0:00:02 > 0:00:04From managing the land to defending it from invasion,
0:00:04 > 0:00:07from the more frivolous requirements of tourism
0:00:07 > 0:00:10to the sterner demands of religion -
0:00:10 > 0:00:12all these have left their mark
0:00:12 > 0:00:16on the buildings which have given character to the Eastern counties.
0:00:17 > 0:00:19This is terrific, isn't it?
0:00:19 > 0:00:22But some of our best buildings are under threat.
0:00:22 > 0:00:24Across the East of England,
0:00:24 > 0:00:27nearly 200 of them, from churches to wartime bunkers,
0:00:27 > 0:00:30are officially listed as at risk.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34In this programme, I'll visit some of the buildings
0:00:34 > 0:00:37and meet the campaigners fighting to save them.
0:00:37 > 0:00:40I'm ready. I'm going to give it all I can.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43What does it take to rescue a ruin?
0:00:43 > 0:00:45We've been at this for ten years now.
0:00:45 > 0:00:48It has all come together as something really rather special.
0:00:48 > 0:00:50Who foots the bill?
0:00:50 > 0:00:54The repair alone is likely to be 2-2.5 million.
0:00:54 > 0:00:57And which buildings should be saved?
0:00:57 > 0:01:00- One of our previous rectors did want to knock it down.- Yeah?
0:01:21 > 0:01:25Conservation experts at English Heritage keep a list
0:01:25 > 0:01:27of buildings at risk.
0:01:27 > 0:01:30They're not all beautiful buildings.
0:01:30 > 0:01:33Sometimes it's the history which makes them important
0:01:33 > 0:01:36and inspires people to save them.
0:01:36 > 0:01:41This concrete block at Bawdsey in Suffolk is well worth rescuing.
0:01:41 > 0:01:43It looks a wreck today
0:01:43 > 0:01:47'but the people who worked here played a crucial role
0:01:47 > 0:01:50'in saving the country from invasion during World War II.'
0:01:50 > 0:01:54- This is such an important site, isn't it?- It certainly is, really.
0:01:54 > 0:01:57It is the first of the many radar sites that were set up
0:01:57 > 0:01:59around the United Kingdom.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01- The Germans knew about radar.- Yes.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05But they didn't know how it was going to be developed so effectively
0:02:05 > 0:02:08to take on the Luftwaffe. That's the point, isn't it?
0:02:08 > 0:02:12The secret was actually getting the information and coordinating it.
0:02:12 > 0:02:14By the end of the Second World War,
0:02:14 > 0:02:17there were over 250 radar stations around the coastline
0:02:17 > 0:02:19and the information from those
0:02:19 > 0:02:21was all fed into central locations,
0:02:21 > 0:02:25processed and then tactical decisions made by the command.
0:02:25 > 0:02:29While Britain's spotters and warning centres track the enemy planes,
0:02:29 > 0:02:32I watch the island's defences go into action.
0:02:35 > 0:02:39The outnumbered few fought back with more than blood, sweat and tears.
0:02:39 > 0:02:43They had Spitfires and Hurricanes in their aircraft arsenal,
0:02:43 > 0:02:46and a modest but well-trained force of airmen.
0:02:47 > 0:02:51Now, if you hadn't had this network of radar stations,
0:02:51 > 0:02:53what would have happened in the Battle of Britain?
0:02:53 > 0:02:55We would have lost the Battle of Britain.
0:02:55 > 0:02:59We just didn't have the aircraft, the pilots, the ground crew, the fuel
0:02:59 > 0:03:02to maintain what we call standing patrols,
0:03:02 > 0:03:04ie getting aircraft flying around the sky
0:03:04 > 0:03:07on the off chance they might run into the enemy.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11Outside the block stood four transmitter aerials,
0:03:11 > 0:03:13each more than 100 metres tall.
0:03:13 > 0:03:15After the station closed,
0:03:15 > 0:03:17they were demolished one by one.
0:03:17 > 0:03:21The last one came down in the year 2000,
0:03:21 > 0:03:25to be replaced by the coastguard aerial you see today.
0:03:25 > 0:03:27It was just too much for Mary Wain,
0:03:27 > 0:03:30and she joined the rescue campaign.
0:03:30 > 0:03:33That was where I was born, that was my home.
0:03:33 > 0:03:36'Like many restoration volunteers,
0:03:36 > 0:03:40'Mary has a personal reason for wanting to save the building.
0:03:40 > 0:03:41'During the war'
0:03:41 > 0:03:46her parents fell in love while serving at the radar base.
0:03:46 > 0:03:48But when she was growing up in Bawdsey,
0:03:48 > 0:03:50she knew nothing of their secret work.
0:03:50 > 0:03:52I do remember my mother saying
0:03:52 > 0:03:56- that the people on the other side of the river...- Right.
0:03:56 > 0:03:59..thought the people who lived in Bawdsey had green heads.
0:03:59 > 0:04:03- Really? Because it was strange? - So I think it was trying to say
0:04:03 > 0:04:05that it was secret and was strange.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08And how did you get involved in the trust to keep the memory
0:04:08 > 0:04:11of the radar station alive, apart from anything else?
0:04:11 > 0:04:16It really came about when they took the last radar tower down,
0:04:16 > 0:04:20and my mother always referred to the remaining tower at Bawdsey
0:04:20 > 0:04:22as her tower
0:04:22 > 0:04:26and I realised when that had been taken down
0:04:26 > 0:04:30that there was a chance that Bawdsey would just disappear,
0:04:30 > 0:04:33that nobody would be able to come here,
0:04:33 > 0:04:36and I just thought it was basically terrible
0:04:36 > 0:04:40because I knew that it was such a huge part of...
0:04:40 > 0:04:45actually, all of our lives, the radar story, and it all began here.
0:04:47 > 0:04:49Soon after Mary joined the campaign
0:04:49 > 0:04:51to save the transmitter block,
0:04:51 > 0:04:53it featured on the BBC's Restoration programme.
0:04:55 > 0:05:00This is marvellous, isn't it? This is a really defended staircase.
0:05:00 > 0:05:05Concrete retaining walls, concrete steps going down, protected.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10Fight your way through the forest...
0:05:10 > 0:05:11Viewers voted for the building
0:05:11 > 0:05:15they most wanted to be saved, and Bawdsey was runner-up.
0:05:15 > 0:05:19It just missed out on the £3 million prize
0:05:19 > 0:05:22that might have paid for the block to be fully restored.
0:05:24 > 0:05:28Instead, it spent the past ten years in limbo, while volunteers,
0:05:28 > 0:05:32including Mary, tried to turn their love for the building
0:05:32 > 0:05:36into the hard cash they need to safeguard its future as a museum.
0:05:40 > 0:05:42Oh, here we are.
0:05:42 > 0:05:46- We are back in the 1940s, aren't we?- We certainly are.
0:05:46 > 0:05:50'They have already created a small display area inside,
0:05:50 > 0:05:53'but the whole place is crying out for restoration.'
0:05:53 > 0:05:55The equipment we can see here
0:05:55 > 0:05:58would have all been over towards where that back wall is.
0:05:58 > 0:06:02- The control desk literally just in front of us here...- Right.
0:06:02 > 0:06:06And, of course, what they were doing here was literally saving the lives
0:06:06 > 0:06:09of our pilots and controlling everything that happened.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12They were sworn to secrecy under the Official Secrets Act,
0:06:12 > 0:06:16and even now, a lot of them really don't want to talk about it.
0:06:16 > 0:06:19The building itself starts that story off.
0:06:19 > 0:06:23We're all used to sort of big castles as being history,
0:06:23 > 0:06:27but we've produced a castle in the air with radar
0:06:27 > 0:06:30and this is a fundamental part of that.
0:06:32 > 0:06:35'Everyone who visits agrees this place is special
0:06:35 > 0:06:38'so why has it taken so long to save it?
0:06:38 > 0:06:40'A question for English Heritage,
0:06:40 > 0:06:44'who are working with the volunteers to devise a solution.'
0:06:45 > 0:06:50This building did well in the Restoration programmes ten years ago
0:06:50 > 0:06:52but it's been very difficult since, hasn't it,
0:06:52 > 0:06:54to get it lifted off the ground?
0:06:54 > 0:06:56It has. These are problem buildings.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59They're not that attractive, actually, when it really comes to it
0:06:59 > 0:07:02but they're a vital part of our nation's heritage
0:07:02 > 0:07:03and the national story.
0:07:03 > 0:07:07These are ugly. Compare this with a cathedral or something,
0:07:07 > 0:07:09that's easy for you to sort out, isn't it?
0:07:09 > 0:07:12Yes, but this is one of the most important buildings in Britain.
0:07:14 > 0:07:19This building went out of use decades ago, hasn't had a use since,
0:07:19 > 0:07:21so really what you need to do
0:07:21 > 0:07:23is to actually get that use back into the building
0:07:23 > 0:07:25and get people enjoying it,
0:07:25 > 0:07:28understanding it and following through the interpretation
0:07:28 > 0:07:31and the stories that these amazing buildings have.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34Sorting that out takes time and money.
0:07:34 > 0:07:37This summer, the volunteers took a huge step forward
0:07:37 > 0:07:40when they secured funding for a detailed plan
0:07:40 > 0:07:42to protect the building's future.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46The lottery have come forward and awarded nearly £100,000
0:07:46 > 0:07:51to get all the studies done to look at the fabric needs of the building
0:07:51 > 0:07:56plus what's actually required to get it functioning as a heritage site.
0:07:56 > 0:08:00'Nearly £100,000, and that's just to prepare a plan.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03'After that, the volunteers can bid for more cash
0:08:03 > 0:08:08'to complete the restoration, which would cost over £1 million.
0:08:08 > 0:08:11'But how do you put a price on a site like this?'
0:08:13 > 0:08:15We've been at this for ten years now, you know,
0:08:15 > 0:08:17it's totally voluntary.
0:08:17 > 0:08:20It has all come together as something really rather special.
0:08:20 > 0:08:24What do you think your mother would think if she knew you were going to
0:08:24 > 0:08:27devote all this time to keeping the building going?
0:08:27 > 0:08:31I think she would have been absolutely thrilled.
0:08:31 > 0:08:33The radar was hers, I think,
0:08:33 > 0:08:35though she was unable to tell us.
0:08:38 > 0:08:43It's one thing to turn a working building into a museum, but what
0:08:43 > 0:08:47do you do with a visitor attraction that no longer pulls in the crowds?
0:08:49 > 0:08:53From more than 100 years, Great Yarmouth was a magnet for tourists,
0:08:53 > 0:08:55drawn here by the fresh air
0:08:55 > 0:08:59and a wealth of extraordinary buildings designed
0:08:59 > 0:09:03to keep them entertained - and dry - when the sun failed to shine.
0:09:06 > 0:09:10In the words of the song, we do like to be beside the seaside,
0:09:10 > 0:09:12and for Great Yarmouth and the other resorts,
0:09:12 > 0:09:15the answer was obvious - give people a lot of sand,
0:09:15 > 0:09:17you've got the sea,
0:09:17 > 0:09:19and when the sun shines, everyone is happy.
0:09:19 > 0:09:23But what happens when it rains and the season is over?
0:09:25 > 0:09:29This was Yarmouth's solution - the Winter Gardens.
0:09:29 > 0:09:32It went up in 1903, paid for by the council
0:09:32 > 0:09:36and for decades it breathed life into the town.
0:09:36 > 0:09:39Over the years, it was reinvented many times,
0:09:39 > 0:09:43from elegant greenhouse to music venue, skating arena,
0:09:43 > 0:09:48and most recently, a children's adventure playground.
0:09:48 > 0:09:52But five years ago, it finally fell empty,
0:09:52 > 0:09:54beached on the shores of fashion.
0:09:56 > 0:09:59Well, this is one of the finest buildings in Great Yarmouth, and
0:09:59 > 0:10:03one of the most important historic buildings in Great Yarmouth as well.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05DOOR CREAKS AND JUDDERS
0:10:06 > 0:10:09Rough, isn't it, to get in? OK.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12- Quite a rickety building, isn't it? - It is, yes.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16'The council used to lease it out to commercial operators,
0:10:16 > 0:10:19'but now they're just left to pick up the bills.'
0:10:19 > 0:10:23This part was tacked on, it's not part of the original structure.
0:10:23 > 0:10:26Right, and what we see
0:10:26 > 0:10:28as we come here... Oh, yes!
0:10:29 > 0:10:31This is terrific, isn't it?
0:10:31 > 0:10:33It's a wonderful building, isn't it?
0:10:33 > 0:10:35It is. It is a very special building.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37It's like a metal and glass cathedral.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44At the time, it was cutting edge. It was really state of the art
0:10:44 > 0:10:46because you had the technology
0:10:46 > 0:10:49of the metal, you had the glass, you had electric light,
0:10:49 > 0:10:51and so the building was flooded
0:10:51 > 0:10:52with electric lights.
0:10:52 > 0:10:54So when people came in here,
0:10:54 > 0:10:58they would be just thinking, "This is a new age,
0:10:58 > 0:11:02"a new age of glass and metal and the future beckons."
0:11:02 > 0:11:03It was the shock of the new.
0:11:03 > 0:11:08The porthole windows all the way around the building were lit
0:11:08 > 0:11:11and so it would have been to light out along the whole of the seafront,
0:11:11 > 0:11:14it would have been a beacon on the seafront.
0:11:16 > 0:11:18And for the town, this and other buildings
0:11:18 > 0:11:21make up an extraordinary collection, don't they?
0:11:21 > 0:11:23We have one of the finest collections
0:11:23 > 0:11:26of Edwardian entertainment architecture in the country
0:11:26 > 0:11:29and the Winter Gardens is the gem building.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34But for you, of course, it's problems, isn't it, for the council?
0:11:34 > 0:11:37This is just difficulty, difficulty, difficulty.
0:11:37 > 0:11:42Well, we've got a building which is eroding, it's deteriorating,
0:11:42 > 0:11:45it's unstable, probably dangerous,
0:11:45 > 0:11:47we haven't got a use for it,
0:11:47 > 0:11:50there are no end of problems associated with this building.
0:11:50 > 0:11:51Let's just have a look around.
0:11:51 > 0:11:54What's happened here?
0:11:54 > 0:11:57We're getting moisture coming into the building.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59It's swollen timber on the floor.
0:11:59 > 0:12:01- That's water coming up? - That's water damage, yeah.
0:12:01 > 0:12:05And these are bits, what? These are bits of metal?
0:12:05 > 0:12:08Bits of metal that have fallen away from the metal structure.
0:12:08 > 0:12:10- That poor bird.- Yes. Yeah.
0:12:10 > 0:12:11It looks like a starling.
0:12:11 > 0:12:14- Starling flying around here, can't get out.- Yeah.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18There was a time when you thought it might blow down, was that...?
0:12:18 > 0:12:20There is an emergency evacuation plan
0:12:20 > 0:12:24whereby if the wind reaches a certain speed from a certain direction,
0:12:24 > 0:12:28there is a risk, potential risk that the building could blow over.
0:12:28 > 0:12:31We've taken expert advice on that,
0:12:31 > 0:12:37and we've slightly revised that, but there was a period a few years ago
0:12:37 > 0:12:39when there was an evacuation plan.
0:12:39 > 0:12:42'The council keep a weather eye on the building.
0:12:42 > 0:12:45'It's regularly checked over by structural surveyors.
0:12:45 > 0:12:50'Stuart Armitage has offered to give me a closer look at its problems.'
0:12:52 > 0:12:55I'm ready. I'm going to give it all I can.
0:12:57 > 0:12:59Can't say I feel totally safe.
0:12:59 > 0:13:01STUART LAUGHS
0:13:02 > 0:13:05So, we're going up into the lantern now,
0:13:05 > 0:13:09and I suppose this is really the most ingenious or adventurous
0:13:09 > 0:13:11part of the design.
0:13:11 > 0:13:13But it's also the most dangerous bit, isn't it?
0:13:13 > 0:13:16If this comes down, the whole building collapses.
0:13:16 > 0:13:17That's right, and indeed,
0:13:17 > 0:13:21in the past, this is why they've put in this secondary steel frame,
0:13:21 > 0:13:25really just to provide some additional support to the lantern.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27HAMMER TAPS ON METAL
0:13:27 > 0:13:30- I'm going to give this a bang. - That's right.
0:13:30 > 0:13:31Now can I go into there?
0:13:32 > 0:13:34- That all seems solid, doesn't it? - That is.
0:13:36 > 0:13:37- That's very bad.- Yeah, very bad.
0:13:37 > 0:13:41And of course, not only what you can see but actually between
0:13:41 > 0:13:44those back-to-back pieces, there is a lot of rust in there as well.
0:13:44 > 0:13:47- So, we've carried out our inspection.- Yes.
0:13:47 > 0:13:48And what's your conclusion?
0:13:48 > 0:13:52Well, I mean, the vast majority of what we can see is fine.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55So this building will not fall down?
0:13:55 > 0:13:57- No, but...- Are you sure?
0:13:57 > 0:14:01Well, we've had some fairly good winds recently and it's still here,
0:14:01 > 0:14:06but the important thing is, it is gradually, slowly getting worse
0:14:06 > 0:14:08due to the corrosion all the time,
0:14:08 > 0:14:11so now is the time we have to step in and do something.
0:14:12 > 0:14:15No-one wants to let this building die.
0:14:15 > 0:14:19The problem for the Council is justifying the huge cost
0:14:19 > 0:14:23of restoring it with so many other calls on their money.
0:14:23 > 0:14:26But a solution is starting to take shape.
0:14:26 > 0:14:29It would link the rebirth of the Winter Gardens
0:14:29 > 0:14:31to a wider regeneration
0:14:31 > 0:14:34of Yarmouth's wonderful collection of old buildings.
0:14:34 > 0:14:36In a nearby cemetery,
0:14:36 > 0:14:40apprentices are being trained in traditional building skills.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45Some go on to work on other buildings in the town,
0:14:45 > 0:14:48including the old church of St George's.
0:14:48 > 0:14:53It was relaunched last year as a theatre after a £7 million refit,
0:14:53 > 0:14:57which created much-needed jobs for people in this area.
0:14:57 > 0:15:00The Winter Gardens are next on the council list.
0:15:00 > 0:15:04It won't be cheap, but the money spent here
0:15:04 > 0:15:07could ripple out to benefit the local economy.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10The council plan to turn the building back into
0:15:10 > 0:15:12a plant-filled winter garden,
0:15:12 > 0:15:16with help from the Royal Horticultural Society.
0:15:16 > 0:15:18We've been very lucky that the Royal Horticultural Society
0:15:18 > 0:15:22have been to visit the building, and have offered to provide us
0:15:22 > 0:15:28with advice on planting and all those sort of aspects of horticulture.
0:15:28 > 0:15:31- How much will it cost? - Well, it will be millions.
0:15:31 > 0:15:35I think the repair alone is likely to be 2-2.5 million.
0:15:35 > 0:15:39Then the fit-outs, probably another million on top of that.
0:15:39 > 0:15:43And the joy, I suppose, of this, is that it's not being reinvented,
0:15:43 > 0:15:44it's going back to its original purpose.
0:15:44 > 0:15:46- That's wonderful, isn't it? - That's right.
0:15:46 > 0:15:50You see so many other buildings which have to find new uses,
0:15:50 > 0:15:51not always appropriate.
0:15:51 > 0:15:55The beauty in this one is, it's going back to its original use.
0:15:55 > 0:15:58- The Winter Gardens lives on! - It does, yeah.- For ever, we hope.
0:15:59 > 0:16:03Some old buildings can be restored to their original purpose.
0:16:03 > 0:16:08But others on the English Heritage risk list need reinvention.
0:16:08 > 0:16:11What we're trying to come up with is new uses
0:16:11 > 0:16:13and exciting new uses for buildings.
0:16:13 > 0:16:15Preserving what's special,
0:16:15 > 0:16:18not only to do with their vital and important fabric,
0:16:18 > 0:16:23but really to look at what new uses might fit for certain buildings.
0:16:23 > 0:16:26That was the challenge for Stevens' Windmill
0:16:26 > 0:16:28at Burwell in Cambridgeshire.
0:16:28 > 0:16:32It closed for business around 60 years ago,
0:16:32 > 0:16:35but after limping along for years, it's about to reopen,
0:16:35 > 0:16:39not as a mill, but as a community centre and museum.
0:16:39 > 0:16:42And the inside of the mill, in terms of decoration and stuff,
0:16:42 > 0:16:43is all coming on nicely.
0:16:43 > 0:16:45Jane Phillimore is part of the team
0:16:45 > 0:16:48behind the rebirth of this village landmark.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50I was amazed the first time I saw it.
0:16:50 > 0:16:54Here it is, this building stuck in the middle of a 1970s estate,
0:16:54 > 0:16:57and it was pretty derelict. The outside had just fallen off.
0:16:57 > 0:17:00It was sort of rotten, and obviously, water was leaking in underneath.
0:17:00 > 0:17:02The fantail at the top wasn't turning.
0:17:02 > 0:17:06So you got the sense of history here,
0:17:06 > 0:17:08but just rotting away in a really terrible way.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11HAMMERING
0:17:11 > 0:17:14After it closed in the 1950s,
0:17:14 > 0:17:18developers bought the adjacent land to build houses.
0:17:18 > 0:17:21If it hadn't been a listed building protected by law,
0:17:21 > 0:17:23a bungalow would probably stand here today.
0:17:23 > 0:17:28Instead, a local trust bought the building for £5,
0:17:28 > 0:17:31and made it the centrepiece of a village museum.
0:17:31 > 0:17:34It cost almost nothing to buy,
0:17:34 > 0:17:39but it needed a lot more money to restore, and that's taken years.
0:17:39 > 0:17:43Local volunteers worked to stop the building falling into ruin,
0:17:43 > 0:17:46until last year, when they secured funding
0:17:46 > 0:17:51from the Heritage Lottery to return it to full working order.
0:17:51 > 0:17:53I wrote a lot of documentation.
0:17:53 > 0:17:56Probably about 22 different documents on various levels,
0:17:56 > 0:18:00from finance documents through to concept documents,
0:18:00 > 0:18:03and then submitted it to the Heritage Lottery Fund,
0:18:03 > 0:18:05and they then come, meet, assess,
0:18:05 > 0:18:08and see if it's what they can put their money into, and in the end,
0:18:08 > 0:18:11they went with us and they said they could, which was great.
0:18:11 > 0:18:13So they gave us £420,000.
0:18:14 > 0:18:15You need lots of plans.
0:18:15 > 0:18:18You need millwrights, architects' drawings,
0:18:18 > 0:18:19you needed assessment of the damage,
0:18:19 > 0:18:23and you need really also to sort of build up some programmes
0:18:23 > 0:18:27that will help the mill go into the future and sustain itself.
0:18:27 > 0:18:31The machinery inside has all been restored under the watchful eye
0:18:31 > 0:18:34of mill consultant Luke Bonwick,
0:18:34 > 0:18:38but the outside of the building still needs some finishing touches.
0:18:38 > 0:18:42Last summer, the fantail was repaired,
0:18:42 > 0:18:44and hoisted back into position.
0:18:44 > 0:18:47But what's a windmill without sails?
0:18:48 > 0:18:51In the millwright's workshop, there are sails,
0:18:51 > 0:18:54ready to be reinstated once the weather improves.
0:18:54 > 0:19:00By next year, the whole place will be shipshape, inside and out,
0:19:00 > 0:19:05the landmark building that Paul remembers visiting as a youngster.
0:19:05 > 0:19:08In 1948, when I was about 13,
0:19:08 > 0:19:12I used to help on the local farm in Horsley,
0:19:12 > 0:19:15and I brought corn here on the horse and cart.
0:19:15 > 0:19:16I wasn't strong enough
0:19:16 > 0:19:18to handle the sacks,
0:19:18 > 0:19:22so I backed the horse and cart to the ramp downstairs.
0:19:22 > 0:19:26The thing is, these men years ago
0:19:26 > 0:19:29used to put these sacks on their back and go up steps with them.
0:19:29 > 0:19:33They were barley, sacks of barley, two hundredweight.
0:19:33 > 0:19:37If you look at the old steps which we took out of this mill,
0:19:37 > 0:19:40you can see where the millers' hobnailed boots have worn
0:19:40 > 0:19:42the steps right down.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45Yeah, and European legislation wouldn't let you do that now.
0:19:45 > 0:19:47- Oh, crikey, no.- 25 kilo bags?
0:19:47 > 0:19:51You'd have a forklift truck or something like that.
0:19:51 > 0:19:55I remember the millers being part of the village, like the church.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58Some days you'd come up the village, you'd see the mill going,
0:19:58 > 0:20:02else you'd be across the heath, you could see the mill turn.
0:20:02 > 0:20:05In them days, the village would have been a funny old place
0:20:05 > 0:20:06without the windmill.
0:20:10 > 0:20:13Get the noose around the chain,
0:20:13 > 0:20:17it'll pull taut when we lift the sack right up through.
0:20:17 > 0:20:20In the old days, this mill was used as the hub of the community.
0:20:20 > 0:20:24People came here, they brought their grains up to be made into flour
0:20:24 > 0:20:25and to be able to be used.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29Our aim is to really sort of make this again a community hub,
0:20:29 > 0:20:32where that same sort of community involvement happens here,
0:20:32 > 0:20:35happens in this fantastic space that's been restored.
0:20:35 > 0:20:36Phew!
0:20:36 > 0:20:39It's blinking heavy.
0:20:39 > 0:20:43Only another 100 more to go! That's why they needed wind power.
0:20:45 > 0:20:48- The whole village has asked, when are the sails going up?- Yeah.
0:20:48 > 0:20:51And, you know, the whole village is looking forward to it,
0:20:51 > 0:20:52- and it'll be good.- Yeah.
0:20:52 > 0:20:57- And it might even grind a bag or two of flour.- It might! It might.
0:20:57 > 0:20:58Yes.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02Successful restoration projects
0:21:02 > 0:21:04aren't simply a case of saving
0:21:04 > 0:21:10the fabric of the building. They are also about giving it a purpose.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13That's what saved Greyfriars Tower in King's Lynn,
0:21:13 > 0:21:16a finalist in the original Restoration programme.
0:21:16 > 0:21:19Thanks to a campaign by locals,
0:21:19 > 0:21:23the leaning tower was restored in 2009
0:21:23 > 0:21:25to create a visitor attraction.
0:21:26 > 0:21:30But the volunteers working to save this ruined church
0:21:30 > 0:21:32have invented a more radical solution
0:21:32 > 0:21:35to save their cherished landmark.
0:21:36 > 0:21:40There's something melancholic about seeing gravestones like this,
0:21:40 > 0:21:44pushed to one side, no longer linked to graves.
0:21:44 > 0:21:49There's not been a proper church on this site for 150 years,
0:21:49 > 0:21:51but all is certainly not lost.
0:21:51 > 0:21:54The old church of St Mary's in Clophill, Bedfordshire,
0:21:54 > 0:21:57is being given a new lease of life.
0:21:58 > 0:22:02Old St Mary's hasn't been a church since the 1850s.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06It became a ruin, and a target for vandals.
0:22:06 > 0:22:10It was the first in the country to be included
0:22:10 > 0:22:13on the English Heritage At Risk list,
0:22:13 > 0:22:17and the villagers were determined to bring it back to life.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20- It's a long way from the village, isn't it?- It is, it is.
0:22:20 > 0:22:23It's about half a mile up the hill from the village,
0:22:23 > 0:22:26and that's part of the problem, or a considerable part of the problem,
0:22:26 > 0:22:28that we've had with the project, really,
0:22:28 > 0:22:30because, over the last 60 years,
0:22:30 > 0:22:33we've had an awful lot of antisocial and criminal activity
0:22:33 > 0:22:37because of the site's remoteness, from fly-tipping to vandalism,
0:22:37 > 0:22:39desecration of the church.
0:22:39 > 0:22:42For the people in the village and the wider community
0:22:42 > 0:22:45who have got relatives buried here, it's very upsetting,
0:22:45 > 0:22:50and fewer people feel comfortable coming to the site.
0:22:50 > 0:22:53We're hoping that we'll be finished, sort of, spring 2014,
0:22:53 > 0:22:56but it's quite a big project.
0:22:56 > 0:22:59You do seem to have a lot of work to do. There's no roof!
0:23:01 > 0:23:03We're not actually going to put the route back on again.
0:23:03 > 0:23:08We did look originally at completely restoring the monument,
0:23:08 > 0:23:11but looking at it over the last two or three years,
0:23:11 > 0:23:13we've come to the conclusion that was the wrong thing to do.
0:23:13 > 0:23:16So it's going to be, when it's finished,
0:23:16 > 0:23:18it's still going to be a ruin, but a picturesque ruin?
0:23:20 > 0:23:22Although there are no plans to turn the clock back
0:23:22 > 0:23:25for the whole building, the tower will be restored
0:23:25 > 0:23:27to make a viewing platform.
0:23:27 > 0:23:31But the main body of the church will remain open to the skies.
0:23:31 > 0:23:34Right, well, we're now inside the nave,
0:23:34 > 0:23:37but a bit of a mess, isn't it?
0:23:37 > 0:23:39Well, it is a mess, but it's so interesting.
0:23:39 > 0:23:41There have been so many changes to this church.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43Just come and have a look over here.
0:23:43 > 0:23:45How old is the church, do you think?
0:23:45 > 0:23:48Well, we believe, we've been told,
0:23:48 > 0:23:51that it probably dates from pre-Conquest times.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53Right, so that's before 1066.
0:23:53 > 0:23:58Before 1066. It's the thickness of the walls that indicate that.
0:23:58 > 0:24:03So, these great big walls, they were here before the Normans invaded?
0:24:03 > 0:24:05Probably.
0:24:05 > 0:24:06All right, now tell me other things.
0:24:06 > 0:24:10Well, this is one of probably 12 consecration marks.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12- This is the mark here?- Yes.
0:24:12 > 0:24:15When the church was consecrated,
0:24:15 > 0:24:19the bishop would have anointed the church in 12 places,
0:24:19 > 0:24:22but if you notice, the top of the mark is missing.
0:24:22 > 0:24:25You can see, it could go round there, couldn't it?
0:24:25 > 0:24:28Well, it would have done. It would have been a perfect circle,
0:24:28 > 0:24:30which to me, would suggest that it was there
0:24:30 > 0:24:32before these windows were put in.
0:24:32 > 0:24:35So, the windows, the great big windows,
0:24:35 > 0:24:37- they wouldn't have been original, would they?- Oh, no,
0:24:37 > 0:24:39- the walls wouldn't have withstood that.- No.
0:24:39 > 0:24:43These were put in, probably in the middle of the 15th century.
0:24:43 > 0:24:45- Right. - They were perpendicular windows.
0:24:45 > 0:24:49So we're seeing a thriving community over the centuries, aren't we?
0:24:49 > 0:24:51- Constantly changing the church.- Absolutely.
0:24:51 > 0:24:54- Making it better.- Yes. - Because they wanted to show off,
0:24:54 > 0:24:57- and make sure that they had a fancy church.- Absolutely.
0:24:57 > 0:25:00So, you're seeing the whole of British history is here,
0:25:00 > 0:25:03- isn't it?- Yeah.- Now, what if someone had suggested
0:25:03 > 0:25:05that it should be just knocked down, you know, why bother?
0:25:05 > 0:25:08Well, I'm afraid one of our previous rectors
0:25:08 > 0:25:12- did want to knock it down. - Really?- He thought that it was...
0:25:14 > 0:25:18..a magnet for antisocial behaviour, and that if it wasn't here,
0:25:18 > 0:25:21the antisocial behaviour would have stopped.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23But several of us didn't think that would actually happen.
0:25:23 > 0:25:26- No, and also, it's sort of shocking, isn't it?- Well, we were shocked.
0:25:26 > 0:25:29We actually said, "No! Definitely not."
0:25:29 > 0:25:33- Yeah. And this, you feel, it's your church, isn't it?- Yes.
0:25:33 > 0:25:36We've got 1,000 years of people
0:25:36 > 0:25:39walking up this hill to worship up here.
0:25:40 > 0:25:44Adrienne's enthusiasm is wonderful, but volunteers alone
0:25:44 > 0:25:49can't defend this site from the vandals who spoiled it in the past.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52Which is where these buildings come in.
0:25:52 > 0:25:54They're purpose-built lodges for visitors.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57They're part of the church restoration,
0:25:57 > 0:25:59but it's also hoped they will attract people
0:25:59 > 0:26:03walking the nearby Greensands Ridgeway,
0:26:03 > 0:26:06and having visitors here should help deter troublemakers.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09We've got a full-time warden that lives in the central accommodation.
0:26:09 > 0:26:10That's here, yeah.
0:26:10 > 0:26:14We have a reception area above it, an interpretation area,
0:26:14 > 0:26:17and then the two buildings on each side will be the accommodation
0:26:17 > 0:26:18lodges that people can rent.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21And these are environmentally friendly, aren't they?
0:26:21 > 0:26:24Yes, they're eco-lodges. The cedar will dull down over the years
0:26:24 > 0:26:25and become silvered to match the trees.
0:26:25 > 0:26:27Right. And it makes a bit of money?
0:26:27 > 0:26:29Yes, we don't think we'll be millionaires out of it,
0:26:29 > 0:26:33but we'll be able to afford to keep the warden here on a long-term basis.
0:26:33 > 0:26:36So, once you've got people always on the site, you can make sure that
0:26:36 > 0:26:39people don't mess around with the church, that vandals don't go back?
0:26:39 > 0:26:42It's a solution to maintaining the progress you make
0:26:42 > 0:26:44with stabilising the ruin.
0:26:44 > 0:26:47- That's a great solution, isn't it? - Yeah, it's unique, yes.- Yeah.
0:26:48 > 0:26:52English Heritage are delighted with the Clophill project,
0:26:52 > 0:26:56and the way it solves one of their most difficult problems.
0:26:56 > 0:26:58Tell me what you thought of this when you first saw it.
0:26:58 > 0:27:03I thought, a wonderful site, but what a set of problems here.
0:27:03 > 0:27:07Serious heritage crime, graffiti, vandalism, and for me,
0:27:07 > 0:27:10what should have been a straightforward conservation project
0:27:10 > 0:27:12has taken years to get to this point.
0:27:12 > 0:27:16But it was the first building to go onto the At Risk register.
0:27:16 > 0:27:18Absolutely. Number one in England,
0:27:18 > 0:27:20so really what we were looking for was some
0:27:20 > 0:27:22constructive and creative solutions here.
0:27:22 > 0:27:24- And that's why it took so long? - That's right.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26It really took the community to come together
0:27:26 > 0:27:28and actually come up with those solutions,
0:27:28 > 0:27:31and for us at English Heritage to really work with them
0:27:31 > 0:27:34to actually arrive at what we're getting to today.
0:27:34 > 0:27:36So, this can be a sort of role model, can it?
0:27:36 > 0:27:40Well, it could absolutely because, really, sometimes,
0:27:40 > 0:27:43for the most problem buildings, the ones that have been on the register
0:27:43 > 0:27:46for years, which have defied easy conservation solutions,
0:27:46 > 0:27:49sometimes something really innovative and exciting
0:27:49 > 0:27:52needs to happen to make it a sustainable project.
0:27:52 > 0:27:56Looking at all these different sorts of buildings,
0:27:56 > 0:27:59I have been able to see how restoration involves
0:27:59 > 0:28:02much more than simply rebuilding.
0:28:02 > 0:28:06Money and lots of it is often of course vital,
0:28:06 > 0:28:11but you also need skill, enthusiasm, and passion.
0:28:11 > 0:28:14Yes, a love for old buildings.
0:28:14 > 0:28:16I've always loved it.
0:28:16 > 0:28:18It's such a beautiful place.
0:28:18 > 0:28:21What's particularly interested me in making these programmes
0:28:21 > 0:28:26is the way that restoration projects have changed in recent years.
0:28:26 > 0:28:28They've become more sophisticated.
0:28:28 > 0:28:31It's not just a matter of "save this church".
0:28:31 > 0:28:33Now they look at the whole site.
0:28:33 > 0:28:37In the restoration business, history doesn't just stand still,
0:28:37 > 0:28:40it's brought right up-to-date.