0:00:03 > 0:00:05- MICHAEL PORTILLO: - 'For Victorian Britons,
0:00:05 > 0:00:08'George Bradshaw was a household name.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11'At a time when railways were new,
0:00:11 > 0:00:13'Bradshaw's guide book inspired them
0:00:13 > 0:00:15'to take to the tracks.'
0:00:15 > 0:00:19I'm using a Bradshaw's Guide to understand how trains transformed
0:00:19 > 0:00:25Britain - its landscape, its industry, society and leisure time.
0:00:25 > 0:00:29As I crisscross the country 150 years later,
0:00:29 > 0:00:33it helps me to discover the Britain of today.
0:00:57 > 0:01:00I'm now completing my journey from the East Midlands
0:01:00 > 0:01:02to England's North East.
0:01:02 > 0:01:07Those fathers of the railway, George and Robert Stephenson,
0:01:07 > 0:01:11were Tynesiders, and many of their early locomotives, including Rocket,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14were built in their Newcastle works.
0:01:14 > 0:01:16Today, I'll look at engineering
0:01:16 > 0:01:19not so much on the Tyne as over the Tyne,
0:01:19 > 0:01:23and see the works that grace the banks of the river now.
0:01:29 > 0:01:32'Following my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:01:32 > 0:01:35'my journey this week has taken me up the spine of England,
0:01:35 > 0:01:38'from the East Midlands to the rugged Pennine hills,
0:01:38 > 0:01:41'and across the West Yorkshire Riding.
0:01:42 > 0:01:44'Heading up the coast,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47'I visited the conurbations neighbouring the North Sea.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51'I'll end my journey on the island of Lindisfarne.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55'On today's leg, I explore one of England's most beautiful
0:01:55 > 0:01:58'and rugged counties - Northumberland.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01'Beginning in Newcastle, I'll travel up the coast to Alnmouth,
0:02:01 > 0:02:04'before taking a boat to the Farne Islands.
0:02:04 > 0:02:07'My final stop will be Lindisfarne.
0:02:09 > 0:02:13'I discover the earliest-surviving water-powered swing bridge....'
0:02:13 > 0:02:16Yeah. We have no brakes, so it's a guessing game.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20'..I'm humbled by the courage of a Victorian heroine...'
0:02:20 > 0:02:24- All of this in the tumultuous sea and wind and rain?- Absolutely.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27'..and learn about the science of lime burning.'
0:02:27 > 0:02:31- MAN:- The temperatures are anything between 1,200 and 1,500 degrees centigrade at this level.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46Bradshaw says that, "Newcastle has rapidly increased in its dimensions
0:02:46 > 0:02:49"since the commencement of the present century.
0:02:49 > 0:02:51"Its situation, on the navigable river
0:02:51 > 0:02:55"and in the greatest coal district in the world, are the chief causes."
0:02:55 > 0:03:00I want to see how Victorian engineers applied their expertise
0:03:00 > 0:03:04not only on the banks of the Tyne, but to the torrent itself.
0:03:07 > 0:03:12'Newcastle's history stretches back almost 2,000 years, during which
0:03:12 > 0:03:16'time it's been controlled by the Romans, Saxons and Danes.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19'Its pride and prize is the River Tyne.
0:03:19 > 0:03:21'In the 19th century,
0:03:21 > 0:03:24'its shipbuilding yards were some of the busiest in the world.'
0:03:29 > 0:03:33- Hello.- Sir. I'm a great, great fan. - Thank you.- Brilliant.
0:03:33 > 0:03:34- Just keep it up.- Thank you.
0:03:41 > 0:03:43'In the mid-19th century,
0:03:43 > 0:03:47'Newcastle engineer Sir William Armstrong harnessed the power
0:03:47 > 0:03:50'of water to develop the first hydraulic crane
0:03:50 > 0:03:52'and hydroelectric light.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56'A visionary inventor, scientist and businessman,
0:03:56 > 0:04:00'he employed over 25,000 people at his Elswick works
0:04:00 > 0:04:02'on the north bank of the Tyne.'
0:04:08 > 0:04:12'I'm meeting biographer and historian Henrietta Heald,
0:04:12 > 0:04:15'who's written about Armstrong's life.'
0:04:16 > 0:04:19My guidebook has an interesting description of the Tyne
0:04:19 > 0:04:21in the mid-19th century.
0:04:21 > 0:04:23"The coal, being brought to the waterside by railway,
0:04:23 > 0:04:26"is shot through staves into the holds of vessels
0:04:26 > 0:04:31"or carried down-river in barges and shovelled on board."
0:04:31 > 0:04:35Apparently, then, the process of getting coal onto the ships
0:04:35 > 0:04:38was cumbersome and I believe William Armstrong did something to solve it.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41Yes, he certainly did. He invented the hydraulic crane,
0:04:41 > 0:04:45which completely revolutionised the loading and unloading of ships.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48- Hydraulic implies water.- Yes.
0:04:48 > 0:04:50He was fascinated, all the way through his life,
0:04:50 > 0:04:53with the use of water as the motive power.
0:04:53 > 0:04:55And so, once he found a way
0:04:55 > 0:04:57of getting water to the Newcastle quayside,
0:04:57 > 0:05:00he then persuaded the city fathers to let him
0:05:00 > 0:05:01experiment with the crane.
0:05:01 > 0:05:04And he'd already worked out the technology for it,
0:05:04 > 0:05:07which was really concentrating the water into a single column.
0:05:07 > 0:05:09So, if he could get a good head of water coming through a pipe,
0:05:09 > 0:05:13it would give him the means of then using the weight of the water
0:05:13 > 0:05:16to lift very heavy weights.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19'Some of Armstrong's experiments were carried out
0:05:19 > 0:05:22'at his country home at Cragside.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26'He used the water from his lakes to drive his household machinery
0:05:26 > 0:05:29'hydraulically, including the kitchen's roasting spit.'
0:05:31 > 0:05:35How significant was the invention of the hydraulic crane?
0:05:35 > 0:05:37Well, I mean, it was revolutionary.
0:05:37 > 0:05:41And not just in Britain, but it was actually all over the world,
0:05:41 > 0:05:44when you think of the processes that it could make more efficient.
0:05:44 > 0:05:49'Armstrong's hydraulic crane was then rapidly adopted
0:05:49 > 0:05:52'by railways and ports across the world.
0:05:52 > 0:05:54'The decks of London's Tower Bridge
0:05:54 > 0:05:58'were raised by development of his hydraulic technology.
0:05:59 > 0:06:02'But perhaps he's most famous locally for the Swing Bridge,
0:06:02 > 0:06:06'which he invented and subsidised.'
0:06:06 > 0:06:09He wanted to have a shipyard at his works at Elswick,
0:06:09 > 0:06:12which are 12 miles from the sea.
0:06:12 > 0:06:15And he had to go beyond Newcastle, upriver from Newcastle.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17And the bridge that was here at the time
0:06:17 > 0:06:19was an 18th-century stone arch bridge,
0:06:19 > 0:06:22and there's no way you can get a ship through that.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25So, he persuaded Newcastle to demolish that bridge
0:06:25 > 0:06:28and replace it with a swing bridge, which would just swing open,
0:06:28 > 0:06:30and a ship could go either side.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35'The Elswick works began production in 1847,
0:06:35 > 0:06:37'and business developed swiftly.
0:06:38 > 0:06:41'The works made everything, from hydraulic machinery,
0:06:41 > 0:06:43'ammunition for field guns and warships,
0:06:43 > 0:06:46'and later the ships themselves.
0:06:46 > 0:06:51'When Armstrong died on 27 December 1900 at the age of 90,
0:06:51 > 0:06:53'the Times wrote in his obituary,
0:06:53 > 0:06:57'"With his death, Newcastle loses her greatest citizen."
0:06:59 > 0:07:03'I'd like to pay tribute to this visionary
0:07:03 > 0:07:07'Victorian engineer by visiting his swing bridge.'
0:07:09 > 0:07:14- Steve.- Hello.- Michael.- Hello there. - Very good to see you.
0:07:14 > 0:07:16A wonderful array of old machinery.
0:07:16 > 0:07:19Is the thing much as it was in William Armstrong's time?
0:07:19 > 0:07:20It certainly is.
0:07:20 > 0:07:22Everything's original, down to the pipework,
0:07:22 > 0:07:24the engine, the gearbox, the whole lot.
0:07:24 > 0:07:27Wow. It was originally steam-powered.
0:07:27 > 0:07:31- I imagine it isn't today.- Electric. - Electric?- Yeah.
0:07:31 > 0:07:36We've moved from steam in 1956, I believe, to the electric motor,
0:07:36 > 0:07:38which is obviously more efficient.
0:07:38 > 0:07:39I don't quite understand.
0:07:39 > 0:07:42How do you convert the weight of water
0:07:42 > 0:07:46into a bridge that swings around a circle?
0:07:46 > 0:07:49Well, we'll have a water accumulator,
0:07:49 > 0:07:52- which funnily enough you're actually standing on the lid of.- Oh, right.
0:07:52 > 0:07:56So, we pump a large weight to the top of a ram -
0:07:56 > 0:07:59it's about 65 tonnes, actually.
0:07:59 > 0:08:04This weight's held with a valve at the bottom,
0:08:04 > 0:08:08and as soon as you open that valve, you have 65 tonnes of hydraulic
0:08:08 > 0:08:13water pressure acting through the pipework onto this engine.
0:08:13 > 0:08:16- Any chance we could have a go with it?- Certainly. Why not?
0:08:26 > 0:08:28Ha. Well, Steve, even though this is
0:08:28 > 0:08:31one of the lower bridges on the Tyne,
0:08:31 > 0:08:34- you have a wonderful view from here, don't you?- Yes.- Commanding.
0:08:34 > 0:08:38It's quite nice. You can see the Tyne Bridge, etc. It's pretty good.
0:08:38 > 0:08:42And you make the bridge work with these really quite small levers?
0:08:42 > 0:08:46Yes. These three levers here, and that one there,
0:08:46 > 0:08:49and that's all we'll have up here to work this bridge.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51I'll now lift the bridge ends up.
0:08:56 > 0:08:58And you can feel when they're there...
0:09:00 > 0:09:02..just by the handle. They're there.
0:09:02 > 0:09:05Blocks clear. If you would like to move that one to there,
0:09:05 > 0:09:08that'll pull our blocks out.
0:09:08 > 0:09:11You can sense what's happening...
0:09:13 > 0:09:16WATER FLOWS
0:09:16 > 0:09:19- ..as the system fills. - Gurgling sound.
0:09:19 > 0:09:23Excellent. Now, let's spin her round.
0:09:23 > 0:09:28So, we'll check the coast is clear, which it is.
0:09:28 > 0:09:29And we shall go for a swing.
0:09:32 > 0:09:35WARNING ALARM
0:09:37 > 0:09:41- The bridge has begun to move.- We're OK.- Quite fast. I'm quite surprised.
0:09:41 > 0:09:43Yeah. We're OK.
0:09:43 > 0:09:46We have no brakes, so it's a guessing game.
0:09:46 > 0:09:47MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:09:51 > 0:09:54This is amazing, isn't it?
0:09:54 > 0:09:56To be spun around in the middle of the Tyne,
0:09:56 > 0:09:59getting all these tremendous views.
0:09:59 > 0:10:03- I'm just a little nervous as to how we're going to dock.- So am I.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05The bridge appears to be slowing a bit,
0:10:05 > 0:10:06so I would put a bit more gas on.
0:10:10 > 0:10:14- You're bringing it right back to its resting position.- That's correct.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17And you've got to get it just spot on.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24- This is quite a difficult bit of parking, isn't it?- It can be.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26And I believe we may have missed.
0:10:26 > 0:10:27HE LAUGHS
0:10:27 > 0:10:30I overshot six inches. Eight inches.
0:10:30 > 0:10:34So, we will have to go in reverse a very small amount.
0:10:34 > 0:10:36And off.
0:10:36 > 0:10:37And we'll be home there.
0:10:37 > 0:10:40Steelwork matches, kerbstones match.
0:10:40 > 0:10:42- And that's it.- Beautiful job!
0:10:47 > 0:10:50'I have great admiration for the simplicity
0:10:50 > 0:10:53'and beauty of Victorian engineering,
0:10:53 > 0:10:58'and I believe that we should celebrate this colossus of a man.
0:10:58 > 0:11:01'At the time of my guidebook, the signs of Newcastle's great
0:11:01 > 0:11:05'industrial and engineering heyday were everywhere.
0:11:05 > 0:11:08'The river would have been crowded with ships
0:11:08 > 0:11:12'carrying coal and supplies up and down the Tyne.
0:11:12 > 0:11:18'150 years later, Newcastle's famous bridges still span the river,
0:11:18 > 0:11:21'but the coal and shipbuilding industries are gone.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26'In their place, Newcastle and Gateshead have reinvented Tyneside,
0:11:26 > 0:11:29'with the help of striking modern structures.
0:11:29 > 0:11:33'On the Gateshead quayside, in what was formerly a flour mill,
0:11:33 > 0:11:36'is the Baltic Centre for Contemporary Art.
0:11:39 > 0:11:44'Director Godfrey Worsdale knows about its transformation.'
0:11:44 > 0:11:49Godfrey, a superb view over some of the old buildings of Newcastle,
0:11:49 > 0:11:51and some of the very strikingly new ones of Gateshead.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54And, of course, the river with now its magnificent bridges.
0:11:54 > 0:11:58What was the scene here at the time of my Bradshaw's Guide?
0:11:58 > 0:12:01This was the old Gateshead ironworks, where the
0:12:01 > 0:12:03materials were created to construct
0:12:03 > 0:12:06Robert Stephenson's High Level Bridge, which is the third along.
0:12:06 > 0:12:11And, yeah, really a place where a lot of the Industrial Revolution
0:12:11 > 0:12:13was pushed along.
0:12:13 > 0:12:15I was rather staggered to discover that this building
0:12:15 > 0:12:18is actually not a great deal older than I am.
0:12:18 > 0:12:19Mm-hm, correct.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22The flour mill was constructed either side of the Second World War,
0:12:22 > 0:12:26and is one of a number of flour mills that Rank Hovis
0:12:26 > 0:12:28built around the British coast.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31How did anyone have the idea of making an arts centre
0:12:31 > 0:12:33out of this vast space?
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Well, I think Gateshead Council need to be recognised
0:12:35 > 0:12:37as one of the most visionary
0:12:37 > 0:12:40in terms of its culture-led regeneration program.
0:12:40 > 0:12:41So, we have the Angel of the North.
0:12:41 > 0:12:44We have the Sage Gateshead concert hall.
0:12:44 > 0:12:48The idea to exploit this massive piece of architecture
0:12:48 > 0:12:53for a creative purpose was one that Gateshead invested real belief in,
0:12:53 > 0:12:55and I think that's been repaid.
0:12:56 > 0:12:59Today the Baltic is preparing to show an international
0:12:59 > 0:13:02installation by the French artist Daniel Buren,
0:13:02 > 0:13:06who's created a striking effect by mixing films
0:13:06 > 0:13:08of different colour with daylight.
0:13:09 > 0:13:13Do you have in your mind a sense of continuing to trade here?
0:13:13 > 0:13:14Absolutely.
0:13:14 > 0:13:19The way in which the mill used to bring grain from all over the world,
0:13:19 > 0:13:21now we bring art, we bring culture,
0:13:21 > 0:13:23and we show the people of this part of the UK -
0:13:23 > 0:13:26and, actually, across the whole of the UK -
0:13:26 > 0:13:28terrific examples of the best art in the world.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32'Throughout the four floors of the flour mill,
0:13:32 > 0:13:35'artworks playfully colour the Baltic.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39'Its large spaces remind us of its history
0:13:39 > 0:13:41'and make ideal galleries.'
0:13:42 > 0:13:46What strikes me - what might have struck George Bradshaw, perhaps -
0:13:46 > 0:13:50is that on Tyneside, where the artisans replaced the artists,
0:13:50 > 0:13:52it is still on the industrial scale.
0:13:52 > 0:13:56That's absolutely right, and I think this building enables us,
0:13:56 > 0:13:59as it enabled industry before,
0:13:59 > 0:14:02to do things in an impressive
0:14:02 > 0:14:03and ambitious way.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11Tyneside's ambition is evident in its Millennium Bridge,
0:14:11 > 0:14:13known affectionately as the Blinking Eye.
0:14:16 > 0:14:19I've headed back to Newcastle's Central Station,
0:14:19 > 0:14:23and the East Coast Main Line, heading north to Alnmouth.
0:14:31 > 0:14:33Thanks very much.
0:14:39 > 0:14:41- TANNOY:- Ladies and gentlemen, in a few moments
0:14:41 > 0:14:43we'll be arriving at Alnmouth.
0:14:43 > 0:14:44Alnmouth, next stop.
0:14:51 > 0:14:53'Situated on the estuary of the River Aln,
0:14:53 > 0:14:55'and close to the sea,
0:14:55 > 0:14:58'it's been an important settlement since Saxon times.
0:14:58 > 0:15:02'But it's also a peaceful setting to enjoy the evening
0:15:02 > 0:15:06'after a day of appreciating the Tyne old and new.'
0:15:18 > 0:15:22'I'm up early, and I'm reminded that until the arrival of the railway,
0:15:22 > 0:15:24'travel by boat would have been the fastest way
0:15:24 > 0:15:26'of getting around the country.
0:15:26 > 0:15:32'But in 1898, the North Sunderland Railway Line was built to connect
0:15:32 > 0:15:34'the East Coast Main Line with Seahouses,
0:15:34 > 0:15:36'a village further up the coast.
0:15:36 > 0:15:40'The four-mile line, used to transport the fishermen's catch,
0:15:40 > 0:15:42'closed in 1951.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50'Seahouses today retains the character of a fishing village,
0:15:50 > 0:15:54'but most of its boats now ferry tourists to the Farne Islands.'
0:15:56 > 0:16:00My travels have brought me close to Bamburgh Castle,
0:16:00 > 0:16:01which Bradshaw's tells me is
0:16:01 > 0:16:04"a Saxon fortress, recently restored,
0:16:04 > 0:16:06"serving now as a beacon for seamen.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08"Not far off are the Farne Islands,
0:16:08 > 0:16:12"where that courageous heroine Grace Darling
0:16:12 > 0:16:15"saved the crew of the steamer Forfarshire.
0:16:15 > 0:16:19"She and her father had charge of the Longstone light."
0:16:19 > 0:16:21So, I'm going to exchange my train for a boat
0:16:21 > 0:16:26and go in search of that Darling of the Victorian press.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45This is a fine crossing.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47There's rain in the air.
0:16:47 > 0:16:51A cloudy sky creates a slate-grey sea.
0:16:51 > 0:16:54Bamburgh Castle looming over the strait,
0:16:54 > 0:16:59and the Longstone Lighthouse looks like a mighty lonely place.
0:17:01 > 0:17:04- George, hello.- Hello there.
0:17:04 > 0:17:07What should I expect of the Farne Islands? What are they like?
0:17:07 > 0:17:10At this time of year, it's very busy with birdlife.
0:17:10 > 0:17:12There's over 120,000 pairs of birds
0:17:12 > 0:17:14nest on these islands at this time of year.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17- How extraordinary.- Yeah. Half of them being the puffin.
0:17:17 > 0:17:18I love puffins.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21Yeah, well, should see a lot this morning as we go along.
0:17:21 > 0:17:24And there's also guillemots, razorbills,
0:17:24 > 0:17:26kittiwakes and shags as well.
0:17:26 > 0:17:28So, we'll see lots of birdlife.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37This is a glorious sight.
0:17:37 > 0:17:41A metropolis of wild birds sitting there on their crags and rocks.
0:17:41 > 0:17:45A Hong Kong of guillemots, and razorbills,
0:17:45 > 0:17:47and cormorants, and puffins.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58'The setting for an exceptional colony of birdlife,
0:17:58 > 0:18:02'these windswept islands have also been a danger to shipping.
0:18:04 > 0:18:09'Rocks along the coast have claimed hundreds of ships and lives.'
0:18:11 > 0:18:14- Thank you, George.- OK, sir. - Wonderful trip. Thank you.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16'I'm meeting Caroline Aldridge,
0:18:16 > 0:18:18'who knows about the islands' most-famous wreck
0:18:18 > 0:18:21'and its connection to Grace Darling.'
0:18:21 > 0:18:23After the most glorious boat trip,
0:18:23 > 0:18:28I've arrived here in this lonely spot, the Longstone Lighthouse.
0:18:29 > 0:18:33I'm just trying to imagine, who was this Grace Darling?
0:18:33 > 0:18:35She was a lighthouse keeper's daughter,
0:18:35 > 0:18:37and she was living here at Longstone,
0:18:37 > 0:18:40and in 1838, a terrible storm blew up,
0:18:40 > 0:18:45and a ship called the SS Forfarshire was swept onto the rocks over there,
0:18:45 > 0:18:48and at that time there was only Grace and her mother
0:18:48 > 0:18:50and father in the lighthouse.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54And so, Grace and her father took the coble, the boat,
0:18:54 > 0:18:58out to rescue the survivors from Big Harcar rock over there.
0:19:00 > 0:19:02'The Forfarshire was a paddle steamer
0:19:02 > 0:19:04'built in Dundee in 1834
0:19:04 > 0:19:08'to carry passengers and cargo between Hull and Dundee.
0:19:08 > 0:19:13'She weighed 450 tonnes, and was built to sail under steam or canvas.
0:19:14 > 0:19:18'On 7 September 1838, with some 60 people aboard,
0:19:18 > 0:19:20'her engines failed.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26'Battling near gale-force north-easterly winds,
0:19:26 > 0:19:28'the ship hit the rocks and broke in two.'
0:19:30 > 0:19:32A few survivors, nine people in total,
0:19:32 > 0:19:35managed to scramble onto Great Harcar rock.
0:19:35 > 0:19:38Another nine people managed to scramble into a lifeboat,
0:19:38 > 0:19:41and they were then picked up and taken to North Shields,
0:19:41 > 0:19:45and the Darling family rescued the survivors who were on Great Harcar.
0:19:47 > 0:19:49'The rescue was risky, but with lives at stake
0:19:49 > 0:19:52'and no-one but Grace to help him,
0:19:52 > 0:19:54'William set out to do his duty.'
0:19:54 > 0:19:58Normally it was a boat that would be rowed by at least three men,
0:19:58 > 0:20:00and William had to go out
0:20:00 > 0:20:04with his sort of 5'2", 22-year-old daughter
0:20:04 > 0:20:08into this storm to try and carry out this rescue.
0:20:08 > 0:20:11And so, they approached the rock with people clinging onto it.
0:20:11 > 0:20:13What do they do then?
0:20:13 > 0:20:17William scrambled onto the rock to assist the survivors,
0:20:17 > 0:20:19whilst Grace held the coble steady,
0:20:19 > 0:20:22which meant she had to row it back and forth by herself,
0:20:22 > 0:20:25making sure she didn't hit the rock, but equally
0:20:25 > 0:20:27that she wasn't swept out,
0:20:27 > 0:20:31literally leaving her father and the survivors on the rock.
0:20:31 > 0:20:35- And all of this in the tumultuous sea and wind and rain.- Absolutely.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38William said it was one of the worst moments of his life,
0:20:38 > 0:20:40leaving his daughter literally in this boat
0:20:40 > 0:20:42and not knowing what on earth was going to happen.
0:20:42 > 0:20:45'Grace managed to hold the boat in position,
0:20:45 > 0:20:48'and she and her father saved nine lives.'
0:20:48 > 0:20:51What was the reaction of Victorian society
0:20:51 > 0:20:53when they heard about this rescue?
0:20:53 > 0:20:56The story spread. It was picked up by the national papers,
0:20:56 > 0:20:59and Grace really became a massive heroine
0:20:59 > 0:21:02because it was something that a young woman
0:21:02 > 0:21:05was not expected to be able to do.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08The name probably helped as well. I mean, Grace Darling.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11How wonderful a name for a heroine can you get?
0:21:11 > 0:21:15Um, and so it just became more and more massive.
0:21:15 > 0:21:19Within about seven weeks of the rescue,
0:21:19 > 0:21:24Grace was receiving invitations to appear in an exhibition,
0:21:24 > 0:21:26probably at a theatre or something.
0:21:26 > 0:21:31'Queen Victoria sent Grace £50 to reward her bravery,
0:21:31 > 0:21:33'and her name became known throughout the world
0:21:33 > 0:21:35'because of the daring rescue.'
0:21:37 > 0:21:39- Did she live long after the incident?- No.
0:21:39 > 0:21:41Tragically, she didn't.
0:21:41 > 0:21:44She carried out the rescue when she was 22 years old,
0:21:44 > 0:21:50and only lived another four years, dying just before her 27th birthday.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54'Our heroine was a victim of consumption.'
0:21:55 > 0:21:59Possibly, in a way, because she died so young,
0:21:59 > 0:22:03that also, sort of, kept her memory as this amazing heroine.
0:22:03 > 0:22:06It seems to me that even if there has been some mythology,
0:22:06 > 0:22:09even if there has been some exaggeration around her deed,
0:22:09 > 0:22:13it was an act of extraordinary bravery which, luckily,
0:22:13 > 0:22:15is remembered in my Bradshaw's Guide.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20'Today, the wreck of the Forfarshire is still visited by divers.
0:22:24 > 0:22:27'As for the lighthouse, more than 170 years later,
0:22:27 > 0:22:29'it's still saving lives.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32'Though, with automation, it's no longer manned.
0:22:40 > 0:22:44'Whilst the North Sea coastline holds its dangers for shipping,
0:22:44 > 0:22:46'it's also one of Britain's most beautiful.
0:22:49 > 0:22:50'In the sixth century,
0:22:50 > 0:22:55'the kings of Northumbria chose Bamburgh as their royal capital.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57'And in 1894, Sir William Armstrong
0:22:57 > 0:23:03'bought Bamburgh Castle for £60,000 to create a convalescent home.
0:23:05 > 0:23:08'I won't linger at Bamburgh on this occasion.
0:23:08 > 0:23:11'I'll push on to the final stop of my journey.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16'To travel to Lindisfarne, I must first consult the tide tables.'
0:23:18 > 0:23:22Today you can reach Holy Island across a causeway,
0:23:22 > 0:23:24'but only at low tide.
0:23:24 > 0:23:27In days of yore, the monks used to cross the sands
0:23:27 > 0:23:32when the water allowed on what's known as the Pilgrim's Way.
0:23:32 > 0:23:35And today, the faithful occasionally retrace
0:23:35 > 0:23:38their wet footprints in the sand.
0:23:39 > 0:23:42'It was at Lindisfarne that St Aidan chose to build
0:23:42 > 0:23:45'a monastery in 635 AD.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48'From there, he helped to spread Christianity
0:23:48 > 0:23:49'through northern England.
0:23:50 > 0:23:55'It was the seat of 16 bishops until 875,
0:23:55 > 0:23:58'when it was overrun by Vikings.
0:23:58 > 0:24:03'The present ruins date from around 1150, and are magnificent.'
0:24:03 > 0:24:07- I see you're visiting Holy Island. - Indeed.
0:24:07 > 0:24:10I wondered whether you'd had a feeling of holiness here today.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13- Absolutely.- Very restful.- It's very restful, isn't it?- Very peaceful.
0:24:13 > 0:24:14It's a tranquil environment,
0:24:14 > 0:24:16and it's lovely to be here on a beautiful day.
0:24:16 > 0:24:18The view from here is pretty spectacular, isn't it?
0:24:18 > 0:24:20- SHE SIGHS - It's so beautiful.
0:24:20 > 0:24:21It's a beautiful area, isn't it?
0:24:21 > 0:24:24This morning at nine o'clock it wouldn't have given you that view,
0:24:24 > 0:24:26because it was throwing it down with rain,
0:24:26 > 0:24:28but at this stage of the day, it's absolutely magnificent.
0:24:28 > 0:24:31Why do you think the place is spiritual?
0:24:31 > 0:24:34From my point of view, because I'm not religious,
0:24:34 > 0:24:39it's just a sense of well-being. It's tranquillity. It's isolation.
0:24:39 > 0:24:42It's the beauty of the countryside. It's a fantastic building.
0:24:42 > 0:24:46It just has so many wonderful properties.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49- It's difficult to express it. - I think I agree with my husband.
0:24:49 > 0:24:51- That's a good thing to do.- Indeed. - That's a first.
0:24:51 > 0:24:52He has to drive me home.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58'Peace and tranquillity now reign,
0:24:58 > 0:25:01'but the island has a busy industrial past.
0:25:01 > 0:25:04'I'm meeting Nick Lewis from the National Trust.'
0:25:04 > 0:25:07What did the Victorians make of Lindisfarne?
0:25:07 > 0:25:09Generally, they weren't too fond of it.
0:25:09 > 0:25:11Some saw its potential as a place
0:25:11 > 0:25:13for soothing waters and things like that,
0:25:13 > 0:25:15but certainly some people saw its potential
0:25:15 > 0:25:17from an industrial point of view.
0:25:17 > 0:25:20There are vast lime quarries on the north shore of the island,
0:25:20 > 0:25:23and they were exploited as part of a lime industry
0:25:23 > 0:25:26which developed in the second half of the 19th century.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29- Lindisfarne as an industrial site. That is a new thought to me.- Yeah.
0:25:29 > 0:25:33Well, I suppose everyone associates it with the spiritual side,
0:25:33 > 0:25:35and peace, I suppose.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37So, industry is kind of the opposite to that,
0:25:37 > 0:25:40but it absolutely would have been an industrial site
0:25:40 > 0:25:42for most of the second half of the 19th century.
0:25:44 > 0:25:46'Monks began lime burning on Lindisfarne,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49'using the product for building and to nourish the soil.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55'Very much later, the Victorians built six open-top lime kilns
0:25:55 > 0:25:59'close to the Tudor castle and the water.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01'Ships would unload coal and limestone,
0:26:01 > 0:26:04'and depart with burned lime.'
0:26:04 > 0:26:08Well, it seems to me even the lime kilns have an ecclesiastical feel,
0:26:08 > 0:26:10with their pointed arches.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13Yeah. They do bear a resemblance to a church or a cathedral.
0:26:13 > 0:26:15And the architecture is so spectacular and so strong.
0:26:15 > 0:26:18- It's one of the reasons it survived so well.- And what was the process?
0:26:18 > 0:26:21Well, basically, they were bringing in vast quantities of coal
0:26:21 > 0:26:23and limestone into these kilns via railways.
0:26:23 > 0:26:25In fact, one ran on this very route we're taking.
0:26:25 > 0:26:28And they'd be burning it, the limestone,
0:26:28 > 0:26:31at hugely high temperatures to extract that finished substance.
0:26:31 > 0:26:34And, of course, it would then be taken away on these same railway
0:26:34 > 0:26:36lines to the jetty, where it could be exported for profit.
0:26:36 > 0:26:39Ah. As far as the Victorians were concerned,
0:26:39 > 0:26:40nowhere was too holy for profit.
0:26:43 > 0:26:45Well, I think this is a first for me.
0:26:45 > 0:26:47I don't think I've ever stood in a lime kiln before.
0:26:47 > 0:26:49What was this like when it was in use?
0:26:49 > 0:26:52I should think it would be unpleasant for us to stand here.
0:26:52 > 0:26:56The temperatures were anything between 1,200 and 1,500 degrees centigrade at this level.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59But that was a required temperature to produce the lime that they were after.
0:26:59 > 0:27:01And so, on the Holy Island of Lindisfarne,
0:27:01 > 0:27:06there was this burning cauldron of Hell.
0:27:10 > 0:27:13The English adopted Christianity early,
0:27:13 > 0:27:17and some of their holiest shrines were in the north-east.
0:27:17 > 0:27:20During the course of my travels with the Quaker George Bradshaw,
0:27:20 > 0:27:25I've seen some of the country's finest ecclesiastical buildings.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27Right into the Victorian period,
0:27:27 > 0:27:32entrepreneurs and reformers were motivated by religion,
0:27:32 > 0:27:38but the age of science brought its doubts and challenges to orthodoxy.
0:27:38 > 0:27:39In the railway age,
0:27:39 > 0:27:44it was more difficult to maintain the pure faith that once motivated
0:27:44 > 0:27:47the Anglo-Saxon monks here at Lindisfarne.
0:27:52 > 0:27:54'Next time, I'll visit the dockyard
0:27:54 > 0:27:57'that built Queen Victoria's royal yacht,
0:27:57 > 0:28:01'discover a 19th-century rural railway
0:28:01 > 0:28:03'being given a new lease of life...'
0:28:03 > 0:28:05It is the most beautiful summer's day,
0:28:05 > 0:28:07and this lovely restored track
0:28:07 > 0:28:11threads its way along the scenic valley of the Gwili River,
0:28:11 > 0:28:13and I'm on my own private train.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15What bliss!
0:28:15 > 0:28:19'..and learn how to pose for a photograph, Victorian style.'
0:28:19 > 0:28:21Try not to smile, because in Victorian times,
0:28:21 > 0:28:23if you're smiling, you seemed a bit of a buffoon.
0:28:23 > 0:28:24THEY LAUGH
0:28:24 > 0:28:26I wish someone had told me that long ago.