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Hello. Today I'm on a journey in the east of England, | 0:00:26 | 0:00:29 | |
travelling through the historic flatlands of South Lincolnshire. | 0:00:29 | 0:00:33 | |
I'm starting my journey near Stamford at Burghley House, | 0:00:38 | 0:00:43 | |
where I'll be granted a rare insight into the life of an amazing man | 0:00:43 | 0:00:47 | |
who created this building and helped alter the course of British history. | 0:00:47 | 0:00:52 | |
This is the draft in William Cecil's hand | 0:00:53 | 0:00:59 | |
of the warrant to execute Mary, Queen of Scots. | 0:00:59 | 0:01:03 | |
-THE draft? -THE draft. | 0:01:03 | 0:01:05 | |
'Then I'll walk the course, getting a unique rider's eye view | 0:01:05 | 0:01:09 | |
'of the hazards of Burghley's famous horse trials.' | 0:01:09 | 0:01:12 | |
They have to jump off that. | 0:01:12 | 0:01:13 | |
-Quite intimidating, isn't it? -It's quite spectacular, yes. | 0:01:13 | 0:01:18 | |
'I'll travel northeast, | 0:01:18 | 0:01:19 | |
'where I'll put my nose to the grindstone | 0:01:19 | 0:01:22 | |
'discovering how the country's tallest windmill is being brought back to life.' | 0:01:22 | 0:01:27 | |
The crowning glory will be when those sails go on. | 0:01:27 | 0:01:30 | |
There might be an odd tear and bit of a shake in the voice | 0:01:30 | 0:01:33 | |
and definitely a glass of champagne. | 0:01:33 | 0:01:35 | |
'Pushing on west to Easton Gardens, I discover how one woman's passion | 0:01:35 | 0:01:40 | |
'has reclaimed this 400 year-old lost treasure. | 0:01:40 | 0:01:44 | |
'And finally I'll come full circle back to where I started | 0:01:47 | 0:01:51 | |
'as I get close and personal with endangered creatures from the deep | 0:01:51 | 0:01:55 | |
'found in the lakes of Burghley House.' | 0:01:55 | 0:01:58 | |
Oh, wow. | 0:01:58 | 0:01:59 | |
They're tiny, aren't they? | 0:01:59 | 0:02:01 | |
And, along the way, I'll be looking back at the very best | 0:02:01 | 0:02:04 | |
of the BBC's rural programmes from this part of the world. | 0:02:04 | 0:02:07 | |
Welcome to Country Tracks. | 0:02:07 | 0:02:09 | |
Lincolnshire is a county famous for its agriculture. | 0:02:12 | 0:02:16 | |
Its flat, fertile landscape makes it perfect farming country. | 0:02:16 | 0:02:20 | |
But it's also a place of great beauty and intriguing history. | 0:02:21 | 0:02:24 | |
I'm starting my journey just outside Stamford, which in days gone by | 0:02:26 | 0:02:30 | |
was an important staging post on the route north to south. | 0:02:30 | 0:02:33 | |
But the stone town's ancient architecture is outshone | 0:02:35 | 0:02:38 | |
by the Tudor glory of nearby Burghley House, | 0:02:38 | 0:02:41 | |
built by local man William Cecil in 1555. | 0:02:41 | 0:02:45 | |
And it's here that I'm making my first stop. | 0:02:45 | 0:02:49 | |
William Cecil, or Lord Burghley as he was also known, | 0:02:49 | 0:02:52 | |
was at the heart of Queen Elizabeth I's court. | 0:02:52 | 0:02:55 | |
But he went further than that. | 0:02:55 | 0:02:56 | |
He was her confidante, influencing international events | 0:02:56 | 0:03:01 | |
and shaping the course of our nation's history. | 0:03:01 | 0:03:04 | |
Philip, we are clearly heading up, but what's the destination? | 0:03:15 | 0:03:19 | |
Well, this is the original Tudor grand staircase | 0:03:19 | 0:03:22 | |
and we are going up to a place which people don't normally get to see. | 0:03:22 | 0:03:26 | |
'To find out more about the man and his house, | 0:03:26 | 0:03:29 | |
'I'm following estate manager, Philip Gompertz.' | 0:03:29 | 0:03:32 | |
And here we are on the roof of Burghley. | 0:03:32 | 0:03:36 | |
-The roof? -Yeah. | 0:03:36 | 0:03:37 | |
-Wow! -Quite something, isn't it? | 0:03:37 | 0:03:40 | |
It's incredible. What a landscape up here. All these pillars, what are they, chimneys? | 0:03:42 | 0:03:47 | |
Most are chimneys. A mixture of classical features you can see up here. | 0:03:47 | 0:03:51 | |
Burghley was very much influenced by the classical studies. | 0:03:51 | 0:03:54 | |
You can see these Doric columns are chimneys. You've got pinnacles. | 0:03:54 | 0:03:58 | |
Triumphal arches. Obelisks. | 0:03:58 | 0:04:01 | |
It's showing his new-found knowledge and wealth that he had. | 0:04:01 | 0:04:04 | |
-He was showing that off to the people. -What an unusual space. | 0:04:04 | 0:04:07 | |
It's a bold statement, isn't it? So, why this, why here? | 0:04:07 | 0:04:11 | |
He built it for one main reason, | 0:04:11 | 0:04:13 | |
and that was to entertain and flatter Queen Elizabeth I. | 0:04:13 | 0:04:16 | |
-The Queen? So she would have come here, would she? -She was meant to come here in 1565. | 0:04:16 | 0:04:22 | |
She was due to visit Lord Burghley here. | 0:04:22 | 0:04:24 | |
Unfortunately, his daughter caught smallpox the day before she was due to arrive | 0:04:24 | 0:04:28 | |
and the Queen ended up staying in a local convent nearby and she never ended up staying here. | 0:04:28 | 0:04:34 | |
And this was slightly to prove himself. I mean, he was new money. | 0:04:34 | 0:04:37 | |
-He wasn't old aristocracy. -He wasn't actually aristocracy. | 0:04:37 | 0:04:40 | |
His father was in the court but from a farming background. | 0:04:40 | 0:04:43 | |
You can see a number of locations on the roof where there are reminiscences of that. | 0:04:43 | 0:04:47 | |
The wheatsheaf on the coat of arms which shows his origins as a family. | 0:04:47 | 0:04:51 | |
The chimneys here were showing that he had this classical knowledge, | 0:04:51 | 0:04:55 | |
but the number of chimneys is showing off there number of rooms he had in his new house | 0:04:55 | 0:04:59 | |
and the number of servants he had. | 0:04:59 | 0:05:01 | |
The more smoke you saw meant more wealth at the time. | 0:05:01 | 0:05:04 | |
It's very ornate up here. | 0:05:04 | 0:05:06 | |
It looks like it's to be enjoyed. There's the staircase we came up. | 0:05:06 | 0:05:09 | |
Most houses wouldn't have stairs to the roof. So would he have been up here? | 0:05:09 | 0:05:13 | |
It's designed to be used and enjoyed, quite frankly. | 0:05:13 | 0:05:16 | |
It's a place where people have walked around up here | 0:05:16 | 0:05:19 | |
and discussed matters of state without being overheard. | 0:05:19 | 0:05:22 | |
It's a place where he could bring his guests onto the roof | 0:05:22 | 0:05:25 | |
and look out over his estate and say, "Look what I've become now." | 0:05:25 | 0:05:29 | |
-A little bit of showing off but a bit of secrecy in there as well? -Absolutely. | 0:05:29 | 0:05:33 | |
It's said that, in his day, William Cecil was the most powerful non-royal alive. | 0:05:38 | 0:05:44 | |
His position helped him consolidate the influence and wealth | 0:05:46 | 0:05:50 | |
that enabled him to create the magnificence of Burghley House. | 0:05:50 | 0:05:55 | |
I'm on my way to meet house curator, Jon Culverhouse | 0:05:56 | 0:05:59 | |
to see something truly remarkable that shows, | 0:05:59 | 0:06:02 | |
not only was William Cecil a powerful statesman, | 0:06:02 | 0:06:05 | |
he was also a spy. | 0:06:05 | 0:06:08 | |
This is a remarkable document. | 0:06:08 | 0:06:09 | |
It's remarkable, it's a beautiful thing, | 0:06:09 | 0:06:12 | |
but it's remarkable because at the time, in William Cecil's time, | 0:06:12 | 0:06:16 | |
it was a working document. | 0:06:16 | 0:06:18 | |
This was his atlas. | 0:06:18 | 0:06:20 | |
It's a beautiful, beautiful thing. It dates from, this edition, 1561. | 0:06:20 | 0:06:24 | |
I don't think I've ever seen a map from this time | 0:06:24 | 0:06:28 | |
and it's just so beautifully decorated and so detailed. | 0:06:28 | 0:06:32 | |
And hand-coloured, of course. | 0:06:32 | 0:06:34 | |
These maps of the Continent are very accurate. | 0:06:34 | 0:06:37 | |
You could pretty much find your way around now. | 0:06:37 | 0:06:41 | |
OK, this is Gaul, France. | 0:06:41 | 0:06:45 | |
Southern coast of England. | 0:06:45 | 0:06:46 | |
The coast of France right the way down to Spain in the south. | 0:06:46 | 0:06:51 | |
But, on the back of the page referring to France, is the treasurer's hand. | 0:06:51 | 0:06:56 | |
And what he's doing here is recording the various ports, | 0:06:56 | 0:07:01 | |
Bordeaux, Nimes. | 0:07:01 | 0:07:02 | |
He's recording the ports | 0:07:02 | 0:07:04 | |
and then here he's writing who is in charge of the various towns. | 0:07:04 | 0:07:08 | |
He's writing about the size of the garrison of these port towns. | 0:07:08 | 0:07:14 | |
Who is the man in command. | 0:07:14 | 0:07:15 | |
Who is the night commander you see if you want something done. This is intelligence. | 0:07:15 | 0:07:19 | |
It is intelligence, isn't it? The movers and shakers and military strength in different places. | 0:07:19 | 0:07:25 | |
Intelligence gathering. This is 16th century James Bond. | 0:07:25 | 0:07:28 | |
So he was involved in intelligence gathering abroad | 0:07:28 | 0:07:31 | |
but also he had quite potent domestic power, didn't he? | 0:07:31 | 0:07:35 | |
He was a force to be reckoned with. He was right behind the Queen. | 0:07:35 | 0:07:39 | |
He and Walsingham probably just about ran this country together. | 0:07:39 | 0:07:44 | |
He was involved in everything that went on. | 0:07:44 | 0:07:46 | |
There was nothing that the court did, that Elizabeth did, that he didn't have a hand in. | 0:07:46 | 0:07:51 | |
Including some of Elizabeth's biggest decisions she had to make? | 0:07:51 | 0:07:55 | |
The very biggest. | 0:07:55 | 0:07:57 | |
The biggest of which was probably the awful decision to execute her cousin. | 0:07:57 | 0:08:01 | |
'And it's this that starkly illustrates William Cecil's influence over historic events. | 0:08:01 | 0:08:08 | |
'When Queen Mary abdicated the Scottish throne and fled to England in 1567, | 0:08:08 | 0:08:13 | |
'her cousin Queen Elizabeth granted her a safe haven. | 0:08:13 | 0:08:17 | |
'But when plots and rumours began to circulate | 0:08:17 | 0:08:20 | |
'that Catholic Mary was looking to usurp Protestant Elizabeth, | 0:08:20 | 0:08:24 | |
'her courtiers knew that action had to be taken. | 0:08:24 | 0:08:28 | |
'It was William Cecil who put before the Queen a royal warrant | 0:08:28 | 0:08:32 | |
'suggesting she execute her own cousin.' | 0:08:32 | 0:08:36 | |
It was a very major thing to actually get rid of Mary. | 0:08:36 | 0:08:41 | |
How can we be sure today that he had such a hand in this? | 0:08:41 | 0:08:46 | |
This document. | 0:08:46 | 0:08:47 | |
This is the draft, in William Cecil's hand, | 0:08:47 | 0:08:52 | |
of the warrant to execute Mary, Queen of Scots. | 0:08:52 | 0:08:56 | |
-THE draft? -THE draft. | 0:08:56 | 0:08:58 | |
From this, he made a fair copy which was then taken to the Queen | 0:08:58 | 0:09:03 | |
and she was persuaded to sign it. | 0:09:03 | 0:09:05 | |
You can see it's an emotional document. | 0:09:05 | 0:09:09 | |
This is his hurried hand if you like. | 0:09:09 | 0:09:12 | |
And here we get a sense of just how delicate he had to be. | 0:09:12 | 0:09:17 | |
He's choosing and crossing out his words carefully. | 0:09:17 | 0:09:20 | |
It's written in such a way that he can persuade the Queen. | 0:09:20 | 0:09:24 | |
Nobody knew her better. | 0:09:24 | 0:09:26 | |
He was the man who really understood what she was all about. | 0:09:26 | 0:09:29 | |
-There's a narrative here, a thought process going on on the page. -As he does it. | 0:09:29 | 0:09:33 | |
And so, when he'd put this together | 0:09:33 | 0:09:35 | |
and was happy with it, he then had the fair copy drawn up | 0:09:35 | 0:09:39 | |
and presented it to the Queen. | 0:09:39 | 0:09:42 | |
It's one thing to gently whisper this in someone's ear. | 0:09:42 | 0:09:45 | |
-It's another to commit it to writing. -Yeah. | 0:09:45 | 0:09:48 | |
Only someone very close to the Queen could do this. | 0:09:48 | 0:09:50 | |
I think probably only Cecil himself. | 0:09:50 | 0:09:52 | |
He was as close to her as anybody was in court. | 0:09:52 | 0:09:57 | |
It's pretty commonly thought that she signed it | 0:09:57 | 0:10:00 | |
with the thought that she would have time to recant | 0:10:00 | 0:10:04 | |
and say, "I didn't quite mean that." | 0:10:04 | 0:10:06 | |
But in fact, what happened was, the moment the ink was dry on the signature, | 0:10:06 | 0:10:10 | |
Cecil has it galloped up to Fotheringhay the next day, | 0:10:10 | 0:10:14 | |
where the Queen was being held, and she was executed within 24 hours. | 0:10:14 | 0:10:18 | |
So that there was no time to go back | 0:10:18 | 0:10:21 | |
and Elizabeth was deeply shocked and furious. | 0:10:21 | 0:10:24 | |
She exiled Cecil from the court and Cecil was in disgrace for three months. | 0:10:24 | 0:10:30 | |
It's an incredible privilege to be here with this actual document, | 0:10:30 | 0:10:34 | |
which, to some extent, changed history. | 0:10:34 | 0:10:36 | |
Yeah, the real thing is quite remarkable. | 0:10:36 | 0:10:39 | |
The sense of power and everything else that was put into this document | 0:10:39 | 0:10:45 | |
is there in this man's handwriting. | 0:10:45 | 0:10:47 | |
I think to see it in the flesh, as it were, is a very powerful and rare privilege. | 0:10:47 | 0:10:53 | |
This is England in the making. | 0:10:53 | 0:10:55 | |
'Thousands of tourists come here to see the beautiful building that William Cecil created. | 0:11:03 | 0:11:09 | |
'It really is a magnificent place. | 0:11:09 | 0:11:12 | |
'But thanks to those documents, I also feel I now have a grasp | 0:11:12 | 0:11:15 | |
'on the secret history of both the house and the man. | 0:11:15 | 0:11:20 | |
'Just beyond Burghley House, lies the local town of Stamford. | 0:11:28 | 0:11:32 | |
'William Cecil's wealth also helped revive | 0:11:32 | 0:11:34 | |
'the fortunes of this whole community in the 1500s. | 0:11:34 | 0:11:40 | |
'Jonathan Foyle stopped off there to find out more.' | 0:11:40 | 0:11:43 | |
Between Burghley's gatehouse and the River Welland, | 0:11:43 | 0:11:46 | |
lies the main approach into Stamford called High Street St Martin's | 0:11:46 | 0:11:50 | |
and the Cecils' influence can be seen from one end to the other. | 0:11:50 | 0:11:54 | |
Through a mixture of money and canny business sense, Cecil transformed | 0:11:54 | 0:11:58 | |
a medieval street into one of the finest highways in Britain. | 0:11:58 | 0:12:01 | |
When we talk about "high" in terms of high street and highway, | 0:12:02 | 0:12:06 | |
it has since the ninth century meant a primary route. | 0:12:06 | 0:12:10 | |
There are over 5,000 high streets in Britain | 0:12:10 | 0:12:12 | |
and, as they were the premier routes into town, | 0:12:12 | 0:12:15 | |
they became the focus of high fashion. | 0:12:15 | 0:12:17 | |
By about the 1720s, | 0:12:25 | 0:12:28 | |
architectural pattern books were becoming popular. | 0:12:28 | 0:12:31 | |
The pattern book is a way of giving you a manual | 0:12:31 | 0:12:33 | |
so you could copy the most fashionable styles from the capital and the great architects. | 0:12:33 | 0:12:38 | |
Now, this sort of chunky style became the Stamford style. | 0:12:38 | 0:12:43 | |
And it owes its origins to James Gibbs, the Scottish architect | 0:12:43 | 0:12:46 | |
who built the Church of St Martin-in-the-Fields | 0:12:46 | 0:12:49 | |
by Trafalgar Square. | 0:12:49 | 0:12:50 | |
And these great blocks that march around the windows and doors are called Gibbs architraves. | 0:12:50 | 0:12:55 | |
Stamford, the first major town north of London, loved it. | 0:12:55 | 0:12:59 | |
Balconies were all the rage in the Regency period | 0:12:59 | 0:13:02 | |
when it was much more acceptable to just show off, | 0:13:02 | 0:13:05 | |
so imagine the age of the stagecoach. | 0:13:05 | 0:13:08 | |
Coming into town would be 40 coaches a day bringing not just mail | 0:13:08 | 0:13:11 | |
but people of fashion and influence who were looking for places to lodge, | 0:13:11 | 0:13:15 | |
people to spend their time with and places to spend their money. | 0:13:15 | 0:13:18 | |
This was a spectator sport. | 0:13:18 | 0:13:21 | |
Stamford's wealth was built on the back of these fashionable travellers. | 0:13:21 | 0:13:26 | |
Inns provided a fresh change of horse and, in an age before hotels, | 0:13:26 | 0:13:29 | |
a safe place to spend the night. | 0:13:29 | 0:13:32 | |
Martin Smith is an expert on Stamford's coaching inns | 0:13:32 | 0:13:35 | |
and one of its most famous is the George near the river end of High Street St Martin's. | 0:13:35 | 0:13:40 | |
The structure of the whole building was based around this access route through, | 0:13:40 | 0:13:45 | |
and this would have been open to the elements | 0:13:45 | 0:13:47 | |
and horses and carriages and dung on the floor, probably. | 0:13:47 | 0:13:51 | |
And we can see scrape marks on the side. | 0:13:51 | 0:13:53 | |
And there's wagers actually in the early 19th century | 0:13:53 | 0:13:57 | |
to come down High Street St Martin's and do a right-angled turn | 0:13:57 | 0:14:01 | |
the quickest you could, through into this access route. | 0:14:01 | 0:14:05 | |
So this whole building would be rumbling | 0:14:05 | 0:14:07 | |
with the weight of vehicles, horses, | 0:14:07 | 0:14:09 | |
from the 17th century onwards. | 0:14:09 | 0:14:11 | |
As traffic increased between London and York, the George | 0:14:11 | 0:14:15 | |
expanded its accommodation providing a welcome home from home. | 0:14:15 | 0:14:18 | |
And here is this fantastic Georgian wing, | 0:14:18 | 0:14:21 | |
which is like an actual whole Georgian street. | 0:14:21 | 0:14:24 | |
It is, that is no normal-looking B&B. | 0:14:24 | 0:14:26 | |
The Cecils of Burghley House were paying for this, | 0:14:26 | 0:14:28 | |
so they put in the best they could to cater for the traveller. | 0:14:28 | 0:14:32 | |
You'd be wrong to think High Street St Martins | 0:14:33 | 0:14:35 | |
is all coaching inns and period des reses. | 0:14:35 | 0:14:38 | |
At the end of the street we find what looks like a row of quaint cottages. | 0:14:38 | 0:14:43 | |
But how can such lowly buildings occupy such a prime site? | 0:14:43 | 0:14:47 | |
Well, they're not cottages, but almshouses. | 0:14:47 | 0:14:50 | |
Almshouses are really an early form of terrace, | 0:14:50 | 0:14:54 | |
more or less identical houses united behind one facade | 0:14:54 | 0:14:56 | |
but they come from an older tradition, the monastic cloister | 0:14:56 | 0:14:59 | |
or the college quad, only here they are not enclosed, | 0:14:59 | 0:15:02 | |
they are broken open to display the charity | 0:15:02 | 0:15:05 | |
and the piety of the person who paid for them to be built. | 0:15:05 | 0:15:09 | |
And the builder, William Cecil. | 0:15:09 | 0:15:11 | |
William Cecil's houses top and tail St Martin's. | 0:15:11 | 0:15:15 | |
From the palatial Burghley which showcases how powerful he was, | 0:15:15 | 0:15:18 | |
to the humble almshouses revealing his pious charity. | 0:15:18 | 0:15:22 | |
By the north side of the almshouses | 0:15:22 | 0:15:24 | |
there is the bridge over the River Welland, | 0:15:24 | 0:15:26 | |
and here St Martin's ends and Stamford proper begins. | 0:15:26 | 0:15:29 | |
Right by the stone ford from which the Anglo-Saxons drew the name, | 0:15:29 | 0:15:33 | |
Stamford. | 0:15:33 | 0:15:34 | |
You could say that this is the end of this leg of the great coaching route | 0:15:34 | 0:15:38 | |
and the baton is handed on to the succession of communities | 0:15:38 | 0:15:41 | |
who all drew from and contributed to the Great North Road. | 0:15:41 | 0:15:44 | |
Back down the road at Burghley House I've come out into the 2,000 acres | 0:15:46 | 0:15:51 | |
of surrounding parkland to find out about a world-class sporting event | 0:15:51 | 0:15:55 | |
that is helping secure | 0:15:55 | 0:15:56 | |
the estate's financial future. | 0:15:56 | 0:15:59 | |
COMMENTATOR: Andrew's focus, unmistakable. | 0:16:01 | 0:16:04 | |
To come back and jump straight into water, | 0:16:04 | 0:16:07 | |
Armada is answering all of the questions with absolute ease. | 0:16:07 | 0:16:11 | |
Burghley Horse trials is one of the main events in the equestrian calendar. | 0:16:11 | 0:16:16 | |
It's one of only three worldwide events with a four-star rating, | 0:16:16 | 0:16:20 | |
and the course here at Burghley is known to be very technical, | 0:16:20 | 0:16:23 | |
requiring skill and endurance from both horse and rider. | 0:16:23 | 0:16:27 | |
And its four-star rating means | 0:16:27 | 0:16:29 | |
it ranks as the most challenging level for an equestrian event. | 0:16:29 | 0:16:33 | |
'Just that one unfortunate fall.' | 0:16:33 | 0:16:37 | |
This year the Land Rover Burghley Horse Trials are celebrating their 50th birthday, | 0:16:37 | 0:16:41 | |
and who better to show me what goes into staging the event | 0:16:41 | 0:16:46 | |
than clerk of the course, Philip Herbert. | 0:16:46 | 0:16:48 | |
Now I'm not exactly au fait with all things equestrian | 0:16:52 | 0:16:55 | |
so what happens here in a horse trial over three days? | 0:16:55 | 0:16:58 | |
This is what is called a three-day event. | 0:16:58 | 0:17:00 | |
-Which strangely enough takes place over four days. -Oh, OK. | 0:17:00 | 0:17:04 | |
And traditionally the three days have the three different tests. | 0:17:04 | 0:17:09 | |
The first day is dressage, the second day is for cross country, | 0:17:09 | 0:17:12 | |
and the third day is for showjumping. | 0:17:12 | 0:17:16 | |
Because we have more entries these days than there were originally, | 0:17:16 | 0:17:19 | |
it takes two days to do all the dressage, | 0:17:19 | 0:17:21 | |
so that takes place on Thursday and Friday, | 0:17:21 | 0:17:24 | |
and then Saturday is the big day which is when my side of things | 0:17:24 | 0:17:27 | |
comes into play which is the cross country. | 0:17:27 | 0:17:29 | |
Burghley held the first World Championships in 1966 | 0:17:29 | 0:17:34 | |
and has staged more international championships than any other venue. | 0:17:34 | 0:17:39 | |
It's down to staff like Philip and the course designers | 0:17:40 | 0:17:43 | |
to make sure it retains its prestige status. | 0:17:43 | 0:17:46 | |
So he's taking me for a closer look at one of the jumps | 0:17:46 | 0:17:49 | |
the cross-country course is famous for. | 0:17:49 | 0:17:52 | |
The Leaf Pit. | 0:17:52 | 0:17:54 | |
'And head now towards the Leaf Pit.' | 0:17:54 | 0:17:57 | |
'He can attack this, which he does.' | 0:17:57 | 0:18:01 | |
The log we're walking up to here is actually the alternative, | 0:18:01 | 0:18:04 | |
the easy alternative, of the obstacle. | 0:18:04 | 0:18:07 | |
The actual question is jumping down the step over here. | 0:18:07 | 0:18:11 | |
So horses are coming this way. | 0:18:11 | 0:18:13 | |
From that direction. | 0:18:13 | 0:18:14 | |
And they come to the edge of the step here, | 0:18:14 | 0:18:16 | |
and they have to jump off that, | 0:18:16 | 0:18:18 | |
and then there will be another obstacle at the bottom | 0:18:18 | 0:18:21 | |
which isn't there at the moment, which they will jump next. | 0:18:21 | 0:18:24 | |
That's quite a leap. | 0:18:24 | 0:18:25 | |
I wouldn't be that happy jumping off it right now with no horse, | 0:18:25 | 0:18:30 | |
but sitting a lot higher, it is quite intimidating, isn't it? | 0:18:30 | 0:18:33 | |
It is quite spectacular, yes. | 0:18:33 | 0:18:35 | |
'Probably route one. | 0:18:36 | 0:18:38 | |
'That unique style of riding.' | 0:18:38 | 0:18:40 | |
How dangerous is this? | 0:18:40 | 0:18:42 | |
There is some danger in the sport, isn't there? That is the challenge. | 0:18:42 | 0:18:46 | |
When you get on a horse and you ride it at over 20 mph | 0:18:46 | 0:18:50 | |
up to solid obstacles, inevitably there is some danger there, | 0:18:50 | 0:18:53 | |
but we manage the danger in the best possible way we can, | 0:18:53 | 0:18:57 | |
by the way the profiles of the fences are designed, | 0:18:57 | 0:19:00 | |
and we also have safety systems we incorporate into some of the fences. | 0:19:00 | 0:19:04 | |
And what's the challenge here, in terms of what skills it brings out of the rider, | 0:19:04 | 0:19:08 | |
what are you looking for in this kind of obstacle? | 0:19:08 | 0:19:10 | |
The three-day event is the all-round test for a horse | 0:19:10 | 0:19:14 | |
and they have to do the dressage first which is the obedience test | 0:19:14 | 0:19:17 | |
and they do certain movements, | 0:19:17 | 0:19:19 | |
and then they have to be bold and brave and agile | 0:19:19 | 0:19:21 | |
to do the cross country, | 0:19:21 | 0:19:23 | |
then they have to come back on the third day, | 0:19:23 | 0:19:25 | |
or the fourth day as it is now, | 0:19:25 | 0:19:26 | |
and do the showjumping | 0:19:26 | 0:19:27 | |
which shows that they are still fit and sound and agile enough | 0:19:27 | 0:19:31 | |
to jump the knock-down fences, | 0:19:31 | 0:19:32 | |
so it covers the whole range of equestrian skills. | 0:19:32 | 0:19:35 | |
And when you design this, do you jump on a horse | 0:19:35 | 0:19:38 | |
and test out the course once you've put it all up? | 0:19:38 | 0:19:41 | |
No, the course is never tested by anyone beforehand. | 0:19:41 | 0:19:45 | |
The first rider is the tester of it. | 0:19:45 | 0:19:47 | |
I find that extraordinary. | 0:19:47 | 0:19:48 | |
So how do you know if you have designed it so that it is rideable? | 0:19:48 | 0:19:51 | |
The course designer, Captain Mark Phillips, who does the job now | 0:19:51 | 0:19:55 | |
is an extremely experienced horseman | 0:19:55 | 0:19:57 | |
and he is spending his whole life looking at horses jumping obstacles, | 0:19:57 | 0:20:00 | |
and he has a very good idea in his mind of exactly what a horse can and can't do. | 0:20:00 | 0:20:04 | |
And then we have a whole panel of inspectors that come round | 0:20:04 | 0:20:07 | |
and make sure it complies with the rules, and it is all safe and suitable. | 0:20:07 | 0:20:11 | |
This is one of the leading events in the world, | 0:20:11 | 0:20:14 | |
it is run at the top level of competition, | 0:20:14 | 0:20:16 | |
and in fact it is one of the few events | 0:20:16 | 0:20:18 | |
that has never been cancelled or abandoned, | 0:20:18 | 0:20:21 | |
it's run every single year since 1961. | 0:20:21 | 0:20:23 | |
Crikey, some British determination in there, isn't there? | 0:20:23 | 0:20:27 | |
Even on foot you get a sense of just how tough this course is going to be. | 0:20:27 | 0:20:31 | |
When Adam Henson travelled to these parts, | 0:20:31 | 0:20:35 | |
he sampled a much more sedate use of the Lincolnshire countryside. | 0:20:35 | 0:20:38 | |
This big sky county makes it perfect for bird-watching. | 0:20:38 | 0:20:42 | |
It also boasts some of the best soil in the country, ideal for growing crops. | 0:20:42 | 0:20:47 | |
I'm in Deeping St Nicholas | 0:20:49 | 0:20:51 | |
to meet a farmer who's passionate about this landscape | 0:20:51 | 0:20:54 | |
and the birdlife that thrives here. | 0:20:54 | 0:20:56 | |
He has an MBE for a lifetime's dedication to farming and conservation, | 0:20:56 | 0:21:00 | |
and last year he was the Countryside Farmer of the Year. | 0:21:00 | 0:21:03 | |
And to meet him, you have to be up very early. | 0:21:03 | 0:21:07 | |
Yes? | 0:21:14 | 0:21:15 | |
Hello, Nicholas. | 0:21:15 | 0:21:16 | |
-Great to see you. -Hello. | 0:21:16 | 0:21:20 | |
Now tell me, how long have you been watching birds? | 0:21:20 | 0:21:23 | |
Well, since I was about this high, I suppose. | 0:21:23 | 0:21:26 | |
In fact, I fell out my first tree when I was nine. | 0:21:26 | 0:21:29 | |
I know we haven't got many trees around here, | 0:21:29 | 0:21:31 | |
and I was in bathing trunks. | 0:21:31 | 0:21:33 | |
And I fell into a bed of nettles. | 0:21:33 | 0:21:34 | |
Goodness me! And it didn't put you off? | 0:21:34 | 0:21:37 | |
No! | 0:21:37 | 0:21:39 | |
You've been looking after them for a long time, how did that get started? | 0:21:39 | 0:21:43 | |
I suppose in 1982 I wanted to know what birds were breeding on my farm | 0:21:43 | 0:21:47 | |
and so I came down the farm here with a map | 0:21:47 | 0:21:51 | |
and a pen and a pair of binoculars and recorded what I saw and heard. | 0:21:51 | 0:21:54 | |
By doing that I know what's declining, | 0:21:54 | 0:21:57 | |
and through my surveys on my farms and other people's farms, | 0:21:57 | 0:22:03 | |
I can see what is working and what isn't working, | 0:22:03 | 0:22:05 | |
so then I do my conservation measures | 0:22:05 | 0:22:08 | |
to fit things that are not doing very well. | 0:22:08 | 0:22:10 | |
Amazing. I'd love to have a look round. | 0:22:10 | 0:22:12 | |
Yes, OK, let's go. | 0:22:12 | 0:22:14 | |
Nicholas has monitored the birds on his farm for 30 years | 0:22:14 | 0:22:19 | |
and he's found that numbers have been falling steadily. | 0:22:19 | 0:22:22 | |
Why do you think that farmland birds have decreased? | 0:22:22 | 0:22:26 | |
Well, quite simply we've been farming too well. | 0:22:26 | 0:22:28 | |
We've got a good armoury of weedkillers, | 0:22:28 | 0:22:31 | |
so now in a field of wheat there needn't be any weeds | 0:22:31 | 0:22:34 | |
if the farmer does his job properly, | 0:22:34 | 0:22:36 | |
and the insects live on the weeds, | 0:22:36 | 0:22:39 | |
the birds need the insects to feed their young, | 0:22:39 | 0:22:43 | |
and when you have got two large fields of wheat, | 0:22:43 | 0:22:45 | |
or even three large fields of wheat, next to one another, | 0:22:45 | 0:22:48 | |
with no weeds in, | 0:22:48 | 0:22:50 | |
where will birds find the insects to feed their young? | 0:22:50 | 0:22:52 | |
On your farm you have done a lot to change that. | 0:22:52 | 0:22:55 | |
Yes, we have. | 0:22:55 | 0:22:56 | |
We have planted hedges, we have widened dykes into ponds, | 0:22:56 | 0:23:01 | |
we've put nest boxes up, | 0:23:01 | 0:23:03 | |
put islands in these ponds we've dug, | 0:23:03 | 0:23:05 | |
and we've also got these cultivated margins. | 0:23:05 | 0:23:09 | |
They're probably the biggest asset of all. | 0:23:09 | 0:23:11 | |
A lot of farmers would find it probably quite onerous | 0:23:11 | 0:23:15 | |
and many would claim they wouldn't have the time | 0:23:15 | 0:23:17 | |
to be able to put something back and get the birds here again. | 0:23:17 | 0:23:20 | |
Well, where there's a will, there's a way. | 0:23:20 | 0:23:22 | |
But tragically though, where there isn't a will, | 0:23:22 | 0:23:25 | |
there very often isn't a way. | 0:23:25 | 0:23:27 | |
But it's not too difficult. | 0:23:27 | 0:23:29 | |
There are prescriptions for farmers to get paid for doing these things, | 0:23:29 | 0:23:33 | |
and we are guardians of the countryside, | 0:23:33 | 0:23:36 | |
and we should acknowledge that, | 0:23:36 | 0:23:37 | |
and get on and try and bring farmland birds back. | 0:23:37 | 0:23:40 | |
To monitor the birds on his farm, | 0:23:44 | 0:23:46 | |
Nicholas keeps an eye on any newborn chicks. | 0:23:46 | 0:23:48 | |
So what are you doing here then, Nicholas? | 0:23:48 | 0:23:50 | |
I am putting a ring on these tree sparrow legs. | 0:23:50 | 0:23:55 | |
I've been monitoring the nest boxes, | 0:23:55 | 0:23:57 | |
we have put up 20 nest boxes for tree sparrows | 0:23:57 | 0:24:00 | |
and nearly all of them have been taken up. | 0:24:00 | 0:24:03 | |
We can follow their progress? | 0:24:03 | 0:24:05 | |
I wouldn't say follow their progress, | 0:24:05 | 0:24:07 | |
but there is a chance that one of these might be found somewhere. | 0:24:07 | 0:24:10 | |
Each ring has a different number on, and it has an address on it. | 0:24:10 | 0:24:14 | |
We know where it started life, | 0:24:14 | 0:24:16 | |
and when it's found it could be we know where it finishes its life. | 0:24:16 | 0:24:21 | |
You know how successful they have been, how long they have lived, | 0:24:21 | 0:24:24 | |
-how far they have gone. -That's right. | 0:24:24 | 0:24:26 | |
I've got three nest boxes | 0:24:26 | 0:24:27 | |
where they are actually having three broods this year. | 0:24:27 | 0:24:31 | |
So there is obviously plenty of food around, | 0:24:31 | 0:24:34 | |
and the sort of ponds that I've dug and the hedges I've planted | 0:24:34 | 0:24:38 | |
are actually working. | 0:24:38 | 0:24:40 | |
Nicholas grows organic, arable crops on this farm and like most farmers | 0:24:42 | 0:24:46 | |
he is always on the lookout to diversify. | 0:24:46 | 0:24:49 | |
By chance, he discovered a way of combining his love of birds and making his land work. | 0:24:49 | 0:24:54 | |
Now with all your passion for farm birds, | 0:24:54 | 0:24:56 | |
you're now growing this great big field of sunflowers, just for birdseed. | 0:24:56 | 0:25:00 | |
How did the idea come about? | 0:25:00 | 0:25:01 | |
We started feeding the birds in the winter in our farmyards. | 0:25:01 | 0:25:06 | |
And we had such a lot of birds, | 0:25:06 | 0:25:08 | |
800 buntings and finches at any one time, | 0:25:08 | 0:25:11 | |
it was a spectacle, so we had an open day. | 0:25:11 | 0:25:15 | |
And at that open day, two or three people said, | 0:25:15 | 0:25:18 | |
"Can you sell me any bird food? | 0:25:18 | 0:25:20 | |
"You must be feeding them with some good stuff." | 0:25:20 | 0:25:23 | |
But the truth was, we weren't. | 0:25:23 | 0:25:25 | |
But, you know, a few years later we started growing sunflowers | 0:25:25 | 0:25:29 | |
because they were far more nutritious than the rape | 0:25:29 | 0:25:32 | |
that we were selling then. | 0:25:32 | 0:25:34 | |
And here we are today. | 0:25:34 | 0:25:36 | |
So how many acres in total, just for the birds? | 0:25:36 | 0:25:38 | |
400. | 0:25:38 | 0:25:39 | |
Goodness me! | 0:25:39 | 0:25:41 | |
Making a bit of money? | 0:25:41 | 0:25:43 | |
Well, I'm not a very good accountant, | 0:25:43 | 0:25:46 | |
but we are keeping our heads above water, anyway. | 0:25:46 | 0:25:48 | |
Sounds like something I should do back home! | 0:25:48 | 0:25:50 | |
Nicolas is being modest. | 0:25:51 | 0:25:53 | |
He's now the biggest bird seed grower in the UK, | 0:25:53 | 0:25:56 | |
and sells 1,500 tonnes of it a year. | 0:25:56 | 0:25:58 | |
Alongside the sunflower seed he also grows millet, maize, | 0:25:58 | 0:26:02 | |
and wheat, to name a few. | 0:26:02 | 0:26:03 | |
After the seed is harvested, | 0:26:03 | 0:26:05 | |
it is cleaned and separated from stalks, | 0:26:05 | 0:26:08 | |
then it all gets mixed up into different bird recipes. | 0:26:08 | 0:26:11 | |
Then if flies off the shelves to homes across the country. | 0:26:11 | 0:26:14 | |
On my travels through South Lincolnshire, | 0:26:22 | 0:26:24 | |
I have left Burghley House behind me | 0:26:24 | 0:26:27 | |
and I am travelling northeast to the village of Moulton. | 0:26:27 | 0:26:30 | |
Wow! | 0:26:35 | 0:26:36 | |
What an incredible building. | 0:26:36 | 0:26:38 | |
This is Moulton windmill. | 0:26:38 | 0:26:40 | |
It was built in 1822. | 0:26:40 | 0:26:42 | |
Unfortunately it has stood idle for the last 15 years, | 0:26:42 | 0:26:45 | |
but I hear that's about to change. | 0:26:45 | 0:26:48 | |
Janet, how are you? | 0:26:52 | 0:26:53 | |
-Very well, thank you. -Good. Very busy up here, what is going on? | 0:26:53 | 0:26:56 | |
It is busy. | 0:26:56 | 0:26:57 | |
We are finishing off the last of the shutters ready for the sails. | 0:26:57 | 0:27:00 | |
Getting the shutters ready for the sails. This is what? | 0:27:00 | 0:27:03 | |
A shutter? | 0:27:03 | 0:27:05 | |
This is a shutter. This is number 208. | 0:27:05 | 0:27:08 | |
So the very last one that I am stitching now. | 0:27:08 | 0:27:11 | |
And where is this, pardon my windmill ignorance, | 0:27:11 | 0:27:15 | |
where is this going to go? | 0:27:15 | 0:27:16 | |
This sits on the sail stock, | 0:27:16 | 0:27:17 | |
so basically you have a piece of wood that sits in the middle | 0:27:17 | 0:27:20 | |
with a shutter either side, | 0:27:20 | 0:27:22 | |
and this allows us to actually catch the wind to push the sails round. | 0:27:22 | 0:27:26 | |
So it works a bit like a Venetian blind. | 0:27:26 | 0:27:28 | |
Once this shutter's stitched, it is coated with two coats | 0:27:28 | 0:27:32 | |
of this white paint, and that just seals the shutter then, | 0:27:32 | 0:27:35 | |
and makes it weatherproof. | 0:27:35 | 0:27:38 | |
The other bit it does is it makes that canvas taut. | 0:27:38 | 0:27:40 | |
As you can see on this at the minute, it is a bit baggy. | 0:27:40 | 0:27:43 | |
That just tightens it all up so it shrinks the canvas. | 0:27:43 | 0:27:46 | |
Very good. And a chain gang in operation behind us moving them all. | 0:27:46 | 0:27:50 | |
This is a lot of work. You have been going for how long now? | 0:27:50 | 0:27:53 | |
We started the project in 1998, | 0:27:53 | 0:27:55 | |
and the majority of the group involved in the project | 0:27:55 | 0:27:58 | |
-were here back in those early days. -Goodness. | 0:27:58 | 0:28:01 | |
I think it's just the sense of community we get from this building, | 0:28:01 | 0:28:04 | |
it really is special. It gets under your skin. | 0:28:04 | 0:28:06 | |
You don't have to be a geographer to look across and see this part | 0:28:14 | 0:28:18 | |
of Lincolnshire is very flat. It's ideal for these buildings. | 0:28:18 | 0:28:21 | |
Yes, and in this area alone, | 0:28:21 | 0:28:24 | |
there were over 300 windmills throughout Lincolnshire. | 0:28:24 | 0:28:27 | |
In this parish there were 12 working windmills and now we're down to one. | 0:28:27 | 0:28:33 | |
And if we don't save those buildings, where has our identity gone? | 0:28:33 | 0:28:36 | |
When these go up, how big is this windmill going to be? | 0:28:38 | 0:28:43 | |
We are the biggest, or we will be the biggest, | 0:28:43 | 0:28:45 | |
so as soon as the sails go on | 0:28:45 | 0:28:47 | |
we'll ask the Guinness Book of Records to get that listing correct. | 0:28:47 | 0:28:50 | |
At the minute, that goes to Maud Foster in Boston. | 0:28:50 | 0:28:53 | |
I'm sorry, we are going to have that title. | 0:28:53 | 0:28:55 | |
-A bit of windmill competition. -There is, yes. | 0:28:55 | 0:28:58 | |
The crowning glory will be when those sails go on, | 0:28:58 | 0:29:00 | |
and there might be an odd tear and a little bit of a shake in the voice. | 0:29:00 | 0:29:04 | |
Definitely a glass of champagne. | 0:29:04 | 0:29:06 | |
Despite losing its sails in a storm in 1822, | 0:29:07 | 0:29:10 | |
this mill was working until just 15 years ago. | 0:29:10 | 0:29:14 | |
And to find out what this windmill was like in its prime, | 0:29:15 | 0:29:18 | |
I'm heading down to meet the last miller of Moulton, | 0:29:18 | 0:29:21 | |
John Biggadike. | 0:29:21 | 0:29:23 | |
This building lost its sails over 100 years ago. | 0:29:23 | 0:29:26 | |
-That's right. -How have people been milling here ever since? | 0:29:26 | 0:29:29 | |
At the time it was let to another flour miller, Mr Tindall, | 0:29:29 | 0:29:34 | |
and he was a very enterprising miller, | 0:29:34 | 0:29:37 | |
and he bought the mill at Holbeach and moved there eventually. | 0:29:37 | 0:29:40 | |
But at that time he brought in a steam engine. | 0:29:40 | 0:29:44 | |
Obviously with engine power you can mill every day. | 0:29:44 | 0:29:48 | |
When you are waiting on the sails, you wait for the wind to blow. | 0:29:49 | 0:29:53 | |
And also, looking around, there are some peculiar things. | 0:29:53 | 0:29:57 | |
What would this, this looks like a lethal acorn, | 0:29:57 | 0:30:00 | |
but what actually is it? | 0:30:00 | 0:30:02 | |
I think it is part and parcel from the old windmill days, | 0:30:02 | 0:30:06 | |
to hang on the sails, on the chains behind the sails. | 0:30:06 | 0:30:09 | |
So that would open up or close up the shutters on the sails? | 0:30:09 | 0:30:12 | |
They will require the same thing or some newer ones | 0:30:12 | 0:30:15 | |
when they get the restoration. | 0:30:15 | 0:30:17 | |
How do you feel about the local people here, the community, | 0:30:24 | 0:30:28 | |
taking this on, it restoring it and putting sails on? | 0:30:28 | 0:30:30 | |
It's the best thing that could ever happen to it. | 0:30:30 | 0:30:33 | |
In all my career I wanted to see it, hopefully, preserved. | 0:30:33 | 0:30:38 | |
If any mill in this country is worth preserving, it is this one, | 0:30:38 | 0:30:42 | |
because it is the biggest and tallest that you come across. | 0:30:42 | 0:30:46 | |
I'm not saying that cos it was mine. | 0:30:46 | 0:30:48 | |
Because I've been in a good many, and that is a fact. | 0:30:48 | 0:30:51 | |
It really is a Rolls-Royce of a mill, | 0:30:51 | 0:30:53 | |
there's not another one like it. | 0:30:53 | 0:30:56 | |
Without doubt this is an incredibly unique place. | 0:30:59 | 0:31:03 | |
I love all the original features, the machine parts, | 0:31:03 | 0:31:06 | |
there's 100-year-old graffiti from some of the millers here, | 0:31:06 | 0:31:09 | |
and this great big solid, towering building. | 0:31:09 | 0:31:13 | |
But what is so important is that once this place | 0:31:13 | 0:31:16 | |
was at the centre of local food production, | 0:31:16 | 0:31:19 | |
and now thanks to everyone's efforts here | 0:31:19 | 0:31:22 | |
it is once again a community space, | 0:31:22 | 0:31:24 | |
it is once again at the heart and soul of Moulton. | 0:31:24 | 0:31:28 | |
James Wong learnt all about | 0:31:31 | 0:31:33 | |
another of the region's traditional industries, farming. | 0:31:33 | 0:31:37 | |
Rather than plucking fruit or pulling up veg, | 0:31:37 | 0:31:39 | |
he was tiptoeing through the tulips. | 0:31:39 | 0:31:42 | |
I'm really lucky to see a field like this in the UK nowadays. | 0:31:42 | 0:31:46 | |
It is becoming an increasingly rare sight. | 0:31:46 | 0:31:50 | |
But just 50 years ago flower fields | 0:31:50 | 0:31:52 | |
were a really common part of the landscape in these parts. | 0:31:52 | 0:31:56 | |
The family of farmers responsible for this dazzling display | 0:31:56 | 0:32:00 | |
have been growing for the cut flower market since the 1950s. | 0:32:00 | 0:32:04 | |
They remember when their nursery here | 0:32:04 | 0:32:07 | |
alongside the flat plains of Lincolnshire | 0:32:07 | 0:32:09 | |
was surrounded by flower farms. | 0:32:09 | 0:32:11 | |
It wasn't that many years ago | 0:32:11 | 0:32:13 | |
when there used to be literally coach trips round here. | 0:32:13 | 0:32:15 | |
People would come from all over the country, have an evening | 0:32:15 | 0:32:18 | |
in the area and have the coach trip round the bulb fields. | 0:32:18 | 0:32:21 | |
Daffodils, tulips, whatever. | 0:32:21 | 0:32:24 | |
-No need for a flight to Amsterdam. -No. | 0:32:24 | 0:32:26 | |
In fact, back in the '50s and '60s, | 0:32:27 | 0:32:30 | |
this was a vibrant economy of flower growers. | 0:32:30 | 0:32:33 | |
NEWSREADER: 'These are the tulip fields of South Lincolnshire. | 0:32:33 | 0:32:36 | |
'Some of the blooms are sold as cut flowers | 0:32:36 | 0:32:39 | |
'but most of them are grown to produce bulbs.' | 0:32:39 | 0:32:41 | |
Most of these farms are gone | 0:32:41 | 0:32:43 | |
and it is hard for businesses like this | 0:32:43 | 0:32:45 | |
to compete with Dutch companies. | 0:32:45 | 0:32:46 | |
They've cornered the market in tulips, thanks to economies of scale. | 0:32:46 | 0:32:51 | |
The situation is, | 0:32:51 | 0:32:52 | |
we can have a lorry load of flowers here and nobody to buy them. | 0:32:52 | 0:32:55 | |
We'll send them to Holland | 0:32:55 | 0:32:57 | |
and they will be bought by the same English companies | 0:32:57 | 0:33:00 | |
who wouldn't buy them in this country, perhaps. | 0:33:00 | 0:33:02 | |
So it literally has to go to Holland just to get on the auction system. | 0:33:02 | 0:33:06 | |
-It is about getting into the supply chain. -Yes. | 0:33:06 | 0:33:09 | |
It almost needs the Dutch seal of approval, if you like. | 0:33:09 | 0:33:12 | |
Which is crackers really, because we are British. | 0:33:12 | 0:33:16 | |
Ironically though, right now the interest in British flowers is rising. | 0:33:16 | 0:33:20 | |
Supermarkets like Marks and Spencer | 0:33:20 | 0:33:22 | |
make a point of labelling their flowers British. | 0:33:22 | 0:33:26 | |
Peter Ireland, who manages M&S flower buyers, | 0:33:26 | 0:33:29 | |
says there is a real demand for blooms | 0:33:29 | 0:33:31 | |
that haven't travelled thousands of miles. | 0:33:31 | 0:33:34 | |
Peter, what does the average shopper think about British-grown flowers? | 0:33:34 | 0:33:38 | |
Our customers think they are fantastic. | 0:33:38 | 0:33:40 | |
We sell over 100 million flowers to our customers. | 0:33:40 | 0:33:44 | |
I think British flowers have got such a lot going for them. | 0:33:44 | 0:33:47 | |
We can all remember that great heritage of our grandad's garden. | 0:33:47 | 0:33:51 | |
I remember him making me cut his dahlias for him all those years ago. | 0:33:51 | 0:33:55 | |
And I think that resonates with shoppers. | 0:33:55 | 0:33:58 | |
You can get British flowers all through the year. | 0:33:58 | 0:34:01 | |
It is too early to predict a return to past glories. | 0:34:01 | 0:34:04 | |
But Mark's family business is certainly busy. | 0:34:04 | 0:34:07 | |
And he set me a challenge to see if I can sell his flowers | 0:34:07 | 0:34:11 | |
at a local auction for a profit. | 0:34:11 | 0:34:14 | |
I just hope the buyers there agree with the man from M&S | 0:34:14 | 0:34:17 | |
and are happy to pay a good price for my British blooms. | 0:34:17 | 0:34:20 | |
Wish me luck. | 0:34:20 | 0:34:22 | |
So, Mark, how do we do this? | 0:34:24 | 0:34:26 | |
Do we go for the biggest, most developed ones, presumably? | 0:34:26 | 0:34:29 | |
What you want to look for is the most open ones. | 0:34:29 | 0:34:31 | |
Just give them a little wiggle, they gently ease up. | 0:34:31 | 0:34:34 | |
There is no soil in this. | 0:34:34 | 0:34:36 | |
This is growing hydroponically, just in water? | 0:34:36 | 0:34:38 | |
Yes, it is a lot easier to work. | 0:34:38 | 0:34:40 | |
Less mess, we end up with a lot cleaner product. | 0:34:40 | 0:34:43 | |
Also, if you happen to pick the wrong one, | 0:34:43 | 0:34:45 | |
all you have got to do is drop it back, | 0:34:45 | 0:34:46 | |
it falls back on the spikes, you can carry on. | 0:34:46 | 0:34:49 | |
I am not sure if I am as quick as those other guys. | 0:34:49 | 0:34:51 | |
I mean, I think we'll have to give you a bit of training. | 0:34:51 | 0:34:55 | |
I don't think I'd earn the hourly rate, I can tell you that. | 0:34:55 | 0:34:58 | |
So how much is a bunch like this worth? | 0:35:04 | 0:35:06 | |
13p a stem, probably £5 or £6 worth. | 0:35:06 | 0:35:08 | |
That is not bad at all. | 0:35:08 | 0:35:09 | |
-But, we have got to finish the job yet. -Oh, right. | 0:35:09 | 0:35:12 | |
Come on, we've got to get them packed. | 0:35:12 | 0:35:14 | |
And so to the production line. | 0:35:14 | 0:35:17 | |
They produce 15 million tulips so there is no time to hang about. | 0:35:17 | 0:35:21 | |
What does this bit of kit do? | 0:35:21 | 0:35:23 | |
Just chop off the bulbs? | 0:35:23 | 0:35:24 | |
-This takes the bulb off at the bottom. -OK. | 0:35:24 | 0:35:26 | |
-And what we have got to do is lay them on here neatly. -OK. | 0:35:26 | 0:35:29 | |
And level. | 0:35:29 | 0:35:30 | |
Come on! Quick! Come on! | 0:35:30 | 0:35:33 | |
They all get tangled up, though. | 0:35:33 | 0:35:35 | |
I know, that's part of the battle. | 0:35:35 | 0:35:37 | |
You've lopped the bulb off, | 0:35:40 | 0:35:41 | |
now just grab any old pile and stick them into bunches? | 0:35:41 | 0:35:44 | |
Now we make sure we have the same lengths | 0:35:44 | 0:35:46 | |
and they have to be the same stage of flower. | 0:35:46 | 0:35:49 | |
Like a puzzle, match them? | 0:35:49 | 0:35:50 | |
You have to match them and count them at the same time. | 0:35:50 | 0:35:53 | |
That's a lot harder than I imagined. | 0:35:53 | 0:35:56 | |
Now they are picked, we need to make sure they get to market | 0:35:59 | 0:36:03 | |
and ultimately the customer in prime condition. | 0:36:03 | 0:36:06 | |
So we wrap them in the white paper to keep the stems straight | 0:36:06 | 0:36:11 | |
and to stop them growing and bending, | 0:36:11 | 0:36:13 | |
because they do grow once they are in water. | 0:36:13 | 0:36:15 | |
Oh, really? Even once they are cut? | 0:36:15 | 0:36:16 | |
They can grow two to three inches once they are in water. | 0:36:16 | 0:36:20 | |
So six bunches in one batch. | 0:36:20 | 0:36:23 | |
Two, three, four, five, six. | 0:36:23 | 0:36:29 | |
And just roll it up like an ice-cream cone? | 0:36:29 | 0:36:31 | |
There we are. | 0:36:34 | 0:36:36 | |
As I head for the auction, I feel strangely proud | 0:36:36 | 0:36:39 | |
of my British blooms. | 0:36:39 | 0:36:40 | |
But will they sell? | 0:36:40 | 0:36:42 | |
This local auction is doing well, | 0:36:44 | 0:36:47 | |
but once auctions like this would have sold many more blooms. | 0:36:47 | 0:36:51 | |
Now they are the preserve of independent florists and market traders. | 0:36:51 | 0:36:54 | |
These guys are in search of a bargain | 0:36:54 | 0:36:57 | |
so it'll be tough to persuade them to pay the price I'm looking for. | 0:36:57 | 0:37:00 | |
The time has come, and now I am here it is really quite intimidating. | 0:37:01 | 0:37:05 | |
AUCTIONEER TALKS QUICKLY | 0:37:05 | 0:37:07 | |
How does this work? I don't see anyone bidding. | 0:37:11 | 0:37:13 | |
I don't see anyone waving anything in the air. | 0:37:13 | 0:37:16 | |
This fellow has just had a bid. | 0:37:16 | 0:37:18 | |
He raises his face, the auctioneer gets used to how they are bidding. | 0:37:18 | 0:37:23 | |
Some people wave like mad. | 0:37:23 | 0:37:24 | |
I expected them to wave something in the air. | 0:37:24 | 0:37:27 | |
It's not like a traditional auction | 0:37:27 | 0:37:28 | |
where they have card numbers. Very subtle. | 0:37:28 | 0:37:30 | |
This is another Narcissi. | 0:37:30 | 0:37:33 | |
The Narcissi sell easily, | 0:37:33 | 0:37:37 | |
but then I realise some rival tulips have sold. | 0:37:37 | 0:37:39 | |
How much did these tulips go far? | 0:37:39 | 0:37:41 | |
They went for about 50p. | 0:37:41 | 0:37:43 | |
50p for five? | 0:37:43 | 0:37:45 | |
50p for five benches? | 0:37:45 | 0:37:46 | |
So 10p each. | 0:37:46 | 0:37:47 | |
10p a stem. | 0:37:47 | 0:37:49 | |
Maybe it's going to be tough to hit my 13p a stem target after all. | 0:37:49 | 0:37:53 | |
That's what Mark gets per stem. | 0:37:53 | 0:37:55 | |
But how will I do? | 0:37:55 | 0:37:57 | |
Well, it is my turn next. | 0:37:57 | 0:37:59 | |
224, tulips. | 0:37:59 | 0:38:01 | |
Everything's happening so quickly. | 0:38:01 | 0:38:04 | |
A pound a go, | 0:38:04 | 0:38:05 | |
pound for 10? | 0:38:05 | 0:38:07 | |
Bid £1.20, £1.30. | 0:38:07 | 0:38:10 | |
£1.30 for 10. | 0:38:10 | 0:38:13 | |
That's 13p each! Bargain. | 0:38:13 | 0:38:16 | |
Happy with that? | 0:38:16 | 0:38:17 | |
That's exactly what he said he would get. Fantastic. | 0:38:17 | 0:38:20 | |
I had great fun at the auction. | 0:38:22 | 0:38:24 | |
Wouldn't it be nice to think that one day, | 0:38:24 | 0:38:26 | |
if current trends continue, | 0:38:26 | 0:38:28 | |
Britain's tulip fields might be on the tourist map once more? | 0:38:28 | 0:38:32 | |
James Wong and the tulips of Lincolnshire. | 0:38:33 | 0:38:37 | |
My travels have brought me west on a horticultural mission of my own, | 0:38:37 | 0:38:40 | |
to Easton Walled Gardens. | 0:38:40 | 0:38:43 | |
I'm here to meet Lady Ursula Cholmeley, | 0:38:43 | 0:38:46 | |
whose green fingers and hard graft | 0:38:46 | 0:38:48 | |
have brought this once derelict landscape back to life. | 0:38:48 | 0:38:51 | |
How big is the area we are dealing with? | 0:38:51 | 0:38:54 | |
We're dealing with 12 acres. | 0:38:54 | 0:38:56 | |
This is coming into view. This is fantastic. | 0:38:56 | 0:38:58 | |
What a landscape. | 0:38:58 | 0:39:00 | |
It is a fantastic landscape. It is quite amazing. | 0:39:00 | 0:39:02 | |
People can't quite believe it | 0:39:02 | 0:39:04 | |
-when they come to the top here and look out. -Beautiful. | 0:39:04 | 0:39:07 | |
What would it have been like just 10 years ago here? | 0:39:09 | 0:39:12 | |
10 years ago we couldn't have been able to get visitors to this site, | 0:39:12 | 0:39:15 | |
it was just covered with trees. | 0:39:15 | 0:39:17 | |
Very, very different. | 0:39:17 | 0:39:18 | |
For 450 years these gardens were constantly cultivated, | 0:39:22 | 0:39:27 | |
but they were abandoned during the Second World War. | 0:39:27 | 0:39:31 | |
When Lady Cholmeley and her family moved back here in 2001, | 0:39:31 | 0:39:35 | |
this is the sight that greeted them. | 0:39:35 | 0:39:37 | |
50 years of neglect had taken its toll. | 0:39:40 | 0:39:43 | |
So when you got back here, what sort of sight greeted you, | 0:39:44 | 0:39:48 | |
what was this place like? | 0:39:48 | 0:39:50 | |
I thing lost garden would be a polite way of describing it. | 0:39:50 | 0:39:53 | |
It was just covered. Everything behind us | 0:39:53 | 0:39:55 | |
was just covered in trees, mostly sycamores, elder, brambles. | 0:39:55 | 0:39:59 | |
Nature had completely taken over. | 0:39:59 | 0:40:02 | |
This bridge had trees growing out of it. We took the whole thing apart. | 0:40:02 | 0:40:06 | |
This was the starting point. | 0:40:06 | 0:40:07 | |
This was where you began. | 0:40:07 | 0:40:08 | |
Because at least it was finite. | 0:40:08 | 0:40:10 | |
You couldn't make a list, there were so many things to do. | 0:40:10 | 0:40:13 | |
So we said let's get the bridge | 0:40:13 | 0:40:15 | |
so we can actually see it clear of trees, | 0:40:15 | 0:40:17 | |
clear of the turf that had grown on it, | 0:40:17 | 0:40:19 | |
so this was our starting point. | 0:40:19 | 0:40:21 | |
This is where you got going. | 0:40:21 | 0:40:22 | |
The gardens here obviously beautiful and it is a big estate. | 0:40:26 | 0:40:29 | |
It doesn't quite seem to fit the size of the house. | 0:40:29 | 0:40:33 | |
It feels like something is missing, is that true? | 0:40:33 | 0:40:36 | |
What you can see now is a tiny proportion | 0:40:36 | 0:40:38 | |
of what the house that was there was. | 0:40:38 | 0:40:41 | |
In fact, there was a great big manor house there | 0:40:41 | 0:40:44 | |
until 1951 when the house was demolished. | 0:40:44 | 0:40:48 | |
Crikey! So what was the house like, what was the scale of it? | 0:40:48 | 0:40:52 | |
A very big country house, | 0:40:52 | 0:40:53 | |
had a lot of glass round the south and west fronts | 0:40:53 | 0:40:56 | |
so the gardens were very important to it cos you could look out from it. | 0:40:56 | 0:40:59 | |
Sadly, its future from the beginning of the 20th century was always in jeopardy, | 0:40:59 | 0:41:05 | |
and during the Second World War, it was used by the Army. | 0:41:05 | 0:41:08 | |
They used to let grenades off in the greenhouses, | 0:41:08 | 0:41:11 | |
rounds in the house. And it was really in such a terrible state | 0:41:11 | 0:41:14 | |
by 1951 that my husband's grandfather made the heartbreaking decision | 0:41:14 | 0:41:21 | |
-to pull his house down. -Wow. | 0:41:21 | 0:41:23 | |
When you say grenades in the greenhouse, | 0:41:23 | 0:41:25 | |
it sounds like they were training. But they were just stationed here? | 0:41:25 | 0:41:28 | |
-Like a barracks. -Yes, the officers were across the other side of the A1, | 0:41:28 | 0:41:33 | |
and the lads were here. And, you know, they had some wild nights. | 0:41:33 | 0:41:37 | |
Sadly, the house is lost for ever. | 0:41:39 | 0:41:42 | |
But years of hard work and dedication mean the gardens | 0:41:42 | 0:41:45 | |
have been brought back to life and are open for anyone to enjoy. | 0:41:45 | 0:41:49 | |
And now the Cholmeley family are back tending this site, | 0:41:49 | 0:41:52 | |
they are continuing 14 generations of family tradition. | 0:41:52 | 0:41:56 | |
Here, we've got the early sweet peas, very early this year | 0:41:58 | 0:42:01 | |
because of the very warm weather we've had this spring. | 0:42:01 | 0:42:05 | |
-These are all sweet peas? -Yes, we grow 60 varieties here. | 0:42:05 | 0:42:10 | |
60! Did you have to recreate this garden, | 0:42:10 | 0:42:13 | |
or was it there to be uncovered when you were hacking back the foliage? | 0:42:13 | 0:42:17 | |
I think we worked from a set of black-and-white photos | 0:42:17 | 0:42:22 | |
from about 100 years ago, so we had some idea of what was under here. | 0:42:22 | 0:42:27 | |
And we found broken-down walls and thought, | 0:42:27 | 0:42:29 | |
they obviously need rebuilding at some stage. | 0:42:29 | 0:42:32 | |
We're 10 years down the line now. | 0:42:32 | 0:42:34 | |
And although I had quite a plan as to how it would be, | 0:42:34 | 0:42:37 | |
you never imagine you can pull it off and it is fantastic | 0:42:37 | 0:42:41 | |
to come and say, "Yes, this is not just a site we're working on now, it's a garden." | 0:42:41 | 0:42:45 | |
And a legacy, now, a garden that will hopefully stay this way | 0:42:45 | 0:42:48 | |
-for a long time to come. -I hope so. | 0:42:48 | 0:42:50 | |
But for me today, | 0:42:52 | 0:42:54 | |
it's just been lovely to stroll around these grounds. | 0:42:54 | 0:42:57 | |
However, Juliet Morris's visit to the surrounding countryside | 0:42:57 | 0:43:01 | |
was a slightly less serene experience. | 0:43:01 | 0:43:04 | |
This is the village of Haxey where for 364 days of the year, | 0:43:07 | 0:43:10 | |
you can enjoy a relatively peaceful stroll through the streets. | 0:43:10 | 0:43:14 | |
But for one day, forget it. Because the whole of the village | 0:43:14 | 0:43:17 | |
is turned into one large playing field | 0:43:17 | 0:43:19 | |
for a game that's known here as the Haxey Hood. | 0:43:19 | 0:43:22 | |
The story goes that Lady de Mowbray, the wife of the local landowner, | 0:43:24 | 0:43:28 | |
was riding over the hills towards nearby Westwoodside | 0:43:28 | 0:43:30 | |
when her silk riding hood was blown away by the wind. | 0:43:30 | 0:43:34 | |
Much to her amusement, the local farm hands competed so vigorously to save it for her, | 0:43:34 | 0:43:39 | |
that she donated 13 acres of land | 0:43:39 | 0:43:41 | |
so that the event could be re-enacted every year. | 0:43:41 | 0:43:45 | |
Today, the Haxey Hood is as popular as ever among both players and spectators. | 0:43:46 | 0:43:50 | |
Hundreds of people take part and get into the "sway", | 0:43:50 | 0:43:53 | |
which is a kind of rugby-style scrap. | 0:43:53 | 0:43:56 | |
Anyone can join in as there are no official teams. | 0:43:57 | 0:44:00 | |
The objective is to get the hood to one of four pubs, | 0:44:00 | 0:44:03 | |
so everyone pushes towards their favoured watering hole. | 0:44:03 | 0:44:07 | |
The hood, which today is made of a leather tube, | 0:44:07 | 0:44:10 | |
can't be thrown or run with, so the game can take hours. | 0:44:10 | 0:44:13 | |
The re-enactment all starts fairly early. | 0:44:13 | 0:44:16 | |
Three pubs in Haxey itself and one in Westwoodside, half-a-mile away, | 0:44:16 | 0:44:20 | |
are the possible destinations for the hood. | 0:44:20 | 0:44:23 | |
And like all good sportsmen, | 0:44:23 | 0:44:25 | |
the players and the officials, the ones in red called Boggins, | 0:44:25 | 0:44:28 | |
begin the day walking the pitch, shall we say. | 0:44:28 | 0:44:30 | |
The modern day hood is on display, | 0:44:30 | 0:44:33 | |
but remains in the hands of the Boggins for now. | 0:44:33 | 0:44:37 | |
# And to sew and to reap and to mow... # | 0:44:37 | 0:44:39 | |
Three traditional songs are sung in each of the four pubs. | 0:44:39 | 0:44:43 | |
# Born to be a farmer's boy. # | 0:44:43 | 0:44:49 | |
The Fool of the Hood is painted up to look like the bruised and bloodied farm hand | 0:44:51 | 0:44:55 | |
who tumbled over the fields after Lady de Mowbray's hat. | 0:44:55 | 0:44:58 | |
Quite a lot of these people had their first pint | 0:45:01 | 0:45:04 | |
with their fry-up at 10:30am this morning. | 0:45:04 | 0:45:06 | |
Right now, it's 1:30pm, there are still another couple of pubs to go to, | 0:45:06 | 0:45:10 | |
the thing doesn't start until 3:30pm. | 0:45:10 | 0:45:12 | |
So I'm sticking with orange juice. I've got to pace myself. | 0:45:12 | 0:45:16 | |
I've also got to try and get to the bar. | 0:45:16 | 0:45:19 | |
It's what we do every year, a tradition, the end of Christmas and New Year. | 0:45:19 | 0:45:23 | |
When the sway goes down, | 0:45:23 | 0:45:25 | |
you wonder if you're going to get out alive. | 0:45:25 | 0:45:28 | |
That's it. Isn't it? It is. | 0:45:28 | 0:45:30 | |
-It's horrible. But it's fantastic. -Sweaty bodies, loads of steam. | 0:45:30 | 0:45:33 | |
Hmm, can't wait! After the serious business of trying out all the pubs, the fun begins. | 0:45:33 | 0:45:39 | |
It's off to the fields for the main event, | 0:45:39 | 0:45:41 | |
and the game, well, it just begins. | 0:45:41 | 0:45:44 | |
Somewhere in the middle of all this mayhem is the hood. | 0:45:44 | 0:45:47 | |
I can't actually tell you which way it's going at the moment. | 0:45:47 | 0:45:50 | |
As somebody who's up for giving most things a go, quite honestly, | 0:45:50 | 0:45:53 | |
I am so happy not to be face down in the mud in the middle of all that. | 0:45:53 | 0:45:57 | |
I am staying on the sidelines! | 0:45:57 | 0:46:00 | |
The Boggins try to retain as much order as possible, keeping players | 0:46:08 | 0:46:12 | |
and the huge crowd in step. | 0:46:12 | 0:46:14 | |
One trainer for sale! | 0:46:14 | 0:46:18 | |
Our father was the lord, so we were brought up with it. | 0:46:18 | 0:46:21 | |
-Fantastic. You've never taken part, though? -No, we're not allowed to. | 0:46:21 | 0:46:25 | |
Females aren't allowed to take part. | 0:46:25 | 0:46:28 | |
-Would you like to have ever had a go? -Yes! | 0:46:28 | 0:46:31 | |
We would when we was young, yes. | 0:46:31 | 0:46:33 | |
Darkness descends, but no-one leaves the sway without a fight. | 0:46:37 | 0:46:41 | |
Since the game started an hour and a half or so ago, | 0:46:48 | 0:46:51 | |
the sway has gradually been moving uphill | 0:46:51 | 0:46:53 | |
towards the village of Westwoodside. | 0:46:53 | 0:46:56 | |
There's one pub in Westwoodside, and three that way in Haxey. | 0:46:56 | 0:47:00 | |
So as you can imagine, Westwoodside is often outnumbered. | 0:47:00 | 0:47:03 | |
But right now, the signs are looking very good. | 0:47:03 | 0:47:07 | |
Now, you are the Lord of the Hood. What does that mean? | 0:47:11 | 0:47:15 | |
I'm the chief referee, | 0:47:15 | 0:47:17 | |
try and keep some composure amongst the idiots in the middle. | 0:47:17 | 0:47:21 | |
Do you miss actually getting involved in it? | 0:47:21 | 0:47:24 | |
I used to do, yes, when I first took over I did. | 0:47:24 | 0:47:26 | |
But I don't now. I'm quite happy just being on the sidelines. | 0:47:26 | 0:47:30 | |
It's a young man's game. | 0:47:30 | 0:47:31 | |
It does look pretty rough. It must hurt, doesn't it? | 0:47:31 | 0:47:35 | |
Yeah, you'll hurt for two or three weeks after! | 0:47:35 | 0:47:37 | |
Why has it got such a special significance, both in Haxey | 0:47:37 | 0:47:42 | |
and in everybody's hearts and minds here? | 0:47:42 | 0:47:45 | |
I think because there's nothing else really like it. Everything has been sanitised. | 0:47:45 | 0:47:49 | |
In fact, if the HSC got their hands on it, I don't think it would happen! | 0:47:49 | 0:47:53 | |
Well, it looks like the hood is on its way to Westwoodside. | 0:48:03 | 0:48:08 | |
Westwoodside were the underdogs, having only one pub. | 0:48:08 | 0:48:12 | |
But right now, it's on the home straight. | 0:48:12 | 0:48:14 | |
The people of Westwoodside gather to add their support | 0:48:14 | 0:48:19 | |
to the last few yards of the hood's journey. | 0:48:19 | 0:48:22 | |
When the landlord reaches out to claim the hood... | 0:48:23 | 0:48:27 | |
-CHEERING -..the game's over, and the pub and its regulars | 0:48:27 | 0:48:30 | |
will keep the hood until the rematch next year. | 0:48:30 | 0:48:33 | |
There is only one word to describe today - mad. | 0:48:40 | 0:48:43 | |
I dread to think how a lot of these people are going to wake up feeling tomorrow morning. | 0:48:43 | 0:48:47 | |
However, the game may have ended, but the party has just started. | 0:48:47 | 0:48:51 | |
I think now is the time to get in on the action. | 0:48:51 | 0:48:54 | |
Juliet Morris braving the fray of the Haxey Hood. | 0:48:56 | 0:49:00 | |
I'm on the last leg of my Lincolnshire journey, | 0:49:00 | 0:49:02 | |
going full circle back to where I started | 0:49:02 | 0:49:05 | |
near Stamford in the grounds of Burghley House. | 0:49:05 | 0:49:08 | |
There, I've been offered the chance to get hands-on | 0:49:08 | 0:49:11 | |
with a creature of the deep that's been discovered lurking in the lake. | 0:49:11 | 0:49:15 | |
But first, the Country Tracks weather for the week ahead. | 0:49:15 | 0:49:18 | |
. | 0:51:50 | 0:51:57 | |
I'm on a journey beneath the big skies of South Lincolnshire. | 0:52:06 | 0:52:10 | |
I started at Burghley House on the outskirts of Stamford. | 0:52:10 | 0:52:13 | |
Then I headed northeast to Moulton | 0:52:13 | 0:52:15 | |
and a building that's set to reclaim its place | 0:52:15 | 0:52:18 | |
as Britain's tallest windmill. | 0:52:18 | 0:52:20 | |
Travelling to Easton, I saw how its famous walled gardens | 0:52:20 | 0:52:23 | |
had been brought back from the dead. | 0:52:23 | 0:52:26 | |
Now finally, I'm coming full circle to Burghley House, | 0:52:26 | 0:52:29 | |
where the Environment Agency's Chris Reeds has promised me | 0:52:29 | 0:52:32 | |
a close encounter with an endangered species. | 0:52:32 | 0:52:35 | |
Chris, what are we looking for? | 0:52:38 | 0:52:40 | |
We're looking for the native white-clawed crayfish. | 0:52:40 | 0:52:43 | |
They were only recently discovered here. It's an important site. | 0:52:43 | 0:52:47 | |
The white-clawed crayfish, are they quite rare? | 0:52:47 | 0:52:49 | |
Yes, it's the only native crayfish we have. | 0:52:49 | 0:52:52 | |
There's quite a few rivers with them in, but they are decreasing rapidly | 0:52:52 | 0:52:56 | |
because of threats from signal crayfish, | 0:52:56 | 0:52:58 | |
threats from water quality, habitat destruction and stuff like that. | 0:52:58 | 0:53:02 | |
White-clawed crayfish have been under threat from American signal crayfish, | 0:53:05 | 0:53:09 | |
which were introduced into the UK in the 1970s as a food fad, | 0:53:09 | 0:53:14 | |
and later released into canals and rivers. | 0:53:14 | 0:53:16 | |
Over-aggressive, oversexed and over here, | 0:53:16 | 0:53:19 | |
they now threaten our native species. | 0:53:19 | 0:53:23 | |
Chris is part of a team monitoring their numbers. | 0:53:23 | 0:53:26 | |
If I wasn't with him, it'd be illegal for me | 0:53:26 | 0:53:28 | |
to even pick these endangered creatures out of the water. | 0:53:28 | 0:53:33 | |
So I'm hoping this will be a rare chance to see one close-up. | 0:53:33 | 0:53:37 | |
Where are we looking, Chris? Where would they be living? | 0:53:37 | 0:53:40 | |
Under stones, under timber, in relatively shallow water, | 0:53:40 | 0:53:45 | |
otherwise we won't see them if it's too deep. | 0:53:45 | 0:53:48 | |
Somewhere like just here, that's a suitable stone. | 0:53:48 | 0:53:51 | |
-All right, let's try. -You never know. | 0:53:51 | 0:53:53 | |
Water is amazingly warm. | 0:53:55 | 0:53:56 | |
Nope. Nothing there. | 0:53:58 | 0:54:01 | |
Why is it that this site is so good? | 0:54:01 | 0:54:04 | |
It's isolated, protected from external threats, | 0:54:04 | 0:54:07 | |
there's no river flowing into it. | 0:54:07 | 0:54:09 | |
And it's relatively a long way from the nearest river as well. | 0:54:09 | 0:54:13 | |
The signal crayfish which can get out and walk to new waters | 0:54:13 | 0:54:16 | |
probably wouldn't get here. | 0:54:16 | 0:54:18 | |
It's an important site, it's important that we protect it. | 0:54:18 | 0:54:22 | |
The signal crayfish, spell out the differences. | 0:54:22 | 0:54:24 | |
They are the main threat to the white-clawed crayfish? | 0:54:24 | 0:54:27 | |
They are the main threat. They're bigger, they out-compete, | 0:54:27 | 0:54:30 | |
they carry a fungal plague that affects the native crayfish and can kill them. | 0:54:30 | 0:54:34 | |
As well as that, they have a very disturbing effect on the ecology of the local river. | 0:54:34 | 0:54:39 | |
The rivers get wider and shallower | 0:54:39 | 0:54:41 | |
because the signals burrow in to the banks, the banks collapse, | 0:54:41 | 0:54:45 | |
and the river tends to get a lot broader and more silty because of that. | 0:54:45 | 0:54:49 | |
Wow! So we can blame a lot of things on them? | 0:54:49 | 0:54:51 | |
-They are basically changing rivers. -They do, they change the appearance of rivers, | 0:54:51 | 0:54:56 | |
they eat all the insects and all the fish eggs. | 0:54:56 | 0:54:59 | |
A lot of the water weed is eaten as well. | 0:54:59 | 0:55:01 | |
So it isn't just the effect on the native crayfish, it's the effect on the entire ecology. | 0:55:01 | 0:55:05 | |
Well, I can certainly attest to the fact | 0:55:09 | 0:55:11 | |
that our native white-claws are in short supply. | 0:55:11 | 0:55:14 | |
Even here, where the isolated location means they're protected | 0:55:17 | 0:55:22 | |
from predatory signal crayfish, we're having a hard time finding any. | 0:55:22 | 0:55:26 | |
-Quite elusive, aren't they? -They are elusive. | 0:55:26 | 0:55:30 | |
I sort of thought it might happen. | 0:55:30 | 0:55:32 | |
I've been here all day, I've had the opportunity to look round | 0:55:32 | 0:55:35 | |
and I've got one or two I caught early on. | 0:55:35 | 0:55:37 | |
Good man! So I can see one. After you. | 0:55:37 | 0:55:40 | |
Oh, wow! | 0:55:45 | 0:55:47 | |
They're tiny, aren't they? | 0:55:47 | 0:55:48 | |
They're not the biggest animal in the world. | 0:55:48 | 0:55:51 | |
But they're quite important. | 0:55:51 | 0:55:53 | |
-They're quick! -They are quick. | 0:55:53 | 0:55:54 | |
There we are. | 0:55:54 | 0:55:56 | |
They also grab hold of you, which they are doing at the moment. | 0:55:56 | 0:55:59 | |
Come on then. Come on then. | 0:55:59 | 0:56:01 | |
So they've got this nice olive-green colour. | 0:56:01 | 0:56:04 | |
Although they're called white-clawed crayfish, | 0:56:04 | 0:56:07 | |
I'm not seeing a lot of white. Is it on the underside? | 0:56:07 | 0:56:11 | |
Yes, if you look at the underside of the claw... | 0:56:11 | 0:56:14 | |
-Oh, yeah. -They are sort of pale-coloured. | 0:56:14 | 0:56:17 | |
It's not exactly white, | 0:56:17 | 0:56:19 | |
but it's certainly a lot lighter than the American signal crayfish. | 0:56:19 | 0:56:22 | |
-It's quite cute in a way. -They are spectacular animals. | 0:56:22 | 0:56:26 | |
We'll put him back before he goes anywhere. | 0:56:26 | 0:56:28 | |
This site really is important. | 0:56:28 | 0:56:30 | |
How many are there left in the country where these are thriving? | 0:56:30 | 0:56:33 | |
There's probably... It's into the hundreds I would think. | 0:56:33 | 0:56:36 | |
Every year, we find sites that no longer contain the native crayfish. | 0:56:36 | 0:56:41 | |
Every year, there's sites where they have disappeared. | 0:56:41 | 0:56:44 | |
That's through development or the crayfish plague the signal crayfish carries. | 0:56:44 | 0:56:49 | |
-So it is really important to look after places like this? -Absolutely. | 0:56:49 | 0:56:53 | |
I know the crayfish like it wet, | 0:56:53 | 0:56:55 | |
but this is getting a little bit grim. | 0:56:55 | 0:56:57 | |
-They need to go back where they came from. -I'll trust you with that. Come on. | 0:56:57 | 0:57:01 | |
My journey through Lincolnshire has been a truly eye-opening experience. | 0:57:02 | 0:57:07 | |
The beauty of the landscape is laid out all around, | 0:57:07 | 0:57:11 | |
but what's been really enjoyable is the chance | 0:57:11 | 0:57:13 | |
to discover the historic places that were at the heart of power, | 0:57:13 | 0:57:18 | |
as well as experiencing a living, breathing heritage | 0:57:18 | 0:57:22 | |
that's drawing communities together today. | 0:57:22 | 0:57:25 | |
So, I'm leaving here not just with a new appreciation of what Lincolnshire has to offer, | 0:57:25 | 0:57:29 | |
but also a sense of what it's contributed | 0:57:29 | 0:57:32 | |
and continues to contribute to the story of our nation. | 0:57:32 | 0:57:36 | |
Subtitles by Red Bee Media Ltd | 0:57:50 | 0:57:53 | |
E-mail [email protected] | 0:57:53 | 0:57:55 |