0:00:06 > 0:00:10In 1840, one man transformed travel in the British Isles.
0:00:10 > 0:00:12His name was George Bradshaw,
0:00:12 > 0:00:16and his railway guides inspired the Victorians to take to the tracks.
0:00:18 > 0:00:21Stop by stop, he told them where to travel,
0:00:21 > 0:00:23what to see and where to stay.
0:00:25 > 0:00:30Now, 170 years later, I'm making a series of journeys across the length
0:00:30 > 0:00:34and breadth of these isles to see what of Bradshaw's Britain remains.
0:00:55 > 0:00:56At the halfway point,
0:00:56 > 0:00:59my Scottish journey has brought me to the Highlands.
0:00:59 > 0:01:03Here in the rural county of Moray, small-scale industries
0:01:03 > 0:01:06based on high-quality local resources
0:01:06 > 0:01:08were transformed by the railways,
0:01:08 > 0:01:13and are now brand names sought out by connoisseurs across the globe.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20'Today, I learn how Victorian whisky trains were raided by robbers.'
0:01:20 > 0:01:22Do you think anyone's spotted us yet?
0:01:22 > 0:01:24I don't think so. I'll keep an eye out.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28'I traverse one of Scotland's most impressive viaducts.'
0:01:28 > 0:01:33Really is a spectacular piece of architecture and engineering.
0:01:33 > 0:01:35'And I discover that life isn't always sweet
0:01:35 > 0:01:38'on a shortbread production line.'
0:01:38 > 0:01:39Stop the conveyor belt! I want to get off!
0:01:42 > 0:01:47Using my 1880s Bradshaw's, this trip started in Stirling,
0:01:47 > 0:01:50passed through Perthshire, moved on to the granite city of Aberdeen
0:01:50 > 0:01:54and is now taking me west to Banffshire,
0:01:54 > 0:01:57thence to the classic lochs of the Highlands,
0:01:57 > 0:01:58to finish at John O'Groats.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06Today's leg begins in Dufftown, in north-eastern Scotland,
0:02:06 > 0:02:08indulges my sweet tooth in Aberlour,
0:02:08 > 0:02:10samples some luxury in Elgin,
0:02:10 > 0:02:14and, via Inverness, ends in mountainous Aviemore.
0:02:24 > 0:02:26My Bradshaw's has guided me onto these tracks
0:02:26 > 0:02:30which are carrying me towards Dufftown, of which my book says that
0:02:30 > 0:02:35"It is situated on the River Spey at the foot of a range of hills,
0:02:35 > 0:02:38"the principal and centre of which is Ben Rinnes.
0:02:38 > 0:02:41"A little further south lies Glenlivet."
0:02:41 > 0:02:46There's the clue. I'm travelling on the most northerly heritage railway
0:02:46 > 0:02:50in Britain - the Keith and Dufftown, also known as the Whisky Line.
0:02:54 > 0:02:56'Although its castle, Balvenie, dates back to the 13th century,
0:02:56 > 0:03:03'Dufftown was founded only in 1817, when James Duff, 4th Earl of Fife,
0:03:03 > 0:03:05'decided to create a new town,
0:03:05 > 0:03:07'where, following the Napoleonic wars,
0:03:07 > 0:03:09'local people could find work.'
0:03:10 > 0:03:13'Dufftown attracted a cluster of distilleries
0:03:13 > 0:03:16'for some of the most famous names in Scotch whisky.'
0:03:17 > 0:03:21'And I'm meeting senior guide Jennifer Proctor at one of them,
0:03:21 > 0:03:23'Glenfiddich, to find out why.'
0:03:26 > 0:03:27- Jennifer, hello. - Hello, nice to meet you.
0:03:27 > 0:03:29Good to see you. What a stunning place.
0:03:29 > 0:03:31Beautiful setting in the hills.
0:03:31 > 0:03:34Why is it that great whisky is made here?
0:03:34 > 0:03:37Well, pretty much from what you can see, the surrounding countryside
0:03:37 > 0:03:40helps supply us with the barley that we need for the malt.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42It also gives us the water that we need,
0:03:42 > 0:03:44so the vital ingredients for making whisky.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46Originally, this area was perfect, as well,
0:03:46 > 0:03:47because of the transport links,
0:03:47 > 0:03:49so there's a great deal of railways in the area
0:03:49 > 0:03:52that could transport things that we didn't have here onto the site,
0:03:52 > 0:03:54but it also meant that we could take the finished product
0:03:54 > 0:03:57of the whisky off and then eventually transport it
0:03:57 > 0:03:58all around Scotland.
0:03:58 > 0:04:01And it's not just an historic thing. You're still making it today.
0:04:01 > 0:04:02Yes, we are.
0:04:02 > 0:04:07In 1886, founder William Grant set out to fulfil a lifelong ambition
0:04:07 > 0:04:10of creating the best dram in the valley.
0:04:11 > 0:04:14With the help of his seven sons and two daughters,
0:04:14 > 0:04:18William built his distillery in a single year.
0:04:18 > 0:04:22Their hard work was rewarded on Christmas Day 1887,
0:04:22 > 0:04:24when the first drop of spirit flowed.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28William named his distillery Glenfiddich,
0:04:28 > 0:04:30Gaelic for Valley of the Deer.
0:04:31 > 0:04:34What actually is distilling?
0:04:34 > 0:04:37Well, basically what we're trying to do is refine a beer-like liquid
0:04:37 > 0:04:41into a spirit that we can go on to put through the maturation process
0:04:41 > 0:04:44and eventually that will become whisky.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48Malted barley, water and yeast are the ingredients.
0:04:48 > 0:04:52Scotch malt whisky is produced from a natural chemical alteration
0:04:52 > 0:04:56of wort, a sugary liquid which is fermented in vats,
0:04:56 > 0:05:01then distilled in copper stills and finally matured in wooden casks.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04Would this be recognisable to a Victorian?
0:05:04 > 0:05:07Yeah. I mean, it's certainly larger in terms of its scale,
0:05:07 > 0:05:10but the process hasn't really changed a great deal over the years.
0:05:10 > 0:05:12The railways, then. What difference did they make?
0:05:12 > 0:05:15Well, essentially, all distilleries at that time
0:05:15 > 0:05:16pretty much had their own sidings
0:05:16 > 0:05:20and there was a lot more train lines, railway lines put in
0:05:20 > 0:05:23specifically for transporting goods like whisky,
0:05:23 > 0:05:25so really it was fundamental to the distilleries
0:05:25 > 0:05:27that these lines were put in place.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30Was there any downside to having the railways?
0:05:30 > 0:05:31There were a few, yeah.
0:05:31 > 0:05:34I mean, the most noticeable would have been the theft they found
0:05:34 > 0:05:37that happened from the trains themselves.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41Distillers, they kind of accounted for a certain amount of loss,
0:05:41 > 0:05:43but the trains often were very slow,
0:05:43 > 0:05:46and they would take a day or two to get from somewhere like Dufftown
0:05:46 > 0:05:49down to Glasgow, where the whisky was actually going to be going to.
0:05:49 > 0:05:51During that time, a lot of the time would be spent
0:05:51 > 0:05:53in very remote sidings, so they were unprotected.
0:05:53 > 0:05:55It was very easy for people to go and siphon off
0:05:55 > 0:05:57a little bit of whisky and take it home.
0:05:57 > 0:06:00Oh, I see. So they weren't taking a whole barrel,
0:06:00 > 0:06:01which would be quite challenging.
0:06:01 > 0:06:03No, they were just siphoning it off a cask,
0:06:03 > 0:06:05usually only a very small amount,
0:06:05 > 0:06:08enough for themselves, or maybe them and their friends.
0:06:08 > 0:06:10It wasn't huge quantities people were taking.
0:06:11 > 0:06:15I'm intrigued by these Victorian whisky thefts, and wonder whether
0:06:15 > 0:06:19Ian Macdonald, Glenfiddich's master cooper, can show me how it was done.
0:06:22 > 0:06:23Ian.
0:06:23 > 0:06:25Hello, Michael. How are you doing?
0:06:25 > 0:06:26- Very well.- Nice to meet you.
0:06:26 > 0:06:27This is a first for me.
0:06:27 > 0:06:29I don't think I've ever met a cooper before.
0:06:29 > 0:06:30That's what you are, isn't it?
0:06:30 > 0:06:32Yes. I'm what they term a Master Cooper.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35I served a five year apprenticeship to become a craftsman.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Ian, I'm thinking about my retirement,
0:06:37 > 0:06:41and I was thinking of turning to a little whisky theft in my old days,
0:06:41 > 0:06:44and I've been hearing a bit about it.
0:06:44 > 0:06:45How would I set about it then?
0:06:45 > 0:06:49We'll remove a hoop, we'll bore a hole and remove a bung
0:06:49 > 0:06:53and hopefully we can extract some of the good old whisky that way.
0:06:53 > 0:06:54Great. I can't wait.
0:06:54 > 0:06:56- Right, well.- Right.
0:06:56 > 0:07:00OK, so what we'll do is just use a boring brace.
0:07:00 > 0:07:02Would you like to have a shot?
0:07:02 > 0:07:03Yep, let me have a shot at that.
0:07:03 > 0:07:06Put a wee bit of pressure on and twist it round at the same time.
0:07:06 > 0:07:07That's it.
0:07:07 > 0:07:12American oak is quite a hard oak, so you do need a really sharp bit.
0:07:12 > 0:07:13Do you think anyone's spotted us yet?
0:07:13 > 0:07:17No, I don't think so. I'll keep an eye out. You're OK.
0:07:17 > 0:07:19I can see the shavings of wood coming out.
0:07:19 > 0:07:20That's right.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Whoa, we're through.
0:07:22 > 0:07:23We'll create a vacuum.
0:07:25 > 0:07:26Not too noisy.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28Whoa, there she flows!
0:07:28 > 0:07:29OK, here we go! Tilt her back.
0:07:29 > 0:07:31Oh, that is magnificent!
0:07:31 > 0:07:32You're spilling a bit there, Ian,
0:07:32 > 0:07:35but it doesn't matter as long as we get our bottle full.
0:07:35 > 0:07:37Are you paying?
0:07:37 > 0:07:38OK, up you go.
0:07:38 > 0:07:40Right, what do we do now to cover our crime?
0:07:40 > 0:07:41Oh, no problem.
0:07:41 > 0:07:43We'll just plug the hole.
0:07:50 > 0:07:52Look at that.
0:07:52 > 0:07:54So we'll just replace the hoop.
0:08:02 > 0:08:04That's it back on. Never know.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06It's as good as new, isn't it?
0:08:06 > 0:08:08It's just as well you work for the forces of law and order!
0:08:08 > 0:08:11Well, I'll just give you a wee souvenir.
0:08:11 > 0:08:12Thank you.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18Tastes all the better for being purloined.
0:08:18 > 0:08:19Good.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24Feeling both warm and mischievous,
0:08:24 > 0:08:27I'm proceeding by road to my next destination,
0:08:27 > 0:08:29the Speyside village of Aberlour.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32Thomas Telford, the renowned civil engineer,
0:08:32 > 0:08:34designed Craigellachie Bridge,
0:08:34 > 0:08:37spanning the River Spey about two miles north,
0:08:38 > 0:08:41but I'm in Aberlour for a different reason.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45Bradshaw's tells me that at Craigellachie,
0:08:45 > 0:08:50"the rail system divides into two, one of which runs along Strathspey,
0:08:50 > 0:08:54"the valley which gives its name to a highland dance,
0:08:54 > 0:08:58"passing in its route the station of Aberlour."
0:08:58 > 0:09:00Well, the station no longer has any trains.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02Nowadays, it's a cafe, feeding
0:09:02 > 0:09:07hungry Strathspey tourists taking a short break with shortbread.
0:09:10 > 0:09:15In 1898, Joseph Walker, a baker with a passion for shortbread,
0:09:15 > 0:09:18borrowed £50 and opened a shop.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21More than a century later, his shortbread,
0:09:21 > 0:09:26a blend of flour, butter, sugar and salt, is sold in 80 countries
0:09:26 > 0:09:30and its factory produces 500 million shortbreads a year.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35Joseph's grandson Jim is a joint managing director.
0:09:37 > 0:09:38- Hello, Michael.- Hello, Jim.
0:09:38 > 0:09:40- Welcome to Walker's, welcome. - Thank you very much.
0:09:40 > 0:09:41Come in, come in.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44The changing room second on your left,
0:09:44 > 0:09:47and we'll get togged up to go into the factory.
0:09:47 > 0:09:49Jim, Scotland really is
0:09:49 > 0:09:52enormously associated with shortbread, isn't it?
0:09:52 > 0:09:53Why do you think that is?
0:09:53 > 0:09:55Well, shortbread is one of those foods
0:09:55 > 0:09:57that is synonymous with Scotland, Michael.
0:09:57 > 0:10:00Scots can readily claim to have invented shortbread,
0:10:00 > 0:10:03and it's really always been part of Scotland,
0:10:03 > 0:10:05it's part of the heritage.
0:10:05 > 0:10:07The distances here are huge, aren't they?
0:10:07 > 0:10:12Yes, indeed. It seems a long way. The ovens are 60 metres long.
0:10:12 > 0:10:15And does the heat vary at different places in the oven?
0:10:15 > 0:10:17Yes, indeed. The heat varies right through the oven,
0:10:17 > 0:10:23so we end up at the end with a nice flash of hotter temperature
0:10:23 > 0:10:24to make the shortbread a nice golden brown,
0:10:24 > 0:10:26because that's exactly how it should be.
0:10:26 > 0:10:29- I'm going to introduce you to Pauline.- Pauline, hello.
0:10:29 > 0:10:30- Hello. Pleased to meet you. - You too.
0:10:30 > 0:10:33May I have a pair of gloves and then I can join in your work?
0:10:33 > 0:10:35Indeed, yes.
0:10:35 > 0:10:38- If you take two of the trays. - Two trays.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41And then place three thistles in each of the compartments.
0:10:42 > 0:10:43Two, three.
0:10:44 > 0:10:45Two, three.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48One, two, three.
0:10:48 > 0:10:50This is like waltzing, isn't it? One, two, three.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54We got an empty one there, whoa!
0:10:54 > 0:10:56Sometimes its easier to do two at a time.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59- Oh, is it? Right. What, left hand, right hand?- Exactly.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02OK. Let's try the double-handed approach.
0:11:02 > 0:11:04- One, two...- Do it simultaneously. - ..three.
0:11:05 > 0:11:06One, two...
0:11:08 > 0:11:09..three.
0:11:09 > 0:11:11They go past pretty fast, don't they, Pauline?
0:11:11 > 0:11:13They do, really.
0:11:13 > 0:11:14You'll be a natural.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17This is a merciless process!
0:11:17 > 0:11:19Stop the conveyor belt! I want to get off!
0:11:21 > 0:11:24Shortbread has been attributed to Mary, Queen of Scots,
0:11:24 > 0:11:25who, in the mid-16th century,
0:11:25 > 0:11:28was said to be very fond of Petticoat Tails,
0:11:28 > 0:11:30a thin, crisp, buttery shortbread
0:11:30 > 0:11:33originally flavoured with caraway seeds.
0:11:34 > 0:11:38My next task is to feed 21st century shortbread
0:11:38 > 0:11:39into its wrapping machine.
0:11:41 > 0:11:43The two-handed technique.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46They're coming pretty fast and furious just at the moment.
0:11:46 > 0:11:47Get in there! Get in there!
0:11:47 > 0:11:50- You've really got to keep your wits about you, haven't you?- You do.
0:11:50 > 0:11:51They're coming...
0:11:51 > 0:11:53You've got to be one step ahead the whole time.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57I'm going to have to leave a gap there. I missed a few there.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00It's like that nightmare in The Sorcerer's Apprentice, isn't it,
0:12:00 > 0:12:04where you unleash forces that you cannot control
0:12:05 > 0:12:09and they descend relentlessly upon you.
0:12:09 > 0:12:12The demands of mechanisation cannot be assuaged.
0:12:13 > 0:12:15Is there anyone to take over?
0:12:15 > 0:12:17Phew, what a relief. Thank you very much.
0:12:19 > 0:12:20Hello.
0:12:20 > 0:12:23Now this looks to me like the ultimate raw deal.
0:12:26 > 0:12:27Oh!
0:12:27 > 0:12:29Got to be pretty nimble.
0:12:30 > 0:12:32Ah!
0:12:33 > 0:12:34Thank you very much.
0:12:34 > 0:12:36Oh, no!
0:12:36 > 0:12:40This is definitely the worst ordeal I've been set today.
0:12:40 > 0:12:41This is...
0:12:44 > 0:12:46Help! Somebody, help!
0:12:50 > 0:12:51Well, Jim, I really enjoyed that,
0:12:51 > 0:12:53and I've done a lot of factory visits,
0:12:53 > 0:12:55and I'm not trying to butter you up,
0:12:55 > 0:12:57but this one really took the biscuit.
0:12:57 > 0:13:00Well, that's what we're all about, Michael. Thank you.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03'I've had a busy time learning about two of Scotland's
0:13:03 > 0:13:05'finest Victorian products,
0:13:05 > 0:13:08'and I'm hoping that at my final stop of the day
0:13:08 > 0:13:09'I can sample them both.'
0:13:11 > 0:13:12Ah, good evening.
0:13:12 > 0:13:13Hi, there.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15I see your pub's called The Mash Tun. What does that mean?
0:13:15 > 0:13:18That's correct. Well, a Mash Tun is a large receptacle used
0:13:18 > 0:13:20in the whisky-making industry.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23It's somewhere that they used to mix up all the ingredients,
0:13:23 > 0:13:26hence a good name for a pub.
0:13:26 > 0:13:28And I see that you stand just behind the railway station.
0:13:28 > 0:13:30Any connection with the railways?
0:13:30 > 0:13:33Yeah. This used to be the station refreshment rooms, initially,
0:13:33 > 0:13:38and then, obviously, once the railway station closed down in '65,
0:13:38 > 0:13:40it was then renamed The Mash Tun.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44After the day that I've had, could I have a glass
0:13:44 > 0:13:47of your local malt whisky and a stick of shortbread, please.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48Certainly.
0:13:49 > 0:13:50Thank you.
0:13:50 > 0:13:51There we are.
0:13:51 > 0:13:54Now, do not try this at home.
0:13:56 > 0:13:57Ah!
0:13:58 > 0:14:02A rush of sugar, butter and alcohol.
0:14:12 > 0:14:14'Refreshed and ready for the day ahead,
0:14:14 > 0:14:18'I'm continuing my journey by train from my nearest station, Keith.'
0:14:21 > 0:14:24'This small area of Scotland is known as the golden triangle,
0:14:24 > 0:14:28'because of the pure local water which allows companies to flourish
0:14:28 > 0:14:30'despite their remote location.
0:14:31 > 0:14:35'Today, I'll visit another industry that also benefited greatly
0:14:35 > 0:14:37'from the arrival of the railways.'
0:14:40 > 0:14:44My first destination today is Elgin, which my Bradshaw's tells me is
0:14:44 > 0:14:47"a borough five miles from the sea on the River Lossie.
0:14:47 > 0:14:52"It contains five chapels, a prison, a library, assembly rooms,
0:14:52 > 0:14:55"literary and horticultural societies, breweries,
0:14:55 > 0:14:58"gas and water works, woollen factory,
0:14:58 > 0:15:00"grammar school and free school."
0:15:00 > 0:15:05Now, amongst those, I know that the woollen factory still exists,
0:15:05 > 0:15:07so no material change there.
0:15:10 > 0:15:15'Elgin was a favourite hunting ground of early Scottish monarchs.
0:15:15 > 0:15:16'With its ancient cathedral
0:15:16 > 0:15:18'and lying either side of the River Lossie,
0:15:18 > 0:15:21'it grew steadily throughout the medieval period,
0:15:22 > 0:15:25'until by the 17th century it boasted fine buildings
0:15:25 > 0:15:28'that reflected the prosperity of its merchants.
0:15:30 > 0:15:34'When the railways arrived in the 1850s, business in the town boomed,
0:15:34 > 0:15:38'and firms like cloth manufacturers Johnstons of Elgin blossomed.
0:15:40 > 0:15:41'James Sugden is a director.'
0:15:45 > 0:15:47- James, hello.- Good morning.
0:15:47 > 0:15:49Michael, good to see you.
0:15:49 > 0:15:52You're lost in your archives, I can see, which is not surprising
0:15:52 > 0:15:55because your company goes all the way back to 1797.
0:15:55 > 0:16:00Why was it that the woollen industry took off in this particular place,
0:16:00 > 0:16:01quite a remote place?
0:16:01 > 0:16:04We had a local supply of fibre from our sheep,
0:16:04 > 0:16:08and we had, also, that very important ingredient - water.
0:16:08 > 0:16:10Soft, Scottish water.
0:16:10 > 0:16:14During the 19th century, what were the developments in the business?
0:16:14 > 0:16:16James Johnston made tweed for the local market.
0:16:16 > 0:16:21As time went on, he moved into finer fibres, and with the advent of
0:16:21 > 0:16:25Queen Victoria, we moved into design fabrics, particularly tartans,
0:16:25 > 0:16:27and then the local estate tweeds.
0:16:27 > 0:16:31Because Queen Victoria actually rescues the tartan
0:16:31 > 0:16:33from being a, kind of, banned thing
0:16:33 > 0:16:36to being a fashion item in a short period of time.
0:16:36 > 0:16:38Yes, she made it very fashionable,
0:16:38 > 0:16:42and we produced a lot of tartan and still do, but the other thing
0:16:42 > 0:16:44that her advent to this district brought
0:16:44 > 0:16:46was this estate tweed business,
0:16:46 > 0:16:50making bespoke design fabrics for the upper class.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53This is what the servants wore indoors,
0:16:53 > 0:16:55but I suppose what they wore on the moors, as well?
0:16:55 > 0:16:57The ghillies, the keepers, the stalkers,
0:16:57 > 0:16:59they wanted camouflage,
0:16:59 > 0:17:01but then they also wanted fabrics that were distinctive
0:17:01 > 0:17:04and so, often, the wives of the laird would insist on
0:17:04 > 0:17:06little quirky over-checks and colourings
0:17:06 > 0:17:09that were perhaps not just camouflage,
0:17:09 > 0:17:12but were their own idiosyncratic designs.
0:17:12 > 0:17:14When did you get your railway here?
0:17:14 > 0:17:171852, and that's when our export business really took off.
0:17:17 > 0:17:22I think in the next 40 years, our turnover went up by eight times
0:17:22 > 0:17:25and it was all based on the export business,
0:17:25 > 0:17:27but export in those days could have been considered London.
0:17:27 > 0:17:31And does that impact of the railways show up in your archives?
0:17:31 > 0:17:35This was 1859, and here's a customer in London still in existence,
0:17:35 > 0:17:37A Gagniere & Company, who are cloth merchants,
0:17:37 > 0:17:41and there's a lovely entry here which says "by rail all the way",
0:17:41 > 0:17:45so that cloth came off the mill here, was taken to Elgin station
0:17:45 > 0:17:48and went all the way to London, probably within a couple of days.
0:17:48 > 0:17:501859.
0:17:50 > 0:17:521859. Great.
0:17:52 > 0:17:56James Johnston seized the opportunities afforded
0:17:56 > 0:17:59by the railway, and also expanded his business
0:17:59 > 0:18:04by negotiating a supply of a fine thread first made popular in Europe
0:18:04 > 0:18:07some years earlier, by Napoleon Bonaparte.
0:18:07 > 0:18:09What's this book showing us?
0:18:09 > 0:18:13This ledger here shows us the first purchase of cashmere fibre...
0:18:13 > 0:18:14Ah!
0:18:14 > 0:18:18..which was really James Johnston's first venture
0:18:18 > 0:18:20into exotic soft handling fibres,
0:18:20 > 0:18:25and this was in 1850 from a company called A Buxton in London.
0:18:26 > 0:18:30And cashmere, this is a goat?
0:18:30 > 0:18:34It's a goat, largely bred in Mongolia,
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and it's the soft underfleece of the animal,
0:18:37 > 0:18:43so when the fleece comes off the animal, 50%, 60% is coarse hair
0:18:43 > 0:18:45and the down is what we extract
0:18:45 > 0:18:48to make, obviously, what people know as cashmere today.
0:18:48 > 0:18:49This is cashmere?
0:18:49 > 0:18:52That's pure cashmere from Mongolia, this is our raw material today.
0:18:52 > 0:18:55Most of our raw material comes from that area.
0:18:55 > 0:18:56Hmm, it is very, very soft.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59And is that the finest thing you do now?
0:18:59 > 0:19:02No, we do have one other fibre called Vicuna,
0:19:02 > 0:19:03which I'll show you a sample of.
0:19:06 > 0:19:07That's lovely soft stuff.
0:19:07 > 0:19:09Is that more expensive than the cashmere?
0:19:09 > 0:19:12Yes, it's ten times the price of cashmere.
0:19:12 > 0:19:13Ten times.
0:19:13 > 0:19:16And cashmere's ten times the price of wool.
0:19:16 > 0:19:17Lovely.
0:19:17 > 0:19:19Your company clearly has an amazing history,
0:19:19 > 0:19:21but also, I think, a present and future,
0:19:21 > 0:19:23and I'm going to go and look at your factory. Thank you so much.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25- Thank you for coming, Michael. - Bye.
0:19:28 > 0:19:29'As with many companies,
0:19:29 > 0:19:33'its success relies on the stability and loyalty of its workforce.'
0:19:35 > 0:19:37'Generations of the same families
0:19:37 > 0:19:39'have trodden the floors of this factory.
0:19:40 > 0:19:42'They've taken raw fibre
0:19:42 > 0:19:44'through every stage of the production process
0:19:44 > 0:19:50'from design to weaving, to dyeing, to hand-crafted finishing.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58'Yarn Manager Mike Matheson is from such a family.'
0:20:01 > 0:20:03- Hello.- Hello.
0:20:03 > 0:20:06- You have the most wonderful colours here.- Yes.
0:20:06 > 0:20:09Beautiful dyes. Have you been in the business very long?
0:20:09 > 0:20:12Yes, I've worked here since I left school, since I was 16,
0:20:12 > 0:20:15served my apprenticeship here,
0:20:15 > 0:20:18for 36 years I've been with Johnstons.
0:20:18 > 0:20:21Congratulations. Were you an Elgin man, born and bred?
0:20:21 > 0:20:24Yes, born and bred just up the road near Elgin.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29My family are all Elginners, come from Elgin.
0:20:29 > 0:20:31Any of them in the business before you?
0:20:33 > 0:20:36Erm, yes, my great-auntie was here in the '50s, and then my mother,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39she started here in the '60s and I started here mid '70s.
0:20:39 > 0:20:42Will it go on through your family, do you think?
0:20:42 > 0:20:45Yes, my daughter, my younger daughter, she's 24
0:20:45 > 0:20:47and she works in the dye house,
0:20:47 > 0:20:49so we're following on a sort of a family tradition,
0:20:49 > 0:20:51of one of us being in Johnstons.
0:20:51 > 0:20:53Well, let's hope it goes on for a long time yet.
0:20:53 > 0:20:55- Thank you.- Bye, now.- Bye.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00I wonder whether, even in a state-of-the-art textile house,
0:21:00 > 0:21:02fine knitwear requires a human touch,
0:21:02 > 0:21:05in its design and its finishing.
0:21:05 > 0:21:07Marketing assistant Kirsty Cunningham should know.
0:21:09 > 0:21:11During the 19th century,
0:21:11 > 0:21:14the company was having to adapt to new tastes and demands.
0:21:14 > 0:21:16Is it the same today?
0:21:16 > 0:21:20Absolutely. We're very fortunate to have a big team of designers
0:21:20 > 0:21:23based here in Elgin, woven designers, and we also have
0:21:23 > 0:21:26a set of designers in our knitwear factory in Hawick
0:21:26 > 0:21:30and both teams work really hard to keep up with
0:21:30 > 0:21:33the fashions of today, but at the same time they're very fortunate,
0:21:33 > 0:21:35especially the designers here in Elgin,
0:21:35 > 0:21:38as they have fantastic resources like our archive room
0:21:38 > 0:21:41where they can look through manuscripts
0:21:41 > 0:21:45or swatches of fabric that date back to the 1800s.
0:21:45 > 0:21:47And when you are exporting, do you think that it's helpful
0:21:47 > 0:21:51not only that you're Scottish, but that it's a rural Scottish industry?
0:21:51 > 0:21:53Yeah, I think definitely.
0:21:53 > 0:21:56I think buyers today look for authenticity of product
0:21:56 > 0:21:59and I think we're very lucky in that our product is 100% made in Scotland
0:21:59 > 0:22:02and it has been for 215 years.
0:22:02 > 0:22:05So, in spite of all these fantastic machines
0:22:05 > 0:22:08we have in the factory nowadays, Michael,
0:22:08 > 0:22:11one thing that is very special to Johnstons of Elgin
0:22:11 > 0:22:15- is the teasel head. - The teasel?- Yes.
0:22:15 > 0:22:18Now, we use these teasels to raise the pile of the cashmere
0:22:18 > 0:22:21during the finishing process.
0:22:21 > 0:22:23Now, if you look, you'll see there's very small little hooks
0:22:23 > 0:22:25- on the end of the teasel.- Yeah.
0:22:25 > 0:22:28And it's those hooks that lift up the pile of the fabric,
0:22:28 > 0:22:30and create that lovely rippled effect,
0:22:30 > 0:22:32so if you look at this piece of cashmere here,
0:22:32 > 0:22:35- you'll notice there's almost a ripple...- Yes.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37..and a shine, and that comes from the teasel.
0:22:37 > 0:22:39And you've found nothing better?
0:22:39 > 0:22:41Nothing that will replace the teasel.
0:22:41 > 0:22:42And where do you get these things?
0:22:42 > 0:22:44We buy these from Spain.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46So in the land of the Scottish thistle
0:22:46 > 0:22:49- you need the help of the Spanish teasel?- Indeed.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57'Cutting it fine, I'm bound now for Inverness
0:22:57 > 0:22:59'where I'll change trains.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11'I'm now directed south to the winter resort of Aviemore
0:23:11 > 0:23:14'along one of the most picturesque lines in Scotland.'
0:23:18 > 0:23:20Hi, I'm Michael, pleased to meet you.
0:23:24 > 0:23:28This main line from Inverness down to Edinburgh hadn't been built
0:23:28 > 0:23:29when my Bradshaw's was published,
0:23:29 > 0:23:32and my guidebook gives me a clue as to why.
0:23:32 > 0:23:34It says of Inverness-shire that
0:23:34 > 0:23:38"The surface is, in general, extremely rugged and uneven,
0:23:38 > 0:23:42"consisting of vast ranges of mountains separated from each other
0:23:42 > 0:23:45"by narrow and deep valleys."
0:23:45 > 0:23:48So no wonder the railway was constructed so late,
0:23:48 > 0:23:52and there's no better place to get an idea of the challenge
0:23:52 > 0:23:56presented to the railway engineer by this terrain
0:23:56 > 0:23:57than in the driver's cab.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05I'm riding the famous Inverness to Aviemore direct line.
0:24:05 > 0:24:10It was opened in the 1890s to cut journey times south from Inverness.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13And with two major rivers to cross
0:24:13 > 0:24:17and a mountain pass of 1,315 feet to conquer,
0:24:17 > 0:24:19building it was no mean feat.
0:24:20 > 0:24:23Gordon, I can hear the train wearying
0:24:23 > 0:24:26as it goes up this steep gradient.
0:24:26 > 0:24:28Do you ever think about what it must have been like
0:24:28 > 0:24:30for the engineers planning and building this line?
0:24:30 > 0:24:33I couldn't imagine the work that must have gone into this.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35It's a beautiful line, I must say.
0:24:35 > 0:24:37At the moment, luckily, we're not seeing snow,
0:24:37 > 0:24:39we're seeing some beautiful heather.
0:24:39 > 0:24:40We're just at the right time of year now
0:24:40 > 0:24:42to be seeing the heather coming out.
0:24:42 > 0:24:45In winter, sometimes, its like a toboggan run,
0:24:45 > 0:24:49just made for the train, because the snow is cleared for the train,
0:24:49 > 0:24:53but on either side there's maybe three, four or five feet of snow.
0:24:53 > 0:24:58This line really is a railway connoisseur's delight,
0:24:58 > 0:25:00because just outside of Inverness,
0:25:00 > 0:25:04standing to the east of the famous Culloden battlefield,
0:25:04 > 0:25:10the longest masonry viaduct in Scotland, measuring 544 metres,
0:25:10 > 0:25:11spans the River Nairn.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16This is a moment I've really been looking forward to.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20The line is descending quite steeply towards the Culloden Viaduct,
0:25:20 > 0:25:24and very often you don't get a good view of a viaduct when you're
0:25:24 > 0:25:27actually on it, but fortunately, as we approach it now, I can see it
0:25:27 > 0:25:29curving round to the right.
0:25:29 > 0:25:31I'm getting a very, very good view of it,
0:25:31 > 0:25:37and it really is a spectacular piece of architecture and engineering.
0:25:45 > 0:25:50Built over five years, using local quarry stone and completed in 1898,
0:25:50 > 0:25:52like the rest of the line,
0:25:52 > 0:25:55the Culloden viaduct was engineered by Sir John Fowler
0:25:55 > 0:25:56and Murdoch Paterson.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03I'm now headed to Aviemore to meet Anne Mary Paterson,
0:26:03 > 0:26:06who's written a biography of her great-grand-uncle.
0:26:08 > 0:26:09Hello, Anne Mary.
0:26:10 > 0:26:12Oh, hello.
0:26:12 > 0:26:13Hello, good to see you.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17So, here you are admiring your great-grand-uncle's railway line.
0:26:17 > 0:26:18That's right, yes.
0:26:18 > 0:26:22I came over that viaduct just now, and it's a great structure.
0:26:22 > 0:26:23What did he think of it?
0:26:23 > 0:26:27He thought it was his masterpiece, but by the time
0:26:27 > 0:26:33it was nearing completion, he was ill,
0:26:33 > 0:26:37because he was long past retiring age, in his early 70s,
0:26:38 > 0:26:41and he had been out in all weathers and so on
0:26:41 > 0:26:43without proper protective clothing.
0:26:43 > 0:26:46Did he get to see the viaduct completed?
0:26:46 > 0:26:48No, he didn't see it completed.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51He was staying in the station master's house at Culloden
0:26:51 > 0:26:55and he realised that he was never going to go on a train across it,
0:26:55 > 0:26:59so he asked the railwaymen if they would push him across on a bogie
0:26:59 > 0:27:02and he could look and see if everything was all right
0:27:02 > 0:27:05and give them orders about what should be done.
0:27:05 > 0:27:08So they pushed him across and back again
0:27:08 > 0:27:11and then he went to the house and he just died shortly after.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14You must be very proud of your ancestor.
0:27:14 > 0:27:15Yes, I am.
0:27:15 > 0:27:20That was why I decided that I was going to write about him.
0:27:20 > 0:27:24- Thank you, Anne Mary, very much. Bye-bye.- Bye-bye.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35Small towns in northern Scotland are home to major industries
0:27:35 > 0:27:39that grew rapidly once the railways reached them.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42The worldwide fame that they've since acquired
0:27:42 > 0:27:43hasn't gone to their head.
0:27:46 > 0:27:48They remain proudly Scottish,
0:27:48 > 0:27:51commercially independent, rooted in their historic communities
0:27:51 > 0:27:54and reliant on the skills of local people.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59'On the next leg of this journey, I ride a picturesque railway.'
0:28:00 > 0:28:03I have no words, I'm out of superlatives.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06'I visit Scotland's smallest station.'
0:28:06 > 0:28:10Nearly everyone has joined the queue to get off at the single door
0:28:10 > 0:28:13that opens on the incredibly short platform at Beauly.
0:28:13 > 0:28:16'And I go on a spa break, Victorian-style.'
0:28:17 > 0:28:21After you've been hosed down with warm, salty water,
0:28:21 > 0:28:23your doctor will probably have prescribed you
0:28:23 > 0:28:25a glass of sulphurous water.
0:28:25 > 0:28:27And would I be cured?
0:28:27 > 0:28:28You might well be.
0:28:46 > 0:28:49Subtitles by Red Bee Media