The Isle of Wight Britain by Bike


The Isle of Wight

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'Sixty years ago, an extraordinary man called Harold Briercliffe

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'wrote a string of books about his great passion, cycling.

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'Now largely forgotten, these overlooked gems were the culmination of a lifelong journey.

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'His destination? The whole of Britain. On two wheels.

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'Over half a century later, armed with one of his trusty cycling touring guides,

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'and riding Harold's very own bicycle, a Dawes Super Galaxy - the touring cycle of its day -

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'I'm re-tracing his tracks in search of the glorious landscape he loved.

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'I'm going in search of Britain by Bike.'

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Welcome to the Isle of Wight!

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This is the Isle of Wight, just a few miles off the south coast of England.

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It only takes 35 minutes to make that crossing from Portsmouth

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but you arrive here and you're transported into another land.

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It really does feel as if that little stretch of water takes you somewhere completely different.

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Here, they simply call this place "The Island".

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For centuries, writers, artists and revolutionary thinkers have been coming here to escape.

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In the late 1940s, among them was fanatical cyclist and author Harold Briercliffe.

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He loved this place and described it as beautiful and unique.

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'Harold had his roots in Rochdale, but once he hopped on his saddle,

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'he was always ready for new experiences.'

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-MALE ROCHDALE ACCENT:

-"Novelty is the keynote of a cycling holiday in the Isle of Wight.

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"Nowhere so near London can give such a changed atmosphere.

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"The short journey across the Solent has a magical effect.

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"Wight is another land.

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"Distinct, fascinating and, on acquaintance, lovable."

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'A firm favourite with the Victorians, who described it as a "pleasure island".

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'The Isle of Wight has been a source of intellectual inspiration for its visitors for many years,

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'from curing a tricky case of writer's block

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'to providing a welcome respite from the bustle and grime of city life.

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'The island has also had an important part to play in preventing

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'more than one potential invasion, and I don't mean by cyclists!

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'I'll be following sections of Harold's suggested route

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'along the south coast of the island, beginning at Shanklin

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'and ending at Tennyson Down at the western tip.

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'It's an inspiring ride, through dramatic coastlines and atmospheric countryside.

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'But before I can begin my journey by bike, I need to take advantage of a different form of transport.

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'This rather special train, which has also made its escape from the mainland, is taking me to Shanklin.

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'Using Harold's Touring Guide from 1948, I can now start my journey across Cycle Island.'

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That was fun and it's quick - actually the quickest way

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to get from Ryde on the northeast coast down to Shanklin on the south.

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That's a 1930s northern line tube train and they've restored it,

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and it's a bit of a tourist attraction but it serves a good purpose.

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Harold said of the railway system, "It's a delightful relic of another

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"day, although quite adequate for its purposes and efficiently run."

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So efficiently run that, in fact, this railway service is the most punctual in the whole country.

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"The descent into Shanklin is suburbanised but interesting.

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"The traveller will be reminded of a vague similarity between this southern part of the Isle of Wight

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"and the modern towns on the corniche routes of the south of France."

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It's a funny contrast because this place is familiar, everything's in English they drive on the left,

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obviously it's sterling and all of that, and largely British holiday makers, and yet it's so different.

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Harold says in the book, you couldn't travel

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such a short distance from London and get such a contrast.

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And clearly in Victorian times it was massively popular, not just for people to come here to unwind

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and shut their brains down, but to come here and think great thoughts and write great works.

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Because in the 1850s, Charles Darwin came here to Shanklin and stayed over there, at Norfolk House.

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He spent 18 months here, writing On The Origin Of Species, so although it was the exotic

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wildlife of the Galapagos Islands that inspired the thought process behind the theory of evolution,

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it was here, on the Isle of Wight, that he found the discipline to actually write the thing.

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'Charles Darwin wasn't the only one to seek out the island as a retreat from the busy outside world.

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'Queen Victoria set up a country residence here, at Osborne House.

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'Where the Royals led, the great and the good followed.

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'The island became a British Riviera.

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'Alfred, Lord Tennyson set up an artistic and intellectual circle here, welcoming guests

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'such as Lewis Carroll, and the photographer Julia Margaret Cameron, who made her home on the island.

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'And although the Victorians had a major impact on its character,

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'they were keen to preserve that magical quality of "otherness"

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'that Harold mentions and that I'm experiencing today.

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'Leaving behind the beach and bathers at Shanklin, I'm heading

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'down the coast, passing through Bonchurch on my way to Winterbourne.

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'I've come here to visit a house where one of the greatest

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'Victorian novelists sought inspiration.'

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Wow! Oh, gorgeous smell of lavender!

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Now, this place is a hidden gem

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because it's called

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Winterbourne Country House, it's now a five-star guest house.

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But it was, I suppose, discovered by Charles Dickens who was writing

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David Copperfield in London and he was a bit bogged down.

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He'd written the first four chapters and then got stuck on the fifth chapter.

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He thought, "I need a break, I need to go somewhere I'm going to get fresh air

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"and a sense of perspective," so he came here and found this place.

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-Hello.

-Hi.

-Hi, I'm Clare.

-Andy. Nice to meet you.

-I'm Andrew.

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Andy, and Andrew. Easy to remember.

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When did Dickens come here?

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-What year?

-It was 1849.

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He was here in the summer for three months so he rented it off Reverend White as a getaway.

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And, Andrew, is there any evidence of what he thought of the place?

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Yes, we've got the letter, or the transcript from London, on the stairs here.

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Erm, when he was writing back to Kate, his wife.

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-Can I see that?

-You certainly can.

-Great.

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This is Dickens' own handwriting?

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Yes, that's his handwriting and there's a transcript there.

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"My dear Kate, I have not a moment.

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"Just got back and the post going out.

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"I've taken the most delightful and beautiful house belonging to White at Bonchurch.

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"Cool, airy, private bathing, everything delicious.

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"I think it is the prettiest place I ever saw in my life.

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"If I don't get back before John goes to bed, tell him to leave the iron gate open."

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I love all these domestic details.

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"The man with the postbag is swearing in the passage.

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"Ever affectionately, CD."

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There we are, this is the Copperfield suite.

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Look at that view.

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Is this the desk where he sat?

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This is where we reckon he actually wrote Copperfield, got the inspiration.

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Gosh, I want to sit at the desk,

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and just keep glancing sideways.

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Oh, it's fabulous.

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His routine was, in the morning he wouldn't leave his room until 2pm.

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He'd do his writing, he shut himself away from the family, and then after 2pm he'd join the family.

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So from first thing in the morning until 2 o'clock, it was solid writing.

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Do you get Dickens enthusiasts who want to come and stay in this room?

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Yes, we get quite a few. They just want to stay where he stayed and just experience the Dickens effect really.

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It makes you want to grab a pen and oh!

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I think it's something to do with the contrast between the manicured garden, which is beautiful,

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the lovely mown lawn and the flowers in full bloom, and then the sea.

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It's not a particularly wild day today but equally it's not calm either. It's all of that movement.

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You almost need to see movement, don't you, to keep your mind moving.

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I can see why this would work.

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-Thank you so much for letting me invade.

-A pleasure.

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It's been really nice to meet you, Andy. Thank you, Andrew.

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Where do you reckon I should go?

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St Boniface Down, where Charles Dickens used to take his walk every day.

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-Can I cycle it?

-Of course.

-Certainly can.

-Is it uphill?

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Of course.

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-Thanks!

-Good luck!

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This isn't going to be my finest hour, I can tell you that.

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All the gear and no idea!

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I'm never going to get up here! Ah!

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Ah!

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-LAUGHTER

-That's about as far as I can get.

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LAUGHTER

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I can't change gear on the gravel though.

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This is the answer.

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LAUGHTER

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This is a tough old climb, but it's worth the effort because

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this is the highest point on the island and you can actually see,

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well, when the cloud lifts, you can see from one side to the other.

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That's when you get that real sense of being on an island.

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At least when you're riding them, they do all the work.

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It makes a big difference.

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'Although Harold Briercliffe enjoyed both the wonderful cycling and the splendid views up here,

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'there was one blot on the landscape,

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'some mysterious structures high above the town of Ventnor.'

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"The huge hill to the south is called St Boniface Down,

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"787ft above sea level, on which the most prominent

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"modern erections are radar masts, nowadays an ugly disfigurement."

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'Part of the Chain Home radar system, a top secret installation built to defend the British coast

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'during the Second World War, the masts were reminders of that very recent and brutal conflict.

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'Local historian Simon Perry is here to tell me more.'

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Hello, how was the hill?

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Just about all right, when I got it in a low enough gear.

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Harold Briercliffe, who wrote the guide to the Isle of Wight,

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he came up here and he was pretty damning actually about that.

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Oh, that, yes, there were bigger ones actually.

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There were eight built, originally. Four were metal ones, steel,

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-350ft tall, which is roughly half the height of the dams again.

-Gosh.

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And then another four wooden ones which were the receivers.

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The steel ones were the transmitters and the four wooden ones,

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which were about 240ft tall, were the receivers.

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So they would have been a blot on the landscape.

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Massive. I don't know how tall that is, probably a couple of hundred feet maybe, at most, so even bigger.

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But massive structures as well.

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Some people have said that, without radar, the war would have been lost pretty much instantly.

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Did that attract a bit more attention, in terms of bombs

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being dropped here than it might otherwise have done?

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Yes, I think the Germans suddenly went, "Ah, that's what those big things are up there!"

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And then made it their mission, over August, to try and destroy them,

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and they were successful in knocking them down.

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But the town suffered quite substantial damage.

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About 120 houses were completely destroyed or beyond repair.

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Yes, it's quite a price, but worthwhile obviously.

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'Destroyed five times by the Luftwaffe,

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'the radar station was rebuilt and remained vital for wartime defences.

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'Today's masts have a far less sinister purpose - they're mobile phone and communications masts,

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'keeping the island in touch with the outside world.'

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Are you ready for a ride?

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I'm ready, definitely. I'll try and keep up with you.

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Race you to the bottom, then.

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So when did Ventnor really pick up and become

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a big tourist destination?

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Yeah, the Victorian period just completely exploded.

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There was an article written about how lovely it was to live down there,

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and people just went crazy for the place.

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It was the micro-climate.

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They were saying at that point, five or six degrees warmer than the rest of the UK.

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Really?

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So even in the winter, people were finding it a lovely place to be.

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And a very different environment here, because presumably people

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don't lock their cars, they don't necessarily lock their doors.

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No, it's a very trusting place and everyone looks out for each other.

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"The club man who doesn't mind steep hills and who seeks a centre which has a fine site,

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"together with all the normal seaside attractions, would probably find that Ventnor

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"makes the best seaside halt for a few days.

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"The resort was once almost exclusive, but nowadays it is

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"a go-ahead place, with plenty of accommodation, shops and cinemas."

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'Harold visited Ventnor immediately after the war, and there's just a hint of criticism in that word

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'"exclusive", as if he's suggesting that where pre-war Ventnor was rather snobbish,

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'now it's a place that can't afford to turn up its nose at the paying guest.

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'The late 1940s was a boom time for cycling, which offered cheap transport

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'at a time when petrol was still rationed, and gave ordinary people the freedom to travel.

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'Rene Stacey, now 92 years old, is the last surviving founder member

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'of the Hitchin Nomads, Harold Briercliffe's cycling club.

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'In her younger days, she was a keen touring cyclist.'

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Nobody had ever been abroad in those days, only the very posh.

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We decided to have a cheap holiday at the Isle of Wight.

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So we hired, for I think it was maybe half a crown or something like that,

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a Boy Scouts' bell tent. Two or three days before we were due to go off on our bike

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we sent it down by rail to Wootton Creek on the Isle of Wight.

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We had a wonderful week and it cost us about 10 shillings each for the hire of everything.

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Coming back, none of us had Mum's good cooking all the week,

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so a few of us, including me, got what we call "the bonk".

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That's when you're worn out at cycling, you're nearly dead,

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so we had to camp in a ditch halfway home, at night.

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We didn't get home until the Sunday evening, instead of Saturday evening!

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'In his touring guide, Harold Briercliffe is thoroughly appreciative of the efforts

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'the post-war Isle of Wight makes to welcome "oveners" - the island name for those from the mainland.

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'But, although Harold recommends Ventnor's "go-ahead" attitude,

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'he still hopes it will retain the charm of a bygone era.'

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"Because there are very few sites for new buildings available

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"in the town proper, it wears a late Victorian look.

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"A dignified, even refined appearance."

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"In a word, it's a museum piece which has kept the atmosphere of

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"the days of its creation, and for that deserves preservation further."

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I don't think it looks like it's faded or crumbling, in fact I think

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it's sort of rediscovered itself and people have rediscovered it.

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After the '70s, '80s boom of package holidays and everyone going away

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from holidaying on the Isle of Wight, they've come back again.

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It feels sort of reborn.

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'My journey continues out of Ventnor towards Niton, along the Undercliff,

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'which runs down the southern edge of the island

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'and was formed when an upper strata of chalk slipped over a band

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'of softer clay, creating a tumbling landscape full of lush vegetation.

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'In Harold's day, the abundant greenery and clean air was something

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'of a break from the soot-clogged streets of the mainland.'

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"The influence of the sea and a reputation for mildness

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"and sunniness makes the Isle of Wight a favourite out-of-season touring ground for cyclists."

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'Victorian physicians recommended the healthy climate, and that's another

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'reason why Darwin and other great thinkers were drawn to the island.

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'Karl Marx was sent here by his doctor three times!

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'My next stop is prompted by Harold.

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'He describes the Buddle Inn as "a sophisticated roadhouse",

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'and it turns out that barmaid Tracy is even familiar with Harold's guide.'

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-I read that book when I was in Cornwall visiting some friends of mine.

-Did you?!

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I haven't met anybody who has even seen the book or known what it is.

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It's really old. It was just on a friend's shelf and I picked it up

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and I read it when I was visiting them and it's really rare to see it.

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Are you a local?

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Yes, born and bred, unbelievably.

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About five or six generations.

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And is there something different about being a proper islander? Does it give you an added aura?

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I think living on an island does make you slightly more different.

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In what sense?

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When I was younger you're more in touch with nature.

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I noticed that moss was growing on certain sides of the trees because you notice things like that here.

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The wind prevails in different directions

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and other people don't tend to pick up on that kind of thing.

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By the time you become a teenager I think most people are like, "I really need to move."

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I worked away for 10 years but I always knew I would come back.

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When you come across on the ferry, do you feel that lurch, that kind of...?

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Relief? Yeah. It's fabulous if you time it right. It might be night time,

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the sun setting and if it's winter the boat's like that.

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It's part of the journey. You arrive in the Yarmouth and it's so quaint.

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Once you're grounded, along the Military Road, home and it's lovely.

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You read this book and Harold makes it clear it's a very cycle-friendly island.

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If anything it's become more so.

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Definitely. There's just one major hill through the middle of the island

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The Downs, and then you step off the main road

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and the whole island is full of tiny little bridle paths

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and country lanes. For cycling, it's absolutely wonderful.

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What a fabulous place to stop for a bit of rest and refreshment and great to meet a bona fide local.

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'The Military Road runs east-west, from Chale to Freshwater.

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'Unlike the rest of the island the road is busy

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'with fast flowing traffic, and not as much fun for a cyclist.

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'Due to its position in the English Channel, the Isle of Wight

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'has always been the first line of defence for southern Britain.

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'This coastline has been under attack for centuries and it still is today.'

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Well, there's nothing like going to meet someone in a car park...

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that's falling away! How you doing?

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Welcome to the windy Isle of Wight today.

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The coastline is so dramatic, but also so fragile.

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So fragile indeed. Every year a bit slips away.

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You can see the earth behind us here is very brown.

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You can see where it has fallen away this winter.

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The Tarmac we're standing on is quite unstable.

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You can see generations of the car park.

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One generation of Tarmac here, the next generation out and in the past,

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another one. Gradually the whole car park is eroding back,

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like the whole southern coast of the island.

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Tell me about the military history of this island.

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I was cycling along that very long, straight road.

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Military Road was put in, specifically, so the troops could get

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from one point on the southern coast to another point very quickly.

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We've got great beaches here, so very easy for troops to land.

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For that reason, people have always looked at the Isle of Wight,

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if trying to invade, as a place to get a beachhead.

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if from the mainland, that it must be protected.

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You're always hearing that the last invasion was 1066.

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Arrow through the eye, and all those tricks.

0:21:310:21:34

The real last invasion actually came here in 1545.

0:21:340:21:37

Again it was our neighbours the French.

0:21:370:21:39

One of the naval battles happened in the Solent and that's where the Mary Rose went down.

0:21:390:21:44

Everybody knows the story of the Mary Rose.

0:21:440:21:46

What they don't know is that the French invaded and they got on to the Isle of Wight.

0:21:460:21:49

They ransacked along the coast, but eventually, being British,

0:21:490:21:53

we managed to push them back and they went back across the water.

0:21:530:21:56

Fortunately during each of the wars, or even when there's a threat of war,

0:21:560:22:00

the island's been heavily fortified.

0:22:000:22:02

That has left us with a lot of wonderful sites,

0:22:020:22:05

a lot of visitor attractions to see, but also a feeling of independence for the people on the island.

0:22:050:22:10

We can't necessarily rely on the mainland to come to our defence all the time.

0:22:100:22:13

If there's a problem, we have got to be well prepared to stick it out.

0:22:130:22:18

'The island's history, geography and outlook all point to it being, as Harold described, "another land".

0:22:200:22:27

'And it's that sense of otherness that makes this place so compelling for "oveners" like me.

0:22:270:22:34

'The final leg of my tour of the Isle of Wight takes me to the Western end

0:22:340:22:38

'of the Military Road and up to the magnificent chalk cliffs above the village of Freshwater.

0:22:380:22:43

'This area is called Tennyson Down, named after the great Victorian poet,

0:22:460:22:50

'who sought tranquillity and inspiration here.

0:22:500:22:53

'For 40 years he lived at nearby Farringford House.

0:22:530:22:57

'It's now a five-star hotel, and I'm on my way there to catch up with an old friend,

0:22:570:23:02

'Elizabeth Hutchings, a lifelong adventurous cyclist and also an expert on Tennyson.'

0:23:020:23:09

There's somebody I have been excited about meeting ever since I realised

0:23:090:23:13

I was coming back to the Isle of Wight. A few years ago I went walking here, on Tennyson Down,

0:23:130:23:19

-with a woman called Elizabeth Hutchings and here she is.

-And here is the stick.

-How are you?

0:23:190:23:23

-That's the one.

-The same stick.

-Yes.

-Chung! Chung! Chung!

0:23:230:23:27

-And how are you?

-I'm fine.

-Yes?

-I'm fine. Welcome, this is absolutely wonderful.

0:23:270:23:32

Are you still swimming every day?

0:23:320:23:34

-Only four times a week.

-Right.

-Only four times a week.

0:23:340:23:37

-I got your book. Thank you. Thank you for your letter.

-Good.

-And this is Farringford House?

0:23:370:23:41

This is Farringford House, which was Tennyson's home from 1853.

0:23:410:23:46

When he wrote the poem Maud he was actually able to buy it.

0:23:460:23:51

Let's have a look inside.

0:23:510:23:53

-I'm not sure, did I come here before?

-No.

0:23:530:23:55

'Elizabeth came to the Isle of Wight during the war and lived here

0:23:550:23:58

'with her husband, Richard, for more than 30 years.

0:23:580:24:02

'Both keen cyclists they travelled the world together by bike.'

0:24:020:24:06

I remember you saying to me about Richard, and it has lived with me ever since, you said he would say

0:24:060:24:12

to me, "Let's do such and such..." and it would be some madcap idea. "...It might be an adventure."

0:24:120:24:17

It might be an adventure, there might be something interesting.

0:24:170:24:21

There always was. Our whole 42 years of life was not lying on the beach, but going to somewhere interesting.

0:24:210:24:28

-With your bicycle.

-With our bicycles.

0:24:280:24:30

Were they comfortable?

0:24:300:24:32

Oh, wonderful. We had panniers and a tent and a billycan.

0:24:320:24:35

'Around the time Harold wrote his guide to the island, Richard and Elizabeth

0:24:350:24:40

'were cycling all the way to New Zealand. Elizabeth kept a diary of their progress.'

0:24:400:24:45

-It took us eight-and-a-half months to get there. That's the very first day.

-You've very good handwriting.

0:24:450:24:50

It says nought, nought, nought, nought.

0:24:500:24:53

And then each day it says how many miles we went.

0:24:530:24:55

"Distance the day before. Nought."

0:24:550:24:58

How many miles did you do in the end?

0:24:580:25:01

I suppose we did about 4,000 in the end because obviously we didn't cycle across the Channel.

0:25:010:25:07

'Tennyson and his wife Emily moved to Farringford shortly after he was appointed poet laureate.

0:25:120:25:17

'His walks around Freshwater inspired him to write some of his most memorable poetry,

0:25:170:25:22

'including Maud and Idylls of the King as well as Crossing the Bar

0:25:220:25:26

'which follows the journey across the Solent.

0:25:260:25:29

'This was a place where ideas and creativity could flourish.

0:25:300:25:34

'With Tennyson as host, Farringford became a focal point.

0:25:340:25:38

'Charles Darwin, photographer Julia Margaret Cameron

0:25:380:25:41

'and even the Italian revolutionary Garibaldi all visited.'

0:25:410:25:47

Was Tennyson a disciplined writer?

0:25:470:25:49

-Would he sit for hours in that house and make sure...?

-No, I don't think he did.

0:25:490:25:53

Most of his poetry was written outside, walking on the Downs or in his mind.

0:25:530:25:59

-So he was quite quick?

-Then obviously he would then have to come in and write it down.

0:25:590:26:05

What always amazes me if you read the list of his visitors

0:26:050:26:09

how he ever had time to write any poetry.

0:26:090:26:13

Of course, at the moment there is this great controversy going on as to where he wrote Crossing the Bar.

0:26:130:26:19

We know it was here. We've got documentary evidence

0:26:190:26:23

that he wrote it on a piece of paper coming from Lymington to Yarmouth.

0:26:230:26:27

It has been quite a journey because I've seen the house that Dickens stayed in,

0:26:270:26:32

to write part of David Copperfield, beautifully restored.

0:26:320:26:35

The place where Darwin stayed in Shanklin which is now an inn.

0:26:350:26:40

And obviously Tennyson's house, which is now a very smart hotel.

0:26:400:26:45

You do think that the island must have something special.

0:26:450:26:48

It's got something in the air.

0:26:480:26:50

I think it has. It must have, mustn't it? Yes.

0:26:500:26:53

We're surrounded by the sea, of course. And let's face it, islands are special, aren't they?

0:26:530:26:59

Lovely to see you. Really lovely.

0:26:590:27:01

And my sister says I have got to tell you that your outfits, she

0:27:010:27:08

always watches, she always comments on them and says they're wonderful.

0:27:080:27:11

Do you know what? She might not think the same of this outfit and this hat.

0:27:110:27:15

Oh, she would. No, she might not.

0:27:150:27:18

THEY CHUCKLE

0:27:180:27:19

I'm going to head off and take the ferry now.

0:27:190:27:22

I'll read some Tennyson on the way. I'd better read Crossing the Bar.

0:27:220:27:25

Yes, you must read Crossing the Bar where he actually wrote it.

0:27:250:27:29

Yes, quite. Lovely to see you. Bye-bye.

0:27:290:27:31

Lovely to see you again.

0:27:310:27:33

This is the crossing from Yarmouth to Lymington that everybody says is the prettiest.

0:27:410:27:46

It was on this crossing that Tennyson wrote Crossing the Bar,

0:27:460:27:49

the poem he said should always be the book end to any collection of Tennyson poems.

0:27:490:27:54

Just the short journey

0:27:550:27:58

away from the mainland

0:27:580:28:00

gives it such a special feel.

0:28:000:28:03

It's definitely got a magical quality, the island.

0:28:030:28:09

"Sunset and evening star and one clear call for me.

0:28:110:28:16

"And may there be no moaning of the bar when I put out to sea.

0:28:160:28:20

"But such a tide is moving, seems asleep, too full for sound and foam.

0:28:200:28:27

"When that which drew from out the boundless deep turns again home."

0:28:270:28:33

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0:28:500:28:53

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0:28:530:28:56

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