0:00:04 > 0:00:09For Edwardian Britons, a Bradshaw's was an indispensable guide
0:00:09 > 0:00:11to a railway network at its peak.
0:00:13 > 0:00:17I'm using an early 20th-century edition to navigate
0:00:17 > 0:00:21a vibrant and optimistic Britain at the height of its power
0:00:21 > 0:00:22and influence in the world.
0:00:25 > 0:00:26But a nation wrestling with
0:00:26 > 0:00:30political, social and industrial unrest at home.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57Trains have brought me from the northern coast of Norfolk
0:00:57 > 0:01:00to the Home Counties that border London.
0:01:00 > 0:01:06Here, idealists planned modern towns far from the urban sprawl.
0:01:06 > 0:01:10Meanwhile, in the metropolis, engineers tunnelled
0:01:10 > 0:01:12while, in the streets above,
0:01:12 > 0:01:15the proletariat sped along on their bicycles.
0:01:15 > 0:01:19The King pursued his fast life at the Ritz Hotel,
0:01:19 > 0:01:21and there I will hurry after him.
0:01:27 > 0:01:31My journey began in the coastal resort of Cromer,
0:01:31 > 0:01:35pointed south via Norwich to the university city of Cambridge.
0:01:35 > 0:01:38And now I'm heading for the capital.
0:01:38 > 0:01:40I'll wend my way along the South Coast
0:01:40 > 0:01:44and cross the Solent to explore Edward VII's childhood
0:01:44 > 0:01:45on the Isle of Wight.
0:01:45 > 0:01:47Returning to the mainland,
0:01:47 > 0:01:50I'll experience a turn-of-the-century seaside resort
0:01:50 > 0:01:53and end on Brownsea Island near Poole.
0:01:55 > 0:01:59This leg of my trip starts around 30 miles outside London,
0:01:59 > 0:02:01in Letchworth Garden City.
0:02:01 > 0:02:04I'll be exploring Edwardian London on the Underground,
0:02:04 > 0:02:05beginning at Green Park,
0:02:05 > 0:02:08stopping at a ground-breaking transport project
0:02:08 > 0:02:13and finishing at the home of British track cycling near Brixton.
0:02:16 > 0:02:21Along the way, I'll dig deep into the future of the Tube...
0:02:21 > 0:02:27Every 45 minutes, we can get another 1.5 metres completed.
0:02:27 > 0:02:31..tip the scales at an historic wine merchant...
0:02:31 > 0:02:34I've obviously misjudged you, Michael, because I can see that,
0:02:34 > 0:02:37actually, you're a lot lighter than I thought you were, and I apologise.
0:02:37 > 0:02:40..and follow the old political advice to get on my bike,
0:02:40 > 0:02:42clad in Lycra.
0:02:42 > 0:02:44That was great.
0:02:44 > 0:02:45Whoa!
0:02:55 > 0:02:59I have here the programme for the official opening
0:02:59 > 0:03:04of the Cheap Cottages Exhibition at the Garden City, Letchworth,
0:03:04 > 0:03:09opened by the Duke of Devonshire in July 1905,
0:03:09 > 0:03:14and sooty city-dwellers could travel from King's Cross,
0:03:14 > 0:03:17have their third-class rail fare, their lunch and their conveyance,
0:03:17 > 0:03:21their tea and their admission to the exhibition
0:03:21 > 0:03:23for seven shillings and sixpence.
0:03:23 > 0:03:28All aboard for rural - or at least suburban - utopia.
0:03:39 > 0:03:44Arriving in Letchworth, I find an Arts and Crafts-inspired station,
0:03:44 > 0:03:48fully in keeping with the ideals of the world's first garden city.
0:03:57 > 0:04:02These tranquil streets were part of a radical vision for the future.
0:04:04 > 0:04:07I'm meeting town historian, Josh Tidy.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12- Hello, Josh. I'm Michael. - Pleasure to meet you.
0:04:12 > 0:04:14I'm very happy to be in Letchworth.
0:04:14 > 0:04:17Josh, how does the idea of Letchworth start?
0:04:17 > 0:04:20So, Letchworth started with one man, Ebenezer Howard,
0:04:20 > 0:04:24and he was a social reformer who sought to solve the problems of the
0:04:24 > 0:04:27late Victorian era, chiefly that people were living in
0:04:27 > 0:04:29overcrowded towns and squalid conditions,
0:04:29 > 0:04:30paying extortionate rents.
0:04:30 > 0:04:32How did he sell his idea?
0:04:32 > 0:04:34So, he puts all his ideas together in a book,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37which was published in 1898, and in it he sets out what
0:04:37 > 0:04:40a garden city should be, so it's a combination of the best parts
0:04:40 > 0:04:44of town and country, so fresh air and the beauty of nature,
0:04:44 > 0:04:48jobs and social opportunities, but without any smoke and smog.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Construction began in Letchworth just five years after
0:04:51 > 0:04:53the book's publication.
0:04:55 > 0:04:58The new town was to be self-sufficient,
0:04:58 > 0:05:02a community within which inhabitants would both live and work.
0:05:03 > 0:05:06Two architects were responsible for the look of this utopia -
0:05:06 > 0:05:09Raymond Unwin and Barry Parker.
0:05:12 > 0:05:16This museum was once the architect's drawing office.
0:05:20 > 0:05:24Josh, I'm very struck by the furnishings.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26This would be Arts and Crafts, would it?
0:05:26 > 0:05:29That's right, so this is Barry Parker's private office
0:05:29 > 0:05:31and it's done up, really, to give a prospective client an idea
0:05:31 > 0:05:34of the sort of house they might expect if they commissioned him.
0:05:34 > 0:05:36And this, then, is the town plan.
0:05:36 > 0:05:39That's right, this is one of the development plans that were
0:05:39 > 0:05:42published sporadically as the town grew.
0:05:42 > 0:05:43This is from 1912.
0:05:43 > 0:05:47And what it shows is the current level of development at that point,
0:05:47 > 0:05:49set against the original masterplan,
0:05:49 > 0:05:52so you can see what's been developed so far is here in orange
0:05:52 > 0:05:56and then in white, not built, but still very much part of the plan.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01At the heart of the town was the railway station
0:06:01 > 0:06:03and, next to that, the town's hub.
0:06:05 > 0:06:09Zones for housing and for industry radiated from the centre
0:06:09 > 0:06:12and green space was planned throughout.
0:06:16 > 0:06:21- Does any of this have lessons for us a century later?- I think so.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24Lots of things that were radical and revolutionary here
0:06:24 > 0:06:27have been adopted as standard practice since.
0:06:27 > 0:06:29So, this Ebenezer Howard perhaps should be
0:06:29 > 0:06:32- better remembered than he is? - Absolutely.
0:06:34 > 0:06:39Howard's garden city ideas have spread around the world
0:06:39 > 0:06:41and are still cherished in Letchworth,
0:06:41 > 0:06:45especially his belief in the benefits of shared outdoor space,
0:06:45 > 0:06:49which is apparently wholeheartedly embraced.
0:06:49 > 0:06:51- Hello, gardeners.- Hello!
0:06:51 > 0:06:54- Good morning, Michael!- Do not despair, help is at hand.
0:06:54 > 0:06:58- Please come and join us.- What are we planting?- Red cabbage.- Red cabbage?
0:06:58 > 0:07:02We have quite a mixture of crops which are rotated around the beds.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05We have quite a big group of volunteers that
0:07:05 > 0:07:09come on a rota basis and do watering and weeding.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12So, I expect Letchworth to be quite a community-minded place.
0:07:12 > 0:07:13Is it, in fact?
0:07:13 > 0:07:15Very much so, yes.
0:07:15 > 0:07:19For me, it encompasses the best of the town and country.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22Denise, does your family go back a long way in Letchworth?
0:07:22 > 0:07:24Indeed, in fact, my great-grandfather came down
0:07:24 > 0:07:27from Hull and he was a great friend of Ebenezer Howard
0:07:27 > 0:07:29and Ebenezer Howard would go and stay,
0:07:29 > 0:07:31so they used to have great discussions about the garden city.
0:07:31 > 0:07:33Now, Jani, you're of a different generation.
0:07:33 > 0:07:3630 minutes away by train are the bright lights
0:07:36 > 0:07:37of the West End of London.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40Are you not tempted to go and live there?
0:07:40 > 0:07:44Hmm... It may seem nice, but it's a lot different to Letchworth,
0:07:44 > 0:07:48a lot busier, more pollution, and I prefer it here, actually.
0:07:48 > 0:07:53You all seem very keen and loyal citizens, would that be right?
0:07:53 > 0:07:55Absolutely.
0:07:55 > 0:08:00We do actually have the feeling as though we all own Letchworth,
0:08:00 > 0:08:03that was really Ebenezer Howard's idea, was that the people
0:08:03 > 0:08:06- should feel that it was their city. - And you do feel that?
0:08:06 > 0:08:08And I do feel that, definitely, yes.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11My dear Letchworthians, my job is done here. Thank you so much.
0:08:11 > 0:08:14- Bye-bye now.- Thank you.- Bye-bye. - Safe journey.
0:08:32 > 0:08:37Welcome aboard this service to London King's Cross.
0:08:48 > 0:08:50In Irving Berlin's song,
0:08:50 > 0:08:54"putting on the ritz" meant getting on your gladrags,
0:08:54 > 0:08:57getting all togged up.
0:08:57 > 0:08:59A gossip column from 1907 tells me that
0:08:59 > 0:09:03"a married women's ball is the latest to social sensation.
0:09:03 > 0:09:07"Lady Colebrooke and Mrs George Keppel, the twin hostesses,
0:09:07 > 0:09:12"chose the Ritz Hotel as their scene of operations.
0:09:12 > 0:09:17"It would be interesting to know whether bachelors were excluded."
0:09:17 > 0:09:19Or, indeed, a married monarch.
0:09:42 > 0:09:45The next station is London King's Cross.
0:10:04 > 0:10:06I'm heading underground.
0:10:49 > 0:10:53Originally known as Dover Street, Green Park station
0:10:53 > 0:10:59opened in 1906, in the same year as one of London's best-known hotels.
0:11:05 > 0:11:07Very good to see you. Thank you very much.
0:11:28 > 0:11:33- Hello.- A very warm welcome back to The Ritz London, Mr Portillo.
0:11:33 > 0:11:36That's so kind of you. Michael, how long have you been here?
0:11:36 > 0:11:43Almost 44 years. Started here as a pageboy on the 30th of July 1973.
0:11:43 > 0:11:45What celebrities that you're allowed to mention can you
0:11:45 > 0:11:49- tell me about?- I've met you many, many times, Mr Portillo.
0:11:49 > 0:11:53You know, in the Ritz, we are very discreet. We have to be.
0:11:53 > 0:11:57With the lips of the concierge firmly sealed...
0:11:57 > 0:11:59- David.- Hello, Michael, how great to see you.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01..I'm hoping to find out more
0:12:01 > 0:12:04from architectural historian David Watkin.
0:12:04 > 0:12:07David, here we are, meeting in the splendour of the Ritz.
0:12:07 > 0:12:12Why is it that we feel it to be so grand and so welcoming?
0:12:12 > 0:12:16Well, it is grand, partly because of the height of it, which is
0:12:16 > 0:12:19quite imposing and unusual.
0:12:19 > 0:12:22And then it's full of the most beautiful details
0:12:22 > 0:12:26of French 17th and 18th-century grandeur.
0:12:26 > 0:12:28The whole thing is so exciting architecturally,
0:12:28 > 0:12:32to have a promenade like this, so long and so high,
0:12:32 > 0:12:36and going from one end to the other of an enormous building.
0:12:39 > 0:12:44Swiss hotelier Cesar Ritz is credited with creating
0:12:44 > 0:12:46the concept of the modern luxury hotel.
0:12:49 > 0:12:52He pioneered ensuite bathrooms throughout and the kind
0:12:52 > 0:12:56of perfectionism that we now associate with top establishments.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02So what is it that makes this room so French, David?
0:13:02 > 0:13:05We have these great mirrored walls,
0:13:05 > 0:13:08which come from the Galerie des Glaces at Versailles
0:13:08 > 0:13:11and the sculpture behind us, again, could be found
0:13:11 > 0:13:15anywhere in the grounds of Versailles cos of Louis XIV.
0:13:15 > 0:13:18Had London had hotels like this before?
0:13:18 > 0:13:21It had nothing on this scale or quality.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24They were beginning to come in in the 1890s,
0:13:24 > 0:13:27but it was pretty rare to have anything like this.
0:13:29 > 0:13:31When the hotel opened in 1906,
0:13:31 > 0:13:35it became an instant favourite of the King.
0:13:35 > 0:13:39He came here to pursue his passions for food and wine,
0:13:39 > 0:13:41and to enjoy the company of women,
0:13:41 > 0:13:44in particular of his mistress, Alice Keppel.
0:13:46 > 0:13:49Do you think that part of Edward VII's relationship with
0:13:49 > 0:13:52Mrs Keppel was played out here in public, lunch, dinner?
0:13:52 > 0:13:55I think they did, yes, which was pretty unusual.
0:13:55 > 0:13:58That's one of the reasons why hotels hadn't, I think,
0:13:58 > 0:14:02been very successful before in England, because it was
0:14:02 > 0:14:07thought very bad to see women, certainly alone, in a restaurant.
0:14:07 > 0:14:08Was The Ritz, then,
0:14:08 > 0:14:12a bit of a pioneer in allowing women to come on their own?
0:14:12 > 0:14:16- Yes, I think because it was a pioneering hotel.- Splendid.
0:14:28 > 0:14:31Sadly, I won't be staying at The Ritz tonight, but will take
0:14:31 > 0:14:35advantage of being in my home city and sleep in my own bed.
0:14:38 > 0:14:40But before I leave the St James's area,
0:14:40 > 0:14:43I'm curious to visit another historic establishment.
0:14:46 > 0:14:49- Welcome to Berry Bros & Rudd. - Ronnie.
0:14:49 > 0:14:52with the sloping floor and the wood panelling,
0:14:52 > 0:14:54it's a wonderful old institution.
0:14:54 > 0:14:55How far back does it go?
0:14:55 > 0:15:00It started in 1698 by somebody called the Widow Bourne,
0:15:00 > 0:15:04and it became a retail store for coffee and spices.
0:15:04 > 0:15:06It's still a retail store, but instead of coffee,
0:15:06 > 0:15:09we now sell wines. And spirits, of course.
0:15:09 > 0:15:11And, Ronnie, I notice you've got a contraption here
0:15:11 > 0:15:14for weighing people. Is that because you're afraid that
0:15:14 > 0:15:16they'll go through your old floorboards?
0:15:16 > 0:15:17LAUGHTER
0:15:17 > 0:15:20This originated as the coffee scales.
0:15:20 > 0:15:23Up until about 1760, that was, because in about 1760,
0:15:23 > 0:15:25people became much more health-conscious and they
0:15:25 > 0:15:29wanted to be weighed, so we started weighing our customers as part of
0:15:29 > 0:15:33the service that we would offer when they purchased a bottle of wine.
0:15:33 > 0:15:36So, if you like, you can actually experience this,
0:15:36 > 0:15:41and be very careful because it does move and swing as any balance would.
0:15:41 > 0:15:44Now, I've obviously misjudged you, Michael, because I can see
0:15:44 > 0:15:47that, actually, you're a lot lighter than I thought you were
0:15:47 > 0:15:48and I apologise.
0:15:48 > 0:15:51So I'm going to remove one of these weights in the hopes that
0:15:51 > 0:15:57that balances you out, which I think it does.
0:15:57 > 0:15:59Yes!
0:15:59 > 0:16:03In its 300-year history, this company has served many a VIP.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08It gained its first Royal Warrant in 1903
0:16:08 > 0:16:11when it created a unique tipple for King Edward.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17Ronnie, I think the clue must be in the name - The King's Ginger.
0:16:17 > 0:16:19This product was invented for King Edward VII.
0:16:19 > 0:16:22He had a passion for cars.
0:16:22 > 0:16:24He was the first European monarch
0:16:24 > 0:16:27ever to drive the horseless carriage.
0:16:27 > 0:16:28Usually the early motor cars,
0:16:28 > 0:16:31they had no canopy on the top and the wind-chill factor was
0:16:31 > 0:16:34affecting him to such a degree that his physician came to us
0:16:34 > 0:16:38and said, "We need something to revivify His Royal Highness.
0:16:38 > 0:16:39"Have you got something?"
0:16:39 > 0:16:42So this is the result - The King's Ginger liqueur.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44It's a very edifying drink.
0:16:44 > 0:16:48Soft on the palate, uplifting at the same time and very warming.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50So, your health.
0:16:54 > 0:16:55Ooh!
0:16:55 > 0:16:57I don't know about revivified,
0:16:57 > 0:16:59I think I shall sleep pretty well after that!
0:16:59 > 0:17:00LAUGHTER
0:17:00 > 0:17:03I'm sure you will, Michael. I hope you will.
0:17:16 > 0:17:18This morning, I'm returning to the Underground.
0:17:22 > 0:17:27My next stop is Vauxhall station, south of the River Thames.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30To my surprise, my Bradshaw's 1907
0:17:30 > 0:17:33lists the City and South London Railway
0:17:33 > 0:17:36running from Angel through Bank to Clapham.
0:17:36 > 0:17:39Londoners will recognise that as the Northern Line,
0:17:39 > 0:17:41so, since Edwardian times,
0:17:41 > 0:17:45there have been electrified railways running deep underground in
0:17:45 > 0:17:46round tunnels, and since then
0:17:46 > 0:17:49they've been threaded throughout the capital
0:17:49 > 0:17:52and I don't think the process of construction has finished yet.
0:17:56 > 0:18:021.37 billion journeys are made on London's Underground every year.
0:18:02 > 0:18:08Today, it has 250 miles of track and 270 stations.
0:18:10 > 0:18:13And as the rapid development of London continues above ground,
0:18:13 > 0:18:16the network below is responding.
0:18:18 > 0:18:23The Northern Line is London's oldest deep-level tube line, which today
0:18:23 > 0:18:30is being extended and I'm meeting Sam Mullins of Transport For London.
0:18:30 > 0:18:32Sam. What a sight.
0:18:32 > 0:18:35We're standing in front of the hive of activity that's creating
0:18:35 > 0:18:39a new station box for the Northern Line extension to
0:18:39 > 0:18:41Battersea Power Station.
0:18:41 > 0:18:45With 20,000 homes in this area, the new American Embassy
0:18:45 > 0:18:47and everything else that goes with it,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50a new quarter for London enabled and shaped by the railway.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54In the 1860s, London built cut and cover railways
0:18:54 > 0:18:57quite close to the surface - the Metropolitan Line for example.
0:18:57 > 0:19:01When do we first get the deep-bored ones in the little round tunnels?
0:19:01 > 0:19:04Well, the building of the cut and cover railways
0:19:04 > 0:19:06in the 1860s was incredibly disruptive,
0:19:06 > 0:19:09but by later in the 19th century, there are new technologies
0:19:09 > 0:19:12available, which enable tube railways to happen.
0:19:12 > 0:19:15You've got lifts, you've got electric traction
0:19:15 > 0:19:19and safe tunnelling technology, which enabled you to take
0:19:19 > 0:19:20the railway deep beneath the streets.
0:19:20 > 0:19:24A massive expansion of the railway capacity of London
0:19:24 > 0:19:26in quite a short period of time.
0:19:26 > 0:19:28What impact does it have on Edwardian Britain?
0:19:28 > 0:19:30I think it's remarkable that Edwardian London
0:19:30 > 0:19:33kind of acquires all the characteristics of what
0:19:33 > 0:19:36we would think of as a modern metro, a network of tube lines,
0:19:36 > 0:19:38all common ownership, common ticketing,
0:19:38 > 0:19:41there's a map that helps you get around it,
0:19:41 > 0:19:43predictable timetables, before the First World War,
0:19:43 > 0:19:45which always strikes me as a generation
0:19:45 > 0:19:47earlier than you would expect.
0:19:47 > 0:19:50And that, really, is the making of our metropolis,
0:19:50 > 0:19:53and the metropolis is so influential in the making of Britain.
0:19:53 > 0:19:55Well, it shapes London. We go on, of course,
0:19:55 > 0:19:59in the '20s and the '30s to see the extension of the Northern Line,
0:19:59 > 0:20:01extension of the Piccadilly Line,
0:20:01 > 0:20:04to create huge suburbs well outside the old bounds of London.
0:20:07 > 0:20:11The ambition to connect new areas for Londoners is the same
0:20:11 > 0:20:15today as it was a century ago and modern technology offers
0:20:15 > 0:20:18engineers some powerful tools for the job.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29I'm meeting Jonathan Cooper,
0:20:29 > 0:20:32project manager for this multi-million pound undertaking.
0:20:34 > 0:20:36Jonathan, with all the noise just shortly ahead of us here,
0:20:36 > 0:20:39it looks like we've reached the business end of your tunnel.
0:20:39 > 0:20:41- What's going on ahead of us? - So, what you can see here is the
0:20:41 > 0:20:44back end of the tunnel-boring machine, so the total length
0:20:44 > 0:20:48is 100 metres in all, so 100 metres from what you see here is
0:20:48 > 0:20:51where you have the cutterhead pushing into the London clay.
0:20:52 > 0:20:56Now, as your machine goes along, it's placing these
0:20:56 > 0:20:59pieces of concrete against the tunnel wall, is that right?
0:20:59 > 0:21:02Yeah, that's correct, so we excavate a 6m diameter hole
0:21:02 > 0:21:05and then we build a slightly smaller tunnel within that
0:21:05 > 0:21:07and the ground is immediately supported by a shield
0:21:07 > 0:21:11and that prevents the ground above settling, so we've obviously got a
0:21:11 > 0:21:12lot of buildings above us
0:21:12 > 0:21:14and we want to make sure they don't get damaged.
0:21:14 > 0:21:17How fast will you progress when you're running at your fastest?
0:21:17 > 0:21:20It takes about 20 to 25 minutes to actually excavate the ground
0:21:20 > 0:21:23and then 10 to 15 minutes to actually build the ring,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26and then we can start up again, so every 45 minutes,
0:21:26 > 0:21:29we can get another 1.5 metres completed.
0:21:29 > 0:21:31Tremendous rate of progress.
0:21:31 > 0:21:32You seem very enthusiastic
0:21:32 > 0:21:34and rather young to be a project manager.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37What made you interested in tunnelling?
0:21:37 > 0:21:40My parents took me to the Channel Tunnel Rail Exhibition
0:21:40 > 0:21:43when I was a small boy and it was there which I first saw
0:21:43 > 0:21:46a tunnel-boring machine and that really got me inspired to
0:21:46 > 0:21:49go into engineering and I'm really fortunate today to be involved
0:21:49 > 0:21:53in a sort of once-in-a-generation project to benefit Londoners.
0:21:53 > 0:21:54Hear, hear!
0:22:03 > 0:22:05For the final leg of today's journey,
0:22:05 > 0:22:08I'm taking the Victoria Line further south to Brixton.
0:22:13 > 0:22:17I'm hoping to get the wind in my hair on a hugely popular mode
0:22:17 > 0:22:22of transport that took hold at the turn of the 20th century.
0:22:24 > 0:22:29The Standard newspaper, dated April the 22nd 1905,
0:22:29 > 0:22:32tells me that the Southern Counties Cycling Union
0:22:32 > 0:22:35held its annual race meeting yesterday,
0:22:35 > 0:22:39which was Good Friday, in the presence of 7,000 spectators
0:22:39 > 0:22:42at the London County Grounds, Herne Hill.
0:22:43 > 0:22:467,000 is a very large crowd,
0:22:46 > 0:22:50particularly given that the bike was quite a recent invention.
0:22:50 > 0:22:55I had no idea that the sport was that popular century ago.
0:22:55 > 0:22:57But then again, these things are cyclical.
0:23:04 > 0:23:08The Herne Hill Velodrome is considered the honorary home
0:23:08 > 0:23:11of track cycling in the United Kingdom.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16It's one of the oldest and arguably the best hidden,
0:23:16 > 0:23:19reached from a quiet, leafy street in South London.
0:23:24 > 0:23:26I'm meeting expert cyclist Peter Cattermole.
0:23:28 > 0:23:31Peter, I had no idea about Herne Hill Velodrome and here it is,
0:23:31 > 0:23:33hidden amongst suburban housing.
0:23:33 > 0:23:34How long has it been here?
0:23:34 > 0:23:38It's been here since 1891, so 125 years or so,
0:23:38 > 0:23:42but it was here before the housing so it was basically farmland.
0:23:42 > 0:23:45Did it have this impressive - and I must say, rather intimidating -
0:23:45 > 0:23:46banking from the beginning?
0:23:46 > 0:23:49The banking was a bit shallower, maybe half of what it is now,
0:23:49 > 0:23:51but then the surface was made of wood back then.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53I was reading a press cutting from 1905.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56It talks about 7,000 spectators.
0:23:56 > 0:23:58Where would you have put them?
0:23:58 > 0:24:01It's 500 metres round, so if you imagine the crowd
0:24:01 > 0:24:04two, three, four deep, that would be about right.
0:24:04 > 0:24:08I think the highest crowd they've had in here is 15,000 in the 1950s.
0:24:08 > 0:24:11The cutting from 1905 talks about a meeting on Good Friday.
0:24:11 > 0:24:14- Was that a custom?- Yes, and it still runs today.
0:24:14 > 0:24:17Why do you think there was such passion in the Edwardian era,
0:24:17 > 0:24:19both amongst cyclists and spectators?
0:24:19 > 0:24:22I think it was human endeavour, so someone under their own power,
0:24:22 > 0:24:24under human power, being able to go fast.
0:24:25 > 0:24:28As the 19th turned into the 20th century,
0:24:28 > 0:24:33a boom in cycling saw velodromes opening across the city.
0:24:33 > 0:24:36By the First World War, most of them had shut
0:24:36 > 0:24:38and today there are just two.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42The 2012 Olympic Velodrome and this one at Herne Hill.
0:24:43 > 0:24:48How can people who train here on this old-fashioned track
0:24:48 > 0:24:50hope to compete with others who are training
0:24:50 > 0:24:52on more modern, high-performance tracks?
0:24:52 > 0:24:55One of the methods is, in fact, we've almost gone back to the past.
0:24:55 > 0:24:56Where they used to be paced by tandems,
0:24:56 > 0:24:59we now use a small motorbike called a derny to paste them.
0:24:59 > 0:25:00And what do the cyclists do?
0:25:00 > 0:25:04They sit behind in the slipstream and so it enables them
0:25:04 > 0:25:07to ride faster than they would if they were pushing the wind
0:25:07 > 0:25:09themselves and they can do 40, 50, 60mph
0:25:09 > 0:25:11behind one of these bikes.
0:25:13 > 0:25:17Cycling superstars such as Bradley Wiggins, Chris Hoy
0:25:17 > 0:25:21and Laura Trott have all cycled here.
0:25:21 > 0:25:24Now to add my name to that illustrious list.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28I'm getting some tips from coach Joseph Alberti.
0:25:28 > 0:25:31- Hello, Joseph.- Welcome to Herne Hill.- It's a great privilege.
0:25:31 > 0:25:32- This is your bike.- Uh-huh.
0:25:32 > 0:25:35The best way to climb on the bike would be to hold it
0:25:35 > 0:25:38with your left and have your right hand over here so you can climb
0:25:38 > 0:25:41- easily over the saddle, then I'll help you strap in.- Thank you.
0:25:41 > 0:25:44- You have probably noticed there are no brakes.- Ah!
0:25:44 > 0:25:47Fixed-gear bicycle, so no brakes, no gears.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49All we're doing is controlling our bike with our legs,
0:25:49 > 0:25:51that's why we need to be strapped in.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55You need to use your legs to go fast and you use your legs to go slow,
0:25:55 > 0:25:57so to start, you will need the right hand
0:25:57 > 0:25:59to give yourself a little momentum.
0:25:59 > 0:26:01You need your gaze to go and look forward
0:26:01 > 0:26:03so the bike will ride in a straight line.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06When you want to stop, using your legs to slow down,
0:26:06 > 0:26:07you've got a whole fence here
0:26:07 > 0:26:10and when you're walking, basically just grab it with your right hand.
0:26:10 > 0:26:13That is your first stage of the Olympic dream.
0:26:13 > 0:26:16OK, no gears, no brakes, no experience. What could go wrong?
0:26:16 > 0:26:18Well, we'll soon find out!
0:26:55 > 0:26:58- Very good.- Ahh...
0:26:58 > 0:27:02- Well, I enjoyed that.- Very good. Congratulations. Well done.
0:27:02 > 0:27:04That was great.
0:27:04 > 0:27:05Whoa!
0:27:06 > 0:27:08LAUGHTER
0:27:14 > 0:27:19The social reformer Ebenezer Howard conceived garden cities outside the
0:27:19 > 0:27:24metropolis where people could escape from overcrowding and foul air.
0:27:24 > 0:27:28But improvements during the Edwardian era gave us
0:27:28 > 0:27:31some of the distinctive features of London today -
0:27:31 > 0:27:34a network of underground electric railways
0:27:34 > 0:27:38and hotels so stylish that they were fit for a king.
0:27:38 > 0:27:40Pollution is still a problem today,
0:27:40 > 0:27:45but I'm more likely to do my bit by riding the new Northern Line
0:27:45 > 0:27:47than by jumping on my bike.
0:27:51 > 0:27:55Next time, I spruce up some rolling stock...
0:27:55 > 0:27:58- We're going to clean this Class 700, are we?- We are indeed.- Very good.
0:27:58 > 0:28:01- What are your tips? - Try and stay dry.
0:28:01 > 0:28:04..encounter a progressive group whose private lives would have
0:28:04 > 0:28:06scandalised Edwardians...
0:28:06 > 0:28:09They were living in still very restrictive times and they couldn't
0:28:09 > 0:28:12be publicly open about their sexuality or their relationships.
0:28:12 > 0:28:15..and go up-tiddly-up in my flying machine.
0:28:16 > 0:28:17We are away!