0:00:02 > 0:00:04Us Brits have a passion for property
0:00:04 > 0:00:08and of course our national obsession is house prices.
0:00:08 > 0:00:13- How much to buy?- You're looking at about 1.7 million for an apartment like this.
0:00:13 > 0:00:17But housing is about so much more than bricks and mortar.
0:00:17 > 0:00:20Look at the smile on my face.
0:00:20 > 0:00:23It's about who we are and how we choose to live.
0:00:26 > 0:00:3275 years since the Beveridge report vowed to rebuild Britain's housing...
0:00:32 > 0:00:33Slums must go.
0:00:33 > 0:00:36..we are opening the doors to Britain's home truths...
0:00:38 > 0:00:39From council houses...
0:00:39 > 0:00:41..to suburban semis.
0:00:41 > 0:00:42High rises...
0:00:42 > 0:00:44..to country pads...
0:00:44 > 0:00:46In fact, anywhere we call home.
0:00:46 > 0:00:49..to find out if three-quarters of a century later,
0:00:49 > 0:00:53we really have built a better place to live.
0:01:07 > 0:01:11As the presenter of Escape To The Country and Wanted Down Under,
0:01:11 > 0:01:14I have met loads of people who just wanted to run away
0:01:14 > 0:01:17'and start a new life somewhere else.
0:01:17 > 0:01:19'And I always know how they feel.
0:01:19 > 0:01:23'But escaping for me isn't to a countryside pad,
0:01:23 > 0:01:25'let alone a different continent.
0:01:25 > 0:01:27'No, I find freedom by leaving the city
0:01:27 > 0:01:31'and going back to my old home town of Herne Bay.'
0:01:31 > 0:01:33I love this journey.
0:01:33 > 0:01:36I commuted up to London every single day for about a year
0:01:36 > 0:01:39and on the way home, after Gillingham, if you glimpse,
0:01:39 > 0:01:41if you look out just past the hills,
0:01:41 > 0:01:44you could actually see the sea and on a good day,
0:01:44 > 0:01:49you could smell it and then I knew I was nearly home.
0:01:49 > 0:01:51And this is what it looks like.
0:01:51 > 0:01:53Now, to the outsider,
0:01:53 > 0:01:55this place may look pretty traditional
0:01:55 > 0:01:58and even a little bit old-fashioned,
0:01:58 > 0:02:00but I want to show you how, in its day,
0:02:00 > 0:02:03it was an example of revolutionary town planning
0:02:03 > 0:02:06and was, in fact, one of Britain's early new towns.
0:02:06 > 0:02:08'First, though, I have arrived.
0:02:08 > 0:02:09'Yes, I'm home.'
0:02:14 > 0:02:17MUSIC: Shang-A-Lang by Bay City Rollers
0:02:17 > 0:02:19Every time I return to this place,
0:02:19 > 0:02:23I get that sense of having escaped the stresses of my life in the city.
0:02:23 > 0:02:27And it's not just me, it's done the same for generations of visitors.
0:02:27 > 0:02:30Back in the late '60s and '70s,
0:02:30 > 0:02:35traditional seaside towns like Herne Bay were still all the rage,
0:02:35 > 0:02:38offering hard-working families the chance to get away from it all
0:02:38 > 0:02:40for a week by the coast.
0:02:40 > 0:02:45They were also where teenagers liked to hang out playing the amusements,
0:02:45 > 0:02:47something I have never tired of.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52Yes!
0:02:52 > 0:02:54'For those of us who lived here full-time,
0:02:54 > 0:02:59'you can imagine how this carefree spirit ran through us like a stick of rock.'
0:02:59 > 0:03:01Look at the smile on my face.
0:03:01 > 0:03:04This is my old road.
0:03:04 > 0:03:06I moved in when I was three.
0:03:06 > 0:03:08It is a cul-de-sac.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11We used to play on this road all the time, no worries about cars.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15One of my best friends lived there.
0:03:15 > 0:03:16And ahead of us...
0:03:17 > 0:03:21..is my old house. I haven't been here for years.
0:03:21 > 0:03:24Up this road. And there she is.
0:03:24 > 0:03:27And that's my parents' room up there.
0:03:27 > 0:03:32And they extended it. They had two rooms and I was right at the end,
0:03:32 > 0:03:33single room, as you do,
0:03:33 > 0:03:36never would have had a double bed in a child's room.
0:03:36 > 0:03:39Had all my posters up on the wall.
0:03:40 > 0:03:42I loved this house.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44It's got a certain innocence about it.
0:03:44 > 0:03:48My parents paid just under £7,000 for this property.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50Now what's it worth?
0:03:50 > 0:03:54I don't know. 300, 350,000, it's got to be, hasn't it?
0:03:54 > 0:03:57It's extraordinary.
0:03:57 > 0:04:00MUSIC: Blue Monday by New Order
0:04:00 > 0:04:03Not that I spent that much time at home.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05I was more likely to be found on the promenade,
0:04:05 > 0:04:09roller-skating with my friends or flirting with boys.
0:04:09 > 0:04:12Little did I know at the time, of course,
0:04:12 > 0:04:14but seaside towns like Herne Bay
0:04:14 > 0:04:16were about to go into serious decline
0:04:16 > 0:04:20as cheap foreign travel replaced the traditional family holiday.
0:04:20 > 0:04:22And as the '70s gave way to the '80s,
0:04:22 > 0:04:26a lot of younger people took the opportunity to seek their fortune
0:04:26 > 0:04:27in the Big Smoke.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30I should know - I was one of them.
0:04:30 > 0:04:33I'd started a career in the music business,
0:04:33 > 0:04:36eventually working with people like the Spice Girls and Simon Cowell.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39But living in amongst the pollution,
0:04:39 > 0:04:41noise and general chaos of the concrete jungle,
0:04:41 > 0:04:45I learned to escape back to the simplicity of my little town
0:04:45 > 0:04:47and the people whom I loved most,
0:04:47 > 0:04:50like my sister, Shelley, and best friend, Krista.
0:04:50 > 0:04:52While they get the kettle on,
0:04:52 > 0:04:55I'm raiding Mum's attic for some old keepsakes to help jog our memories
0:04:55 > 0:04:57of what it was like to live here.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00Whereabouts is it? Is it with these old cards?
0:05:00 > 0:05:03No. It's on the other side, it's in a blue box.
0:05:03 > 0:05:07- Can you see it? - Is it this one?- That's the one.
0:05:07 > 0:05:10- The memory bank.- Oh, yes, I'll be careful with that then.
0:05:14 > 0:05:17Now, Nana bought me this.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19She did. Yes. Look.
0:05:19 > 0:05:22I never looked like that whenever I did ballet.
0:05:22 > 0:05:25You've kept these and I didn't realise I'd done it, actually.
0:05:25 > 0:05:26All the exams.
0:05:26 > 0:05:30Roller-skating, I got up to grade four.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32I don't know whether she still works.
0:05:32 > 0:05:33Shall we try?
0:05:33 > 0:05:34MUSIC PLAYS
0:05:34 > 0:05:36She does.
0:05:36 > 0:05:37Look!
0:05:38 > 0:05:40Oh!
0:05:41 > 0:05:43- Makes me a bit emotional.- Yes.
0:05:45 > 0:05:46Aw!
0:05:46 > 0:05:48We'll close her up.
0:05:51 > 0:05:53I'm not the only one stepping down memory lane today.
0:05:53 > 0:05:56I wonder what Krista and Shelley have dug up.
0:05:56 > 0:05:59What are you two looking at there? Oh, dear.
0:05:59 > 0:06:00Really bad photographs.
0:06:01 > 0:06:02There you are.
0:06:04 > 0:06:05It's the bubble perms that get me.
0:06:05 > 0:06:07Bobby socks.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10Growing up here was I think lovely.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14- It was great.- Looking back, did you enjoy it?
0:06:14 > 0:06:15It was always sunny, I think.
0:06:15 > 0:06:17That's what I always remember.
0:06:17 > 0:06:20We were always at the beach.
0:06:20 > 0:06:23Either at your beach hut or we were down at the sailing club.
0:06:23 > 0:06:24Or roller-skating.
0:06:24 > 0:06:26Early courting days.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29You know I was always known as Nicki's sister.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32And I would have been Nicki's friend.
0:06:34 > 0:06:35- No!- You were always very popular.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37No, you were.
0:06:37 > 0:06:39I think you're being a bit generous there.
0:06:39 > 0:06:44I've been going around looking at other towns to see what makes a town.
0:06:44 > 0:06:46Why do you think Herne Bay is so special?
0:06:46 > 0:06:48Well, it's got history to it.
0:06:48 > 0:06:51It's got a beautiful seafront.
0:06:51 > 0:06:53We've got the promenade which you can walk all the way along.
0:06:53 > 0:06:56We've still got our pier and it is still used
0:06:56 > 0:06:59and it's beautiful now with the helter-skelter on it.
0:06:59 > 0:07:00People don't like to move into London -
0:07:00 > 0:07:02they want to stay here, I think.
0:07:02 > 0:07:05We're close to the countryside as well.
0:07:05 > 0:07:07We got the sea and the countryside, we're so lucky.
0:07:07 > 0:07:10We were very lucky growing up here, weren't we?
0:07:10 > 0:07:14- Definitely.- The great thing is we all want to come back when we can
0:07:14 > 0:07:17and most importantly, we're all friends.
0:07:17 > 0:07:18Still to this day.
0:07:18 > 0:07:20That will never change.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26OK, so my home truth is of escape to a simpler,
0:07:26 > 0:07:28healthier and yes, nostalgic way of life.
0:07:28 > 0:07:31And that's something that the founders of Herne Bay
0:07:31 > 0:07:33wouldn't have found surprising at all.
0:07:33 > 0:07:37In fact, it's how this place was planned and designed,
0:07:37 > 0:07:39to provide a retreat for workers,
0:07:39 > 0:07:43wanting to escape their often-difficult lives in the industrial city.
0:07:43 > 0:07:47In many ways, it was one of the country's first new towns.
0:07:49 > 0:07:50Hi, Colleen.
0:07:50 > 0:07:53- Hello, Nicki.- Lovely to meet you.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55Which is certainly the view of local historian,
0:07:55 > 0:07:57Colleen Ashwin-Keen, whom I'm meeting at one
0:07:57 > 0:08:00of my roller-skating haunts, the old bandstand.
0:08:00 > 0:08:04So when did Herne Bay as I know it really come into its own?
0:08:04 > 0:08:08People were starting to come to Herne Bay in the late 1700s
0:08:08 > 0:08:12and there was a gentleman, Mr Burge,
0:08:12 > 0:08:15who gathered together some speculators
0:08:15 > 0:08:18and they decided to build a new town.
0:08:18 > 0:08:21I must admit, I didn't realise that Herne Bay was a new town.
0:08:21 > 0:08:23Yes, I have a plan which I can show you.
0:08:25 > 0:08:28They planned it round three squares - Hanover Square,
0:08:28 > 0:08:30Brunswick Square and Oxendon Square.
0:08:30 > 0:08:33It sounds very posh, doesn't it?
0:08:33 > 0:08:37They were trying to attract holiday-makers,
0:08:37 > 0:08:39because a lot of the houses,
0:08:39 > 0:08:43when you look at the old census returns, were boarding houses.
0:08:43 > 0:08:48It was at the time when sea bathing was becoming very popular.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53And Herne Bay was renowned for its healthy air.
0:08:53 > 0:08:54Yes, absolutely.
0:08:54 > 0:08:56It still is healthy today.
0:08:56 > 0:09:01They also had a consortium and sold shares in the pier.
0:09:01 > 0:09:05I think the development of the town, they were making money.
0:09:05 > 0:09:06Certainly business-minded.
0:09:06 > 0:09:09MUSIC: Enola Gay by Orchestral Manoeuvres In The Dark
0:09:09 > 0:09:12And the story was the same across the land, from Blackpool to Bognor,
0:09:12 > 0:09:16all offering workers and their families a chance to escape the industrial cities,
0:09:16 > 0:09:19to a healthier, more relaxed place.
0:09:20 > 0:09:22But seaside resorts are only the first chapter
0:09:22 > 0:09:24in Britain's new town story.
0:09:24 > 0:09:26Others were to follow,
0:09:26 > 0:09:29including utopian social experiments,
0:09:29 > 0:09:33bold government plans and even the town built by royalty.
0:09:33 > 0:09:37MUSIC: Personal Jesus by Depeche Mode
0:09:37 > 0:09:40I want to know more about the home truths of these places,
0:09:40 > 0:09:43to see if they offer the same sense of escape
0:09:43 > 0:09:45that I find in Herne Bay
0:09:45 > 0:09:47and so I'm off on a road trip.
0:09:47 > 0:09:51My first stop is the pretty little town of Letchworth in Hertfordshire.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57With its quaint thatched cottages and tree-lined streets,
0:09:57 > 0:10:00this place looks like it should be on the front of a chocolate box,
0:10:00 > 0:10:03but actually when it comes to new town planning,
0:10:03 > 0:10:05it's about as revolutionary as you can get.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Letchworth is Britain's first garden city.
0:10:13 > 0:10:15Built at the beginning of the 20th century,
0:10:15 > 0:10:19Letchworth was one man's radical plan of how people could escape
0:10:19 > 0:10:22the slum conditions of the city.
0:10:22 > 0:10:23His name was Ebenezer Howard,
0:10:23 > 0:10:25but he was no Scrooge,
0:10:25 > 0:10:28because unlike the businessmen who built Britain's seaside towns,
0:10:28 > 0:10:32his plan wasn't to make money - oh no.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35He was interested in a full-scale social experiment.
0:10:37 > 0:10:39Now, he was so passionate about his idea,
0:10:39 > 0:10:43he's written it all down in this book and just flicking through
0:10:43 > 0:10:48his views on town hall and expenses of management, schools, sewage,
0:10:48 > 0:10:50park and roads, interest,
0:10:50 > 0:10:53all in here but one thing that really caught my eye,
0:10:53 > 0:10:56and I'm going to paraphrase it, is this.
0:10:56 > 0:11:00Human society and the beauty of nature are meant to be enjoyed together,
0:11:00 > 0:11:02as man and woman,
0:11:02 > 0:11:05by their varied gifts and faculties supplement each other,
0:11:05 > 0:11:08so should town and country.
0:11:08 > 0:11:13Beautiful words, great idea, but what's it like to actually live here?
0:11:23 > 0:11:25Well, back at the beginning,
0:11:25 > 0:11:27it certainly would have been for a particular type of person,
0:11:27 > 0:11:29that's for sure. For starters,
0:11:29 > 0:11:32pubs and inns were banned from serving alcohol to the workers.
0:11:32 > 0:11:36It built Britain's first roundabout, which is still here.
0:11:36 > 0:11:38And community allotments were established
0:11:38 > 0:11:39in the hope that people would
0:11:39 > 0:11:43become self-sufficient, producing their own food to eat and distribute.
0:11:43 > 0:11:46These are still going today.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48That's why I've arranged to meet Victoria Axel
0:11:48 > 0:11:50to tell me more about the early days of Letchworth.
0:11:50 > 0:11:53One of the key reasons they chose Letchworth is because it was part
0:11:53 > 0:11:55of the Great Northern Railway line
0:11:55 > 0:11:58and they knew that they could bring factories up from London,
0:11:58 > 0:12:00which is exactly what did happen.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03It became a very successful industrial town.
0:12:03 > 0:12:07It is very unique in terms of how it uses its finances,
0:12:07 > 0:12:10the money raised through business interest,
0:12:10 > 0:12:11farming and commercial interest
0:12:11 > 0:12:13gets ploughed back into the community,
0:12:13 > 0:12:15which makes it unique.
0:12:15 > 0:12:18I am loving the green spaces, the leafiness, the allotments,
0:12:18 > 0:12:24but as the community grows, how do you balance the countryside element?
0:12:24 > 0:12:26Howard talked about having a limit to towns so the idea
0:12:26 > 0:12:28would be that a town would grow
0:12:28 > 0:12:30and when it reached its maximum size,
0:12:30 > 0:12:34another town would be built nearby, but in the modern era,
0:12:34 > 0:12:38that has become a lot more difficult for people to reproduce.
0:12:38 > 0:12:41But it was incredibly influential and there are places that look very
0:12:41 > 0:12:44similar to Letchworth throughout the globe - you can see them in Australia,
0:12:44 > 0:12:49Finland, Germany and they all borrow an element of that garden city
0:12:49 > 0:12:52element, that you see trees,
0:12:52 > 0:12:58more space between houses and that has been amazingly successful as a town planning model.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02Letchworth might not have been originally built to make money,
0:13:02 > 0:13:04but if you wanted to live here today,
0:13:04 > 0:13:07then it would certainly cost you a pretty penny.
0:13:07 > 0:13:11The average price for a detached house is over half a million pounds,
0:13:11 > 0:13:14which I guess goes to prove that utopia comes at a price.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19What I really want to know is, what's it like to live here?
0:13:23 > 0:13:27So I'm off to meet Diane, who has been a Letchworthian for 40 years.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30Her house has been here even longer.
0:13:30 > 0:13:33In fact, it was built right at the start of this new garden city's life.
0:13:36 > 0:13:38Look at that door knocker.
0:13:38 > 0:13:39So cute!
0:13:39 > 0:13:41Hello.
0:13:41 > 0:13:43- Hello.- How are you?
0:13:43 > 0:13:46- Good, thanks.- You have a splendid-looking home, don't you?
0:13:46 > 0:13:48Thank you very much. Come on in.
0:13:48 > 0:13:49I would love to take a look.
0:13:49 > 0:13:51Thank you.
0:13:52 > 0:13:55Aww. Now, this is beautiful.
0:13:55 > 0:13:56How long have you lived here?
0:13:57 > 0:13:5925 years.
0:13:59 > 0:14:01- When was the house built? - Have a seat.
0:14:03 > 0:14:05- 1907.- It's gorgeous.
0:14:05 > 0:14:07Gorgeous. So Diane, tell me,
0:14:07 > 0:14:11why did you decide to move to Letchworth Garden City? What was the appeal?
0:14:11 > 0:14:14I just came down here for a job that I'd been told about
0:14:14 > 0:14:18and it sounded good, a teaching job in a boarding school,
0:14:18 > 0:14:20only vegetarian boarding school in the country.
0:14:20 > 0:14:23Really? That's very progressive.
0:14:23 > 0:14:24Yeah, I loved it.
0:14:24 > 0:14:27For the first three years, I was teaching there,
0:14:27 > 0:14:29I lived on the premises,
0:14:29 > 0:14:33which is why I managed to save up to buy a house, really.
0:14:33 > 0:14:36This house dates back to when Letchworth was just first in
0:14:36 > 0:14:40- development.- Yes, it was within the first ten years of it beginning.
0:14:40 > 0:14:43So, it must have been very different than.
0:14:43 > 0:14:45It must have felt really spread out.
0:14:45 > 0:14:47It still feels quite spread out.
0:14:47 > 0:14:50The initial idea was plenty of garden space
0:14:50 > 0:14:54so every single person could grow food to feed their family.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57Do you think Ebenezer Howard - and we do love that name -
0:14:57 > 0:15:00do you think he would be proud if he came back and saw what's happened
0:15:00 > 0:15:04to Letchworth since he had these creative amazing ideas?
0:15:04 > 0:15:06Yes. I think he would.
0:15:08 > 0:15:11The big contention at the moment is the green belt.
0:15:11 > 0:15:15With the modern government demands for new housing,
0:15:15 > 0:15:18there's a real danger that we might lose that green belt,
0:15:18 > 0:15:20especially in the North,
0:15:20 > 0:15:23so Ebenezer Howard would not be pleased about that.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27But I reckon he would be pretty pleased
0:15:27 > 0:15:31about how his original vision has held up here in Letchworth.
0:15:31 > 0:15:33Thanks to it, Diane and the residents
0:15:33 > 0:15:37have found their escape in a beautiful corner of the country.
0:15:37 > 0:15:40But garden cities were only ever going to accommodate a certain small
0:15:40 > 0:15:44portion of Britain's ever-growing population.
0:15:44 > 0:15:48If the chance to escape the overcrowded cities was to be expanded to all,
0:15:48 > 0:15:50then a bigger, bolder plan was needed.
0:15:50 > 0:15:53Especially in the wake of what happened next to Britain's housing.
0:15:55 > 0:15:57AIR-RAID SIREN SOUNDS
0:16:00 > 0:16:03- NEWSREEL:- The spread of fire through the narrow streets
0:16:03 > 0:16:06was helped by a strong south-west wind
0:16:06 > 0:16:09and in places, the flames raced along as fast as a man could run.
0:16:10 > 0:16:11The blitz of World War II
0:16:11 > 0:16:16destroyed more than four million homes across the whole of the country,
0:16:16 > 0:16:19from Belfast to Hull, Glasgow to Cardiff,
0:16:19 > 0:16:21and of course London.
0:16:21 > 0:16:23And yet, in its wake,
0:16:23 > 0:16:26it gave the government an opportunity to rebuild and offer an escape route
0:16:26 > 0:16:29from bomb-damaged slum-ridden cities.
0:16:29 > 0:16:34The 1946 New Towns Act allowed areas to be designated for development
0:16:34 > 0:16:39and teams of planners set about creating super-sized garden cities
0:16:39 > 0:16:41for a modern generation.
0:16:41 > 0:16:43My, this is a grand way to start the day.
0:16:43 > 0:16:46Our town was going to be a good place to work in.
0:16:46 > 0:16:48And a grand place to live in.
0:16:48 > 0:16:50With plenty of open spaces.
0:16:50 > 0:16:53Of course, there'd have to be an attractive town centre, too,
0:16:53 > 0:16:55with plenty of room for folks to meet.
0:16:55 > 0:16:57Good shops, a posh theatre, cinemas,
0:16:57 > 0:16:59a concert hall, and a Civic Centre.
0:17:04 > 0:17:06Stevenage was the first to be developed under the scheme
0:17:06 > 0:17:11and over the coming decades, 28 new towns were built all over Britain.
0:17:11 > 0:17:13We think we have much to be proud of,
0:17:13 > 0:17:17having launched the boldest single experiment in national housing to be
0:17:17 > 0:17:20undertaken anywhere on Earth since the end of the Second World War.
0:17:22 > 0:17:24It was a time of great optimism.
0:17:24 > 0:17:27It was felt if you got housing right,
0:17:27 > 0:17:29you could fix many of society's problems.
0:17:29 > 0:17:33When we first came, there were many couples setting up home,
0:17:33 > 0:17:35starting their families, and there were children everywhere.
0:17:35 > 0:17:37And the town has grown with the children.
0:17:37 > 0:17:40It is a progress, with families and the town.
0:17:45 > 0:17:48But it was the place I'm off to next on my road trip that was a real
0:17:48 > 0:17:52tipping point for new towns, not that it was a town at all.
0:17:52 > 0:17:55Oh, no, this was a new city.
0:17:55 > 0:17:58A home of your own in Milton Keynes.
0:17:58 > 0:18:00Given the green light in 1967,
0:18:00 > 0:18:02Milton Keynes' original designers
0:18:02 > 0:18:04declared proudly that no building would
0:18:04 > 0:18:07be taller than the tallest tree.
0:18:07 > 0:18:11For the moment, it's a muddy battle ground, peopled by bulldozers, graders,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14navvies, carpenters and bricklayers, but gradually,
0:18:14 > 0:18:17it will be coloured in by acres of spanking new houses and freshly
0:18:17 > 0:18:20tarmacked streets.
0:18:20 > 0:18:24One man who was here from near the start was urban planner David Locke.
0:18:24 > 0:18:28That's a nice plan for sort of Tivoli gardens of Milton Keynes
0:18:28 > 0:18:30that never quite happened.
0:18:30 > 0:18:33David was one of the men who made sure Milton Keynes
0:18:33 > 0:18:35really packed a punch.
0:18:35 > 0:18:38The one that pushes the new town idea to its ultimate limits
0:18:38 > 0:18:40is the new city of Milton Keynes.
0:18:40 > 0:18:42It's the Muhammad Ali of the new towns.
0:18:42 > 0:18:47This is the plan for Milton Keynes, which is a world-famous sort of icons.
0:18:47 > 0:18:50Of what's called a lazy grid - it isn't a gridiron,
0:18:50 > 0:18:53like you get in North America, it is following the topography.
0:18:53 > 0:18:56You've got the north-south routes,
0:18:56 > 0:18:58Watling Street, West Coast main line,
0:18:58 > 0:19:02Grand Union Canal, M1, and they stitched them across,
0:19:02 > 0:19:06so these are city roads but they are also wide enough to take trams,
0:19:06 > 0:19:09so if some future generation ever want to put one in,
0:19:09 > 0:19:11they've got all the main services down there.
0:19:11 > 0:19:14Also, there was room to put planting
0:19:14 > 0:19:18to keep the noise of traffic and air pollution out of where people live.
0:19:18 > 0:19:20So the purples are factories, aren't they?
0:19:20 > 0:19:21All spread out.
0:19:21 > 0:19:23Yeah. The employment is spread all over the city,
0:19:23 > 0:19:27so that there's no rush to work in the morning and a rush home at night.
0:19:28 > 0:19:32But the planners of Milton Keynes weren't just concerned with the day-to-day running of things,
0:19:32 > 0:19:35they also had their sights set on the future.
0:19:35 > 0:19:37It calls itself the first new city.
0:19:37 > 0:19:39It's got everything going for it,
0:19:39 > 0:19:42from Coca-Cola and Volkswagen to the Open University.
0:19:42 > 0:19:45There's even talk of having the Olympic Games before long.
0:19:45 > 0:19:50The spirit that was very carefully engendered was that we were all in this together.
0:19:50 > 0:19:52We were all in Milton Keynes.
0:19:52 > 0:19:55It was a book to be written and we were part of the writing of the book.
0:19:55 > 0:19:58There must have been such a sense of pride.
0:19:58 > 0:20:02Every week, a new thing would happen, a new thing would open,
0:20:02 > 0:20:05and it was often the biggest or the latest or the shiniest,
0:20:05 > 0:20:08the first snow dome, the first multiplex cinema,
0:20:08 > 0:20:12the first McDonald's outside London, whatever it was, you see,
0:20:12 > 0:20:15and our concert bowl, the red balloon adverts on TV,
0:20:15 > 0:20:16this was all part of this sense
0:20:16 > 0:20:19that we were actually making something very, very special.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24I so remember these ads.
0:20:24 > 0:20:29Three, two, one.
0:20:33 > 0:20:37Wouldn't it be nice if all cities were like Milton Keynes?
0:20:38 > 0:20:42MUSIC: 2-4-6-8 Motorway by the Tom Robinson Band
0:20:44 > 0:20:47After finding out some of the theory,
0:20:47 > 0:20:49I'm off to see how this new town has worked in practice,
0:20:49 > 0:20:53so I'm getting a tour with early resident pioneer Lee Scriven.
0:20:53 > 0:20:56Can I just say, I don't know whether I'm going north, south, east...?
0:20:56 > 0:20:58- Go right.- I have no...
0:20:58 > 0:21:00Yeah, you can get lost. Even I get lost.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02- "Go left at the roundabout." Which one?- Yeah, yeah.
0:21:04 > 0:21:07Lee moved here as a teenager in 1974.
0:21:07 > 0:21:10More than 40 years later, his family are still here.
0:21:10 > 0:21:14# And it's 2-4-6-8, ain't never too late
0:21:15 > 0:21:19# Me and my radio truckin' on through the night... #
0:21:19 > 0:21:21So, Lee, what age were you when you moved to Milton Keynes?
0:21:21 > 0:21:2614. I actually moved in the week of my birthday.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28- Did you?- I was quite excited...
0:21:28 > 0:21:32- Were you?- Yeah, I was actually going to be moving to this space-age city,
0:21:32 > 0:21:37you know. You may recall at the time, you had Space 1999 on the telly,
0:21:37 > 0:21:41Thunderbirds and Joe 90, and you really felt you were moving to a Gerry...
0:21:41 > 0:21:43To a town built by Gerry Anderson.
0:21:43 > 0:21:45You know, it was really exciting.
0:21:45 > 0:21:49But it came as a bit of a shock when we finally got here in 1974,
0:21:49 > 0:21:54I'd made it to Milton Keynes but Milton Keynes hadn't been made.
0:21:54 > 0:21:56No! There was hardly anything here?
0:21:56 > 0:22:00When we came here, them trees were about three foot to four foot high,
0:22:00 > 0:22:02so it was just...
0:22:02 > 0:22:04You did see everything and there was nothing really to see,
0:22:04 > 0:22:08other than dust, mud of a building site, or farmland.
0:22:08 > 0:22:12Compared to, you know, people have gone it's like the old Wild West,
0:22:12 > 0:22:16frontier town, but believe me, in the early '70s, it really was.
0:22:16 > 0:22:20There was dust... There was tumbleweeds going down the road because there
0:22:20 > 0:22:22was nothing else, you know?
0:22:22 > 0:22:24This road we are calling up now, left or right, basically,
0:22:24 > 0:22:26it all went up within a five-year period.
0:22:26 > 0:22:29- Did they?- And that's a lot of houses.
0:22:29 > 0:22:32And it wasn't just houses they were building up this time.
0:22:32 > 0:22:36No, they were revolutionising how we shopped too.
0:22:36 > 0:22:39So, this is the city centre that we are coming through.
0:22:39 > 0:22:44- Is it?- And this was the most important building really in Milton Keynes' history.
0:22:44 > 0:22:46Sounds a bit sad that a shopping mall, as it is now,
0:22:46 > 0:22:49would be one of the most important buildings...
0:22:49 > 0:22:50- It's all glass.- Yeah,
0:22:50 > 0:22:52I think it's quite beautiful actually
0:22:52 > 0:22:54but people might find that a bit sad.
0:22:54 > 0:22:57But I actually love it, I love the steel and the glass.
0:22:57 > 0:22:58Once that place opened,
0:22:58 > 0:23:01you really felt that you'd moved to that space-age city.
0:23:01 > 0:23:05Milton Keynes had something that nowhere else had got and boy,
0:23:05 > 0:23:06did the locals like that.
0:23:09 > 0:23:14Centre MK was opened in 1979 by newly-elected Prime Minister Margaret Thatcher.
0:23:14 > 0:23:18It was designed to be a complete town centre under one roof
0:23:18 > 0:23:22with 130 shops and six department stores.
0:23:22 > 0:23:26Today, of course, all British towns have supersized malls like this,
0:23:26 > 0:23:28but Milton Keynes broke the mould.
0:23:29 > 0:23:32In the years since Lee and his family arrived here,
0:23:32 > 0:23:37Milton Keynes has grown to the size of a city with a population of over a quarter of a million.
0:23:37 > 0:23:39But for those early pioneers,
0:23:39 > 0:23:42it must have been a giant leap of faith moving here,
0:23:42 > 0:23:47with little more to welcome them than a gift from the development corporation.
0:23:47 > 0:23:48The corporation give a tree voucher
0:23:48 > 0:23:50to all new tenants when they move in, all right?
0:23:50 > 0:23:54Take it along to any of the garden centres that are listed...
0:23:54 > 0:23:56Suppose we wanted two, do we get another voucher?
0:23:56 > 0:24:00No, you don't. I'm afraid, it's one voucher per house.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03New job, new home, new life.
0:24:04 > 0:24:06Lee's family also got a tree
0:24:06 > 0:24:10and it's still in the back garden of his mum's house.
0:24:10 > 0:24:13Well, Elsie and Lee, you must have been one of the first families
0:24:13 > 0:24:15to move in here in Milton Keynes.
0:24:15 > 0:24:17What year did you buy this house?
0:24:17 > 0:24:21- 1974.- '74, and can I be a bit cheeky?
0:24:21 > 0:24:23Can you remember what you paid for it?
0:24:23 > 0:24:26- This house?- Yeah.- It was 12,500.
0:24:26 > 0:24:29And what did you sell the one in Walthamstow for?
0:24:29 > 0:24:32- 10,000.- So, it was quite a bit more, wasn't it?
0:24:32 > 0:24:33Do you know what this might be worth now?
0:24:33 > 0:24:37We think it might be in the region of 240, 250.
0:24:37 > 0:24:39And Walthamstow?
0:24:39 > 0:24:42About 450, 500.
0:24:42 > 0:24:44I bet that caught in the back of your throat, didn't it?
0:24:44 > 0:24:46But think how many happy years you've had here.
0:24:46 > 0:24:48I have no regrets about that.
0:24:48 > 0:24:51Worth remembering what we were moving from.
0:24:51 > 0:24:53The house was damp, it was cold, it was old,
0:24:53 > 0:24:55and I don't think my mum will mind,
0:24:55 > 0:24:59there was rats at times and it was London.
0:24:59 > 0:25:01We were working-class people and to be able to move into a house like
0:25:01 > 0:25:04this, with central heating, showers, baths, I mean...
0:25:05 > 0:25:07It was, you know, pretty phenomenal.
0:25:07 > 0:25:10And even at the age of 14, I found it quite exciting.
0:25:10 > 0:25:14Obviously, the early days, it wasn't what you expected,
0:25:14 > 0:25:17but did you ever consider going back to London?
0:25:17 > 0:25:19No, never. Never. Never thought of moving back.
0:25:19 > 0:25:21- You just knew?- No, no going back.
0:25:21 > 0:25:23I don't think many... I don't know about you.
0:25:23 > 0:25:25- No, I never thought it, no. - And in the street,
0:25:25 > 0:25:28I've got many friends and neighbours,
0:25:28 > 0:25:30which is one of the reasons I sort of don't want to move
0:25:30 > 0:25:32because I'm very close friends with several of them...
0:25:32 > 0:25:35And in fact every week on a Thursday night,
0:25:35 > 0:25:38about eight of us meet in someone's house.
0:25:38 > 0:25:42Years ago, we used to do keep fit but we don't do that any more.
0:25:43 > 0:25:47My mother's generation and perhaps my generation combined,
0:25:47 > 0:25:49that made Milton Keynes.
0:25:49 > 0:25:52- Yeah.- You know, the architects laid the foundation,
0:25:52 > 0:25:54but the residents made Milton Keynes what it is today.
0:25:57 > 0:25:59OK, confession time.
0:25:59 > 0:26:03I'm in two minds about Milton Keynes, if I'm totally honest.
0:26:03 > 0:26:04Unlike Herne Bay or Letchworth,
0:26:04 > 0:26:07the emphasis of this 1960s new town planning
0:26:07 > 0:26:12was on the super-sized and futuristic, rather than the small and nostalgic.
0:26:12 > 0:26:14Yes, trees and parks soften edges
0:26:14 > 0:26:18but they are as much about hiding concrete as getting residents back to nature.
0:26:18 > 0:26:21By the 1980s, others were thinking this too,
0:26:21 > 0:26:24including one rather special VIP
0:26:24 > 0:26:27with an interest in architecture
0:26:27 > 0:26:30and he wasn't afraid of speaking his mind.
0:26:30 > 0:26:33We've got so used over the last 40 or 50 years to looking at planning
0:26:33 > 0:26:37and building and design, local urban design, in one particular way.
0:26:37 > 0:26:41Like, you only build housing estates, which always have cul-de-sacs.
0:26:41 > 0:26:45The point I feel we ought to re-examine again...
0:26:47 > 0:26:50..is how to design on a traditional basis again.
0:26:50 > 0:26:54MUSIC: Just Can't Get Enough by Depeche Mode
0:26:54 > 0:26:58Prince Charles' vision of a community fit for the 21st century
0:26:58 > 0:27:03is Poundbury. Built on 250 acres of Duchy farmland on the outskirts of
0:27:03 > 0:27:07Dorchester, it's currently home to over 3,000 people.
0:27:07 > 0:27:09Now, the houses may look like they are from the good old days
0:27:09 > 0:27:14but they've actually all been built within the last 25 years.
0:27:14 > 0:27:15Prince Charles was busy,
0:27:15 > 0:27:18so my tour guide is a leading figure of Poundbury's Resident Association,
0:27:18 > 0:27:20Fran Leaper.
0:27:20 > 0:27:22Fran, lovely to meet you.
0:27:22 > 0:27:24Hello, Nicki, and welcome to Poundbury.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26This is my first time.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29And first impressions are impressive.
0:27:29 > 0:27:31I wasn't expecting to see a building like that.
0:27:31 > 0:27:33It looks like it could be in Vienna.
0:27:33 > 0:27:35It is gorgeous, isn't it?
0:27:35 > 0:27:39We love the yellow and actually in the evening sun, it lights up.
0:27:39 > 0:27:42It's illuminated.
0:27:42 > 0:27:45It is impressive, it's on such a large scale,
0:27:45 > 0:27:49it comes across as being very grand as well.
0:27:49 > 0:27:51This is the centre of Poundbury, so this is grand.
0:27:51 > 0:27:56Beyond it, and moving out to the north and the east,
0:27:56 > 0:28:00you will have smaller-scale dwellings and indeed,
0:28:00 > 0:28:01some of them will be village scale.
0:28:01 > 0:28:03In fact, one of them planned...
0:28:03 > 0:28:05There's a small development of thatched houses.
0:28:07 > 0:28:11If Milton Keynes was offering people an escape into the future,
0:28:11 > 0:28:13then there is no doubt about it,
0:28:13 > 0:28:16Poundbury lets them escape into the past.
0:28:16 > 0:28:21These are great. Every single property to me looks different.
0:28:21 > 0:28:24- They are different. - Look how clean everywhere is.
0:28:24 > 0:28:25I'm pleased you think so.
0:28:25 > 0:28:28- Yeah.- Because people are passionate about making sure there's no litter.
0:28:29 > 0:28:32So, Fran, what kind of person lives here?
0:28:32 > 0:28:36We have a reputation in some places of being the toffs on the hill,
0:28:36 > 0:28:40would you believe? But all sorts of people live here.
0:28:40 > 0:28:43There's not only private houses and apartments,
0:28:43 > 0:28:49there's a 35% of a mixture of social, which is subsidised housing,
0:28:49 > 0:28:51and affordable housing,
0:28:51 > 0:28:54which is a lot of shared ownership schemes coming up as well.
0:28:54 > 0:28:59And along this road, you see examples of that very clearly.
0:28:59 > 0:29:02But you cannot spot the difference.
0:29:02 > 0:29:05- No.- The whole point of Poundbury is it's pepper-potted
0:29:05 > 0:29:08and the building standard is just the same.
0:29:08 > 0:29:12So everybody is delighted at being here, from the build quality,
0:29:12 > 0:29:13it's really, really super.
0:29:14 > 0:29:18It seems Prince Charles might have pulled it off.
0:29:18 > 0:29:1925 years ago...
0:29:20 > 0:29:22..all this was a mere dream.
0:29:23 > 0:29:27To most people, a completely mad dream.
0:29:28 > 0:29:33Houses here get snapped up with an average price of £310,000.
0:29:33 > 0:29:37But living under royal approval does have consequences.
0:29:37 > 0:29:40It's not every one that can say Prince Charles is their landlord.
0:29:40 > 0:29:41This is very true.
0:29:41 > 0:29:43Poundbury is unique.
0:29:43 > 0:29:44It is. It is.
0:29:44 > 0:29:48Now, I'm sure there's some myths and rules that are attached to it.
0:29:48 > 0:29:49Would I be allowed to live here?
0:29:49 > 0:29:51- Even you, Nicki.- Even me.
0:29:51 > 0:29:53So, what's this?
0:29:53 > 0:29:56This is a little booklet to tell people about some of the myths,
0:29:56 > 0:29:59remind them of the rules, and about living in Poundbury.
0:29:59 > 0:30:02Can I have a look? So, where are the rules?
0:30:02 > 0:30:05They are in the back. There are 17 stipulations.
0:30:05 > 0:30:07- Oh, here we go.- Which everybody signed up to.
0:30:07 > 0:30:10I like number one. Not without the consent of his Royal Highness
0:30:10 > 0:30:13to paint or decorate the exterior of the property,
0:30:13 > 0:30:17otherwise than in the same colour or colours as the property here
0:30:17 > 0:30:18previously painted.
0:30:18 > 0:30:20So, no pink door, then?
0:30:20 > 0:30:22Surprisingly, there is one.
0:30:22 > 0:30:24- Oh, is there?- Yes.
0:30:24 > 0:30:27Yes, the idea is that your new house
0:30:27 > 0:30:30is part of a palette of colours and
0:30:30 > 0:30:32you should ask permission before you paint your front door.
0:30:32 > 0:30:34But people have varied it slightly
0:30:34 > 0:30:36and so long as it's tasteful, it's OK.
0:30:36 > 0:30:37- We don't mind.- Even a pink door.
0:30:37 > 0:30:38How about this one?
0:30:38 > 0:30:40I'm not allowed... Oh, this is good.
0:30:40 > 0:30:43I'm not allowed to hang my washing out in my back garden.
0:30:43 > 0:30:45I never know where this idea came from,
0:30:45 > 0:30:47but a lot of people seem to think
0:30:47 > 0:30:50you are not allowed to put a washing line out. Of course you can.
0:30:50 > 0:30:53We are very practical, and there is even an aerial picture
0:30:53 > 0:30:56showing somebody with some washing out.
0:30:56 > 0:30:58Myth... Myth busted.
0:30:58 > 0:31:00- Myth busted, totally.- Myth busted.
0:31:00 > 0:31:02Satellite dishes, that's an interesting one.
0:31:02 > 0:31:03FRAN INHALES SHARPLY
0:31:03 > 0:31:06- I've touched a nerve. - Absolutely not.
0:31:06 > 0:31:08- No?- No satellite dishes at all.
0:31:08 > 0:31:11Because of maintaining the...
0:31:11 > 0:31:14- Look. - The look of the public realm.
0:31:14 > 0:31:18You are so passionate about Poundbury, you must love living here.
0:31:18 > 0:31:20I do love living here.
0:31:20 > 0:31:22It's a fantastic community.
0:31:22 > 0:31:25I'm the happiest I've been in my whole life, since I've come to live here.
0:31:25 > 0:31:27It's a lovely, lovely community.
0:31:27 > 0:31:30I mean, it has been so beautifully designed,
0:31:30 > 0:31:32but it's also got to be about the people.
0:31:32 > 0:31:37It is, but the people wouldn't have come if it hadn't been such a beautiful design.
0:31:38 > 0:31:39'OK, well, let's meet'
0:31:39 > 0:31:41some of those people.
0:31:41 > 0:31:45I've decided to put in a shift at the local cafe, the Engine Room.
0:31:45 > 0:31:47You need to put that underneath there...
0:31:47 > 0:31:49'But before serving anyone, however,
0:31:49 > 0:31:52'I'd better learn how to make a posh coffee.'
0:31:52 > 0:31:54- And then a bit of froth?- That's it.
0:31:54 > 0:31:57'Something tells me that what they drink around here.'
0:31:57 > 0:32:02Trying to do an artistic design, but it's not really working.
0:32:02 > 0:32:05You know what, perhaps I'll just stick to cleaning tables.
0:32:05 > 0:32:10Not bad for a first attempt, but I think I know my limitations.
0:32:10 > 0:32:12BELL PINGS
0:32:16 > 0:32:20'Right, time to meet the punters and find out more about the town
0:32:20 > 0:32:21'created by royalty.'
0:32:21 > 0:32:24Did the little one enjoy it?
0:32:24 > 0:32:26Yeah, look at that smiley face.
0:32:26 > 0:32:30So, Kelly, what's it like as a young person living here in Poundbury?
0:32:30 > 0:32:32I've just graduated from university,
0:32:32 > 0:32:34so I been living in Plymouth for the last three years,
0:32:34 > 0:32:36so it's very much a change.
0:32:36 > 0:32:38Poundbury is very quiet.
0:32:38 > 0:32:40It's a very nice place, but for a 21-year-old,
0:32:40 > 0:32:42there's not much to do here.
0:32:42 > 0:32:44- There we are.- Thank you very much.
0:32:44 > 0:32:48Did it ever go through your mind or concern you that because it is
0:32:48 > 0:32:51a new area, a new-build, there wouldn't be that community feel?
0:32:51 > 0:32:53We were invited for drinks, weren't we?
0:32:53 > 0:32:56As soon as we... As soon as we moved into our square,
0:32:56 > 0:32:59we had a little thing through the door from people who had been there
0:32:59 > 0:33:03recently and said come and join us, so there is a community spirit.
0:33:03 > 0:33:06We haven't looked at it at any time and said we would want to live
0:33:06 > 0:33:08anywhere else. We are really happy here.
0:33:08 > 0:33:10I've got some puddings here.
0:33:10 > 0:33:12- Here we go.- That's mine. - That one's yours. OK.
0:33:12 > 0:33:13And then we have the honeycomb here.
0:33:13 > 0:33:16Who is honeycomb? So, who are locals, who is residents here?
0:33:16 > 0:33:18- We are.- We live in Poundbury.
0:33:18 > 0:33:20We are convincing them later as well.
0:33:20 > 0:33:23- Are you? And how long have you lived here?- 16 months.
0:33:23 > 0:33:27- So, new residents.- Well, most people are, aren't they, really?
0:33:27 > 0:33:31You could be here for ever and there is a cemetery the other side.
0:33:31 > 0:33:33You know, it's just...
0:33:33 > 0:33:37And I'd love to come back in 100 years' time and I think this whole vision
0:33:37 > 0:33:39will have worked out.
0:33:39 > 0:33:40Right, here's your tea.
0:33:40 > 0:33:42Hello, boys.
0:33:42 > 0:33:43- Hello.- Hello.
0:33:43 > 0:33:44Do you live locally?
0:33:44 > 0:33:45Do you live in Poundbury?
0:33:45 > 0:33:47Do you? With mummy?
0:33:47 > 0:33:49How long has mummy been living here then?
0:33:49 > 0:33:51We've lived here four and a half years now.
0:33:51 > 0:33:52I see a lot of elderly,
0:33:52 > 0:33:55but are there plenty of young families in the area?
0:33:55 > 0:33:58Yeah, I think it's great. I mean, when I came here, I joined a mums' group.
0:33:58 > 0:34:00I now help run the mums' group.
0:34:00 > 0:34:03And every week, we have two or three new families moving in.
0:34:03 > 0:34:05Local schools are on our doorstep.
0:34:05 > 0:34:07And just really friendly, really.
0:34:07 > 0:34:09Really nice place. Lovely neighbours.
0:34:09 > 0:34:12Parks. So, for us, it works really well.
0:34:14 > 0:34:17MUSIC: 2-4-6-8 Mororway by the Tom Robinson Band
0:34:19 > 0:34:22I have to be honest, when I was thinking about new towns,
0:34:22 > 0:34:25I probably was a little bit... A little bit sniffy about them.
0:34:25 > 0:34:29My idea, my preconceived idea, was they were going to be quite clinical,
0:34:29 > 0:34:32quite cold, everything thought out,
0:34:32 > 0:34:34but was there going to be any heart,
0:34:34 > 0:34:36any soul of the community?
0:34:36 > 0:34:41And in actual fact, driving around and experiencing them first-hand,
0:34:41 > 0:34:43I am impressed.
0:34:43 > 0:34:44Lush, green.
0:34:44 > 0:34:47People really embrace where they live.
0:34:47 > 0:34:50They are very proud and let's all be honest,
0:34:50 > 0:34:53we all want a little bit of Utopia, don't we?
0:34:53 > 0:34:56MUSIC: Rocks by Primal Scream
0:35:04 > 0:35:06So, what's the future of new towns?
0:35:06 > 0:35:10Do they still offer that vision of escape or have they had their day?
0:35:10 > 0:35:13Well, the answer to that is "absolutely not".
0:35:13 > 0:35:17Because a brand-new garden city, the first in over 100 years,
0:35:17 > 0:35:19is currently being constructed.
0:35:19 > 0:35:21It's called Ebbsfleet.
0:35:21 > 0:35:22Now, there's not much to look at
0:35:22 > 0:35:26at the moment but the government has high hopes for this place
0:35:26 > 0:35:29as the model for a new type of new town.
0:35:29 > 0:35:33To find out more, I'm meeting Kevin McGeough and Paul Spooner,
0:35:33 > 0:35:36two of the men in charge of building this new new town.
0:35:36 > 0:35:40They've invited me to the top of Ebbsfleet Observatory
0:35:40 > 0:35:42and I have to say, it provides a commanding view
0:35:42 > 0:35:45of a new town rising from the quarries that
0:35:45 > 0:35:47used to be here.
0:35:47 > 0:35:49This is incredible.
0:35:49 > 0:35:52I didn't realise just quite how large the whole site is.
0:35:52 > 0:35:55It is the most impressive view,
0:35:55 > 0:35:59the birth, the start of a new town.
0:35:59 > 0:36:00So, in the UK over the last 250 years,
0:36:00 > 0:36:03we've delivered some of the best new places in the world,
0:36:03 > 0:36:06in terms of planning new communities and also some of the less successful places.
0:36:06 > 0:36:09So, our job here at Ebbsfleet Garden City is to make sure we make
0:36:09 > 0:36:11the best of the really good examples
0:36:11 > 0:36:13in the UK and avoid some of the lessons of the worst.
0:36:13 > 0:36:15It is a large area.
0:36:15 > 0:36:18I mean, it's going to take 15,000 homes when it's completed.
0:36:18 > 0:36:20That's around 40,000 people.
0:36:20 > 0:36:23But if you look out there, you can see all the diggers on the site now,
0:36:23 > 0:36:25we've got a range of houses being built.
0:36:25 > 0:36:27In the far distance, a local housing association
0:36:27 > 0:36:29is building affordable homes,
0:36:29 > 0:36:31so those are homes that are shared ownership,
0:36:31 > 0:36:35so if you have the ability to get a mortgage of about £100,000,
0:36:35 > 0:36:37you can buy a share, a major share in that property
0:36:37 > 0:36:40and you can actually get on the housing ladder in the garden city.
0:36:40 > 0:36:43But I suppose in a way, it's getting the balance right, you know,
0:36:43 > 0:36:45making sure the developers,
0:36:45 > 0:36:48who are going to want to build as many homes as possible,
0:36:48 > 0:36:50but balancing that with somewhere that people want to live.
0:36:50 > 0:36:54Well, I think the important thing really is about having the quality green space,
0:36:54 > 0:36:57so within the new garden city, we are going to have seven new city parks.
0:36:57 > 0:37:02You can see just in the distance here is what will become the new city park, a massive park,
0:37:02 > 0:37:04similar to Primrose Hill in London,
0:37:04 > 0:37:06we almost see it as Central Park in New York.
0:37:06 > 0:37:09So, what we are talking about here is having a city in a garden.
0:37:09 > 0:37:13The similarities to both Herne Bay and old garden cities goes further.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16As we've seen, they promised people the chance to escape
0:37:16 > 0:37:18to a healthier place.
0:37:18 > 0:37:22Well, Ebbsfleet has a twist on that same idea.
0:37:22 > 0:37:25So, the NHS have come up with a new programme called the healthy new towns.
0:37:25 > 0:37:27There are going to be ten pilots across the country.
0:37:27 > 0:37:29And from those ten pilots, they want to learn about, you know,
0:37:29 > 0:37:32what can we rethink a place, what can it be like to live here,
0:37:32 > 0:37:35can we encourage people to have healthier lifestyles,
0:37:35 > 0:37:36can we deliver health in a different way?
0:37:36 > 0:37:39So, we are going to provide new tram-like buses that connect up
0:37:39 > 0:37:41different parts of the garden city
0:37:41 > 0:37:42and encourage people to take the bus,
0:37:42 > 0:37:45rather than getting their cars. To walk to the station,
0:37:45 > 0:37:47to cycle down beautiful new green corridors we are creating.
0:37:47 > 0:37:50So, we are creating a place that is going to encourage that healthy living
0:37:50 > 0:37:52but also discourage people from using the car.
0:37:52 > 0:37:55Kevin, you are going to change people's lives, aren't you?
0:37:55 > 0:37:57You are going to change the way they live their lives.
0:37:57 > 0:37:59Are you feeling the pressure?
0:37:59 > 0:38:01Do you have a sense of pride that you're involved with it?
0:38:01 > 0:38:06Fantastically. I grew up in one of the last new towns, Craigavon in Northern Ireland,
0:38:06 > 0:38:08and to have 50 years later an opportunity to help
0:38:08 > 0:38:11build and shape a new place, Ebbsfleet garden city,
0:38:11 > 0:38:13is to me the best job I could possibly have anywhere.
0:38:13 > 0:38:15It's what I've always wanted to do.
0:38:15 > 0:38:17It's a great opportunity and I want to make sure we make the most of it.
0:38:17 > 0:38:20The exciting thing is to create the momentum around housing that we need
0:38:20 > 0:38:24in this country but a really affordable mixed range of housing here for
0:38:24 > 0:38:27everybody and secondly, to work on the whole place,
0:38:27 > 0:38:29to create something that is really special.
0:38:33 > 0:38:36I'm encouraged by the talk at Ebbsfleet.
0:38:36 > 0:38:40It seems the vision of what created places like Letchworth, Milton Keynes,
0:38:40 > 0:38:42and Poundbury are safe in the hands
0:38:42 > 0:38:45of those building new towns in the future.
0:38:45 > 0:38:46A lot has changed, of course.
0:38:46 > 0:38:48The plans have become bigger,
0:38:48 > 0:38:53more ambitious and more comprehensive than those I saw in my hometown.
0:38:54 > 0:38:57And sometimes, they have come with rules that I certainly wouldn't be
0:38:57 > 0:39:01happy with. Not to mention all those roundabouts.
0:39:01 > 0:39:03Which one?
0:39:03 > 0:39:06But what unites the people I've met living in these towns is that they
0:39:06 > 0:39:11have all provided that sense of escape to a healthier and, I think, happier
0:39:11 > 0:39:12way of life.
0:39:12 > 0:39:16Sometimes of course you have to pay for it and so I'm ending my journey
0:39:16 > 0:39:19doing something I never tire of,
0:39:19 > 0:39:21getting shown round a fancy pad.
0:39:21 > 0:39:25And it's back where I started, on the seafront of Herne Bay.
0:39:25 > 0:39:29Giving me his sales patter is local estate agent Kieron Whiting.
0:39:30 > 0:39:31I'm so keen.
0:39:33 > 0:39:34It's lovely, isn't it?
0:39:35 > 0:39:36Come on through.
0:39:38 > 0:39:41Now, that is what I call a view.
0:39:41 > 0:39:44Yeah, it certainly grabs you as soon as you walk in through the door.
0:39:44 > 0:39:45It's a lovely site.
0:39:45 > 0:39:47You actually completely forget about your accommodation.
0:39:47 > 0:39:50That's the beauty of it. Ultimately, that is what you are paying for,
0:39:50 > 0:39:54- isn't it?- Open-plan living, which isn't the norm in Herne Bay, is it?
0:39:54 > 0:39:56No, it's certainly a more modern approach to living
0:39:56 > 0:39:58but certainly more popular now.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01Particularly in properties like this is where you want to
0:40:01 > 0:40:04maximise the view and also the light and airy accommodation,
0:40:04 > 0:40:07you are not going to get that in a standard Herne Bay property.
0:40:07 > 0:40:08This is really one of a kind.
0:40:08 > 0:40:10Yeah.
0:40:12 > 0:40:13Time for the tour.
0:40:16 > 0:40:17OK, here we have the master suite.
0:40:18 > 0:40:20Again, bifolding doors.
0:40:20 > 0:40:23This is lovely. This is just like a second living room, in my opinion.
0:40:23 > 0:40:26South-facing, so it's going to literally bask in sunshine throughout the day.
0:40:26 > 0:40:28- It's lovely. - Kieron, this is like role reversal.
0:40:28 > 0:40:30You're taking me round,
0:40:30 > 0:40:32rather than me taking you on showing you the houses.
0:40:32 > 0:40:35It feels odd but I'm liking it. I'm liking it being on this site.
0:40:35 > 0:40:37'Well, that's the tour over.
0:40:37 > 0:40:40'Now for the bit you've all been waiting for.'
0:40:40 > 0:40:42How much is this apartment on the market for?
0:40:42 > 0:40:46This penthouse apartment is on the market for £495,000.
0:40:46 > 0:40:48Is it? Just shy of half a million.
0:40:48 > 0:40:50That's quite a lot of money.
0:40:50 > 0:40:52So, how much would an average house be here?
0:40:53 > 0:41:00Average house, terms of your typical 1930s three-bed semi, around 275, 300.
0:41:00 > 0:41:02That's really good to hear.
0:41:02 > 0:41:04Do people want to live in a seaside town all over again?
0:41:04 > 0:41:07Definitely so. The market is incredibly buoyant at the moment.
0:41:07 > 0:41:10- Is it?- Particularly over the last 18 months to two years.
0:41:10 > 0:41:13So, Kieron, if I could build eight of these along the seafront,
0:41:13 > 0:41:15would you be able to sell them tomorrow?
0:41:15 > 0:41:17Yes, I would be your best friend.
0:41:17 > 0:41:19Would you?
0:41:22 > 0:41:27This home is just so different from where I was brought up but in a way,
0:41:27 > 0:41:28that's what you need.
0:41:28 > 0:41:32You need towns to keep evolving with each generation,
0:41:32 > 0:41:35looking forward rather than always looking back.
0:41:40 > 0:41:41But you know what?
0:41:41 > 0:41:45Sometimes it's also good to get nostalgic, so before I go,
0:41:45 > 0:41:47I've asked my best friend Krista
0:41:47 > 0:41:49and my big sister Shelley to meet me on the promenade.
0:41:49 > 0:41:51I have a little surprise in store
0:41:51 > 0:41:54that should bring the memories flooding back.
0:41:55 > 0:41:58Right, girls. Fancy a quick roller-skate?
0:41:58 > 0:42:01The pavilion is not even there any more.
0:42:01 > 0:42:03- What's wrong with this? - You're kidding.
0:42:03 > 0:42:06Yeah. How many years since we last roller-skated?
0:42:06 > 0:42:0830? Are you up for the challenge?
0:42:08 > 0:42:11- Yeah.- I don't think I've got much in the way of balance.
0:42:11 > 0:42:12No, I'll be straight off.
0:42:12 > 0:42:13Right. Try those.
0:42:13 > 0:42:14Thank you.
0:42:19 > 0:42:23- Come on then.- Oh, no. - We are going to have fun, aren't we?
0:42:23 > 0:42:25Was this your idea, Nicki?
0:42:25 > 0:42:28Yeah. Thought it be nice to reminisce down memory lane.
0:42:28 > 0:42:30I feel like the Terminator.
0:42:31 > 0:42:34All the gear, no idea.
0:42:34 > 0:42:38Come on, then.
0:42:38 > 0:42:42MUSIC: Modern Girl by Sheena Easton
0:42:42 > 0:42:45This is going to be a long skate, isn't it?
0:42:45 > 0:42:47This way? Hold on to me. Ready?
0:42:47 > 0:42:53'Memories might be flooding back but the legs are definitely rusty.'
0:42:53 > 0:42:55Oh, look, I've got the railing.
0:42:57 > 0:43:00Look, I can do it.
0:43:00 > 0:43:03'You know, looking at new towns has made me look deeper into what really
0:43:03 > 0:43:06'matters to me about Herne Bay and it's this -
0:43:06 > 0:43:08'towns are made by people
0:43:08 > 0:43:12'and as long as planners remember that, we'll be OK.'
0:43:12 > 0:43:13THEY CHEER