05/03/2012 Inside Out East

Hello and welcome to the last Inside Out of the series. This week,

I'm on the South Essex coast and this is what's coming up on

tonight's programme. What happens when an animal

sanctuary can't afford to carry on? They are my animals! How dare you?

I'm going to find out where they are, I'm going to get them back and

I'm going to sue the pants off you lot! Is there a crisis in animal

rescue? I get so upset at the little I can do and the amount that

needs to be done. The Norfolk fishing lakes at the

centre of a planning row. Didn't need planning permission, as far as

I know. We reveal that hundreds of planning applications are only made

after developments have been completed.

And what links Westcliff-on-Sea on the Essex coast to Frank Sinatra?

There are three surprising stories from where we live on tonight's

Inside Out. -- they are our. What a beautiful day to be at

Westcliff-on-Sea. Now, later in the programme, we're going to meet the

legend who left Las Vegas to come and live right here in this Essex

town. But first, we're asking the

question, "Is England still a nation of animal lovers?" Because,

according to the RSCPA, over the last five years, the number of

abandoned animals has risen by 30%. And, at the same time, animal

sanctuaries are struggling for money. We've been to two

sanctuaries, one in Norfolk, one in Northamptonshire and we find out

what happens when an animal Meet Jane. For the past 26 years

she has run this small animal sanctuary in Whittlebury, Northants.

Owen. Calm down. She currently looks after almost 100 animals.

can't not do it. I'm utterly committed to saving as many lives

as I possibly can. But recently things have been getting much

tougher. I never have any money, sort of, behind me. She's been

getting more and more animals to look after, but with less and less

money. If I'm lucky I have �100- �200 in the banks. It's a huge

challenge, especially since, according to the RSPCA there has

been a big increase in the number of calls about abandoned animals

It's a big day for Owen. Come on, sweetheart. He's getting rehomed

today. He was being touted around from the boot of a car tied up with

bailing twine and a lovely lady from Silverstone took him and you

came to me, didn't you, puppy? But he's quite lively. He needs a lot

of attention, don't you? I'm not a dog person. I'm a cat and fox

person, primarily. I've learned an awful lot about dogs but I'd like

someone else to run the dog section. I also get so upset about the dogs

and I worry about them. Cats are better able to look after

themselves but dogs are so dependent on humans. But its not

just dogs, as more and more people abandon more and more animals. --

it is. It places huge pressure on sanctuaries like the Algernon Trust.

Jane barely scrapes by. I survive by a series of miracles, I really,

really do. Amazing things happen to me when things are really

impossible and I think, "How on earth am I going to manage this

week?" Something turns up, something always turns up. Either a

great load of food or a big donation and I just carry on. I

work up to 15 hours a day, seven days a week, 52 weeks a year. I

haven't had a holiday of any description for years. 10 or 11

years since my last holiday. I get so upset at the little I can do and

the amount that needs to be done. I cannot save everything. But it's

only people who don't do rescue work like I do who ever say to you,

"Oh, you can't save them all, Jane." I know I can't save them all,

but anyone else who is running a small rescue, they don't say that

to you. But sometimes struggling animal sanctuaries simply can't

survive as more animals are abandoned in Devon. The owners of

this sanctuary ran out of money and The owner simply didn't want to

give up her animals. They are my animals! How dare you? I'm going to

find out where they are, I'm going to get them back and then I'm going

to sue the pants off of you lot. Why are you so incompassionate?

I've been going through sheer hell for the past six weeks, not knowing

if my animals are dead or alive. Debbie, can you move the car out of

the way? We've got the lorries coming up here now. You'd better

make sure that not a single hair is But the animals were well looked

after and brought to Hillside Animal Sanctuary in Norfolk.

animals came from the other sanctuary and they arrived at about

1am on a Sunday morning and the staff all came in and we saw them

all in safely. They're doing really well and they've all stayed

together as their established herd and so we were really pleased we

were able to help them, because otherwise who knows where they may

have been? Compared to other sanctuaries, Hillside is a big

operation. We have probably about 90 staff. 13 of those work in the

office and the rest work out on the farms. There you go. Gentle.

start with you have to make people believe in what you're doing.

There's so many well-meaning people that want to set up a sanctuary

because it is really a nice idea to do, but you've got to have that

knowledge and the mindset to carry the whole thing through and make it

work. But even Hillside needs to constantly fundraise to make ends

meet. It's only because we have got the administration to back us up

that we've been able to survive, really. I think people, if they

know about you, they will help. We do sometimes get large donations

which is absolutely brilliant, but most of our funds come in the odd

�5 and �10, so that every pound is And every pound certainly counts

for Jane, because as the number of abandoned animals goes up, the

money goes down. Very quickly. of my pension goes on the animals,

not all of it, but most of it does. I mean, my husband has retired now

so things have become more difficult because he does, or

certainly used to help out with food and the odd vets bill. But,

you know, I manage. I manage. why are there so many more

abandoned animals? One of the main reasons is people losing their

homes, repossessed. And very few landlords allow animals. Owen has

just found his voice. We wish he hadn't, but there you go. There has

also been an increase in the cost of pet insurance, as vets are

giving more complex and more expensive surgery. You get a lot of

threats from people saying, "Oh, well, if you won't take her, well,

we'll take her to the vet and get her put down." And you think, "Well,

you're putting it on me as though it's my responsibility, as though I

must take your cat or dog in, otherwise it's going to be put to

sleep. Well, that's up to you." But wherever possible, if I get a

threat like that I take the animal in. But I get vets ringing me, vets

say, "We've had a dog brought in to be put to sleep." One was a 7-8

month old puppy, They always say, "Jane I know you're full, but"

People use the economic climate as an excuse, and in my opinion it's

an excuse, you know? I'd starve before I'd not do what I'm doing.

They're smoking, they're drinking, they've got much bigger TVs than

I've got. They're obviously not short they've got new clothes and

things, but they don't want to put the money with the animals. They've

become a disposable item now. I don't think of you as a disposable

item, do I? Now, this is the last programme in

the series, but we are after your stories for later in the year. So

if there's something you think we should be looking into, send an

email. Or you can follow me on Later: The Las Vegas legend living

in Essex. You know these guys? Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, me and Frank,

what was his last name? Oh, Sinatra. We all know the expression, "An

Englishman's home is his castle," so, if a neighbour builds something

next door without planning permission, most people would want

to defend their privacy. But we've discovered that hundreds of people

are applying for permission after they've done the work. Richard

Daniel has been following an unusual example in the Norfolk

This is Carleton Fen in South Norfolk. Bryn Chetwyd bought the

land here and set up a fishery. Bryn had always wanted to run his

own business, the site seemed perfect. I had a passion for

angling. I'd been involved in the sport for 15-20 years and I wanted

to use that expertise and experience to pass onto a new

generation of anglers. With three lakes and a couple of ponds, Bryn

was confident he could provide some challenging fishing and attract

plenty of anglers. But his dreams quickly turned into a nightmare.

had this sudden loss of water that couldn't be explained. My initial

reaction was obviously concern about how far the water levels

would drop, would we ever get them back? The falling levels have

caused the nitrate build up within the water. The fish environment has

deteriorated to such a level that it's resulted in huge fish losses.

I personally took out 2,500 pounds of fish, of dead carcases and there

were many more within the lake. It's not just Bryn's lakes that

have suffered. An area of fenland that he owns nearby has also been

affected. So this is the fen? this our section of fen. It's only

a small portion of the fen, but you can clearly tell, when you jump and

down, how springy it is. You can, you can feel the ground moving

under you. Yes, very much so. important, because obviously it's a

rare sight, this. It's a very rare sight. It's a county wildlife sight.

But the most important thing we are seeing is the fen drying out. Where

the water is dropping in the lake is dropping the water table.

Normally, you shouldn't be able to come one with shoes and walk out

with dry feet. This should be super-saturated, this should be wet.

Spongy. Really spongy and wet. the core vegetation is changing?

Yes, you can see now, we're getting grass establishing, we're getting

thistles rather than the reed and rushes. We've still got areas of

sedge, but that is slowly diminishing where they are losing

water in the ecology to keep it sustained. So, what's has caused

the water levels to fall so dramatically? Well, Bryn blames a

neighbour, a couple of hundred yards away, who turned some dykes

on his land into fishing lakes. Both sets of lakes are fed by the

same underground water source. originally done them for my son and

myself to go fishing. We've got carp in here, 23 pounders, we got

perch, we got most of the course fish and people liked it and it got

very popular so we opened it up and let other people fish it. What has

really upset Bryn Chetwyn, though, is that Barry dug out his lakes

without first getting planning permission. When you dug out these

lakes, why didn't get planning permission in the first place?

When we first done them, there was no planning permission about lakes

at the time. So you're saying you didn't need planning permission?

Didn't need planning permission, as far as I know, so I just The Rivers

Authority. How we come about it originally was the Rivers Authority

told us to dig all the dykes out. So this is how we went. We dug the

dykes out and we finished up like A bit more than a dyke-digging

exercise! You ended up with lakes! We did finish up with lakes.

wasn't just digging out dykes, was it? No, we cleared everything and

what we done is we finished up with the lakes and, at the time, there

was no planning permission at all. Well, there WAS planning permission

required, because you had to apply for planning permission

retrospectively, didn't you? Later on, I did, which our neighbour,

which complained, and we got asked if we would apply for planning

permission. This is what we done. His retrospective planning

application was granted by South Norfolk Council. But his neighbour

Bryn Chetwynd was unhappy with the decision and he challenged it all

the way to the High Court. He wanted to get his neighbour's lakes

declared unlawful. Bryn Chetwynd won the case in March 2010. The

High Court judge said that Mr Tunmore, through his agent, had not

told the truth about building one of the unauthorised lakes. The

agent had claimed that Mr Tunmore had only carried out cleaning and

dredging to the lakes and that had been approved by the Environment

Agency and Defra. This was judged to be untrue. In conclusion, the

judge said that, because there were defects in the way in which the

permissions were given, the planning permission for the lakes

was not lawfully granted. Richard Buxton is a lawyer from Cambridge

who specialises in planning law. you build something without finding

out whether you need planning permission or not, and it's found

out that you should have done, then you are responsible for it. There

is a perfectly good system. You can apply to your local authority to

find out if you need planning permission or not for something. So

it is no excuse to turn round and say, "Oh, I didn't know and I

didn't know I could ask." Enforcement action is rare. Inside

Out asked all the councils in our region how many retrospective

planning applications were made last year. Some could not tell us,

but most did. There were around 1,000 retrospective applications.

Of those, just 45 were rejected. Back at Carleton Fen, the situation

is getting worse. Anglers are staying away. The water here should

be at least waist deep. Well, Bryn, it has been nearly a year since we

were last here. What has changed? Well, you can see the water has

dropped at least another foot, foot and a half. The anglers are not

turning up to fish, and the business is going down. Not good?

Not good at all. When Bryn's case went to the High Court, the judge

asked for an environmental impact assessment to be carried out. The

aim was to find out whether his water has been affected by the

building of his neighbour's lakes. The report says that Barry

Tunmore's lakes have had a significant impact on Bryn's lakes,

but also points out that water levels in the area have fallen

generally. South Norfolk Council says it is seeking further advice

from an independent hydrological consultant. Meanwhile, Mr Tunmore

is continuing to apply for planning permission for his lakes. South

Norfolk Council, though, have just revealed they are starting

proceedings against him for breaching an enforcement notice

relating to his planning permission application. But Barry Tunmore is

adamant he has done nothing wrong and says he is happy to pipe water

from his own lakes into his neighbour's. Perhaps it would be

most straightforward to say to your neighbour, "Look, I'll let water

through into your lakes," and there won't be a problem. I have asked

him! I have asked him before about this, but the man... I do not know

what he wants to do. You would still be willing to do that?

would be willing to do it, but I hoped to have a meeting with him.

The lake has been damaged so much. My health has been damaged so much.

It goes beyond that. The simple restoration is no longer the simple

solution it was in 2005 when this dispute first started off. After

such a lengthy legal battle, Bryn Chetwynd is hoping the water levels

What connects this part of Essex, Westcliff, with Frank Sinatra and

Dean Martin? Well, it is a chap called Buddy Greco. He is the last

surviving member of the Rat Pack. They were the most glamorous stars

of their day. Buddy gave up the bright lights of Vegas to come and

live in this country. He still tours, but at smaller venues here

in the UK, where Des Coleman hoped Here, in a few moments, I will be

sharing the stage with a living legend, a life-long hero of mine.

Me, a mere Rat Pack impersonator, singing alongside the sole survivor

of the real Rat Pack. Wow! # Won't go to Harlem in ermines and

pearls. # At the age of 85, Buddy Greco is

still singing and playing just as he did all those years ago

alongside Frank Sinatra, Dean Martin and Sammy Davis Jr.

# Life without care. # She's broke, that's OK, hates

California. The bad boys of swing known as the

Rat Pack. We did everything together, a lot of good things and

a lot of bad things which I can't talk about. Were there a lot of

girls involved? Look at my face. Were there girls involved? Oh, yes.

This party animal was born and raised on the mean streets of

Philadelphia. In my neighbourhood, you were either a fighter, a singer

or a gangster, and I was all three! So, how did I become a Buddy fan? I

was into classic soul, R&B, James Brown. Oh, I can't resist it.

# I feel good! Ow! But thanks to my mum and dad's

record collection, I was exposed to the giants of the swing era, Nat

King Cole, Frank, Dean and Sammy. And it never left me. And as a kid,

I vividly remember seeing Buddy Greco on programmes like the Lulu

Show. To me, he was cool. Then, spin the clock forward 40 years,

and I'm making a living impersonating Sammy Davis Jr in a

Rat Pack show, never imagining for a moment that I might one day work

alongside the great Buddy Greco. But this star of Vegas had to swap

the desert sands of Nevada for a seaside resort in Essex. And here's

what happened. But this Storrar Vegas had to swap

the desert sands for a seaside resort in Essex. Here is what

happened. Buddy's luck in the States simply

ran out. Bookings dried up and his nightclub in Palm Springs went

under. And that is when this man, Dave Alacey, promoter and Frank

Sinatra impersonator, stepped in with an offer of work here in the

What I hope I have done is bring him to a new audience, a younger

audience, and brought into a wider audience, perhaps. For years, when

he came over, he wasn't getting any television coverage or anything

like that. Now he is on Jools Holland, appealing to a whole new

audience. Buddy now lives in Westcliff-on-Sea, a genteel suburb

of Southend and a far cry from Las Lezlie! How are you? I'm not too

bad. Good to see you. Welcome. You made it all the way to Westcliff.

Certainly did. The fifth Mrs Greco - yes, fifth - showed me round

their elegant seafront home. Everything in our flat except our

beds is charity shop furniture. When it comes to doing the charity

shop, does Buddy like you getting things from charity shops? Oh, he

likes the fact that he has a wife that shops charity. I think the

other Mrs Grecos probably came home from Neiman's. The other Mrs

Grecos? Yes, they probably came back and said, look, darling!

Buddy still oozes that Vegas You know these guys? Let me see.

Wow! Dean Martin, Sammy Davis, me and Frank. What's his last name? Oh,

Sinatra. We all did a couple of songs, then Frank would say, "Let's

all come out together," not knowing what we were going to do, so we

would all walk out. The next thing, somebody would push in a cart full

of booze and before we would sing, "Let's have a drink." So all of us

were drinking and people were going nuts. It was never done before.

living with a legend can be stormy at times. We have had some great

cat fights. I have never thrown his clothes off the balcony into the

sea front, though. Is it true that you once, whilst on stage, pushed

the piano off at a guy he was smoking a cigar? It is true. It was

ruining the show for everybody else. So I said, "If you don't stop that,

I'm going to roll this baby grand piano right on you." It almost went

over. It didn't go over, of course. I did things like that. Buddy is

the last living link to that era, one of the last people to see

Marilyn Monroe alive. This limousine pulls up, and I see this

beautiful thing coming out of a car. She looks up and puts her arms

around me and gives me a big kiss, and at that moment, my then manager

happened to have a camera and took some pictures. And I'm really proud

to say that I have the last six pictures ever taken of Marilyn

Since he has been here in the UK, I have been lucky enough to perform a

couple of times with Buddy, but for me, tonight is the big night. He is

starring in my Rat Pack show at a club called The Spot in Derby. I'm

on my way to the gig. I must admit, I'm excited and a little tense.

Like all talented people, he can a little bit temperamental. I

certainly remember one time on stage, things were not going in the

right direction for him. He literally stopped everybody and

said, "I'm Buddy Greco. If Jesus Christ comes on the stage, you look

at me!" The band's warmed up, tuxedos and bow ties at the ready,

and the audience primed. Then, a phone call. He got up this morning

and he's not been well. He got up and he has fallen down the stairs

at the flat. Buddy has taken a fall and is in hospital. What can we do,

then? I'm devastated and concerned for Buddy, but what shall I tell

Unfortunately, obviously, Buddy will not be appearing tonight. The

Rat Pack show will still go ahead, we will still perform. The band are

here and we will be on in about half an hour. Thank you very much

indeed. The audience have been really supportive, but it is that

old saying in show business, the show must go on.

# That's why the lady is a tramp. # Tramp! #

Thank you. A few weeks later, Buddy is on the mend, but my dream of a

special performance with this Rat Pack legend seems doomed. I will

always be able to treasure this, I will always be able to treasure

this, just buddy and me side-by- side at his piano at Westcliff-on-

Sea. # She gets too hungry for dinner at eight.

Don't sing too good, please. Never comes late.

# She'll never bother with people she hates.

# That's why, that's why the lady is a tramp.

And it is great that they got together in the end. All is well

that ends well. If you want to see Buddy Greco life, he is performing

in Leigh-on-Sea just down the road in a couple of weeks. That is it,

the end of the programme and the series. We will be back later in