0:00:02 > 0:00:05Want to know about British history? You'd better get your hands dirty!
0:00:05 > 0:00:06Don't bury your head in a guidebook.
0:00:06 > 0:00:11Ask a brickie, a chippie or a roofer.
0:00:11 > 0:00:15Ever since I were a boy, I've had a passion for our past.
0:00:15 > 0:00:19So I'm going to apprentice myself to the oldest masonry company
0:00:19 > 0:00:24in the country, mastering their crafts and scraping away the secrets
0:00:24 > 0:00:27of Blighty's poshest piles.
0:00:27 > 0:00:32From castles to cathedrals, music halls to mansions,
0:00:32 > 0:00:34palaces to public schools -
0:00:34 > 0:00:37these aren't just buildings,
0:00:37 > 0:00:40they're keys to opening up our past and bringing it back to life.
0:01:05 > 0:01:07Today, I'm in the buzzing East End of London,
0:01:07 > 0:01:11where a slightly different type of restoration has been taking place
0:01:11 > 0:01:15at the fantastically vibrant Wilton's Music Hall.
0:01:19 > 0:01:21I take to the stage...
0:01:21 > 0:01:27# There's an old mill by the stream, Nelly Dean! #
0:01:27 > 0:01:30..help the builders in their final hours...
0:01:31 > 0:01:34Can I do the last nail at Wilton's?
0:01:34 > 0:01:36..and I'm rolling out the barrels
0:01:36 > 0:01:39for a modern-day music hall knees-up.
0:01:39 > 0:01:42ALL: # He'll get by without his rabbit pie
0:01:42 > 0:01:45# So run, rabbit, run, rabbit Run, run, run! #
0:01:52 > 0:01:54This is Whitechapel in London's East End,
0:01:54 > 0:01:57an area with a once-seedy reputation.
0:01:58 > 0:02:01Ever since the 16th century,
0:02:01 > 0:02:04Whitechapel has been regarded as one of the diciest districts
0:02:04 > 0:02:08in the East End of London. It was a perfect place for outlaws!
0:02:11 > 0:02:15On its doorstep were the London Docks, brewing up a heady mix
0:02:15 > 0:02:19of drunken sailors and travellers from all over the Empire.
0:02:19 > 0:02:22And, during the Victorian times,
0:02:22 > 0:02:26this was also the stomping ground of the likes of Jack the Ripper.
0:02:29 > 0:02:32It's been the district where anything goes
0:02:32 > 0:02:35and that includes the racy, raucous phenomenon
0:02:35 > 0:02:37that was the Victorian music hall!
0:02:37 > 0:02:41And Wilton's, here, is one of the last left standing.
0:02:44 > 0:02:48In the 1870s, there were over 300 music halls in London alone.
0:02:50 > 0:02:53Wilton's itself is a rather higgledy-piggledy building.
0:02:53 > 0:02:55It was originally a popular pub
0:02:55 > 0:02:58dating back to the early 18th century.
0:03:00 > 0:03:03John Wilton bought the business in 1850,
0:03:03 > 0:03:08extending it into three neighbouring houses and adding a music hall
0:03:08 > 0:03:11at the back, turning it into one of London's top spots -
0:03:11 > 0:03:15but not necessarily for the meek and mild.
0:03:19 > 0:03:22Wilton had the theatre for just under 20 years,
0:03:22 > 0:03:24but he definitely left his mark
0:03:24 > 0:03:29and it remains one of the few surviving music halls of its time.
0:03:31 > 0:03:32Now, for the last year,
0:03:32 > 0:03:36this remarkable building has been brought into the 21st century,
0:03:36 > 0:03:40but not by having a complete refurbishment.
0:03:41 > 0:03:42No, no, no!
0:03:42 > 0:03:44This was a project with a difference...
0:03:46 > 0:03:51..as the owners, the Wilton's Music Hall Trust, needed to spend
0:03:51 > 0:03:55£2 million, but make it look like the builders had never been.
0:04:03 > 0:04:05It's wonderful, it's ethereal, it's mysterious
0:04:05 > 0:04:08and it's the most wonderful acoustics as well.
0:04:08 > 0:04:12When you look at the stage and you wonder, who's been on there?
0:04:14 > 0:04:17With the stage at my feet, before I meet the builders,
0:04:17 > 0:04:20I feel slightly obliged to give it a practice run.
0:04:22 > 0:04:24Maestro!
0:04:25 > 0:04:32# There's an old mill by the stream, Nelly Dean!
0:04:32 > 0:04:34# Sweet Nelly Dean. #
0:04:34 > 0:04:36I went to the doctor's the other day.
0:04:36 > 0:04:39I said, "Doctor, doctor, I keep singing
0:04:39 > 0:04:42"The Green, Green Grass Of Home." The doctor said, "Oh, really?
0:04:42 > 0:04:46"Really, really? I think you have Tom Jones Syndrome."
0:04:46 > 0:04:47I said, "Is that rare?"
0:04:47 > 0:04:50He said, "It's not unusual!"
0:04:50 > 0:04:52Thank you and good night.
0:04:52 > 0:04:54Thank you, thank you!
0:04:54 > 0:04:57Ah, well. The old ones are the best.
0:05:03 > 0:05:04On with the task in hand.
0:05:04 > 0:05:08In charge of this slightly unusual project are the skilled builders
0:05:08 > 0:05:11from William Anelay.
0:05:11 > 0:05:15Chairman Charles Anelay has been keeping a close watch
0:05:15 > 0:05:17on this fabulous restoration.
0:05:17 > 0:05:19- Charles.- Hi.
0:05:19 > 0:05:21Charles, I must admit to being a bit confused.
0:05:21 > 0:05:23Now, I thought the project was nearly finished,
0:05:23 > 0:05:26but it looks an awful long way to go to me.
0:05:27 > 0:05:30This is absolutely it.
0:05:30 > 0:05:33It's a completely different philosophy, in a way,
0:05:33 > 0:05:35which they're calling shabby-chic,
0:05:35 > 0:05:40and the whole story of this is it's about making the new stuff
0:05:40 > 0:05:44feel like it fits in with the story of the building.
0:05:44 > 0:05:47- Yes.- So, yeah, we've already replaced all of the staircases here,
0:05:47 > 0:05:49it's all new handrails, you're stood on a new floor.
0:05:49 > 0:05:52You've a new little wall by the side of you.
0:05:52 > 0:05:56But, actually, a lot of it, the architects have worked really hard
0:05:56 > 0:05:59to make it feel like it fits in with the feel of the building.
0:05:59 > 0:06:01But you're not going to get it replastered,
0:06:01 > 0:06:02that's what it's going to look like.
0:06:02 > 0:06:05Right. See the roof down there...?
0:06:05 > 0:06:08Well, this is part of the story of the building,
0:06:08 > 0:06:11because there's the houses at the front
0:06:11 > 0:06:15- and the musical hall at the back... - Yeah.- ..and a gap between the two.
0:06:15 > 0:06:16- Yeah.- So at one time,
0:06:16 > 0:06:20that was the roof of one of the old little lean-to buildings
0:06:20 > 0:06:24that they changed it around to make it into one space.
0:06:24 > 0:06:27- Right.- So, there you are. We've put a new skylight in up above,
0:06:27 > 0:06:28but the old bit of roof stays there,
0:06:28 > 0:06:30cos it's part of the story of the building.
0:06:30 > 0:06:33- You love this building, don't you, Charles?- Oh, it's fantastic.
0:06:33 > 0:06:35It's a world of its own.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37The thing is, you're conserving it.
0:06:37 > 0:06:40It looks precarious, but presumably, one of your biggest jobs
0:06:40 > 0:06:44has been to make it safe and make it fit for the 21st century?
0:06:44 > 0:06:48Absolutely. It wasn't in good shape before we started
0:06:48 > 0:06:52and a huge amount of work has gone into making it both strong enough,
0:06:52 > 0:06:57putting it all back together again and making it feel like this place,
0:06:57 > 0:06:59that it all belongs here.
0:07:00 > 0:07:04And this team of builders take every request seriously.
0:07:05 > 0:07:06So, come and have a look at this.
0:07:08 > 0:07:10It's a tatty old bird's nest.
0:07:10 > 0:07:15It is. And it's been kept all the way through the job,
0:07:15 > 0:07:17because that's part of the feel of this building.
0:07:17 > 0:07:20So when we got the documents from the architect,
0:07:20 > 0:07:24there was a little note on it that said, "Save the bird's nest."
0:07:24 > 0:07:27- And I thought, "This is a joke."- No? - No! So, we've put a label on it
0:07:27 > 0:07:30to remind all the guys to save the bird's nest
0:07:30 > 0:07:32all the way through the job.
0:07:34 > 0:07:38This amazing project required 40 tonnes of sand,
0:07:38 > 0:07:421,000 metres of reclaimed floorboards and six brickies.
0:07:45 > 0:07:47By the end of the project,
0:07:47 > 0:07:49the builders would've restored the exterior of the building,
0:07:49 > 0:07:52fitted five roof lights and installed a cocktail bar
0:07:52 > 0:07:54on the first floor.
0:07:57 > 0:08:00This Victorian music hall has been completely
0:08:00 > 0:08:02brought into the 21st century.
0:08:02 > 0:08:08That wall is all new because, although it was these three houses
0:08:08 > 0:08:10that we were talking about,
0:08:10 > 0:08:13parts of them have got knocked down and changed over time,
0:08:13 > 0:08:17so we've actually recreated that back wall as if it was
0:08:17 > 0:08:19one of the Georgian walls.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21But because of the fire regulations,
0:08:21 > 0:08:24we can't put Georgian windows into it.
0:08:24 > 0:08:27It's an extraordinary mixture of styles, isn't it?
0:08:27 > 0:08:29- Yeah.- But it does work.
0:08:30 > 0:08:34The building's restoration has ensured that all of the areas
0:08:34 > 0:08:37and rooms in Wilton's have been utilised.
0:08:39 > 0:08:41So the building, made fit for purpose,
0:08:41 > 0:08:43really is sort of multifunctional.
0:08:43 > 0:08:46You've got the music hall, there's a cafe-restaurant there.
0:08:46 > 0:08:50You've got rehearsal spaces, education spaces,
0:08:50 > 0:08:53there's, like, a little museum at the back there.
0:08:53 > 0:08:56It's really making the building work for its living.
0:08:56 > 0:09:00Absolutely. And all the different spaces are given a new task
0:09:00 > 0:09:04or a new chance to shine, but with their old history just there.
0:09:09 > 0:09:12Outside, site manager Mick Feather and the builders
0:09:12 > 0:09:15have been busy working on Wilton's exterior.
0:09:16 > 0:09:19As you can see here, there's quite a lot going on.
0:09:19 > 0:09:23We've got shutters being put on the mahogany bar windows.
0:09:23 > 0:09:26We've got some stone steps being installed
0:09:26 > 0:09:28and then we've got the doors being put back on.
0:09:28 > 0:09:32The guys that we have on the site, they're all specialists
0:09:32 > 0:09:35in their own sorts of aspects and fields of work.
0:09:35 > 0:09:39So we've got lime plasterers that are doing the external render
0:09:39 > 0:09:44and coatings, we've got joiners who are skilled in restoration work,
0:09:44 > 0:09:47not just being carpenters, but in details,
0:09:47 > 0:09:52replicating old details using the existing fabrics
0:09:52 > 0:09:54and making that good.
0:09:56 > 0:09:58On this part of the building, it was non-existent,
0:09:58 > 0:10:01it had all weathered away, the bricks had perished.
0:10:01 > 0:10:05So this part has been actually rebuilt,
0:10:05 > 0:10:08so we're just finishing off the finish of it now,
0:10:08 > 0:10:12which is done with a float and brushes, just to tidy everything up.
0:10:12 > 0:10:14That will dry and it'll match the rest of it.
0:10:15 > 0:10:19On the windows, enormous oak shutters are going to be fixed.
0:10:21 > 0:10:24Quite heavy, these. You can see the thickness of the door here.
0:10:24 > 0:10:26You know you've got a good solid door.
0:10:26 > 0:10:28And then, on the rear of it,
0:10:28 > 0:10:31the bit that you won't see when the shutters actually close,
0:10:31 > 0:10:35are all the recesses for the bolts, which are being chopped out,
0:10:35 > 0:10:39so that when the doors go back, they fall flush.
0:10:39 > 0:10:42What we're doing now is we're putting in a completely new
0:10:42 > 0:10:44stone step, which is where the deliveries will go in.
0:10:48 > 0:10:51When we think of Victorian society,
0:10:51 > 0:10:54we mostly assume it was a polite and civilised era,
0:10:54 > 0:10:57where morals and impeccable behaviour scored highly.
0:10:59 > 0:11:02But the Victorians weren't really a bunch of prudes.
0:11:02 > 0:11:06Music halls were racy and thousands of tickets were sold every week.
0:11:07 > 0:11:10Unpopular acts had manure thrown at them.
0:11:10 > 0:11:13Audience members were known to urinate on the floor.
0:11:13 > 0:11:14Everybody smoked.
0:11:14 > 0:11:17Probably, it was only the soggy floorboards that stopped the halls
0:11:17 > 0:11:19from burning down!
0:11:20 > 0:11:24I can't think of anything better than getting first-hand experience
0:11:24 > 0:11:29of the atmosphere these colourful establishments created.
0:11:29 > 0:11:31Oh, dear, oh, dear, oh, dear.
0:11:31 > 0:11:32What a day I've had!
0:11:32 > 0:11:36'Actor Peter John is performing in the style of a typical act
0:11:36 > 0:11:39'from the glorious music hall days.'
0:11:39 > 0:11:40Yes, my husband.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44Let me tell you, we had to move away...
0:11:44 > 0:11:46- cos the rent we couldn't pay. - PIANO PLAYS
0:11:47 > 0:11:51The moving man came round just after dark.
0:11:51 > 0:11:56There was me and my old man, shoving things inside the van.
0:11:56 > 0:12:00We got all that we could pack in the van and that's a fact.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03So there wasn't any room for me to ride.
0:12:05 > 0:12:10My old man said, "Follow the van!
0:12:10 > 0:12:13"Don't dilly-dally on the way."
0:12:14 > 0:12:18Off went the van with my home packed in it
0:12:18 > 0:12:22and I followed on with the old cock-linnet...
0:12:22 > 0:12:24You all right, Dickie? He's all right.
0:12:24 > 0:12:27# Well, I dillied and I dallied
0:12:27 > 0:12:29# I dallied and I dillied
0:12:29 > 0:12:32# I've lost me way and I don't know where to roam
0:12:32 > 0:12:36# And you can't trust the special like the old-time copper
0:12:36 > 0:12:39# When you can't find
0:12:39 > 0:12:41# Your way home! #
0:12:41 > 0:12:43Bye-bye, everyone! I'm coming, yes, I'm coming!
0:12:43 > 0:12:45Bye!
0:12:50 > 0:12:52After a quick costume change,
0:12:52 > 0:12:56performer Peter John and music halls historian Michael Kilgarriff
0:12:56 > 0:12:59explain what made the music halls so special.
0:13:00 > 0:13:03After the Industrial Revolution, I just think, you know,
0:13:03 > 0:13:07the burgeoning towns in the north and all over the country,
0:13:07 > 0:13:08they all had music halls.
0:13:08 > 0:13:11I mean, we're pre-cinema, we're pre-television.
0:13:11 > 0:13:15I mean, it must have been a colossal industry.
0:13:15 > 0:13:16It was. It was.
0:13:16 > 0:13:19But it was still very much local.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22- Uh-huh.- It was, to one extent, a local pub.
0:13:22 > 0:13:24If they had a back garden,
0:13:24 > 0:13:27they would throw up a hall in the back garden.
0:13:27 > 0:13:30Were the music halls the sole preserve of the working classes?
0:13:30 > 0:13:33The working classes themselves changed.
0:13:33 > 0:13:36There was a lot of upper aspirations.
0:13:36 > 0:13:40Between 1840 and 1880, the population of London doubled.
0:13:40 > 0:13:44You had all these people who had spare, disposable income
0:13:44 > 0:13:47and they needed somewhere to spend that money.
0:13:47 > 0:13:50Where better than their local music hall?
0:13:50 > 0:13:53The music halls themselves changed a great deal.
0:13:53 > 0:13:56It was around the 1850s, really.
0:13:56 > 0:13:57A man called Charles Morton,
0:13:57 > 0:14:00who took all the various disparate elements that there were
0:14:00 > 0:14:04of popular entertainment and he tried various experiments
0:14:04 > 0:14:07and came up with the first, what we think of today as the
0:14:07 > 0:14:10first music hall, where there was a small charge for admission,
0:14:10 > 0:14:14not too much, just enough for the working man to be able to afford.
0:14:14 > 0:14:17There were ladies on stage and in the audience.
0:14:17 > 0:14:19You could take your wives and daughters.
0:14:19 > 0:14:23These may have been places for family entertainment,
0:14:23 > 0:14:28but prostitution was rife and women would commonly display their wares
0:14:28 > 0:14:30in the aisles of the music hall.
0:14:30 > 0:14:34They, like West End pubs or clubs or hotels,
0:14:34 > 0:14:38would cater to different levels of society,
0:14:38 > 0:14:42depending on your status and how much you could afford to pay.
0:14:42 > 0:14:46Prostitution, certainly. But then, prostitution was everywhere
0:14:46 > 0:14:49and the Police Commissioner at the time, I think, rather boldly
0:14:49 > 0:14:55and bravely said, "Well, at least we know where the ladies are.
0:14:55 > 0:14:59"We can keep them out of danger, we can keep them out of trouble."
0:14:59 > 0:15:02Rowdy crowds would come and watch the variety shows,
0:15:02 > 0:15:06which included comedy, magic and music.
0:15:06 > 0:15:08When the music hall came in, it began to...
0:15:08 > 0:15:13The impetus of music and the lyrics began to change to the chorus
0:15:13 > 0:15:17and people sat through the lyrics of the verses,
0:15:17 > 0:15:19just really waiting...
0:15:19 > 0:15:21And then joined in with the artist.
0:15:21 > 0:15:25So that was something that was quite new with music halls,
0:15:25 > 0:15:26that you could join in.
0:15:26 > 0:15:29Peter, you're an actor and performer. Do you have, like,
0:15:29 > 0:15:32a set of rules when you're performing in music halls?
0:15:32 > 0:15:36You've got a direct liaison with the audience.
0:15:36 > 0:15:39So you're talking directly to them.
0:15:39 > 0:15:41The only other thing is pantomime,
0:15:41 > 0:15:43- which, again, I'm very fond of doing...- Yes.
0:15:43 > 0:15:46..when you're directly involved with the audience.
0:15:46 > 0:15:49Were the music hall stars very, very wealthy in those days?
0:15:49 > 0:15:51Did they make a lot of money?
0:15:51 > 0:15:54Oh, by today's standards, yes. I mean, remember,
0:15:54 > 0:15:57you could have a live-in parlour maid for a fiver a year.
0:15:57 > 0:16:02- Mm-hm.- So, for a music hall artist to get 60-70 a week...
0:16:02 > 0:16:04And who was the richest of them all?
0:16:04 > 0:16:06Oh, Lord.
0:16:06 > 0:16:08Well, Marie Lloyd left...
0:16:08 > 0:16:13When she died at 52, she left £25,000.
0:16:13 > 0:16:17She was notoriously generous.
0:16:17 > 0:16:21Marie Lloyd was known as the Queen of the Music Hall,
0:16:21 > 0:16:24earning £100 a week with her smutty innuendos.
0:16:25 > 0:16:27Any song can be interpreted as being saucy.
0:16:27 > 0:16:30She's supposed to have been hauled before magistrates
0:16:30 > 0:16:32and sang an innocent song straight,
0:16:32 > 0:16:36and than sang it again with all her famous innuendo, wink,
0:16:36 > 0:16:40and suddenly it became as filthy as all get-out,
0:16:40 > 0:16:42so it was all in the mind.
0:16:42 > 0:16:46- Yes, yes.- And she must have been like the Kardashians of her day,
0:16:46 > 0:16:49with three husbands, numerous court appearances...
0:16:49 > 0:16:52She was quite a girl. I just wish I could have seen her.
0:16:54 > 0:16:58I've definitely built a picture of the entertainment extravaganza
0:16:58 > 0:17:00music halls provided in Victorian times...
0:17:03 > 0:17:06..and the sort of show revellers would have seen at Wilton's.
0:17:08 > 0:17:11While there may have been a raucous going on upstairs,
0:17:11 > 0:17:13what interests me is what lies beneath.
0:17:16 > 0:17:20Building manager Jonathan Freeman is in the darkest depths
0:17:20 > 0:17:23of Wilton's basement to explain the sheer magic of this place.
0:17:25 > 0:17:27I keep trying to imagine London at that time.
0:17:27 > 0:17:30This was where people went for entertainment, working people.
0:17:30 > 0:17:32Totally. This was a popular East End music hall.
0:17:32 > 0:17:36It's said West Enders just came here to spy on what people
0:17:36 > 0:17:39were doing and, yeah, it was run by and for the East Enders.
0:17:39 > 0:17:42John Wilson, of course, really transforms the future
0:17:42 > 0:17:44of the building and left such a great legacy.
0:17:44 > 0:17:47What a legacy! So what sort of shenanigans were going on then?
0:17:47 > 0:17:50Well, of course, this was the red-light district of London.
0:17:50 > 0:17:55There were the opium dens down at Limehouse and there were plenty of
0:17:55 > 0:17:57brothels in the area, that's for certain.
0:17:57 > 0:18:01And the docks were so lively. There were 2,000 ships at any one time
0:18:01 > 0:18:03moored up on the Thames around that era.
0:18:03 > 0:18:06And, of course, it wasn't policed, not until 1829 -
0:18:06 > 0:18:08so, in fact, it was self-policed.
0:18:10 > 0:18:12Sailors were very well catered for at Wilton's
0:18:12 > 0:18:16and we know that sometimes they needed to get out quick, in a hurry,
0:18:16 > 0:18:20so there were several hatches in the floor areas and it's written that
0:18:20 > 0:18:22they would certainly jump down the hatches
0:18:22 > 0:18:24and disappear off to the docks.
0:18:24 > 0:18:27Possibly there was a tunnel here under the hall.
0:18:27 > 0:18:28We haven't found it yet.
0:18:28 > 0:18:31- Right.- There are a couple of areas we might be able to investigate
0:18:31 > 0:18:32in the future.
0:18:34 > 0:18:38In the 1880s, Wilton's was bought by the Wesleyan Methodist Mission,
0:18:38 > 0:18:42who had long criticised the drinking and debauchery it encouraged.
0:18:42 > 0:18:45They had it for 70 years, until the mid-1950s,
0:18:45 > 0:18:48and it was then used for a few years as a warehouse.
0:18:52 > 0:18:56It then remained empty, suffering from structural damage and decay.
0:18:56 > 0:19:00But this magical building managed to avoid being knocked down
0:19:00 > 0:19:04during the slum clearances in the 1960s, thanks to campaigns
0:19:04 > 0:19:08including well-known figures such as comedian Spike Milligan,
0:19:08 > 0:19:09and the building was saved.
0:19:12 > 0:19:14It was closed for over 30 years,
0:19:14 > 0:19:17only being used occasionally as a film set,
0:19:17 > 0:19:21but finally reopened its doors to the public in 1997.
0:19:25 > 0:19:28This is the most complete renovation to take place
0:19:28 > 0:19:29since John Wilton left.
0:19:30 > 0:19:33But when it came to today's restoration,
0:19:33 > 0:19:36thought and consideration were top of the list.
0:19:37 > 0:19:40And the way the restoration's been done very, very carefully,
0:19:40 > 0:19:41it does keep that atmosphere.
0:19:41 > 0:19:44Yes, it's got many layers and many stories to tell.
0:19:44 > 0:19:48And so, it's so important to save that and to keep all the quirkiness,
0:19:48 > 0:19:50to let the building tell its own story.
0:19:50 > 0:19:53- You can read it, quite literally. - Yeah. Oh, wonderfully said.
0:19:59 > 0:20:02The builders' remit was to make it look like they'd never been.
0:20:05 > 0:20:07So, when you're replacing old floorboards,
0:20:07 > 0:20:09that can be a little tricky.
0:20:09 > 0:20:11But site manager Mick has just the thing.
0:20:13 > 0:20:16These floorboards here are over 200 years old.
0:20:16 > 0:20:18They've got stains on them, they've got wear on them,
0:20:18 > 0:20:21they've got everything what's happened to them over their lifetime.
0:20:21 > 0:20:26But new timber in a situation like this stands out like a sore thumb,
0:20:26 > 0:20:27as we say in Yorkshire.
0:20:27 > 0:20:29So we have two ways that you can do this, really.
0:20:29 > 0:20:33Yorkshiremen like their tea, so here's how we brew tea in Yorkshire,
0:20:33 > 0:20:35in a big dish. No, I'm only kidding.
0:20:35 > 0:20:37This is for the benefit of staining.
0:20:37 > 0:20:41The colour of the teabags is ideal for tanning.
0:20:41 > 0:20:44Then, a nice soft cloth, plenty on it.
0:20:44 > 0:20:46Just throw the tea on, stab it on.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48And this will then stain...
0:20:48 > 0:20:51sort of colour the timber down from its whitish colour,
0:20:51 > 0:20:53which it is when it's new.
0:20:53 > 0:20:57It dulls it down to replicate sort of ageing so, you know,
0:20:57 > 0:21:00you just keep putting it on, just keep dabbing it.
0:21:00 > 0:21:02If you have a look at a builder's teapot or a builder's mug,
0:21:02 > 0:21:05they don't wash them out. You'll see how brown and stained it is.
0:21:05 > 0:21:08And this is all it's doing with the timber here, it's just staining it.
0:21:08 > 0:21:11But Mick has another method up his sleeve.
0:21:11 > 0:21:14We generally use this one after three o'clock in the afternoon,
0:21:14 > 0:21:17but a drop of red wine never goes amiss.
0:21:17 > 0:21:20And if you wanted, you can just gently splash it on,
0:21:20 > 0:21:21try not to wet everywhere...
0:21:21 > 0:21:25But, like that, and just rub it in, let it dry,
0:21:25 > 0:21:28and that then just replicates when people spill it.
0:21:28 > 0:21:32Their criteria when we came was to not know that we'd been.
0:21:32 > 0:21:35With the steps as they were, everybody would've known.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37We'd have been for 12, 18 months, two years, until they got in.
0:21:37 > 0:21:39But doing this bit...
0:21:39 > 0:21:42just a little bit of care and it makes everything look a lot better
0:21:42 > 0:21:46in these circumstances as to what they want, so, you know...
0:21:46 > 0:21:49And you could probably finish the bottle off when you've done it all,
0:21:49 > 0:21:51so there's benefits both ways.
0:21:55 > 0:21:58The builders are doing the final finishing touches
0:21:58 > 0:22:02so this grand music hall can continue to do what it does best -
0:22:02 > 0:22:04provide all-round entertainment.
0:22:06 > 0:22:09And I think I'm just in the nick of time
0:22:09 > 0:22:12to help lay the last few floorboards that they've been replacing.
0:22:14 > 0:22:19OK, Dave, well, here's your chance to hide some of the modern work,
0:22:19 > 0:22:23cos we're just re-fixing these old floorboards that we've got
0:22:23 > 0:22:25on top of the fire-protective board.
0:22:25 > 0:22:27Are these the original boards, Charles?
0:22:27 > 0:22:29These ones, because this is a whole new floor,
0:22:29 > 0:22:32these are reclaimed boards from another project.
0:22:32 > 0:22:35- Yeah.- But they look really similar to the ones that were here before.
0:22:35 > 0:22:37Of course, this is a new corridor, so it wouldn't be original boards,
0:22:37 > 0:22:40- would it?- Exactly. You're getting the hang of how it all works out
0:22:40 > 0:22:42across the buildings. So, yeah,
0:22:42 > 0:22:44what we're doing now is we've just got a few of these boards that
0:22:44 > 0:22:47we needed to check and now we need to re-fix them
0:22:47 > 0:22:50on top of the fire boarding. So, any minute now, you can have a go
0:22:50 > 0:22:53at making it look like nothing's changed
0:22:53 > 0:22:55- and it's all been here forever. - And it won't catch fire.
0:22:55 > 0:22:58Do you know what? I'm feeling guilty, cos I haven't done anything.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00- You'd better get stuck in! - I'll do the boards.
0:23:00 > 0:23:04Come on, Val, give us a shot! I'll finish the last two.
0:23:04 > 0:23:07- Is that the right end?- Yeah.
0:23:07 > 0:23:10So, presumably, do these have to be tight, Val?
0:23:10 > 0:23:12- Yeah.- Now, what do I do?
0:23:12 > 0:23:15Do I basically follow... Obviously, I've got joists there, there,
0:23:15 > 0:23:18- cos I can see the screws...- Yeah. - So I just follow the joists?
0:23:18 > 0:23:20Yeah, that's right.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23You know, Charles, we're using recycled boards here,
0:23:23 > 0:23:25yet I'm using modern nails.
0:23:25 > 0:23:29Would there ever be a case in restoration where you'd recycle
0:23:29 > 0:23:31the nails as well, put back the old nails?
0:23:31 > 0:23:34Yeah, there are. Especially where you've got something
0:23:34 > 0:23:37perhaps more medieval. And, yeah, sometimes we do have to use
0:23:37 > 0:23:40blacksmith-cut nails specially.
0:23:40 > 0:23:43Well, we'd better get back to the job in hand.
0:23:44 > 0:23:45Val, over to you!
0:23:47 > 0:23:49Even though I let Val put the last board down,
0:23:49 > 0:23:53I'm hoping they'll save me a special honour.
0:23:53 > 0:23:56Val, can I do the last nail at Wilton's?
0:23:56 > 0:23:59- Yeah. No worries.- Yes!
0:23:59 > 0:24:00It's a bit bent, isn't it?
0:24:04 > 0:24:05Right.
0:24:10 > 0:24:12- Job's done.- That's it!- Excellent.
0:24:17 > 0:24:21In its day, the music hall would've been frequented
0:24:21 > 0:24:22by all sorts of people.
0:24:24 > 0:24:26Wilton's is in an area which has been one of the most
0:24:26 > 0:24:29multicultural parts of London throughout the ages.
0:24:31 > 0:24:34With Whitechapel being slap-bang next to the River Thames,
0:24:34 > 0:24:36this really isn't a surprise.
0:24:38 > 0:24:39Throughout the 19th century,
0:24:39 > 0:24:44the local population rocketed by 20% every decade,
0:24:44 > 0:24:46mostly due to immigration.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49Historian David Rosenberg shows how each left their mark.
0:24:52 > 0:24:55What came in at those docks, it was not just goods.
0:24:55 > 0:24:57People got off the boats.
0:24:57 > 0:25:01Also, East London was London's first manufacturing area.
0:25:01 > 0:25:07You had Belgian weavers come to the East End of London in the 1400s.
0:25:07 > 0:25:11You had Huguenot refugees come in the late 1600s.
0:25:11 > 0:25:13You also had Irish people coming,
0:25:13 > 0:25:16particularly through the 19th century.
0:25:16 > 0:25:20And then, from the late 1880s, you had the community that my family
0:25:20 > 0:25:24came from, who were the East European Jewish community.
0:25:24 > 0:25:26Pockets of Chinese,
0:25:26 > 0:25:30Somali and Indian immigrants arrived this way from the 1850s -
0:25:30 > 0:25:32ship workers who jumped ship.
0:25:34 > 0:25:38You had communities established in the East End representing those
0:25:38 > 0:25:43different groups. And, if you look at the census figures from 1921,
0:25:43 > 0:25:46Limehouse, where we are now,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49was the centre of the Chinese community in London.
0:25:53 > 0:25:56But today, the largest migrant group in Whitechapel
0:25:56 > 0:26:00are the South Asian community, predominantly the Bengalis -
0:26:00 > 0:26:04and they brought their own version of music halls to Whitechapel,
0:26:04 > 0:26:08something to rival the most raucous of cockney knees-ups.
0:26:14 > 0:26:18Music halls were a place for people to meet old friends
0:26:18 > 0:26:20and bring their family.
0:26:20 > 0:26:23With the restoration of this glorious building complete,
0:26:23 > 0:26:27I can't think of anything better than letting my hair down
0:26:27 > 0:26:30with my wife and stepdaughter...
0:26:30 > 0:26:33# He'll get by without his rabbit pie
0:26:33 > 0:26:37# So run, rabbit, run, rabbit Run, run, run. #
0:26:37 > 0:26:40..for an evening of fun, song and laughter.
0:26:40 > 0:26:44- ALL:- # My old man said Follow the van
0:26:44 > 0:26:47# And don't dilly dally on the way
0:26:47 > 0:26:51# I dillied and dallied Dallied and dillied
0:26:51 > 0:26:55# Lost me way and don't know where to roam
0:26:55 > 0:26:58# Well you can't trust a special like the old-time coppers
0:26:58 > 0:27:01# When you can't find your way home. #
0:27:04 > 0:27:08Do you know, Tom, I've been to many gigs and kind of events and shows,
0:27:08 > 0:27:12but I've never felt such kind of sheer joy and enthusiasm in a room.
0:27:12 > 0:27:13It's fantastic.
0:27:13 > 0:27:16Thank you for saying so. It's such a special place.
0:27:16 > 0:27:18And the feeling, performing in this venue,
0:27:18 > 0:27:21the performers that have performed on this stage and the spirit in the
0:27:21 > 0:27:24walls, it really is a special place.
0:27:24 > 0:27:26It's just such good fun.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28I mean, the songs are great, you know?
0:27:28 > 0:27:32They're all timeless songs and songs that we never really know
0:27:32 > 0:27:35where we learnt them from - from grandparents or from school.
0:27:35 > 0:27:39I just think, with Wilton's, with the hall being back as it was,
0:27:39 > 0:27:42this is going on here and it's the same spirit as it would've been
0:27:42 > 0:27:44- in 1850.- Absolutely.
0:27:44 > 0:27:47This building for the past two centuries has given such joy
0:27:47 > 0:27:49and pleasure to thousands of people.
0:27:49 > 0:27:53It's here, thanks to restoration, thanks to building,
0:27:53 > 0:27:56thanks to Peter's hard work and imagination.
0:27:56 > 0:27:59I just hope that Wilton's lives forever.
0:27:59 > 0:28:02'Next time, I'll be in West Yorkshire helping to restore this
0:28:02 > 0:28:05'jewel of Bradford's architectural heritage -
0:28:05 > 0:28:07'the spectacular Victorian City Hall.
0:28:07 > 0:28:10'I'll be getting up close and personal with Britain's monarchs...'
0:28:10 > 0:28:12There's about three or four kings.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16The ends of the sceptres have been deliberately shaped as willies.
0:28:16 > 0:28:18No!
0:28:18 > 0:28:20'..I'll be discovering why the city became so wealthy...'
0:28:20 > 0:28:23Look at that, it's like the gates of Mordor!
0:28:23 > 0:28:26'..and I'll meet an angel who's lost her horn.'
0:28:26 > 0:28:29It's more like an episode of Casualty than The Hairy Builder.