0:00:17 > 0:00:21Today I'm on a journey across the watery world
0:00:21 > 0:00:25of the East Anglian Fens, beginning here on Wicken Fen
0:00:25 > 0:00:29and ending up in the ancient university city of Cambridge.
0:00:32 > 0:00:36From Wicken Fen I'll travel to Outwell, then on to Welney.
0:00:36 > 0:00:40We'll hear from Stephen Fry about his passion for the area.
0:00:40 > 0:00:43Then I'll take a plunge into a creek near Upware.
0:00:43 > 0:00:47Finally, I'll end my journey punting on the River Cam in Cambridge.
0:01:04 > 0:01:07Along the way I'll be looking back at some of the best
0:01:07 > 0:01:11of the BBC's rural programmes from this part of the country.
0:01:11 > 0:01:13This is Country Tracks.
0:01:20 > 0:01:23You may be wondering what these sticks are I'm carrying.
0:01:23 > 0:01:26These are in fact stilts and it's what ancient communities
0:01:26 > 0:01:30from this part of the world used to get around this watery landscape.
0:01:36 > 0:01:40Chris Soans manages this fen for the National Trust.
0:01:40 > 0:01:42- Hi, Chris.- Hi, Ben.
0:01:42 > 0:01:43- How are you?- Not too bad.- So...
0:01:43 > 0:01:47So this is basically a traditional pair of stilts?
0:01:47 > 0:01:50I've got images of whole communities being out wearing these with whole families.
0:01:50 > 0:01:52Would they really have worn them?
0:01:52 > 0:01:55Yeah. In the winter the Fens flooded and it was a few inches deep
0:01:55 > 0:01:58in water and so if you wanted to get from A to B
0:01:58 > 0:02:02you would get very wet. Obviously they had no Wellingtons.
0:02:02 > 0:02:05They had very simple leather footwear, so these were the only way of keeping dry.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08I'm going to attempt to walk across the Fens in these.
0:02:08 > 0:02:10- Good luck.- Have you worn them before?
0:02:10 > 0:02:13I've given it a try, but it's... It's a skill!
0:02:13 > 0:02:15Putting them on here is quite a good idea.
0:02:15 > 0:02:16Yeah, if you sit on the edge there.
0:02:18 > 0:02:21And then, presumably...
0:02:21 > 0:02:24- So the foot goes on there. - Yeah, they need to be quite tight.
0:02:24 > 0:02:28What about their communities? How would they build those on the water?
0:02:28 > 0:02:30There are pockets of higher ground.
0:02:30 > 0:02:33Where the clay came out of the peat there was higher ground,
0:02:33 > 0:02:38so they would build their small, basic settlements on the clay in the high ground
0:02:38 > 0:02:40and then they would use the low-lying fen around them
0:02:40 > 0:02:42for their food and other materials they needed.
0:02:42 > 0:02:45The Fens are much drier now that they've been drained for agriculture,
0:02:45 > 0:02:49so they're not as wet as they would be, so it's not so much of an issue.
0:02:49 > 0:02:52- How do you think that looks? - I think they're fairly tight.
0:02:52 > 0:02:54You'll also need a staff.
0:02:54 > 0:02:59This is sort of the third that gives you a tripod and without this you'll go flat on your face.
0:02:59 > 0:03:02- So are you ready? - Well, as ready as I'll ever be!
0:03:03 > 0:03:05- OK.- There we go.- Right.
0:03:05 > 0:03:08Keep putting that in front of you as you go and then walk slowly.
0:03:08 > 0:03:11- Do you think I can walk through all this?- Give it a go.
0:03:11 > 0:03:14Leg's slightly apart, that's it. There you are, a natural!
0:03:14 > 0:03:17There we go.
0:03:17 > 0:03:20Well, I don't know that natural comes to mind, but...
0:03:20 > 0:03:24Apart from just navigating through the Fens like this, would they have...
0:03:24 > 0:03:26Would they have been doing things at the same time?
0:03:26 > 0:03:30Amazingly, apparently when they were doing some of the peat digging
0:03:30 > 0:03:32when they dug the peat for fuel
0:03:32 > 0:03:34and they were in standing water,
0:03:34 > 0:03:38they could actually dig the peat out wearing stilts.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41With a spade in front of them? With a very long handle, I imagine.
0:03:41 > 0:03:45It was called a becket, a traditional spade, but they said they could do that.
0:03:45 > 0:03:48It's a skill that came through years of practice.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50- I'm making some progress. - You're doing very well.
0:03:50 > 0:03:53I don't think it looks very gainly, does it?
0:03:53 > 0:03:55It might take you some time to get to Cambridge.
0:03:55 > 0:03:58I could be out here for quite a long time!
0:03:58 > 0:04:02This is a rather clumsy interpretation of what it must have been like
0:04:02 > 0:04:05negotiating this watery landscape in years gone by.
0:04:05 > 0:04:09In more recent times, as the seasons changed and the waters froze,
0:04:09 > 0:04:12these flooded plains became a winter playground.
0:04:16 > 0:04:20Ice skating has been a feature of the Fens for hundreds of years.
0:04:20 > 0:04:23When the flooded winter wetlands froze they became giant ice rinks
0:04:23 > 0:04:27and fenlanders flocked from miles around to take to the ice,
0:04:27 > 0:04:31and in the 1800s the ice skating championship of the Fens was born.
0:04:31 > 0:04:35Earlier this year I took part in an ice skating marathon in Sweden
0:04:35 > 0:04:38and, not wanting my wife here to feel left out,
0:04:38 > 0:04:42I invited Marina to join me. You enjoyed it, didn't you?
0:04:42 > 0:04:44I did. Especially beating you!
0:04:44 > 0:04:51Yes. And that's why I've invited Marina here to the home of ice-skating in the UK, Welney.
0:04:51 > 0:04:55Skaters traditionally gather at the Lamb And Flag pub in Welney
0:04:55 > 0:04:57before heading to the frozen lakes.
0:04:57 > 0:05:03Chairman of the Welney And District Skating Club Melton Morris is going to give us the low down.
0:05:03 > 0:05:09And am I right in thinking that here was the birth of ice-skating in the UK?
0:05:09 > 0:05:13We can't be sure, but we'd like to think it is.
0:05:13 > 0:05:17This was the place that most people looked to skate in the '30s
0:05:17 > 0:05:20when there was any frost because it was the safest place to skate.
0:05:20 > 0:05:23But they were also skating as far back as the 1800s.
0:05:23 > 0:05:28- Oh, yes. Oh, yes, yes.- And was it a big pastime sport at that...?
0:05:28 > 0:05:30Not being here at the time, but I would...
0:05:30 > 0:05:36- I would assume it was!- So we've got here a selection of Melton's ice skates through the decades, have we?
0:05:36 > 0:05:40These are the ones that I fen-skated on right until I was 16.
0:05:40 > 0:05:44The reason I skated on those was because we couldn't get anything else
0:05:44 > 0:05:51and it wasn't until my father found me a pair of this type, of Hagan's...
0:05:51 > 0:05:53What period is this from? When did these date?
0:05:53 > 0:05:55These were in the early '30s.
0:05:55 > 0:05:58- Oh, really? So, these are pre-war? - Oh, yes. Yes.
0:05:58 > 0:06:00They look quite sophisticated.
0:06:00 > 0:06:04- Well, they are.- Were they the envy of all your friends?
0:06:04 > 0:06:07To own a pair of Hagan's was... You had the bee's knees.
0:06:07 > 0:06:10- You were very proud of them?- Oh, yes.
0:06:10 > 0:06:11And then moving on, presumably...
0:06:11 > 0:06:14- Where are the slightly more contemporary ones?- These.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18So when was the last time that you donned a pair of these?
0:06:18 > 0:06:22Well, my grandson skated on those last ten years ago.
0:06:22 > 0:06:25- And how did he fare in these? - He won the Fen Championship.
0:06:25 > 0:06:27- Did he?- Yes, he did, on those.
0:06:27 > 0:06:30It's been several years since the Fens froze
0:06:30 > 0:06:34to allow skaters on to the ice, but they haven't rested on their blades.
0:06:34 > 0:06:37A few miles up the road is Melton's farm.
0:06:37 > 0:06:42He built an asphalt track 12 years ago so that he could skate throughout the year.
0:06:42 > 0:06:47Now it's a hub for the fenland skaters keen to practice in the absence of frozen lakes,
0:06:47 > 0:06:51and having brought my wife all this way we thought we'd give it a go.
0:06:51 > 0:06:54- How are you feeling? Excited? - Nervous, seeing how good they are!
0:06:54 > 0:06:57I know! A bit different to the ice.
0:06:57 > 0:06:59- Malcolm!- Hiya.- I'm Ben.
0:06:59 > 0:07:01- Hiya.- This is Marina, my wife.
0:07:01 > 0:07:04- Yeah.- OK. So we're going to have a go on the track here.
0:07:04 > 0:07:08- OK, which are the smaller ones? - These ones are the smaller ones.
0:07:08 > 0:07:09They're for you, Marina.
0:07:09 > 0:07:12- These are presumably mine? - I hope so.
0:07:12 > 0:07:17Looking at these, the first thing I am particularly aware of is there's no brake
0:07:17 > 0:07:19that I know that most rollerblades have.
0:07:19 > 0:07:22With us, we all go the same way around the track.
0:07:22 > 0:07:26And we're purely interested in the speed side of stuff, not stopping.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29Just for speed, OK. How are you planning on stopping, Marina?
0:07:29 > 0:07:33Well, there's a grassy bank over there, it goes slightly uphill,
0:07:33 > 0:07:37and a bush at the end if things get really bad, so...
0:07:37 > 0:07:42It's slightly daunting seeing all these guys going zooming past.
0:07:42 > 0:07:46And children, that's the worst! Can't we get rid of them?
0:07:46 > 0:07:49And apart from the bush that we've both got our eye on at the back,
0:07:49 > 0:07:52how should we go about stopping?
0:07:52 > 0:07:57What we do is what we call a duck walk which is where you turn your foot slightly to the side.
0:07:57 > 0:07:59And then you just put a bit of weight on.
0:07:59 > 0:08:02Oh, I'm off, I'm off!
0:08:02 > 0:08:04You want to be going this way!
0:08:04 > 0:08:07- Push slightly to the side.- Yeah.
0:08:07 > 0:08:10And then let the other foot go forward.
0:08:12 > 0:08:14So how are you getting on, then?
0:08:14 > 0:08:19Not too badly. Actually, I think Marina is doing slightly better than I am.
0:08:19 > 0:08:23- I think the best way to really find out would be have a race, wouldn't it?- A race?
0:08:23 > 0:08:25Sounds good to me.
0:08:25 > 0:08:27How far is this race going to be?
0:08:27 > 0:08:32Well, I've had my tuition and now it's time to race!
0:08:32 > 0:08:34And I mean business.
0:08:34 > 0:08:39What do you think my chances are of even finishing vaguely at the same time as you guys?
0:08:39 > 0:08:43- None.- None! I don't know if I'm going to dispute that.
0:08:43 > 0:08:45Marina, how are you set?
0:08:45 > 0:08:50- I've been practising, so I'm confident.- Do you think you're going to beat me?
0:08:50 > 0:08:55- Yeah, definitely. Prepare to die! - Ready, steady, go!
0:08:55 > 0:08:58And right from the beginning, despite my advantage start,
0:08:58 > 0:09:02I slip towards the back at an early stage of the race.
0:09:02 > 0:09:08Malcolm forged an early lead, while Melton's great grandsons Joseph and Harry streaked past me.
0:09:08 > 0:09:10Even Marina left me virtually standing!
0:09:10 > 0:09:15But through the skaters' generosity, Marina and I were able
0:09:15 > 0:09:20to cross the finish line in first place.
0:09:22 > 0:09:24I tell you what, where's...
0:09:24 > 0:09:26Where's Harry and...
0:09:26 > 0:09:28Harry and Joseph?
0:09:30 > 0:09:33I think I did have a little bit of help there winning.
0:09:33 > 0:09:36What do you think, boys? Did you wait for me?
0:09:36 > 0:09:38- Yeah.- Yeah, you did! There you go,
0:09:38 > 0:09:43but it's boys like this who are going to keep this tradition alive.
0:09:46 > 0:09:49I spent a lot of my childhood racing around the Fens,
0:09:49 > 0:09:53but in those days it was for fishing rather than rollerblading.
0:09:53 > 0:09:57I've left the cumbersome stilts behind and I'm continuing my journey
0:09:57 > 0:10:01hoping to learn more about this watery world.
0:10:02 > 0:10:05- Have the Fens changed a lot over the years?- Yes.
0:10:05 > 0:10:09Traditionally they were a very wild, wet landscape.
0:10:09 > 0:10:12They have been gradually drained by man for agriculture.
0:10:12 > 0:10:16Now, we're on a lode now, so a lode is an artificial canal.
0:10:16 > 0:10:19How does that differ from the rest of the fen?
0:10:19 > 0:10:22Traditionally there would have been natural waterways
0:10:22 > 0:10:26throughout the Fens and as part of the drainage process, man-made waterways,
0:10:26 > 0:10:29lodes were dug, all by hand,
0:10:29 > 0:10:33which seems quite incredible now when you look at the scale of this. It was dug manually.
0:10:33 > 0:10:35- And are there lakes as well out in the fen?- Yes.
0:10:35 > 0:10:37We call lakes "meres",
0:10:37 > 0:10:40and that's a particularly low-lying area
0:10:40 > 0:10:43where a lake could sit and that's what we call a mere.
0:10:43 > 0:10:46And this must be a real haven for wildlife around here.
0:10:46 > 0:10:50Wicken Fen has got more species recorded on it than any other site in England,
0:10:50 > 0:10:55over 8,000 species now, and a lot of those are small insects, invertebrates,
0:10:55 > 0:10:58butterflies, dragonflies, but a wide variety of birds as well.
0:10:58 > 0:11:00So how big is Wicken Fen?
0:11:00 > 0:11:05Wicken Fen now is just under 2,000 acres in size and it's quite an interesting history
0:11:05 > 0:11:10to why Wicken remains one of the last few remaining fragments of undrained fen in the Great Fen basin.
0:11:10 > 0:11:14Charles Darwin and the Cambridge academics, those early naturalists,
0:11:14 > 0:11:17were coming out from Cambridge and avidly collecting here
0:11:17 > 0:11:21and they realised that if they didn't step in, then their hunting grounds would be gone.
0:11:21 > 0:11:26In 1896, Sir Hubert Gough recommended to the National Trust
0:11:26 > 0:11:30in one of the National Trust's first meetings that they should purchase Wicken Fen.
0:11:30 > 0:11:34Happily, four years later the National Trust bought the first two acres for just £10.
0:11:34 > 0:11:39So environmental conservation was going on in the 1800s, really?
0:11:39 > 0:11:43We could almost say this was one of the very first birthplaces of that movement,
0:11:43 > 0:11:48the recognition that unless people stepped in to do something they could lose these valuable habitats.
0:11:49 > 0:11:55The Fens is an area rich in wildlife, not least of the feathered variety.
0:11:55 > 0:12:02Huge flocks of birds travel thousands of miles to the Fens each year. Among them are swans.
0:12:02 > 0:12:06In winter the resident population of mute swans are joined
0:12:06 > 0:12:10by their migrating cousins, creating a spectacular annual event
0:12:10 > 0:12:13that can be enjoyed both day and night.
0:12:17 > 0:12:22Well, that's quite a sight, isn't it? A field full of swans!
0:12:22 > 0:12:25- Absolutely fantastic. - How many do you reckon there are?
0:12:25 > 0:12:27Probably about 600 or 700 out there at the moment.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29What sort?
0:12:29 > 0:12:32- Whoopers?- Yeah, mostly whoopers, looking at them now.
0:12:32 > 0:12:37There are a few Bewicks mixed in there but, yeah, it's mostly whooper swans.
0:12:37 > 0:12:39And they come here to feed, do they?
0:12:39 > 0:12:42Yeah, they come out from the washes during the daytime,
0:12:42 > 0:12:46they feed out on the fields and they're feeding on sugar beet tops here,
0:12:46 > 0:12:50which is generally their favourite food during the daytime.
0:12:50 > 0:12:52The beet's been harvested and it's just the top left?
0:12:52 > 0:12:57Yeah, the beets have all been lifted and the machine mulches up the tops
0:12:57 > 0:13:03and lays it on the top of the field, like you can see out there at moment, and the swans absolutely love it.
0:13:03 > 0:13:04Good carbohydrates.
0:13:04 > 0:13:09Yeah, yeah. Really, really high in carbohydrates, the beet tops,
0:13:09 > 0:13:12and that's what the swans need most.
0:13:12 > 0:13:16And do the farmers mind whole flocks of swans descending on their fields?
0:13:16 > 0:13:21When it's just the beet tops like this, no, the farmers are quite OK with it,
0:13:21 > 0:13:24but you can get some problems
0:13:24 > 0:13:27when the swans go and feed out on the winter wheat, things like that.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30They have great big feet.
0:13:30 > 0:13:34They paddle across the wet mud and they can trample the winter wheat,
0:13:34 > 0:13:38so it can be a bit of crop damage there, unfortunately, yeah.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42And is this a typical daily pattern for the birds,
0:13:42 > 0:13:45that they will take off in the early morning,
0:13:45 > 0:13:47land in the fields, feed, and then go back at night?
0:13:47 > 0:13:49Yeah, that's pretty much what they do.
0:13:49 > 0:13:52They're on the reserve during the evening time,
0:13:52 > 0:13:56roosting on the water is a safe place,
0:13:56 > 0:14:00and then daytimes, they're out on the field, out on the sugar beet tops
0:14:00 > 0:14:03and harvested potatoes and also the winter wheat,
0:14:03 > 0:14:05and that's where they spend their days
0:14:05 > 0:14:08and then they come back again in the evenings.
0:14:10 > 0:14:16And it's in the evenings that birdwatchers young and old come to Welney from all over the nation
0:14:16 > 0:14:20to witness one of the best wildlife displays of the year.
0:14:20 > 0:14:27Swans gathering in their thousands under the floodlights of the observatory for a free handout.
0:14:44 > 0:14:48So a free supper before bedtime and the perfect habitat.
0:14:48 > 0:14:54No wonder that every winter, this vast lagoon is turned into Swan Lake.
0:15:13 > 0:15:15From the beauty of Wicken Fen,
0:15:15 > 0:15:19I'm travelling on to Well Creek, near Outwell.
0:15:29 > 0:15:34I'm walking along Well Creek, one of the many waterways that criss-cross this whole area.
0:15:34 > 0:15:36I'm here to meet Peter Carter.
0:15:36 > 0:15:41He's a willow maker, a mole catcher and an eel trapper.
0:15:41 > 0:15:43As a child I used to come eel fishing here,
0:15:43 > 0:15:48but with numbers dwindling, things certainly aren't like they used to be.
0:15:51 > 0:15:52- Hi there.- Hello.
0:15:52 > 0:15:54You must be Peter. I'm Ben.
0:15:54 > 0:15:56- Nice to meet you. - So am I OK to step aboard?
0:15:56 > 0:15:58Yeah, by all means.
0:16:05 > 0:16:08So we're looking for some eel traps, are we, Peter?
0:16:08 > 0:16:10We are. Known as eel hives.
0:16:10 > 0:16:13How long have you been doing this?
0:16:13 > 0:16:16Most of my life, to be honest. Old family trade.
0:16:16 > 0:16:21The family have been doing it, well, we know over 200 years,
0:16:21 > 0:16:25but they've been on the fen 500, so the chances are they've always done it.
0:16:25 > 0:16:29- So for 500 years they've been catching eels along here? - Or trying!
0:16:29 > 0:16:33So they're obviously really significant to the local area.
0:16:33 > 0:16:35Oh, yes. Yeah, eels were the fen's gold.
0:16:35 > 0:16:39All the old churches and chapels and villages
0:16:39 > 0:16:42had to pay all their rates in eels at one time.
0:16:42 > 0:16:44Ely Cathedral was built,
0:16:44 > 0:16:46the stonework was paid for in eels.
0:16:46 > 0:16:51So, I'm assuming then that a river like this was absolutely teeming with eels.
0:16:51 > 0:16:56Oh, yeah. Even when we were kids, you could see them pouring up the rivers, but you don't see that now.
0:16:56 > 0:17:01So, how many people in this area still do what you do and catch eels?
0:17:01 > 0:17:03I'm the last in this part.
0:17:09 > 0:17:12- I can see... There, that's the first one.- Where, over here somewhere?
0:17:12 > 0:17:14There it is, in front of you. The willow stick.
0:17:14 > 0:17:17- Which one? I can't even see... - Ah, see, that's the secret.
0:17:17 > 0:17:20- Ah, the crossed willows. I do see that now.- There we go.
0:17:20 > 0:17:24- So, there's a pot somewhere on the end of this, is there?- Yeah.
0:17:24 > 0:17:26- Here it comes.- Oh, wow! Look at that!
0:17:26 > 0:17:30- Handmade, obviously.- Oh, yeah. Made the same way, the family way.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32Is there anything in it?
0:17:32 > 0:17:34- No, nothing in there.- No eels.- No.
0:17:34 > 0:17:36So, is this made of willow?
0:17:36 > 0:17:38It is willow, yeah. Split willow
0:17:38 > 0:17:42and it's the same style of trap they've made for thousands of years.
0:17:42 > 0:17:45- They haven't changed it.- So, how does it work? Do you bait it?
0:17:45 > 0:17:48- Yeah, we put bait in this end. - And what do you use?
0:17:48 > 0:17:53- Roadkill, worms. Something smelly really is the best bait.- Um-hm.
0:17:53 > 0:17:58One of the old favourites used to be an old dead cat because nothing stinks like an old dead cat.
0:17:58 > 0:18:01And what they say is, if you put it in the garden and bury it,
0:18:01 > 0:18:05when the neighbours start moaning you know it's ripe enough to use it.
0:18:05 > 0:18:08- For eels.- Yeah.- Then the eels go into the trap and can't get out
0:18:08 > 0:18:10because the hole's too small in the end?
0:18:10 > 0:18:13Yeah, you've got a "chair" in there, it's an old fenland word.
0:18:13 > 0:18:15They have a fantastic migration route, don't they?
0:18:15 > 0:18:20They start off in the Sargasso Sea and they're like a little flat fish
0:18:20 > 0:18:22when they start off. It takes...
0:18:22 > 0:18:27It's 4,000 miles to get here and they follow the sea currents
0:18:27 > 0:18:31and they come up round the Wash and come into the fen.
0:18:31 > 0:18:36They'll live here up to 20, 30 years and while they're here they grow,
0:18:36 > 0:18:38but they're not sexed until they head back.
0:18:38 > 0:18:40So, it's not until they head back they become sexed.
0:18:40 > 0:18:42- Really?- Yeah. - So they're neither male nor female?
0:18:42 > 0:18:47No. And they reckon most of the ones coming off the Fens seemed to be male.
0:18:47 > 0:18:53On the other side of the country, they're mostly females, so it must be something to do with the food.
0:18:53 > 0:18:55And then they turn and head back.
0:18:55 > 0:18:57And it takes six years to get back
0:18:57 > 0:19:00and they literally eat their own stomachs,
0:19:00 > 0:19:02they don't feed for the whole trip.
0:19:02 > 0:19:06- They lay their eggs and then die. - What an extraordinary creature.
0:19:06 > 0:19:08It's a fantastic creature, really.
0:19:08 > 0:19:14So, if we go back to the sort of '80s or something, would this have been absolutely brimming?
0:19:14 > 0:19:18Oh, you could have a dozen eels in one of these in the 80s, easy.
0:19:18 > 0:19:22Even more so, you know? But we don't see that at all now.
0:19:22 > 0:19:24As I say, some days we don't get anything.
0:19:24 > 0:19:27- That's how sad it's getting. - So, the trap goes back in...
0:19:27 > 0:19:29- Yeah.- For another day.
0:19:34 > 0:19:38There's no definitive reason for why eel numbers have plummeted,
0:19:38 > 0:19:43but research suggests a combination of overfishing, water pollution
0:19:43 > 0:19:47and the construction of dams and weirs on rivers is behind the decline.
0:19:47 > 0:19:53The traditional methods of eel catching, like the eels themselves, are in danger of disappearing.
0:19:53 > 0:19:57Fortunately, the human spirit is nothing if not adaptable.
0:19:57 > 0:20:01The farming industry has had to flex with economic and social trends
0:20:01 > 0:20:05and the fenland farmers are no different.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16At first glance, this looks like a field
0:20:16 > 0:20:20of dog daisies, but it's Britain's latest and perhaps
0:20:20 > 0:20:22sweetest smelling crop.
0:20:22 > 0:20:24It is in fact chamomile.
0:20:25 > 0:20:29As garden plant, chamomile has been around for centuries.
0:20:29 > 0:20:35Renowned for its soothing and healing properties, it was a favourite in medieval herb gardens.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38In more recent times, the writer Mary Wesley brought its new fame
0:20:38 > 0:20:41in the title of her bestseller The Chamomile Lawn.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44But here it's being grown for its oil.
0:20:45 > 0:20:50In this part of Norfolk it might soon be replacing the traditional fields of wheat.
0:20:50 > 0:20:54So, what do you make of this crop then, Ken?
0:20:54 > 0:20:56Well, it's... It's very...
0:20:56 > 0:21:01It smells very nice and we get a pretty good ground cover, but it's certainly different!
0:21:01 > 0:21:05- You've only got, what, three quarters of an acre this year?- Yeah.
0:21:05 > 0:21:06Do you plan to expand?
0:21:06 > 0:21:09Oh, yes. If we get the right oil content in this chamomile,
0:21:09 > 0:21:12yes, we shall increase our acreage.
0:21:12 > 0:21:16- Is it doing well so far? - Yes, we're told by the experts
0:21:16 > 0:21:19that we've got a very high oil content in the flower heads.
0:21:19 > 0:21:22The flower heads are rather large and we're quite hopeful.
0:21:22 > 0:21:26This first harvest of chamomile could be crucial.
0:21:26 > 0:21:29Ken has joined a consortium of small farmers in Norfolk
0:21:29 > 0:21:33looking to new alternative crops to keep them in business.
0:21:33 > 0:21:38They're being helped by special funding from Brussels and the Ministry Of Agriculture
0:21:38 > 0:21:42under a scheme designed to strengthen the local economy while protecting the environment.
0:21:42 > 0:21:49On a small corner of his 98 acres Ken is also experimenting with other aromatic plants,
0:21:49 > 0:21:52such as yarrow, which is widely used in herbal medicine.
0:21:52 > 0:21:58He's even trying out angelica, whose stems are crystallised and used in cake making.
0:21:58 > 0:22:02What do your friends in the pub think when they hear about this aromatic crop?
0:22:02 > 0:22:06We've had a few leg pulls and a few jokes about how beautiful we smell
0:22:06 > 0:22:09and how we should be at ease with ourselves,
0:22:09 > 0:22:13but I think, all in all, there's a little bit of interest now,
0:22:13 > 0:22:17especially with cereal prices which are at quite a low now.
0:22:18 > 0:22:22In this shed is the prototype chamomile distillery.
0:22:22 > 0:22:28The plants go into the top there and then steam is used to vaporise the oil from the plants.
0:22:28 > 0:22:30Everything goes through this condenser,
0:22:30 > 0:22:35then out the bottom there we get water with the oil floating on top.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37Mick Gahagan, this is your project, isn't it?
0:22:37 > 0:22:40An awful lot of chamomile is needed for just a bit of oil, isn't it?
0:22:40 > 0:22:45It certainly is, yes. But that's part of the charm of this crop,
0:22:45 > 0:22:48that a whole crop can be reduced down into a small bottle
0:22:48 > 0:22:51and be stored away until you want to actually sell it.
0:22:51 > 0:22:55It's better than growing tomatoes where you have to sell them there and then.
0:22:55 > 0:23:00- It's a beautiful colour. I wouldn't have expected it to be blue somehow.- That's right.
0:23:00 > 0:23:02That's the chamazulene in the oil,
0:23:02 > 0:23:07which is one of the main ingredients that is used therapeutically.
0:23:07 > 0:23:14It's an anti-inflammatory and things like that. It's actually caused...
0:23:14 > 0:23:16The blue is caused during the process of distillation.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20- Can you use it to make chamomile tea?- No, not chamomile tea.
0:23:20 > 0:23:24It has a bitter taste, this stuff, it's the wrong kind of chamomile.
0:23:24 > 0:23:29Ken Goodyear's three quarters of an acre will produce just four litres of oil,
0:23:29 > 0:23:34but if it's used for aromatherapy it could be worth up to £5,000.
0:23:34 > 0:23:36Do you think it is going to be a success?
0:23:36 > 0:23:37I hope so, yeah.
0:23:37 > 0:23:41The farmers themselves will have control over the distillation part,
0:23:41 > 0:23:45which is the value added part, which is the important aspect.
0:23:45 > 0:23:50It's not often they can keep control of their product right to the shelf.
0:23:50 > 0:23:55This area of North Norfolk has hundreds of small farms struggling to make a profit.
0:23:55 > 0:23:58Many of them are run by tenants of the county council,
0:23:58 > 0:24:02which is leading the project to develop aromatic crops.
0:24:02 > 0:24:07Julian Hepburn is the council's land agent and he believes it's vital for the farmers to diversify.
0:24:07 > 0:24:11The future for grain crops and sugar beet isn't very bright,
0:24:11 > 0:24:15especially with Eastern Europe coming into the European Community,
0:24:15 > 0:24:18and we've got to look to other crops to provide extra cash for sales.
0:24:18 > 0:24:21But it's started on a very small scale, hasn't it?
0:24:21 > 0:24:24Well, we've got to do our trials to make sure things are right,
0:24:24 > 0:24:27to get our markets and everything else and make lots of mistakes,
0:24:27 > 0:24:30which we hope we'll get right this year,
0:24:30 > 0:24:33then we're going to progress it up to the millennium
0:24:33 > 0:24:37where we hope we'll really get going and provide some real results.
0:24:37 > 0:24:41Is it just going to be growing the stuff here or will you process it as well?
0:24:41 > 0:24:45We will process it with our own distillation plants, perhaps two plants,
0:24:45 > 0:24:51then go on and we may have an aromatherapy centre to attract tourism into the area.
0:24:51 > 0:24:55And how much involvement will the growers have in the whole thing?
0:24:55 > 0:24:57In the longer term a great deal of involvement.
0:24:57 > 0:25:01We are going to set up a limited company were the farmers will be
0:25:01 > 0:25:06directors and shareholders in the company because we want them to participate in the financial side,
0:25:06 > 0:25:10because we think from the county council, that if you've got your own money in it,
0:25:10 > 0:25:12something's going to be much more successful.
0:25:12 > 0:25:19So, an old favourite flower could soon be bringing, dare I said, the sweet smell of success.
0:25:19 > 0:25:24It's taken an awful lot of chamomile to produce this tiny amount of oil,
0:25:24 > 0:25:27but I'm told it only takes two or three drops of it
0:25:27 > 0:25:32to give you a really relaxing bath.
0:25:32 > 0:25:34Mmm!
0:25:34 > 0:25:38John Craven, as ever, immersed in his subject.
0:25:38 > 0:25:42I'm back on Ken's farm to find out how the business is faring,
0:25:42 > 0:25:46while helping plant out a new crop of chamomile.
0:25:47 > 0:25:49It's been about 12 years then, since...
0:25:49 > 0:25:51since we first visited you here.
0:25:51 > 0:25:53- Yes.- It was a brand new idea...
0:25:53 > 0:25:56Oh, gosh! Look, I'm already getting behind.
0:25:56 > 0:26:00- Are you keeping up with it? - Yeah, here we go.
0:26:00 > 0:26:01A lot's changed?
0:26:01 > 0:26:03A lot's changed, yes.
0:26:03 > 0:26:06We were diversifying into more crops for the oils.
0:26:06 > 0:26:09Right. What other crops have you diversified into?
0:26:09 > 0:26:13- I think yarrow was one of the ones we first tried.- Yeah.
0:26:13 > 0:26:17We were also doing peppermint, melissa and hyssop.
0:26:17 > 0:26:23- We've also tried clary sage and we've also now this year doing again hemp for essential oil production.- Right.
0:26:23 > 0:26:27We're probably the only people in the UK doing hemp essential oil.
0:26:27 > 0:26:32Apart from diversifying into other essential oil crops, have you expanded the farm?
0:26:32 > 0:26:36Yes, the farm... The acreage into herbs has expanded
0:26:36 > 0:26:40- along with the volume of material sold as well.- Yeah.
0:26:40 > 0:26:43How has the farm changed in size, then?
0:26:43 > 0:26:49I think about 12 years ago the farm was about 125, 150 acres
0:26:49 > 0:26:53and we've been very lucky that we've been able to expand on that acreage.
0:26:53 > 0:26:56We're farming just over 500 acres now.
0:26:56 > 0:26:59- Wow!- Although it's not all herbs. - Yeah.
0:26:59 > 0:27:06I'd say about 10%, 15% is herbs and the rest is in the normal arable crops
0:27:06 > 0:27:11of potatoes, wheat, onions and sugar beet, which is pretty traditional for this area.
0:27:11 > 0:27:16So, you must be very proud when you look out on these fields and see how the farm's changed?
0:27:16 > 0:27:19I think we are. There are moments when we tear our hair out
0:27:19 > 0:27:22because there are difficulties with weed control
0:27:22 > 0:27:27and keeping certain weeds out of the herbs, but it's still a bit of a challenge, but we're...
0:27:27 > 0:27:30I think we change techniques every year and along comes something else,
0:27:30 > 0:27:35we try a different technique and if it's successful we carry it through to the next year.
0:27:35 > 0:27:38Have you noticed a change in the wildlife on the farm, as well?
0:27:38 > 0:27:42Yes, I think because this particular... We grow two chamomiles on the farm.
0:27:42 > 0:27:47One's an annual and is the chamomile people would know in chamomile tea,
0:27:47 > 0:27:51then there's this one, the Roman chamomile and this is a perennial.
0:27:51 > 0:27:53- Right.- So, what we're planting here today...
0:27:53 > 0:27:58- Yeah.- Provided we can keep the weeds out it's probably in the ground for five or six years.
0:27:58 > 0:28:00- So, there's not much interference with the soil, then?- No.
0:28:00 > 0:28:03But because it's in for five or six years,
0:28:03 > 0:28:06there's good ground cover during the winter months for wildlife.
0:28:06 > 0:28:09And we've noticed a great increase in, well, birds
0:28:09 > 0:28:14- and the brown hare population on this farm has also increased. - Has it really?
0:28:14 > 0:28:17Yeah. Last year in fact, just across the way here,
0:28:17 > 0:28:23- I actually saw five hares, five brown hares all boxing in a circle.- Really?
0:28:23 > 0:28:27Now, I hadn't seen that since I was about 12 or 14 years old,
0:28:27 > 0:28:29so that's due to the chamomile.
0:28:41 > 0:28:44Do you feel proud when you look out onto the field
0:28:44 > 0:28:46and see what you've achieved over the years?
0:28:46 > 0:28:48Oh, yes. You sort of...
0:28:48 > 0:28:53It gives you satisfaction when you see the plants growing, you think,
0:28:53 > 0:28:57we put those in and it looks good and especially when they come to the distillery
0:28:57 > 0:28:59to be harvested and put into...
0:28:59 > 0:29:04- make into the oils.- So, this I have to say, is very therapeutic.
0:29:04 > 0:29:07I wouldn't mind spending my day doing this.
0:29:13 > 0:29:15So, a really successful family story here?
0:29:15 > 0:29:18Yeah, it's been a real family sort of operation.
0:29:26 > 0:29:28A real success story there.
0:29:28 > 0:29:32Ken, his family and his team completely transformed
0:29:32 > 0:29:35the way they managed their land
0:29:35 > 0:29:38to respond to new business opportunities.
0:29:40 > 0:29:44My journey today through the watery world of the Fens has taken me
0:29:44 > 0:29:46from Wicken Fen to Outwell
0:29:46 > 0:29:49and across the agricultural land of Welney.
0:29:49 > 0:29:52Now I've arrived at Burwell Lode in Upware.
0:30:27 > 0:30:32This book is by the late, great Roger Deakin, the writer and famous environmentalist.
0:30:32 > 0:30:37Back in 1996 he set out to swim across the British Isles.
0:30:37 > 0:30:44He swam across aqueducts, moats, rivers, lochs, lakes, the ocean, swimming pools, spas.
0:30:44 > 0:30:46You name it, he swam it.
0:30:46 > 0:30:51And what's more, he also swam in the Fens and I'm feeling rather inspired.
0:30:56 > 0:31:03Today the rivers, lakes and waterfalls of the UK are cleaner, safer and more accessible than
0:31:03 > 0:31:07at any time in living memory and, thanks in no small part to the work
0:31:07 > 0:31:15of Roger Deakin, people are starting to rediscover the thrill of what has become known as wild swimming.
0:31:23 > 0:31:27OK. I don't really know how deep it is, so I'll do a nice shallow...
0:31:27 > 0:31:30Well, I'll take it nice and slowly.
0:31:30 > 0:31:33A bit chilly.
0:31:33 > 0:31:36A bit gooey under foot.
0:31:36 > 0:31:37OK, here we go.
0:31:58 > 0:32:01There's actually something rather special about...
0:32:01 > 0:32:04being so close to nature,
0:32:04 > 0:32:09swimming in the Fens in one of these lodes.
0:32:09 > 0:32:11I like to think that
0:32:11 > 0:32:16hundreds of years ago small boys would have been swimming around these...
0:32:16 > 0:32:19little rivers, enjoying themselves.
0:32:29 > 0:32:34The legality behind the right to wild swim is a complex issue.
0:32:34 > 0:32:38It's best to check with local people before taking the plunge in unknown waters.
0:32:38 > 0:32:41They'll also know if the water's safe for swimming.
0:32:43 > 0:32:48This is the same area where I was eel fishing the other day
0:32:48 > 0:32:52and Roger Deakin writes in his book about swimming
0:32:52 > 0:32:56in rivers teeming with eels and how as you stepped
0:32:56 > 0:33:01through the mud you could feel them wriggling under your toes.
0:33:01 > 0:33:03No sign of them today, though.
0:33:11 > 0:33:17My tips for wild swimming, research your swimming spot, always go with a friend,
0:33:17 > 0:33:22a film crew in my case, and take some warm, dry clothes and a hot drink.
0:33:22 > 0:33:24It can be rather chilly when you get out!
0:33:29 > 0:33:31That was...
0:33:31 > 0:33:33bracing...
0:33:33 > 0:33:36but strangely enjoyable.
0:33:36 > 0:33:39I think I'd like to do that again sometime.
0:33:39 > 0:33:41Maybe on a warmer day, though!
0:33:50 > 0:33:57Over the centuries, the Fens and lodes have been drained of water, particularly for agriculture.
0:33:57 > 0:34:03In fact, since the 1600s, more than 99% of the Fens have been lost.
0:34:10 > 0:34:14The definition of fen is low lying wetland.
0:34:14 > 0:34:19East Anglia was once covered with such swamps, but in the 17th century
0:34:19 > 0:34:23work began to drain them, creating some of the richest soil in the UK.
0:34:23 > 0:34:30But now there are plans to bring the marshlands back to 20,000 acres of Cambridgeshire.
0:34:30 > 0:34:36The biggest scheme is centred on Wicken Fen, which could expand from 1,600 acres to 10,000.
0:34:36 > 0:34:41The old part of the fen is very much an island of conservation in a sea of arable
0:34:41 > 0:34:44and as such it's vulnerable and we don't think very sustainable
0:34:44 > 0:34:48and by expanding it and giving the reserve and wildlife much more room
0:34:48 > 0:34:51it'll be more sustainable into the future.
0:34:51 > 0:34:55And how are you going to flood this whole vast area of countryside?
0:34:55 > 0:34:57It's not as difficult as you might think.
0:34:57 > 0:35:02Hydrology in this area, or the water levels if you like, are governed by the Internal Drainage Board.
0:35:02 > 0:35:06They pump water out and constantly pumping water out.
0:35:06 > 0:35:09We feel that, if we can reduce that amount of drainage,
0:35:09 > 0:35:14we can get the water in. The water is already there, we just won't remove quite as much of it.
0:35:14 > 0:35:18So, if the National Trust plan comes off, over the next century
0:35:18 > 0:35:21all the land in a straight line
0:35:21 > 0:35:24between here and Cambridge, which is 17 miles away,
0:35:24 > 0:35:27will be bought up and turned back into fenland,
0:35:27 > 0:35:29but not all the local farmers are keen on the idea.
0:35:29 > 0:35:35This is one of the farms that, in the long term, the National Trust would like to include in its plans.
0:35:35 > 0:35:39John Robinson's family have lived and worked round here since the place was first drained.
0:35:39 > 0:35:45So, John, what's your reaction then to this plan to flood the farmland, to bring the water back again?
0:35:45 > 0:35:47Well, I think it's an absolute disaster.
0:35:47 > 0:35:51If it was set aside, you could bring the land back into production
0:35:51 > 0:35:54within a year or two, but if it's flooded
0:35:54 > 0:35:56it'll take years to get back to the conditions it is now.
0:35:56 > 0:36:01But I don't think it's part of the scenario ever to return the land to agriculture again.
0:36:01 > 0:36:03They want wetlands here, they say.
0:36:03 > 0:36:05That's what they say, but we don't accept that.
0:36:05 > 0:36:10All of us have made a good living out of agriculture here for over 300 years
0:36:10 > 0:36:14and I can't see why they should take this away from us.
0:36:14 > 0:36:17Farmers like John who don't want the land to be flooded
0:36:17 > 0:36:21say the scheme will have no benefits for local people.
0:36:21 > 0:36:26I cannot understand why they need to expand any further
0:36:26 > 0:36:30because it is really a museum of natural history.
0:36:30 > 0:36:32We have no compulsory purchase.
0:36:32 > 0:36:34The farmers don't have to sell us the land.
0:36:34 > 0:36:39Now, it just so happens that in the five years since the project was conceived
0:36:39 > 0:36:41we have had three landowners come to us to sell land to us.
0:36:41 > 0:36:44It isn't a sprint this project, it's a marathon
0:36:44 > 0:36:47and we're in no rush to make sure we get all the land in one go.
0:36:47 > 0:36:51Opponents argue that such piecemeal purchases will bring a blight to the area
0:36:51 > 0:36:55and they don't agree with the Trust that the soil is deteriorating,
0:36:55 > 0:36:58they say crops are better than ever.
0:36:58 > 0:37:01So who will be the winners as the water level rises?
0:37:01 > 0:37:03I think the tourists might win.
0:37:03 > 0:37:08I can't see where anybody who gets a living from the Fens will win.
0:37:08 > 0:37:13- And what about wildlife? - I can't see where they'll improve that much, to be honest with you.
0:37:13 > 0:37:16We'll find a few more water birds because, obviously,
0:37:16 > 0:37:20they like to dabble in the grass in the wintertime.
0:37:20 > 0:37:24Of course, it'll bring people into the area and it will benefit tourism locally,
0:37:24 > 0:37:27but as far as the benefits for wildlife, I would argue
0:37:27 > 0:37:30that a hole in the ground filled with water has wildlife benefits.
0:37:30 > 0:37:34What we're planning is something a great deal grander than that
0:37:34 > 0:37:40and it'll be, I sincerely hope, a good deal better than just benefiting a few ducks.
0:37:40 > 0:37:44Wicken Fen is not the only restoration happening in the fenlands.
0:37:44 > 0:37:47The Great Fen Project is another high-profile scheme
0:37:47 > 0:37:51aiming to reinstate this unique wetland habitat.
0:37:52 > 0:37:56The idea of restoring the fenland habitat has grown in momentum
0:37:56 > 0:37:59with some high profile supporters.
0:37:59 > 0:38:02Stephen Fry is the president of the Great Fen Project
0:38:02 > 0:38:09and as part of their campaign they recently held a concert in Cambridge to celebrate the natural world.
0:38:09 > 0:38:15Ellie Harrison went to meet Stephen to find out just why he's so passionate about the Fens.
0:38:26 > 0:38:29King's College Chapel in Cambridge is a beautiful setting
0:38:29 > 0:38:32and there's a real buzz in the atmosphere this evening
0:38:32 > 0:38:36because one of Europe's finest orchestras, the Britten Sinfonia,
0:38:36 > 0:38:40is here to play works by Mahler, Vaughan Williams and Benjamin Britten,
0:38:40 > 0:38:42but tonight isn't just about music.
0:38:42 > 0:38:47It's also about an ambitious project to transform rural land north of the city
0:38:47 > 0:38:52and I'm about to meet the public face of that project, a certain Stephen Fry.
0:38:56 > 0:39:02When did the idea for the music concert come about to connect with the Great Fen Project?
0:39:02 > 0:39:05One of the natural things we always wanted to do was to show
0:39:05 > 0:39:09that in the same way that a habitat is connected to people, animals,
0:39:09 > 0:39:13food, business, the whole community in the 21st century,
0:39:13 > 0:39:19it is also connected to other forms of human expression, including painting and music,
0:39:19 > 0:39:24and there's a great tradition in Britain of landscape going together with poetry.
0:39:24 > 0:39:29I mean, in a sense you may argue the great jewels of our poets were all poets of the countryside.
0:39:29 > 0:39:33So, the idea of connecting it altogether seems a very natural one.
0:39:33 > 0:39:38- And was it moving?- It was. What I liked was it was dramatic and full of life and excitement.
0:39:38 > 0:39:44The joke you might say is if you commissioned a piece about the Fens I suppose it'll be flat!
0:39:44 > 0:39:48But in fact, when you go to the living fen, with the trees
0:39:48 > 0:39:52and the extraordinary wildlife and the flowers and the sedge
0:39:52 > 0:39:57and the reeds and things, you don't get a sense of flatness at all. You get an incredible sense of life.
0:40:01 > 0:40:03It's an ongoing process to...
0:40:03 > 0:40:07bring back the parts of the fenland, 9,000 acres of the fenland,
0:40:07 > 0:40:12to what you might call pristine state, which you may be tempted to say, what, under water?
0:40:12 > 0:40:17Famously of course the fenland was very, very wet and marshy and was drained in the 18th...
0:40:17 > 0:40:2217th and 18th centuries and is now some of the most valuable farmland in the world, and that's a good thing.
0:40:22 > 0:40:27We're not trying to say that all the farmland must be returned to wildlife,
0:40:27 > 0:40:32but it's so beautiful and so little known how lovely the landscape is here.
0:40:32 > 0:40:36How have farmers reacted? Reclaiming the Fens means it isn't suitable
0:40:36 > 0:40:39for agriculture any more. Hasn't it been all right for farmers?
0:40:39 > 0:40:42People have made the point, and it's a very good point to make.
0:40:42 > 0:40:44We're not trying to take over the whole thing.
0:40:44 > 0:40:49- No.- There's 1% of original fenland left in Britain. 1%!
0:40:49 > 0:40:54And we've got our little 9,000 acres, much of which can be farmed, actually.
0:40:54 > 0:40:58So, it's not about either farming or just a lot of wildflowers and people
0:40:58 > 0:41:02skipping around them saying, "Oh, isn't it lovely!" People have to eat.
0:41:07 > 0:41:14Walking the Fens, it's not hard to see why Stephen Fry is so passionate about this special place.
0:41:14 > 0:41:20The Great Fen Project is an example of what happens when very committed people become very organised.
0:41:20 > 0:41:25And there are few people more committed and organised than the ladies of the Women's Institute.
0:41:28 > 0:41:31That is more my style of cooking!
0:41:31 > 0:41:38The WI has long been dismissed as cakes, jam and Jerusalem, but it has surprisingly radical roots.
0:41:38 > 0:41:41A group linked with the suffragist movement which helped rural women
0:41:41 > 0:41:44cope with everyday challenges, like cooking.
0:41:44 > 0:41:46Jamie Oliver, eat your heart out!
0:41:46 > 0:41:48# And did those feet in ancient... #
0:41:48 > 0:41:52The WI's rousing anthem, sung to mark its commitment to
0:41:52 > 0:41:57improving rural life, starting with sisterly support for those in need.
0:41:57 > 0:42:00I don't know whether to hold it or just run away!
0:42:05 > 0:42:07The WI is still thriving.
0:42:07 > 0:42:09This used to be a pigsty,
0:42:09 > 0:42:12but it's been converted into a new headquarters
0:42:12 > 0:42:16for the Cambridge Federation and all generations use it.
0:42:16 > 0:42:21Which may come as a surprise as the WI's often seen as an aging organisation
0:42:21 > 0:42:24struggling for new members among working woman.
0:42:24 > 0:42:28Today we'll meet three generations of WIers who say it's modern, but true to its heritage.
0:42:28 > 0:42:35I think we're very fortunate at the beginning of the year to welcome fresh blood into the Institute
0:42:35 > 0:42:43and I hope you'll find it enjoyable and not too full of business and rather uninteresting features.
0:42:43 > 0:42:45When you came to an Institute meeting,
0:42:45 > 0:42:47one of the early organisers said,
0:42:47 > 0:42:52whether you were countess or the sweeper's wife,
0:42:52 > 0:42:56when you came through the Institute door, you were on the same footing.
0:42:56 > 0:43:00And one of the things which was important was that every meeting had
0:43:00 > 0:43:03refreshments, either tea or coffee,
0:43:03 > 0:43:07and there was a strict rota for making the tea and for serving it
0:43:07 > 0:43:09and so you could be in a position
0:43:09 > 0:43:13where the lady of the manor was actually making and serving tea to her parlour maid.
0:43:13 > 0:43:18..Was stolen away on a fine summer's day.
0:43:18 > 0:43:21By the '50s drama had become an important part of the WI,
0:43:21 > 0:43:25giving women who'd never spoken in public a chance to perform.
0:43:25 > 0:43:28This is one of the first productions I took part in.
0:43:28 > 0:43:30We used to write our own pantomimes,
0:43:30 > 0:43:32or one of the members would write the pantomime.
0:43:32 > 0:43:36Again, we had a membership of about 100 here.
0:43:36 > 0:43:38Yes, I would say about 100, and...
0:43:38 > 0:43:42- So, where are you?- I was only in the chorus.- Oh, right.
0:43:42 > 0:43:46- The back row of the chorus, there. - Oh, nice tiara!- Yes.
0:43:46 > 0:43:49That's more what you'd expect from a WI photo -
0:43:49 > 0:43:52lots of women and three very large cakes!
0:43:52 > 0:43:55Yes, absolutely. Yes, and why not?
0:43:55 > 0:43:59That was fun in those days, and those women in the village here
0:43:59 > 0:44:02when we had an Institute of about 140, 150 members.
0:44:02 > 0:44:05- Gosh, it was huge.- It was huge.
0:44:05 > 0:44:10In its heyday the WI had half a million members and launched a variety of high-profile campaigns
0:44:10 > 0:44:14from improving rural housing to the drive to keep Britain tidy.
0:44:14 > 0:44:18The WI still campaigns and still helps rural women cope,
0:44:18 > 0:44:23offering friendship and courses, from fitness to baking, thank goodness!
0:44:23 > 0:44:27Now, earlier on I was making a cake, admittedly in a rather inexpert way,
0:44:27 > 0:44:30but it seemed a fitting thing to do for the WI
0:44:30 > 0:44:35and it is something you still do, but now with a bit of a twist.
0:44:35 > 0:44:39Yes, the cake that we have there is to depict
0:44:39 > 0:44:41our hazardous chemicals campaign.
0:44:41 > 0:44:44We have a toxic symbol on the top of it.
0:44:44 > 0:44:51And we've been lobbying MEPs to vote stringently so that hazardous chemicals will be phased out
0:44:51 > 0:44:54- and substitutes put where we have to have them.- I want one of those.
0:44:54 > 0:44:57For most, the WI is about making friends in the village.
0:44:57 > 0:45:00That's true of the newest recruits I met over tea and cake.
0:45:00 > 0:45:06What's been the reaction from your other friends when you say, I can't do that, I'm going to my WI meeting?
0:45:08 > 0:45:10Family and friends?
0:45:10 > 0:45:15Absolute derision, I have to say! It's been pretty...
0:45:15 > 0:45:19Some serious ribbing. But, you know, I think there's a whole new movement
0:45:19 > 0:45:25of people that just want to meet others in their community and you have to create the forum for that.
0:45:25 > 0:45:29And within two months, we've now got speakers lined up
0:45:29 > 0:45:30for the next 12 months
0:45:30 > 0:45:34and if it had just been informal friends getting together
0:45:34 > 0:45:35that wouldn't have happened.
0:45:35 > 0:45:41The other thing I think though is that it appeals to a wide range of people. If we just started...
0:45:41 > 0:45:44We're all young with kids, if we'd just started a normal group
0:45:44 > 0:45:46it would be like a coffee morning.
0:45:46 > 0:45:49The kids would all play and it would be very odd for us to be able
0:45:49 > 0:45:52to knock on somebody older than us and say, come to our meeting.
0:45:52 > 0:45:54It would have been a playgroup,
0:45:54 > 0:45:59so having it under the WI means that across the community, people could come and join.
0:45:59 > 0:46:02Leaving the ladies of the Women's Institute behind,
0:46:02 > 0:46:05my journey has brought me to the banks of the River Cam.
0:46:05 > 0:46:08My plan is to punt into Cambridge,
0:46:08 > 0:46:13and Ed Woodhouse, a punt chauffeur, is going to be my mentor.
0:46:13 > 0:46:15- Hello.- Nice to meet you. How are you?
0:46:15 > 0:46:17- Nice to meet you, Ben. - This is mine, is it?
0:46:17 > 0:46:18- This is all yours, yes.- Perfect.
0:46:18 > 0:46:22- So, you're going to give me a lesson today?- I am, yeah.
0:46:22 > 0:46:24Do you want to jump over here?
0:46:24 > 0:46:27Perfect.
0:46:27 > 0:46:29OK. What, shall I just hop in over here?
0:46:29 > 0:46:30Right in the middle, there.
0:46:32 > 0:46:35Right, so where do we begin, then?
0:46:35 > 0:46:38- First of all, what's this? - This is a pole or a quant.
0:46:38 > 0:46:40- OK.- And it's what powers the boat.
0:46:40 > 0:46:43- Right.- And this is a punt and we are punting.- Right.
0:46:43 > 0:46:47And punting is presumably most useful where there's shallow water.
0:46:47 > 0:46:50Yeah, they're flat-bottomed boats.
0:46:50 > 0:46:53They haven't got keels which is why they've been really popular
0:46:53 > 0:46:55in the Fens because they're very shallow water,
0:46:55 > 0:46:58so they're the perfect boat for this part of the world.
0:46:58 > 0:47:02So, what do I need to know then to become a punter?
0:47:02 > 0:47:07You need to know that this pole powers the boat.
0:47:07 > 0:47:12I mean, it's the pole hitting the riverbed which powers this along.
0:47:12 > 0:47:17- So, in order to punt, what you do is you pull the pole all the way out of the water.- Yeah.
0:47:17 > 0:47:23You drop it to the bottom, let it run through your hands, push and then afterwards use the pole as a rudder.
0:47:23 > 0:47:26- Right.- So, if I push out to the right the boast will go right.
0:47:26 > 0:47:29If I push behind myself to the left the boat turns left.
0:47:29 > 0:47:31That's it, really. Do you fancy a go?
0:47:31 > 0:47:34- Absolutely. Do you need much stability back here?- No, no.
0:47:34 > 0:47:37These bigger boats are much easier.
0:47:37 > 0:47:39Yeah, the smaller boats, like this one here,
0:47:39 > 0:47:42you do need some balance, but these are pretty easy.
0:47:42 > 0:47:44So, just pull this up, all the way up?
0:47:44 > 0:47:48- Pull it all the way out, drop it to the bottom.- Yeah. Like that?
0:47:48 > 0:47:52- Open your hands and let it run through.- Just let it tumble down.
0:47:52 > 0:47:56- Then push...- All the way to the end. - We're moving to the right, so now I presumably...
0:47:56 > 0:48:00- Push behind yourself. That's it, there we go!- Clever, isn't it? It's a rudder as well as...
0:48:00 > 0:48:05- Yeah, it's a multipurpose tool. - Your engine, as such. - Exactly. That's it. Yeah.
0:48:05 > 0:48:07Right. So, again, bring this up.
0:48:07 > 0:48:11- Yep.- Drop that in the water like that. Oh, nearly, yeah.
0:48:11 > 0:48:15And then presumably with bridges like this you... You have to...
0:48:15 > 0:48:18You have to duck, I tragically don't have to duck, but there we go!
0:48:18 > 0:48:20There we go. Before I lose my head.
0:48:20 > 0:48:26Is this the speed we'd go at or would you be looking at a slightly faster speed?
0:48:26 > 0:48:29I might go a little bit faster, but not much though.
0:48:29 > 0:48:32You're doing really well. There are racing punts.
0:48:32 > 0:48:37- Are there?- Yeah, on the Thames, which go pretty fast, but these aren't built for speed.
0:48:37 > 0:48:40They're more strawberries and champagne.
0:48:40 > 0:48:42I like that.
0:48:42 > 0:48:47- Where's our strawberries and champagne?- I don't know, I was counting on you, Ben.
0:48:47 > 0:48:51- If you trust me, have a seat and take it easy. - That sounds fantastic.
0:48:51 > 0:48:54And...I'll punt us along.
0:48:57 > 0:49:01- You're doing really well, you know? - I think you're just saying that.
0:49:01 > 0:49:07No, no. A couple more hours you to give up on this TV lark and be a punt chauffeur!
0:49:12 > 0:49:16Today, I've been on a journey through the East Anglian Fens.
0:49:16 > 0:49:19I started walking on stilts at Wicken Fen,
0:49:19 > 0:49:23hunted for eels at Outwell, visited a farm at Welney
0:49:23 > 0:49:26and swam wild in the creek at Upware.
0:49:26 > 0:49:30I'm finishing my travels punting into Cambridge
0:49:30 > 0:49:32with Ed Woodhouse as my guide.
0:49:36 > 0:49:41- And what's that bridge I can see now on the other side?- That's called the Mathematical Bridge.
0:49:41 > 0:49:45- That's the one rumoured to have been designed by Isaac Newton. - Rumoured? You mean it wasn't?
0:49:45 > 0:49:49No. He died about 30 years before it was even conceived of.
0:49:49 > 0:49:53- I doubt he had anything to do with it.- But it's still a beautiful iconic bridge.- Yeah.
0:49:53 > 0:49:56No, it's very, very famous. That is the oldest building on the river.
0:49:56 > 0:49:59- Right.- It's called the President's Lodge.
0:49:59 > 0:50:04It's part of Queen's College. This is all Queen's College round here. And so it dates from about 1460.
0:50:04 > 0:50:06- Right.- There or thereabouts.
0:50:06 > 0:50:09Very lovely. Yeah, this part over here is where the boss of
0:50:09 > 0:50:12Queens's lives, which is kind of a perk of the job, isn't it, really?
0:50:12 > 0:50:15To live somewhere like that. But, yeah, it's a lovely old thing.
0:50:15 > 0:50:19So, obviously punting is absolutely integral to Cambridge, isn't it?
0:50:19 > 0:50:20Well, you'd think so, wouldn't you?
0:50:20 > 0:50:25But, I mean, pleasure punting has only been around for just over 100 years.
0:50:25 > 0:50:30It first appeared in about 1904 and it... Obviously it's been sort of booming ever since.
0:50:30 > 0:50:34Now, there's a lot more punts on the river than there ever have been.
0:50:34 > 0:50:36For pleasure. Were the ever used for a genuine...
0:50:36 > 0:50:39- Yeah, they were.- ..Mode of transport or for moving products?
0:50:39 > 0:50:44Both. And out in the Fens they were used a lot to go out and do your fishing and shooting from.
0:50:44 > 0:50:49But there's all sorts of places you can punt in England, as well.
0:50:49 > 0:50:52Is there a great rivalry between Cambridge and Oxford punters?
0:50:52 > 0:50:57There's a huge argument about whether or not... Because you're punting from the Cambridge end at the moment.
0:50:57 > 0:51:00This is Cambridge style. You're standing on the deck of the boat.
0:51:00 > 0:51:04- So, if I was doing Oxford punting, where would I be? - You'd be at the other end.- OK.
0:51:04 > 0:51:10That's the original way of punting. Annoyingly, Oxford have got the authentic method.
0:51:10 > 0:51:12- You're admitting that, as well! - On camera!
0:51:12 > 0:51:15I know, it's disgraceful! I'll be driven out of town.
0:51:15 > 0:51:17Yeah, originally they didn't have seats here.
0:51:17 > 0:51:21The seats were up at this end in front of us and the idea was you walked the punt,
0:51:21 > 0:51:24so you'd start at that end and get a really good head of steam up,
0:51:24 > 0:51:28a big push, walk all the way down and turn around and do it again
0:51:28 > 0:51:32and then slowly, people started to put more seats in so it was more comfortable
0:51:32 > 0:51:34and the Oxford people ended up staying at that end
0:51:34 > 0:51:37and for some reason Cambridge people have always punted here.
0:51:37 > 0:51:42It's a bit of a mystery why they ended up... It's probably just to be different more than anything else.
0:51:42 > 0:51:44You don't want to ape your enemy, do you?
0:51:44 > 0:51:46So, Cambridge people have always,
0:51:46 > 0:51:49since it was recorded that people punted in Cambridge, punted from this end.
0:51:53 > 0:51:56SHOUTING AND JEERING
0:51:56 > 0:52:00- Look who it is with that. - Poser!
0:52:00 > 0:52:02Poser!
0:52:02 > 0:52:05Poser, they're calling me?
0:52:05 > 0:52:08- It seems a bit unfair, doesn't it?- That's mean, isn't it?
0:52:08 > 0:52:11They're all just enjoying it, I'm doing the hard work here!
0:52:11 > 0:52:15- That seems very unfair. - I'm glad I made someone's day, Ed.
0:52:20 > 0:52:22Presumably, it's done all over the world?
0:52:22 > 0:52:25Absolutely. It's an idea that would occur to you or me,
0:52:25 > 0:52:28- quite quickly if we were in shallow water...- Yeah.
0:52:28 > 0:52:33- And we needed to power a boat, you'd think of a long stick, wouldn't you? - Nearly lost it, nearly lost it!
0:52:36 > 0:52:39- It's lovely and peaceful again now. - Absolutely.
0:52:39 > 0:52:42- We've got past all the hordes. - Yeah, exactly.
0:52:45 > 0:52:50- So, how do you think I've done? - You've done really well, you know?
0:52:50 > 0:52:54Very good. You had to weave through all those obstacles and stuff. Very good. Well done.
0:52:54 > 0:52:58How do you fancy taking over again while I have a little rest?
0:52:58 > 0:53:01There you go, Ed, all yours. I won't complain about you taking over.
0:53:25 > 0:53:30Well, I began this journey in the wilds of the East Anglian Fens
0:53:30 > 0:53:34and I'm ending it here in the beautiful historic centre of Cambridge
0:53:34 > 0:53:39with Ed punting me down the River Cam just as people would have done 100 years ago.
0:53:51 > 0:53:54Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd