0:00:04 > 0:00:08For Victorian Britons, George Bradshaw was a household name.
0:00:09 > 0:00:11'At a time when railways were new,
0:00:11 > 0:00:15'Bradshaw's guidebook inspired them to take to the tracks.'
0:00:15 > 0:00:20I'm using a Bradshaw's guide to understand how trains transformed
0:00:20 > 0:00:22Britain - its landscape,
0:00:22 > 0:00:26its industry, society and leisure time.
0:00:26 > 0:00:31As I crisscross the country 150 years later, it helps me
0:00:31 > 0:00:33to discover the Britain of today.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57I'm continuing a journey that began in the west of Wales
0:00:57 > 0:01:00and will end in the east of England.
0:01:00 > 0:01:05Victorian scientific advances drew on centuries of scholarship
0:01:05 > 0:01:07in British universities.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11Well educated gentleman, schooled in the Christian virtues,
0:01:11 > 0:01:13tended to be charitable.
0:01:13 > 0:01:17My journey today will take me from the cloisters of academia
0:01:17 > 0:01:22to houses for the poor, from varsity to philanthropy.
0:01:29 > 0:01:34I began in naval Pembroke, went underground in Swansea,
0:01:34 > 0:01:38tasted the fruits of Herefordshire and ventured through the rolling
0:01:38 > 0:01:43hills of the Cotswolds to discover a land transformed by railways.
0:01:43 > 0:01:45From here I'll head into Bedfordshire,
0:01:45 > 0:01:50before ending my journey in the scholarly city of Cambridge.
0:01:50 > 0:01:55Today's leg takes me straight to the heart of academia in Oxford,
0:01:55 > 0:01:56then east to Bicester
0:01:56 > 0:02:01and onto the charitable town of Bedford, before ending in Luton.
0:02:02 > 0:02:06'I discover a miniature edition from my favourite publisher...'
0:02:06 > 0:02:10And this is actually the first edition of Bradshaw's.
0:02:10 > 0:02:11Oh, that is exciting.
0:02:11 > 0:02:13Very, very ephemeral little publication,
0:02:13 > 0:02:15so it's incredibly rare.
0:02:15 > 0:02:18'..marvel at the ambition of a new railway...'
0:02:18 > 0:02:22You're going to raise this up, bring the rail across by this weekend?
0:02:22 > 0:02:25- Yes.- There's a man speaking with confidence.
0:02:25 > 0:02:27'..and learn the power of a hat.'
0:02:28 > 0:02:30It's amazing. In a moment, you've converted me
0:02:30 > 0:02:33from an investment banker into a rake!
0:02:41 > 0:02:46According to Bradshaw's, Oxford has an advantage over Cambridge
0:02:46 > 0:02:48"being placed among more attractive scenery
0:02:48 > 0:02:53"and combining a greater variety of splendid architecture."
0:02:53 > 0:02:56As a Cambridge graduate, I say bunkum,
0:02:56 > 0:02:59but my guidebook is on safer ground, saying that,
0:02:59 > 0:03:03"The Bodleian Library was founded in 1602 by Sir T Bodley
0:03:03 > 0:03:07"and contains nearly a quarter of one million of books,
0:03:07 > 0:03:09"old, new and rare,"
0:03:09 > 0:03:13which speaks volumes for such an ancient institution.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22For a city whose university alumni include some of
0:03:22 > 0:03:24the world's most innovative thinkers,
0:03:24 > 0:03:29it's surprising to discover that the arrival of the railway in 1844
0:03:29 > 0:03:31met with such great opposition.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35College wardens feared that the bright lights of London would
0:03:35 > 0:03:37lure its students away from their studies.
0:03:39 > 0:03:42Yet, for Victorian students intrigued by science
0:03:42 > 0:03:45and the classification of the natural world,
0:03:45 > 0:03:49Britain's capital could not compete with the University's main
0:03:49 > 0:03:51research library, The Bodleian.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56Today, it holds over 11 million items
0:03:56 > 0:03:59and is second in size only to the British Library.
0:04:00 > 0:04:04It's here that Bodley's librarian Richard Ovenden is to give me
0:04:04 > 0:04:07privileged access to its rare collection.
0:04:08 > 0:04:11Welcome. Welcome to Duke Humphrey's Library.
0:04:11 > 0:04:13What wonderful surroundings I find you in,
0:04:13 > 0:04:16it's like a sort of temple of scholarship, isn't it?
0:04:16 > 0:04:19- Absolutely, and it has been for 400 years.- Yes, what a thought.
0:04:19 > 0:04:24My Bradshaw's says that you have books old, rare and new.
0:04:24 > 0:04:28- I certainly don't doubt that you have old.- Yeah.
0:04:28 > 0:04:29Anything you want to tell me about?
0:04:29 > 0:04:33Well, I thought we might start with something rare.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37One of Oxford's greatest sons was the poet Percy Shelley.
0:04:37 > 0:04:42And, of course, he married another great writer - Mary Shelley.
0:04:42 > 0:04:45And this is the manuscript, the earliest surviving
0:04:45 > 0:04:51drafts of her great literary masterpiece, Frankenstein.
0:04:51 > 0:04:56- Good heavens.- So this was written in the summer of 1816
0:04:56 > 0:05:01when she and Percy were staying in the villa of Lord Byron
0:05:01 > 0:05:03on the banks of Lake Geneva.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06And during a famous thunderstorm, they had a ghost story competition.
0:05:06 > 0:05:07MICHAEL LAUGHS
0:05:07 > 0:05:10And Mary Shelley invented the creature
0:05:10 > 0:05:12that we know as Frankenstein.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16It has the classic horror story beginning, doesn't it?
0:05:16 > 0:05:21"It was on a dreary night of November that I beheld my man
0:05:21 > 0:05:25"completed with an anxiety that almost amounted to agony."
0:05:25 > 0:05:29And she continues, "By the glimmer of the half-extinguished light,
0:05:29 > 0:05:33"I saw the dull, yellow eye of the creature open.
0:05:33 > 0:05:38"It breathed hard and a convulsive motion agitated its limbs."
0:05:38 > 0:05:41Frankenstein's monster comes to life.
0:05:41 > 0:05:46Yeah, and sparking almost two centuries of cultural life.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50I mean, Frankenstein generated words which we use all the time
0:05:50 > 0:05:54when we're discussing science or medical innovation,
0:05:54 > 0:06:00and it all began when Mary had this fantastic moment of genius.
0:06:00 > 0:06:02Mary Shelley's Frankenstein
0:06:02 > 0:06:05certainly captured the early Victorians' imagination.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09And by Bradshaw's day, the interplay of science
0:06:09 > 0:06:13and the supernatural had become a national preoccupation...
0:06:13 > 0:06:15alongside a new appetite for travel.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20I thought it might be interesting just to see the growth
0:06:20 > 0:06:24of the railway network in England at the time of Bradshaw.
0:06:24 > 0:06:29So here we have Picot's map of England and Wales
0:06:29 > 0:06:32with part of Scotland, published in 1840.
0:06:32 > 0:06:36There's much about this map that we all recognise.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Here is what we now call the West Coast Main Line,
0:06:40 > 0:06:43and I can tell you that Cambridge has its railway...
0:06:44 > 0:06:46..but I'm not sure that Oxford does.
0:06:46 > 0:06:48- No.- Well, those are fantastic examples.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51I thought I'd just pull one small thing which was
0:06:51 > 0:06:56printed for a gentleman's jacket pocket like this.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59This is actually the first edition of Bradshaw's.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01Ah, that is exciting.
0:07:01 > 0:07:07So, we can see the Northwest of England, we can see Lancashire
0:07:07 > 0:07:09and this fantastic little railway map.
0:07:09 > 0:07:14Very, very ephemeral little publication, so it's incredibly rare.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17Now, the one thing that Bradshaw's didn't tell me about...
0:07:17 > 0:07:19because you couldn't, was the future.
0:07:19 > 0:07:20What is the future?
0:07:20 > 0:07:24Well, the future is a mixture of the physical and the digital,
0:07:24 > 0:07:26and I think we should go and look at that now.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28Let us do that. Thank you so much.
0:07:30 > 0:07:33In 1946, a new Bodleian Library opened,
0:07:33 > 0:07:36designed by Sir Giles Gilbert Scott,
0:07:36 > 0:07:39the architect behind London's Battersea Power Station
0:07:39 > 0:07:41and the red telephone box.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46Work is now under way to expand and update the facility
0:07:46 > 0:07:51for 21st century needs, and Richard is taking me to see its progress.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56We spent a year just moving all of those millions of books
0:07:56 > 0:07:59and journals. And the last year we spent fitting out the interior.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02And we're just at the final few weeks of that,
0:08:02 > 0:08:04ready to open for the start of term.
0:08:04 > 0:08:05And what's going to be new?
0:08:05 > 0:08:08It's really going to be, you know, future-proofed
0:08:08 > 0:08:10for very high bandwidth
0:08:10 > 0:08:14to enable the highest levels of digital scholarship.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18The new exhibition gallery is going to be open freely to the public.
0:08:18 > 0:08:22You name it, it's going to be open to the world.
0:08:22 > 0:08:23Anything more that I should see?
0:08:23 > 0:08:25I think we should go up on the roof.
0:08:28 > 0:08:31My word, Richard, that is a glorious sight.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33Well, it's a pretty amazing vista.
0:08:33 > 0:08:39You can see the University church from the 12th, 13th centuries.
0:08:39 > 0:08:44The Radcliffe Camera, James Gibbs' fantastic building - 1749.
0:08:44 > 0:08:49The unknown architect of the old Bodleian from the early 17th century.
0:08:49 > 0:08:50And of course Wren's Sheldonian Theatre,
0:08:50 > 0:08:54his first commission as an architect, finished in 1667.
0:08:56 > 0:08:59This view will not have changed much since Bradshaw's day.
0:08:59 > 0:09:02And I think if Bradshaw's were written today,
0:09:02 > 0:09:05this balcony would be named as the vantage point.
0:09:15 > 0:09:19The next leg of my journey leads me to Bicester, the hub of two
0:09:19 > 0:09:23exciting rail projects, one of which will establish the first
0:09:23 > 0:09:27new link between London and a major city in over 100 years.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32With the line from Oxford to Bicester Town
0:09:32 > 0:09:33currently out of service,
0:09:33 > 0:09:36I've made my way here under my own steam.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41When my Bradshaw's guide was published
0:09:41 > 0:09:44they had just opened that vital link of track
0:09:44 > 0:09:49that completed the varsity line connecting Oxford and Cambridge.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52By the time I was at university, the quickest way between the two
0:09:52 > 0:09:55cities was via London.
0:09:55 > 0:09:59But where I'm standing now is new track that will enable you
0:09:59 > 0:10:03to travel from Oxford to London Marylebone.
0:10:03 > 0:10:06And it opens up the hope that, one day,
0:10:06 > 0:10:08the boffins will again be able to travel
0:10:08 > 0:10:10from university to university.
0:10:13 > 0:10:16This ambitious project comes at the time of the greatest
0:10:16 > 0:10:19investment in Britain's rail network since the Victorian era.
0:10:21 > 0:10:27My first port of call is Bicester Town station, opened in 1850.
0:10:27 > 0:10:32It enjoyed a connection with the two old university cities until 1967,
0:10:32 > 0:10:35when the Oxford-to-Bletchley and Bedford-to-Cambridge services
0:10:35 > 0:10:36were withdrawn.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42Today, Chiltern Railways is resurrecting long lost rail links
0:10:42 > 0:10:43and upgrading the track.
0:10:45 > 0:10:48I'm meeting Graham Cross from the railway company.
0:10:50 > 0:10:53Graham, standing here amongst the weeds at Bicester Town Station,
0:10:53 > 0:10:55which is presently closed at the moment,
0:10:55 > 0:10:57may seem to be a strange place to ask about it,
0:10:57 > 0:10:59but what is the scale of this project?
0:10:59 > 0:11:01So, this is a project that cost Chiltern Railways
0:11:01 > 0:11:04about £130 million.
0:11:04 > 0:11:05We're investing in new infrastructure
0:11:05 > 0:11:09and new stations to greatly improve the train services in this area.
0:11:09 > 0:11:13And here at Bicester Town, what is it you've been doing?
0:11:13 > 0:11:15So, here at Bicester Town, what we're doing is
0:11:15 > 0:11:17constructing a brand-new station.
0:11:17 > 0:11:20It's being upgraded from a single track to dual track
0:11:20 > 0:11:24and the speeds are increasing from 40mph to 100mph
0:11:24 > 0:11:25with modern signalling.
0:11:25 > 0:11:28An extraordinary number of changes.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31There are other projects around it as well, aren't there?
0:11:31 > 0:11:36That's right. From this station, around about 2018/19,
0:11:36 > 0:11:38you'll be able to take a train through to Milton Keynes
0:11:38 > 0:11:42when the second stage of the East West project is complete.
0:11:42 > 0:11:45And that is part of a wider vision to continue then to extend that
0:11:45 > 0:11:48railway through Bedford and on to Cambridge,
0:11:48 > 0:11:52so reinstating the Oxford to Cambridge railway line.
0:11:52 > 0:11:54That would be a fantastic achievement, wouldn't it?
0:11:54 > 0:11:55It would be marvellous.
0:11:55 > 0:11:58But the plans don't stop there.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01A new stretch of track, three quarters of a mile long,
0:12:01 > 0:12:02is being laid at Bicester
0:12:02 > 0:12:06to connect the existing route between Oxford and Bicester Town
0:12:06 > 0:12:10with the London Marylebone to Birmingham Moor Street line.
0:12:10 > 0:12:14One of the things really that we're seeking to do here is to connect
0:12:14 > 0:12:17the parts of southern England which aren't well connected
0:12:17 > 0:12:19by rail at the moment.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22Is that because there's been a change in the sort of journeys
0:12:22 > 0:12:23that people want to make?
0:12:23 > 0:12:26I think so, yeah. 20 years ago, people were just wanting to travel
0:12:26 > 0:12:30to London, but as the economy has broadened and places like
0:12:30 > 0:12:33Oxford and Bicester have grown in importance, there's ever more
0:12:33 > 0:12:37demand now to travel between those places without going through London,
0:12:37 > 0:12:39and that really is what this project does.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42Work on the new connection to the main line is under way
0:12:42 > 0:12:45just a mile from Bicester Town station.
0:12:45 > 0:12:48And there I'm meeting senior construction manager
0:12:48 > 0:12:49Merrick Murphy.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53So, Merrick, I feel as though you've brought me
0:12:53 > 0:12:56to the pivotal part of the project.
0:12:56 > 0:12:58Well, what we're actually doing is creating
0:12:58 > 0:13:02a tie-in point whereby you will be able to come from Marylebone
0:13:02 > 0:13:05or London and then turn out to Oxford.
0:13:06 > 0:13:09The line will be operational in summer 2015.
0:13:10 > 0:13:14So, we're putting in new points here and then we connect down to
0:13:14 > 0:13:17a line that's running absolutely at right angles to us at this point.
0:13:17 > 0:13:22- Yes, indeed.- What stage then are you at right now?
0:13:22 > 0:13:25We are in the earthworks phase, whereby we're matching
0:13:25 > 0:13:29the embankment sizes so that the rail can go down directly on top.
0:13:29 > 0:13:32So how much material do you think this is taking?
0:13:32 > 0:13:35Well, I would approximately think, at its current state,
0:13:35 > 0:13:3875,000 tonnes of material.
0:13:38 > 0:13:39My goodness.
0:13:39 > 0:13:42And when are you actually going to connect that rail to here?
0:13:42 > 0:13:45This weekend we're going to be bringing the earthworks through
0:13:45 > 0:13:47and getting the rail over this side.
0:13:47 > 0:13:49I find that unbelievable. You're going to raise this up,
0:13:49 > 0:13:52bring the rail across by this weekend?
0:13:52 > 0:13:54- Yes.- There's a man speaking with confidence.
0:13:54 > 0:13:56Oh, we'll manage that, no problem.
0:13:56 > 0:14:00'This time-critical task is supervised by senior site engineer
0:14:00 > 0:14:02'Barry Burrows.
0:14:02 > 0:14:06'And I'm pleased to be given a small part in its execution.'
0:14:06 > 0:14:07Thank you very much.
0:14:07 > 0:14:11So, this instrument tells you what exactly?
0:14:11 > 0:14:15This controls the level of the embankment.
0:14:15 > 0:14:17So it's a GPS. I hope it's more accurate than the one in my car,
0:14:17 > 0:14:18- is it?- Yes, a lot more accurate.
0:14:18 > 0:14:20And it is giving us the level up there
0:14:20 > 0:14:22of how much materials to go on at this current point.
0:14:22 > 0:14:26So, if I'm reading this correctly, at this point you need
0:14:26 > 0:14:29456 mil to be added here.
0:14:29 > 0:14:33- Yes.- So, what tonnage do you still have to put on, do you think?
0:14:33 > 0:14:35About 7,000-10,000.
0:14:35 > 0:14:387,000-10,000. Which is only about a tenth of what you've done.
0:14:38 > 0:14:40Yeah, we've done about 75,000 so...
0:14:40 > 0:14:42- So nearly there.- Yeah. - Congratulations.
0:14:42 > 0:14:44- I think I can safely leave it to you.- Thank you.
0:14:44 > 0:14:46- Thank you, Barry.- Cheers.- Bye.- Bye.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51I'm impressed by the vision behind the Oxford to London mainline
0:14:51 > 0:14:55project and I'm sure that if George Bradshaw were here today,
0:14:55 > 0:14:57it would get his seal of approval too.
0:15:16 > 0:15:20A new day, and I'm resuming my journey at Bletchley station,
0:15:20 > 0:15:22heading northeast.
0:15:29 > 0:15:32My first stop today will be Bedford.
0:15:32 > 0:15:36Bradshaw's tells me that a Lord Mayor of London - William Harpur -
0:15:36 > 0:15:37was born here.
0:15:37 > 0:15:44"The founder of an extensive charity now possessing a revenue of £2,000
0:15:44 > 0:15:49"per annum from land in Holborn and in his native town.
0:15:49 > 0:15:53"Being open to all, the charity has the effect of drawing many
0:15:53 > 0:15:59"families to the town where there are 70 or 80 almshouses."
0:15:59 > 0:16:03Alms has its origin in a Greek word meaning 'pity'.
0:16:03 > 0:16:08I prefer a word with a Latin derivation - benefaction,
0:16:08 > 0:16:11implying someone trying to do good.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16By the time of my guidebook,
0:16:16 > 0:16:19Bedford had acquired sanitation and gas lighting
0:16:19 > 0:16:23and had been transformed from a small, agricultural community
0:16:23 > 0:16:25into an engineering hub.
0:16:26 > 0:16:29But the focus of my visit today is philanthropy
0:16:29 > 0:16:32and the generosity of a man named William Harpur.
0:16:35 > 0:16:40I'm heading to St Paul's Church, where he was buried in 1574,
0:16:40 > 0:16:43to meet local historian James Collett-White.
0:16:46 > 0:16:47- James, hello.- Hello, Michael.
0:16:47 > 0:16:49- Welcome to St Paul's. - Thank you very much.
0:16:50 > 0:16:52Since I've been in Bedford,
0:16:52 > 0:16:54lots of references to William Harpur, street names...
0:16:54 > 0:16:57And to Dame Alice, his wife. I've seen a statue of him.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00And this window is dedicated to them as well?
0:17:00 > 0:17:01Yes, indeed.
0:17:01 > 0:17:08This window was made in 1976, erected by the Harpur Trust.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11Sir William Harpur was born in Bedford,
0:17:11 > 0:17:13he went to a school in Bedford
0:17:13 > 0:17:17and that was obviously a very important influence on his life.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20Harpur went on to work as a master of the Merchant Taylors' Company
0:17:20 > 0:17:22in London.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26An investment in land in the capital made him rich and provided him
0:17:26 > 0:17:29with enough money to transform his home town.
0:17:30 > 0:17:33Tell me about his philanthropy towards Bedford.
0:17:33 > 0:17:38In the 1550s, he bought the site of what was to be
0:17:38 > 0:17:39the grammar school,
0:17:39 > 0:17:45and this school was endowed by land from Holborn by the 1760s.
0:17:45 > 0:17:49The land became part of the Harpur Trust,
0:17:49 > 0:17:54and out of that was endowed, from the 1870s onwards,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57four public schools and the primary schools of Bedford.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02Until the late 19th century when the state school system
0:18:02 > 0:18:06that we know today began to take shape, many working-class children
0:18:06 > 0:18:10received no education at all beyond Sunday school.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12Harpur's generosity spread opportunity.
0:18:14 > 0:18:16He was also concerned to tackle poverty.
0:18:18 > 0:18:19How did the almshouses come about?
0:18:19 > 0:18:25Well, there was always almsgiving but in 1793 Act, there was
0:18:25 > 0:18:29a provision to be made for building 20 almshouses
0:18:29 > 0:18:35and then 46 houses for the industrious poor.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38What happened, in fact, was that the 20 were built
0:18:38 > 0:18:43and the 46 were, in fact, created as almshouses
0:18:43 > 0:18:48because that was the need after the great fire of Bedford of 1802.
0:18:48 > 0:18:52By the time the railway arrived in Bedford in 1846,
0:18:52 > 0:18:56the Poor Law of 1834 had changed everything.
0:18:57 > 0:19:00Parish assistance to the needy was limited to those
0:19:00 > 0:19:03who entered the grim workhouses.
0:19:04 > 0:19:08Some rich industrialists saw it as their Christian duty to support
0:19:08 > 0:19:13worthy causes, many of which are still going strong today.
0:19:13 > 0:19:15In today's Bedford, are there still people
0:19:15 > 0:19:18benefiting from the Harpur Trust?
0:19:18 > 0:19:23Indeed, in Harpur House, which was built from the sale
0:19:23 > 0:19:26of the western part of the old almshouses.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28I must go and see the people there.
0:19:28 > 0:19:29Very good.
0:19:29 > 0:19:34There are nearly 1,800 almshouse charities in the UK.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38The Harpur Trust provides accommodation to 25 elderly people
0:19:38 > 0:19:40in Harpur House.
0:19:41 > 0:19:45Many of the residents are from Bedford and went to Harpur schools,
0:19:45 > 0:19:48so they've known the Harpur name all their lives.
0:19:49 > 0:19:50Good morning, everybody.
0:19:50 > 0:19:51ALL: Good morning.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55Lovely to see you. May I sit here?
0:19:55 > 0:19:57- You may.- Thank you very much indeed.
0:19:57 > 0:19:58How long have you been here, sir?
0:19:58 > 0:20:02- About ten weeks.- So you're... - I'm a new boy.- You are a new boy.
0:20:02 > 0:20:03- Yes.- And how are you settling in?
0:20:03 > 0:20:04Very well.
0:20:04 > 0:20:06I came in on the Sunday, and by Monday,
0:20:06 > 0:20:10I felt as though I'd been here for years.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13I've really settled in, yes, and I'm happy I made the move.
0:20:13 > 0:20:15May I join you for a minute?
0:20:15 > 0:20:19- Are you from Bedford? - Well, I was born in Harpur Street.
0:20:19 > 0:20:21- You were born in Harpur Street?! - Yeah, yeah.
0:20:21 > 0:20:23So, at the beginning of your life,
0:20:23 > 0:20:25you lived in a place named after Harpur.
0:20:25 > 0:20:27- Yeah, I did.- And here you are now living in a place
0:20:27 > 0:20:29- named after Harpur.- Exactly. - That's extraordinary.
0:20:29 > 0:20:30It is extraordinary, yeah.
0:20:30 > 0:20:35Hello, ladies and gentlemen. Now, do we have two sisters here?
0:20:35 > 0:20:36- Yes.- These two.
0:20:37 > 0:20:39We are a real big family.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43Our mum and dad used to live in Dame Alice Street,
0:20:43 > 0:20:47Dorothy's in-laws used to live in Dame Alice Street
0:20:47 > 0:20:48and one of my brothers,
0:20:48 > 0:20:52they lived in Dame Alice Street also.
0:20:52 > 0:20:54Do you think, while we're here, ladies and gentlemen,
0:20:54 > 0:20:56we should raise our tea cups
0:20:56 > 0:21:01and drink a sip to Sir William Harpur and Dame Alice?
0:21:01 > 0:21:02Dame Alice.
0:21:06 > 0:21:10In the 16th century, it was possible to become fabulously
0:21:10 > 0:21:12wealthy as it is today.
0:21:12 > 0:21:17For those now who are rich and who are considering philanthropy,
0:21:17 > 0:21:20think of the case of Sir William Harpur.
0:21:20 > 0:21:22500 years after his birth,
0:21:22 > 0:21:25he's still remembered for his charity
0:21:25 > 0:21:27and praised by his beneficiaries.
0:21:33 > 0:21:37Back at Bedford station, it's a short, 20-minute ride
0:21:37 > 0:21:40to the final destination on this leg of my journey.
0:21:45 > 0:21:50My next stop, Luton, was famous for hats in Bradshaw's time,
0:21:50 > 0:21:54being, as my guidebook says, "A town of straw platters."
0:21:54 > 0:21:57There were, in fact, many thousands in Bedfordshire.
0:21:57 > 0:22:00So, I'll weave in a visit as I head onwards.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06By the time of my guidebook, Luton had been transformed
0:22:06 > 0:22:09from a country market town to a busy urban centre
0:22:09 > 0:22:12thanks to a thriving straw hatting and plaiting industry.
0:22:13 > 0:22:18Its good fortune arose out of an embargo on straw imports
0:22:18 > 0:22:20from the Continent during the Napoleonic Wars
0:22:20 > 0:22:24of the early 19th century and the unprecedented demand that
0:22:24 > 0:22:27this placed on Bedfordshire's wheat and corn producers.
0:22:29 > 0:22:33One company to reap the benefits was Walter Wright Hats.
0:22:34 > 0:22:35Philip, hello.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37Hello, and welcome to Walter Wright's.
0:22:37 > 0:22:38Thank you very much indeed.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42When you meet someone for the first time... For example, me.
0:22:42 > 0:22:45..do you find that you're always sizing them up?
0:22:45 > 0:22:50It's not just size, it's the proportion of hat
0:22:50 > 0:22:51and it's the demeanour.
0:22:51 > 0:22:56So, you have to find a hat that just reflects their look, their style,
0:22:56 > 0:22:59their message and the environment where that hat's going to be worn.
0:22:59 > 0:23:03No respectable Victorian man or woman would leave home
0:23:03 > 0:23:05without a hat.
0:23:05 > 0:23:09They were expected to know when, where, and how to wear it.
0:23:09 > 0:23:13So, having sized me up and having studied my demeanour,
0:23:13 > 0:23:14what do you think we should look at?
0:23:14 > 0:23:18It's got to be classical but with an edge of fun.
0:23:18 > 0:23:20Ooh.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22This is a brushed fur felt.
0:23:22 > 0:23:27So we have a severe bad look at a wedding.
0:23:28 > 0:23:29However...
0:23:32 > 0:23:36..Champagne Charlie would have always worn it on a slight angle
0:23:36 > 0:23:38to soften the eyes.
0:23:38 > 0:23:40It's amazing, in a moment you've converted me
0:23:40 > 0:23:43from an investment banker into a rake!
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Ooh, I quite fancy myself in that.
0:23:51 > 0:23:52Copper.
0:23:53 > 0:23:55Rake. THEY LAUGH
0:23:55 > 0:23:57Do you know, I've learnt more about hats in the last minute
0:23:57 > 0:23:59than in the rest of my life.
0:23:59 > 0:24:00It's my passion.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05Top hats were standard, year round attire
0:24:05 > 0:24:08for the upper and middle class Victorian gent
0:24:08 > 0:24:10until the late 19th century,
0:24:10 > 0:24:14when the straw boater became de rigueur in summer.
0:24:14 > 0:24:15Philip has offered to show me
0:24:15 > 0:24:18what goes into creating this classic design.
0:24:20 > 0:24:22Around the sort of late 1800s,
0:24:22 > 0:24:25these blocks would have been made solely out of wood.
0:24:26 > 0:24:31The process of wooden blocking meant that the dehydration process
0:24:31 > 0:24:33was a lot slower.
0:24:33 > 0:24:35They would've had to dry them in an oven.
0:24:35 > 0:24:40By having the aluminium hot, it means the fibre dries on the block,
0:24:40 > 0:24:41it's a lot quicker.
0:24:41 > 0:24:45So by the 1910, 1920s, it meant my great-grandmother
0:24:45 > 0:24:50could produce 1,000 dozen a week as opposed to a lot less using wood.
0:24:50 > 0:24:55So, we've taken a natural straw and now we are going to heat gently.
0:24:55 > 0:24:58- Ease the fibre.- Oh! That's quite hot!
0:24:58 > 0:25:00It's as warm as an iron.
0:25:00 > 0:25:01MICHAEL PANTS
0:25:01 > 0:25:05A good blocker. You can tell he knows what he's doing cos he can take
0:25:05 > 0:25:09the Sunday roast out of the oven without using oven gloves.
0:25:09 > 0:25:10What are you doing now?
0:25:10 > 0:25:15I'm putting the string round edge of the block which stretches
0:25:15 > 0:25:19the material and gives the machinists an edge to go by.
0:25:20 > 0:25:21I'm just going to pop her up...
0:25:23 > 0:25:25..into the other side of the mould.
0:25:25 > 0:25:27And more heat applied there?
0:25:27 > 0:25:31More heat applied. So she's now being fully baked top and under.
0:25:31 > 0:25:33Now, your family has been in hats for a long time.
0:25:33 > 0:25:36My great-grandfather...
0:25:36 > 0:25:39he'd been making hats for 400 years, or his family, for 400 years.
0:25:39 > 0:25:41It's in the blood, I guess.
0:25:42 > 0:25:45That's nice and dry and holding its shape.
0:25:45 > 0:25:49Yep. And so there is your boater.
0:25:49 > 0:25:51- Hmm, not quite.- You're right.
0:25:51 > 0:25:54Next step, follow me.
0:25:54 > 0:25:55Thank you.
0:25:55 > 0:25:58- Michael, Janet. Janet, Michael. BOTH:- Hello.
0:25:58 > 0:26:01And you're going to take the hat to the next stage.
0:26:01 > 0:26:05I'm going to cut this edge off so it comes down to this line
0:26:05 > 0:26:07and I'm going to put a wire in it.
0:26:08 > 0:26:10This is giving Janet a clear mark,
0:26:10 > 0:26:13a clear edge to work to with her scissors.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16It's a lovely, scrunchy noise it makes.
0:26:16 > 0:26:19Right, now that is looking like a boater, I'll give you that.
0:26:19 > 0:26:22'After the edge has been trimmed a reed is inserted
0:26:22 > 0:26:23'to strengthen the brim...
0:26:26 > 0:26:28'..and then sewn into place.'
0:26:30 > 0:26:32Wow, done!
0:26:32 > 0:26:37'The next stage is to stitch in the headband to keep the hat in place.'
0:26:37 > 0:26:40Wow, Janet, that is extraordinary skill
0:26:40 > 0:26:43and absolutely faultless.
0:26:44 > 0:26:46Fantastic.
0:26:46 > 0:26:48So now to Linda for the decoration.
0:26:48 > 0:26:51- Hello, Linda.- Hello, nice to meet you.- Very good to see you.
0:26:51 > 0:26:52How does a chap choose his ribbon colour?
0:26:54 > 0:26:58Choices from old school, colours, old regiment, old university,
0:26:58 > 0:27:00old college, or...
0:27:00 > 0:27:02Old party, how about that?
0:27:02 > 0:27:04Well, there's a surprise!
0:27:06 > 0:27:10An historic hat for an historic party,
0:27:10 > 0:27:12the perfect way to end my day.
0:27:19 > 0:27:23I think of my guidebook as a valuable historic volume
0:27:23 > 0:27:26but it doesn't compare with George Bradshaw's earliest
0:27:26 > 0:27:31railway publication which I encountered in Oxford University.
0:27:31 > 0:27:34Even before Sir Thomas Bodley had bequeathed his library,
0:27:34 > 0:27:38Sir William Harpur had left money for the relief of the poor
0:27:38 > 0:27:42in Bedford, good works that continue to this day.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45It will soon be possible again to travel by train
0:27:45 > 0:27:47from Oxford to Bedford,
0:27:47 > 0:27:52and on that great day, I'll throw my hat in the air.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59Next time, I get to grips with a Victorian melodrama.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02It's a story about a signalman who gets the opportunity
0:28:02 > 0:28:05to either save his son or crash a train.
0:28:05 > 0:28:06MICHAEL GASPS
0:28:06 > 0:28:09I hear ghoulish hospital tales...
0:28:09 > 0:28:11Something like an amputation
0:28:11 > 0:28:13would have taken around about two to three minutes.
0:28:13 > 0:28:15Have to work extremely fast.
0:28:15 > 0:28:19..and learn about the student days of Charles Darwin.
0:28:20 > 0:28:24These are the actual beetles that gave him so much pleasure
0:28:24 > 0:28:26and so much obsession when he was an undergraduate.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28This is absolutely stunning.