19:02that this Kingly footprint is a bit, well, diminutive.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06Now, I'd say that was probably a size 3.
0:19:08 > 0:19:10You can get a sense of why Dunadd
0:19:10 > 0:19:14was so important to the ancient world from the summit.
0:19:14 > 0:19:17It lies at the centre of a landscape
0:19:17 > 0:19:20that has an almost mystical atmosphere.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22Up here, you get a powerful feeling
0:19:22 > 0:19:26of being in touch with the distant past.
0:19:26 > 0:19:30Which is why, for me, this could be the spiritual heart of Scotland.
0:19:30 > 0:19:34But there is another contender for the title of spiritual heart,
0:19:34 > 0:19:38and to get there, I have to sail to the islands.
0:19:41 > 0:19:43On the next leg of my journey,
0:19:43 > 0:19:45I'm crossing the sea to Islay -
0:19:45 > 0:19:47the spiritual home of whisky.
0:19:49 > 0:19:52But this is no scheduled ferry service.
0:19:52 > 0:19:56To retrace the old steamer routes that once crossed the west coast,
0:19:56 > 0:20:02I joined Sandy Campbell aboard the modern motor cruiser Venture West.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04Sandy, what kind of business do you run, then?
0:20:04 > 0:20:06Er, well, just a charter boat business.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09Take people where they want to be, along with some wildlife trips
0:20:09 > 0:20:12and Corryvreckan trips to the whirlpool.
0:20:12 > 0:20:15There's usually...it's quite a good kind of area for wildlife.
0:20:15 > 0:20:20There's some seagulls that nest along with...there's a lot of seals
0:20:20 > 0:20:22and porpoise sometimes, or dolphin.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25Later on in the year, we have basking shark and a minky whale around.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29So, yeah, it's very interesting.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32Sandy's hi-tech rib is a far cry from the steamers
0:20:32 > 0:20:35that carried the few early tourists
0:20:35 > 0:20:38who ventured this far off the beaten track.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41As Black's notes,
0:20:41 > 0:20:44"The traffic of the westward isles is maintained
0:20:44 > 0:20:46"by steamers of the smaller class.
0:20:46 > 0:20:49"The natives herding on the foredeck,
0:20:49 > 0:20:50"Gaelic their dialect
0:20:50 > 0:20:55"and teetotalism a creed little believed in."
0:20:55 > 0:20:57I think it's odd that my guide should make
0:20:57 > 0:20:59such a sneering reference to the pleasures
0:20:59 > 0:21:02that ordinary folk could derive from alcohol,
0:21:02 > 0:21:04because in the very next sentence,
0:21:04 > 0:21:07the same writer goes on to praise Islay
0:21:07 > 0:21:09for the quality of its whisky.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11Now, I think what he's trying to imply here
0:21:11 > 0:21:16is that it's OK for wealthy tourists to enjoy the water of life,
0:21:16 > 0:21:19but for ordinary people, it's degrading.
0:21:19 > 0:21:21Wealthy people could be connoisseurs.
0:21:21 > 0:21:24The poor just got drunk.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30'As I consider the mixed morals of Victorian tourists,
0:21:30 > 0:21:33'I enjoy a large glass of whisky.
0:21:33 > 0:21:37'I count myself lucky that I'm a connoisseur and not a lush.'
0:21:39 > 0:21:41Anyone arriving in Islay today
0:21:41 > 0:21:46can't fail to notice the continuing importance of whisky.
0:21:46 > 0:21:48Famous names greet you at every turn.
0:21:48 > 0:21:51Lagavulin, Laphroaig, Bowmore.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54Villages celebrated the world over
0:21:54 > 0:21:56because of the whisky that comes from them.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02This is Port Ellen.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05In 1868, Black's wrote encouragingly,
0:22:05 > 0:22:10"A fair entertainment may be had in the inns above the harbour.
0:22:10 > 0:22:14"A smart trade going on in the consumption of whisky."
0:22:16 > 0:22:19Ah! Just smell that!
0:22:19 > 0:22:21That's the tangle o' the Isles,
0:22:21 > 0:22:25a wonderful combination of peat smoke, seaweed...
0:22:25 > 0:22:28Ah! ..and whisky.
0:22:30 > 0:22:34For me, uisge beatha - the water of life -
0:22:34 > 0:22:36has its spiritual home right here on Islay,
0:22:36 > 0:22:40and I'm just one of thousands making the pilgrimage each year
0:22:40 > 0:22:45to the island made famous because of its spirit.
0:22:45 > 0:22:50We love the, er, Islay whisky. Er, the peaty taste is our favourite.
0:22:50 > 0:22:54There's so many different whiskies, they all taste different.
0:22:54 > 0:22:58So it's interesting to learn about how they turn out different.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01We know this whisky for a few years,
0:23:01 > 0:23:07but it's the first time that we are here on Islay directly.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13'To find out more about the arcane, magical art of whisky-making,
0:23:13 > 0:23:16'I've joined Duncan McGilvery
0:23:16 > 0:23:19'on a tour of the Bruichladdich Distillery.
0:23:19 > 0:23:25'Duncan tells me that Islay has been on the whisky connoisseurs' itinerary for well over 100 years.
0:23:25 > 0:23:31'In 1886, the island, its drinking habits and its water of life,
0:23:31 > 0:23:34'were all lovingly and minutely described
0:23:34 > 0:23:38'by an Englishman, Alfred Barnard.'
0:23:38 > 0:23:41Alfred Barnard did a survey in the late 1800s of all the distilleries
0:23:41 > 0:23:44of Scotland and England and Wales, that he could find.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46Not that I was around at the time, but, er...
0:23:46 > 0:23:50it was a very in-depth investigation into what they did.
0:23:50 > 0:23:55And his result was a survey, and the conclusions are absolutely priceless.
0:23:55 > 0:24:00In those days, it was rare to find a whisky connoisseur, because people...
0:24:00 > 0:24:03I mean, whisky was just a way of life, and it was a means to make money.
0:24:03 > 0:24:07Nowadays, so many people are so much better educated about whisky,
0:24:07 > 0:24:09and whisky/tourism on Islay
0:24:09 > 0:24:14must be one of the biggest earners that there is on the island,
0:24:14 > 0:24:17along with bird-watching and nature, etc.
0:24:17 > 0:24:20But whisky has become very much a tourist industry.
0:24:22 > 0:24:27Barnard not only wrote extensively and passionately about whisky,
0:24:27 > 0:24:30he was also the first to celebrate
0:24:30 > 0:24:34the special relationship between booze and the environment.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37Barnard's book isn't just an account of whisky.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39It is, in fact, a love story.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41The story of a man's infatuation
0:24:41 > 0:24:44with a landscape and a culture
0:24:44 > 0:24:47that's produced a world-beating spirit.
0:24:50 > 0:24:53To find out more about the fruitful marriage between whisky,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55tourism and fabulous scenery,
0:24:55 > 0:25:00I'm meeting up with historian Kevin James at Duffies Bar,
0:25:00 > 0:25:03which has over 250 brands of whisky to choose from.
0:25:03 > 0:25:08'Apparently, the most expensive dram will set you back £250!
0:25:08 > 0:25:11'Let's hope Kevin's buying.'
0:25:11 > 0:25:14Kevin, Barnard's book was seminal in many ways, was it not,
0:25:14 > 0:25:16in kicking off whisky tourism?
0:25:16 > 0:25:20He seems to have a special love for Scottish landscape,
0:25:20 > 0:25:23and there's a connection, I think, between the landscape and whisky.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25Oh, absolutely. Absolutely.
0:25:25 > 0:25:28And particularly in the Hebridean landscape.
0:25:28 > 0:25:32I think that he has an affection for the wildness of the landscape.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35There are occasions on which he comments on the...
0:25:35 > 0:25:39kind of the almost, er...austereness of the Hebridean landscape,
0:25:39 > 0:25:41and I think that he works that into
0:25:41 > 0:25:43his overall appreciation of the malts as well.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46And I think that's one way of kind of casting Barnard's book,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49and indeed the whole whisky tourism phenomenon,
0:25:49 > 0:25:53as people tried to penetrate beyond the visual landscape
0:25:53 > 0:25:56and get into the culture by other ways.
0:25:56 > 0:25:58Engaging their senses in other ways.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01- And, er, what better way to do it than through drink?- Right.
0:26:01 > 0:26:04So you didn't just come to Islay to drink in the landscape?
0:26:04 > 0:26:07You came to Islay, had a drink and saw the landscape at the same time.
0:26:07 > 0:26:09And maybe saw it in different ways.
0:26:09 > 0:26:13Right, so do you think, you know, in becoming connoisseurs,
0:26:13 > 0:26:16some Victorians felt that they had a kind of special knowledge,
0:26:16 > 0:26:18not just of the drink but of the culture
0:26:18 > 0:26:22and a knowledge, in some ways, that was more sophisticated
0:26:22 > 0:26:25than local people's understanding of the drink?
0:26:25 > 0:26:26Yeah. I think they could assert
0:26:26 > 0:26:30that they had a more tasteful appreciation of the culture
0:26:30 > 0:26:33and a more tasteful appreciation of the drink itself as well.
0:26:33 > 0:26:37That's really interesting, because, in many ways, whisky, uisge beatha,
0:26:37 > 0:26:40is a kind of wild drink. It's a dangerous drink associated with,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43you know, rebellion, the Jacobite rebellion.
0:26:43 > 0:26:47But somehow the Victorians and tourism had tamed this drink,
0:26:47 > 0:26:49had tamed the spirit of Scotland.
0:26:49 > 0:26:54It is. It's like taming a primitive aspect of Scottish peasant culture.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56It's also allowing the tourist
0:26:56 > 0:26:59to distance him or herself from the culture,
0:26:59 > 0:27:03at the same time as taking one of the icons of that culture -
0:27:03 > 0:27:04whisky - and consuming it.
0:27:04 > 0:27:08- Right, well, I'll have a wee... Slainte!- Slainte!
0:27:11 > 0:27:15- Mm. That's not the £250 dram. - It isn't.
0:27:15 > 0:27:19- Ardbeg, is it? It's not bad. - It's not bad. It'll do.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24Armed with a bottle of the finest malt -
0:27:24 > 0:27:26the one that's not going to break the budget -
0:27:26 > 0:27:29I leave Kevin and make my way to the coast.
0:27:29 > 0:27:31As I've found for myself,
0:27:31 > 0:27:35the spirit of Scotland is not easily tamed.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39But that doesn't deter people from hoping to discover something
0:27:39 > 0:27:41that captures the essence of the place.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43The landscape, history and culture.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45Many claim to have found it
0:27:45 > 0:27:48in the views of the lochs and islands of the west coast.
0:27:48 > 0:27:51While some believe it lies in the past,
0:27:51 > 0:27:56others think the spirit of Scotland is a commodity that can be bottled.
0:27:56 > 0:27:59For me, the truth lies somewhere in between.
0:27:59 > 0:28:03There are lots of different ways you can drink whisky, of course.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06Some people take it with ice - on the rocks -
0:28:06 > 0:28:09and others like to add a wee drop of water.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13And some, heaven forbid, drink it with a mixer!
0:28:13 > 0:28:16Personally, I like to drink it neat and outside,
0:28:16 > 0:28:21with a view of the Atlantic and the smell of the sea in my nostrils.
0:28:21 > 0:28:25And even on a grey, cold day like today,
0:28:25 > 0:28:27I can think of no more appropriate place
0:28:27 > 0:28:31to experience the true spirit of Scotland.
0:28:31 > 0:28:33Slainte!
0:28:35 > 0:28:40On the last of these grand tours, I'm heading east in search of sunshine.
0:28:40 > 0:28:44Scotland may not be renowned for its blue skies and warm weather -
0:28:44 > 0:28:46but there was a time
0:28:46 > 0:28:49when holiday-makers flocked to Scottish beaches
0:28:49 > 0:28:52hoping to luxuriate in the summer sun.
0:28:52 > 0:28:55But then again, they had little option.
0:28:56 > 0:28:58Long before the era of cheap flights
0:28:58 > 0:29:01and package holidays to the Costa del Sunburn,
0:29:01 > 0:29:05most Scots spent their summers at the Scottish seaside.
0:29:05 > 0:29:09Here, simple pleasures like paddling were the order of the day,
0:29:09 > 0:29:11and all along the east coast,
0:29:11 > 0:29:13hugely popular resorts developed
0:29:13 > 0:29:17where each boasted the finest sands or the hottest weather.
0:29:17 > 0:29:19At least, that's what they claimed.
0:29:25 > 0:29:30The last journey of my grand tour of Scotland takes me from the shores
0:29:30 > 0:29:35of the Firth of Tay, zigzagging along the east coast to Aberdeen.
0:29:40 > 0:29:43To capture the holiday spirit, and to chase the sun,
0:29:43 > 0:29:48I've chosen a conveyance to put me in the mood - a Morris Minor.
0:29:48 > 0:29:51A car that sums up the style of an era -
0:29:51 > 0:29:56when modern holiday tastes overtook the more sedate pleasures
0:29:56 > 0:29:58suggested by Black's old guide book.
0:30:00 > 0:30:01Back in Victorian times,
0:30:01 > 0:30:08the very last thing a tourist would have expected from a visit to Scotland was sunshine.
0:30:08 > 0:30:10Rugged scenery, ruined castles, yes.
0:30:10 > 0:30:13Challenging weather, well, definitely.
0:30:13 > 0:30:16A dip in the briny for the good of your health?
0:30:16 > 0:30:20Well, possibly, but only if you were suitably attired.
0:30:20 > 0:30:23But no-one in Black's day would have ever considered
0:30:23 > 0:30:26exposing their naked flesh to the sun.
0:30:28 > 0:30:31So to find out how these more modest pleasure-seekers
0:30:31 > 0:30:33spent their time at the seaside,
0:30:33 > 0:30:35I've come here to Carnoustie.
0:30:38 > 0:30:42Today, this town is most famous for its golf course -
0:30:42 > 0:30:46but back in Black's day, the beach front was its main attraction
0:30:46 > 0:30:51and my guide book describes it as an up-and-coming resort.
0:30:51 > 0:30:54"Carnoustie is a rising watering place of about a thousand
0:30:54 > 0:30:58"inhabitants situated on the shore."
0:30:58 > 0:31:01This is where people came for a break
0:31:01 > 0:31:05from the harsh routine of work in the factories and jute mills of Dundee.
0:31:05 > 0:31:08A place to recharge the batteries.
0:31:08 > 0:31:10And why not?
0:31:10 > 0:31:18To find out what Carnoustie's star attractions were, I'm meeting local historian Fiona Scharlau.
0:31:20 > 0:31:24Fiona, what kind of activities were available to holiday-makers
0:31:24 > 0:31:26coming to Carnoustie in the old days?
0:31:26 > 0:31:28Oh, there was a great deal.
0:31:28 > 0:31:33If you, on any given day of July and August, looked out on the beach behind us,
0:31:33 > 0:31:36you would see the place absolutely black with visitors
0:31:36 > 0:31:39just sitting on the beach just enjoying the sand,
0:31:39 > 0:31:42having picnics, using the bathing machines
0:31:42 > 0:31:45to modestly change into their swimsuits to go swimming.
0:31:45 > 0:31:48Just traditional summer seaside activities.
0:31:48 > 0:31:53In particular, they would enjoy the open-air, al fresco Pierrot shows as well.
0:31:53 > 0:31:58- A Pierrot show. What's that? - Pierrot is an entertainer. The style they adopted
0:31:58 > 0:32:03was to dress up in the traditional Italian Commedia dell'Arte Pierrot outfit.
0:32:03 > 0:32:07The big, white clown outfits and the big ruffs.
0:32:07 > 0:32:12In effect, they were bringing the music hall out of the music hall and onto beach fronts,
0:32:12 > 0:32:18in very makeshift stages and there'd be two or three shows a day
0:32:18 > 0:32:21and it would be full of comic sketches, sing-along songs
0:32:21 > 0:32:25and turns from the good singers that they would have along with them.
0:32:25 > 0:32:28So there's something here for everybody in the family, really.
0:32:28 > 0:32:32They were incredibly popular. People would flock to see them
0:32:32 > 0:32:36and the newspapers would follow their exploits for the rest of the year.
0:32:36 > 0:32:39They were stars in the borough.
0:32:40 > 0:32:44- Pierrots are a thing of the past and what happened to that tradition? - Yes, they are.
0:32:44 > 0:32:49- Why did it disappear? - I think it's just tastes change. Tastes change all the time.
0:32:49 > 0:32:52The music hall that they came from, Vaudeville,
0:32:52 > 0:32:57the tradition that they came from, started to become less popular in the 1920s
0:32:57 > 0:33:03and many of the Vaudeville acts and musical hall acts were struggling to really make a living.
0:33:03 > 0:33:06People preferred to go to dances, apparently,
0:33:06 > 0:33:11and the cinema, by this time, was really beginning to take hold.
0:33:11 > 0:33:13It's just tastes changed.
0:33:16 > 0:33:20And one of the biggest changes was happening on the beach itself.
0:33:20 > 0:33:26Victorian values and ideas about modesty were seen as outdated.
0:33:26 > 0:33:30And in the 1920s and '30s, a new morality emerged.
0:33:30 > 0:33:34Beaches like this one in Carnoustie saw Scottish holiday-makers
0:33:34 > 0:33:38doing something that would have been inconceivable in Black's day.
0:33:38 > 0:33:43People in scanty swimming costumes, sunbathing! Imagine!
0:33:47 > 0:33:51Scottish resorts competed with each other to convince holiday-makers
0:33:51 > 0:33:57that their beaches were the best, their sea, the warmest and their sun, the sunniest.
0:33:57 > 0:34:01Posters were produced and catchphrases coined.
0:34:01 > 0:34:04"Carnoustie for health and happiness!",
0:34:04 > 0:34:07"Girvan - the Atlantic resort",
0:34:07 > 0:34:09"Arbroath for sunshine",
0:34:09 > 0:34:15and even Campbelltown, the, um, peninsular resort?
0:34:15 > 0:34:20To find out how this craze for selling Scotland's seaside towns came about,
0:34:20 > 0:34:24I'm giving a lift to Professor John Gold...
0:34:24 > 0:34:26Hello. Good to see you.
0:34:26 > 0:34:29'..who's an expert on tourism.'
0:34:29 > 0:34:33John, there's a history for this kind of sloganising, is there not?
0:34:33 > 0:34:35There is. Towns were growing.
0:34:35 > 0:34:39It wasn't clear who was going to do better than anywhere else
0:34:39 > 0:34:45so they tried to attract people with slogans.
0:34:45 > 0:34:49The railway companies started to develop their lines and their networks more in Scotland.
0:34:49 > 0:34:52You had very fine posters.
0:34:52 > 0:34:55They've got fabulous posters. I've seen them.
0:34:55 > 0:35:00They hired good artists to design them. They were high-quality colour.
0:35:00 > 0:35:03So it was a splash of colour, a splash of something exotic
0:35:03 > 0:35:10and you could hop on a train and go somewhere exotic like Carnoustie or Arbroath
0:35:10 > 0:35:13or Montrose and they all came up with a catchphrase.
0:35:13 > 0:35:16Broughty Ferry called itself, "The Brighton of Scotland"
0:35:16 > 0:35:19and Nairn called itself, "The Brighton of the North".
0:35:19 > 0:35:24- The same claim.- That's right. Well, you couldn't copyright these slogans
0:35:24 > 0:35:28so once one place had them, anywhere could have them.
0:35:28 > 0:35:30If you called yourself, "The Biarritz of the North",
0:35:30 > 0:35:33someone else might call themselves the same thing.
0:35:33 > 0:35:36As soon as they saw it, they could call themselves that immediately.
0:35:36 > 0:35:39- Or, "The Biarritz of the wee bit further North".- Yes.
0:35:39 > 0:35:44It was making sure you weren't at a serious disadvantage with your competitors.
0:35:44 > 0:35:48So if the competitors were doing it, you felt you had to do it.
0:35:53 > 0:35:59Do you think sunshine ever featured as a significant selling point for a holiday in Scotland?
0:35:59 > 0:36:03Absolutely, it did. It doesn't have to be that accurate.
0:36:03 > 0:36:05You're trying to sell an image to people.
0:36:11 > 0:36:15These campaigns certainly seemed to work and the railways
0:36:15 > 0:36:19carried huge numbers of holiday-makers in search of the sun.
0:36:19 > 0:36:23The next stop on my grand tour is Brechin,
0:36:23 > 0:36:27where I'm going to hop aboard the Sunshine Express.
0:36:29 > 0:36:32This is Brechin station. Originally closed in the 1960s,
0:36:32 > 0:36:37it was reopened by a group of railway enthusiasts
0:36:37 > 0:36:40who run trains on four miles of track they proudly call
0:36:40 > 0:36:42the "Caledonian Railway".
0:36:44 > 0:36:47- Good morning.- Oh, good morning, sir.
0:36:47 > 0:36:52- Could I have a single to Duns, please? - Yes, that will be one shilling.
0:36:52 > 0:36:54Thank you.
0:36:54 > 0:36:56STEAM HISSES
0:36:56 > 0:37:00Just the hiss of steam and a waft of coal smoke in the air
0:37:00 > 0:37:03is enough to put anyone in a holiday mood.
0:37:03 > 0:37:07I'm about to do something I only ever dreamed of doing as a child.
0:37:07 > 0:37:11And that's to ride on the footplate there and back again.
0:37:25 > 0:37:31This is how tens of thousands of people would have started their holidays.
0:37:31 > 0:37:35Travelling from the towns and cities down to the coast.
0:37:35 > 0:37:38And it's a real thrill to be riding up front.
0:37:39 > 0:37:42TRAIN WHISTLE BLOWS
0:37:50 > 0:37:52These four miles of track
0:37:52 > 0:37:58are all that remain of a rail network that once connected the whole of the east coast.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02Today, this is the end of the line.
0:38:02 > 0:38:05Bridge of Dun.
0:38:07 > 0:38:12The great claim to fame of this little station in the middle of nowhere,
0:38:12 > 0:38:13is its royal connections.
0:38:13 > 0:38:18Back in the days when this line was connected to the national rail network,
0:38:18 > 0:38:24the royal train carrying Queen Victoria would spend the night here.
0:38:26 > 0:38:31Apparently, the royal personage didn't feel safe sleeping aboard a moving train,
0:38:31 > 0:38:35so to break the journey, the train would pull into a siding just beyond the platform
0:38:35 > 0:38:41so she could get some shut-eye before continuing on her royal way to Balmoral.
0:38:41 > 0:38:48To screen the Queen from prying eyes, a line of trees were planted
0:38:48 > 0:38:49and they're still here!
0:38:49 > 0:38:53A living link to the golden age of Victorian travel.
0:38:59 > 0:39:02Originally, the line I've been travelling on would have gone
0:39:02 > 0:39:06all the way to the sea, and if you were lucky, perhaps even the sun.
0:39:09 > 0:39:13I'm going to have to get back in the car to head for the coast
0:39:13 > 0:39:14and my next destination -
0:39:14 > 0:39:16Montrose.
0:39:16 > 0:39:19And if you believe what you read,
0:39:19 > 0:39:24this is the real sunshine capital of the east coast.
0:39:24 > 0:39:28This attractive brochure from the 1950s suggests several things to me.
0:39:28 > 0:39:34On the front cover, we've got two lovely ladies basking in glorious sunshine
0:39:34 > 0:39:37as they relax in their swimming costumes on the beach.
0:39:37 > 0:39:40They look really sophisticated.
0:39:40 > 0:39:45Inside, it claims that science has proved beyond all doubt
0:39:45 > 0:39:49that Montrose deserves the sunshine crown.
0:39:49 > 0:39:52Can this still be true, I wonder?
0:39:52 > 0:39:54Or in fact, was it ever true?
0:39:54 > 0:39:59To find out, I'm meeting up with meteorologist Ben Brock on the beach.
0:39:59 > 0:40:02Ben, what's the temperature today?
0:40:02 > 0:40:08- The temperature right now is just 14.5 degrees. - Is that all? That's disappointing.
0:40:08 > 0:40:13And yet Montrose boasts that it has the sunniest and the warmest weather in Scotland.
0:40:13 > 0:40:17It's a little bit unclear where the sunniest part of Scotland is.
0:40:17 > 0:40:20Scotland is not a particularly sunny part of the world,
0:40:20 > 0:40:23so saying somewhere is sunny for Scotland is not,
0:40:23 > 0:40:25on a global scale, particularly sunny.
0:40:25 > 0:40:31- During the summer months, Montrose could probably expect 5.5 hours of sunshine per day.- Right.
0:40:31 > 0:40:37This eastern strip of Scotland, from Montrose, south to Lothian, is the sunniest part of Scotland.
0:40:37 > 0:40:41It's legitimate to say they belong to the sunniest strip in Scotland?
0:40:41 > 0:40:46That's right. Compared to most of the rest of Scotland, it's relatively sunny.
0:40:46 > 0:40:50I've got a suspicion that the weather in Scotland has got worse,
0:40:50 > 0:40:56cos it seems a lot worse than I remember as a kid when I was running around swimming in the sea.
0:40:56 > 0:41:00Actually, it's the opposite. According to all the statistics,
0:41:00 > 0:41:03all the weather stations that have been monitoring the weather,
0:41:03 > 0:41:08tell us the weather is better. It's warmer and it's getting sunnier.
0:41:08 > 0:41:12- But we don't believe them. Why not?- Nobody believes it!
0:41:12 > 0:41:16I think that's because of this effect of the happy memories from childhood.
0:41:16 > 0:41:20You tend to remember those happy, sunny days at the beach, those carefree days.
0:41:20 > 0:41:23You tend to remember less the rainy days
0:41:23 > 0:41:24and in the last ten years,
0:41:24 > 0:41:30the east coast of Scotland has got, on average, 40 hours more of sunshine per year.
0:41:30 > 0:41:33I don't believe that! I've not noticed it.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36I think I must have been on holiday when that happened!
0:41:38 > 0:41:4440 hours a year might only amount to an average of about six minutes extra sunshine a day.
0:41:44 > 0:41:46But every little helps.
0:41:47 > 0:41:50As I head north, I begin to feel a bit peckish,
0:41:50 > 0:41:54and what better way to enjoy the sunshine than a picnic?
0:41:54 > 0:41:56Ah! The smell of a real bakery.
0:41:56 > 0:41:59'So I'm stopping off to pick up an east coast delicacy.'
0:41:59 > 0:42:03- Can I have a bridie, please? - Yes, you could.
0:42:03 > 0:42:07Cos they are really quite unique. Very special, I think.
0:42:07 > 0:42:11- Yeah.- Look at that. It's absolutely magnificent, isn't it?
0:42:11 > 0:42:13- That's a real work of art.- Yeah.
0:42:13 > 0:42:16- I'll take that with me for a wee picnic.- Quite right. You enjoy it.
0:42:16 > 0:42:21- Thanks very much.- You're welcome. - Cheers, now.- Cheerio. Bye.- Bye-bye.
0:42:22 > 0:42:25With my lunch safely stashed on the back seat,
0:42:25 > 0:42:31I begin the long climb towards the Cairn O'Mount and its spectacular views.
0:42:32 > 0:42:36Time to put my jalopy through its paces.
0:42:36 > 0:42:40You've got to change gear... This is what hill-climbing is all about.
0:42:43 > 0:42:44Oh, dear.
0:42:46 > 0:42:48Oh, dear.
0:42:48 > 0:42:49And we seem to have stopped.
0:42:49 > 0:42:55This is the place to experience the delights of the open road -
0:42:55 > 0:42:59back when cars were less reliable and roads had more character.
0:42:59 > 0:43:02Drivers enjoyed the challenge of a difficult hill-climb,
0:43:02 > 0:43:06involving hairpin bends and lots of gear changes.
0:43:08 > 0:43:14This is a real challenge, this road. For an old car like this and for an old driver like me.
0:43:21 > 0:43:27According to Motoring In Scotland, a guide published in 1957,
0:43:27 > 0:43:30"Motorists who enjoy sporting hills will find Cairn O'Mount
0:43:30 > 0:43:32"a grand test for both car and driver,
0:43:32 > 0:43:35"while the air and the view obtainable on the summit
0:43:35 > 0:43:40"of this lofty moorland are invigorating and inspiring."
0:43:43 > 0:43:45This is a perfect place to have a picnic
0:43:45 > 0:43:49and the views from here go on for ever. Down on the coast is Montrose.
0:43:49 > 0:43:53On the horizon, you can just make out the coast of Fife.
0:43:53 > 0:43:56But I'll be heading north and east to Stonehaven,
0:43:56 > 0:43:59where I have a rendezvous with the sun, I hope.
0:43:59 > 0:44:02But not before I've eaten my bridie.
0:44:03 > 0:44:05Mm!
0:44:05 > 0:44:07Excellent!
0:44:07 > 0:44:14By the 1930s, seaside tourism was booming and everybody wanted in on the act.
0:44:14 > 0:44:19I'm heading for a town that very successfully reinvented itself
0:44:19 > 0:44:24as tourist Mecca, Stonehaven, which incidentally claims
0:44:24 > 0:44:28to be the sunniest place on the east coast! Surprise, surprise.
0:44:30 > 0:44:34Now, in Black's day, this was an unremarkable fishing village,
0:44:34 > 0:44:37and my guide book is actually rather unflattering.
0:44:37 > 0:44:39"About the town itself,
0:44:39 > 0:44:43"there is very little to say. It is situated on a fine bay,
0:44:43 > 0:44:47"though the curing of herrings is not always attractive to visitors."
0:44:49 > 0:44:54The smell of kippers might have offended Victorian sensibilities,
0:44:54 > 0:44:58but by the 1930s, a phenomenon of the modern age
0:44:58 > 0:45:01had transformed Stonehaven's fortunes and reputation.
0:45:03 > 0:45:05A heated, outdoor swimming pool.
0:45:05 > 0:45:10And it's still here in all its Art-Deco glory.
0:45:10 > 0:45:14A survivor from a bygone age, Stonehaven pool continues to attract
0:45:14 > 0:45:19an enthusiastic following eight decades after it was built.
0:45:24 > 0:45:30Outdoor swimming was part of the health and fitness craze that swept Europe during the '20s and '30s.
0:45:30 > 0:45:36The design of these "lidos" as they were often called, reflected the Art-Deco fashion of the times.
0:45:40 > 0:45:45Throughout the 1930s, Stonehaven's heated pool attracted
0:45:45 > 0:45:49tens of thousands of bathers and sun-seekers during the holidays.
0:45:51 > 0:45:55I've come to meet Kenny Mackay, who learned to swim here as a boy
0:45:55 > 0:45:59and who, now in his 80s, is still a regular visitor to the pool.
0:45:59 > 0:46:03Kenny, when did you first come to the pool?
0:46:03 > 0:46:07I first came when it opened in 1934.
0:46:07 > 0:46:11My granny lived up here, so she took me to the opening of the pool.
0:46:11 > 0:46:15- 1934!- Yes.- And you've been coming here ever since?
0:46:15 > 0:46:18Yes. I've never missed a year. 78 years.
0:46:18 > 0:46:22I come up every year. In fact, for five years, I worked as a lifeguard here.
0:46:22 > 0:46:25So it's been a lifelong relationship, really.
0:46:25 > 0:46:32It has. I won my first Scottish medal in swimming and ten-metre diving in the '40s.
0:46:32 > 0:46:37I've been all round the world winning championships - Canada, America, Japan, Australia.
0:46:37 > 0:46:40Six world championships and ten world records.
0:46:40 > 0:46:41That's amazing.
0:46:41 > 0:46:45And I won my last Scottish medal in 2008.
0:46:45 > 0:46:48And it all started, really, because of this pool.
0:46:48 > 0:46:53- Yes. I've done 4,000 miles swimming.- What, in that pool?- Yes.
0:46:53 > 0:46:56Well, Kenny, I think you're a fantastic advertisement
0:46:56 > 0:46:58for the health benefits of swimming.
0:46:58 > 0:47:03Can you paint a picture of what this pool would have been like during its heyday?
0:47:03 > 0:47:06This was the social hub for Stonehaven.
0:47:06 > 0:47:08You had about 2,000 people.
0:47:08 > 0:47:12People used to come for the whole day. They brought picnics.
0:47:12 > 0:47:17Each week, they had diving, swimming... competitions, knobbly knees...
0:47:17 > 0:47:21glamorous grannies, Miss Stonehaven, which I had to judge.
0:47:21 > 0:47:23- You had to do that?- Yes, yes.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26That was more popular than the knobbly knees contest.
0:47:26 > 0:47:31Well, I judged the Miss Stonehaven, but I didn't do the knobbly knees!
0:47:33 > 0:47:39You had midnight bathing here which was always packed from 10 o'clock to 12 o'clock
0:47:39 > 0:47:43and each time, I used to do a 15-minute diving display.
0:47:43 > 0:47:47That's a man of grace and poise. Look at that.
0:47:47 > 0:47:50- Yes, but that's the simple dives. - That's the simple dive?!
0:47:50 > 0:47:55I used to start with a double front somersault from the one-metre board
0:47:55 > 0:47:59and I finished up with a handstand dive off the top.
0:47:59 > 0:48:06The finale at the midnight bathing was, I stood up on the six-metre board.
0:48:06 > 0:48:12I got my friends to pour petrol on the pool, set it alight, and I dived into it.
0:48:12 > 0:48:16- That must have been quite a spectacular sight! - It was hair-raising.
0:48:16 > 0:48:20- Or singeing, should I say! - Yes, singeing. I was going to say!
0:48:20 > 0:48:24The hard thing wasn't diving. It was getting out the water from the flames,
0:48:24 > 0:48:28cos sometimes they were over-enthusiastic and put too much petrol in.
0:48:28 > 0:48:30But it was quite spectacular.
0:48:30 > 0:48:33- But you're still swimming, though. - Oh, yes.
0:48:33 > 0:48:37- Would you be up for taking a dip today? Or is it a bit chilly? - Oh, yes.- You would?- Oh, yes.
0:48:37 > 0:48:44- Would you be prepared to race me, then?- Well, how much of a start would you like?
0:48:53 > 0:48:55Kenny may be an octogenarian,
0:48:55 > 0:49:01but he effortlessly demonstrates the kind of athleticism that made him a champion.
0:49:04 > 0:49:06I'm rubbish. Oh!
0:49:06 > 0:49:08That was hopeless!
0:49:10 > 0:49:14Losing is no disgrace. This pool is his second home, after all.
0:49:14 > 0:49:18But before he has a chance to suggest a diving competition,
0:49:18 > 0:49:24I'm going to dry off and continue my journey north to my final destination.
0:49:24 > 0:49:28Aberdeen - oil capital of Scotland.
0:49:28 > 0:49:33I don't know for sure where the sunniest place is in Scotland,
0:49:33 > 0:49:39but after the Second World War, Aberdeen was undoubtedly the most popular holiday destination
0:49:39 > 0:49:44and like all successful resorts, it had its very own catchphrase -
0:49:44 > 0:49:48"The silver city with the golden sands".
0:49:48 > 0:49:50In order to boost its appeal,
0:49:50 > 0:49:55Aberdeen claimed in this official guide that it had the best weather.
0:49:55 > 0:50:02Now, listen to this, "The city enjoys a very good climate and an excellent sunshine record
0:50:02 > 0:50:07"and on a number of occasions, has been recorded as the hottest place in Britain."
0:50:07 > 0:50:11Now, I think I've heard that somewhere else before.
0:50:11 > 0:50:14- NEWSREEL:- 'The clear skies, the brilliant blues
0:50:14 > 0:50:18'and greens of the sea. The sands, the wandering white clouds.
0:50:18 > 0:50:21'Brilliance and colour. The games and the laughter of children
0:50:21 > 0:50:26'and always behind it the traffic of the deep waters.'
0:50:28 > 0:50:32But it was Aberdeen's nightlife that made it so popular.
0:50:32 > 0:50:36At one time, the Silver Sand City could boast of 15 cinemas
0:50:36 > 0:50:42and nine dance halls, and this is the most famous of them all - the Beach Ballroom.
0:50:43 > 0:50:50- NEWSREEL:- 'The music goes around and around and everybody comes together again for pleasure.'
0:50:50 > 0:50:54This is where some of the greatest musical entertainers performed.
0:50:54 > 0:51:01The sound of big bands added a real sense of glamour to a holiday night out.
0:51:01 > 0:51:05And on the dance floor, which boasted the biggest bounce in the country,
0:51:05 > 0:51:08hundreds of young men and women strutted their stuff.
0:51:08 > 0:51:11To find more about this golden age,
0:51:11 > 0:51:14I'm donning bow tie and tails for a lesson
0:51:14 > 0:51:18with champion of the dance floor, May Walker.
0:51:18 > 0:51:22OK, so what you want to learn is a little bit of basics in the waltz.
0:51:22 > 0:51:25- The waltz. Right.- So that you can go and enjoy yourself at dances.
0:51:25 > 0:51:27The waltz is a very simple dance.
0:51:27 > 0:51:31Left, right, left. Right, left, right, so on and so forth.
0:51:31 > 0:51:33- Sounds simple.- Sounds simple, and...
0:51:33 > 0:51:36I've got to remember which is left and which is right.
0:51:36 > 0:51:42- Well, I'll poke you side to side. - 'OK, it's time to come clean. I've been dreading this moment.
0:51:42 > 0:51:47'Dancing has never been my forte and May could have a job on her hands.'
0:51:47 > 0:51:51- Is there anything you can do for flat feet?- Yes. Amputation!
0:51:51 > 0:51:55- Right, OK. It's a bit drastic. They're not THAT flat. - No, no, no, no!
0:51:55 > 0:51:57Dancing left, right, close.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00And right, left, close. Then I want you to turn a little.
0:52:00 > 0:52:04'But if anyone can turn me into Fred Astaire, it's May.
0:52:04 > 0:52:07'Now, was that left, right or right, left?'
0:52:07 > 0:52:11- OK. So, position. Positions. - Positions.
0:52:11 > 0:52:12'Oh, well. Here goes.'
0:52:12 > 0:52:14- To the left.- Left, OK.
0:52:14 > 0:52:19And one, two, three. Forward, two, three. Right, left, close.
0:52:19 > 0:52:24- Right, left and close. - Right, close and right, left. Close.
0:52:24 > 0:52:28- Left, right, close. - Right, left, close.
0:52:28 > 0:52:33- We're back to where we started. - You're back to where you started, and that wasn't too bad.
0:52:33 > 0:52:36- Want to try it again? - Yeah, OK. I think so.- OK, head up.
0:52:36 > 0:52:41- Right to the side and close. Left, to me.- Oh, no!- Oh, no!
0:52:41 > 0:52:45Left to the side and close. Right to the side and close.
0:52:45 > 0:52:48- Left, ouch! - Argh! Ooh! I've done it again!
0:52:48 > 0:52:50- He's done it again!- Oh, no!
0:52:50 > 0:52:52Right to the side and close.
0:52:52 > 0:52:56There's something quite captivating about the elegance of ballroom dancing,
0:52:56 > 0:53:02and May was one of the leading lights when they packed them in here at the Beach Ballroom.
0:53:02 > 0:53:06Tell me what it was like back in the day.
0:53:06 > 0:53:11- Hundreds of people came here.- Mm. - 300, 400 a night. You know, whatever.
0:53:11 > 0:53:15Usually, Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursdays, so on and so forth, and it's...
0:53:15 > 0:53:18It's a great way to round off a day, if you've had a day on the beach.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21- Day promenading, day swimming. - That's right.
0:53:21 > 0:53:23- Then to come in the evening to a place like this.- That's right.
0:53:23 > 0:53:27Is this where people would meet one another? Guys and girls?
0:53:27 > 0:53:29Well, this is where you meet to start your romance.
0:53:29 > 0:53:35Hundreds of people came here. People danced round and round and round.
0:53:35 > 0:53:40- NEWSREEL:- 'The young couple, they seem to be enjoying their honeymoon in Aberdeen.'
0:53:40 > 0:53:44- The emphasis was on romance and glamour when you came... - That's right.
0:53:47 > 0:53:53- NEWSREEL:- 'And the sailor's found a friend. It's always possible to find a friend in Aberdeen.'
0:53:53 > 0:53:56Everyone came here. If you were on holidays,
0:53:56 > 0:53:59your evening entertainment was down to the Beach Ballroom.
0:54:12 > 0:54:14What better way to end a day of basking in the sun?
0:54:14 > 0:54:18And if you didn't get the perfect tan on the beach
0:54:18 > 0:54:22then you might find the perfect partner on the dance floor.
0:54:22 > 0:54:25And right. And left.
0:54:25 > 0:54:28Ah! The romance of it all!
0:54:40 > 0:54:43- Thank you very much, May.- Thank you. - That was splendid!
0:54:43 > 0:54:48I could have danced all night, but I've come to the end of the road.
0:54:50 > 0:54:54I've been touring for over six weeks now, travelling the country
0:54:54 > 0:54:58and exploring Scotland's heritage as a tourist destination.
0:55:04 > 0:55:07In the time I've been on the road, Black's has been my constant companion.
0:55:07 > 0:55:13It might be old-fashioned, out-of-date and, frankly, falling to pieces,
0:55:13 > 0:55:14but its message is clear,
0:55:14 > 0:55:17urging me to get out and about and explore more of Scotland,
0:55:17 > 0:55:22which is something I couldn't recommend more strongly.
0:55:22 > 0:55:26My journey has taken me from the border with England
0:55:26 > 0:55:30to the whisky islands of the west.
0:55:30 > 0:55:34From the charms of the central Highlands
0:55:34 > 0:55:37to the wilds of the far north.
0:55:37 > 0:55:42I've experienced the highs... and the lows...
0:55:42 > 0:55:45of holidaying in Scotland.
0:55:45 > 0:55:50This old guide book has made me appreciate what a fantastic country this is
0:55:50 > 0:55:53and I, for one, want to make the most of it.
0:56:35 > 0:56:39Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd