0:00:05 > 0:00:10In 1840, one man transformed travel in Britain.
0:00:10 > 0:00:17His name was George Bradshaw, and his railway guides inspired the Victorians to take to the tracks.
0:00:17 > 0:00:21Stop by stop, he told them where to travel,
0:00:21 > 0:00:24what to see and where to stay.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27'Now, 170 years later,
0:00:27 > 0:00:31'I'm making a series of journeys across the length and breadth of the country'
0:00:31 > 0:00:34to see what of Bradshaw's Britain remains.
0:00:54 > 0:00:58I'm embarked on a journey from the heart of rural England to join
0:00:58 > 0:01:01the railway line that the Victorians built
0:01:01 > 0:01:04along the north Welsh coast to speed links with Dublin.
0:01:04 > 0:01:10Today, my Bradshaw's guide, published in the 19th century, will help me to criss-cross the border
0:01:10 > 0:01:18between England and Wales, to find out more about traditional foods, about the industrial revolution
0:01:18 > 0:01:25and about aristocrats, and about how each of those responded to the coming of the railways.
0:01:27 > 0:01:33Along this route, I'm following an important railway line to Ireland designed to carry the mail.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36Each day, I'll cover another stretch of track,
0:01:36 > 0:01:39visiting places described in great detail
0:01:39 > 0:01:43in my Bradshaw's guide and meeting the people who live there today.
0:01:43 > 0:01:48On this leg of the journey, I'll be exploring the world's first iron bridge...
0:01:48 > 0:01:52- Where would I have to go to see it? - Just down the bottom. It's amazing! You'll love it.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56..visiting a place where the railways weren't initially welcome...
0:01:56 > 0:02:02My ancestor at the time of the railway was particularly disenchanted with the idea of a railway
0:02:02 > 0:02:07being built across his land, so he tried very hard to disrupt the surveyors.
0:02:07 > 0:02:11..and discovering the secrets of good cheese.
0:02:11 > 0:02:16It's just exactly as my great-grandfather would recognise.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23I've already covered the first 64 miles from Ledbury to Shrewsbury
0:02:23 > 0:02:27and now I'm heading east before I travel on to Chester
0:02:27 > 0:02:31and make my way along the coast to Llandudno.
0:02:31 > 0:02:37From there I'll explore Snowdonia, before crossing the Menai Straits towards Holyhead.
0:02:37 > 0:02:43My first stop is Telford, then on to Chirk and Wrexham.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48Today, I'm headed for the very heart of things.
0:02:48 > 0:02:55Firstly to a town named Telford, named after one of greatest civil engineers of all time.
0:02:55 > 0:02:59And then to Ironbridge, THE iron bridge, the first iron bridge,
0:02:59 > 0:03:04without which the development of our railways would have been impossible,
0:03:04 > 0:03:08the development of railways anywhere in the world would have been impossible.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11And the first iron bridge happened in Shropshire.
0:03:15 > 0:03:22In Bradshaw's day, Shropshire was one of the most important sites of nascent industrial activity
0:03:22 > 0:03:27and the birthplace of technologies that led to the first modern railways.
0:03:27 > 0:03:30- How are you doing? Are you all right, guys?- Yes, thank you very much. - Nice to meet you.
0:03:30 > 0:03:34- Very nice to meet you. How are you? - I'm very well. Yourself?- Yeah. Lovely day for travelling, isn't it?
0:03:34 > 0:03:37- Gorgeous.- We're going to visit the iron bridge.- Oh, it's very nice.
0:03:37 > 0:03:39It's rather important for railwaymen to know about the iron bridge, isn't it?
0:03:39 > 0:03:43It was the precursor to all the engineering that made the railways possible.
0:03:43 > 0:03:46Oh, it is, yeah. And it's fantastic.
0:03:46 > 0:03:51The structure itself of the bridge, for its time, is just...
0:03:51 > 0:03:55You can't imagine it, that they would have been able to produce something as fantastic as that.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59'The next call will be Telford Central, Telford Central next call.'
0:04:02 > 0:04:06'I'm getting off at Telford and moving a few miles on to the village
0:04:06 > 0:04:12'of Coalbrookdale, to understand why the bridge creates such excitement.'
0:04:12 > 0:04:19In Bradshaw's day, Coalbrookdale was already noted for its role in the development of the iron industry.
0:04:19 > 0:04:24Bradshaw writes, "Several important processes in the manufacture of iron have originated here.
0:04:24 > 0:04:29"About 1768, iron rails were laid down on the tramways.
0:04:29 > 0:04:32"In 1779, the first iron bridge was made.
0:04:32 > 0:04:39"This still stands in substantial repair, at a point where it crosses the Severn with a single arch."
0:04:39 > 0:04:46The Ironbridge, as beautiful as it is historic, is a famous symbol of industrial progress.
0:04:47 > 0:04:51I've come to see John Challen, who works at the Ironbridge Museum.
0:04:51 > 0:04:52John, hello.
0:04:52 > 0:04:56- All right?- I must say, I'm very excited to be on this bridge.
0:04:56 > 0:04:58- You should be!- It's wonderful.
0:04:58 > 0:05:00No, cos I know its historic significance is enormous.
0:05:00 > 0:05:06I mean, Coalbrookdale, obviously, was well established as a place where iron was made.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10Bradshaw says that there was nowhere like it - for producing
0:05:10 > 0:05:13and mass-producing artefacts in iron, this was the place.
0:05:13 > 0:05:18It's where it all started. Abraham Darby came here to make iron, to make cooking pots.
0:05:18 > 0:05:22The technology he bought, which was smelting iron with coke
0:05:22 > 0:05:27and casting iron into sand moulds, he did it in just the right place.
0:05:27 > 0:05:31Until the 18th century, charcoal was used to smelt iron.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35Because it used so much wood, iron could be made only in small amounts.
0:05:35 > 0:05:40Then Abraham Darby substituted coke from the local coalfields,
0:05:40 > 0:05:44inventing a technique that's been used ever since.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49It meant that cast iron could be made cheaply and in huge quantities.
0:05:49 > 0:05:54The company quickly went on from making cast-iron cooking pots to the first iron wheels,
0:05:54 > 0:05:56the first iron cylinders for steam engines
0:05:56 > 0:05:57and of course the bridge itself.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01They even went on to build the world's first steam locomotive in 1802.
0:06:01 > 0:06:04What gave them the confidence to make a bridge out of iron?
0:06:04 > 0:06:09They were pushing it. They knew they could cast almost anything out of iron. Make a mould and you can do it.
0:06:09 > 0:06:11And this was a real show piece.
0:06:11 > 0:06:16Is it true that Coalbrookdale makes some claim to having the first iron rails?
0:06:16 > 0:06:20- Yeah.- What year are they, then? - 1760s.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23It's just so long before passenger railways, isn't it?
0:06:23 > 0:06:28These first cast-iron rails, used for horse-drawn wagons
0:06:28 > 0:06:32in mines and quarries, were the forerunner to modern railways.
0:06:32 > 0:06:37And the techniques used in the iron bridge were copied for some of the earliest railway bridges.
0:06:40 > 0:06:46What strikes me about the bridge, as a first iron bridge, is how beautiful it is.
0:06:46 > 0:06:50In other words, that they not only got the engineering right first time
0:06:50 > 0:06:53but they got the style, the aesthetics right first time. Amazing.
0:06:53 > 0:06:57Well, it is, and on the other hand, it shows how far they'd got
0:06:57 > 0:07:00with casting, cos, you know, a stone bridge is a stone bridge.
0:07:00 > 0:07:03With an iron bridge, you had a lot more freedom in design.
0:07:03 > 0:07:09All those components were cast off-site to a design and then brought to site and assembled.
0:07:09 > 0:07:10It's like a giant kit of parts.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13If this technology hadn't been mastered, the whole history
0:07:13 > 0:07:15of railway building afterwards would have been different.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19Before coke smelting, iron was a very expensive material.
0:07:19 > 0:07:21It was just used for fixings and nails and tools.
0:07:21 > 0:07:26To have so much iron that you can use it as a construction material was a completely different way.
0:07:26 > 0:07:31So, if you think of the sheer tonnage of iron in a railway, you couldn't have done that without coke smelting.
0:07:33 > 0:07:35The technology progressed rapidly.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38Rails made of cast iron were soon replaced by wrought iron,
0:07:38 > 0:07:43and by the 1860s, all railway tracks were made from steel.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47But the first iron bridge in the world still draws admiration.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53- What do you think of your iron bridge?- I love it.- Do you still look at it ever?
0:07:53 > 0:07:58Yes. I think, when you live here, you do become a little bit jaded to how good it is,
0:07:58 > 0:08:02but when you actually sit down and look at it, it is amazing.
0:08:02 > 0:08:05There is something in the bridge, which I don't know if you know about.
0:08:05 > 0:08:09- Abraham Darby's face is in the bridge.- Really?- Mm-hm. - Can I see it from here?
0:08:09 > 0:08:12- No, but I'll show it you. - Where would I have to go to see it?
0:08:12 > 0:08:15Just down the bottom. It's amazing! You'll love it. You'll be amazed.
0:08:15 > 0:08:18- I have to go down the bottom?- Yeah! - OK.- Now, I'm just going to show you this.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21- You see the centre locking pin in the middle?- I do.
0:08:21 > 0:08:27- Now, look at the one the other side, and you see there's a silhouette of a man's face.- Oh, my goodness.
0:08:27 > 0:08:31Is it architectural brilliance or pure fluke?
0:08:31 > 0:08:36- It certainly looks like a face. - Legend has it that Abraham Darby cast himself into the bridge.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39That's beautiful.
0:08:41 > 0:08:45By the mid 19th century, Coalbrookdale's iron industry was in decline,
0:08:45 > 0:08:50but the arrival of the railway in the 1860s brought new industries.
0:08:52 > 0:08:58Businessman Henry Dunnill was passing through on a train when he spotted a rundown factory.
0:08:58 > 0:09:03He returned and transformed it into a new tile works.
0:09:03 > 0:09:04- Hello, Adrian.- Hi.
0:09:04 > 0:09:08'Adrian Blundell works for Craven Dunnill Jackfield tiles.'
0:09:08 > 0:09:12This looks like an amazing piece of industrial archaeology.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16It is, in actual fact, a real working factory still.
0:09:16 > 0:09:20It's not just a piece of archaeology. Craven Dunnill, the company I work for,
0:09:20 > 0:09:25actually built this purpose-built model factory in 1872.
0:09:25 > 0:09:28And I had a feeling, as I was coming up here, that this is an old railway.
0:09:28 > 0:09:30- Is that right? This is the old track?- Yeah, it was.
0:09:30 > 0:09:34We brought in materials from Devon and Cornwall, and shipped to Manchester and Birmingham
0:09:34 > 0:09:39finished material, which would have left the factory at the far end here through the weigh bridge.
0:09:39 > 0:09:42We had our own sidings at the side there and our own liveried
0:09:42 > 0:09:46carriages that we used to use for transporting everything around.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49It meant the world was opened up. So you've got access to the States,
0:09:49 > 0:09:52access to, basically, the British Empire.
0:09:52 > 0:09:57Craven Dunnill became one of the most successful tile producers in Britain.
0:09:57 > 0:10:01Their decorative tiles were laid in churches, houses, pubs
0:10:01 > 0:10:04and railway stations, including the London Underground.
0:10:11 > 0:10:15Today, the tiles are made in much the same way as they were in Bradshaw's time.
0:10:15 > 0:10:20The original process was developed from making buttons, ceramic buttons,
0:10:20 > 0:10:25and obviously the patent and idea was actually then expanded into other types of products.
0:10:25 > 0:10:30So what we've got is ground clay, you've got a very large press that presses at about 15 tonnes
0:10:30 > 0:10:34total pressure, compressing the clay into a cake that you can actually handle.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40So you are using a Victorian machine to make those?
0:10:40 > 0:10:42They've never bettered them.
0:10:43 > 0:10:48At its height, the factory made millions of tiles each year.
0:10:48 > 0:10:56Today's tiles are still hand- finished using the same glazes and colours as in the Victorian era.
0:10:56 > 0:10:58And some look very familiar to me.
0:10:58 > 0:11:03What you've got here are a number of designs that are actually from the Palace of Westminster.
0:11:03 > 0:11:07I know that, I know that. I spent 20 year surrounded by these tiles. I recognise them.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11- May I take that down?- Yes, of course you can.- Fabulous.
0:11:11 > 0:11:13High Victorian tiles, and you are making them again?
0:11:13 > 0:11:16We are. And if you would like to have a go at having a tile manufactured
0:11:16 > 0:11:23for the Palace, as we are actually in the middle of doing a major restoration project with them...
0:11:23 > 0:11:26- A signed Portillo tile. - A signed Portillo tile.
0:11:26 > 0:11:31These heritage tiles are made by highly skilled craftsmen like Chris Cox.
0:11:31 > 0:11:36This is a typical palace tile, this is a lion from St Stephen's Hall,
0:11:36 > 0:11:40- which you'll probably be familiar with.- Yeah, I've walked on those many, many times.
0:11:40 > 0:11:45But never had a go at making one, I'm sure! So this gives you the opportunity to do that.
0:11:45 > 0:11:49So our plaster mould sits inside the box.
0:11:49 > 0:11:55So if you take that, tear off little grape-size lumps and actually feed them into the pattern there.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59It's not as easy as it looks. MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:12:00 > 0:12:04- How do you make it stick down? - Once you've got one bit started, you're OK.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07'I feel like a kid with play dough. It's very hard to do.
0:12:07 > 0:12:11'But Chris can make 40 tiles per day.'
0:12:11 > 0:12:15Pick another bit and you can kind of feed off that and just keep working your way out.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18I fear these tiles probably don't come cheap, do they?
0:12:18 > 0:12:21No, they don't, not with the amount of work.
0:12:21 > 0:12:26Of course, in the Victorian period, they weren't particularly cheap either,
0:12:26 > 0:12:30but labour was, so you could afford to have lots of people doing this.
0:12:30 > 0:12:35'Once the pattern is filled in, the mould is topped up with more clay.'
0:12:35 > 0:12:38Straight down in the middle. Fantastic.
0:12:42 > 0:12:48- 'Having bashed it into shape...' - Push down.- '..the tile is eased out of its mould.'
0:12:48 > 0:12:53- Wow.- There it is.- 'The next step is to add the distinctive red glaze that brings out the pattern.'
0:12:53 > 0:12:56This is very satisfying.
0:12:56 > 0:13:00'Once the tile has dried, the excess glaze is scraped off.'
0:13:01 > 0:13:02Beautiful.
0:13:02 > 0:13:07Chris, I have walked over these countless times and never given them much thought, apart from the fact
0:13:07 > 0:13:14that they were very beautiful, but I had no idea it was such hard work and such craftsmanship.
0:13:14 > 0:13:17- Thank you. It's been a real privilege doing that. - You're welcome.- Thank you.
0:13:25 > 0:13:30'As I leave Coalbrookdale to travel on to Chirk, I wonder whether my efforts will one day grace
0:13:30 > 0:13:35'the Houses of Parliament or, more likely, end up in the seconds bin.'
0:13:37 > 0:13:42Just before we come into Chirk, we're going to pass over a viaduct
0:13:42 > 0:13:46mentioned by Bradshaw as very special.
0:13:46 > 0:13:52But as we pass over the viaduct, we'll be looking down at an earlier aqueduct
0:13:52 > 0:13:54on the right-hand side.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57And that was built by Thomas Telford.
0:13:58 > 0:14:03Telford was one of the greatest civil engineers of the industrial revolution,
0:14:03 > 0:14:07building roads, canals and bridges all over the country.
0:14:07 > 0:14:12The aqueduct at Chirk was one of his finest achievements.
0:14:13 > 0:14:17'We will shortly be arriving at Chirk.'
0:14:17 > 0:14:20'Both the aqueduct and the viaduct are worth a closer look.
0:14:20 > 0:14:26'But of course, in his railway guide, it's about the viaduct that Bradshaw has most to say.
0:14:28 > 0:14:34'He writes, "Chirk Viaduct is considered a beautiful engineering gem
0:14:34 > 0:14:38'"and discloses through its arches the lovely vale of Ceiriog."'
0:14:40 > 0:14:43Now, that is really beautiful.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48I mean, an unspoilt valley, you know, that's...
0:14:48 > 0:14:50a gorgeous thing.
0:14:50 > 0:14:56But a valley enhanced by the artefacts of man,
0:14:56 > 0:14:59that's even better, isn't it?
0:14:59 > 0:15:02The juxtaposition of nature, the grazing sheep,
0:15:02 > 0:15:07and the engineering skills of those wonderful men
0:15:07 > 0:15:12of the 18th and 19th century - what a fantastic combination.
0:15:15 > 0:15:20At that time, aqueduct water channels were built of stone lined with clay.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23But Telford drew on the technology developed at Coalbrookdale,
0:15:23 > 0:15:28and Chirk is one of the earliest to employ a cast-iron trough.
0:15:30 > 0:15:35Henry Robertson came later with his railway viaduct,
0:15:35 > 0:15:37and it's as though the later man
0:15:37 > 0:15:40is paying tribute,
0:15:40 > 0:15:42imitating the style,
0:15:42 > 0:15:47snuggling his structure as close to the other as he possibly can.
0:15:55 > 0:16:01These days, the railway line and the canal snake through peaceful, rolling countryside,
0:16:01 > 0:16:05and it's easy to forget that this border was once a battleground
0:16:05 > 0:16:07between the English and the Welsh.
0:16:07 > 0:16:12But all along the route are castles to remind us of that strife.
0:16:12 > 0:16:16One of the most beautiful and complete stands at Chirk.
0:16:16 > 0:16:21Behind me is Chirk Castle, and Bradshaw writes,
0:16:21 > 0:16:25"This noble-looking edifice has been preserved from ruin, and may be regarded
0:16:25 > 0:16:31"as a perfect model of the time-honoured castles of the ancient lords of the soil."
0:16:33 > 0:16:40Although the castle is perched a few miles distant, strangely, its gates have ended up here.
0:16:40 > 0:16:42Are these gates ever open?
0:16:42 > 0:16:46No, I don't think they are. These gates were moved, cos they used to be on the north front of the house.
0:16:46 > 0:16:50These are early 18th-century gates. Very beautiful, aren't they? And white wrought iron.
0:16:50 > 0:16:51They are. They are beautiful.
0:16:51 > 0:16:56And the story is that they were moved here in 1888
0:16:56 > 0:17:01because Queen Victoria used to pass on a train on her way somewhere,
0:17:01 > 0:17:05and they wanted Queen Victoria to be able to see these beautiful gates from the train.
0:17:06 > 0:17:09- Wow.- Good story, isn't it? - That is a good story. Is it true?
0:17:09 > 0:17:11I don't know.
0:17:13 > 0:17:16'Tomorrow, I'm hoping to enter the castle,
0:17:16 > 0:17:20'but for tonight, I've been relegated to the gamekeeper's cottage.'
0:17:35 > 0:17:38Oh, dear, a rather wet morning in the Welsh Valleys,
0:17:38 > 0:17:42but then they didn't get this green without a bit of rain.
0:17:42 > 0:17:49Bradshaw mentions that the castle is the seat of R Myddelton-Biddulph Esq.
0:17:49 > 0:17:52And the Myddeltons are still there, and I'm off to see them this morning.
0:17:55 > 0:18:02Chirk Castle was built in the 13th century by the Marcher Lords, some of the king's most trusted men,
0:18:02 > 0:18:05whose task was to guard England's border with Wales.
0:18:05 > 0:18:10According to Bradshaw, it's, "a remarkably interesting and ancient mansion"
0:18:10 > 0:18:12and a magnet for visitors.
0:18:12 > 0:18:14That's if I can get past the guards.
0:18:16 > 0:18:20- Hello, gentlemen.- Hello, sir. - Are you happy in your work? - Damp but very happy.
0:18:20 > 0:18:22Yes, it is a little bit damp today.
0:18:22 > 0:18:25Are you wearing real chainmail, real helmet?
0:18:25 > 0:18:27Yes, sir. Would you care to feel the weight of this?
0:18:30 > 0:18:34- It is very heavy.- To get the full impression, would you care to...?- Oh!
0:18:34 > 0:18:36- Goodness, do you wear this all day?- Yes, sir.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39You must have very developed neck muscles, I think, by now.
0:18:39 > 0:18:41I didn't before I started this job.
0:18:41 > 0:18:44That is very heavy. And then you wear that...
0:18:44 > 0:18:46Well, this weighs even more than the hat.
0:18:46 > 0:18:50Well, it's weighty work you're doing, and thank you very much for it.
0:18:50 > 0:18:53- My pleasure. - I take my helmet off to you.
0:18:55 > 0:18:56- Bye-bye.- Bye-bye.
0:18:57 > 0:18:59Not everyone could see the benefits
0:18:59 > 0:19:03of the railways as they spread across Britain in the 19th century.
0:19:03 > 0:19:07Some landowners, like the Myddeltons, were positively hostile.
0:19:07 > 0:19:10- Guy?- Hello, Michael. - What a fantastic place.
0:19:10 > 0:19:16'Guy Myddelton and his family have lived at Chirk castle for 14 generations.'
0:19:16 > 0:19:20I came here on the train and I was quite surprised there's a station called Chirk.
0:19:20 > 0:19:22You've got your own station. How did that come about?
0:19:22 > 0:19:25Well, we're lucky, aren't we, to have our own station?
0:19:25 > 0:19:30This is really because my ancestor at the time of the railway was particularly
0:19:30 > 0:19:35disenchanted with the idea of a railway being built across his land.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38He was involved in the canal that runs adjacent to the railway,
0:19:38 > 0:19:42and I think he saw the railway as a great threat to that enterprise.
0:19:42 > 0:19:47So he tried very hard to disrupt the surveyors.
0:19:47 > 0:19:52Once he'd realised that he couldn't stop it any further, he then, I think, negotiated
0:19:52 > 0:19:53the best settlement he could,
0:19:53 > 0:19:57and part of that was, of course, to ensure that Chirk had its own station.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01And of course, they had their own mines here, coal mine particularly.
0:20:01 > 0:20:04And of course, the railway would have been a great facilitator
0:20:04 > 0:20:08of being able to move that particular product about.
0:20:08 > 0:20:12The railway line also brought tourists to Chirk.
0:20:12 > 0:20:19My Bradshaw's guide details for each station the country houses and their owners close by.
0:20:19 > 0:20:22And just like today, visiting them was a popular pastime,
0:20:22 > 0:20:27although the procedure was a little different then.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29In Bradshaw's time, in the Victorian era,
0:20:29 > 0:20:33I'm sure visitors would have come to the castle on the train as well.
0:20:33 > 0:20:35But they would not have been the general public -
0:20:35 > 0:20:37they'd have been by appointment.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41They'd have made an appointment with the housekeeper of the day
0:20:41 > 0:20:45and they would have then come on the train, come to the castle, been received by the housekeeper,
0:20:45 > 0:20:50shown just the main rooms of interest, seen the castle in all its glory,
0:20:50 > 0:20:54and probably been given a memento on the day,
0:20:54 > 0:20:58a small pamphlet just outlining those things that they'd seen on that day.
0:20:58 > 0:21:04Having free rein in a house as vast as this one is every child's dream.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07I can't imagine growing up in a castle.
0:21:07 > 0:21:11Well, it's wonderful, and I'm very lucky, I know that.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14When I learnt to ride a bicycle, for example,
0:21:14 > 0:21:17I was able to do it inside the house, in the long gallery.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21- I hope you got a thick ear for that, did you?- I didn't, actually.
0:21:21 > 0:21:23I was encouraged by my grandparents.
0:21:23 > 0:21:25You weren't busy mowing down the Chippendales?
0:21:25 > 0:21:28No, they were well protected, roped off.
0:21:28 > 0:21:30So no damage done.
0:21:30 > 0:21:34Or perhaps a little bit of "country house condition", I think that's what we call it.
0:21:37 > 0:21:44I'm leaving Chirk for the last leg of my journey today, travelling nine miles to the town of Wrexham.
0:21:47 > 0:21:52All along the way, the route is adorned by outstanding viaducts that span the Welsh valleys.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55It's impressive to see how well they've survived
0:21:55 > 0:21:59a century and a half of pounding by heavy locomotives.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06The Victorians were innovators in everything, not just engineering -
0:22:06 > 0:22:09in agriculture too, for example. And Bradshaw writes that,
0:22:09 > 0:22:13"The famous Cheshire pastures were, at one time, almost worn out
0:22:13 > 0:22:19"when they were renovated with bone dust and made five times as valuable as before."
0:22:19 > 0:22:23The crushed bones of animals were rich in phosphates, a great fertiliser,
0:22:23 > 0:22:28and that's produced the famous Cheshire cheeses, which I'm hoping to sample now.
0:22:30 > 0:22:37In the 19th century, chemists began to identify the key ingredients of good fertiliser.
0:22:37 > 0:22:40'Cheshire became the centre of an important experiment
0:22:40 > 0:22:43'to improve the grass using bone dust, and it worked.'
0:22:43 > 0:22:47- Bye-bye, then.- Thank you.- Have a good trip.- Thanks very much.
0:22:47 > 0:22:48All the best. Bye-bye.
0:22:48 > 0:22:53'I'm getting off at Wrexham to visit the famous Cheshire pastures.'
0:22:53 > 0:22:58Over the next 100 years, this area became the great centre of the dairy trade.
0:22:58 > 0:23:02Milk travelled on the trains to nearby cities like Liverpool and Manchester,
0:23:02 > 0:23:07and most of the 500 farms in the area made cheese.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13These days, few farmers use bone meal as a fertiliser,
0:23:13 > 0:23:19and there aren't many who still make traditional Cheshire cheese.
0:23:19 > 0:23:22- Good morning, John.- Morning, Michael.- Yes, Michael.
0:23:22 > 0:23:25- Good to see you. What a pleasure. - Welcome to The Bank.
0:23:25 > 0:23:27- Thank you very much. It's a beautiful spot.- Isn't it lovely?
0:23:27 > 0:23:30'John Bourne's family began making Cheshire cheese
0:23:30 > 0:23:35'in the 1700s, by which time it had already been sent as far as Canterbury.'
0:23:35 > 0:23:38So even before railways, it got around all over the country?
0:23:38 > 0:23:40- Absolutely.- But the railways must have made a difference.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43Do you have any memory of cheeses going up by the railway?
0:23:43 > 0:23:48The railways took over from the canals, of course, which themselves were very important.
0:23:48 > 0:23:52But the railways enabled larger volumes...moved more quickly,
0:23:52 > 0:23:56and that enabled the London market to develop for Cheshire cheese.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59Did you have a station here where you could send it to?
0:23:59 > 0:24:01Malpas station was our nearest station.
0:24:01 > 0:24:03- No longer there, that station. - No longer there, sadly.
0:24:05 > 0:24:09In 1845, Cheshire farms were producing
0:24:09 > 0:24:1412,000 tonnes of cheese every summer when the pasture was at its best.
0:24:14 > 0:24:19Thanks to the railways, by 1900, it was almost 30,000 tonnes.
0:24:19 > 0:24:23Nowadays, it's rare to find a small-scale producer like John.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26You're just in time to catch the end of the milking.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29The milk that we use for cheese is produced on the farm.
0:24:29 > 0:24:34So in one place, you are grazing cows, you are milking cows and you're producing cheese.
0:24:34 > 0:24:37Is that now quite unusual that it all happens in one place?
0:24:37 > 0:24:43Yes, it's difficult for people with our sort of turnover to survive in the supermarket world, really.
0:24:43 > 0:24:48You've got be quite specialised and market cheese in a particular fashion.
0:24:48 > 0:24:54Right, Michael, we've seen the milking, now we need to get back to the cheese dairy.
0:24:54 > 0:24:56We don't want to be late for that process.
0:24:58 > 0:25:01'John's Victorian ancestors would have processed the milk immediately,
0:25:01 > 0:25:05'as there was no way to refrigerate it.
0:25:05 > 0:25:08'John still works in traditional ways that make his products special,
0:25:08 > 0:25:12'compared to the cheeses that are mass-produced.'
0:25:12 > 0:25:15Because we're trying to imitate the sort of old-fashioned process
0:25:15 > 0:25:19and make cheese which is sort of more akin to what my grandfather would be making -
0:25:19 > 0:25:24what Father would describe as knocking the curd about - it needs to be very gentle.
0:25:24 > 0:25:27If you were starting afresh, could you make from Cheshire milk
0:25:27 > 0:25:33- a Camembert or a Gorgonzola, or is it just pre-ordained what you have to make?- No, it's not pre-ordained.
0:25:33 > 0:25:37I mean, milk is milk, and you can turn it into all sorts of lovely things.
0:25:37 > 0:25:39We make Cheshire because we're in Cheshire, and that's what we do.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41But I can show you a soft cheese there,
0:25:41 > 0:25:47which will turn into a most lovely soft blue,
0:25:47 > 0:25:50- quite out of this world.- Quite out of this world and quite out of...
0:25:50 > 0:25:55- of our perception of what a Cheshire cheese is going to be. - Oh, yes, absolutely.
0:25:55 > 0:26:02'The type of cheese that emerges depends on the fat content of the milk and how the curd is cut.'
0:26:02 > 0:26:05Nice cheesy smell developing.
0:26:05 > 0:26:10'For his Cheshire cheese, John uses full-fat milk and breaks up the curd by hand.'
0:26:10 > 0:26:12It's like trying to rip a sponge apart, really.
0:26:12 > 0:26:15It's quite tough to tear apart, and I'm very aware that John doesn't want me to...
0:26:15 > 0:26:18Ah, that one's much better.
0:26:18 > 0:26:24'Once the curd is milled, it's put into moulds to be shaped into large cheese cylinders.
0:26:24 > 0:26:29'The process must be done quickly and carefully, but the flavour depends on leisurely maturing.'
0:26:29 > 0:26:31Keep your head down.
0:26:31 > 0:26:35'The cheeses won't be ready until they've been stored in the cellar for up to six months.'
0:26:35 > 0:26:39John, what a beautiful sight. What a beautiful sight.
0:26:39 > 0:26:41- Isn't that fantastic?- Yeah.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44- It's actually a beautiful smell, isn't it?- Well, I think so.
0:26:44 > 0:26:49It's just exactly as my great-grandfather would recognise.
0:26:49 > 0:26:53Wooden shelves, proper cheese, cloth-bound, really in the old fashioned way.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56'Finally, the moment I feared might never come.'
0:26:56 > 0:27:01Right, here we are. Now we're going to taste some of the finest cheese in the world.
0:27:01 > 0:27:05We're going to cut a piece off here, and you are going to taste that
0:27:05 > 0:27:08and you are going to tell me it is absolutely amazing.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14- It's absolutely amazing.- Am I right?
0:27:14 > 0:27:16- Mmm.- Honestly?- Mmm.
0:27:16 > 0:27:19- You're not making it up, are you? - No, I'm loving it. It's fantastic.
0:27:21 > 0:27:25- It's worth every week of the six months of maturing, isn't it?- Mmm.
0:27:25 > 0:27:28That really is a great cheese.
0:27:30 > 0:27:34As I leave the farm, I'm greatly encouraged that there are still people like John,
0:27:34 > 0:27:40upholding the skill and craftsmanship passed down to them through the generations.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43The railways transformed everything they touched,
0:27:43 > 0:27:47whether it was tile making at Ironbridge
0:27:47 > 0:27:49or the Myddelton family at Chirk Castle
0:27:49 > 0:27:52or dairy farming in Cheshire.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56But the nature of the changes that they brought were as different
0:27:56 > 0:27:58as Chirk and cheese.
0:28:05 > 0:28:11'On my next journey, I'll be exploring one of the country's oldest streets...'
0:28:11 > 0:28:17- This is stunning, Paul. - Basically what you've got here is a medieval shopping mall.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21'..uncovering a hidden chemical weapons factory...'
0:28:21 > 0:28:27We're probably looking at the Second World War's most secret building in Britain, would that be right?
0:28:27 > 0:28:31In 1942-43, there was nowhere more secret in the world than this.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34Out it goes!
0:28:34 > 0:28:37'..and raking for mussels, Victorian-style.'
0:28:39 > 0:28:40I think I've got nothing at all.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43Absolute empty set.
0:28:56 > 0:28:59Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:28:59 > 0:29:02E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk