0:00:05 > 0:00:10'In 1840, one man transformed travel in Britain.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12'His name was George Bradshaw.
0:00:12 > 0:00:17'And his railway guides inspired the Victorians to take to the tracks.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21'Stop by stop, he told them where to travel,
0:00:21 > 0:00:24'what to see and where to stay.
0:00:24 > 0:00:27'Now, 170 years later,
0:00:27 > 0:00:30'I'm making a series of journeys across the length
0:00:30 > 0:00:34'and breadth of the country to see what of Bradshaw's Britain remains.'
0:00:54 > 0:00:57Using my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:00:57 > 0:01:02I get a good idea of how the railways speeded up communication
0:01:02 > 0:01:06in a way that both excited and bewildered the Victorians.
0:01:06 > 0:01:09We who live in an age of information technology
0:01:09 > 0:01:12can understand just what it was like.
0:01:13 > 0:01:17'I'm following that Victorian superhighway through
0:01:17 > 0:01:20'the south of England to discover how the Industrial Revolution
0:01:20 > 0:01:23'was carried deep into the countryside.
0:01:23 > 0:01:27'Today, I'll be tasting a Victorian superfood.'
0:01:27 > 0:01:31You've got a basket of the stuff. That lovely, tangy, mustardy taste.
0:01:31 > 0:01:36'Discovering an industrial process unchanged since Bradshaw's day.'
0:01:36 > 0:01:38So, all of that is happening
0:01:38 > 0:01:42- by a process that started with the waterwheel?- Yes.- Brilliant.
0:01:42 > 0:01:46'And experiencing life as a 19th-Century train driver.'
0:01:46 > 0:01:50- I love that rhythm of the steam engine.- The engine is talking to you.- Absolutely.
0:01:52 > 0:01:56'So far, I've explored the royal county of Berkshire.
0:01:56 > 0:01:58'And now I'm heading south
0:01:58 > 0:02:01'towards some of the Victorians' favourite holiday spots,
0:02:01 > 0:02:05'and my final destination, the Jurassic isle of Portland.
0:02:05 > 0:02:07'This stretch starts in Reading
0:02:07 > 0:02:10'and takes me across the county border
0:02:10 > 0:02:13'to explore the railway's impact on rural Hampshire.
0:02:13 > 0:02:16'Finishing up in the market town of Alresford.
0:02:18 > 0:02:20'To reach my first stop,
0:02:20 > 0:02:23'I'm travelling on the Great Western Railway,
0:02:23 > 0:02:26'famously built by Isambard Kingdom Brunel.'
0:02:28 > 0:02:31As a frequent traveller from Paddington to places west,
0:02:31 > 0:02:35I'm often frustrated that nearly every train stops at Reading.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37I ask myself, "Why Reading?"
0:02:37 > 0:02:40Well, today, I have an opportunity to find out.
0:02:40 > 0:02:42I'm going to alight at Reading.
0:02:45 > 0:02:49'The Great Western Main Line was the first railway
0:02:49 > 0:02:51'to reach Reading in 1840.
0:02:51 > 0:02:54'It was quickly joined by other lines.
0:02:54 > 0:02:58'And by the time my guidebook was written, Reading was well on the way
0:02:58 > 0:03:01'to becoming the busy junction town that it is today.
0:03:01 > 0:03:06'Millions of people pass through this station every year.
0:03:06 > 0:03:10'But at one time, these rails were famous for a particular cargo.'
0:03:13 > 0:03:17So, Reading. And my Bradshaw's Guide says that this is the home
0:03:17 > 0:03:21of the manufactory of Huntley and Palmers biscuits.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24I remember those from childhood times. Wasn't there a rhyme,
0:03:24 > 0:03:29"Huntley and Palmers make them like biscuits used to be"?
0:03:29 > 0:03:33So now I'm off to see what remains of that manufactory.
0:03:35 > 0:03:40'Reading station today holds few clues to the town's industrial past.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42'But for over a century, arriving here,
0:03:42 > 0:03:45'you knew you'd come to the biscuit town.
0:03:45 > 0:03:49'Thanks to the railways, Reading was home to the biggest
0:03:49 > 0:03:52'and best-known biscuit manufacturer in the world.
0:03:52 > 0:03:55'In the town centre, there are rows of red-brick terraces
0:03:55 > 0:03:57'built for the factory workers.
0:03:57 > 0:04:02'But are today's residents in touch with their biscuit heritage?'
0:04:02 > 0:04:05Good morning. So, how do you like living here?
0:04:05 > 0:04:07I've lived here all my life and I love it.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10Did you have any connection with the biscuit world?
0:04:10 > 0:04:13My husband worked for the associated deliveries,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16but my father-in-law worked for Huntley and Palmers.
0:04:16 > 0:04:19Did your family tell you anything about working there?
0:04:19 > 0:04:22No. But when you left school, girls went to work at Huntley and Palmers.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25As a child, I went to Huntley and Palmers
0:04:25 > 0:04:28to see the conveyor belts working with the school and everything.
0:04:28 > 0:04:32- But it didn't fall to you to work for the biscuit company?- No.
0:04:32 > 0:04:35- Morning, sir.- Morning, sir.
0:04:35 > 0:04:38I wondered what you could tell me about the history of these houses.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40I think they were initially built
0:04:40 > 0:04:43for the workers of the biscuit factory.
0:04:43 > 0:04:45Reading is sometimes called The Biscuit Town.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49- Does it still keep that name? - Um, I don't think so.
0:04:49 > 0:04:52It's been such a long time since the biscuit factory closed.
0:04:52 > 0:04:55The football team used to be called The Biscuit Men years ago,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58but now they're called The Royals, the Royal County of Berkshire,
0:04:58 > 0:05:01so I don't think many people now, um...
0:05:01 > 0:05:03regard it as The Biscuit Town.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06- The biscuit connection has gone soggy.- It has indeed.
0:05:06 > 0:05:08- Thank you again. - Nice to have met you.
0:05:09 > 0:05:11'In its heyday, the biscuit factory
0:05:11 > 0:05:15'covered an area of 30 acres in the heart of Reading.
0:05:15 > 0:05:18'But extraordinarily, today, all that remains
0:05:18 > 0:05:22'is the old recreation building, now converted into flats.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26'I'm meeting curator Brendan Carr at the town museum
0:05:26 > 0:05:30'to hear the story of one of Britain's first global brands.'
0:05:30 > 0:05:35Good to see you. Is this either Huntley or Palmer?
0:05:35 > 0:05:38This is George Palmer MP.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41A very important figure in Reading's history.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44Biscuits are fundamental to Reading, aren't they?
0:05:44 > 0:05:47Essential to the town's development in fact, yeah.
0:05:47 > 0:05:52'George Palmer joined forces with Thomas Huntley in 1841
0:05:52 > 0:05:56'and set about transforming the family firm.
0:05:56 > 0:05:58'He built a state-of-the-art factory
0:05:58 > 0:06:01'alongside the Great Western Main Line
0:06:01 > 0:06:03'and quickly realised the railway itself
0:06:03 > 0:06:07'could be a goldmine for the canny entrepreneur.'
0:06:07 > 0:06:09In the very early days of the railways,
0:06:09 > 0:06:12there wasn't any catering carriages.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15Huntley and Palmers cottoned onto that straightaway
0:06:15 > 0:06:17and realised it was an opportunity
0:06:17 > 0:06:20to market their biscuit factory in Reading
0:06:20 > 0:06:24by handing out samples of their biscuits
0:06:24 > 0:06:27to the first-class passengers and saying,
0:06:27 > 0:06:29"On your left-hand side as you go through Reading,
0:06:29 > 0:06:32"you'll see the big biscuit factory."
0:06:32 > 0:06:35So they were pioneers in all sorts of ways.
0:06:35 > 0:06:39'Before long, the factory was running its own locomotives
0:06:39 > 0:06:43'along private railway sidings to the main lines.
0:06:43 > 0:06:46'Exporting mass-produced biscuits across the country.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48'To keep them fresh in transit,
0:06:48 > 0:06:52'the firm had the brainwave of using specially-designed tins.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55'The forerunners of our modern biscuit tins.'
0:06:55 > 0:06:58This is the average kind of tin you would find.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01You'd go into the grocer's shop, and this...
0:07:01 > 0:07:04- You can see through it. - Yes. This contained the digestives.
0:07:04 > 0:07:07- Did these fit nicely on the railway? - Well, in fact, they did.
0:07:07 > 0:07:11They were specially shaped slightly off-square
0:07:11 > 0:07:14so that they could fit neatly into, um, the carriages
0:07:14 > 0:07:16and use as much space as possible.
0:07:16 > 0:07:18They're not quite a square.
0:07:18 > 0:07:23'This clever packaging and the growing railway network
0:07:23 > 0:07:26'meant biscuits could be exported further and faster than ever before.
0:07:26 > 0:07:31'And they soon became a symbol of empire.'
0:07:31 > 0:07:33How far afield did Huntley and Palmers' biscuits go?
0:07:33 > 0:07:35Well, it's extraordinary.
0:07:35 > 0:07:40There's a story that when the first Western travellers reached Tibet,
0:07:40 > 0:07:43they were greeted with Huntley and Palmer biscuits.
0:07:43 > 0:07:45- What?- It was extraordinary.
0:07:45 > 0:07:48But what we do know is they did reach as far as the South Pole.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52This is a letter from Captain Scott
0:07:52 > 0:07:55to the Huntley and Palmer biscuit factory,
0:07:55 > 0:07:59acknowledging receipt of the supply of biscuits,
0:07:59 > 0:08:02bemoaning the fact that some of the biscuits had broken.
0:08:02 > 0:08:08"We find on opening the tins of Antarctic and Emergency Biscuits
0:08:08 > 0:08:11"that the biscuits are considerably broken."
0:08:11 > 0:08:13Absolutely amazing, isn't it?
0:08:14 > 0:08:18Really quite moving to, er, to have these artefacts here.
0:08:20 > 0:08:22'At the start of the 20th Century,
0:08:22 > 0:08:24'the biscuit factory employed 5,000 people.
0:08:24 > 0:08:28'But by the 1970s, the need to modernise
0:08:28 > 0:08:30'meant that production was moved to Liverpool.
0:08:30 > 0:08:37'The Reading factory produced its last biscuit in 1976.
0:08:37 > 0:08:39'But Brendon's baked me a Victorian recipe
0:08:39 > 0:08:42'to give me a taste of Reading's past.'
0:08:42 > 0:08:45This is exactly the sort of biscuit
0:08:45 > 0:08:48that George Bradshaw would have known, I expect.
0:08:48 > 0:08:51- Yes. Try one of those. - Thank you very much.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54So, baked to an 1860s recipe.
0:08:54 > 0:08:57- The long Jamaica.- The long Jamaica.
0:08:59 > 0:09:01It's very plain and lacking in sugar
0:09:01 > 0:09:04- compared with the modern biscuit, isn't it?- That's right.
0:09:04 > 0:09:07It's very nice, actually. I like that.
0:09:07 > 0:09:10But it doesn't have that manufactured sweet taste
0:09:10 > 0:09:12- that a modern biscuit has. - That's it.
0:09:12 > 0:09:13Different Victorian palate.
0:09:15 > 0:09:17'I like to imagine Victorian passengers
0:09:17 > 0:09:19'nibbling one of those
0:09:19 > 0:09:23'as they thumbed the pages of their Bradshaw's Guide.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26'And now it's time for me to catch my next train.'
0:09:28 > 0:09:31I'm back at Reading station, a place well known to Queen Victoria,
0:09:31 > 0:09:34who gave her royal patronage to Huntley and Palmers.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37I'm glad I got off at Reading.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39I now know that through its railways,
0:09:39 > 0:09:42this town exported biscuits,
0:09:42 > 0:09:45and, just as importantly, tins, to the world.
0:09:54 > 0:09:58'I'm now leaving the bustle of Reading behind
0:09:58 > 0:10:02'and heading south towards a much more rural landscape.
0:10:07 > 0:10:10'To get to my next destination, I have to change trains
0:10:10 > 0:10:14'at Basingstoke and take a line through stunning countryside.'
0:10:14 > 0:10:17Next station stop on this service, Micheldever.
0:10:17 > 0:10:19I've crossed the border into Hampshire
0:10:19 > 0:10:23and my Bradshaw's Guide is enthusiastic.
0:10:23 > 0:10:25"The circus of Hampshire is beautifully varied
0:10:25 > 0:10:27"with gently-rising hills,
0:10:27 > 0:10:30"fruitful valleys and extensive woodlands."
0:10:30 > 0:10:35And as I glimpse it through the trees, so it appears to be.
0:10:39 > 0:10:43'In Bradshaw's day, this landscape was being transformed
0:10:43 > 0:10:45'as new railways lines radiated out from London,
0:10:45 > 0:10:47'and isolated villages
0:10:47 > 0:10:51'were suddenly within easy reach of the capital.
0:10:54 > 0:10:57'I'm leaving the train at the tiny station of Micheldever.
0:10:57 > 0:11:01'It only gets a passing reference in my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:11:01 > 0:11:05'but thanks to its position on the Southampton to London line,
0:11:05 > 0:11:09'this stop played a starring role in British transport history.'
0:11:09 > 0:11:12George Bradshaw began by mapping the canals
0:11:12 > 0:11:15which were supplanted by the railways.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18I've come to Micheldever to look at a technology
0:11:18 > 0:11:20which would eventually lead to the closure
0:11:20 > 0:11:25of vast amounts of that Victorian rail network.
0:11:27 > 0:11:32'Throughout the 19th Century, the railways continued to spread.
0:11:32 > 0:11:34'But before they'd reached their zenith,
0:11:34 > 0:11:38'the first motorcars had started to appear on Britain's roads.
0:11:40 > 0:11:42What an unbelievable machine!
0:11:42 > 0:11:47'I'm meeting vintage car enthusiast Chris Loader to see how Micheldever station
0:11:47 > 0:11:50'sped the arrival of this new threat to the rails.'
0:11:50 > 0:11:53- This is the most beautiful thing. What is it?- It's a Peugeot.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57It was owned by Sir David Salomon of Broomhill in Tunbridge Wells.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59- What age?- 1898.
0:11:59 > 0:12:02- And it's on the road, clearly. - It's on the road, yes.
0:12:02 > 0:12:05What is the significance of Micheldever in motoring history?
0:12:05 > 0:12:08The first car journey made in a petrol-driven car
0:12:08 > 0:12:11was taken from this station.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14'In 1895, a motoring pioneer called Evelyn Ellis
0:12:14 > 0:12:18'had a custom-built automobile imported from France
0:12:18 > 0:12:23'and delivered by rail from Southampton to Micheldever station.
0:12:23 > 0:12:25'The trip he took in his new horseless carriage
0:12:25 > 0:12:28'changed travel forever.'
0:12:28 > 0:12:33- So, 1895 is the first recorded car journey in this country?- Yes.
0:12:33 > 0:12:36- Where did he travel to?- He travelled to his home in Datchet,
0:12:36 > 0:12:38which is just next to Windsor.
0:12:38 > 0:12:42So a total distance of about 56 miles.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45- Remember, no tarmac.- No.
0:12:45 > 0:12:49- And people must have been astonished as he went along his way.- Yep.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52- And can we take a ride in it today? - I'd love to drive you.
0:12:52 > 0:12:54'According to the records,
0:12:54 > 0:13:01'Evelyn Ellis rolled out of this station at 9:26am on 5th July 1895...'
0:13:01 > 0:13:03Here we go.
0:13:03 > 0:13:09'..and took over eight hours to reach his final destination.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13'Chris is taking me out in his vintage vehicle,
0:13:13 > 0:13:15'built just three years later,
0:13:15 > 0:13:18'to give me a flavour of that groundbreaking journey.'
0:13:18 > 0:13:22You can imagine, if he had broken down in any shape or form,
0:13:22 > 0:13:25no AA, no RAC to come and pick him up.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27No petrol stations.
0:13:27 > 0:13:32I believe in order to get petrol, you had to go to a chemist.
0:13:32 > 0:13:37So imagine us on that first journey, we'd be passing horses or bicycles.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40People would be stopping, I imagine, in their tracks,
0:13:40 > 0:13:41- to have a look at us.- Yeah.
0:13:41 > 0:13:44And I believe on that actual trip,
0:13:44 > 0:13:47there were 133 horses which they passed,
0:13:47 > 0:13:50which is about three horses per mile.
0:13:50 > 0:13:52Out of that, there were only a few horses
0:13:52 > 0:13:57which were a bit sort of terrified by it, which wasn't bad, really.
0:13:57 > 0:14:02No. So the horses took the arrival of their rival quite calmly.
0:14:02 > 0:14:05Yes. I don't think there were much problems at all, really.
0:14:09 > 0:14:13'Evelyn Ellis' experimental trip was such a success
0:14:13 > 0:14:16'that by the end of the year, 20 automobiles
0:14:16 > 0:14:19'had already been brought into the country.'
0:14:19 > 0:14:22Have you ever thought of the paradox that Evelyn Ellis' car
0:14:22 > 0:14:26was delivered to Micheldever station by train?
0:14:26 > 0:14:30I think they were known in those days as road locomotives.
0:14:30 > 0:14:33And, of course, as people bought more and more of them,
0:14:33 > 0:14:36that would see off many of the railway lines.
0:14:36 > 0:14:38If one person had a car, they all wanted them.
0:14:43 > 0:14:48Chris, look at this. Now we are in the open, it's absolutely glorious.
0:14:48 > 0:14:52We're in a 19th-Century horseless carriage.
0:14:52 > 0:14:54I think this is bliss, don't you?
0:14:55 > 0:14:59'It's easy to see how this new and exciting mode of travel
0:14:59 > 0:15:03'captured the imagination of those motoring pioneers.
0:15:03 > 0:15:06'But in Bradshaw's day, the train was still king.
0:15:06 > 0:15:09'My guidebook doesn't say much about Whitchurch, my next stop,
0:15:09 > 0:15:13'but it, too, was touched by the Industrial Revolution.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15'To my surprise, this sleepy Hampshire town
0:15:15 > 0:15:17'on the London to Salisbury line
0:15:17 > 0:15:22'is home to a Victorian silk mill that's still in full working order.'
0:15:22 > 0:15:26- Stephen. It's a wonderful place! - Well, welcome.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29This is clearly your waterwheel. Is that ancient?
0:15:29 > 0:15:33That's a later wheel that dates to the 1890s.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36- This mill's always been powered by water.- Back to what time?
0:15:36 > 0:15:39- Back to 1817.- 1817.
0:15:39 > 0:15:42- Yes.- And this is still operating the mill, is it?- Yes.
0:15:42 > 0:15:46- This is Britain's oldest working silk mill in its original building. - Fantastic.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51'Mid-19th-Century Britain had a flourishing silk industry
0:15:51 > 0:15:54'which, at its peak, employed 130,000 people.
0:15:54 > 0:15:58'The first water-powered mills were set up in the Midlands,
0:15:58 > 0:16:02'but as they proved successful, imitators followed their lead.
0:16:02 > 0:16:05'By the 1830s, there were silk mills like this
0:16:05 > 0:16:08'in 20 counties in Britain.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11'The fast-flowing River Test made Whitchurch a perfect spot.'
0:16:12 > 0:16:16This is a fantastic sight. I mean, this hugely powerful wheel
0:16:16 > 0:16:19transferring its power through this axle
0:16:19 > 0:16:24- and then causing these wheels to turn in a horizontal plain.- Yes.
0:16:24 > 0:16:28- And then that's transferring the power up here.- Yes.
0:16:28 > 0:16:30How does all this relate to silk?
0:16:30 > 0:16:32HE LAUGHS
0:16:32 > 0:16:35Well, it looks very course, doesn't it, actually?
0:16:35 > 0:16:37And this is the amazing thing about silk.
0:16:37 > 0:16:41The machinery is really very industrial.
0:16:41 > 0:16:43It gives you a sense of the Industrial Revolution.
0:16:43 > 0:16:47You're dealing with something incredibly fine. The contrasts are extraordinary.
0:16:51 > 0:16:53So the wheel I saw turning the other side
0:16:53 > 0:16:56now transfers the power through this leather band.
0:16:56 > 0:16:59That's right. To the shaft here.
0:16:59 > 0:17:01And that, in turn, delivers it to a shaft.
0:17:01 > 0:17:05- It's like following a thread of cotton through a building, isn't it? - Yes, it is.
0:17:05 > 0:17:08- And that goes all the way...?- Yes.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11Absolutely fantastic imagination. Ah!
0:17:11 > 0:17:14- And now all of these things are spinning, too?- Yes.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17So all of that is happening by a process
0:17:17 > 0:17:19that started with the waterwheel.
0:17:19 > 0:17:23- Yes.- It's brilliant. Brilliantly effective.
0:17:23 > 0:17:27'The railways connected provincial mills like this with new markets
0:17:27 > 0:17:32'and brought skilled workers from the capital to join the local workforce.'
0:17:32 > 0:17:35And when you look back at the Census, it's very clear
0:17:35 > 0:17:38that there were cousins, sisters and brothers all working here.
0:17:38 > 0:17:40How many people?
0:17:40 > 0:17:43At one time, there were 100 people here.
0:17:43 > 0:17:45And their age ranges were enormous.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48- From 13 up to 90.- 13.
0:17:48 > 0:17:53- Of course, in those days, children could work in factories.- Yes.
0:17:54 > 0:17:58'The late 19th Century saw the industry decline, due to cheaper foreign imports.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01'But Whitchurch Mill survived.
0:18:01 > 0:18:05'The machinery is unchanged since Bradshaw's day
0:18:05 > 0:18:09'and is still making Victorian textiles for everything
0:18:09 > 0:18:12'from costume dramas to historic buildings.'
0:18:12 > 0:18:14This isn't just here as a museum,
0:18:14 > 0:18:16- you are still producing silks. - We are, indeed.
0:18:16 > 0:18:19So very often, you are having to recreate something
0:18:19 > 0:18:22- that was done in Victorian times. - Yes.
0:18:22 > 0:18:26And we might only receive a small fragment of the original fabric,
0:18:26 > 0:18:28because it's so precious,
0:18:28 > 0:18:30and have to work out how it was all set up,
0:18:30 > 0:18:34the type of yarn used, and the colours used to create it.
0:18:34 > 0:18:37- There's detective work involved. - In fact, some years ago,
0:18:37 > 0:18:41- we reproduced fabrics in Queen Victoria's railway carriage.- Really?
0:18:41 > 0:18:45- Yes.- Obviously, I find that very thrilling,
0:18:45 > 0:18:48- and George Bradshaw would, too.- Yes.
0:18:50 > 0:18:52'It's remarkable to think in Bradshaw's time,
0:18:52 > 0:18:56'even this peaceful corner of the country was a hive of industry.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09'Day two of this leg of my journey
0:19:09 > 0:19:13'and I'm on another of the many lines that connected this region
0:19:13 > 0:19:15'with the capital in Bradshaw's era.
0:19:15 > 0:19:19'My route passes through the rolling chalk hills of the Hampshire Downs.
0:19:19 > 0:19:23'This pretty countryside became a major source of wealth
0:19:23 > 0:19:28'when it was used to grow one of the Victorians' favourite foods.
0:19:29 > 0:19:32'I'm leaving the train at Alton to find out more.'
0:19:39 > 0:19:43Alton. What a delightful station.
0:19:43 > 0:19:47It's painted in the old green and cream colours, it's really old fashioned.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49It really takes you back.
0:19:54 > 0:19:58'In the 19th Century, this whole area was famous for a single crop -
0:19:58 > 0:20:00'watercress.
0:20:00 > 0:20:02'This aquatic plant has always grown well,
0:20:02 > 0:20:05'thanks to Hampshire's mineral-rich springs.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07'It was the arrival of the railways in the 1860s
0:20:07 > 0:20:12'that transformed this into the outstanding watercress area in Britain.
0:20:14 > 0:20:19'I've come to meet farmer Tom Aymery on Manor Farm in nearby Alresford.'
0:20:19 > 0:20:22It is a fantastic site, all these watercress beds.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25It is quite unique. There's not many places in the country
0:20:25 > 0:20:29that have such a large array of watercress beds in one location.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31And farmed like this, how far does this go back?
0:20:31 > 0:20:33A long way. Watercress beds like this
0:20:33 > 0:20:36have been really farmed for around about 120-150 years.
0:20:36 > 0:20:40- So, that makes them Victorian? - It does, indeed, yes.
0:20:40 > 0:20:42It was that sort of development in the Victorian era
0:20:42 > 0:20:44that really set the standards
0:20:44 > 0:20:47for how watercress has been grown, and is still grown today.
0:20:47 > 0:20:52'In the 19th Century, Britain's industrial cities were growing fast.
0:20:52 > 0:20:56'Urban workers needed fresh vegetables from the countryside,
0:20:56 > 0:20:58'and watercress was cheap to grow.
0:20:58 > 0:21:01'Demand soon skyrocketed.'
0:21:01 > 0:21:04Pre-Victorian period, watercress would have been grown
0:21:04 > 0:21:06in lots of locations in small volumes.
0:21:06 > 0:21:09And what was happening was with London developing and obviously
0:21:09 > 0:21:12losing the area that you could grow watercress,
0:21:12 > 0:21:14they started looking for locations
0:21:14 > 0:21:17that naturally had a lot of spring water.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21And that may be down in Dorset, where we have farms, and also around here.
0:21:21 > 0:21:26'This was the ideal location for industrial-scale watercress production.
0:21:26 > 0:21:31'But first, the growers had to solve a major problem.'
0:21:31 > 0:21:35It was very important. It had to be transported fresh and quickly.
0:21:35 > 0:21:38It's one of those products that's naturally quite perishable.
0:21:38 > 0:21:42- So they had to move it fast. - By railway, I assume?- Absolutely.
0:21:42 > 0:21:45The watercress was harvested on these farms,
0:21:45 > 0:21:47placed into what we call wicker flats,
0:21:47 > 0:21:52then sent up to London or whichever city or town it would be,
0:21:52 > 0:21:54then made into bunches and sold.
0:21:54 > 0:21:57'In the 19th Century, it was thought that watercress
0:21:57 > 0:22:00'could cure everything from hiccups to freckles.
0:22:00 > 0:22:02'And thanks to the trains,
0:22:02 > 0:22:05'city dwellers now had an abundant supply of this superfood
0:22:05 > 0:22:07'delivered to their doorstep.'
0:22:07 > 0:22:12- Victorians believed it to be very healthy. Were they right? - They were indeed.
0:22:12 > 0:22:14The benefits are derived from the spring water.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17That water contains a lot of vitamins and minerals
0:22:17 > 0:22:19high in calcium, for instance.
0:22:19 > 0:22:22And that calcium is then taken up by the crop.
0:22:22 > 0:22:25So it's full of Vitamin C, calcium,
0:22:25 > 0:22:28but other minerals that are very important.
0:22:28 > 0:22:32So it was a very easy source of nutrition.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35How were people taking it? Were they buying it in little baskets?
0:22:35 > 0:22:39Were they having it in sandwiches? How did they eat it?
0:22:39 > 0:22:43The Earl of Sandwich mentioned watercress in his early sandwiches,
0:22:43 > 0:22:44which is very convenient,
0:22:44 > 0:22:48but they were actually eating it in sort of a cone, which was a bunch.
0:22:48 > 0:22:53'Watercress continued to thrive through the two World Wars.
0:22:53 > 0:22:58'But by the end of the 20th Century, it had fallen out of favour.
0:22:58 > 0:23:01'Now, though, it's back in the spotlight,
0:23:01 > 0:23:04'thanks to its health benefits.'
0:23:07 > 0:23:10- You've got a basket of the stuff here.- I have.
0:23:10 > 0:23:13I hope not all for me, but may I try some?
0:23:13 > 0:23:15Of course. It was picked this morning.
0:23:15 > 0:23:17Is there a method?
0:23:17 > 0:23:20- No, there isn't. As much as you can fit, really.- OK.
0:23:21 > 0:23:26Hm. Do you know, it takes me back to childhood.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29I confess, I don't eat it much these days, but...
0:23:29 > 0:23:31Mm! That lovely tangy, mustardy taste.
0:23:31 > 0:23:35- That's right. - Mm! That's brilliant stuff.
0:23:37 > 0:23:42'At its peak, it's estimated that growers sold many hundreds
0:23:42 > 0:23:44'of tonnes of watercress per week.
0:23:44 > 0:23:46'For the railway workers, transporting it
0:23:46 > 0:23:49'meant braving all weathers
0:23:49 > 0:23:51'and pushing their locomotives to the limit.'
0:23:51 > 0:23:54Having seen those beautiful acres of watercress beds,
0:23:54 > 0:23:57it's now time to see how the crop was moved
0:23:57 > 0:23:58to the markets of Britain
0:23:58 > 0:24:02on what was inevitably known as The Watercress Line.
0:24:03 > 0:24:06'I've come to Alresford at the start of the Mid Hants Railway,
0:24:06 > 0:24:09'which opened in 1865,
0:24:09 > 0:24:12'carving a path through the rolling Hampshire Downs.
0:24:12 > 0:24:14'It was closed down in 1973,
0:24:14 > 0:24:20'but just a few years later, it was reopened as a heritage line.'
0:24:20 > 0:24:24Ah! I love this! The old British Railway sign.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26The lion and the wheel and the crown.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29- Hello.- Ah. Hello, Michael. - How lovely to see you.
0:24:29 > 0:24:31Nice to meet you. Welcome to The Watercress Line.
0:24:31 > 0:24:35- I'm really looking forward to this. - We've got some uniform for you.
0:24:35 > 0:24:37Put that on, then come back and join us.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39I'll see you in a moment.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42You wait here.
0:24:42 > 0:24:46'I've been given the chance to ride on the footplate
0:24:46 > 0:24:49'of one of the railway's magnificent steam engines.'
0:24:49 > 0:24:50Dressed for the part.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58- Do I pass muster?- You're ready. Please come aboard.- Thank you.
0:24:58 > 0:24:59WHISTLE TOOTS
0:24:59 > 0:25:02'Volunteer driver Chris Yates knows how tough it was
0:25:02 > 0:25:06'to drive a train on The Watercress Line.'
0:25:08 > 0:25:10What's this bit of line like?
0:25:10 > 0:25:13Um, it could be hard work. Especially for the firemen
0:25:13 > 0:25:17- who had to shovel the coal to produce the steam.- Hard work, why?
0:25:17 > 0:25:19Because we've got a long hill to go up.
0:25:19 > 0:25:23For about four miles, it climbs about 400 foot.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26Quite demanding for a steam engine.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29Absolutely. And with the heavy train behind you,
0:25:29 > 0:25:32obviously, you'll need the steam to do that.
0:25:32 > 0:25:37'At its peak, 16 steam trains a day braved this challenging route.'
0:25:37 > 0:25:40Michael, we're now on one of the steepest parts of the line.
0:25:40 > 0:25:43- You can probably see how steep it is.- Very steep.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47The engine's labouring a little bit with the weight of the train.
0:25:47 > 0:25:50But if you'd like to have a go, please feel free.
0:25:50 > 0:25:52What do I do?
0:25:52 > 0:25:54We've got the regulator here.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57- That emits steam. - Does that need any movement?
0:25:57 > 0:25:59That moves up.
0:25:59 > 0:26:05So if you get underneath it and lift it up. Give it a...a yank.
0:26:05 > 0:26:09Bit more, bit more, bit more, bit more.
0:26:09 > 0:26:11That's it.
0:26:13 > 0:26:18- You can probably hear the beat of the engine.- Yes.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21If you'd like to wind that slightly anticlockwise,
0:26:21 > 0:26:24and what we're doing, we're reducing the amount of steam
0:26:24 > 0:26:28that's going into the cylinders and making use of the expanisve properties.
0:26:28 > 0:26:30- Is it moving OK at the moment? - It's moving perfectly.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33We're moving up the hill quite fast.
0:26:39 > 0:26:43I find it a real responsibility driving this thing.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45It's so big and heavy.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49And the thing about it is you can make it go faster or slower,
0:26:49 > 0:26:52but you can't steer it.
0:26:54 > 0:26:59'Although it's hard work, driving a locomotive is a boyhood dream.'
0:26:59 > 0:27:02- I love that rhythm of a steam engine.- Absolutely.
0:27:02 > 0:27:05I've so often heard it, but today, I can feel it.
0:27:05 > 0:27:06You feel it all through your body.
0:27:06 > 0:27:09- The engine's talking to you. - Absolutely.
0:27:19 > 0:27:22'Travelling with my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:27:22 > 0:27:25'I've seen how the railways helped to send
0:27:25 > 0:27:28'the effects of the Industrial Revolution
0:27:28 > 0:27:30'rippling through the British countryside.'
0:27:32 > 0:27:36On my journeys, I've often thought about the social
0:27:36 > 0:27:40and industrial impact of the railways in Victorian Britain.
0:27:40 > 0:27:43But having driven this monster,
0:27:43 > 0:27:46I'm thinking about the visual impact on the landscape
0:27:46 > 0:27:49as this green and pleasant land
0:27:49 > 0:27:54was criss-crossed by engines belching fire and steam.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00'On the next part of my journey,
0:28:00 > 0:28:04'I'll be learning how Victorian engineering made its mark on music.'
0:28:04 > 0:28:08- I'm now going to press a pedal. - HE PLAYS A NOTE
0:28:08 > 0:28:09Amazing feeling of power, that.
0:28:09 > 0:28:13'Going behind the scenes at a 19th-Century railway works.'
0:28:13 > 0:28:17Now, Barry, that is what I call a locomotive. That is fantastic.
0:28:17 > 0:28:21'And discovering a landscape that wowed tourists in Bradshaw's day.'
0:28:21 > 0:28:27I have this...amazing plunge down to the beach. Whoa!
0:28:27 > 0:28:29You have to have a head for heights here.
0:28:44 > 0:28:47Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd
0:28:47 > 0:28:51E-mail subtitling@bbc.co.uk