0:00:02 > 0:00:05Today on Songs Of Praise, I'll be finding out how chickens can
0:00:05 > 0:00:09combat loneliness and helping me will be this group from the North East.
0:00:09 > 0:00:12They are known as "hensioners", not pensioners.
0:00:12 > 0:00:14Also in the programme, Richard Taylor,
0:00:14 > 0:00:18our very own church detective, is in Haworth in West Yorkshire
0:00:18 > 0:00:22exploring its links with the Bronte family.
0:00:22 > 0:00:25And I'm here in the Cotswolds for a sneak preview
0:00:25 > 0:00:29of the new series of Father Brown, the crime-solving priest.
0:00:29 > 0:00:31Chesterton wrote him as a short, stumpy priest.
0:00:31 > 0:00:34I play him as a larger, fat priest.
0:00:42 > 0:00:46And we've no shortage of great hymns and songs to inspire you,
0:00:46 > 0:00:47starting with this one -
0:00:47 > 0:00:50a stirring epiphany hymn from Ipswich.
0:03:12 > 0:03:15Loneliness is a growing problem.
0:03:15 > 0:03:18For many, it could be pretty miserable.
0:03:18 > 0:03:21Over a million pensioners here in the UK say they haven't spoken
0:03:21 > 0:03:24to a friend, neighbour or family member for at least a month.
0:03:26 > 0:03:28But I've come to a sheltered housing project
0:03:28 > 0:03:31here in Gateshead that is doing its part to combat
0:03:31 > 0:03:35loneliness in a surprising way by enlisting some special help -
0:03:35 > 0:03:37chickens.
0:03:37 > 0:03:40Hen Power is a scheme that uses these bird buddies
0:03:40 > 0:03:42to reduce loneliness and depression.
0:03:42 > 0:03:44I want to find out how the residents here in Wood Green
0:03:44 > 0:03:46have been won over.
0:03:53 > 0:03:56Hens have lived here alongside the residents for four years now
0:03:56 > 0:04:00as part of a project run by the charity Equal Arts
0:04:00 > 0:04:02and it's expanding across the country.
0:04:02 > 0:04:05- This one is having a good look at me. - He's seen you on the telly.
0:04:05 > 0:04:08Do you think he has seen me on the telly? Is that what it is?!
0:04:10 > 0:04:1389-year-old Thomas Cresswell, known as Ossie,
0:04:13 > 0:04:15is one of the people who've benefited.
0:04:19 > 0:04:23Twice widowed, Ossie has lived alone in his bungalow for 16 years.
0:04:24 > 0:04:27Loneliness is a terrible thing.
0:04:29 > 0:04:31Every day is the same.
0:04:31 > 0:04:33Nothing interests you.
0:04:34 > 0:04:38I mean, people, they don't know you.
0:04:38 > 0:04:40You don't know them, you know.
0:04:40 > 0:04:43You're a world apart. You are living on your own.
0:04:45 > 0:04:48You have nobody to talk to, no friend,
0:04:48 > 0:04:51nobody to help you with these things.
0:04:51 > 0:04:53You are grasping for straws, really.
0:04:54 > 0:04:57When your wife dies, you've got nothing left.
0:04:57 > 0:05:00It's like half of you dying, isn't it?
0:05:01 > 0:05:03And when half of you is dying,
0:05:03 > 0:05:06you haven't got no will to live yourself.
0:05:06 > 0:05:09You've got no time for television or anything.
0:05:10 > 0:05:14You just want to sit in the garden
0:05:14 > 0:05:18and reminisce things you had with your wife and things like this.
0:05:18 > 0:05:20Did faith make a difference?
0:05:21 > 0:05:23It helps you.
0:05:23 > 0:05:27Because when you are on your own, you forget about people.
0:05:27 > 0:05:29You think about the end of your life...
0:05:31 > 0:05:34..and what's going to happen to you, then.
0:05:34 > 0:05:38But I was brought up in a church when I was young.
0:05:39 > 0:05:43And at night, I still say my night prayers,
0:05:43 > 0:05:47such as the wife, I will always say a prayer for her,
0:05:47 > 0:05:52and the people that's next to us that's got problems, you know.
0:05:52 > 0:05:55So who have we got here? Who is this?
0:05:56 > 0:06:00- That is Betty. That's right, she will settle down.- Hello.
0:06:00 > 0:06:04- That is the first time I have fed a hen.- They are friendly.
0:06:04 > 0:06:07- They will not hurt you, you know. - She's lovely.
0:06:07 > 0:06:11- I just hold her by the feet with the right hand.- Right.
0:06:11 > 0:06:14- Right hand by the feet. Like that. - Not too tight.
0:06:14 > 0:06:18She will settle down. Put her on top of your knees. She'll not...
0:06:19 > 0:06:22- They're lovely. - She will not bother you, no.
0:06:22 > 0:06:26These make a great difference in my life.
0:06:26 > 0:06:29It has made a great difference to other people's lives.
0:06:29 > 0:06:32In what way has it made a difference?
0:06:32 > 0:06:35It gets me out of the house, it gets me meeting people.
0:06:35 > 0:06:38So it has been a godsend to me,
0:06:38 > 0:06:42but we also try to convey this to other people
0:06:42 > 0:06:44that haven't got anything.
0:06:44 > 0:06:48They live outside my back door. I say, "Hello, darlings, how are you?"
0:06:48 > 0:06:50And they come up to us.
0:06:50 > 0:06:52They actually do all come running and you're talking
0:06:52 > 0:06:55and they are pecking and shouting at you.
0:06:55 > 0:06:58- People don't realise how nice and warm and soft they are.- They are.
0:06:58 > 0:07:01I am amazed. I never realised either.
0:07:01 > 0:07:05When you take them to children's schools, they are just gobsmacked.
0:07:06 > 0:07:10We take the hens to old people's homes.
0:07:10 > 0:07:13There are people looking out the window. They have got nothing.
0:07:13 > 0:07:18They don't talk to each other. Silence is golden in places.
0:07:18 > 0:07:22But when I go with the hens, you cause a bit of havoc.
0:07:22 > 0:07:26Everybody is looking and the place comes alive for a few hours.
0:07:26 > 0:07:29You get the hens out and they are walking about.
0:07:29 > 0:07:32- They're the focal point, aren't they?- They are the focal point.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35- We have hen nights to raise money. - Not like the normal hen nights?!
0:07:35 > 0:07:37Not them.
0:07:37 > 0:07:40We have events, what we call a hen night, which is a social evening
0:07:40 > 0:07:42and we have raffles and things.
0:07:42 > 0:07:45And the money goes to help the hens if they need anything.
0:07:47 > 0:07:50How do you feel now when you have Betty in your arms?
0:07:50 > 0:07:54I feel as though I've got light in my hands.
0:07:54 > 0:07:58You sit looking at the wall if you haven't got chickens, you know.
0:07:58 > 0:08:00Do you thank God for them?
0:08:00 > 0:08:04I thank everybody for them, especially God.
0:08:04 > 0:08:09If it hadn't have been for him, I wouldn't be here looking after them.
0:08:10 > 0:08:15God has given me the strength and the mind to talk about them
0:08:15 > 0:08:17and make other people happy.
0:10:56 > 0:10:59Tomorrow sees the much-anticipated return
0:10:59 > 0:11:01of the BBC drama Father Brown.
0:11:01 > 0:11:03We sent Ann Widdecombe on location in the Cotswolds
0:11:03 > 0:11:06to investigate its enduring popularity.
0:11:06 > 0:11:08And action.
0:11:08 > 0:11:12Father Brown is a drama about a humble parish priest who uses
0:11:12 > 0:11:17his intuition to solve grisly crimes amongst the rolling Cotswold Hills.
0:11:19 > 0:11:23A ratings hit on weekday afternoons, it is selling all over the world.
0:11:24 > 0:11:26And I'm getting a sneak preview.
0:11:28 > 0:11:31It's based on the famous novels of GK Chesterton,
0:11:31 > 0:11:33penned over a century ago.
0:11:33 > 0:11:34But...
0:11:36 > 0:11:37..I will need a lift to this bar.
0:11:37 > 0:11:40I can lend you Hornby and the Rolls.
0:11:40 > 0:11:44This fashion of Father Brown is set in the 1950s.
0:11:44 > 0:11:47In his books, GK Chesterton describes Father Brown
0:11:47 > 0:11:50as a dumpy figure with an owlish head.
0:11:50 > 0:11:54I wonder what current Father Brown, Mark Williams, makes of that?
0:11:54 > 0:11:57Chesterton wrote him as a short, stumpy priest.
0:11:57 > 0:12:00I play him as a larger, fat priest.
0:12:00 > 0:12:03I feel I'm very close to him in a lot of ways,
0:12:03 > 0:12:06one of which is endless inquisitiveness,
0:12:06 > 0:12:08or nosiness, perhaps we should call it.
0:12:08 > 0:12:11- Absolutely, and that, of course, is his great strength.- Yes.
0:12:11 > 0:12:13How do you prepare to play a priest?
0:12:13 > 0:12:19I read a lot and my upbringing is in the Anglican tradition
0:12:19 > 0:12:23as a chorister and at university and stuff.
0:12:23 > 0:12:27I was really, really interested in reading about Catholic liturgy.
0:12:27 > 0:12:29The other thing about Father Brown is he is a detective.
0:12:29 > 0:12:32Although he is part of the whodunnit British tradition,
0:12:32 > 0:12:35he is different in the sense that what's at stake
0:12:35 > 0:12:40is not a conundrum or a crossword puzzle in the Christie mould,
0:12:40 > 0:12:43but it is people's souls.
0:12:43 > 0:12:49So his emotional connection with the problem is that much deeper.
0:12:49 > 0:12:53And that is a great thing for an actor to play.
0:12:53 > 0:12:55I am finally happy, Father.
0:12:55 > 0:12:57Historical and religious accuracy
0:12:57 > 0:12:59are very important to the production.
0:12:59 > 0:13:02The wrong costume or hymnbook could lead to complaints
0:13:02 > 0:13:04from its millions of viewers,
0:13:04 > 0:13:06so they employ 83-year-old Father Anthony Nye
0:13:06 > 0:13:08as their religious adviser.
0:13:08 > 0:13:13- Thank you, Father. - There we are. Welcome.- Oh, I say.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15Look, we've got a confessional.
0:13:15 > 0:13:17They have done a very good job of that.
0:13:17 > 0:13:21- That is where Father Brown sits and hears it all.- That's right.
0:13:21 > 0:13:24And you wouldn't get one of those in the average Anglican church.
0:13:26 > 0:13:29What does being a religious adviser involve?
0:13:29 > 0:13:34Reading the scripts carefully to see that it is authentic
0:13:34 > 0:13:38for the way the Catholic Church was in the 1950s.
0:13:38 > 0:13:42Did you ever have to intervene in a more general way and say,
0:13:42 > 0:13:43"No, that's not right?"
0:13:43 > 0:13:45Yes.
0:13:45 > 0:13:50Like the bishop, very irascible, saying "Brown".
0:13:50 > 0:13:52Oh, no. Oh, no, no, no.
0:13:52 > 0:13:57No, a Catholic bishop, even if he is irascible, wouldn't do that.
0:13:57 > 0:14:02- So I said he must be called Father Brown.- Or Father.- Or Father.
0:14:02 > 0:14:08Why do you think Chesterton wrote a book with a priest as a detective?
0:14:08 > 0:14:12Because he, like myself and yourself,
0:14:12 > 0:14:16was a convert who was very much taken
0:14:16 > 0:14:21with the wisdom of Catholicism and he wanted to show a character
0:14:21 > 0:14:27not just solving problems but showing humanity and wisdom.
0:14:27 > 0:14:30Now, can you see yourself solving a murder?
0:14:30 > 0:14:34I think I might, having read all those scripts!
0:14:40 > 0:14:43What is the appeal of Father Brown?
0:14:43 > 0:14:48He doesn't judge and he is fascinated by life.
0:14:48 > 0:14:51The attractiveness of his character,
0:14:51 > 0:14:55that you can be a Catholic priest and you can be human.
0:14:56 > 0:15:00Just like Holmes or Marple or Poirot,
0:15:00 > 0:15:04there is an enduring appeal to Father Brown.
0:15:04 > 0:15:07But I don't think it's because he solved crimes.
0:15:07 > 0:15:10I think it's because he was a Christian
0:15:10 > 0:15:15and he was driven by compassion, humanity and the love of others.
0:15:22 > 0:15:28# The Lord bless you and keep you
0:15:28 > 0:15:33# The Lord make his face to shine upon you
0:15:33 > 0:15:39# To shine upon you and be gracious
0:15:39 > 0:15:44# And be gracious unto you
0:15:45 > 0:15:50# The Lord bless you and keep you
0:15:50 > 0:15:56# The Lord make his face to shine upon you
0:15:56 > 0:16:00# To shine upon you and be gracious
0:16:00 > 0:16:02# To shine upon you and be gracious
0:16:02 > 0:16:07# And be gracious unto you
0:16:07 > 0:16:13# The Lord lift up the light
0:16:13 > 0:16:18# Of his countenance upon you
0:16:18 > 0:16:24# The Lord lift up the light
0:16:24 > 0:16:31# Of his countenance upon you
0:16:31 > 0:16:36# And give you peace
0:16:37 > 0:16:42# And give you peace
0:16:43 > 0:16:47# And give you peace
0:16:48 > 0:16:54# And give you peace
0:16:54 > 0:16:59# Amen
0:17:00 > 0:17:05# Amen
0:17:06 > 0:17:11- # Amen - Amen, amen
0:17:11 > 0:17:15- # Amen - Amen
0:17:15 > 0:17:20- # Amen - A-a-amen
0:17:20 > 0:17:28# Amen. #
0:17:35 > 0:17:39Coming up, our very own church detective, Richard Taylor,
0:17:39 > 0:17:43continues his literary travels, this time in Haworth, West Yorkshire.
0:17:43 > 0:17:47He's on the trail of three authors from the same family - the Bronte sisters.
0:17:47 > 0:17:50But first, it's to Tooting in London for this contemporary classic.
0:20:51 > 0:20:56In the mid-1840s here in the village of Haworth in West Yorkshire,
0:20:56 > 0:20:58three daughters of the local minister
0:20:58 > 0:21:02each decided to write a novel.
0:21:02 > 0:21:07In less than one year, the Bronte sisters had written Jane Eyre,
0:21:07 > 0:21:12The Tenant of Wildfell Hall and Wuthering Heights -
0:21:12 > 0:21:15three of our best loved and most romantic novels
0:21:15 > 0:21:18with their darkly brooding heroes,
0:21:18 > 0:21:20their passionate heroines,
0:21:20 > 0:21:25set against a backdrop of wild moorland and stormy weather.
0:21:26 > 0:21:28But the story of the Brontes
0:21:28 > 0:21:32isn't just a story of astonishing creativity,
0:21:32 > 0:21:37it's also a story of terrible tragedy and of profound faith.
0:21:41 > 0:21:43Patrick Bronte and his wife, Maria,
0:21:43 > 0:21:47arrived here in 1820 with their six small children
0:21:47 > 0:21:51when Patrick was appointed curate of the local parish church.
0:21:51 > 0:21:52This was their world.
0:21:52 > 0:21:57The church, the parsonage behind it, and the moorland beyond.
0:21:59 > 0:22:01The body of the church has been replaced,
0:22:01 > 0:22:04but this is the original belltower,
0:22:04 > 0:22:07beneath which the family would have walked each Sunday
0:22:07 > 0:22:10to hear their father's famously passionate sermons.
0:22:11 > 0:22:14But within 18 months Maria had died,
0:22:14 > 0:22:17leaving Patrick to bring up six small children.
0:22:20 > 0:22:24For all that, the Brontes' home life was lively and loving.
0:22:24 > 0:22:28Patrick encouraged the children's love of literature and the arts.
0:22:28 > 0:22:33And the siblings would spend hours together creating imaginary worlds.
0:22:35 > 0:22:38To find out more, I'm meeting with Ann Dinsdale
0:22:38 > 0:22:42in the parsonage itself, which is now a museum to the Brontes.
0:22:44 > 0:22:47A lot of their writing was produced in this room
0:22:47 > 0:22:49on this particular dining table.
0:22:49 > 0:22:51- Actually here?- Yes.
0:22:51 > 0:22:54Charlotte's Jane Eyre, Emily's Wuthering Heights
0:22:54 > 0:22:56and Anne's The Tenant of Wildfell Hall
0:22:56 > 0:22:58were all written at this very table.
0:22:58 > 0:23:02They would walk around the table reading aloud from their work
0:23:02 > 0:23:04and discussing their writing projects.
0:23:04 > 0:23:09What role did religion play in the lives of the Brontes?
0:23:09 > 0:23:12Well, they were the daughters of a clergyman.
0:23:12 > 0:23:16They were expected to attend church on a regular basis.
0:23:16 > 0:23:20Outwardly, very kind of religious, dutiful lives.
0:23:20 > 0:23:23But then, you know, they almost had double lives
0:23:23 > 0:23:27where they had this intense imaginary world going on -
0:23:27 > 0:23:31people with these wild aristocratic characters.
0:23:31 > 0:23:33Everything that Haworth wasn't, really.
0:23:36 > 0:23:39Tragedy hit the family again in the late 1840s.
0:23:40 > 0:23:44Emily died of tuberculosis aged 30,
0:23:44 > 0:23:50brother Branwell aged 31 and just a year later Anne died aged 29.
0:23:51 > 0:23:54Charlotte was the last surviving sister
0:23:54 > 0:24:00until in 1855 she too died aged just 39.
0:24:00 > 0:24:03Astonishingly, Patrick their father
0:24:03 > 0:24:06was the last surviving member of the family.
0:24:06 > 0:24:09You can hardly imagine how he coped, but he did,
0:24:09 > 0:24:13continuing to serve in the church until the day he died.
0:24:13 > 0:24:16Here, beneath this column, is the family vault.
0:24:19 > 0:24:25What I've learnt here is that there is no story of the Brontes -
0:24:25 > 0:24:27there are many stories.
0:24:27 > 0:24:31There is a story of tragedy as dark as any Victorian novel.
0:24:31 > 0:24:36There's the story of the sisters circling their dining room table
0:24:36 > 0:24:39and conjuring their amazing characters.
0:24:39 > 0:24:41There's the story of strength.
0:24:41 > 0:24:44And there's the story of faith
0:24:44 > 0:24:46And there's the story of family.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49And there's the story of love.
0:27:11 > 0:27:13Earlier in the programme,
0:27:13 > 0:27:15I met with "hensioners", as they call themselves,
0:27:15 > 0:27:19here at Wood Green sheltered accommodation near Gateshead.
0:27:21 > 0:27:24They have found an unusual way to combat loneliness -
0:27:24 > 0:27:26by keeping hens.
0:27:26 > 0:27:28The chickens are known to improve wellbeing.
0:27:28 > 0:27:31Hello, Bell. Hello, flower.
0:27:31 > 0:27:36And for 83-year-old Pam Snowball, they have transformed her life.
0:27:36 > 0:27:38So what did you feel like when they first came up
0:27:38 > 0:27:40with the idea for you guys to have hens?
0:27:40 > 0:27:43I thought it was mad.
0:27:43 > 0:27:45I did. I thought it was crazy.
0:27:45 > 0:27:48I says, "An 80-year-old looking after hens?!"
0:27:48 > 0:27:51I says, "Well, I'm very apprehensive about that."
0:27:51 > 0:27:53So what happened was,
0:27:53 > 0:27:58all the ladies that said they were interested in looking after hens
0:27:58 > 0:28:00had a hen named after them.
0:28:00 > 0:28:04So we had Doreen, Jenny, me, Pam, Rose.
0:28:04 > 0:28:08What difference has it made to your life having these hens?
0:28:08 > 0:28:10It has filled a great big hole.
0:28:10 > 0:28:12- Really?- Really. Honestly.
0:28:12 > 0:28:16When I came to live around here, I had lost my husband.
0:28:16 > 0:28:20We did everything together and I didn't have a separate life.
0:28:20 > 0:28:22So you've got to make a new life for yourself
0:28:22 > 0:28:24and that is how they came into my life.
0:28:24 > 0:28:27- They have got to be put to bed at night.- Oh, right.
0:28:27 > 0:28:30- Do you sing them lullabies? - Not quite.
0:28:30 > 0:28:33They are very therapeutic.
0:28:33 > 0:28:38We take them to schools and all over and it's great.
0:28:38 > 0:28:42It gives me something of achievement
0:28:42 > 0:28:46because I've never ever been a person that has mixed
0:28:46 > 0:28:50and had conversations like I'm having now.
0:28:50 > 0:28:54- Really? And that is through the hens? - Through these, yes.
0:28:54 > 0:28:58- That's amazing.- I just didn't have a life with talking to people.
0:28:58 > 0:29:03- I used the blush if I went into a crowded room.- Really?- Honestly.
0:29:03 > 0:29:06I have only known you a few moments and I can't imagine that.
0:29:06 > 0:29:10Exactly. You see, the thing is, I am on my second life.
0:29:10 > 0:29:12I've had two lives.
0:29:12 > 0:29:16I've got one I had and now I've got a different kind of life altogether.
0:29:16 > 0:29:18Altogether.
0:29:18 > 0:29:20And they have made it.
0:29:20 > 0:29:22Do you ever think to yourself, where would you be
0:29:22 > 0:29:25and what would have happened to you if you hadn't had the hens?
0:29:25 > 0:29:28I would be a grumpy old woman.
0:29:28 > 0:29:29Miserable.
0:29:29 > 0:29:31And now...I'm not,
0:29:31 > 0:29:34I'm a really happy-go-lucky person.
0:31:35 > 0:31:37And that's almost it for this week.
0:31:37 > 0:31:39A big thanks to the "hensioners"
0:31:39 > 0:31:42and their happy hens for being part of the show.
0:31:43 > 0:31:46But we will end today's programme with a hymn of celebration.
0:31:46 > 0:31:48Until next time, bye-bye.
0:31:48 > 0:31:50She's coming with me!