Pennod 2 Trysor Coll Y Royal Charter

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-In the early hours

-of 26 October 1859...

-..on the final leg of its voyage

-from Melbourne to Liverpool...

-..the Royal Charter ran aground in a

-raging storm off the Anglesey coast.

-497 people drowned.

-Not a single woman

-or child survived.

-But it wasn't only bodies

-that were swallowed by the sea.

-Gold worth 80m that was acquired

-in the Australian gold rush...

-..and stored as cargo...

-..or hidden by passengers

-on their person, was also lost.

-Much of the treasure

-still lies beneath the waves.

-I'm on the hunt

-for the Royal Charter's lost gold...

-..with Vincent Thurkettle.

-It should be good.

-My adventure

-will take me from the seabed...

-..to the other side of the world.

-I'll be poring through archives,

-revelling in the history...

-I've found gold, guys!

-..and uncovering a tragedy

-that echoes through the ages.

-Family is everything and he's

-in touch with his family again.

-Daybreak on Anglesey and I'm given a

-crash course in diving for treasure.

-Do I look like a seal or a whale?

-It's easy for you to criticize

-from the comfort of your sofa!

-I've never dived

-in cold water before.

-Since we're filming, I have to wear

-a special mask which records audio.

-I'm just worried

-about that seal at the moment.

-If it doesn't fit perfectly...

-..it's not safe to dive.

-The shape of my head is the problem.

-Great!

-It's not tight against my head,

-so water could get inside...

-..which isn't great.

-The only way to test it

-is by going in the water.

-What's the difference between diving

-in Wales and diving in Australia?

-Goodness gracious me,

-Hywel Gwynfryn, it's cold!

-# Hallelujah #

-If you think walking in stilettos

-after a glass of wine is hard...

-..try a pair of flippers!

-OK, testing.

-It's a sunny day in Moelfre

-and I'm playing with a new mask.

-The audio is working perfectly.

-Do we just go under?

-But Vince is unhappy.

-I can get my finger in.

-You've got no seal at all.

-My mask is letting in water.

-That's fully tight.

-There's nothing more there.

-Can we swap?

-That might be a smaller mask.

-You can. Alright, we'll do a swap.

-That's great.

-Vince's mask is a better fit.

-That is a mystery.

-The mask is watertight.

-I can dive now, and hopefully,

-we'll find some treasure.

-I'm starting to get excited now.

-The story of how the Royal Charter

-ran aground is etched on the mind.

-After it was shipwrecked...

-..a major investigation

-was launched.

-Survivors gave

-detailed evidence of the last night.

-They gave a blow-by-blow account.

-By Tuesday 25 October...

-..60 days after leaving Melbourne...

-..it's clear the ship

-won't reach Liverpool before dark.

-The weather

-has been worsening all day.

-By eight o'clock,

-the sea is turbulent.

-At 10 o'clock,

-it turns into a hurricane.

-The wind that had previously aided

-the ship suddenly changes direction.

-The Royal Charter's engine

-is no match for the storm...

-..which tosses it to the shore.

-The captain commands that the masts

-be turned to face the wind.

-The crew tries three times to follow

-the command and fails every time.

-The ship

-continues veering to the shore.

-It is now blowing a 100mph gale.

-The captain has only one option.

-To drop anchor and hope that

-the vessel will overpower the storm.

-We're just waiting now.

-We're changing batteries

-and sorting out the cameras...

-..before getting in the water.

-The only thing I'm worried about

-is getting in the way...

-..when we're underwater.

-Vince will swim like that

-and blow the sand...

-..while I'm meant to be

-at a 90-degree angle to him...

-..searching for treasure.

-That's the only thing. I'll

-enjoy myself once I'm down there.

-I just don't want to get in the way.

-I just don't want to get in the way.

-

-15 minutes and I'm in the water.

-I'll change the battery now.

-Michael, the underwater cameraman,

-is eager to start.

-Vince and I

-took a long time testing the mask.

-And now we're fighting the current.

-As the big moment approaches,

-my stomach starts churning.

-The last thing I want

-is to let the team down.

-I feel under pressure.

-It's incredibly heavy.

-It feels like

-I'm carrying a horse on my back.

-The most important thing

-is not to panic underwater...

-..and use up all the oxygen so I

-have to come back up in 10 minutes.

-I have to take it easy

-and remain calm underwater.

-Before diving into

-the historic wreck...

-..I can't help but wonder what went

-through the passengers' minds...

-..in those final moments

-before the sea claimed their lives?

-Shortly after midnight, and the ship

-has been anchored for hours.

-The captain leaves the helm and goes

-to the kitchen to fetch a coffee.

-But he has no time to drink it.

-The chain from the first anchor

-breaks suddenly.

-As huge waves pound the ship...

-..the other anchor

-is unable to take the strain.

-That chain also breaks.

-The captain orders the masts to be

-cut to reduce the wind's effect.

-Passengers

-are crying and praying...

-..and mothers

-hold on tightly to their children...

-..when suddenly the ship

-hits a sand bank beneath the waves.

-"We've been spared,"

-shouts the captain.

-"The tide is going out and within 10

-minutes, we'll walk to the shore."

-Cameraman Michael

-is the first to dive.

-After Vince,

-there's only one person left.

-Here we are, underwater.

-The current is very strong.

-Aargh! Ow!

-Suddenly something goes wrong.

-Can somebody help me?

-The mask is letting in water.

-There's water in the mask.

-The kit is weighing me down.

-The trick is not to panic, but

-I'm completely out of my depth.

-Michael comes to my aid.

-I've lost the fin!

-You stay there.

-Once I'm back on the boat,

-Michael takes over.

-We haven't got much longer.

-If the mask can't be adjusted,

-it's the end of the road for me.

-It has to be secured to your head

-or you can't go underwater.

-Special wax is applied to the mask,

-which will hopefully seal it.

-How does that feel?

-Good? Right.

-With lighter equipment,

-I may still have a chance.

-Stand by.

-But the current gets stronger.

-A rope is tied

-from the boat to the shore...

-..in case we're all swept away.

-If we lose somebody,

-the drill is, we all surface.

-If someone lost their bearings...

-..one body'll drift off

-and you guys won't know.

-I give it one more try and put

-all my faith in Michael and Vince.

-OK, stay on the line, OK?

-Stay on the line.

-We're going underwater

-and following a line.

-We've hit a junction...

-..and now we're following

-another line down to the seabed.

-I'm finally

-plumbing the depths of a story...

-..that has

-captivated me for so long.

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-It's 6.00am

-on the Anglesey headland.

-The curtain rises for the final act

-of the Royal Charter tragedy.

-When the captain promised

-that the tide was going out...

-..he was wide of the mark.

-The tide was coming in...

-..and fiercely pushing

-the ship to the shore.

-One brave man

-has tied a rope and a bosun chair...

-..from the helm to the shore.

-Only the strongest

-has any hope of surviving.

-As water seeps into the cabins,

-sheer panic sets in.

-Suddenly,

-one huge wave elevates the ship...

-..and thrusts it

-against the rocks...

-..where it breaks in two.

-At twenty minutes past seven...

-..the sea swallows

-all the remaining passengers.

-497 people drowned.

-And now I'm swimming among remnants

-of life and its lost treasures.

-That's the Royal Charter.

-There's much more of it over by me.

-I'm holding on

-to the actual ship. Wow!

-We'll start here.

-We'll start here.

-

-OK, start blowing, Vince.

-Vince is going to blow the sand

-while I search.

-He's blowing.

-It's like a circus here.

-Whoa, whoa, whoa! Stop, stop, stop!

-It's hard to see anything.

-Vince has dived

-more than 200 times...

-..and recovered gems,

-sovereigns and blocks of gold.

-I must be able to find something.

-I must be able to find something.

-

-There's some glass.

-Whoa, whoa, whoa, whoa!

-It's beautiful.

-It's not quite gold...

-..but this is the dinner service

-they would've eaten from.

-OK, Vince?

-But we're not the first

-to scour these waters.

-Within a week of the shipwreck...

-..divers tried to salvage the gold

-on behalf of Lloyds, the insurers.

-15 men

-dived continuously for a month...

-..salvaging 23 chests,

-199 gold bars...

-..more than 3,300 sovereigns...

-..along with 400lbs of gold-dust.

-The haul was around 80%

-of the official total.

-But passengers were

-also carrying personal treasures.

-Despite the efforts of others...

-..Vince is certain

-there's plenty of gold left...

-..to make me a millionaire.

-Wow!

-We must be

-in the canteen here, guys.

-Here's another piece of crockery.

-The trick is to search

-where no-one has dived before.

-An area which Vince

-refers to as chaos ground.

-Suddenly, among the crockery...

-SHE SQUEALS

-I've found...

-Not gold, but money of some kind.

-It's beautiful!

-I've found treasure!

-That's Victoria on the back.

-These finds must be kept

-in a special place underwater.

-No, up your cuff maybe.

-Yeah, right up there.

-He's blowing the sand again.

-Without sounding greedy,

-I'd love to find a piece of gold.

-Whoa, whoa, whoa!

-No, a stone.

-But time flies

-when you're hunting for treasure.

-We've got

-no more than five minutes or so.

-That's alright.

-With our oxygen tanks

-almost empty...

-..Vince spots something.

-Over the rock there.

-Natural and life-like.

-No way!

-Gold is cunning.

-It's twice the weight of iron.

-It sinks

-and hides deep within the mud.

-You can see how people come unstuck.

-Ho-ho!

-I've struck gold!

-Look at that.

-Gold.

-That's come from

-someone's gold belt.

-Are you happy if you take that one?

-Our treasure hunt is over.

-It'll be interesting

-to see what we've salvaged...

-..once we're on the surface.

-That was a wonderful experience.

-The Royal Charter disaster

-put Moelfre on the map.

-Within days, the story had made

-the headlines all over the world.

-Charles Dickens visited the scene...

-..and subsequently wrote the book,

-The Uncommercial Traveller.

-The hero of Dickens's story

-is Rev Stephen Roose Hughes...

-..the rector of St Gallgo, a church

-situated close to the shipwreck.

-Hughes paid

-10 shillings of his own money...

-..for every corpse

-that was brought to the church.

-As more and more bodies

-were washed ashore...

-..the church

-was turned into a temporary morgue.

-A total of 140 people

-were buried here.

-Following in Dickens's footsteps...

-..I've come to the church to meet

-local historian Gwilym Hawse...

-..who regularly lays flowers

-at the grave of the story's hero.

-He did his best...

-..to ensure

-that every body was identified.

-Dismembered parts

-were washed ashore...

-..along with corpses

-with their legs and heads missing.

-They had obviously been mutilated.

-It must have been

-incredibly harrowing for him.

-Goodness me.

-You can't imagine

-how hard it must have been for him.

-The strain

-had impacted on his health.

-He only lived for two and

-a half years after the disaster.

-He must've suffered

-from post-traumatic stress.

-Yes. He was only 46 when he died.

-Grave after grave.

-Name after name.

-Each one with their own story.

-Whose grave is this?

-There are 11 buried in this grave.

-Two sisters - Davies and Fenwick.

-They each had four children.

-Mr Davies's body

-was recovered soon afterwards...

-..but it took longer

-to find Mrs Davies's body.

-She and her two children

-were later found.

-The body of one of her daughters

-was washed up on the Isle Of Man.

-The tide

-had obviously swept her away.

-Since my dive,

-Vince has returned to the wreck.

-He has something to show me.

-Wow!

-The treasures I salvaged are here...

-There's yours from yesterday.

-There's yours from yesterday.

-

-..but there's much more besides.

-That's been through

-a treacherous storm.

-Some of the things

-were salvaged years ago...

-..and some are new finds.

-That's incredible. Someone's watch.

-All the watches stopped at 7.20,

-when everyone went in the sea.

-Coins, nuggets and relics.

-All these belonged to

-the passengers on board, but who?

-It's got a name on.

-Edward Bennett.

-Vince has kept the best till last.

-Gold!

-Remember we found the nugget?

-These are its cousins.

-You can see it's the same.

-It's come from the same vein.

-The most beautiful thing we found...

-The most beautiful thing we found...

-

-This is a very special piece.

-A very delicate gold ring...

-..with an opal stone set the middle.

-Look how small it is.

-That was very precious to someone.

-But who?

-That's what I want to find out next.

-Am I crazy for thinking we can marry

-the passengers' names to the relics?

-There's only one place to go

-to find out. Home.

-The other home.

-Next time

-Australia

-is the starting point of the story.

-Here in the archives...

-..I'm going to search for clues

-to solve this detective story.

-"Committed suicide

-by cutting his throat."

-But every Sherlock needs a Watson.

-And only one man fits the bill.

-Say goodbye to the snow, Vince. Make

-sure you've packed the sunscreen!

-S4C Subtitles by Adnod Cyf.

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