0:00:16 > 0:00:18This is exciting. I'm off on my hols.
0:00:18 > 0:00:25I'm on a trip to the seaside which brings happy memories rolling back.
0:00:31 > 0:00:33Here comes my time machine,
0:00:33 > 0:00:35and it's on time.
0:01:11 > 0:01:16I'm heading along England's south- west coast to the tip of Cornwall.
0:01:21 > 0:01:24My journey starts en route for Swanage.
0:01:26 > 0:01:28You've got to love a steam train.
0:01:29 > 0:01:34But the first time locos like these chuffed down the tracks, they caused consternation.
0:01:39 > 0:01:41Now, we might only be travelling at 30 mph,
0:01:41 > 0:01:44but when Queen Victoria took her first trip on a steam train,
0:01:44 > 0:01:47she found the speed distressing.
0:01:49 > 0:01:53I've just got time to see how steam caused such a stir along our shore.
0:01:55 > 0:01:56WHISTLE BLOWS
0:01:56 > 0:01:58Tickets please.
0:01:58 > 0:02:03Christian Wolmar's an authority on the railway revolution.
0:02:04 > 0:02:11There's undoubtedly something that steam trains add. It feels much more like actually going on holiday.
0:02:11 > 0:02:15Absolutely. It's part of the experience, part of the fun.
0:02:16 > 0:02:20Until the advent of the railway, if you lived more than
0:02:20 > 0:02:2520 or 30 miles away from the coast, you probably never saw the sea.
0:02:29 > 0:02:34But here we are - we've arrived,
0:02:34 > 0:02:38following in the tracks of townies taking on a brave new world.
0:02:43 > 0:02:48The arrival of these pioneering visitors had a dramatic effect on Swanage seafront.
0:02:52 > 0:02:56So Christian, before the railways connected the coast to the
0:02:56 > 0:02:59rest of the country, what was here, what was in a town like this?
0:02:59 > 0:03:01Well, frankly, not a lot.
0:03:01 > 0:03:05Really, it was a place of just a few hundred people
0:03:05 > 0:03:07who were left in peace most of the time.
0:03:07 > 0:03:11So it was just like a working town that happened to be beside the sea.
0:03:11 > 0:03:15Absolutely, just as with dozens of other places like this -
0:03:15 > 0:03:19once the railway arrived, its peace was rather upset.
0:03:19 > 0:03:24So the coast, as we think about it, the beach, the place for holidays
0:03:24 > 0:03:29and weekends, this really was invented by and made by the railways.
0:03:29 > 0:03:34It created a whole industry, you know, couple of hundred resorts in Britain
0:03:34 > 0:03:37were created as a result of the railways.
0:03:37 > 0:03:39And I'm going to see quite a few of them on this trip.
0:03:39 > 0:03:40I'm heading down through Dorset,
0:03:40 > 0:03:48through Devon and then into Cornwall, so it's kind of one of the meccas of beach holidays.
0:03:48 > 0:03:52Absolutely, Torquay, Paignton, all those places, you'll see the same
0:03:52 > 0:03:56pattern of development, the same houses built in the 19th century as a result of that.
0:03:56 > 0:04:01And if it hadn't been for the railways, the steam engines, it would never have happened.
0:04:01 > 0:04:03None of that would have happened at all.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10This coast is a roller-coaster of ups and downs.
0:04:10 > 0:04:14Vantage points rise up to bookend the beaches.
0:04:16 > 0:04:22At over 600 feet, Golden Cap is the highest sea cliff on England's southern shore.
0:04:27 > 0:04:32The peak towers over the town of Lyme Regis, giving great views over the harbour.
0:04:42 > 0:04:49Miranda's down at sea level in Lyme Bay, searching for visitors who prefer to peek up from the depths.
0:04:54 > 0:05:01Our waters are the playground for a wonderful variety of wildlife, most of which we rarely glimpse,
0:05:01 > 0:05:05but occasionally, big marine mammals reveal themselves.
0:05:09 > 0:05:15Bottlenose dolphins, porpoises and even minke whales are regular visitors to the English Channel.
0:05:18 > 0:05:21The one I've come to see, we know very little about.
0:05:21 > 0:05:24In fact, many people have never even heard of it.
0:05:24 > 0:05:26I'm here in search of the White-Beaked Dolphin.
0:05:30 > 0:05:35These creatures are rarely seen off our shores - they prefer the cold waters of the Northern Atlantic,
0:05:35 > 0:05:40but excitingly, a family group's been spotted in Lyme Bay.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44If there's the chance of a close encounter, I've got to try.
0:05:52 > 0:05:58I'm with Marine Life, a group who monitor the local dolphin population, including the white-beaks.
0:05:58 > 0:06:01I'm hoping they're out there, somewhere.
0:06:05 > 0:06:08So what are our chances of seeing them today, then?
0:06:08 > 0:06:12Well, we've seen them on the last five trips, so quite high in that respect, but on the other hand,
0:06:12 > 0:06:17as you can see, there is a bit of a swell out here, there's white caps,
0:06:17 > 0:06:21it's a bit choppy and that always makes it difficult to spot dolphins.
0:06:21 > 0:06:25A lot of the dolphins that feed on shoals of fish have seabirds as well,
0:06:25 > 0:06:30but when we see white-beaked, there's not really seabirds around.
0:06:30 > 0:06:35We think that they feed towards the bottom of the seabed, 50 or 60 metres down.
0:06:37 > 0:06:41We won't see them if they're feeding underwater, and to make matters worse,
0:06:41 > 0:06:47they're only here because of a patch of chilly water in Lyme Bay.
0:06:47 > 0:06:50This makes finding white-beaks even harder because we've got to hit
0:06:50 > 0:06:55the elusive cold spot, which itself moves with the seasons.
0:06:55 > 0:07:01The white-beak dolphins follow cooler waters, because that's where they find their favourite food.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05Like us, they like white fish such as cod and whiting.
0:07:09 > 0:07:13We've combed the bay over and over... nothing.
0:07:13 > 0:07:16Wildlife can drive you wild.
0:07:16 > 0:07:21The very few times we've been able to get out to sea this year, we've seen them virtually every time.
0:07:21 > 0:07:23That's such a shame we've not seen them today.
0:07:23 > 0:07:26A bit disappointing but it's the way it goes, I guess.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29We gave it our best shot and we didn't see them, unfortunately.
0:07:29 > 0:07:33We always say no guarantees with these things.
0:07:35 > 0:07:40The group were lucky enough to get these great pictures early in the year.
0:07:40 > 0:07:47Little is known about white-beaked dolphins, but sightings suggest there's around 60 in Lyme Bay,
0:07:47 > 0:07:51and it's encouraging that a young calf was spotted for the first time.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03For me, these enchanting creatures have proved elusive,
0:08:03 > 0:08:06but it's great to know they're out there.
0:08:16 > 0:08:21Dolphins may like the chilly water, but some of us like it hot.
0:08:21 > 0:08:24Tourists are drawn to Dorset's warm sands.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41Others are attracted to the cliffs and the rocks that come out of them.
0:08:41 > 0:08:46Adrian Gray finds the stones a solitary inspiration.
0:08:48 > 0:08:53I know this beach really well. Very isolated down here. You get very few people.
0:08:54 > 0:08:58This whole area of coastline here is renowned for landslip,
0:08:58 > 0:09:02so you have a constant supply of new rocks being washed out,
0:09:02 > 0:09:06and then the wind and the rain and the ocean will wash them,
0:09:06 > 0:09:09and of course they get shaped by the erosion as well.
0:09:18 > 0:09:22My friends and I used to balance stones for fun on the beach,
0:09:22 > 0:09:30and then about five years ago I decided that I was intrigued by that illusionary quality
0:09:30 > 0:09:35of a stone balanced in a certain way, and I realised I was on to something, you know, quite special.
0:09:37 > 0:09:39I need to have a look at it.
0:09:51 > 0:09:55It's the paradox between fragility and solidity which basically
0:09:55 > 0:10:01is like you've got two very big heavy stones, and they're balanced in a very fragile way.
0:10:08 > 0:10:11I focus in completely - you close out everything else because
0:10:11 > 0:10:14you have to have a sort of stillness within you,
0:10:14 > 0:10:18and you listen to the rocks, you listen with your hands,
0:10:18 > 0:10:25and you move them very, very gently, and then when you get a feel for it, you'll find a weightlessness.
0:10:32 > 0:10:35'It's like scoring a goal or falling in love - that "yes!", you know.'
0:10:35 > 0:10:37Gotcha.
0:10:39 > 0:10:45And you can move away from it and look at it and you're, like, "How on earth is that staying there?"
0:10:45 > 0:10:49I like to come down here. I like to work down here on the beach,
0:10:49 > 0:10:54it's quiet, you can get into the zone, all my materials are around me.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00This is where I like to do it really.
0:11:01 > 0:11:02HE LAUGHS
0:11:13 > 0:11:17Steam was the engine of progress on this coast.
0:11:17 > 0:11:19Brunel's wonderful railway
0:11:19 > 0:11:22introduced tourists to the tranquil Torbay.
0:11:22 > 0:11:28The bay's town of Torquay, Paignton and Brixham
0:11:28 > 0:11:30were branded the English Riviera.
0:11:32 > 0:11:38The resort's reputation for glitz and glamour, British-style, became its selling point.
0:11:38 > 0:11:42NEWSREEL: 'The call of the sea is irresistible to almost everyone.'
0:11:45 > 0:11:49The railway started the rush, but by the late '50s,
0:11:49 > 0:11:53steam was losing its pulling power, replaced by a new driving force.
0:11:57 > 0:11:59On this bracing day,
0:11:59 > 0:12:02Nick's come to see how road eclipsed rail.
0:12:06 > 0:12:12I'm in holiday mode - no backpack, no boots, but I'm glad I brought the brolly.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18'No summer holiday's complete without the joys of the British weather.
0:12:22 > 0:12:29'So I'm very glad to be hitching a lift on a classic crowd pleaser, a welcome sight on a rainy day.'
0:12:35 > 0:12:38- Hello, Nick. - Hi Dave, what a magnificent coach.
0:12:38 > 0:12:41Oh, thank you very much, a Yelloway coach, 1976.
0:12:41 > 0:12:43It should be in a museum.
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Well, come aboard, have a look around.
0:12:46 > 0:12:48It IS a museum!
0:12:48 > 0:12:50It is a museum, of course it is.
0:12:51 > 0:12:58Dave Haddock's impressive collection harks back to the earliest days of motorised travel.
0:12:58 > 0:13:01You've got stuff everywhere in here.
0:13:01 > 0:13:05The very first coaches were steam-powered goods lorries,
0:13:05 > 0:13:09converted at the weekends for the latest in passenger comfort.
0:13:11 > 0:13:14- What were the seats made from? - Er, church pews.
0:13:14 > 0:13:15You're kidding!
0:13:15 > 0:13:17- No, no. - Hope they asked the vicar first.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21Oh, well yeah, I think the vicar was amongst them, actually.
0:13:21 > 0:13:23There were no Health and Safety in those days.
0:13:23 > 0:13:25So this is the beginning of mass tourism.
0:13:25 > 0:13:27You've got industrial workers from the North,
0:13:27 > 0:13:30from the Pennine mill towns, going off to the seaside at the weekend.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34Yeah, competing with the railways. They were trying to take people off the railways.
0:13:36 > 0:13:41Dave's personal collection is his tribute to the rise of one of the coach companies, Yelloway.
0:13:43 > 0:13:46From their first Lancashire charabanc in 1910,
0:13:46 > 0:13:49Yelloway grew into a national network
0:13:49 > 0:13:53transporting Northerners south to resorts like Torbay.
0:13:57 > 0:14:00Glorious seaside holiday Tours 1939.
0:14:00 > 0:14:04This is a half cab. It's called the Yelloway 1940s.
0:14:04 > 0:14:06- That's beautiful, isn't it?- Yeah.
0:14:06 > 0:14:11And the colours of the coach really evoke the seaside, don't they, the yellow sand...
0:14:11 > 0:14:14- A real holiday livery on it, yes. - This was the passport to paradise.
0:14:14 > 0:14:19Oh, yeah of course it was, and when I was a young lad I came on this type of coach, 1947.
0:14:19 > 0:14:21It took 15 hours to get to Torquay from Rochdale,
0:14:21 > 0:14:23and when we arrived at Leamington Road,
0:14:23 > 0:14:26my mum said to me, the first words you said when you got off was
0:14:26 > 0:14:28"Are we at the other side of the world?"
0:14:28 > 0:14:31- I thought we were, we'd come that far.- Would you take me for a spin?
0:14:31 > 0:14:34Oh, yeah course, definitely, let's go.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48- It's got a very evocative engine sound.- Oh, yes, lovely, I love it.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51- Reminds me of school trips.- Yeah.
0:14:51 > 0:14:54I used to come every year with my mum and my dad, and my grandparents.
0:14:54 > 0:14:57They used to spend a week every year in Torquay.
0:14:57 > 0:15:02It was just the most beautiful place you could wish to come for when you was a child.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05The thing that surprised me most, Nick, was we played out all day long,
0:15:05 > 0:15:09and when I looked at my hands at the end of the day, they wasn't dirty,
0:15:09 > 0:15:14yet if I'd have played out for an hour at home in the industrial North-west, my hands would be black.
0:15:14 > 0:15:18So your grandparents came down here from the north, your parents,
0:15:18 > 0:15:20you did and your children, so that's four generations.
0:15:20 > 0:15:22That's right, Nick, and then...
0:15:22 > 0:15:25I even spent my honeymoon here.
0:15:25 > 0:15:27So you came on your honeymoon on a coach.
0:15:27 > 0:15:30Oh, yeah, and the driver gave us the front seat, special front seat, and
0:15:30 > 0:15:34the passengers had clubbed together and bought a bottle of champagne.
0:15:34 > 0:15:35Did they give you the back seat on the way home?
0:15:35 > 0:15:37No!
0:15:37 > 0:15:39HE LAUGHS
0:15:44 > 0:15:47At their peak, coaches brought thousands of passengers a day
0:15:47 > 0:15:52south to Torbay, and it's still Devon's most popular resort.
0:15:59 > 0:16:02But on a day like this, the place is all but deserted.
0:16:02 > 0:16:10Like everyone else, I've got to find something to do in the rain - that's where excursions come in.
0:16:10 > 0:16:15The Paignton to Dartmouth steam railway promises shelter and a sea view.
0:16:20 > 0:16:26The observation carriage has super-sized windows, like a greenhouse on wheels.
0:16:28 > 0:16:31In the golden days of train travel, first-class passengers paid a premium
0:16:31 > 0:16:36to sit in here and enjoy pre-dinner drinks - those were the days.
0:16:52 > 0:16:55But with all this glass, it gets pretty hot in here.
0:17:01 > 0:17:03'I prefer it back here in the cheap seats.'
0:17:08 > 0:17:10And this way, I get to feel the wind in my hair.
0:17:16 > 0:17:19The Tamar Estuary marks the Cornish frontier.
0:17:22 > 0:17:25But the railway bridged the gap and rolled on regardless.
0:17:29 > 0:17:32From now on, my journey has a more rugged outlook.
0:17:36 > 0:17:42With its jagged shore and sheltered inlets, Cornwall is England's most coastal county.
0:17:51 > 0:17:55Each step westwards brings subtle changes in the surrounding flora.
0:17:57 > 0:18:02Lichen hate pollution, but they're plentiful here.
0:18:03 > 0:18:07With little heavy industry and prevailing winds fresh from the Atlantic,
0:18:07 > 0:18:11Cornwall has fantastically clean air,
0:18:11 > 0:18:14yet there's always the smell of the seashore.
0:18:19 > 0:18:22At the pretty little anchorage of Gorran Haven,
0:18:22 > 0:18:26Alice is following her nose.
0:18:31 > 0:18:36'There's something special about going down to the sea.
0:18:36 > 0:18:39'There are those tell-tale signs that you're close,
0:18:39 > 0:18:41'the sense of anticipation builds,
0:18:41 > 0:18:46'and then it hits you and familiar feelings flood back.
0:18:49 > 0:18:52'The beach bombards the senses,
0:18:52 > 0:18:58'but if you just had your sense of smell, you'd still know you were by the sea.'
0:18:58 > 0:19:01The seaside has this wonderful aroma,
0:19:01 > 0:19:05it's the smell of summer holidays and happiness.
0:19:05 > 0:19:09If only we could bottle it! But what is it?
0:19:12 > 0:19:19'Water's odourless, so it must be something else in the sea that gives it that seductive smell.
0:19:19 > 0:19:26'I'm in search of the solution with Professor Andrew Johnston.
0:19:26 > 0:19:29'He thinks he's got the answer in his bag.
0:19:31 > 0:19:34'He's brought bacteria.
0:19:34 > 0:19:40'When these micro-organisms munch plankton, apparently they make a little whiff,
0:19:40 > 0:19:42'a by-product of digestion.
0:19:42 > 0:19:48'The bacteria belch out gas that gives the sea its distinctive smell.
0:19:48 > 0:19:56'To bottle that seaside aroma, we've got to tempt Andy's bugs to start burping gas.'
0:19:57 > 0:20:01- What else do we need? - Well, we need some seaweed.
0:20:01 > 0:20:02Right...
0:20:06 > 0:20:07'At the moment...'
0:20:07 > 0:20:10Yeah, it just smells faintly seaweedy.
0:20:10 > 0:20:14Yeah, a little bit, so if we just put some water in here...
0:20:14 > 0:20:19'This seaweed soup is our version of the microscopic plant life
0:20:19 > 0:20:22'naturally found in sea water.'
0:20:22 > 0:20:24- OK, that's fine.- Another one.
0:20:24 > 0:20:29- And now we need to add the other component, the bacteria.- OK.
0:20:29 > 0:20:32- So can I open this up, is that safe?- Yeah.
0:20:32 > 0:20:35Although it smells of something, it's not the seaside,
0:20:35 > 0:20:37it's got a sort of musty smell.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41- That's not the smell of the sea.- No, we're going to do something magical.
0:20:41 > 0:20:45- Right, so what's the next step? - Well, what I'll do, is scrape some of that off,
0:20:45 > 0:20:48add it to water, then add that back to the seaweed and see what happens.
0:20:48 > 0:20:54So each of these loopfuls, I guess maybe a million, ten million bacteria, amazing numbers.
0:20:54 > 0:20:56- Really?- But they're very, very small.
0:20:58 > 0:21:02'We're hoping that after we've added the bottled bacteria to our seaweed soup
0:21:02 > 0:21:07'and given them a few hours to feast, the solution will start to stink,
0:21:07 > 0:21:10'and we'll have bottled the smell of the seaside.'
0:21:10 > 0:21:12Shall we go and have a pasty and come back?
0:21:13 > 0:21:18'The bacteria need to bask in the warm sun to digest their weedy meal.'
0:21:22 > 0:21:24- The moment of truth.- OK.
0:21:24 > 0:21:27So for the last two hours, the bacteria in this cloudy mixture
0:21:27 > 0:21:29have been chomping away on the substance
0:21:29 > 0:21:34in this seaweed, and producing something which you think I should be able to smell.
0:21:34 > 0:21:37- Yes, I sincerely hope so. - The moment of truth.
0:21:37 > 0:21:38Yes, indeed.
0:21:42 > 0:21:44Yes!
0:21:44 > 0:21:46Absolutely!
0:21:46 > 0:21:48That is really strange.
0:21:48 > 0:21:52But it is undoubtedly the smell of the sea.
0:21:52 > 0:21:55- THEY LAUGH It works!- Yeah, I know.
0:21:55 > 0:22:02'In a tiny test tube, Andy's experiment shows what's happening on a global scale.
0:22:02 > 0:22:06'The scent of the sea comes from a sulphurous gas, dimethyl sulphide,
0:22:06 > 0:22:09'also known as DMS -
0:22:09 > 0:22:14'bacteria burps that are the by-product of digesting plankton.
0:22:14 > 0:22:17'To us, it's the smell of seaside holidays,
0:22:17 > 0:22:21'but to some birds and mammals, DMS is the smell of life.
0:22:21 > 0:22:24'They home in on concentrations of the scent,
0:22:24 > 0:22:27'knowing that where there's life, there's food.'
0:22:46 > 0:22:48My last stop approaches.
0:22:48 > 0:22:51One of Britain's most remote artistic attractions -
0:22:51 > 0:22:53the Minack Theatre.
0:22:57 > 0:23:01One of the great seaside traditions is taking in a show.
0:23:01 > 0:23:04I'm not going to take in a show. Heaven help us all, I'm going to be in one!
0:23:11 > 0:23:15On this windswept headland, stands the Minack,
0:23:15 > 0:23:18a unique temple to the performing arts.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24Less theatre of dreams, more place of my nightmares.
0:23:30 > 0:23:34Well, would you look at that? You'd expect to find that in ancient Rome.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36Maybe it's the scene of a Greek tragedy.
0:23:38 > 0:23:42'My co-star in this personal drama is local thespian, Sarah Lincoln.'
0:23:42 > 0:23:45- Hi, Sarah. - Hi, welcome to the Minack.
0:23:45 > 0:23:48They tell me I'm going to perform here.
0:23:48 > 0:23:51You are, yes. Tonight, on this very stage.
0:23:51 > 0:23:53Ohh... Show me what I'm going to do.
0:23:53 > 0:23:57The very first performance that was given here on this stage,
0:23:57 > 0:24:01was a production of The Tempest in 1932,
0:24:01 > 0:24:06so we thought it was really apt that YOU would play Prospero, and I will be your Ariel.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09- And here are your lines. - Shakespeare, what a nightmare!
0:24:09 > 0:24:12No, Shakespeare's easy, he tells you exactly what to do,
0:24:12 > 0:24:16and he's great at commanding the elements, just like Prospero.
0:24:16 > 0:24:21You've got the real sea and the real wind, and potentially even the real rain tonight.
0:24:21 > 0:24:24- Right, let's go.- Shall we start rehearsing?- Let's go.
0:24:24 > 0:24:27- Let's go hence to another place. - SHE LAUGHS
0:24:29 > 0:24:33'This extraordinary amphitheatre exists thanks to The Tempest,
0:24:33 > 0:24:36'Shakespeare's play set on a small island.
0:24:38 > 0:24:45'In 1932, Rowena Cade wanted somewhere suitable for her friends to perform it.
0:24:45 > 0:24:48'She chose this spot, at the end of her garden.
0:24:51 > 0:24:55'The play's lead part, Prospero, has starred all the greats -
0:24:55 > 0:24:59'Redgrave, Gielgud, McKellen,
0:24:59 > 0:25:01'and now me!'
0:25:02 > 0:25:07- And our little life is rounded with a sleep.- Brilliant.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11So what does the venue bring that isn't there in another kind of theatre?
0:25:11 > 0:25:14I think the first thing it brings is scale.
0:25:14 > 0:25:20I think the fact that the theatre is surrounded by nature, surrounded by the sea, the elements, the cliffs,
0:25:20 > 0:25:22and the fact that you've got a real horizon.
0:25:22 > 0:25:28When you stand on stage, as an actor, often you have to create a horizon, and there it is, looking at you,
0:25:28 > 0:25:31and the audience are looking at you with that fantastic backdrop.
0:25:35 > 0:25:37The early performances of The Tempest
0:25:37 > 0:25:41were such a great success it was repeated down the years.
0:25:41 > 0:25:45Rowena Cade - and her long-suffering gardener -
0:25:45 > 0:25:50spent the next 40-odd years building a unique theatre.
0:25:51 > 0:25:57- Here we are.- OK.- Oh, the gorgeous white shirt...- Nice blouse(!)
0:25:57 > 0:26:00- Pair of britches for you.- I'll look like little Jimmy Krankie!
0:26:00 > 0:26:02I feel sick to my stomach.
0:26:05 > 0:26:07- Slight problem, there! - SHE LAUGHS
0:26:10 > 0:26:13I offer you...Prospero.
0:26:14 > 0:26:19Outside, suitably ominous weather,
0:26:19 > 0:26:22and a frankly certifiable audience are rolling in.
0:26:23 > 0:26:29- We're English, we do this all the time.- It's all part of the fun.
0:26:29 > 0:26:31Absolutely bonkers!
0:26:31 > 0:26:35There must be something strange about the fact that behind you,
0:26:35 > 0:26:37rather than a painted backdrop or a set,
0:26:37 > 0:26:41there is uncontrollable...nature.
0:26:41 > 0:26:44No actor on this planet can compete with a pod of 20 dolphins
0:26:44 > 0:26:49doing a sort of, you know, moon-walking across the top of the water which they seem to...
0:26:49 > 0:26:52It's like they rehearse round the corner and go, "We'll show them!"
0:26:52 > 0:26:55and they come and do this fantastic display.
0:26:55 > 0:26:56And do the audience...?
0:26:56 > 0:26:59- Yeah, you haven't got a hope in hell.- They just turn to the...?
0:26:59 > 0:27:03To the dolphins. You can stand there stark naked, chop your own head off
0:27:03 > 0:27:05and "Oh, look at the dolphins!"
0:27:05 > 0:27:07This season, I had a performance I was directing
0:27:07 > 0:27:11and we had to stop the show because there was an air-sea rescue.
0:27:11 > 0:27:14This is not the easiest theatre in which to make one's debut, is it?
0:27:14 > 0:27:20If the elements are raging, people really, really remember if you get through it, and they love it.
0:27:20 > 0:27:23Well, the elements are certainly raging.
0:27:23 > 0:27:26We've only a short scene, but I've never been on stage before.
0:27:26 > 0:27:29Ladies and gentlemen, good evening. Welcome to the Minack.
0:27:29 > 0:27:33I've never felt so ill in my entire life, I think I'll break my own leg.
0:27:33 > 0:27:36There's something we want you to share with us this evening.
0:27:36 > 0:27:39CHEERING AND APPLAUSE
0:27:45 > 0:27:47Our revels now are ended.
0:27:47 > 0:27:50These, our actors, as I foretold you,
0:27:50 > 0:27:55were all spirits and are melted into air, into thin air.
0:27:55 > 0:27:59We are such stuff as dreams are made on,
0:27:59 > 0:28:03and our little life is rounded with a sleep.
0:28:03 > 0:28:06Come with a thought, I thank thee, Ariel, come.
0:28:06 > 0:28:10Thy thoughts I cleave to. What is thy pleasure?
0:28:10 > 0:28:13Spirit, we must prepare to meet with Caliban.
0:28:13 > 0:28:17Say again, where didst thou leave those varlets?
0:28:17 > 0:28:23I told you, they were red-hot with drinking.
0:28:23 > 0:28:27So full of valour that they smote the air.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30The trumpery in my house, go bring it hither,
0:28:30 > 0:28:32for stale to catch these thieves.
0:28:32 > 0:28:34I go, I go.
0:28:38 > 0:28:40APPLAUSE
0:28:52 > 0:28:55Land's End and journey's end.
0:28:55 > 0:28:58Hollywood will never find me out here.
0:28:59 > 0:29:04Well, the bard said "All the world is a stage." It turns out that's even true of the coast.
0:29:24 > 0:29:26Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd