0:00:05 > 0:00:07For Victorian Britons,
0:00:07 > 0:00:09George Bradshaw was a household name.
0:00:09 > 0:00:13At a time when railways were new, Bradshaw's guidebook
0:00:13 > 0:00:16inspired them to take to the tracks.
0:00:16 > 0:00:19I'm using a Bradshaw's Guide, to understand
0:00:19 > 0:00:22how trains transformed Britain - its landscape,
0:00:22 > 0:00:23its industries,
0:00:23 > 0:00:25society and leisure time.
0:00:25 > 0:00:30As I crisscross the country 150 years later,
0:00:30 > 0:00:33it helps me to discover the Britain of today.
0:00:56 > 0:00:59I'm beginning a journey that will carry me the length
0:00:59 > 0:01:03of England's south coast. By the time of my guide book,
0:01:03 > 0:01:06railways had opened up its ancient forts and beaches
0:01:06 > 0:01:09to travellers of every class.
0:01:09 > 0:01:12But the English Channel remained our national moat -
0:01:12 > 0:01:14a broad defence against invasion -
0:01:14 > 0:01:18and throughout most of the 19th century,
0:01:18 > 0:01:22it was assumed that any advancing enemy would be French.
0:01:29 > 0:01:30Following my Bradshaw's Guide,
0:01:30 > 0:01:34this week, I'll be travelling the south coast from east to west.
0:01:34 > 0:01:37Starting at the closest crossing point to France,
0:01:37 > 0:01:41I'll pass through coastal defences and seaside resorts,
0:01:41 > 0:01:44wind through Thomas Hardy country,
0:01:44 > 0:01:48before ending up at the first, and last, place in England.
0:01:48 > 0:01:51Today, I'm starting in the cross-Channel port of Dover.
0:01:51 > 0:01:56From there, I travel to Hythe, visiting its mainline in miniature,
0:01:56 > 0:01:59before heading to elegant Eastbourne.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01My journey finishes in Lewes,
0:02:01 > 0:02:05at a country house famed for its opera performances.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09On this journey,
0:02:09 > 0:02:12'inspired by a brave Victorian, I take the plunge...'
0:02:12 > 0:02:14I can't believe I'm doing this.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22..enjoy the exhilaration of steam...
0:02:22 > 0:02:25At the moment, we are doing 18mph.
0:02:25 > 0:02:28It's, basically, the equivalent of doing 75 on the mainline,
0:02:28 > 0:02:32- cos we're nearer to the ground. - Yeah, it absolutely creates
0:02:32 > 0:02:34the illusion of great speed. It's very exciting!
0:02:34 > 0:02:37..and scale the heights of the operatic world.
0:02:37 > 0:02:41HE SINGS AN ERRATIC SCALE
0:02:41 > 0:02:45- But you skipped the highest note! - Oh, did I?
0:02:58 > 0:03:01My first stop will be Dover. Bradshaw's says,
0:03:01 > 0:03:05"It is divided from the French coast by a passage of only 20 miles.
0:03:05 > 0:03:09"Advantageously situated on the margin of a picturesque bay,
0:03:09 > 0:03:14"screened by its lofty cliffs from the piercing northerly winds."
0:03:14 > 0:03:19Those famous white cliffs, another formidable natural defence,
0:03:19 > 0:03:23would also have been a welcome sight to travellers completing
0:03:23 > 0:03:28the Channel crossing, having survived its notorious tides and currents.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32The South Eastern Railway Company opened a line
0:03:32 > 0:03:34from London to Dover in 1844,
0:03:34 > 0:03:38connecting Victorian travellers with the ferries steaming for France.
0:03:43 > 0:03:45The town once had a number of stations,
0:03:45 > 0:03:48but only Dover Priory remains.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56The port of Dover, as the closest crossing point to the Continent,
0:03:56 > 0:04:00gives access to Britain's nearest European neighbour
0:04:00 > 0:04:04and, equally, represented the first point of defence.
0:04:04 > 0:04:08The English Channel is one of the busiest shipping lanes in the world.
0:04:12 > 0:04:16On a glorious day like today, you can see why Bradshaw's would talk about
0:04:16 > 0:04:19"The weather-beaten features of the cliffs of Albion,
0:04:19 > 0:04:23"illuminated with sunny smiles of welcome".
0:04:23 > 0:04:28And in 1875, Dover gave a welcome to a man who, by his endurance
0:04:28 > 0:04:33and bravery, could be regarded only as a hero.
0:04:38 > 0:04:41As the trains made seaside resorts like Dover accessible,
0:04:41 > 0:04:45swimming, very slowly, became more popular.
0:04:45 > 0:04:49The epic achievement at Dover of one very determined man
0:04:49 > 0:04:52transformed Victorian attitudes.
0:04:56 > 0:04:59I am meeting local historian Jon Iveson,
0:04:59 > 0:05:02to find out about Captain Matthew Webb.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07What was it that Captain Matthew Webb had done, that made him a hero?
0:05:07 > 0:05:09He was the first person to swim the Channel.
0:05:09 > 0:05:12And how long had that taken him, in those days?
0:05:12 > 0:05:14It was just under 22 hours. 21 and three-quarter hours.
0:05:14 > 0:05:18- An extraordinary achievement of endurance.- Absolutely, yes.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21He believed, when he started, that he was going to do it in 14,
0:05:21 > 0:05:23but the tides were against him.
0:05:24 > 0:05:28Born in Dawley, Shropshire, Captain Webb had been a merchant seaman
0:05:28 > 0:05:32since the age of 12. At the time of his heroic swim,
0:05:32 > 0:05:38he was 27 and already had a history of courageous watery endeavours.
0:05:38 > 0:05:43In 1873, he was second mate on the steamship The Russia.
0:05:43 > 0:05:45A man fell overboard
0:05:45 > 0:05:47and he jumped off the ship, to try and rescue him.
0:05:47 > 0:05:51As a result, he was the first winner of the Royal Humane Society
0:05:51 > 0:05:53gold medal for rescuing people.
0:05:53 > 0:05:57That, Webb says, was the luckiest thing that ever happened to him,
0:05:57 > 0:06:01because it allowed him to consider something he had been thinking about
0:06:01 > 0:06:03for a while, which was trying to swim the Channel.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07On 24 August, 1875, greased with porpoise oil,
0:06:07 > 0:06:11Captain Webb got under way from Dover,
0:06:11 > 0:06:14with a steady breaststroke of 20 to the minute.
0:06:15 > 0:06:18Because of the strong tides, he ended up swimming a course
0:06:18 > 0:06:20of 39 miles.
0:06:20 > 0:06:24After 21 hours and 45 minutes in the cold water,
0:06:24 > 0:06:27he arrived in Calais, to an ecstatic welcome.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33His fame spread very rapidly and souvenirs and pictures of him
0:06:33 > 0:06:36appeared everywhere and he wrote a book.
0:06:36 > 0:06:39This is the book he wrote - a first edition of The Art Of Swimming.
0:06:39 > 0:06:41Oh, what a beautiful thing.
0:06:41 > 0:06:45"By Captain Webb, the Channel swimmer."
0:06:45 > 0:06:49And here he is with his medals, as well. That's a fantastic piece.
0:06:49 > 0:06:51Did all this - the Channel swim and the book -
0:06:51 > 0:06:55- have an effect on the popularity of swimming?- Yes, it did.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58English swimming moved on in leaps and bounds after this.
0:06:59 > 0:07:04His remarkable feat popularised swimming, but his achievement
0:07:04 > 0:07:07wasn't matched for another 36 years
0:07:07 > 0:07:11and, even today, fewer than 2,000 have succeeded.
0:07:11 > 0:07:14More people have climbed Mount Everest.
0:07:17 > 0:07:21All that talk of the heroism of Captain Matthew Webb
0:07:21 > 0:07:23has stimulated me to have a go.
0:07:23 > 0:07:27Whilst I'm not about to swim to France, I can receive
0:07:27 > 0:07:30a few pointers from Chloe McCardel,
0:07:30 > 0:07:32an Australian who is very familiar
0:07:32 > 0:07:34with this infamous stretch of water.
0:07:36 > 0:07:40- How often have you swum the Channel? - Ten times now.- Absolutely amazing.
0:07:40 > 0:07:43- How long does it take you? - Usually in the low nine hours.
0:07:44 > 0:07:47It took Captain Matthew Webb nearly 22 hours.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50Any idea what the change has been? Are you just better swimmers?
0:07:50 > 0:07:53He swam it breaststroke, for example.
0:07:53 > 0:07:56I swim it front crawl, or freestyle, which is a much faster stroke,
0:07:56 > 0:08:00and the food that we eat, the nutrition, is much more developed
0:08:00 > 0:08:03these days. He drank whisky, of all things, while crossing the Channel.
0:08:03 > 0:08:06So, what makes a person like you want to do this?
0:08:06 > 0:08:09Captain Matthew Webb himself coined the term "nothing great is easy"
0:08:09 > 0:08:12and it's got that mystique, the history and it's just probably
0:08:12 > 0:08:15the hardest marathon swim one could challenge oneself to do.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20With Webb's mantra ringing in my ears
0:08:20 > 0:08:24and facing a water temperature of just 16 degrees,
0:08:24 > 0:08:26I can't put it off any longer.
0:08:26 > 0:08:28I'm going to have to go in.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32I can't believe I'm doing this.
0:08:39 > 0:08:42- How do you feel? - HIGH-PITCHED: Cold!
0:08:45 > 0:08:46Very cold.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49You're doing well, though. Keep going.
0:08:49 > 0:08:53- Show me your crawl.- OK. I'm going to put my head down, though.- Yeah.
0:09:03 > 0:09:05Chloe, what's it like when you get cold,
0:09:05 > 0:09:07when you've been swimming for a long time?
0:09:07 > 0:09:11Your core temperature drops, so your organs start getting cold,
0:09:11 > 0:09:13your arms might start doing funny things,
0:09:13 > 0:09:16you might say strange things, you may even refuse
0:09:16 > 0:09:19to get out of the water if you're very hypothermic.
0:09:19 > 0:09:21I don't think I'd refuse to get out of the water.
0:09:21 > 0:09:24- You OK?- Yup. - Do you want a hand?- Yup.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29Wow, I'm glad to be back on board.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32It's one of the most beautiful places you can have imagine to have a swim,
0:09:32 > 0:09:35by the white cliffs, but I found it incredibly cold.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39- I'm very overwhelmed.- Yes, it takes many months to get used to that cold
0:09:39 > 0:09:41so you did very well for your first time.
0:09:41 > 0:09:44- Thank you, Chloe. Good luck to you.- Thanks.
0:09:50 > 0:09:54Very thankful to be back on firm ground, and warm on the train,
0:09:54 > 0:09:58as I leave Dover heading west, I'm reminded by my guidebook
0:09:58 > 0:10:01"to pay attention to the shrill shriek of the whistle"
0:10:01 > 0:10:04as we plunge into the chalky tunnels
0:10:04 > 0:10:07connecting Dover to Folkestone and beyond.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17I shall be leaving this train at Westenhanger for Hythe.
0:10:17 > 0:10:22Bradshaw's says, "The town of Hythe is small but clean and healthy,
0:10:22 > 0:10:27"and prettily situated at the foot of a hill extending down to the sea."
0:10:27 > 0:10:29It sounds divine.
0:10:38 > 0:10:41From Westenhanger I make my way to Hythe,
0:10:41 > 0:10:46still a small market town as pretty as Bradshaw's described it.
0:10:46 > 0:10:48Before going to my next destination
0:10:48 > 0:10:52I'm visiting a church that has piqued my interest.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54Bradshaw's tells me that
0:10:54 > 0:10:59"the church on the hill has a light tower ornamented by four turrets"
0:10:59 > 0:11:03and I've been attracted up the slope towards it, as to a beacon.
0:11:15 > 0:11:18This is the most macabre sight.
0:11:18 > 0:11:21Everywhere I look there are skulls,
0:11:21 > 0:11:24thigh bones, leg bones, arm bones, jaws -
0:11:24 > 0:11:28it's as though I've stumbled upon the site of an appalling massacre.
0:11:28 > 0:11:33A shock because nothing in Bradshaw's prepared me for it.
0:11:33 > 0:11:38I hope that local researcher Mike Pearson can shed more light.
0:11:38 > 0:11:39- Mike, hello.- Hi, Michael.
0:11:39 > 0:11:42Welcome to the crypt of St Leonard's Church, Hythe.
0:11:42 > 0:11:44It looks like a charnel house or something.
0:11:44 > 0:11:49- Is it actually the result of a slaughter?- No, it's not, actually.
0:11:49 > 0:11:51There were various theories on...
0:11:51 > 0:11:55Danes killed in battle, even Battle of Hastings people,
0:11:55 > 0:11:59but we've done some research - it's actually a normal population.
0:11:59 > 0:12:03There are more females in this collection than there are males
0:12:03 > 0:12:08and there are just under 10% young people
0:12:08 > 0:12:11so it's actually a cross section of the population dying,
0:12:11 > 0:12:14- we think, normally. - How many heads do you have here?
0:12:14 > 0:12:19We've got 1,200 skulls but it's said that there are 8,000 long bones
0:12:19 > 0:12:23and that amounts to 4,000 individuals.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27- Are you adding to the collection? LAUGHING:- No, not at all!
0:12:27 > 0:12:29But we do have visitors from time to time who say,
0:12:29 > 0:12:32"Can I reserve a place for when I go?"
0:12:32 > 0:12:34THEY LAUGH
0:12:42 > 0:12:46Keeping my head when all around have lost theirs,
0:12:46 > 0:12:49my next stop is curiouser and curiouser.
0:12:54 > 0:12:56I often enthuse about stations,
0:12:56 > 0:12:59and this one is absolutely beautiful
0:12:59 > 0:13:03but somehow it's shrunk, it's not at the right size!
0:13:03 > 0:13:06As though entering a wonderland,
0:13:06 > 0:13:10I've arrived at the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch Railway.
0:13:11 > 0:13:18Opened in 1927, it's a fully working steam railway one third of full size.
0:13:18 > 0:13:21Today it's owned by Danny Martin.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27- Danny, hello. - Hello. Nice to see you.
0:13:27 > 0:13:31How did it come to be, then, that the Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch railway
0:13:31 > 0:13:33was built miniature?
0:13:33 > 0:13:37Well, the guys that built it had a passion for model engineering
0:13:37 > 0:13:40which, you might say, trains of this sort of size
0:13:40 > 0:13:42and then they wanted to outdo everyone else so they wanted
0:13:42 > 0:13:46the biggest model engineered railway that money could buy.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50This railway wasn't open in Bradshaw's day
0:13:50 > 0:13:54but the locomotives here hark back to the age of steam.
0:13:56 > 0:13:58Has it ever had a serious purpose?
0:13:58 > 0:14:01Yes, it has. During the war years,
0:14:01 > 0:14:04the Royal Engineers commandeered the railway, they ran an armoured train
0:14:04 > 0:14:06and, most importantly of all,
0:14:06 > 0:14:09they were constructing PLUTO - Pipeline Under The Ocean -
0:14:09 > 0:14:12and that was used to feed the D-Day landings
0:14:12 > 0:14:16and it was dragged out nightly, having been wound up on our railway.
0:14:16 > 0:14:21- Fantastic story. So is there a train I can take?- There is, certainly,
0:14:21 > 0:14:23this one we've got just here.
0:14:23 > 0:14:25Super. Thank you very much.
0:14:25 > 0:14:28Taking me on my journey is professional train driver
0:14:28 > 0:14:30Mick Knight.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34- Hello, Mick.- Hello.- Permission to come aboard?- Oh, permission granted.
0:14:34 > 0:14:37Thank you very much indeed.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40Nice tight fit, isn't it?
0:14:40 > 0:14:42Just slip the latch down and that's it.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45- But unlike most locomotives you get to sit down.- You do.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48WHISTLE BLOWS
0:14:55 > 0:15:01The line runs 13.5 miles from Hythe to Dungeness.
0:15:01 > 0:15:03WHISTLE BLOWS
0:15:05 > 0:15:09This locomotive, though very small, must be very powerful.
0:15:09 > 0:15:14- How many people can you carry?- Each train holds about 200-250 people.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18It's the equivalent of about 40-45 tonnes.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27At the moment we're doing 18mph.
0:15:27 > 0:15:31It's basically the equivalent of doing 75 on the main line
0:15:31 > 0:15:33because were nearer to the ground.
0:15:33 > 0:15:38It absolutely creates the illusion of great speed. It's very exciting.
0:15:47 > 0:15:51With half the journey completed, Mick thinks it's time for me to have a go,
0:15:51 > 0:15:55so from Romney Marsh station I'll take over the controls
0:15:55 > 0:15:58to complete the journey to Dungeness.
0:16:03 > 0:16:07- That feels good, doesn't it? - There we go.- That feels good.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17Amazing to me that a little pull on that lever
0:16:17 > 0:16:19brings all this power into play.
0:16:21 > 0:16:25So, on your left-hand side shortly you'll see a W sign.
0:16:25 > 0:16:28- Yes, and then I whistle. - Yep, give a toot for them.
0:16:30 > 0:16:31I see a whistle board.
0:16:31 > 0:16:33WHISTLE BLOWS
0:16:35 > 0:16:37And we pass a level crossing.
0:16:53 > 0:16:58What a wonderful experience. What a feeling of speed and of power
0:16:58 > 0:17:00and responsibility.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03- Thank you very much, Mick. - That's OK. Well done.
0:17:03 > 0:17:05Well done, we'll make a driver out of you yet.
0:17:09 > 0:17:11My journey continues from Appledore
0:17:11 > 0:17:16where I'm re-joining the main line crossing from Kent into Sussex.
0:17:20 > 0:17:22I'm going to spend the night in Rye.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24Bradshaw's tells me that,
0:17:24 > 0:17:26"In the reign of King Edward III,
0:17:26 > 0:17:29"Rye sent nine armed vessels to the royal fleet
0:17:29 > 0:17:31"when that Monarch invaded France."
0:17:31 > 0:17:34It was one of the so-called Cinque Ports
0:17:34 > 0:17:36that supplied ships to the king.
0:17:36 > 0:17:40And in return they received many privileges and a lot of autonomy.
0:17:40 > 0:17:45I bet the people of Rye still feel very proud of that royal history.
0:17:48 > 0:17:54Between the 11th and 16th centuries Rye was a port surrounded by sea
0:17:54 > 0:17:56but after centuries of storms and silting,
0:17:56 > 0:17:59the coastline is now three miles away.
0:17:59 > 0:18:04One of Rye's most charming buildings survives from its Tudor heyday,
0:18:04 > 0:18:06The Mermaid Inn.
0:18:06 > 0:18:11Built in the 15th century it was the infamous haunt of smuggling gangs
0:18:11 > 0:18:14but today it offers my bed for the night.
0:18:28 > 0:18:32Ship-shape and ready to go, I'm heading out of Rye.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35The next leg of my travels is a 45-minute journey
0:18:35 > 0:18:39along the coastline to an important resort in East Sussex.
0:18:41 > 0:18:43My next stop will be Eastbourne.
0:18:43 > 0:18:46My guidebook tells me that, "It has within a very few years
0:18:46 > 0:18:49"become fashionable as a watering place
0:18:49 > 0:18:51"and offers the beauty of country scenery
0:18:51 > 0:18:54"and stately trees close to the sea."
0:18:54 > 0:18:57At the time of my Bradshaw's guide
0:18:57 > 0:19:00there was a corner of the county of Sussex
0:19:00 > 0:19:03that became forever Devonshire.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09The 7th Duke of Devonshire owned much of the land
0:19:09 > 0:19:12on which the small town of Eastbourne stood.
0:19:13 > 0:19:17The Victorian vogue for seaside holidays offered him an opportunity.
0:19:19 > 0:19:22He campaigned for a railway to Eastbourne
0:19:22 > 0:19:27and after it opened in 1849 he developed a high-class resort.
0:19:29 > 0:19:35He employed architect Henry Currey to fulfil his grand designs.
0:19:36 > 0:19:40I'm meeting an architect and local historian, Richard Crook,
0:19:40 > 0:19:43by Currey's Winter Garden.
0:19:43 > 0:19:46- Richard.- Good morning. - Very good to see you.
0:19:46 > 0:19:49What was the character of the Eastbourne that he wanted?
0:19:49 > 0:19:53Well, Henry Currey had been on the grand tour of Europe as a student.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55He loved Italian architecture
0:19:55 > 0:19:57and in particular the architecture of Venice.
0:19:57 > 0:20:02So we get this wonderful Italianate feel to the town centre.
0:20:02 > 0:20:04And he wanted it to be a very high-class resort.
0:20:04 > 0:20:07A town built by a gentleman for gentlemen.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11But presumably the town did have a working class population?
0:20:11 > 0:20:14Oh, yes, it did. Eastbourne was quite fortunately placed
0:20:14 > 0:20:16for a zoning of the resort.
0:20:16 > 0:20:20And there's a nice phrase that came down that's been quoted -
0:20:20 > 0:20:22"Don't go east of the pier, my dear."
0:20:22 > 0:20:25And the idea was that the pier was the cut-off point
0:20:25 > 0:20:29from the high-class hotels from the boarding houses and the laundries
0:20:29 > 0:20:30and the service industries,
0:20:30 > 0:20:35which were in the east end of town on the lower lying marshy areas.
0:20:36 > 0:20:42Currey's Queen's Hotel is set forward as a visual and geographical barrier
0:20:42 > 0:20:48between the two zones, building the class divide into the town's fabric.
0:20:52 > 0:20:56Henry Currey also designed a three-tiered promenade
0:20:56 > 0:20:57running the length of the bay,
0:20:57 > 0:21:02which perpetuated the resort's class consciousness.
0:21:02 > 0:21:05The local paper of the day pointed out the fact that it took on
0:21:05 > 0:21:09an unwritten social status about which level you were walking on,
0:21:09 > 0:21:13and it actually quoted that the promenaders on the upper level
0:21:13 > 0:21:17would look down like true born hidalgos on the motley crowd
0:21:17 > 0:21:22of nondescripts sauntering along the lower parade.
0:21:22 > 0:21:24Extraordinary Victorian snobbery.
0:21:29 > 0:21:34One thing that Currey omitted from his town plan was an opera house
0:21:34 > 0:21:39because opera was mainly confined to a short season in the capital.
0:21:40 > 0:21:46All the more remarkable that in the 1930s a highly successful opera house
0:21:46 > 0:21:50opened remote from any metropolitan population.
0:21:50 > 0:21:55Bradshaw's tells me that the station at Glynde is just half a mile
0:21:55 > 0:21:57from the village of Glyndebourne.
0:21:57 > 0:22:03But I've decided to leave this train at Lewes and I'm dressing
0:22:03 > 0:22:09because I believe I may be able to blend in with the crowd scene there.
0:22:09 > 0:22:13OPERA MUSIC PLAYS
0:22:13 > 0:22:18Lewes is the rail gateway to the Glyndebourne Opera Festival.
0:22:18 > 0:22:21As an opera lover I'm a frequent visitor
0:22:21 > 0:22:25and coming by train is part of the experience.
0:22:27 > 0:22:32From the station a complimentary bus service whisks us to the theatre.
0:22:37 > 0:22:41- Do you feel excited to be going to Glyndebourne?- Very much so.- Yeah?
0:22:41 > 0:22:43- Yeah.- Absolutely. I've never done something like that before
0:22:43 > 0:22:45and it sounds like a lot of fun.
0:22:45 > 0:22:48- Where are you guys from? - I'm from the Czech republic.
0:22:48 > 0:22:50- I'm from Belarus. - Oh, I hope you have a wonderful time.
0:22:50 > 0:22:51- Enjoy the show.- Thank you.
0:22:51 > 0:22:56OPERA MUSIC PLAYS
0:22:58 > 0:23:01This really is the most British scene -
0:23:01 > 0:23:05people dressed up to the nines in the heat of the summer,
0:23:05 > 0:23:08bearing great burdens, their picnics,
0:23:08 > 0:23:12but they're going to have a really British experience -
0:23:12 > 0:23:16opera and picnic and champagne.
0:23:16 > 0:23:18Hello, everybody. How are you enjoying your picnic, may I ask?
0:23:18 > 0:23:22- We're just about to start.- You look as if you're very well prepared.
0:23:22 > 0:23:24How many courses are you serving today?
0:23:24 > 0:23:26Well, we're going to have lunch now
0:23:26 > 0:23:30and then we'll have our three courses in the long interval.
0:23:30 > 0:23:32Have a wonderful day. By the way, there's an opera as well.
0:23:32 > 0:23:34THEY LAUGH
0:23:34 > 0:23:37- Now, how important is the opera to you?- It's extremely important.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39- Far more than the picnic. - Oh, I don't know!
0:23:39 > 0:23:41THEY LAUGH
0:23:41 > 0:23:44I suppose it would go opera, champagne, picnic.
0:23:44 > 0:23:47I hope you all enjoy a wonderful performance
0:23:47 > 0:23:50and that your picnic will be extremely successful.
0:23:50 > 0:23:52- ALL:- Cheers!
0:23:52 > 0:23:55The Glyndebourne opera season
0:23:55 > 0:23:57dominates the house all through the summer
0:23:57 > 0:24:01and yet it remains the family home of Gus Christie.
0:24:01 > 0:24:05- Gus, lovely to see you. - Very nice to see you, Michael.
0:24:05 > 0:24:10My Bradshaw's refers to Glynde Place which is a different house, I think,
0:24:10 > 0:24:13belonging to J Langham. Is there any connection with you?
0:24:13 > 0:24:16Yes, they were cousins of ours.
0:24:16 > 0:24:20Glyndebourne came into our family around the 1830s.
0:24:20 > 0:24:24And whose idea was it to attach to this lovely house an opera house?
0:24:24 > 0:24:29My grandfather was mad about opera, so he actually built this room,
0:24:29 > 0:24:31initially, in the '20s,
0:24:31 > 0:24:35and they would stage scenes from operas and a few professionals
0:24:35 > 0:24:37he'd get in, one of whom was my grandmother.
0:24:37 > 0:24:42And then he wanted to extend this room make it bigger but she said,
0:24:42 > 0:24:44"If you're going to spend all that money,
0:24:44 > 0:24:46"for God's sake do the thing properly."
0:24:46 > 0:24:49So he built her an opera house in the garden. Right from the beginning
0:24:49 > 0:24:52my grandfather set the quality bar extremely high.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55His motto was not the best that we can do
0:24:55 > 0:24:57but the best that can be done anywhere.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00Which is a very high bar to set
0:25:00 > 0:25:03and we still aspire to that same level nowadays.
0:25:04 > 0:25:07I'm lucky enough to be invited behind the scenes
0:25:07 > 0:25:11to meet one of tonight's stars, Edgaras Montvidas.
0:25:12 > 0:25:14Edgaras.
0:25:14 > 0:25:16- Hello, Michael. - Good to see you.
0:25:16 > 0:25:18I spotted you on the train.
0:25:18 > 0:25:21Not many people would think of a great opera star
0:25:21 > 0:25:24coming down to the opera house by train, is that a regular thing?
0:25:24 > 0:25:27- Absolutely, yes.- Now, you have to perform this afternoon.
0:25:27 > 0:25:30You were doing your warm-up, do you mind if I stay for a second
0:25:30 > 0:25:33- while you continue?- Not at all. - What were you doing?
0:25:33 > 0:25:37I would normally sing a couple of exercises.
0:25:37 > 0:25:40You must be baritone and so I'll do it a bit lower.
0:25:41 > 0:25:47HE SINGS SCALES
0:25:47 > 0:25:48Michael?
0:25:48 > 0:25:52HE SINGS SCALES
0:25:52 > 0:25:55- But you skipped the highest note! - Oh, did I?
0:25:55 > 0:26:00HE SINGS SCALES
0:26:00 > 0:26:02HE SINGS SCALES
0:26:02 > 0:26:04HE SQUEAKS AT HIGH NOTES
0:26:04 > 0:26:06That's why I skipped the high ones.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09- Well, a few lessons wouldn't harm! - THEY LAUGH
0:26:09 > 0:26:11- Let's hear a piece from the opera. - OK.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17HE SINGS OPERATICALLY
0:26:35 > 0:26:38- That's higher than... - Beautiful.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40I just want to wish you a fantastic performance
0:26:40 > 0:26:42and many happy years at Glyndebourne.
0:26:42 > 0:26:45- Thank you very much. - Thank you very much.
0:26:45 > 0:26:49The production is Mozart's Die Entfuhrung Aus Dem Serail,
0:26:49 > 0:26:51in a performance which demonstrates
0:26:51 > 0:26:54that the highest standards are being maintained.
0:26:54 > 0:26:56And it brings today's journey to a close.
0:26:56 > 0:27:01OPERA MUSIC PLAYS
0:27:05 > 0:27:07MUSIC AND SINGING ENDS
0:27:07 > 0:27:12APPLAUSE
0:27:12 > 0:27:15The Duke of Devonshire created in Eastbourne
0:27:15 > 0:27:19the ideal of a high-class seaside resort.
0:27:19 > 0:27:23Similar attention to detail went into the ultimate model railway
0:27:23 > 0:27:26running between Romney, Hythe and Dymchurch.
0:27:26 > 0:27:30The opera at Glyndebourne has prospered against the odds
0:27:30 > 0:27:34because of an uncompromising commitment to excellence
0:27:34 > 0:27:37and I want to pay tribute to Captain Matthew Webb,
0:27:37 > 0:27:41a Victorian hero whose motto was "nothing great is easy"
0:27:41 > 0:27:44and who endured 22 hours in the English Channel.
0:27:44 > 0:27:48Whereas I found it difficult to survive for ten minutes.
0:27:50 > 0:27:54Next time, I marvel at exquisite railway engineering...
0:27:54 > 0:27:55That is an extraordinary view,
0:27:55 > 0:27:58almost as though we were in a gothic cathedral or something.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01..take my pick in a temple of red fruit...
0:28:01 > 0:28:04All aboard for the Tomato Express!
0:28:06 > 0:28:07- Another go?- Yeah.
0:28:07 > 0:28:11..and test my patience against the southerly wind.
0:28:11 > 0:28:13If at first you don't succeed...
0:28:13 > 0:28:18- try, try again.- That's the mantra of kite flying if ever there was one.