0:00:22 > 0:00:25MUSIC: "Woo-Hoo" by Rock-A-Teens
0:00:27 > 0:00:31Before Elvis ever set hearts racing on our shores,
0:00:31 > 0:00:32there was a home-grown sound
0:00:32 > 0:00:36that was just as exciting to the ears of Britain's youth.
0:00:36 > 0:00:38ENGINE ROARS
0:00:41 > 0:00:45By the 1950s, British motorbikes were the fastest,
0:00:45 > 0:00:49most desirable and coolest thing on two wheels, anywhere in the world.
0:00:53 > 0:00:56For Britain's bikers, a passion for speed
0:00:56 > 0:00:58has always been part of the thrill.
0:00:58 > 0:01:02I think the second day after motorbikes were invented,
0:01:02 > 0:01:04two people met and had a race.
0:01:04 > 0:01:05Whether on the track...
0:01:05 > 0:01:08Some of the guys would hold their throttles open by various means,
0:01:08 > 0:01:11like with elastic bands and things, and just hang on.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15..or doing 100mph with the "ton-up boys" on the A406...
0:01:15 > 0:01:18You can bet he's the boy who's going to go flashing past
0:01:18 > 0:01:21with the throttle wide open, and you can bet you
0:01:21 > 0:01:24he's the boy in six months who's going to be in a coffin.
0:01:24 > 0:01:28..British riders helped create the legend of the motorcycling rebel.
0:01:28 > 0:01:29Pow!
0:01:29 > 0:01:34The drug that they were addicted to was adrenaline.
0:01:34 > 0:01:38It weren't just about having fights and, like, being yobs.
0:01:38 > 0:01:40I mean, we was, and we did.
0:01:41 > 0:01:45But this was no brief post-war love affair with speed and style.
0:01:47 > 0:01:51Its roots go far deeper into Britain's past.
0:01:51 > 0:01:55The prime exponent was, of course, Lawrence of Arabia.
0:01:55 > 0:02:01For over 40 years, British motorbikes ruled the road.
0:02:01 > 0:02:06At 70mph on a British motorbike, you felt like you was doing 170mph.
0:02:19 > 0:02:23MUSIC: "Right Turn" by Link Wray and the Wraymen
0:02:23 > 0:02:25It was in the early 1960s
0:02:25 > 0:02:28that British motorbikes entered their most notorious era.
0:02:28 > 0:02:33"Rockers" had an unruly and threatening reputation.
0:02:33 > 0:02:34The press was full of tales
0:02:34 > 0:02:38of transport cafes stuffed with young men, who liked nothing more
0:02:38 > 0:02:41than tearing up bypasses at 100mph.
0:02:41 > 0:02:45That post-war generation didn't want to go to the pub,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49listening to pianos and whatnot.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52It wasn't for them. They wanted excitement.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54They were living in a time known as the jet age.
0:02:54 > 0:02:59Let's pass the test and let's be...a ton-up boy.
0:02:59 > 0:03:03They were known as "cafe racers" and their most notorious hang-out
0:03:03 > 0:03:06was the Ace Cafe in North West London.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08At 16, you can buy your first motorbike,
0:03:08 > 0:03:12so, straightaway, you passed your test, "I want to try a 500."
0:03:12 > 0:03:14Then you're ready for the Ace Cafe.
0:03:16 > 0:03:19The Ace was a somewhat down-at-heel transport caff,
0:03:19 > 0:03:21legendary among leather-clad bikers
0:03:21 > 0:03:25for its jukebox stocked with the killer sounds of the day.
0:03:25 > 0:03:29The spoon that served the sugar was nailed to the counter.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32Most of the furniture was nailed down.
0:03:32 > 0:03:34The jukebox was nailed down.
0:03:34 > 0:03:36But what made it truly infamous
0:03:36 > 0:03:39was the high-speed road that ran right past it.
0:03:39 > 0:03:43London's North Circular Road became the Ace's very own racetrack.
0:03:43 > 0:03:48The party piece was to come past here flat out.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50Tales of high-speed dares cemented its place
0:03:50 > 0:03:53as a social menace in the public eye.
0:03:53 > 0:03:58The thrill that earned ultimate bragging rights was a jukebox race -
0:03:58 > 0:04:01a rider's challenge timed to the length of a pop song.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05Come in, jukebox, coin in...
0:04:05 > 0:04:07ENGINE STARTS
0:04:07 > 0:04:10..up to the Hanger Lane dual carriageway, do a U-ey,
0:04:10 > 0:04:12and down before the record stopped.
0:04:12 > 0:04:17So you come out the Ace caff flat out, turn, flat out back.
0:04:17 > 0:04:18The dangers were obvious,
0:04:18 > 0:04:22but a whole generation of young bikers couldn't get enough of it.
0:04:23 > 0:04:28However, motorcyclists hadn't always been seen as the scourge of society.
0:04:33 > 0:04:37Back in the early 1920s, Britain's roads were more suited
0:04:37 > 0:04:40to the horse and cart than the motorcycle.
0:04:40 > 0:04:44But bikes were being eagerly adopted as a means of everyday transport.
0:04:44 > 0:04:48That's what makes us very different from America - that, in Britain,
0:04:48 > 0:04:51the first kind of motorised transport that takes off
0:04:51 > 0:04:55is the motorcycle. They're used in the 1920s in various ways.
0:04:55 > 0:05:02Not just for fun, and not just for, um, commuting, but also businesses,
0:05:02 > 0:05:05so they're used as sort of delivery vehicles,
0:05:05 > 0:05:08beginning to replace horse and carts.
0:05:08 > 0:05:10The roads would've been a difficult place -
0:05:10 > 0:05:13they would've been empty of traffic -
0:05:13 > 0:05:15but they would've still had their own hazards.
0:05:15 > 0:05:20Horses were everywhere, which can sometimes be unpredictable,
0:05:20 > 0:05:22especially if they're suddenly startled by
0:05:22 > 0:05:25a loud-ish motorbike coming upon them and, of course, there's all,
0:05:25 > 0:05:28like, the horse muck and everything else that has to be dealt with.
0:05:28 > 0:05:31Traffic coming towards you was not necessarily friendly,
0:05:31 > 0:05:36so that horse riders could wave in a friendly way,
0:05:36 > 0:05:39or they might even try and have a go at you with the whip.
0:05:39 > 0:05:42You have this ideal, thinking back to it of being
0:05:42 > 0:05:45beautiful, open, sweeping roads, but actually, a lot of the time,
0:05:45 > 0:05:50it would've been on little more than goat tracks, avoiding potholes,
0:05:50 > 0:05:54trying not to fall off and missing stray dogs.
0:05:57 > 0:06:01As roads were gradually tarmacked and petrol stations began to appear,
0:06:01 > 0:06:04there was something stirring in the biker psyche.
0:06:04 > 0:06:06For a war-torn generation,
0:06:06 > 0:06:09bikes promised thrills and speed like nothing else.
0:06:09 > 0:06:12When guys had lived through the horrors of the First World War,
0:06:12 > 0:06:16then going fast on a bike was just exhilarating.
0:06:16 > 0:06:18There wasn't anything scary about it,
0:06:18 > 0:06:22because you weren't being shot at while you were doing it, so...
0:06:22 > 0:06:24Yes, speed was an exhilaration,
0:06:24 > 0:06:26rather than something to be afraid of.
0:06:27 > 0:06:31Speed freaks then were known as "Promenade Percies"
0:06:31 > 0:06:35and riding fast was an addiction that thrived, despite the perils.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37Bikes were a little bit hairy,
0:06:37 > 0:06:42um, probably more dangerous, proportionally, than cars
0:06:42 > 0:06:44than if you compared the two today.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48All of a sudden, an average guy could get that same sense
0:06:48 > 0:06:51of exhilaration and speed and kind of progression and movement
0:06:51 > 0:06:54that only a very few incredibly wealthy people
0:06:54 > 0:07:00who had access to planes or fast cars experienced previously.
0:07:00 > 0:07:05That sort of freedom to be in control of that, um,
0:07:05 > 0:07:07even relatively,
0:07:07 > 0:07:12modestly powered machine was like a trip to the moon, I suspect.
0:07:14 > 0:07:17Riding fast on Britain's barely useable roads,
0:07:17 > 0:07:21with no speed limits, attracted a certain kind of adventurer.
0:07:21 > 0:07:24None more so than TE Lawrence.
0:07:26 > 0:07:28Known as Lawrence of Arabia, for his exploits
0:07:28 > 0:07:31in the Middle East during the First World War,
0:07:31 > 0:07:35he struggled to find a place in peacetime life.
0:07:35 > 0:07:38He had grown weary of the press attention his war heroics brought.
0:07:41 > 0:07:44Thrashing along on a motorbike offered the escape
0:07:44 > 0:07:48of adrenaline thrills and a chance to avoid the limelight.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52Lawrence was the original ton-up boy.
0:07:52 > 0:07:58He would ride from Bovington Camp to London and back again,
0:07:58 > 0:08:04just to do it, um, and when you imagine the roads of those days,
0:08:04 > 0:08:07it's just...it's unthinkable.
0:08:07 > 0:08:09He wrote...
0:08:09 > 0:08:11"When my mood gets too hot
0:08:11 > 0:08:14"and I find myself wandering beyond control,
0:08:14 > 0:08:17"I pull out my motorbike and hurl it at top speeds
0:08:17 > 0:08:20"through these unfit roads for hour after hour."
0:08:21 > 0:08:24"My nerves are jaded and gone, near dead,
0:08:24 > 0:08:27"so that nothing less than hours of voluntary danger
0:08:27 > 0:08:30"will prick them into life."
0:08:30 > 0:08:34Finally, he turned up one Sunday, coming right across Dartmoor
0:08:34 > 0:08:36from Plymouth to North Devon, where I lived,
0:08:36 > 0:08:41on his 10 horsepower 100mph Brough Superior nickel-plated motor bicycle.
0:08:41 > 0:08:44In the 1920s, there was only one make of bike
0:08:44 > 0:08:48that offered the performance and glamour Lawrence was looking for.
0:08:48 > 0:08:52His machines of choice were made by Brough Superior -
0:08:52 > 0:08:54the first super bikes.
0:08:55 > 0:08:58George Brough named his business Brough Superior
0:08:58 > 0:09:01after he split from his father's company,
0:09:01 > 0:09:03which was called plain old Brough.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06He wanted to make the very best in fast bikes
0:09:06 > 0:09:08and only something "superior" would do.
0:09:10 > 0:09:12George was seeking motorbike perfection,
0:09:12 > 0:09:15for those that could afford his high asking price.
0:09:17 > 0:09:23George Brough started in 1919 and finished in 1939
0:09:23 > 0:09:26and made about 3,000 bikes -
0:09:26 > 0:09:30no two were the same in that 20-year period -
0:09:30 > 0:09:34and they are today the Holy Grail, if you like.
0:09:34 > 0:09:37Brough was an innovator with a keen eye for detail
0:09:37 > 0:09:41and a sense of style that marked his creations as the most modern around.
0:09:41 > 0:09:45Motorcycles that were made around that time had really not
0:09:45 > 0:09:48come on an awful lot from a bicycle frame.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51Brough were one of the first manufacturers to go with
0:09:51 > 0:09:56really styling that we would recognise today in terms of curves.
0:09:56 > 0:10:00From day one, his petrol tanks encompassed the top tube
0:10:00 > 0:10:04on the frame, whereas everybody else still had these flat tanks,
0:10:04 > 0:10:06these slab tanks,
0:10:06 > 0:10:10so, in one, George Brough got the styling right and it took
0:10:10 > 0:10:14the rest of the manufacturers eight, nine, ten years to catch up.
0:10:14 > 0:10:17At his Nottingham factory, Brough's machines were made
0:10:17 > 0:10:21to fit his wealthy clientele's exact requirements.
0:10:21 > 0:10:25Like a good tailor, he would measure you for the bike and the handlebars.
0:10:25 > 0:10:28If you were short - Lawrence of Arabia was short -
0:10:28 > 0:10:32he'd put in a small back wheel and he would sit you on the saddle
0:10:32 > 0:10:34and measure where your hands go and make the bars.
0:10:36 > 0:10:41The speed and style of an SS80 or SS100 was for the elite few.
0:10:41 > 0:10:44They cost more than the average man's yearly wage.
0:10:46 > 0:10:49For a man like TE Lawrence, Brough Superior's promise
0:10:49 > 0:10:53of unparalleled performance and exotic exclusivity
0:10:53 > 0:10:54was the perfect match.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00On a motorbike, you can put the world to rights.
0:11:00 > 0:11:07I think that was very much part of Lawrence's joy of his riding.
0:11:07 > 0:11:09Lawrence himself was a risk taker,
0:11:09 > 0:11:13somebody who had lived a very full, exciting and interesting life
0:11:13 > 0:11:15and so, at that point,
0:11:15 > 0:11:19what other mode of transport could he have had than a Brough Superior?
0:11:19 > 0:11:21You know, that was the natural fit.
0:11:21 > 0:11:27The 1000cc Brough, from about 1925 onwards, was capable of,
0:11:27 > 0:11:33in standard form, producing about 50 horsepower then, so that was 100mph.
0:11:33 > 0:11:37A 100mph motorbike would've been completely outside
0:11:37 > 0:11:40of everyday experience. Only a select few
0:11:40 > 0:11:44would have any notion of travelling the roads at that speed.
0:11:44 > 0:11:48Brough's high-performance super bikes were ideal for Lawrence.
0:11:48 > 0:11:53He rode seven, crashed several, and kept coming back for more -
0:11:53 > 0:11:57buying the latest model SS80 or SS100.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00He named each one George and referred to them in his writings
0:12:00 > 0:12:04as "Boanerges" a biblical reference meaning "Sons of Thunder".
0:12:09 > 0:12:14He wrote, "The burble of my exhaust unwound like a long cord behind me.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19"Soon my speed snapped it and I heard only the cry of the wind.
0:12:23 > 0:12:26"The cry rose with my speed to a shriek
0:12:26 > 0:12:30"while the air's coldness streamed like two jets of iced water
0:12:30 > 0:12:32"into my dissolving eyes.
0:12:36 > 0:12:38"I screwed them to slits,
0:12:38 > 0:12:42"and focused my sights 200 yards ahead of me
0:12:42 > 0:12:45"on the empty mosaic of the tar's gravelled undulations."
0:13:03 > 0:13:08Although he'd survived several crashes relatively unscathed,
0:13:08 > 0:13:14in 1935, Lawrence and his beloved Boanerges finally ran out of luck.
0:13:19 > 0:13:24I heard the motorcycle coming back. I heard the engine suddenly race
0:13:24 > 0:13:27and then...stop.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30He came over the brow of the hill,
0:13:30 > 0:13:32and there were two boys on bicycles.
0:13:38 > 0:13:41'Suddenly, this man who faced death a score of times in Arabia
0:13:41 > 0:13:44'meets a tragic end on a peaceful English country road.'
0:13:46 > 0:13:50Swerving to avoid the boys, Lawrence had come off his SS100,
0:13:50 > 0:13:52causing serious head injuries.
0:13:54 > 0:13:57- CHURCH BELL TOLLS - He died six days later.
0:13:57 > 0:13:59Like many riders, he never wore a helmet.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05Appalled at the needless death of a war hero,
0:14:05 > 0:14:07the doctor who attended Lawrence
0:14:07 > 0:14:11began researching the use of crash helmets.
0:14:11 > 0:14:19As a result of Lawrence's crash, and the head injuries that he sustained,
0:14:19 > 0:14:22the surgeon campaigned quite vigorously after that.
0:14:22 > 0:14:27If he had been wearing a helmet, he would've been fine.
0:14:27 > 0:14:31As a direct result of that,
0:14:31 > 0:14:35um, quite a long time later, helmets did become compulsory.
0:14:42 > 0:14:45The years in which Lawrence had indulged his passion
0:14:45 > 0:14:48were golden ones for British motorcycles.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51The inter-war period saw an explosion in ownership
0:14:51 > 0:14:55and designs were becoming increasingly advanced.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58Sport too was booming. Britain being Britain,
0:14:58 > 0:15:02every aspect of riding a motorcycle had been turned into a game.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05There was a competition event for everything.
0:15:05 > 0:15:10# Follow the brow! Follow the brow... #
0:15:10 > 0:15:13ENGINES REV
0:15:14 > 0:15:17The sporting side of it was a big thing and it wasn't just racing.
0:15:17 > 0:15:20There was all the club side of it. Every person who was
0:15:20 > 0:15:23into motorcycles in the '20s would've been in a club.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25There would've been this huge community,
0:15:25 > 0:15:28and they wouldn't have just raced, they would've done hill climbs
0:15:28 > 0:15:31and grass tracks and, kind of, they used to do trials
0:15:31 > 0:15:33and they'd even do, like, pillion trials,
0:15:33 > 0:15:35where you'd have someone on the back of the bike
0:15:35 > 0:15:37to do a trial, and long-distance trials,
0:15:37 > 0:15:40and there was always some kind of club involvement in it all.
0:15:46 > 0:15:48Despite their popularity,
0:15:48 > 0:15:52bikes were seen as challenging and somehow apart from other pursuits.
0:15:52 > 0:15:56Even on the racing scene, motorbikes started to be perceived
0:15:56 > 0:15:58in a different way to their four-wheeled rivals.
0:16:00 > 0:16:03You'd still get people just riding around in their normal clothes,
0:16:03 > 0:16:07although, in the racing scene, you do start to see stuff developing.
0:16:07 > 0:16:10The car drivers would always wear white suits.
0:16:10 > 0:16:12Nice, clean white helmets and goggles.
0:16:12 > 0:16:15They were sort of pristinely turned out, so you've got a black,
0:16:15 > 0:16:19leather-clad motorcyclist, covered in dirt, who, you know, whizzes round
0:16:19 > 0:16:23lap after lap after lap getting dirty and it just...
0:16:23 > 0:16:27There is this real sort of, separation.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31The feeling that bikes were "a bit different"
0:16:31 > 0:16:34was apparent at the prestigious Brooklands circuit.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38It was one of the only custom-built racetracks in the world
0:16:38 > 0:16:41and had been an important part of the bike scene from the beginning.
0:16:41 > 0:16:45Yet, even here, bikers were becoming outsiders.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47Brooklands, the most prominent British race circuit,
0:16:47 > 0:16:53that closes in 1939. At that time, there is a real hierarchy of, um,
0:16:53 > 0:16:55the establishment in the racing community.
0:16:55 > 0:16:59Most cycle racers weren't allowed into the clubhouse at Brooklands,
0:16:59 > 0:17:00whereas the car racers were.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03They were looked down upon even in that scene as well.
0:17:07 > 0:17:11But there was one place where the riders were already king -
0:17:11 > 0:17:16the Isle of Man "Tourist Trophy", or TT races.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25The event was founded in the early 1900s on the Isle of Man after
0:17:25 > 0:17:29racing on the roads in mainland Britain had become outlawed.
0:17:30 > 0:17:34The place became the spiritual home of British bikers.
0:17:34 > 0:17:37Raced over a 37 mile, mountainous circuit,
0:17:37 > 0:17:41the TT was a challenging time trial against the clock,
0:17:41 > 0:17:44testing courage to the full.
0:17:44 > 0:17:48There really is, um, nothing else like it in the world.
0:17:48 > 0:17:52There wasn't back then and I guess there isn't now.
0:17:52 > 0:17:54'The TT races are about to begin
0:17:54 > 0:17:58'and, um, all the competitors are lined up.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01'A lot of activity going on at the moment around the starting point.'
0:18:01 > 0:18:04The rider would come face-to-face with the starter, who had his flag
0:18:04 > 0:18:08in the air, and the guy would set his bike as he wanted it to start.
0:18:08 > 0:18:10'Oh, yes, yes, the starter's flag is going up
0:18:10 > 0:18:13'and he's watching his chronometer ready to give the signal
0:18:13 > 0:18:17'for number one - that's Frith - to start on the stroke of 11.'
0:18:17 > 0:18:21- CLOCK STRIKES, ENGINE REVS - 'There goes the starter's flag!'
0:18:21 > 0:18:25As the flag drops, he would push, run, with the clutch held in,
0:18:25 > 0:18:27then let his clutch out and jump onto the saddle.
0:18:27 > 0:18:29- 'He's away!' - ENGINE REVS
0:18:29 > 0:18:34And he'd hope it would fire and run straightaway and off he'd charge
0:18:34 > 0:18:37and, most of the time, especially the top guys, they would.
0:18:37 > 0:18:39'And now, here comes number two.'
0:18:39 > 0:18:43They would have got it worked out to such a degree that they'd know
0:18:43 > 0:18:46how many steps to take before jumping on the bike and it perhaps
0:18:46 > 0:18:50looks a bit rudimentary, or a bit basic, but there was actually
0:18:50 > 0:18:53an awful lot of science and a lot of thought would've gone into it.
0:18:56 > 0:18:59- Nothing would've been left to chance.- 'He's away!'
0:19:02 > 0:19:06Unlike Brooklands, the TT track was on everyday roads,
0:19:06 > 0:19:09a far more familiar environment for the average rider,
0:19:09 > 0:19:11despite its pitfalls.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14It was a 37 mile track, which are public roads...
0:19:17 > 0:19:20..with hairpins and hills and bumps and villages.
0:19:23 > 0:19:27The rough road surface with drain covers and kerbs
0:19:27 > 0:19:29and walls and hedges.
0:19:32 > 0:19:36Over a mountain, the variation of the course itself, different conditions.
0:19:39 > 0:19:41'It's at Ramsey that the mountain course begins.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44'It's the hardest part of the run, and, incidentally, the course
0:19:44 > 0:19:47'passes through some of the most beautiful scenery on the island,
0:19:47 > 0:19:49'but I'm sure the fleeting riders are too occupied to notice it.'
0:19:51 > 0:19:54They touch, um, today, 180,
0:19:54 > 0:19:59but in the '30s, they would've been doing "the ton" -
0:19:59 > 0:20:02parlance for 100mph - and, on the Sulby Straight,
0:20:02 > 0:20:06speeds there would've approached 110-120.
0:20:08 > 0:20:10'Jimmy Guthrie's leading all the way,
0:20:10 > 0:20:14'setting a cracking pace at an average of nearly 80mph,
0:20:14 > 0:20:17'slowing up on the turn, imagine what his top speeds must be!'
0:20:17 > 0:20:22It was an extreme race that required equally extreme commitment.
0:20:22 > 0:20:25Some of the guys would hold their throttles open by various means,
0:20:25 > 0:20:28like elastic bands and things, and just hang on,
0:20:28 > 0:20:29it was as simple as that.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33Really, they were running quite close to flat out an awful lot of the time.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37'He's coming down now, around Windy, turning wide.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41'Here he comes! I can just spot him! And according to my timing...'
0:20:41 > 0:20:45How they managed to achieve the lap times that they did,
0:20:45 > 0:20:50on the machines of that time, in the conditions on those roads,
0:20:50 > 0:20:52incredible, incredible guys.
0:20:52 > 0:20:55'The enormous strain on both driver and machine
0:20:55 > 0:20:59'in this gruelling 265 miles race can only be appreciated when
0:20:59 > 0:21:03'we realise that they fly round the course for nearly 3½ hours on end.'
0:21:03 > 0:21:07'Difficult corners and a seven mile climb in each of the seven laps
0:21:07 > 0:21:09'makes it a thrilling sight for the spectators
0:21:09 > 0:21:12'and a more thrilling struggle for the drivers.'
0:21:12 > 0:21:15To handle the stresses and strains of such an arduous race,
0:21:15 > 0:21:18the TT racer of the 1930s needed to be a hardy breed.
0:21:18 > 0:21:20CHEERING
0:21:20 > 0:21:23When you're riding a bike which has got no real suspension,
0:21:23 > 0:21:26the saddles are not brilliantly comfortable and, you know,
0:21:26 > 0:21:27it's a fairly ferocious thing.
0:21:27 > 0:21:31There was no kind of let up. It was really, really physical, hard work.
0:21:31 > 0:21:33These were fit guys who were doing it.
0:21:33 > 0:21:37If the riders were tough, the bikes had to be even tougher.
0:21:37 > 0:21:40For the bike companies, there was more than just pride at stake.
0:21:40 > 0:21:43This really can't be underestimated,
0:21:43 > 0:21:46its importance, in terms of motorcycle development.
0:21:46 > 0:21:52The TT was an absolutely marvellous proving ground for manufacturers
0:21:52 > 0:21:56in an era when people were concerned about reliability.
0:21:56 > 0:21:59Naturally, we buy something today, it's not going to break.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01Very different time then.
0:22:01 > 0:22:05And so, for a manufacturer to be confident enough
0:22:05 > 0:22:08to put their machines through two, three laps,
0:22:08 > 0:22:12what better place to prove the reliability of their machine?
0:22:12 > 0:22:14As the technology raced ahead,
0:22:14 > 0:22:18one manufacturer excelled above all others -
0:22:18 > 0:22:22Norton. For them, winning the TT became an expectation
0:22:22 > 0:22:24- and wins meant sales. - CHEERING
0:22:24 > 0:22:29Often, the phrase was, well, "Which Norton won the TT this year?"
0:22:29 > 0:22:33Not, "Which bike?" But "Which Norton?" They dominated.
0:22:33 > 0:22:35They had the best riders riding for them.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38The bikes were the toughest, probably the fastest.
0:22:38 > 0:22:42'The winner, who by the way won the Junior TT earlier in the week,
0:22:42 > 0:22:47'was Guthrie on a Norton with an average speed of 78.01mph.'
0:22:47 > 0:22:53You could see the aces riding the bikes that you could buy racing
0:22:53 > 0:22:56and that was a hell of a thing at the time.
0:22:57 > 0:23:02The local salesroom could give you a road version of the very machine
0:23:02 > 0:23:04that had just won the world's toughest race.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07Norton's International model was the closest thing
0:23:07 > 0:23:10to the TT dream the average rider could buy.
0:23:10 > 0:23:15But Norton's winning streak would be rudely interrupted by world events.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24In 1938, er, Norton won the TT,
0:23:24 > 0:23:30but for 1939, they virtually withdrew from, um...international racing,
0:23:30 > 0:23:33because they'd started to build bikes for the Army.
0:23:37 > 0:23:40In 1939, as Britain geared up for war with Germany,
0:23:40 > 0:23:45there was another team waiting to take Norton's place - BMW.
0:23:45 > 0:23:49People know it as the Nazi TT, um...
0:23:49 > 0:23:54where the German entrants, um...
0:23:54 > 0:23:59really basically turned up uniformed and jackbooted.
0:23:59 > 0:24:02The Nazi Party had taken control of German motorsport,
0:24:02 > 0:24:06investing heavily in racing technology.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09BMW had the world champion, George Meier,
0:24:09 > 0:24:12and bikes that were far ahead of the competition.
0:24:12 > 0:24:17The German government, of course, were behind, um, their car racing
0:24:17 > 0:24:20and their motorcycle racing efforts and, in the motorcycling,
0:24:20 > 0:24:24that extended to all classes, with BMW in the 500.
0:24:24 > 0:24:30The German bikes were actually very good, with their shaft drive.
0:24:30 > 0:24:32With no Norton factory team to rival them,
0:24:32 > 0:24:36BMW won first and second places in the Senior race.
0:24:38 > 0:24:42BMW did win that race. An exciting race.
0:24:42 > 0:24:48No bones about that. And, um, the Germans...
0:24:48 > 0:24:53That was the first time, if you like, that they had planted a flag,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55on the top of our mountain.
0:25:00 > 0:25:06BMW's second place rider was British man Jock West, shown on the right.
0:25:06 > 0:25:10He chose not to join in with his team's victory salute.
0:25:18 > 0:25:23Just three months after the TT, Britain was at war with Germany
0:25:23 > 0:25:27and the motorbike would be put to military use.
0:25:28 > 0:25:33Men to ride them also had to be commandeered.
0:25:33 > 0:25:35Ron Arnold was one of them.
0:25:35 > 0:25:41I had no thought at all of riding a motorcycle.
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Before joining the Army, I couldn't drive.
0:25:46 > 0:25:50But I had to specialise in something. Everybody had to specialise.
0:25:51 > 0:25:55So, I became a Despatch Rider.
0:25:55 > 0:25:57NEWS THEME PLAYS
0:25:57 > 0:25:58'In addition to mechanical systems,
0:25:58 > 0:26:02'the human method of communication still ranks very high in modern war.
0:26:02 > 0:26:04'The Despatch Rider is most able to cope
0:26:04 > 0:26:06'with rapidly changing conditions. Upon his shoulders rests
0:26:06 > 0:26:09'the responsibility of maintaining contact
0:26:09 > 0:26:11'between the many positions in the field,
0:26:11 > 0:26:13'even before more permanent methods of communication
0:26:13 > 0:26:15'have been established.'
0:26:15 > 0:26:17I think they first give me a BSA.
0:26:17 > 0:26:20Known as DRs, Despatch Riders and their bikes
0:26:20 > 0:26:23were expected to operate in any weather conditions
0:26:23 > 0:26:27and deliver messages wherever they were ordered to.
0:26:27 > 0:26:33And, in due course, bit by bit, er, they provided me with the rest of it.
0:26:33 > 0:26:35'Here, the wise DR does things methodically
0:26:35 > 0:26:37'and takes care in his dressing.'
0:26:38 > 0:26:44Double texture rubber coat, almost down to the ankles.
0:26:44 > 0:26:45A pair of goggles.
0:26:45 > 0:26:51They taught me how to ride a motorcycle and how to use a map
0:26:51 > 0:26:56that other people could understand what I was referring to on that map.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59'Trained to adjust themselves rapidly and thoroughly, there is
0:26:59 > 0:27:03'little that a fully fledged DR doesn't know about finding his way,
0:27:03 > 0:27:06'not only with maps, but making use of his own powers of observation.'
0:27:06 > 0:27:12You were also issued with a Despatch Bag.
0:27:12 > 0:27:15- Gotta be there by six. - Very good, sir, I'll be there.
0:27:16 > 0:27:20I never bothered to look what's in it. It's handed to me.
0:27:20 > 0:27:26I put it round my neck, I go, I deliver it to my officer.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29As well as his supposedly weather-proof uniform,
0:27:29 > 0:27:33the Despatch Rider depended on his bike.
0:27:33 > 0:27:38Birmingham Small Arms, or BSA, were the most common bike in the field,
0:27:38 > 0:27:41but not always the most popular.
0:27:41 > 0:27:45I found the BSA, um, quite cumbersome.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48They're a good road bike, and we're mostly going cross-country.
0:27:48 > 0:27:52Roads are on German maps.
0:27:52 > 0:27:57'The SDR memorises the route, taking care not to mark his map,
0:27:57 > 0:27:58'and heads towards the village.'
0:27:58 > 0:28:00' "There's the road I came along,
0:28:00 > 0:28:03' "I'd better get another landmark to make sure.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06' "There, that church."
0:28:06 > 0:28:08'Right! Better than asking the way.
0:28:08 > 0:28:10'Questions near the fighting line are dangerous.
0:28:10 > 0:28:13'This DR used his brains instead.'
0:28:13 > 0:28:16If the BSA left something to be desired,
0:28:16 > 0:28:19Ron much preferred his replacement.
0:28:19 > 0:28:23Fortunately, I was handed a Norton motorcycle.
0:28:23 > 0:28:25It was lightweight, I could throw it about,
0:28:25 > 0:28:28I'd be able to move with it as well.
0:28:28 > 0:28:31Norton was a very nice machine.
0:28:31 > 0:28:35- For you, sir, special despatch. - Thank you.
0:28:35 > 0:28:36Six o'clock.
0:28:37 > 0:28:40- I see you left London at six o'clock?- Yes, sir.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43- That's jolly good time. There you are.- Thank you, sir.
0:28:43 > 0:28:48After cutting his teeth in England, Ron Arnold was posted to Normandy.
0:28:48 > 0:28:50We arrive on the beach.
0:28:50 > 0:28:54"Move! Get off the beach! Move! Move! move!
0:28:54 > 0:28:58"Move off the beach!" So we leave the beach, eventually,
0:28:58 > 0:29:01and we end up in a meadow.
0:29:01 > 0:29:06In that meadow, my bike, in its tarpaulin,
0:29:06 > 0:29:10it's pulled off, and I am now alive.
0:29:14 > 0:29:15In the Second World War,
0:29:15 > 0:29:20Britain used more motorbikes than any other country.
0:29:20 > 0:29:25By its end, the manufacturers had made more than 400,000 of them.
0:29:25 > 0:29:27Throughout the conflict,
0:29:27 > 0:29:31British society had been exposed to motorcycles like never before.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35Both the clothing and machines that had been made for the Army
0:29:35 > 0:29:37would have a lasting impact
0:29:37 > 0:29:40on how the public viewed bikes in the post-war years.
0:29:43 > 0:29:48In peacetime, as the bike industry began picking up the pieces,
0:29:48 > 0:29:52new machines were mostly for export and therefore hard to come by.
0:29:52 > 0:29:53But it wasn't long
0:29:53 > 0:29:56before civvy street was awash with second hand bikes
0:29:56 > 0:30:00and ex-War Department stock sold on the cheap.
0:30:00 > 0:30:04A lot of surplus motorcycles were converted back to civilian use,
0:30:04 > 0:30:08you know, were repainted from army khaki
0:30:08 > 0:30:11into any colour as long as it's black kind of thing,
0:30:11 > 0:30:15to get Britain mobile again.
0:30:15 > 0:30:19We're getting a proliferation, again, of bikes.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21We've got the ones now from the '20s and '30s.
0:30:21 > 0:30:23Obviously, the second-hand market grows,
0:30:23 > 0:30:26the more bikes there are around, uh...
0:30:26 > 0:30:28so they're becoming more available.
0:30:30 > 0:30:33In amongst all the austerity, there was a dream bike
0:30:33 > 0:30:36that offered a glimpse of what the future might hold,
0:30:36 > 0:30:39a hand-built fantasy for motorcycle fans
0:30:39 > 0:30:42that contrasted deeply with the world around it.
0:30:42 > 0:30:47The bike to end all bikes - the Vincent Black Shadow.
0:30:47 > 0:30:50It was the ultimate - and rightly so, you know.
0:30:50 > 0:30:53# They're building an atom bomb
0:30:53 > 0:30:55# Blow me out of this place
0:30:55 > 0:30:57# They're building a bigger bomb
0:30:57 > 0:30:59# What a crazy human race... #
0:30:59 > 0:31:03They couldn't find a road fast enough to test it on,
0:31:03 > 0:31:07to do that, even though there was no speed limit then.
0:31:07 > 0:31:12They used to do all the testing on the A1 at dawn.
0:31:12 > 0:31:15Its standout feature, visually,
0:31:15 > 0:31:19was it had a...all-black engine,
0:31:19 > 0:31:22and it had a five-inch speedometer.
0:31:23 > 0:31:24# Oh!
0:31:24 > 0:31:27# Did you ever hear such a noise...?! #
0:31:32 > 0:31:34For buyers with lots of cash, there's the Vincent HRD,
0:31:34 > 0:31:39the most expensive bike on view, costing near £600.
0:31:39 > 0:31:44Its cooler-than-cool looks made it a pin-up for British enthusiasts,
0:31:44 > 0:31:47but its real claim to fame was speed.
0:31:47 > 0:31:49A highly tuned version of the Black Shadow
0:31:49 > 0:31:54was taken to the western US state of Utah in 1948
0:31:54 > 0:31:58and on the Bonneville Salt Flats made history.
0:31:58 > 0:32:02The American rider in the desert
0:32:02 > 0:32:06stripped down to his... to a pair of bathing trunks
0:32:06 > 0:32:08and, uh...flattened himself
0:32:08 > 0:32:11along the tank and the seat of the bike.
0:32:14 > 0:32:18And rode at 150mph like that.
0:32:18 > 0:32:21And in a straight line.
0:32:21 > 0:32:23I mean, these guys were heroes.
0:32:28 > 0:32:34It was an unbelievable speed, um... for those days.
0:32:34 > 0:32:38Vincent's design stood out in an era of making do
0:32:38 > 0:32:41as a symbol of progress and engineering skill.
0:32:41 > 0:32:48They were...in another quantum leap in terms of performance.
0:32:48 > 0:32:52Even on British roads, unthinkable speeds could be achieved.
0:32:52 > 0:32:55To be able to do 110 was incredible,
0:32:55 > 0:32:58but to be able to HOLD 110,
0:32:58 > 0:33:00with no bits falling off
0:33:00 > 0:33:04and, uh...you know, nothing going bang,
0:33:04 > 0:33:06was...was phenomenal.
0:33:06 > 0:33:09Record-breaking speed and technical innovation
0:33:09 > 0:33:12didn't bring the Black Shadow social approval.
0:33:12 > 0:33:14Bikes had a bit of an image problem,
0:33:14 > 0:33:17and despite Vincent's state-of-the-art designs,
0:33:17 > 0:33:21they ceased bike production in 1955.
0:33:21 > 0:33:23It wasn't like having a sports car.
0:33:23 > 0:33:25Even though it was horrendously expensive,
0:33:25 > 0:33:30it was still a motorbike... and tarred with that brush.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34Britain was also changing.
0:33:34 > 0:33:36Society was on the move.
0:33:37 > 0:33:40Expanding road networks and new out-of-town suburbs
0:33:40 > 0:33:43drove a boom in the demand for personal transport.
0:33:45 > 0:33:48As consumerism took hold in the 1950s,
0:33:48 > 0:33:52the middle class increasingly wanted cars rather than motorbikes.
0:33:53 > 0:33:56Cars were aspirational status symbols,
0:33:56 > 0:33:58and they kept you warm and dry.
0:34:01 > 0:34:05Every man's got a car, poor man and rich man.
0:34:05 > 0:34:08You can't keep him off because he's a poor man or a working man.
0:34:08 > 0:34:11He's just as entitled to have a car on the road as you are!
0:34:11 > 0:34:14And it wasn't just aspirations that were evolving.
0:34:14 > 0:34:17If grown-ups wanted cars,
0:34:17 > 0:34:20there was a new group that would take motorbikes off their hands.
0:34:23 > 0:34:25Teenagers.
0:34:25 > 0:34:27# We're gonna jump, little children, jump
0:34:27 > 0:34:30# We're gonna jump, little children, jump
0:34:30 > 0:34:34# We're gonna jump, little children, mother and poppa's gone... #
0:34:34 > 0:34:38You're beginning to get youth subcultures emerging after the war,
0:34:38 > 0:34:42and it's part of a whole debate in society about these new youths,
0:34:42 > 0:34:46these young people who are having more money,
0:34:46 > 0:34:48who are having more independence.
0:34:48 > 0:34:51The old traditions of respect,
0:34:51 > 0:34:53whether it's for your parents, for the Church,
0:34:53 > 0:34:56for the establishment, for Parliament, whatever.
0:34:56 > 0:34:59All of those things are under threat in the post-war period.
0:34:59 > 0:35:05Motorcycles, and scooters, of course, become part of that youth generation.
0:35:09 > 0:35:13The generation gap becomes a social concern.
0:35:15 > 0:35:19The anxiety around teenagers and motorbikes was quick to set in.
0:35:19 > 0:35:22Marlon Brando's 1953 film The Wild One
0:35:22 > 0:35:25ignited a full-blown moral panic,
0:35:25 > 0:35:28with its portrayal of delinquent bad boys on motorcycles.
0:35:31 > 0:35:34Brando's sneering, disdainful performance
0:35:34 > 0:35:37captured a threatening sense of rebellion
0:35:37 > 0:35:40that was emphasised by the film's use of costumes.
0:35:42 > 0:35:43The gang's black leather jackets
0:35:43 > 0:35:46in stark contrast to the ordinary townsfolk.
0:35:47 > 0:35:49The director made Brando's Johnny
0:35:49 > 0:35:53menacingly disengaged from authority figures,
0:35:53 > 0:35:55and the artistic mix worked so well
0:35:55 > 0:35:58that British censors banned the film.
0:35:58 > 0:36:01- Where's that bunch from? - I don't know, everywhere.
0:36:01 > 0:36:04I don't even think they know where they're going.
0:36:04 > 0:36:07Termites - ten guys like that give people the idea
0:36:07 > 0:36:09everybody who drives a motorcycle is crazy.
0:36:09 > 0:36:12The British Board of Film Censors described it
0:36:12 > 0:36:15as a "spectacle of unbridled hooliganism."
0:36:17 > 0:36:20When that hooligan happened to be riding a Triumph,
0:36:20 > 0:36:24it was no wonder British youths took his image to their hearts.
0:36:32 > 0:36:34For teenagers, bikes were a way
0:36:34 > 0:36:37of marking themselves out from the rest of society.
0:36:37 > 0:36:39They might not always have been able
0:36:39 > 0:36:42to get the fastest and flashiest around,
0:36:42 > 0:36:46but for some it became a lasting love affair.
0:36:46 > 0:36:49I was 14, and it was a Norton 600,
0:36:49 > 0:36:51and it had a sidecar on it, and I gave ten bob for it.
0:36:53 > 0:36:58My first motorcycle was an ex-WD 350 Matchless.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01When you're 16, it gets in there permanent,
0:37:01 > 0:37:04first of your life, like riding a bike.
0:37:08 > 0:37:12Teens created a motorbike scene all of their own,
0:37:12 > 0:37:16and transport cafes were the centre of this new world.
0:37:16 > 0:37:22Racing from venue to venue, the cafe racer had come of age.
0:37:22 > 0:37:23Young people are hanging out.
0:37:23 > 0:37:26I mean, maybe they're not old enough to drink yet,
0:37:26 > 0:37:28they're not able to take part in pub culture,
0:37:28 > 0:37:31but they also don't necessarily want to be part of pub culture,
0:37:31 > 0:37:35which has associations with the older generation.
0:37:35 > 0:37:37I mean then, them days then, it was coffee.
0:37:37 > 0:37:42No-one drunk. Drink a beer? No, I wouldn't drink.
0:37:42 > 0:37:45Drugs? What's drugs? No-one knew what drugs was.
0:37:45 > 0:37:48But it was clean, it was good clean fun.
0:37:48 > 0:37:50Cafe racers spanned the country.
0:37:50 > 0:37:54There was soon a place for riders to hang out in every city.
0:37:55 > 0:37:59The notorious Ace Cafe's position on the inner London ring road
0:37:59 > 0:38:04made it the pit stop of choice for many of the capital's young riders.
0:38:04 > 0:38:07It was whizzing around North London.
0:38:07 > 0:38:09It could be in Birmingham or Manchester.
0:38:09 > 0:38:12Huge demographic explosion.
0:38:13 > 0:38:16Fast bit of road, neon,
0:38:16 > 0:38:20a soundtrack, their new soundtrack, rock'n'roll music.
0:38:20 > 0:38:23You've got the Busy Bee, you've got the Ace Cafe,
0:38:23 > 0:38:26and they're going to be riding their bikes backwards and forwards to them.
0:38:26 > 0:38:29They're just whizzing around from cafe to cafe,
0:38:29 > 0:38:31hence the term, "cafe racer".
0:38:34 > 0:38:38You finish work, had your dinner, eight o'clock, time to go.
0:38:45 > 0:38:48What you have is, in the late '50s and the early '60s,
0:38:48 > 0:38:51you have the first generation
0:38:51 > 0:38:55of post-war young men that haven't been conscripted.
0:38:55 > 0:38:57They are...living in a world
0:38:57 > 0:39:03where their working conditions, pay, holidays are improving all the time,
0:39:03 > 0:39:05because of government legislation.
0:39:05 > 0:39:07You also have greater availability of credit,
0:39:07 > 0:39:09so they're buying motorcycles on credit,
0:39:09 > 0:39:11they can buy clothing on credit.
0:39:13 > 0:39:16Bikes had long ceased to be just forms of practical transport
0:39:16 > 0:39:19or playthings of the elite.
0:39:19 > 0:39:21Now they were objects of youthful desire.
0:39:21 > 0:39:24And they went to the heart of the identity of those who rode them.
0:39:24 > 0:39:26Like any new social scene,
0:39:26 > 0:39:31biking would develop its own strict styles, code and culture.
0:39:32 > 0:39:34# Don't mess with my ducktails
0:39:34 > 0:39:36# Don't mess with my ducktails
0:39:36 > 0:39:40# If you mess with my ducktails, I'll get so mad at you... #
0:39:40 > 0:39:42The image of a rocker back then
0:39:42 > 0:39:47was motorbike boots with, erm... white socks going over.
0:39:47 > 0:39:49The actual reality of it was
0:39:49 > 0:39:53you'd be quite posh to be able to afford proper motorbike boots.
0:39:53 > 0:39:55A lot of the lads I hung around with,
0:39:55 > 0:40:00they either wore wellingtons with... turned down...
0:40:00 > 0:40:02It was a fashionable thing! Erm...
0:40:02 > 0:40:05Or... Or ex-army boots.
0:40:05 > 0:40:09Light blue jeans were a thing that rockers were synonymous with,
0:40:09 > 0:40:11but that's because they was cheap.
0:40:11 > 0:40:14The look of the ton-up boy and rockers
0:40:14 > 0:40:17didn't always have room for crash helmets.
0:40:17 > 0:40:19Some people just didn't wear them,
0:40:19 > 0:40:23because they didn't really take much attention to risk,
0:40:23 > 0:40:25or it was just too much of an expense.
0:40:25 > 0:40:26Some did.
0:40:26 > 0:40:29Generally, we only wore a crash helmet if it was...
0:40:29 > 0:40:31..if you knew it was going to be really cold,
0:40:31 > 0:40:34or if we was going on a long run, say if we was...
0:40:34 > 0:40:37Back in them days, a long run would be Brighton,
0:40:37 > 0:40:40cos the bikes weren't so reliable!
0:40:40 > 0:40:43But you'd wear a crash helmet not for safety,
0:40:43 > 0:40:46but for more to keep the elements away.
0:40:46 > 0:40:50You didn't really wear a helmet, because them days, Billy Fury days,
0:40:50 > 0:40:53and a crash helmet mucked your hair up.
0:40:53 > 0:40:58The thought of putting this thing on, A, it didn't look so good!
0:40:58 > 0:41:01B, it flattened your bouffant, your hair.
0:41:01 > 0:41:04When you arrived at the Ace Caff, you had the big quiff,
0:41:04 > 0:41:07forward with the Brylcreem, it looked right.
0:41:07 > 0:41:09When you had a helmet on, it was hassle,
0:41:09 > 0:41:11it just mucked your hair up.
0:41:11 > 0:41:15Because it wasn't law at the time, I think the reason...
0:41:15 > 0:41:18You didn't have to wear a helmet, so you never knew the difference,
0:41:18 > 0:41:20and I used to just love going along
0:41:20 > 0:41:23with the wind roaring through my hair and...
0:41:23 > 0:41:27You do see some fantastic... caps being worn,
0:41:27 > 0:41:29the white topped, dark peaked helmet,
0:41:29 > 0:41:33with a chain across the front, and it's a very stylised look.
0:41:33 > 0:41:36One particular item of clothing, though,
0:41:36 > 0:41:39was not only set to define the bikers as rebels,
0:41:39 > 0:41:44but destined to become a universal and lasting fashion icon.
0:41:44 > 0:41:48# Good time, baby
0:41:48 > 0:41:49# Go...! #
0:41:49 > 0:41:50If you could afford one,
0:41:50 > 0:41:53a leather jacket was the essential bike accessory.
0:41:53 > 0:41:56# Good time, baby
0:41:56 > 0:41:59# Let's go crazy... #
0:41:59 > 0:42:01You start to see the American influence come in
0:42:01 > 0:42:03with the black leather jacket,
0:42:03 > 0:42:05which has its roots in a few different areas,
0:42:05 > 0:42:10but primarily almost a direct appropriation of military uniforms.
0:42:10 > 0:42:12Almost all of us wore leather jackets.
0:42:12 > 0:42:15I mean, my first leather jacket I got when I was 14.
0:42:15 > 0:42:18Most of my mates couldn't afford new leather jackets,
0:42:18 > 0:42:21so we had like hand-me-downs from the ton-up boys.
0:42:21 > 0:42:24Often bought from military surplus,
0:42:24 > 0:42:28it was these symbols of rocker life that disturbed older generations.
0:42:33 > 0:42:35You can do a direct image comparison
0:42:35 > 0:42:39between the black leather jacket and the...German tank crews.
0:42:39 > 0:42:45The silhouette and the design, the lapels, is almost identical.
0:42:45 > 0:42:48The patches and customised designs on the jackets
0:42:48 > 0:42:49carried other connotations
0:42:49 > 0:42:52for those who had witnessed the Second World War.
0:42:52 > 0:42:55You're 16, 17, you suddenly get a motorcycle,
0:42:55 > 0:42:58you put on a leather jacket, so you have patches on the arms,
0:42:58 > 0:43:01you have patches and badges on the front of the jacket.
0:43:01 > 0:43:06You also have insignia being painted on the back as well.
0:43:06 > 0:43:10Your parents, who may have seen lots of images
0:43:10 > 0:43:12or actually been to war themselves
0:43:12 > 0:43:16and, you know, been close up with the enemy,
0:43:16 > 0:43:19are going to draw some comparisons to all of this.
0:43:19 > 0:43:21Their uniform is black leather,
0:43:21 > 0:43:23their hair a sergeant major's nightmare!
0:43:23 > 0:43:28And the two words on everyone's lips - the ton, 100mph.
0:43:34 > 0:43:35The growing distance
0:43:35 > 0:43:38between the leather-clad upstarts and wider society
0:43:38 > 0:43:42became most apparent when the rockers got on their bikes.
0:43:42 > 0:43:46Roads were a Wild West frontier of unrestricted speed.
0:43:49 > 0:43:53We used to race from one roundabout to the other,
0:43:53 > 0:43:54and you'd go up and down there,
0:43:54 > 0:43:57and we found that you went up and down four or five times,
0:43:57 > 0:43:59then someone would have phoned the police,
0:43:59 > 0:44:01or the police would arrive, so you'd go up and down twice.
0:44:04 > 0:44:07The cafe racer lifestyle was a dangerous one.
0:44:07 > 0:44:11Britain's roads were being improved, traffic was growing.
0:44:11 > 0:44:12And around transport cafes,
0:44:12 > 0:44:16leaking lorry oil added to the hazards of riding fast.
0:44:16 > 0:44:19No, you don't think of the risk, I don't think of the risk now.
0:44:19 > 0:44:24The youngsters who are wanting to show off to each other
0:44:24 > 0:44:27will come past here flat out,
0:44:27 > 0:44:33and flat out on an old Brit bike is somewhere perhaps 80mph,
0:44:33 > 0:44:36and certain machines perhaps just over 100mph.
0:44:36 > 0:44:38Leading the way was the ton-up boy,
0:44:38 > 0:44:41committed to going as fast as possible
0:44:41 > 0:44:43regardless of the consequences.
0:44:43 > 0:44:47You come into these cafes and you meet them.
0:44:47 > 0:44:49You meet the ton-up boy.
0:44:49 > 0:44:52You meet the... the rogue, like, you know.
0:44:52 > 0:44:57He won't bother about what... what you think of his driving,
0:44:57 > 0:44:59cos all he's bothered about is getting past you,
0:44:59 > 0:45:01anywhere, at any place, at any time.
0:45:01 > 0:45:04You can bet he's the boy who's going to go flashing past
0:45:04 > 0:45:06with the throttle wide open.
0:45:06 > 0:45:08And you can bet you he's the boy, in six months,
0:45:08 > 0:45:10who's going to be in a coffin.
0:45:16 > 0:45:18Yes, really, I was a ton-up boy.
0:45:22 > 0:45:25When you was a ton-up boy, it was speedo,
0:45:25 > 0:45:28you looked at the speedo, 90, 91...
0:45:28 > 0:45:31And it gradually crept up, 100mph,
0:45:31 > 0:45:34and then you think, "I just done a ton," you know,
0:45:34 > 0:45:36and that made the day, because you did a ton.
0:45:36 > 0:45:38I had a BSA Gold Star
0:45:38 > 0:45:43that was actually a Clubmans racing bike with lights on,
0:45:43 > 0:45:46and it's what I started racing on.
0:45:46 > 0:45:51But I had a younger sister, who would be five or six years old,
0:45:51 > 0:45:53and I used to go and pick her up from school.
0:45:53 > 0:45:56You've got the rev counter and the speedo on the BSA like that,
0:45:56 > 0:45:59and she's watching it, and she goes rushing in to her mum,
0:45:59 > 0:46:03saying, "Mummy, Mummy, we did 100mph!"
0:46:03 > 0:46:05My mother went mad!
0:46:05 > 0:46:08There was another strand to rocker life.
0:46:08 > 0:46:10Some of their hang-outs were notorious
0:46:10 > 0:46:12for being as rough as their leather jackets.
0:46:12 > 0:46:14The Chelsea Bridge Boys
0:46:14 > 0:46:19were an infamous band of rockers who gathered next to a tea kiosk.
0:46:19 > 0:46:22It was notorious in the '50s and '60s as a place of ill repute.
0:46:22 > 0:46:24You didn't go up there,
0:46:24 > 0:46:27and if you did, you was bad, you was deemed to be a bad boy.
0:46:27 > 0:46:28People wouldn't even walk over it,
0:46:28 > 0:46:32and if you had a scooter, the scooter boys wouldn't ride over there,
0:46:32 > 0:46:35cos if they did, the scooters got thrown over Chelsea Bridge.
0:46:36 > 0:46:38It was hardly Hell's Angels stuff,
0:46:38 > 0:46:41but always central to the action at the bridge
0:46:41 > 0:46:43were the motorbikes they doted on.
0:46:43 > 0:46:49It was these that delivered the real thrills, spills and adrenaline.
0:46:49 > 0:46:52It weren't just about having fights and, like, being yobs.
0:46:52 > 0:46:54I mean, we was and we did,
0:46:54 > 0:46:58but for us it was more like the thrill of getting on a motorbike
0:46:58 > 0:47:00and riding it and opening the throttle
0:47:00 > 0:47:03and going as fast as you can, and going into a bend
0:47:03 > 0:47:06and getting it just right and coming out the other side
0:47:06 > 0:47:08and you'd think, "Wow," it was just a buzz.
0:47:11 > 0:47:13That was the common denominator, we all felt that.
0:47:15 > 0:47:17Although they rode whatever they could afford second-hand,
0:47:17 > 0:47:19or perhaps new on HP,
0:47:19 > 0:47:23cafe racers favoured a certain type of bike.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26They were influenced by the styling and look of TT racers
0:47:26 > 0:47:29who, like them, raced on roads.
0:47:30 > 0:47:34But racing bikes traditionally used single-cylinder engines.
0:47:34 > 0:47:37For rockers, it was twin-cylinder engines
0:47:37 > 0:47:40that offered them what they wanted, quicker acceleration
0:47:40 > 0:47:43and performance geared for the streets.
0:47:43 > 0:47:46Twins were generally associated with rockers,
0:47:46 > 0:47:48ton-up boys and rockers generally.
0:47:48 > 0:47:51Cos you could tune them and go much faster.
0:47:51 > 0:47:53Triumph had set the standard.
0:47:57 > 0:47:59Their chief designer, Edward Turner,
0:47:59 > 0:48:02developed the Triumph Twin before the war,
0:48:02 > 0:48:04and through the 1950s they released bikes
0:48:04 > 0:48:07with sporty, American-tinged styling.
0:48:07 > 0:48:12Their finest hour was with the T120 Bonneville launched in 1959.
0:48:14 > 0:48:16Named after a Triumph speed record
0:48:16 > 0:48:19set at Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah,
0:48:19 > 0:48:21it was THE bike to be seen with,
0:48:21 > 0:48:25featuring dual carburettors and era-defining cool.
0:48:25 > 0:48:28The ton-up boys loved it.
0:48:28 > 0:48:31In the same year, motorcycle sales hit the roof.
0:48:35 > 0:48:38Cafe racers may have been setting the fashion
0:48:38 > 0:48:41for quick and stylish machines,
0:48:41 > 0:48:45but the bike industry only had eyes for lucrative American exports.
0:48:46 > 0:48:49Young riders found they had to customise these designs
0:48:49 > 0:48:51to make them their own.
0:48:52 > 0:48:55At no time did any of the manufacturers,
0:48:55 > 0:48:57the Triumphs and the Nortons and whatnot,
0:48:57 > 0:49:01ever look to the youngsters and ask them what they wanted.
0:49:02 > 0:49:06The kids bought the machine and then adapted it to how they wanted it.
0:49:06 > 0:49:09It's very seldom I'll have a bike more than six months.
0:49:09 > 0:49:12I prefer to chop and change, rebuild.
0:49:12 > 0:49:16As a hobby, I don't keep them just as a form of transport.
0:49:16 > 0:49:18They are a hobby with me.
0:49:18 > 0:49:20I like to have a bike,
0:49:20 > 0:49:23and when I've got the maximum performance out of that bike,
0:49:23 > 0:49:27I'd rather sell it than keep it and then start on something else.
0:49:27 > 0:49:30People could think that they were Geoff Duke
0:49:30 > 0:49:34or whoever their particular Norton hero was,
0:49:34 > 0:49:36John Surtees, whatever,
0:49:36 > 0:49:37by dropping the handlebars
0:49:37 > 0:49:40and putting the footrests a bit further back
0:49:40 > 0:49:42and getting down to it.
0:49:42 > 0:49:46Head down, arse up - it was the best position to be in,
0:49:46 > 0:49:50A, for aerodynamics, and B, to keep control of the bike
0:49:50 > 0:49:52if you went into a bend and you got it a bit wrong.
0:49:52 > 0:49:55With a fine weekend, a powerful motorbike
0:49:55 > 0:49:59and a girlfriend on the back, the ton-up boys set off.
0:49:59 > 0:50:02Two short days for riding high and fast,
0:50:02 > 0:50:03to wind and weave,
0:50:03 > 0:50:06and often to be a menace.
0:50:06 > 0:50:08Huge progress comes about
0:50:08 > 0:50:11as a consequence of the pursuit of speed,
0:50:11 > 0:50:13but it does come at a price.
0:50:13 > 0:50:16Cafe racers were paying with their lives.
0:50:18 > 0:50:22In 1960, nearly 14,000 riders under the age of 24
0:50:22 > 0:50:25were killed or seriously injured.
0:50:27 > 0:50:30# He rode into the night
0:50:30 > 0:50:34# Accelerated his motorbike
0:50:34 > 0:50:37# I cried to him in fright
0:50:37 > 0:50:38# Don't do it, don't do it... #
0:50:38 > 0:50:43One lad that lost his leg, he went on the inside of a coach.
0:50:43 > 0:50:45The coach was turning left, and so was he.
0:50:45 > 0:50:48He literally, as it swung in,
0:50:48 > 0:50:51he run over his bike and took his... took his leg off.
0:50:51 > 0:50:55Underlying the mythical tales of teenage road races
0:50:55 > 0:50:58was a harsh reality.
0:50:58 > 0:51:02On the roads around the Ace, the casualties started to mount up.
0:51:02 > 0:51:04Race to the Neasden Bridge and back.
0:51:06 > 0:51:08I'd do 90mph around there.
0:51:08 > 0:51:10And some didn't come back,
0:51:10 > 0:51:13because, you know, Neasden Bridge is a well-known place.
0:51:13 > 0:51:17You could try and take it flat out, but it was impossible.
0:51:17 > 0:51:22With the volume of traffic growing and the roads not modernised,
0:51:22 > 0:51:27there was a wave of popular feeling that this was no longer...fun.
0:51:27 > 0:51:31# Please wait at the gate of heaven for me... #
0:51:32 > 0:51:36Absolute carnage on the roads, the casualties went up and up and up.
0:51:36 > 0:51:39The pursuit of speed, at one level,
0:51:39 > 0:51:42is regarded as a noble cause.
0:51:42 > 0:51:45But for the mass of society,
0:51:45 > 0:51:49it's often regarded as a threat and a challenge.
0:51:49 > 0:51:53The public backlash was keenly felt by the rockers.
0:51:53 > 0:51:57We'd go into caffs and places like that and they...no leather jackets.
0:51:57 > 0:52:00There wasn't many places we could go to,
0:52:00 > 0:52:04so, as a consequence, we ended up in less than desirable places.
0:52:04 > 0:52:06We was just like anybody else.
0:52:06 > 0:52:08We wanted to hang around with blokes
0:52:08 > 0:52:11who had the same interests as us, simple, you know.
0:52:11 > 0:52:15But because of the reputation, and I guess our dress mode
0:52:15 > 0:52:19and the noise of the bikes and the aggressive way we used to ride,
0:52:19 > 0:52:23it kind of, like, all melted into a picture
0:52:23 > 0:52:26which wasn't too appealing
0:52:26 > 0:52:29to the normal, decent people back in them days.
0:52:29 > 0:52:31The powers that be were worried,
0:52:31 > 0:52:35but the establishment hadn't given up on them just yet.
0:52:35 > 0:52:38An inspired group of vicars had an idea,
0:52:38 > 0:52:41to try and bring the cafe racers back into the mainstream.
0:52:42 > 0:52:46In 1962, the Reverend Bill Shergold
0:52:46 > 0:52:49would make a journey to the infamous Ace Cafe.
0:52:49 > 0:52:52His mission - to try and tempt the wayward youngsters
0:52:52 > 0:52:55to come to a new youth club
0:52:55 > 0:52:57and escape unscathed himself.
0:52:58 > 0:53:00So he plucked up his courage
0:53:00 > 0:53:02and set off on his motorbike into the unknown.
0:53:06 > 0:53:09He wrote, "I wrapped a scarf around my neck
0:53:09 > 0:53:11"covering up my dog collar.
0:53:11 > 0:53:13"About a dozen bikes
0:53:13 > 0:53:15"ridden by sinister looking figures in black leathers
0:53:15 > 0:53:18"roared past in the opposite direction.
0:53:18 > 0:53:21"I felt almost sick with fear.
0:53:21 > 0:53:24"I was in such a panic that I opened up the throttle
0:53:24 > 0:53:27"and fled past the Ace as fast as I could."
0:53:27 > 0:53:30This wasn't where you'd expect to find a vicar.
0:53:30 > 0:53:33Anywhere where motorcyclists gathered
0:53:33 > 0:53:38was a place where normal people, respectable people wouldn't go.
0:53:39 > 0:53:41A few weeks later he tried again.
0:53:42 > 0:53:46He wrote, "I entered the forecourt at the Ace.
0:53:46 > 0:53:47"It was packed with bikes.
0:53:47 > 0:53:51"Hundreds of boys were milling around, laughing and talking."
0:53:52 > 0:53:54"'This is it,' I thought.
0:53:54 > 0:53:56"'I shall almost certainly lose my trousers
0:53:56 > 0:53:58"'or end up in the canal.'"
0:53:58 > 0:54:01Yet gradually they were won over by Shergold
0:54:01 > 0:54:04and his inclusive, non-judgmental style.
0:54:04 > 0:54:05Although this is a church club,
0:54:05 > 0:54:09its purpose is to bring together young people with a common interest,
0:54:09 > 0:54:11motorcycling.
0:54:11 > 0:54:14Their shared interest convinced the rockers at the Ace
0:54:14 > 0:54:17that the 59 Club was somewhere worth a look.
0:54:17 > 0:54:21As well as a new place to meet, it organised rallies and ride-outs,
0:54:21 > 0:54:25even activities like subaqua diving.
0:54:25 > 0:54:27Bikers joined in their thousands,
0:54:27 > 0:54:31and the 59 Club became the biggest motorcycle club in the world.
0:54:33 > 0:54:35For those who joined the 59 Club,
0:54:35 > 0:54:39it meant more than the establishment could ever have dreamed.
0:54:39 > 0:54:42My first moment or night of going there
0:54:42 > 0:54:45was definitely, for me, life defining, it really was.
0:54:45 > 0:54:48And it kept me on a path within motorcycling
0:54:48 > 0:54:50for the rest of my life, really.
0:54:50 > 0:54:52But it was still somewhere
0:54:52 > 0:54:55the rockers and ton-up boys could revel in their lifestyle.
0:54:57 > 0:55:01By the mid 1960s, though, that lifestyle was under threat.
0:55:04 > 0:55:07Rock'n'roll seemed to have had its day.
0:55:07 > 0:55:09A younger generation was coming through
0:55:09 > 0:55:11that did things very differently.
0:55:11 > 0:55:13They became known as mods,
0:55:13 > 0:55:17famed for their love of sharp suits instead of leathers,
0:55:17 > 0:55:19coffee bars over transport caffs.
0:55:19 > 0:55:22They wanted soul music, not rock'n'roll,
0:55:22 > 0:55:25and, worst of all, from a rocker's point of view,
0:55:25 > 0:55:28scooters, not motorbikes.
0:55:28 > 0:55:30How would you explain this fanatical devotion
0:55:30 > 0:55:33by scooter enthusiasts for their gleaming machines?
0:55:37 > 0:55:40You kind of, like, got the fact that they were good for riding on
0:55:40 > 0:55:42and wearing decent clothes.
0:55:42 > 0:55:46- But it's a mod - how can you get pleasure from riding that - BLEEP- thing?
0:55:50 > 0:55:53They're like little hairdryers, you know.
0:55:53 > 0:55:56How can you get pleasure from it? It was alien to us.
0:55:56 > 0:55:59Mods represented progress -
0:55:59 > 0:56:03with their Italian scooters, a more international outlook.
0:56:03 > 0:56:06Rockers and motorbikes were being left behind
0:56:06 > 0:56:09as the rest of Britain moved on.
0:56:09 > 0:56:10Mods were looking to the future,
0:56:10 > 0:56:13and tension between the two saw things turn ugly.
0:56:15 > 0:56:19If you get into a fight with a mod, you've got to watch it all the time,
0:56:19 > 0:56:22like, they'll pull your hair, claw at you.
0:56:22 > 0:56:25They start it, you know what rockers are like, don't you?
0:56:25 > 0:56:26It really has come to something
0:56:26 > 0:56:28when people can't take a short holiday
0:56:28 > 0:56:31without the threat of long-haired youngsters with knives
0:56:31 > 0:56:32indulging in an orgy of hooliganism.
0:56:32 > 0:56:36Only a handful of clashes happened between mods and rockers
0:56:36 > 0:56:39at seaside resorts like Brighton, but it was too late.
0:56:39 > 0:56:43The press and polite society had their pantomime villains.
0:56:45 > 0:56:49Adolescents on motorbikes became identified with thugs
0:56:49 > 0:56:52and rubbed in prejudices against motorbikes
0:56:52 > 0:56:55that many people have always had of them.
0:56:55 > 0:56:59The noise, danger, dirt and discomfort.
0:56:59 > 0:57:03The rockers' misbehaviour amounted to a knockout blow
0:57:03 > 0:57:07to the prestige of the two-wheeled machine in this country.
0:57:07 > 0:57:09What do you think about society?
0:57:12 > 0:57:15Dunno, it don't bother me.
0:57:22 > 0:57:25As the media fretted about delinquent youth,
0:57:25 > 0:57:29the mystique was fading fast for British motorcycles.
0:57:29 > 0:57:31The industry began losing its battle
0:57:31 > 0:57:35against a flood of Japanese imports rising throughout the '60s.
0:57:35 > 0:57:40These were humdrum, practical machines designed for commuters,
0:57:40 > 0:57:45bikes guaranteed to get you to work, rather than get you excited.
0:57:45 > 0:57:48British bikes had this thing called character,
0:57:48 > 0:57:52which is a euphemism for being not very reliable.
0:57:52 > 0:57:54Yet what couldn't be taken away
0:57:54 > 0:57:57was the spirit of fun, coolness and rebellion
0:57:57 > 0:58:00that British bikes had represented to the world for so long.
0:58:04 > 0:58:05It's no accident
0:58:05 > 0:58:09that whilst rockers struggled to find a place in '60s society,
0:58:09 > 0:58:12their style and attitude became legend.
0:58:12 > 0:58:14The motorbikes they blasted through the streets on
0:58:14 > 0:58:15are still lusted after...
0:58:19 > 0:58:22..and even 50 years later have a look all of their own.
0:58:24 > 0:58:26The restless energy of Lawrence,
0:58:26 > 0:58:28the bravery of TT racers
0:58:28 > 0:58:31and the individuality of the ton-up boys
0:58:31 > 0:58:34took a utilitarian form of transport
0:58:34 > 0:58:36and gave it a very British take,
0:58:36 > 0:58:38a full-throttle affair.
0:58:38 > 0:58:42You couldn't really put it in words - it was just such a fantastic feeling.
0:58:44 > 0:58:47# Come on, Michael, trade your motorcycle
0:58:47 > 0:58:50# And get yourself an automobile
0:58:50 > 0:58:53# We can't make love on a cycle, Michael
0:58:53 > 0:58:55# Like we could in an automobile
0:58:55 > 0:58:59# Ah, come on, Michael, trade your motorcycle
0:58:59 > 0:59:02# And get you some wheels with a top
0:59:02 > 0:59:05# We can't make time on a cycle, Michael
0:59:05 > 0:59:08# And I want you so much, I could drop. #