:00:04. > :00:13.In the next half an hour, We reveal the story of a Geordie Football
:00:13. > :00:21.agent, a Belgium club and some broken dreams. It sounded great, IQ
:00:21. > :00:23.money and cars and that was a clan. They've withstood siege and
:00:23. > :00:33.survived for centuries, but we uncover the latest threat to our
:00:33. > :00:34.
:00:34. > :00:42.historic buildings. Best this says start at six -- complained to is
:00:42. > :00:45.about a problem of you're in dipping into the shops or false up
:00:45. > :00:48.And Terry Deary flies the flag for one of Wearside's forgotten heroes.
:00:48. > :00:52.A definite contender for his own blue plaque if ever there was one.
:00:52. > :01:02.That's what he needs, a blue plaque. Stories from the heart of the North
:01:02. > :01:10.
:01:10. > :01:13.Now, why would a well-known Geordie soccer agent help mastermind the
:01:13. > :01:18.takeover of a tiny Belgian football club, a deal which left a huge
:01:18. > :01:21.trail of debt and damaged the careers of promising young players?
:01:21. > :01:22.Well, I've uncovered a secret plan to establish a foothold in the
:01:22. > :01:30.highly lucrative international transfer market despite rules
:01:30. > :01:32.designed to stop just that. This Belgian Football club should be
:01:32. > :01:38.celebrating its centenary, but instead it's fighting for survival
:01:38. > :01:41.after being taken over by a company called Diamond Sports International.
:01:41. > :01:45.And it's the man behind the deal, Peter Harrison, that I'm interested
:01:45. > :01:52.in. Harrison spent most of his playing days in the lower leagues
:01:52. > :01:57.in England and then had a spell as manager at Blyth Spartans. So how
:01:57. > :02:04.come he turns up running a club in Belgium? Harrison had a knowledge
:02:04. > :02:07.of Belgian football and he spoke the local lingo. He played here in
:02:07. > :02:17.the 80's for Sporting, but it was the city's other much smaller club,
:02:17. > :02:21.Olympic Charleroi, which attracted Harrison in 2010. Here he is using
:02:21. > :02:31.his best Geordie French to talk up his grand plans for the Belgian
:02:31. > :02:40.
:02:40. > :02:45.third division side nicknamed the I cut about getting into the First
:02:45. > :02:50.Division. It might be two years' or three years or five years but I
:02:50. > :02:56.will stay here until they are in the first division. When he came
:02:56. > :03:03.back to Charleroi everybody was happy. We know a local hero that is
:03:03. > :03:07.coming back, it's a good thing. Dogues had certainly had their day
:03:07. > :03:12.and needed a white knight. But was Harrison motivated by a love of the
:03:12. > :03:15.game or did he see the potential of Olympic as a big earner? A feeder
:03:15. > :03:19.club where he could bring in players and sell them later for a
:03:19. > :03:22.tidy profit? As a well known agent, Harrison had the contacts to put
:03:22. > :03:24.together a team from across the globe, attracting 37 players from
:03:24. > :03:33.11 countries, a different nationality for every position on
:03:33. > :03:37.the pitch. Several were from the North East. One was Nathan Porrit
:03:37. > :03:41.from Middlesborough, another was Jonny Rowell. He's from Newcastle,
:03:41. > :03:46.I'm from Newcastle. To a young kid like me, it sounded great. We had
:03:46. > :03:53.good enough players, good money, all cars, apartments. That was the
:03:53. > :03:59.plan. Slowly that plan disintegrated. There was a Japanese
:03:59. > :04:03.Goalkeeper, an Australian, a Madagascan and two Ghanaians.
:04:03. > :04:07.came down and watched me play, and started talking about big teams.
:04:07. > :04:09.Said I've got all these players in my camp and I said that's good.
:04:10. > :04:13.reason behind the takeover of Olympic becomes clear when you read
:04:13. > :04:17.this. It's a business plan for Diamond Sports International. The
:04:17. > :04:20.document was aimed at investors. It reveals Harrison's master plan. He
:04:20. > :04:26.intends using Olympic as a feeder club to import and develop
:04:26. > :04:30.promising players to be sold on as the next generation of stars.
:04:30. > :04:33.Harrison values his team at �5.5 million and says the club can make
:04:33. > :04:43.between 2 and 3.5 million a year on player trading alone, but why do it
:04:43. > :04:46.in Belgium? You can be in Belgium between 700 and 1,000 days and
:04:46. > :04:49.after which - happy days - you can apply for EC citizenship, and then
:04:49. > :04:52.Europe's your oyster and you don't have to worry about work permits to
:04:52. > :04:57.go into the big football nations, be it France, Italy, Spain or
:04:57. > :05:03.England. So the bridgehead for players into Europe was established,
:05:03. > :05:08.but now Harrison had to make it work. Players were brought in from
:05:08. > :05:12.across the world. And for some it appeared to be the start of the
:05:12. > :05:19.high life. They were put up in this hotel with the club picking up the
:05:19. > :05:22.tab. We had Japanese guys, guys from Serbia, African players,
:05:22. > :05:26.Holland, France. Players from all over the world, all staying in this
:05:26. > :05:30.hotel. With a third of the hotel occupied by players, a massive bill
:05:30. > :05:38.began to rack up. When the debt topped 60,000 euros, it was time to
:05:38. > :05:41.show the players the door. So presumably you had to tell the
:05:41. > :05:45.players sorry but you'll have to go? Yes, we have to tell to the
:05:45. > :05:55.players tomorrow it is finished for you. We don't get any money from
:05:55. > :05:58.
:05:58. > :06:01.the club, it's not possible. I was very sad of it but the players
:06:01. > :06:05.understood but we were in a bad position. A very bad position.
:06:05. > :06:12.you ever been paid? No. The players went from three star comfort to
:06:12. > :06:15.downmarket digs and some even had to find a floor to bed down on.
:06:15. > :06:20.rent some apartments for us and there was nothing in them. No
:06:20. > :06:25.television, no chairs, nothing. He bought us a small mattress and we
:06:25. > :06:28.put it in a corner to sleep. players from Africa had nothing
:06:28. > :06:33.left. They would often come asking for a bottle of water, some coins
:06:33. > :06:39.to buy something from the shop. They couldn't afford their bills so
:06:39. > :06:44.they had no electricity, nothing. The supporters used to buy them
:06:44. > :06:49.food and do their shopping. One of those supporters owns this
:06:49. > :06:55.restaurant. He's a former player and club President. He offered to
:06:55. > :07:04.feed the team, but once again no- one picked up the tab. How much
:07:05. > :07:08.money? That's 46,500 euros owed to Mr Vejis which buys an awful lot of
:07:08. > :07:16.pizza. Meanwhile, others took their share of helping as the club
:07:16. > :07:20.spiralled into crisis. I heard about a player who was out at night
:07:20. > :07:26.and a friend came over and bring him back to his own for sleeping at
:07:26. > :07:34.night because he had nothing. We had a player we had to find shoes
:07:35. > :07:38.for him to get on the ground. It was terrible. Here in the dressing
:07:38. > :07:44.room, feelings were running high. The players had had enough. Without
:07:44. > :07:47.fresh kit or even transport to get to games, they went on strike. If
:07:47. > :07:52.that wasn't enough, damage to the roof of the main stand forced the
:07:52. > :07:59.closure of the bar and corporate hospitality area. With the
:07:59. > :08:03.supporters becoming restless, Harrison spoke to the local press.
:08:03. > :08:06.It's not my fault that the whole stadium is broken. I have had four
:08:06. > :08:12.or five investors walk away when they have seen the stadium in that
:08:12. > :08:16.state. Me, I stayed. I believe in the plan. We're still here. As the
:08:16. > :08:18.grand plan unraveled, the situation became desperate. We've seen e-
:08:18. > :08:25.mails to Harrison circulating in Belgium which spell out the
:08:25. > :08:27.financial crisis. Things are getting urgent. We have not
:08:27. > :08:31.fulfilled our duties to get the license. Players want to leave
:08:31. > :08:36.because no-one speaks to them. Despite everything, Harrison was
:08:36. > :08:40.still trying to attract investors to make the plan work. He produced
:08:40. > :08:46.this glossy prospectus for his new company, Ultra Sports Management.
:08:46. > :08:55.It sets out plans to sell Olympic for �10 million in 2015. But it
:08:55. > :08:58.ended in disaster and debt. 150,000 euros owed for the purchase of the
:08:58. > :09:03.club, and how much was more to people in Charleroi? It's 700,000
:09:03. > :09:07.euros. The club was declared bankrupt and the debts were written
:09:07. > :09:10.off. On the plus side, it has reformed with a new owner and a new
:09:10. > :09:17.team but that's little consolation to those players who were lured to
:09:17. > :09:21.Charleroi by Harrison. How much do you think you are owed by the club?
:09:21. > :09:25.Now it's almost 50,000 euros. makes you not want to play, not
:09:25. > :09:28.enjoy football. You're playing for some guy who wants to make money
:09:28. > :09:34.from you, And as a football agent, Peter Harrison has made a great
:09:34. > :09:44.deal of money - �1 million in a single deal back in 2000. But was
:09:44. > :09:44.
:09:44. > :09:48.Harrison allowed to takeo ver a football club? -- take over.
:09:48. > :09:51.rules are clear cut. You can't have a position in a working capacity -
:09:51. > :09:54.anything official within a club, you simply can't be that - if you
:09:54. > :09:58.are a licenced agent. It's black and white. There is a huge conflict
:09:58. > :10:01.of interest if you become the buyer and the seller. Yet none of the
:10:01. > :10:08.football authorities tried to stop Harrison. Perhaps surprising when
:10:08. > :10:11.you consider the last time he made headlines. If you've got a good
:10:11. > :10:15.relationship with six or seven managers, you can make a lot of
:10:15. > :10:18.money but you'll have to pay the manager to get them on side. Back
:10:18. > :10:21.in 2006, the BBC filmed him boasting of paying bungs to
:10:21. > :10:31.managers. Harrison was also filmed trying to sell on young players he
:10:31. > :10:33.
:10:33. > :10:36.represented without the knowledge That's Nathan Porrit, then only 15
:10:36. > :10:39.and the same player he took five years later to Charleroi. At the
:10:39. > :10:42.time, Harrison denied being a corrupt agent and said he was just
:10:42. > :10:45.engaging in pub gossip and banter. An explanation the Football
:10:45. > :10:50.Association must have believed as he was allowed to keep his agent's
:10:50. > :10:56.licence. Only this year - back in June did the FA act - and revoke
:10:56. > :10:59.Harrison's agents licence. They've refused to reveal why - although a
:10:59. > :11:03.very well placed source told us it's because Harrison's financial
:11:03. > :11:06.background was deemed inappropriate. We contacted the FA with our
:11:06. > :11:09.information. They didn't want to record an interview but told us The
:11:09. > :11:12.FA was not made aware of Mr Harrison's involvement with Olympic
:11:12. > :11:15.but it is very disappointed to hear of any club that has experienced
:11:15. > :11:20.severe financial distress where players have not been paid sums
:11:20. > :11:26.that they are due. The Belgian FA told us they thought Peter Harrison
:11:26. > :11:30.was only an investor in Olympic Charleroi and not an official. And
:11:30. > :11:38.what about Peter Harrison? He told us that that although he'd spent
:11:38. > :11:42.300, 000 euros on Olympic, he'd earned nothing from the club. Well,
:11:42. > :11:45.we wrote to him two months ago asking for an interview. His
:11:45. > :11:50.lawyers sent us a letter describing him as an ambassador for the club
:11:50. > :11:56.who simply encouraged players to sign. Mr Harrison said he was not
:11:56. > :11:58.in breach of FIFA rules as he had no official role with Charleroi. Mr
:11:58. > :12:02.Harrison didn't answer our questions so we have come here to
:12:02. > :12:08.find out more. Can I have a word, Peter? Why did you mastermind the
:12:08. > :12:13.takeover of Charleroi? Well, I think Mr Harrison really doesn't
:12:13. > :12:17.want to speak to me. But he certainly seems to be living a
:12:17. > :12:27.footballer's dream. A shame that dream isnot shared with all the
:12:27. > :12:27.
:12:27. > :12:35.players and supporters of the club he took over.
:12:35. > :12:40.Still too, to make. The next six hours fly past - at least they do
:12:40. > :12:42.for me! Now, we've a heritage to be proud
:12:42. > :12:45.of here in the north. Some beautiful ancient buildings and
:12:45. > :12:55.stunning cities. But as Jacey Normand has been finding out,
:12:55. > :12:55.
:12:55. > :12:58.criminals are no respecters of the past.
:12:58. > :13:06.If these streets could talk, what stories would they tell of
:13:06. > :13:12.Chester's past? It was invaded by the Romans in 79AD. It was besieged
:13:12. > :13:22.by the royalists during the English Civil War. But now it's facing its
:13:22. > :13:25.biggest challenge yet. Spending a penny, whatever you call it, when
:13:25. > :13:30.you get the call of nature, you have to answer, but surely you
:13:30. > :13:32.wouldn't do it here? Well, you and I wouldn't, but that's exactly what
:13:32. > :13:40.the town's late night revellers have been doing, turning Chester's
:13:40. > :13:42.historic rows into an open air toilet. We became really aware of
:13:42. > :13:45.the problems when businesses started complaining to us about the
:13:45. > :13:50.problem of urine dripping through from the rows into the shops below.
:13:50. > :13:53.Seriously? It was a horrendous situation. Getting through the wood,
:13:53. > :13:56.beneath to the shops? Dripping all the way through. They're an ancient
:13:56. > :13:59.structure. You can see there some of the damage that's been caused by
:13:59. > :14:02.people who have chosen to urinate on the rows. And that, that paint
:14:02. > :14:06.that's been worn away, that is from urine eroding it? That's right. So
:14:06. > :14:09.we started to have a look at what the extent of the problem was, and
:14:09. > :14:12.we had some of the cleanup teams reporting to us when they were
:14:12. > :14:16.finding pools of urine. We were horrified to find that there were
:14:16. > :14:20.up to 30 incidents on any night of the week of people urinating in the
:14:20. > :14:23.city centre. 30 people a night? to 30 people a night, and many of
:14:23. > :14:28.them on these ancient rows. Public urination's nothing new, cities the
:14:28. > :14:32.world over are plagued by it. It's a public order offence and carries
:14:32. > :14:42.a hefty fine of up to �400. But when it threatens somewhere like
:14:42. > :14:44.
:14:44. > :14:54.Chester, it's a heritage crime. Chester Council has come up with a
:14:54. > :14:55.
:14:55. > :14:58.unique way of dealing with it. It's Friday night. Chester's medieval
:14:58. > :15:01.past is forgotten, drowned out by boozy revellers and the clack of
:15:01. > :15:11.high heels. Everyone's out on the town. All except Paul Hunt and his
:15:11. > :15:21.team. We are able to zoom in on people and restore all that
:15:21. > :15:23.
:15:23. > :15:26.information for 21 days. It's 2am and the pubs and clubs are shutting
:15:26. > :15:29.up. If you're caught short, even at this hour, the public loos are
:15:29. > :15:33.still open, but this man's taken matters into his own hands. Can we
:15:33. > :15:37.just ask you just then, we just saw you weeing in the Chester Rows? We
:15:37. > :15:40.just saw you, why did you do that? Did you not want to go to a toilet
:15:40. > :15:43.instead? There's no public toilets around. But do you realise that
:15:43. > :15:45.because so many people are urinating in the rows in Chester
:15:45. > :15:49.that the medieval walkways are actually eroding and they wont ever
:15:49. > :15:52.be able to be saved. So shall I wee in a bin instead? Well, getting
:15:52. > :15:56.anyone to curb their ways after they've had a few isn't easy, but
:15:56. > :15:59.this is where the council's clamp down kicks in because this man is
:15:59. > :16:02.about to get a rude awakening. Is there any 5-1s who can attend The
:16:02. > :16:11.Cross? Go ahead, David. Just confirm for us that you've still
:16:11. > :16:13.got this man on camera and his location. Yes, yes. Carry on.
:16:14. > :16:19.Offenders usually face a court appearance, �400 fine and a
:16:19. > :16:22.criminal record. But Chester's pioneering a different approach.
:16:22. > :16:28.Instead, anyone caught can pay �75 to go on an awareness course, and
:16:28. > :16:31.if they do their slate is wiped clean. We bring them in at six
:16:31. > :16:34.o'clock in the morning and they get to hear video presentations on how
:16:34. > :16:44.it affects local businesses, how it affects schools, residents and then
:16:44. > :16:46.
:16:46. > :16:48.we bring them out on the rows. of course Chester's not alone in
:16:48. > :16:51.suffering from heritage crime. English Heritage say that
:16:51. > :16:55.nationally more than 70,000 listed buildings were damaged in the last
:16:55. > :16:59.year, but the greatest threat of all is to our churches.
:16:59. > :17:04.Howarth, a traditional Yorkshire village. It'd be little more than a
:17:04. > :17:07.footnote in a guidebook, except for one thing. This is the parsonage in
:17:07. > :17:13.Howarth, which was home to the 19th Century literary dynasty the
:17:13. > :17:17.Brontes. In fact, it was in this very room that Emily Bronte wrote
:17:17. > :17:21.the masterpiece Wuthering Heights. Howarth depends on tourists for its
:17:21. > :17:27.survival. Among the sights is the church where the Brontes' brother
:17:27. > :17:30.Branwell was parson, attracting over a million visitors a year. But
:17:30. > :17:33.now its gates lie closed, another victim of heritage crime. While
:17:33. > :17:37.I've been here, we've had three lead thefts and you can actually
:17:37. > :17:40.see where some of the lead has gone right up along there, and that's
:17:40. > :17:43.caused the water to come in which has exacerbated the problems we're
:17:43. > :17:46.suffering. How much is it costing to do all these repairs? Well,
:17:46. > :17:49.we've reached our insurance limit so it's probably cost us about
:17:49. > :17:54.�5,000 at least, and the gain of the value of the metal, probably
:17:54. > :18:04.�100 at the most. It looks bad from out here, but it's only when you
:18:04. > :18:07.
:18:07. > :18:11.step inside that the true cost of the lead theft is revealed. Well,
:18:11. > :18:14.have a look at the top there, you can see that quite a bit of the art
:18:14. > :18:17.work has disappeared. Just the way that the paint's chipping away.
:18:17. > :18:20.It's the parish church, it's the parish of Howarth. It belongs to
:18:20. > :18:23.the people of Howarth, so it's not protecting the church for the sake
:18:23. > :18:26.of the building, it's protecting it for the sake of our community and
:18:26. > :18:29.actually Britain generally because it's an income generator. There are
:18:29. > :18:32.many types of Heritage crime but many are fuelled by metal theft,
:18:32. > :18:34.and in the North East this takes on a sinister form. They enter
:18:34. > :18:40.illegally at night. They target historic sites. And they plunder
:18:40. > :18:46.and steal our national heritage. Welcome to the world of the
:18:46. > :18:49.Nighthawk. Nighthawking is unauthorised metal detecting.
:18:49. > :18:56.People that go on scheduled sites and dig the stuff up and you don't
:18:56. > :18:59.know what they're taking and you don't know where it's going. This
:18:59. > :19:04.is Low Chibburn in Northumberland, the ruins of a 14th Century
:19:04. > :19:06.monastery run by the Knights Templar. It's a protected site of
:19:06. > :19:14.archaeological significance, now under threat from illegal metal
:19:14. > :19:17.detecting. Some time ago, we had a couple of incidents reported which
:19:17. > :19:20.led to the site being visited by myself and English Heritage, and
:19:21. > :19:24.what we found was quite clearly some of the turf and grass had been
:19:24. > :19:27.cut and lifted back. My real concern is that they're actually
:19:27. > :19:31.going to damage the structure. If we had people digging around the
:19:31. > :19:34.foundations, as you can see it's been left in situ for people to
:19:34. > :19:42.come and enjoy but if they continue to dig there's a real issue with
:19:42. > :19:45.the integrity of the building. In your opinion, is ignorance ever a
:19:45. > :19:49.defence? My own personal opinion is no. It's not ignorance. You can
:19:49. > :19:52.have a look round, it is fenced off. It has signs here telling you what
:19:52. > :19:55.it is and now it has further signs saying that you can't disturb the
:19:55. > :19:58.site, so ignorance wouldn't be a defence in my opinion. Well, so far
:19:58. > :20:00.there haven't been any more disturbances at Low Chibburn, but
:20:00. > :20:03.Northumbria Police are still monitoring the site to ensure the
:20:03. > :20:06.nighthawks don't return. Since we filmed in Haworth the Summer we're
:20:06. > :20:09.happy to report that the church roof is now fixed and St Michael's
:20:09. > :20:11.is open again to be enjoyed by tourists and parishioners alike.
:20:11. > :20:15.And in Chester, their pioneering approach to anti-social behaviour
:20:15. > :20:18.crime is paying off. But until there's a wider understanding of
:20:18. > :20:22.heritage crimes across the north of England, our past remains under
:20:22. > :20:32.threat. And that means keeping an everwatchful eye, and protecting
:20:32. > :20:35.
:20:35. > :20:38.our unique heritage for future Remember Harry Watts? No? Well,
:20:38. > :20:43.according to one horrible historian his name should be as familiar to
:20:43. > :20:50.us all here in the North East as Grace Darling or Lord Collingwood.
:20:50. > :20:53.Terry Deary has a mission to sort that out.
:20:53. > :21:03.The grave of a man the American philanthropist Andrew Carnegie
:21:03. > :21:06.
:21:06. > :21:10.called "the bravest man I have ever met." Not that! This old and worn
:21:10. > :21:12.stone here. Carnegie also said, "Never let the memory of this
:21:12. > :21:21.Sunderland man die." Yet there he lies. Sunderland's forgotten hero,
:21:21. > :21:23.Harry Watts. Never heard of him. Exactly! Next April sees the 100th
:21:24. > :21:26.anniversary of his death. I'm going to Sunderland to commemorate the
:21:27. > :21:33.life of our hero, or my name isn't Terence Montmorency Deary. Actually,
:21:33. > :21:36.it isn't. It's just plain Terry Deary, but you know what I mean. So
:21:36. > :21:41.why Harry Watts you may ask? Because he was one of the greatest
:21:41. > :21:48.lifesavers this country has ever known. Born in 1826, by his mid-20s
:21:48. > :21:52.he'd saved 18 people from drowning. I think Sunderland Museum should
:21:52. > :21:57.recognize Harry Watts. Although, they do claim to have a Harry Watts
:21:57. > :22:03.exhibition! There's a wall of heroes, so where's the big display
:22:03. > :22:06.for Harry? That's it? One paragraph and a little case? Harry seems to
:22:06. > :22:11.attract this sort of treatment. In 1878, one of the good people of
:22:11. > :22:16.Sunderland pinched his bravery medals. And that display! It's
:22:16. > :22:19.daylight robbery. My training shoes came in a bigger box than that! I
:22:19. > :22:27.know he's forgotten but Sunderland Museum could do something to
:22:27. > :22:31.commemorate him. We have been looking at naming one of our rooms
:22:31. > :22:39.after him. We are also looking at doing a larger display about his
:22:39. > :22:45.life. That is a really good start! Here's a surprise - Harry didn't
:22:45. > :22:50.stop at saving 18 lives. From 1861, he worked as a diver on the Wear.
:22:50. > :22:54.In the next three decades Harry Watts saved another 26 lives. I
:22:54. > :22:57.need to use the RNLI to tell you the next bit. Harry was also a
:22:57. > :23:04.lifeboat and Life Brigade volunteer, and assisted in saving another 120
:23:04. > :23:10.people. That makes a grand total of 44 lives saved by himself, plus 120
:23:10. > :23:14.he assisted in saving. A definite contender for his own blue plaque
:23:14. > :23:17.if ever there was one. That's what he needs, a blue plaque. But
:23:17. > :23:27.there's a snag. I need the backing of Sunderland Antiquarian Society
:23:27. > :23:31.
:23:32. > :23:37.to get a blue plaque. This is me trying to get it. That went well.
:23:37. > :23:41.I am afraid we have been negligent, he should be remembered. We would
:23:41. > :23:45.all throw our weight behind the petition for a blue plaque. They're
:23:45. > :23:48.going to back the plaque. And so is the City Council. Round two to
:23:48. > :23:52.Harry. In the 19th century, when Harry was fishing them out like
:23:53. > :23:56.trout, little value seemed to be placed on human life. Once he
:23:56. > :23:59.rescued a boy from near the South Pier. His mother said "Ah it's
:23:59. > :24:09.nowt! He's been in a few times!" And slammed the door in Harry's
:24:09. > :24:10.
:24:10. > :24:20.face. So we pinch his medals, and then we slam the door in his face.
:24:20. > :24:22.
:24:22. > :24:26.It's a scandal - that I'm going to put right! We need his name on
:24:26. > :24:35.something big, high profile with an impact. So I was thinking the Harry
:24:35. > :24:39.Watts Stand. No? The Harry Watts Box?That was a very long shot. What
:24:39. > :24:42.about the Harry Watts football shirt? They admire Harry, but
:24:42. > :24:46.they'd lose a fortune in sponsorship. I'm still a bit miffed,
:24:46. > :24:56.though! Right, the Sunderland Empire have to name a box after
:24:56. > :25:00.
:25:00. > :25:03.Harry! That's a great idea. could not name the box but we could
:25:03. > :25:08.put a plaque in his memory which would encourage the theatre goers
:25:08. > :25:11.to see it and find out the bit more about him.
:25:11. > :25:18.Harry's heroism wasn't always appreciated. Once he dived into the
:25:18. > :25:21.Wear to save a drowning boy. When Harry asked a couple in a boat to
:25:21. > :25:31.help because he was nearly done in, the woman threatened him with a
:25:31. > :25:33.
:25:33. > :25:36.shover for splashing her. -- shovel. 1910, the foundation stone of
:25:36. > :25:38.Monkwearmouth Library is laid. It was here that the millionaire
:25:38. > :25:46.philanthropist Andrew Carnegie, shook Harry's hand and said we
:25:46. > :25:50.should never let his memory die. used to come here and I had not
:25:50. > :26:00.idea of the connection between Andrew Carney, at Harry Watts and
:26:00. > :26:02.
:26:02. > :26:06.Miss building. Will the sponsor a memorial? No. They said he sounds
:26:06. > :26:09.like an interesting and courageous man but they have no record of him.
:26:09. > :26:12.Grand Central Rail can't name a little thing like an engine after
:26:12. > :26:15.him either! But they did offer us some free tickets! So, that's:
:26:15. > :26:19.Threatened with a shovel, never heard of him, you can't have an
:26:19. > :26:24.engine. I'm not depressed. Oh no, not me! I'm a tryer. Everyone says
:26:24. > :26:30.I'm trying. After three disappointments, two nice pats on
:26:30. > :26:40.the head. Sunderland University is to theme glass blowing on Harry.
:26:40. > :26:40.
:26:40. > :26:45.And the Sunderland Echo is to launch a "Recognise Harry" campaign.
:26:45. > :26:48.I am arranging a literary lunch. I've decided Harry needs a new
:26:49. > :26:58.biography. So, I'm going to use my "oeuvre" - that's my books to you
:26:58. > :27:08.and me - to impress the publisher. I have written one or two bits
:27:08. > :27:09.
:27:09. > :27:14.myself. The next six hours fly past - well, at least they do for me!
:27:14. > :27:17.That was the result. They're going to write and publish Harry's
:27:17. > :27:27.biography. It should be on the bookstands next year. I reckon
:27:27. > :27:28.
:27:28. > :27:32.that's a technical knock-out. When I set off on this campaign, I never
:27:32. > :27:36.imagined he would have any living relatives to help us. How wrong I
:27:36. > :27:42.was! After fighting my way through a man trap, I found his great
:27:42. > :27:49.nephew Jim in Chester le Street. think it's a good idea and it was
:27:49. > :27:57.about time it was done as well. One of the jocks was he used to push
:27:57. > :28:01.them into get them out! -- jokes. We stole his medals. We threatened
:28:01. > :28:04.him with a shovel. We forgot him. But on the centenary of his death
:28:04. > :28:07.next April, Harry Watts will have a new biography, a proper museum
:28:07. > :28:14.exhibition, possibly a blue plaque. And I'm going to get him a
:28:14. > :28:17.gravestone you can read. An injustice has been righted. So,
:28:17. > :28:27.Harry Watts - life saver, inspiration, hero. If you're
:28:27. > :28:29.
:28:29. > :28:32.listening, Sunderland remembers That's it for tonight. You can read