0:00:04 > 0:00:08For Victorian Britons, George Bradshaw was a household name.
0:00:08 > 0:00:11At a time when railways were new,
0:00:11 > 0:00:15Bradshaw's guidebook inspired them to take to the tracks.
0:00:15 > 0:00:18I'm using a Bradshaw's guide to understand
0:00:18 > 0:00:21how trains transformed Britain,
0:00:21 > 0:00:26its landscape, its industries, society, and leisure time.
0:00:26 > 0:00:30As I crisscross the country 150 years later,
0:00:30 > 0:00:33it helps me to discover the Britain of today.
0:00:52 > 0:00:57I'm continuing my trip along the tracks of the Flying Scotsman.
0:00:57 > 0:01:02Today, I hope to have a singsong amongst holy innocents as my journey
0:01:02 > 0:01:06stretches into industrial Nottinghamshire, to discover how
0:01:06 > 0:01:11a novelist writing in Yorkshire prompted a Victorian concern
0:01:11 > 0:01:16for animals, and to meet my match as I strike into County Durham.
0:01:25 > 0:01:28My journey is taking me up the East Coast Main Line from
0:01:28 > 0:01:32London King's Cross through Hertfordshire, Bedfordshire,
0:01:32 > 0:01:37and on via Nottinghamshire to where a steam locomotive
0:01:37 > 0:01:40first hauled wagons in County Durham.
0:01:40 > 0:01:44I'll progress along the North Sea coast, crossing the Scottish border,
0:01:44 > 0:01:46to finish in the capital, Edinburgh.
0:01:49 > 0:01:52Today I start at Newark-on-Trent,
0:01:52 > 0:01:54a town dubbed the Key of the North.
0:01:54 > 0:01:59I'll continue on to Retford before stopping off in Thirsk and finishing
0:01:59 > 0:02:03in Stockton-on-Tees, the cradle of the modern railway.
0:02:06 > 0:02:10'On this journey, I rally a crowd of choristers...'
0:02:10 > 0:02:13Has your chanting ever been atrocious?
0:02:13 > 0:02:14No.
0:02:15 > 0:02:17'..become friends with a prickly chap...'
0:02:17 > 0:02:21Hello, Charles. Charles is certainly not lacking in energy or strength,
0:02:21 > 0:02:24- is he? - He is quite a character.
0:02:24 > 0:02:27'..and get fired up with a Victorian chemist.'
0:02:28 > 0:02:29Let there be light.
0:02:39 > 0:02:44My first stop today will be Newark. Bradshaw's says, "the parish church
0:02:44 > 0:02:47"of St Mary is one of the finest in the kingdom.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51"A grammar school founded in Henry VIII's reign with a song school
0:02:51 > 0:02:54"attached is near the church."
0:02:54 > 0:02:59Children singing - a choir of new archangels, perhaps.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07Beside the River Trent,
0:03:07 > 0:03:10Newark's old castle provided the focus for a town
0:03:10 > 0:03:12where roads and railway lines converge.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17Its church steeple has long towered over the hustle and bustle
0:03:17 > 0:03:19of this market town.
0:03:19 > 0:03:23The Bradshaw traveller would already have recognised it as a hub.
0:03:36 > 0:03:38I'm meeting Andrew Fern,
0:03:38 > 0:03:41clerk at the charity that founded the choir school.
0:03:42 > 0:03:45Andrew, Bradshaw's mentions the very distinguished
0:03:45 > 0:03:48St Mary Magdalene Church, and mentions too that the grammar school
0:03:48 > 0:03:51from Henry VIII's time had a song school attached.
0:03:51 > 0:03:53For what purpose was there a song school?
0:03:53 > 0:03:57The song school was to enable the young men to learn to sing
0:03:57 > 0:04:01and to further their religious education at the same time.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03How was such a school funded?
0:04:03 > 0:04:07Thomas Magnus was a loyal courtier of Henry VIII,
0:04:07 > 0:04:10and because he was faithful to his king he was rewarded
0:04:10 > 0:04:14with emoluments and decided to endow the schools here
0:04:14 > 0:04:16with some of that wealth.
0:04:21 > 0:04:25Thomas Magnus was Henry VIII's chaplain.
0:04:25 > 0:04:28At a time when religion and power went hand in hand,
0:04:28 > 0:04:31Magnus left his mark on Newark.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35He bequeathed land that generated revenue for the trust to fund
0:04:35 > 0:04:37the grammar school and the song school.
0:04:47 > 0:04:50I think of funded choirs attached to Oxford and Cambridge colleges,
0:04:50 > 0:04:52to cathedrals, and so on,
0:04:52 > 0:04:54but it's quite unusual, isn't it, for a parish church?
0:04:54 > 0:04:57It's very unusual. We're enormously lucky.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00We're just one of the few parish churches in the whole country
0:05:00 > 0:05:04to have an endowed choir. And it gives a great opportunity
0:05:04 > 0:05:09to youngsters of all backgrounds, and sometimes different talents,
0:05:09 > 0:05:12to come together and make music. It's fantastic.
0:05:21 > 0:05:25Today's choir echoes the voices of generations of children
0:05:25 > 0:05:31who attended the school over the past five centuries.
0:05:31 > 0:05:35The choirmaster is Stephen Bullamore.
0:05:35 > 0:05:37Choir, what a splendid sound.
0:05:37 > 0:05:39Thank you very much. You must be Stephen.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42- Yes, thank you very much. - It's great to see you.
0:05:42 > 0:05:45What a range of ages.
0:05:45 > 0:05:47And what does it feel like to sing with this choir?
0:05:47 > 0:05:52Well, it feels quite cool because it feels like it's a chance to be you,
0:05:52 > 0:05:55and it feels like you can express yourself.
0:05:55 > 0:05:56That's very nice indeed.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00So, has this choir pretty much been singing since 1530?
0:06:00 > 0:06:03Not necessarily each individual member, but as a body
0:06:03 > 0:06:06we've been going for a very long time, yes.
0:06:06 > 0:06:09I've been digging into the archives and we have a list of music which
0:06:09 > 0:06:14was sung in the 19th century, kept by one of my predecessors.
0:06:14 > 0:06:20And he also comments on quite how well the singing was or was not,
0:06:20 > 0:06:23so we have a rather nice comment: "All the music went well tonight."
0:06:23 > 0:06:24That's good.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29"Chanting in the morning simply atrocious.
0:06:29 > 0:06:33"As bad in the evening, and the anthem murdered entirely."
0:06:34 > 0:06:36Now, let's check with the choir.
0:06:36 > 0:06:40Has your chanting ever been atrocious?
0:06:40 > 0:06:41- ALL:- No.
0:06:41 > 0:06:44And have you ever murdered an anthem?
0:06:44 > 0:06:45- ALL:- No!
0:06:49 > 0:06:53Before leaving Newark, I'm going to visit a special display
0:06:53 > 0:06:57celebrating a time when train travel was still an adventure.
0:06:59 > 0:07:04The London North Eastern Railway ran to some beautiful places -
0:07:04 > 0:07:07York, Scarborough, Berwick-upon-Tweed -
0:07:07 > 0:07:11but how were those attractions to be illustrated?
0:07:12 > 0:07:15Posters were the answer,
0:07:15 > 0:07:18and writer Edward Yardley has a passion for them.
0:07:20 > 0:07:21Edward, I'm Michael. How lovely to see you.
0:07:21 > 0:07:25- Lovely to see you.- What a great collection of railway posters.
0:07:25 > 0:07:27- Yes.- When does the railway poster start life?
0:07:27 > 0:07:31The poster starts in the Victorian period, Michael, but it starts as
0:07:31 > 0:07:35a rather muddled set of images with some overstated letterpress.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38It really gets going in the Edwardian period,
0:07:38 > 0:07:43and by 1923, we were in the heyday of the poster period.
0:07:43 > 0:07:45Illustrated by artists,
0:07:45 > 0:07:50these posters transformed platforms into open-air galleries,
0:07:50 > 0:07:53and Frank Henry Mason was one of the masters.
0:07:53 > 0:07:59Born in 1875, he'd been a marine life painter when the LNER
0:07:59 > 0:08:01lured him into the advertising world.
0:08:02 > 0:08:07He demonstrated his talent for everything from the Flying Scotsman
0:08:07 > 0:08:11to the most intricate industrial scenes,
0:08:11 > 0:08:14and the east coast seaside destinations.
0:08:16 > 0:08:18Well, that speaks for itself.
0:08:18 > 0:08:19I mean, that is the classic, isn't it?
0:08:19 > 0:08:22Inviting us to the broad, open beach.
0:08:22 > 0:08:25Yes, this is what we think of as a typical railway poster,
0:08:25 > 0:08:28designed to entice the holiday public to the resort.
0:08:28 > 0:08:30It's Scarborough in this one.
0:08:30 > 0:08:32And it's alluring after all this time.
0:08:32 > 0:08:33- Yes.- But, now, this is quite different.
0:08:33 > 0:08:36This is NOT buckets and spades at all.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39No, but this was the advertising manager coming up with
0:08:39 > 0:08:44a different slant on enticing the public to the Great Britain
0:08:44 > 0:08:48in terms of its industry as well as coastal resorts merely being
0:08:48 > 0:08:49for the holiday-maker.
0:08:49 > 0:08:51A tribute to what's actually going on in Britain.
0:08:51 > 0:08:54- Absolutely.- And then up the east coast we go.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56Berwick-upon-Tweed, the famous bridge.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00And at last we arrive in Scotland, and that's a beautiful piece too.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02Indeed, and this is a series of six, Michael,
0:09:02 > 0:09:05showing the different types of fishing boats that in those days
0:09:05 > 0:09:10were very much at work in the harbours up and down the east coast.
0:09:10 > 0:09:11These posters...
0:09:11 > 0:09:15- Yeah.- ..remain very popular and you're obviously extraordinarily
0:09:15 > 0:09:18keen about them. Why are we so attracted still to
0:09:18 > 0:09:21the work of Frank Mason and others all these years later?
0:09:21 > 0:09:23Well, I think you can sum it up in the word "nostalgia".
0:09:23 > 0:09:26These are images of a bygone age.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28Yes.
0:09:39 > 0:09:41I'm leaving Newark to press northward.
0:09:45 > 0:09:49My next stop will be Retford in Nottinghamshire.
0:09:49 > 0:09:52According to Bradshaw's, the inhabitants manufacture hats,
0:09:52 > 0:09:55sail cloth, and paper, in considerable quantities.
0:09:55 > 0:09:59The Chesterfield Canal from the Trent has been of great advantage
0:09:59 > 0:10:04to the town. In Victorian times they discovered a new industrial plant,
0:10:04 > 0:10:08proving that the manufacture of the town was highly flexible.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28Retford has kept the traces of its industrial splendour,
0:10:28 > 0:10:32with fine Victorian frontages adorning the town square.
0:10:37 > 0:10:41The Northern Rubber Factory was founded here during that boom era,
0:10:41 > 0:10:45and has been on this site since 1871.
0:10:45 > 0:10:49Its product was destined to become indispensable.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52Mike Heslop has worked here for nearly 40 years,
0:10:52 > 0:10:56and knows about the history of rubber at the time of my Bradshaw's.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00In the Victorian times, the only rubber that was available
0:11:00 > 0:11:03was natural rubber, which was taken from trees,
0:11:03 > 0:11:04and that was sourced from Brazil
0:11:04 > 0:11:06because that was the only place that they grew,
0:11:06 > 0:11:11and it was illegal to actually export seeds or plants from Brazil.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14But in the 1870s, a chap called Henry Wickham
0:11:14 > 0:11:17smuggled 70,000 seeds from Brazil to Kew Gardens,
0:11:17 > 0:11:21where they were propagated and the resulting plants were
0:11:21 > 0:11:24distributed throughout the Empire.
0:11:24 > 0:11:27So to Ceylon, Malaya, at the time, India,
0:11:27 > 0:11:30all of which had the correct climate to grow rubber plants.
0:11:31 > 0:11:35When those rubber trees had grown in those colonial regions, their gum
0:11:35 > 0:11:39was a cheap commodity readily available to imperial Britain.
0:11:41 > 0:11:45Back in America, in 1839, Charles Goodyear had discovered that
0:11:45 > 0:11:49by heating rubber with sulphur, one was able to harden
0:11:49 > 0:11:53the amorphous mass into a material which would hold its shape.
0:11:53 > 0:11:56This process would be called vulcanisation.
0:11:58 > 0:12:00Alfred Pegler saw the potential,
0:12:00 > 0:12:03and founded the factory as a family business.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07His great-grandson would go on to look after the company,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10and put his name down in railway history.
0:12:10 > 0:12:15Alan Pegler is well known for his activities in the rail industry.
0:12:15 > 0:12:19In the early '60s, he purchased the Flying Scotsman and he then spent
0:12:19 > 0:12:22a large amount of his fortune restoring the train.
0:12:22 > 0:12:24We owe to him the fact that it has now been restored
0:12:24 > 0:12:27- and is available for us to ride.- Yeah, absolutely, yes.
0:12:33 > 0:12:35Inside the factory's Victorian walls,
0:12:35 > 0:12:39the activity is resolutely modern.
0:12:39 > 0:12:44The old vulcanisation technique has evolved to produce army tank wheels,
0:12:44 > 0:12:48while synthetic rubber is used by 21st-century aerospace.
0:12:49 > 0:12:54Manufacturing manager, Tom Wagstaff, takes me behind the scenes.
0:12:54 > 0:12:59So, Michael, this is a fire test and what we're going to do is we've got
0:12:59 > 0:13:02a silicone rubber seal in the test rig. This particular seal,
0:13:02 > 0:13:06a safety-critical engine component for an aircraft. The point
0:13:06 > 0:13:09of the fire test is we are going to hit it
0:13:09 > 0:13:11with 1,100 degrees C of flame.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14We're going to do that for five minutes to make sure that
0:13:14 > 0:13:17the seal stays intact, and it will be safe on the aircraft.
0:13:17 > 0:13:19So that looks pretty metallic,
0:13:19 > 0:13:20but actually it is...
0:13:20 > 0:13:22- Silicone rubber. - Silicone rubber.
0:13:28 > 0:13:29Whoa!
0:13:30 > 0:13:31Excuse me.
0:13:33 > 0:13:37Silicone rubber is the perfect material for this aircraft seal,
0:13:37 > 0:13:42because it can survive very high temperatures, as in this fire test,
0:13:42 > 0:13:47and extremes of cold, down to -60 Celsius.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50I can feel the heat radiating from here.
0:13:50 > 0:13:51A pretty powerful flame.
0:13:51 > 0:13:55It really is an aggressive flame, for the worst type of fire.
0:13:55 > 0:13:57I'm just going to have a look at what's happened to the seal.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01And the answer is nothing.
0:14:06 > 0:14:10With contracts with NASA and the British Ministry of Defence,
0:14:10 > 0:14:13the company is accustomed to manufacturing critical
0:14:13 > 0:14:17pieces of equipment, such as this in-flight refuelling hose.
0:14:18 > 0:14:21Imagine a fighter plane coming in at 300, 400mph,
0:14:21 > 0:14:23to the back of a tanker plane.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26It's got to be able to connect onto this.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29It's got to be strong enough to be able to take that force
0:14:29 > 0:14:31without breaking loose from the aircraft.
0:14:31 > 0:14:35And how on Earth does this thing find its way towards the fuel tank?
0:14:35 > 0:14:37So, it's a good question.
0:14:37 > 0:14:40These can be up to 120 feet long,
0:14:40 > 0:14:42and today the pilot will fly in,
0:14:42 > 0:14:45home in to the back of the tanker, and try and hook the end of it.
0:14:45 > 0:14:48I couldn't do it. I'm sure you could, Michael!
0:14:49 > 0:14:51But what we're actually doing as well -
0:14:51 > 0:14:56a really interesting piece of technology - is for drones, so UAVs.
0:14:56 > 0:15:00We're actually running data fibres within it, so an unmanned aircraft
0:15:00 > 0:15:05can clip onto the back, get fuel on board, download mission parameters,
0:15:05 > 0:15:08uncouple, and it allows those to stay in the sky 24 hours a day.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11And so, really, you're working on an intelligent hose.
0:15:11 > 0:15:14Oh, absolutely, yeah. This is the cutting edge of technology
0:15:14 > 0:15:18- across the world.- Can you imagine what a gardener could do with that?
0:15:40 > 0:15:44- Thirsk, please. Senior. - £27.05, then, please.
0:16:00 > 0:16:05To make my journey from Retford to Thirsk, I've had to change trains
0:16:05 > 0:16:10in York, but who needs an excuse to come to this magnificent station?
0:16:14 > 0:16:17When it was built in 1877,
0:16:17 > 0:16:21York was the largest station in Britain, and many perceived it as
0:16:21 > 0:16:23a monument to extravagance.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27The whole station was constructed on a curve,
0:16:27 > 0:16:29making it all the more striking.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35My next station will be Thirsk.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39Bradshaw's says, "that it cannot lay claim to any feature
0:16:39 > 0:16:42"worthy of attention." Oh, dear.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44I'm sure the people of Thirsk would not agree.
0:16:44 > 0:16:47"A few miles on is Byland Abbey, a fine ruin,
0:16:47 > 0:16:52"in going to which Laurence Sterne's house may be observed."
0:16:52 > 0:16:56Sterne, although a man of the cloth, wrote satire and comedy,
0:16:56 > 0:16:59and so his surname was not particularly appropriate.
0:17:11 > 0:17:14Despite Bradshaw's giving Thirsk the brush-off,
0:17:14 > 0:17:16it's actually a charming town,
0:17:16 > 0:17:20with a picturesque town clock and a cobbled market square.
0:17:22 > 0:17:26Just outside, in a pastoral haven, a man penned a series of books
0:17:26 > 0:17:28that shook the literary world.
0:17:29 > 0:17:34Patrick Wildgust is curator of the Laurence Sterne Trust.
0:17:34 > 0:17:36Well, Patrick, Bradshaw's recommended that I come to see
0:17:36 > 0:17:40Laurence Sterne's house, and I must say, it is highly attractive.
0:17:40 > 0:17:42But let's begin with - who was Laurence Sterne?
0:17:42 > 0:17:46Laurence Sterne was a clergyman, and he was the clergyman of two villages
0:17:46 > 0:17:48to the south of here, but he had ambition.
0:17:48 > 0:17:50He said, "I write not to be fed, but to be famous."
0:17:50 > 0:17:52And he produced a book called
0:17:52 > 0:17:54The Life And Opinions Of Tristram Shandy, Gentleman,
0:17:54 > 0:17:57one of the most extraordinary books that's in the English canon.
0:17:57 > 0:18:00- And why is it extraordinary? - Because it's funny.
0:18:00 > 0:18:03It's a genuinely funny book, but it's also very clever.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07It begins with a rather strange way of referring to the hero's
0:18:07 > 0:18:10conception, which is dictated by the winding of the clock,
0:18:10 > 0:18:13and as a result of this, it was scandalous.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16That, presumably, is the book.
0:18:16 > 0:18:18Well, this is the first volume.
0:18:18 > 0:18:20This is a first edition, a copy of the first volume,
0:18:20 > 0:18:23which was published in 1759, and here is the title page.
0:18:23 > 0:18:25Shandy's a North Yorkshire dialect word,
0:18:25 > 0:18:27meaning a bit strange or a bit odd.
0:18:27 > 0:18:30And then, beneath that, we have two lines in Greek,
0:18:30 > 0:18:32so that's appealing to the intellectual,
0:18:32 > 0:18:34and it means something along the lines of,
0:18:34 > 0:18:37"It's not what things are that men fear, it's his opinions of them."
0:18:37 > 0:18:39How was it received at the time?
0:18:39 > 0:18:42It was a huge success, but it was also quite controversial,
0:18:42 > 0:18:44because the book, although funny and bawdy,
0:18:44 > 0:18:46when it was discovered it was written by a clergyman,
0:18:46 > 0:18:49that altered its reception to some degree.
0:18:49 > 0:18:51How was he regarded in Victorian times?
0:18:51 > 0:18:54In Victorian times, they chopped off the first five chapters
0:18:54 > 0:18:57in some editions, to make sure that this didn't offend.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01If a vicar in a parish today brought out a slim volume of erotic verse,
0:19:01 > 0:19:02how would it go down with the parish?
0:19:02 > 0:19:06- It had that sort of effect? - Yeah, certainly.
0:19:06 > 0:19:10Sterne both provoked and influenced his readers.
0:19:10 > 0:19:13One of his best-known characters, Uncle Toby,
0:19:13 > 0:19:15made an impact on Victorian society.
0:19:16 > 0:19:19This painting here shows two characters from
0:19:19 > 0:19:20The Life And Opinions Of Tristram Shandy -
0:19:20 > 0:19:23Uncle Toby and the Widow Wadman.
0:19:23 > 0:19:25Uncle Toby is a kind and genial man.
0:19:25 > 0:19:30In volume two of Tristram Shandy, if I can show you here, on page 79,
0:19:30 > 0:19:33there's an account as to why we should look at this man because
0:19:33 > 0:19:37Tristram thinks that he owes 50% of his understanding of philanthropy
0:19:37 > 0:19:41because of this action, "where my Uncle Toby had scarce a heart
0:19:41 > 0:19:44"to retaliate upon a fly which had buzzed about his nose
0:19:44 > 0:19:47"and tormented him cruelly all dinner time.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50"Get thee gone, why should I hurt thee?
0:19:50 > 0:19:54"This world surely is big enough to hold both thee and me."
0:19:54 > 0:19:57And this must have been very unfashionable at the time.
0:19:57 > 0:20:00- People didn't care about animals. - It's an unusual perspective.
0:20:00 > 0:20:03Tristram is affected by this, and so they were in Victorian times
0:20:03 > 0:20:06as well, because the Newcastle Weekly Chronicle decided that
0:20:06 > 0:20:10there should be a society organised for the young child
0:20:10 > 0:20:14to try to encourage the idea of not killing sparrows and birds.
0:20:14 > 0:20:17The editor used the pen name Uncle Toby to promote
0:20:17 > 0:20:22the Dickey Bird Society. Within ten years, 100,000 people had pledged
0:20:22 > 0:20:27fealty to feathered friends, and parades were held in Newcastle
0:20:27 > 0:20:28in celebration.
0:20:28 > 0:20:31Dear Uncle Toby, we owe you such a lot.
0:20:31 > 0:20:32Indeed.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41Uncle Toby and the Victorians sowed the seeds for the nation of
0:20:41 > 0:20:44animal lovers that the British have become.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46On the outskirts of Thirsk,
0:20:46 > 0:20:51Krista Langley has a wildlife centre funded entirely by donations.
0:20:51 > 0:20:54Since its opening in 2008,
0:20:54 > 0:20:58the centre has taken care of over 5,000 animals.
0:20:59 > 0:21:02Wow, cages all around.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04So, which animals are in residence at the moment?
0:21:04 > 0:21:07We've got a little owl. We get quite a few in.
0:21:07 > 0:21:08- Ooh! - Looking very bright.
0:21:08 > 0:21:12Hello, little owl. What a lovely bird.
0:21:12 > 0:21:15They're full of character, little owls.
0:21:15 > 0:21:16Looking me directly in the eye.
0:21:17 > 0:21:21This little owl was brought to the centre after being found concussed
0:21:21 > 0:21:26on the roadside. It couldn't feed itself, but is recovering,
0:21:26 > 0:21:28and will soon resume its life in the wild.
0:21:32 > 0:21:37Cygnets, rabbits and other animals have found shelter and care,
0:21:37 > 0:21:39including this hedgehog, Charles.
0:21:39 > 0:21:43At only 142 grams, he's in need of a feed.
0:21:45 > 0:21:48Nice soft blanket for him.
0:21:48 > 0:21:50Hello, Charles.
0:21:50 > 0:21:52Come on, Charles. Come on, Charles.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59Charles is certainly not lacking in energy or strength, is he?
0:21:59 > 0:22:00He's quite a character.
0:22:02 > 0:22:04Charles.
0:22:04 > 0:22:06That's better. Here we go.
0:22:06 > 0:22:08You're doing really well, because he's quite difficult.
0:22:08 > 0:22:10He's always had a habit of pulling on the teat.
0:22:10 > 0:22:11Yeah, he does pull a lot.
0:22:11 > 0:22:15Although he's started to eat solids, he still enjoys his milk.
0:22:16 > 0:22:18How's that, Charles? Is that nice?
0:22:26 > 0:22:28My next stop will be Stockton.
0:22:28 > 0:22:31Bradshaw's tells me it's a market town in the county of Durham,
0:22:31 > 0:22:36employed in the coal and shipping trade, situated on the River Tees,
0:22:36 > 0:22:39and celebrated for the manufacture of rope.
0:22:39 > 0:22:45The first bar of the railway line to Darlington was laid here in 1825.
0:22:45 > 0:22:50It's also the birthplace of the man who gave us heat and light
0:22:50 > 0:22:51at our fingertips.
0:22:57 > 0:23:01Stockton has a special place in the heart of all train lovers.
0:23:01 > 0:23:06Here ran the world's first public railway to use steam locomotives.
0:23:06 > 0:23:11Today, the town proudly commemorates the famed Locomotion No 1
0:23:11 > 0:23:14with a modern sculpture that moves on the hour.
0:23:15 > 0:23:18The 19th-century town residents were true pioneers,
0:23:18 > 0:23:23and when it came to inventions, the railways were about to be matched.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29This enormous work of art celebrates the achievement of a
0:23:29 > 0:23:32Stockton-on-Tees chemist.
0:23:32 > 0:23:34Just a little invention,
0:23:34 > 0:23:36but one that simplified our lives,
0:23:36 > 0:23:39and helped to fuel the Industrial Revolution.
0:23:43 > 0:23:48To find out about that discovery, I need to step back in time to 1895,
0:23:48 > 0:23:52in the Victorian street of the Preston Park Museum,
0:23:52 > 0:23:56just in time for my appointment with the local chemist.
0:23:56 > 0:23:59John Walker was a 45-year-old pharmacist
0:23:59 > 0:24:03when he invented the striking match.
0:24:03 > 0:24:07His shop stocked products ranging from cosmetics to leeches.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11Historical interpreter John Sadler has stepped into Walker's shoes.
0:24:13 > 0:24:14Mr John Walker.
0:24:14 > 0:24:18- Good afternoon.- Inventor of the striking match, I believe.
0:24:18 > 0:24:23Well, I must confess that I was not intending to create the match.
0:24:23 > 0:24:26I was inspired by The Reverend Alexander Forsyth,
0:24:26 > 0:24:32and he had invented a new firing mechanism called the percussion cap,
0:24:32 > 0:24:35which was an improvement on the flint mechanism,
0:24:35 > 0:24:38and all one has to do now is literally pull the trigger.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42So that's at half cock, go to full cock...
0:24:42 > 0:24:43I feel a bit like Dick Turpin.
0:24:45 > 0:24:47Ha! Take that, you blaggard.
0:24:47 > 0:24:51So, why was it that that led you to the match?
0:24:51 > 0:24:55I was working with a particular compound, which was sulphur-based,
0:24:55 > 0:24:58and I had coated the solution onto a stick and then, purely by mischance,
0:24:58 > 0:25:02I struck it against the fireplace, and it ignited.
0:25:04 > 0:25:06John Walker promptly sold his matches,
0:25:06 > 0:25:10and their success spread like wildfire.
0:25:10 > 0:25:15Scientist Dr Joe McGuinness and artist Sarah Pickering
0:25:15 > 0:25:17are keeping Walker's flame burning.
0:25:17 > 0:25:19Sarah, hello, I'm Michael.
0:25:19 > 0:25:23- Hi, Michael.- Now, you have done an art piece,
0:25:23 > 0:25:26an artwork around the invention of the match.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29That's correct. It's a 38-metre photograph,
0:25:29 > 0:25:33a massive enlargement of a John Walker replica match.
0:25:33 > 0:25:36The commission that I had was to celebrate something
0:25:36 > 0:25:40about the Stockton area. John Walker's invention in 1827
0:25:40 > 0:25:43seemed really perfect subject matter for me.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46And how did you, as it were, generate a Walker match?
0:25:46 > 0:25:49Well, I came to the museum here and did some research.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52They provided me with an original recipe, and this is where
0:25:52 > 0:25:54Dr Joe McGuinness came in and helped me out.
0:25:54 > 0:25:56- Joe. - Michael.
0:25:56 > 0:25:57Very good to see you.
0:25:57 > 0:26:00So, a difficult task to remake a Walker match?
0:26:00 > 0:26:04Not really. The compounds involved are relatively common.
0:26:04 > 0:26:07You need an oxidising agent, which is potassium chlorate.
0:26:07 > 0:26:11You can think of that as a bit like concentrated oxygen.
0:26:11 > 0:26:16- OK.- We need a fuel, which is antimony sulphide,
0:26:16 > 0:26:19which is not the nicest compound,
0:26:19 > 0:26:23but, you know, don't drink it, you'll be OK.
0:26:24 > 0:26:27And then we need some plant gum.
0:26:27 > 0:26:31That's just gum arabic and that is required to get the match head
0:26:31 > 0:26:34to stick together and adhere.
0:26:34 > 0:26:36- How do we do it, then?- The first thing to do is to put a pair
0:26:36 > 0:26:38of safety glasses and a lab coat on.
0:26:38 > 0:26:40I've got a face shield, if you prefer,
0:26:40 > 0:26:43and a pair of gloves will be advisable too.
0:26:45 > 0:26:48This is clearly going to be more dangerous than I thought.
0:26:48 > 0:26:52The mixture obviously is shock sensitive, so you can't do it in
0:26:52 > 0:26:55a mortar and pestle and grind them all up together,
0:26:55 > 0:26:56because it might go bang.
0:26:57 > 0:27:00Despite hiring people to help him make matches,
0:27:00 > 0:27:04John Walker never allowed anyone to do the last part of the process.
0:27:04 > 0:27:10Some suspect that it had a special ingredient that he kept secret.
0:27:10 > 0:27:11That's fine.
0:27:11 > 0:27:15One thing is certain - its result was akin to a miracle.
0:27:18 > 0:27:19Let there be light.
0:27:28 > 0:27:32The steam engine is the icon of the 19th century,
0:27:32 > 0:27:36but other inventions of the period also loom large in our history.
0:27:36 > 0:27:40Vulcanised rubber, and the striking match, invented here on the banks of
0:27:40 > 0:27:46the Tees, bringing illumination to our homes and fire to our hearts.
0:27:46 > 0:27:49But humanity is not just about technology.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53Laurence Sterne's character, Uncle Toby, suggested that a concern
0:27:53 > 0:27:58for animal life was also a badge of a civilised society.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04'Next time, I step through the looking glass...'
0:28:04 > 0:28:07Michael, are you all right?
0:28:07 > 0:28:09I've gone mad.
0:28:09 > 0:28:11'..prove there's no smoke without fire
0:28:11 > 0:28:14'when it comes to Northumbrian delicacies...'
0:28:14 > 0:28:16Right, quite enough of that, I think.
0:28:17 > 0:28:19Bye-bye, kippers.
0:28:20 > 0:28:23'..and rock the boat on Scottish waters.'
0:28:23 > 0:28:25My thoughts on the coracle -
0:28:25 > 0:28:27possibly the most impractical thing I've ever set eyes on.
0:28:27 > 0:28:29Whoa!