0:00:08 > 0:00:10This is Coast.
0:00:38 > 0:00:41Seaside peaks are my idea of bliss.
0:00:43 > 0:00:49Others find joy flat out on the water's edge, soaking up the rays.
0:00:57 > 0:00:59It seems a timeless pastime...
0:01:00 > 0:01:04..but, surprisingly, our love affair with sunbathing
0:01:04 > 0:01:07is less than 100 years old.
0:01:08 > 0:01:11To explore the birth of this new "bronze age",
0:01:11 > 0:01:12we're heading to Plymouth.
0:01:16 > 0:01:20As the sun cult blossomed, so did their temples of worship.
0:01:23 > 0:01:28Tessa's plunging into the joys of the lido.
0:01:30 > 0:01:34In the 1930s, a new fashion was changing the complexion
0:01:34 > 0:01:36of the nation's leisure.
0:01:36 > 0:01:39After years of cowering in the shade,
0:01:39 > 0:01:41Britons became fans of the tan.
0:01:43 > 0:01:47Lidos became a feature of Britain's seaside scenery.
0:01:47 > 0:01:50In the sun AND in the swim - perfect!
0:01:52 > 0:01:57In 1929, the Met Office published its first sunshine records.
0:01:59 > 0:02:01Eastbourne was a chart topper,
0:02:01 > 0:02:06with a singeing 2,081 hours of sunshine over the year.
0:02:07 > 0:02:09How could they be so precise?
0:02:11 > 0:02:15Meteorologist Sarah Cruddas is here to reveal the secret.
0:02:18 > 0:02:22It's actually what's known as a Campbell-Stokes sunshine recorder
0:02:22 > 0:02:25and it's actually a very, very simple but very effective way
0:02:25 > 0:02:26of measuring sunlight.
0:02:26 > 0:02:29Just imagine it like a magnifying glass with a beam of light
0:02:29 > 0:02:32coming from the sun. This globe then concentrates the beam of light
0:02:32 > 0:02:35onto this specially treated card behind.
0:02:35 > 0:02:37As the sun tracks across the sky,
0:02:37 > 0:02:41its magnified rays burn a line across the card.
0:02:41 > 0:02:44By the end of the day, you would actually get a mark
0:02:44 > 0:02:46which would show us when it's been sunny.
0:02:46 > 0:02:48That's that line there, so it's charred through.
0:02:48 > 0:02:50Then a bit cloudy, so it hasn't charred it.
0:02:50 > 0:02:54And then sunshine. And you can tell, on that day, it was slightly cloudier in the afternoon.
0:02:54 > 0:02:57This is still the most common way of measuring the amount of sunlight.
0:02:58 > 0:03:02For the resorts topping the sunlight charts, times were good.
0:03:02 > 0:03:04# Hip-hooray, hip-hooray!
0:03:04 > 0:03:07# The sun has got his hat on
0:03:07 > 0:03:09# Hip-hip-hip-hooray
0:03:09 > 0:03:12# The sun has got his hat on and he's coming out... #
0:03:12 > 0:03:14But what about sunburn?
0:03:15 > 0:03:18Many fell under the sunbathing spell
0:03:18 > 0:03:22but with skin as pale as mine, it could be a painful pastime.
0:03:26 > 0:03:29In the 1930s, sun creams were rare.
0:03:29 > 0:03:32But the war was about to change that.
0:03:35 > 0:03:37I wouldn't much fancy smearing this all over my body,
0:03:37 > 0:03:41and yet it was a substance much like this that was used in the 1940s
0:03:41 > 0:03:44by the American army in the South Pacific.
0:03:44 > 0:03:46It was called red vet pet.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53The key ingredient is red petroleum jelly.
0:03:53 > 0:03:55They didn't know exactly how,
0:03:55 > 0:03:59but that's what protected against the harmful ultraviolet rays.
0:04:01 > 0:04:06Post war, scientists started to experiment with new sun lotions.
0:04:08 > 0:04:13Chemist Andrew Shaw knows how they progressed beyond simple sunblock.
0:04:13 > 0:04:15Not that we'll need it today!
0:04:17 > 0:04:20A simple block might be something like zinc oxide,
0:04:20 > 0:04:22which is this white powder here.
0:04:22 > 0:04:25And simply mix it into an oil base.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27- Right.- And it will form a nice little emulsion.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30It will eventually go white to prevent the sun from coming in.
0:04:30 > 0:04:32Imagine that was the surface of your skin.
0:04:32 > 0:04:33The light's coming in from above...
0:04:33 > 0:04:36- Bouncing off the water.- I want to float something on the surface of
0:04:36 > 0:04:37your skin that's going to block it.
0:04:37 > 0:04:40The light's not getting through that. It's a simple block.
0:04:40 > 0:04:41But since then, sun creams
0:04:41 > 0:04:43have become more sophisticated, haven't they?
0:04:43 > 0:04:45Yeah, the chemists have discovered
0:04:45 > 0:04:47that molecules with small rings in them are very good at absorbing
0:04:47 > 0:04:50just the ultraviolet that's dangerous to you.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55To increase the sun protection factor, or SPF,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58you can add more ring molecules to a sun cream.
0:04:58 > 0:05:01A way to tune your tan.
0:05:01 > 0:05:06Andrew has some magic beads to show the SPF in action.
0:05:06 > 0:05:10In here I've got some beads that are photoactive and when I open up,
0:05:10 > 0:05:13they're going to change colour because of the presence of the UV light.
0:05:13 > 0:05:17'Even on the cloudiest of days, the UV still gets through.'
0:05:17 > 0:05:20- Oh, they did straightaway. - Look at that.- Look at that.
0:05:20 > 0:05:22It's quite clever. So if I take some of those beads and coat them with
0:05:22 > 0:05:24different SPF factor sunscreens,
0:05:24 > 0:05:27they're going to change colour at different times.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30Under here we've got 10, 20, 30 and 50.
0:05:30 > 0:05:32Here's the 10. It's beginning to change colour.
0:05:32 > 0:05:35The 20 and 30 more slowly and the one you might put on your children,
0:05:35 > 0:05:38the factor 50, is changing colour really slowly indeed
0:05:38 > 0:05:39and, in fact, hardly at all.
0:05:39 > 0:05:41And probably, for somebody as fair as me, I would go for that.
0:05:41 > 0:05:44- I would, yes.- You would? You do, too, don't you?- I do.
0:05:44 > 0:05:46You're a bit peaky!
0:05:50 > 0:05:53I'll never be a convert to the sun-worship cult -
0:05:53 > 0:05:56probably a good thing, given the great British weather.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00But of course, the colder it is on the outside...
0:06:01 > 0:06:02..the warmer the water feels.
0:06:10 > 0:06:14The Atlantic surf brings thrill-seekers rolling in.
0:06:21 > 0:06:26Riding the crest, wind in their sails, it's full-on fun.
0:06:30 > 0:06:32But if you prefer a slower pace of life...
0:06:33 > 0:06:36..seek out the shelter of Polperro...
0:06:38 > 0:06:42..a quiet Cornish village ideal for unwinding.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48While some stroll by the sea, others sit and knit.
0:06:51 > 0:06:55Ruth is relaxing by trying to maintain her tension.
0:06:56 > 0:06:59I've been working on this traditional fisherman's jumper
0:06:59 > 0:07:01for... Well, on and off for months now.
0:07:02 > 0:07:07And I've had to get to grips with a whole range of new techniques
0:07:07 > 0:07:09and fiddly difficult bits.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12The Cornish coast, to this day, still echoes with the click-clack
0:07:12 > 0:07:16of knitting needles, so I've come along to pick up a few tips
0:07:16 > 0:07:21and to learn something more about how this fantastic, fun pastime
0:07:21 > 0:07:22grew out of hard graft.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29Fishermen throughout the UK were always recognisable
0:07:29 > 0:07:31by their hand-knitted jumpers.
0:07:31 > 0:07:34And in the 19th and early 20th centuries,
0:07:34 > 0:07:39making them was, for some, the only way to put bread upon the table.
0:07:43 > 0:07:45I'm casting off with Mary Wright,
0:07:45 > 0:07:48who wrote a book on Edwardian knitters.
0:07:48 > 0:07:52Mary knows the work that went into creating these coastal classics.
0:07:53 > 0:07:55They're amazing things, aren't they?
0:07:55 > 0:07:57I mean, they are not just any old jumper, these.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00- No, no.- They're quite special. - Don't call them a jumper.
0:08:00 > 0:08:03- What am I supposed to call them? - Jersey.- A jersey.
0:08:03 > 0:08:04- Or guernsey.- Or guernsey. - Or knit frock.
0:08:04 > 0:08:06Or knit frock - I like that word.
0:08:06 > 0:08:09- Knit frock.- Knit frock is the term used in Polperro.
0:08:09 > 0:08:13- Don't say jumper.- Never say jumper, but I can say gansey?
0:08:13 > 0:08:14You can. And you can say jersey.
0:08:14 > 0:08:18- I can say jersey.- Yes.- And if I'm in Polperro, I can say... - BOTH: Knit frock.
0:08:18 > 0:08:20THEY CHUCKLE
0:08:20 > 0:08:24This little village has its own knitting vocabulary.
0:08:25 > 0:08:29These streets were once awash with women working on their knit frocks.
0:08:31 > 0:08:34Women enjoyed being outside.
0:08:34 > 0:08:37The light was better, the social life was better.
0:08:37 > 0:08:41They could see people and people who live in the villages say that you
0:08:41 > 0:08:44could hear the clack of the needles before you turned the corner.
0:08:45 > 0:08:49Ladies weren't just making ganseys for the family -
0:08:49 > 0:08:52there was money to be made selling them to merchants.
0:08:52 > 0:08:55Polperro became a knit frock factory.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00Polperro was the centre of contract knitting in the 19th century.
0:09:00 > 0:09:02- And in the 20th century.- Right.
0:09:02 > 0:09:06So where did the ganseys that were knitted in Polperro end up?
0:09:06 > 0:09:10They could be packed up and dispatched to anywhere in the country.
0:09:12 > 0:09:16Polperro's knitting was strung out all around the coast.
0:09:19 > 0:09:24Worn for centuries by seafarers - and some still swear by it today.
0:09:25 > 0:09:29I'm meeting Barry Mundy, a fifth-generation fisherman.
0:09:32 > 0:09:36- Super.- This is such a beautiful harbour, isn't it?- Oh, yeah.
0:09:38 > 0:09:41- It's a lovely day out there again. - It's beautiful!
0:09:43 > 0:09:46I see you're wearing a gansey. Was that just put on for us today?
0:09:46 > 0:09:48No, no, I wear that every day.
0:09:48 > 0:09:51- Really?- Yes, it's well over 30 years old.
0:09:51 > 0:09:52- Really?- Yes, yes.
0:09:52 > 0:09:54- It keeps you warm.- Yeah.
0:09:54 > 0:09:57It's got that oily texture to it so it's showerproof.
0:09:57 > 0:09:59- So the water just sort of stands on the surface...- That's right.
0:09:59 > 0:10:02- ..rather than soaking in. - Yes, that's right.
0:10:03 > 0:10:05It's more than workwear.
0:10:05 > 0:10:08Fishermen have a proud attachment to their ganseys.
0:10:09 > 0:10:13When I was fishing first, you would have worn it to funerals
0:10:13 > 0:10:16and, sort of, special occasions.
0:10:16 > 0:10:18It was really the...
0:10:18 > 0:10:23Well, something like the uniform of a fisherman, really, I suppose.
0:10:24 > 0:10:27Knitting and fishing have long been intertwined,
0:10:27 > 0:10:31sharing words such as casting off and fisherman's rib.
0:10:31 > 0:10:34And some believe the dextrous hands of fishermen,
0:10:34 > 0:10:38used to repairing fishing nets, are perfect for knitting.
0:10:38 > 0:10:42Let's put Barry and that theory to the test.
0:10:44 > 0:10:47- So, as a man who has worn a gansey for 30 years...- Yes.
0:10:47 > 0:10:50- ..can you make one?- Erm...
0:10:51 > 0:10:53I think I'd struggle, I think.
0:10:53 > 0:10:55- This is my beginner's knitting pack. - Yeah.
0:10:55 > 0:10:59So we're going to go through the back of that loop towards there.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02- Yep.- Then around the needle.
0:11:02 > 0:11:03Yes.
0:11:03 > 0:11:08- Then through...- OK.
0:11:08 > 0:11:10- ..and slip it off.- Well, let's have a go, let's have a go.
0:11:11 > 0:11:14Right, it's through there...
0:11:14 > 0:11:16- That's the one.- And...
0:11:16 > 0:11:18BOTH: Around there.
0:11:18 > 0:11:20- And...- By George...
0:11:20 > 0:11:23Oh, you took an extra stitch - you just made it bigger.
0:11:23 > 0:11:25- You've got a double now.- Oh!
0:11:25 > 0:11:27I think I am better at the old net mending, somehow.
0:11:27 > 0:11:29You'll get the hang of it. You're not bad.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31- And it is men's work, this is. - Right.
0:11:31 > 0:11:34Knitting used to be one of those things that everybody did -
0:11:34 > 0:11:37men and women both - in order to earn a living.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40The trouble is, if I get too good at this,
0:11:40 > 0:11:44my wife is going to want me to knit her a gansey.
0:11:46 > 0:11:49100 years ago, knitting and fishing
0:11:49 > 0:11:53were both part of the fabric of coastal life.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55As the men worked at sea...
0:11:56 > 0:11:58..the women waited.
0:11:58 > 0:12:01But their hands were never idle.
0:12:03 > 0:12:06This photograph shows a lady knitting
0:12:06 > 0:12:10while watching for fishing boats to return.
0:12:10 > 0:12:11And this is Polperro.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13But she's doing her knitting.
0:12:13 > 0:12:16- Some bloke lounging about behind her.- Of course.
0:12:16 > 0:12:19And she's not only knitting but she's keeping an eye on...
0:12:19 > 0:12:22- On what's out at sea. - ..what's happening out at sea.
0:12:22 > 0:12:25- That's a good position to watch. - Waiting for your man to come home.
0:12:25 > 0:12:27- Right.- Mm.
0:12:29 > 0:12:31What was once a chore is now done for fun.
0:12:31 > 0:12:35Polperro's women still like to sit and stitch.
0:12:38 > 0:12:40And there's a further twist in the knitting yarn...
0:12:40 > 0:12:44Along the coast, a band of women have taken up their needles
0:12:44 > 0:12:46with a new mission in mind -
0:12:46 > 0:12:48to weave a little magic.
0:12:51 > 0:12:53These are the Graffiti Grannies.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55They work incognito -
0:12:55 > 0:12:58keeping their identity under wraps is part of the fun.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03We like to give whatever we knit away
0:13:03 > 0:13:04to the public.
0:13:04 > 0:13:07- Why are you all wearing masks? - Because we like to give it away
0:13:07 > 0:13:11anonymously. We go out in the middle of the night and we put it
0:13:11 > 0:13:15all around different towns and villages,
0:13:15 > 0:13:19so that people can take it and enjoy it.
0:13:19 > 0:13:23It's a huge amount of work, so why do you do it?
0:13:23 > 0:13:27We enjoy seeing the pleasure that other people get out of it.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30We like to put a smile on people's faces and that's what we do.
0:13:30 > 0:13:32RUTH CHUCKLES
0:13:34 > 0:13:36Following a century-old pattern,
0:13:36 > 0:13:40the women of Cornwall still have this shore nicely stitched up.