07/01/2013 Inside Out North West


07/01/2013

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Way onto a new series of inside it north-west. This week we are in

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Cheshire where we will be finding out how the salt mines have become

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a precious winter asset. Well we are 200 metres beneath the Cheshire

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countryside. This machine turns this into road socks. Sprinter,

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champion cyclist, cricketer, the world's first black professional

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footballer - the remarkable story of Arthur Wharton. We all start

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somewhere and we start with him. Ricky Tomlinson and remembers his

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he wrote Jacqui Hamilton who many believed deserves to be ranked

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alongside Liverpool's comedy greats. I remember thinking one day maybe I

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will be that good! -- Jackie Hamilton.

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Here in Cheshire up is a place people visit for peace and quiet.

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What they may not realise is that this is an industrial landscape

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formed more than 200 years ago when salt mining caused widespread

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subsidence. The area still has one of the UK's largest stock

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repositories used mainly to keep Britain's a road say.

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They say swallows are the sign that spring's arrived. And for me, the

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first sign of winter is the sight of gritter lorries. When

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temperatures drop, the gritters hit our roads - spewing out millions of

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tonnes of road salt every year. And that means less black ice on our

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roads. But have you ever wondered just where all that salt for the

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gritters comes from? You might be surprised to learn that most of the

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UK's supply comes from a huge salt mine near Winsford. What's mined at

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Winsford began as ocean floor. The salt in the sea was left behind

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when the water evaporated during the Triassic period. That's about

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220 million years ago to you and me. Over the millennia, the salt got

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covered up and it lay hidden underground until the Romans came

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along and discovered Cheshire's salt deposits. And ever since, salt

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has been a mainstay of the areas' economy. The word "wich," is a

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Viking word for salt making, and that's reflected in the names of

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local towns like Northwich, Middlewich and Nantwich.

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Underneath the Cheshire Plain is a massive sold out that runs all the

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way across to Northern Ireland and across to the east coast as well.

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In the saviour, it is at its thickest. That is why there has

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historically been sought meaning in this area. The Salt Union mine at

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Winsford opened in 1844 and claims to be Britain's oldest working mine.

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But it's fair to say that methods of mining the salt have changed

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over the years. In the early days, miners drilled holes in the rock,

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loaded the holes with gunpowder and let the explosions do their thing.

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We run throughout the year building the stocks to sell in the winter.

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We work five days a week most of the year but in the winter we set

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that up to seven days a week. century salt mining is a much more

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mechanised activity. This machine is called the continuous miner. And

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it does what it says on the tin. Costing well over a million pounds,

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at full pelt it can work 24/7 and it's capable of carving out up to

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10,000 tonnes of salt every day of the year if necessary. It is an

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extremely old industry particularly in this area. We have done a lot of

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work to invest in new equipment and be very safe. We are probably one

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of the sea it is 9th in the country. You have also worked in coal mines?

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Coal mines tend to be deeper, hotter and dirtier and a completely

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different environment. The machine minds the opt out of the face and

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it goes through the machine on to a conveyor. That takes any impurities

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out. As soon as it comes out, if it is ready for the roads. The scale

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of the Winsford Salt mine is mind blowing. When you go underground,

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you enter one enormous dimly lit cavern. And for someone like me who

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can get lost just driving to work, how the miners don't get lost in

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the gloom is a mystery. It is five kilometres east to west and four

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kilometres north to south. Over 200 miles of tunnel world another round.

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My friends ask what I do and I say I'm a minor. If you ever wonder why

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a mind of this scale does not collapse, it is because of these

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pillars here which as strong as concrete. The rock we are mining

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through his very hard, some of the hardest stuff around. You spend the

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majority of your day underground? Get up in the dark and come to work

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in the dark. That is my job. Once the salt has been mined, it still

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has to be crushed into the tiny pieces that you see flying out of

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the back of the gritter lorries in winter. 200 metres beneath the

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Cheshire countryside, this machine is turning this into the salt on

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your roads. Where are we now? are at the crashing in screening

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plant. Everything has to come through here to get process. We put

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the rock salt through sieves liked this close-up everything below that

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size comes out ready to going to the lorry. Everything of our that

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stays in this part and goes through more pressure so we take it back

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here. This is a massive Platt. We put over a million tonnes a year

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through this plant. But how on earth did they manage to get such a

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massive machine deep in the heart of the mine? There is a lot of

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Engineering Design work that goes into it. It comes down as they set

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and rebuild it down here. One thing you can't help but notice when

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you're in the mine is the taste salt in the air. And with some

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health professionals warning about consuming too much salt in our food,

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I wondered if excess salt intake was a concern for workers? There is

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obviously sold within the environment. The body does need

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salt and it is one of the main things we need to stay alive. We

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see no health issues at all. well as mining salt, in recent

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years the mines' owners have developed a surprising new sideline

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that thrives 200 metres below the surface of Cheshire. Explain to me

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where we are now? We are in deep stall. This is the records

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management business that we run within the mind. We have created an

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environment which is ideally suited to long term paper storage. It is a

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very constant and cool environment. We have a national archive in here.

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These archives have already been scanned and can be viewed on their

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Web site. It is not just used for Mining sold then, it has another

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face to it? We are always looking for things we can do to the use the

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areas created by mining. Do you have any edgier how much you have

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in storage? This room can hold 100,000 boxes. We have over 1

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million boxes under ground. Do you know where everyone is?

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certainly do. It is done through a very detailed bar coding system.

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But while storing the national archives may prove to be the long

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term future for the business, for now there's plenty of salt down

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there which is still waiting to be mined. As long as the desserts are

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there, we on them and we on the reserves for the next 20 years. We

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can keep going. Until someone finds a cheaper way to make the roads

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safer in winter, there will always be need for these cuts.

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Coming up - the best Scouse comic He was a pioneer and the British

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sporting hero who plied his trade not far from here playing in goal

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for teams like Preston North End and Stockport County. Arthur

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Wharton's story is largely forgotten. He was Britain's first

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black professional footballer and held the record for the 100 yards -.

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It starts in a little fishing port in West Africa in 1865. A boy is

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born. He became arguably the greatest sportsman Northern England

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has ever seen. But you've probably never heard of him. I feel so proud

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of his achievements and delighted that at last, his story is able to

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be told. He was the pioneer! He has a place in history, we all start

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somewhere and we start with Arthur Wharton. This was what began the

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whole story. This is Arthur, this is what began the whole story,

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finding this in the box. I found it in this old box that belonged to my

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mother. It's a photo of Arthur Wharton, who Sheila Leeson believed

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to be a distant relative. She didn't know it but he had a

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remarkable story. Arthur Wharton was born in Jamestown, in the Gold

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Coast - now Ghana. His Scottish father was a Methodist preacher,

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his Ghanaian mother a tribal princess. Arthur left for Britain

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to train as a preacher himself. But he found his true calling in the

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He played football for Darlington, played a bit of cricket here as

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well. He was a first class cricketer. But an even better

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goalkeeper. He was a showman! He'd swing on the crossbar and catch the

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ball between his knees. He played for Newcastle, he made an

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appearance for Middlesbrough, Rotherham, Stalybridge. He was

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playing so well Preston North End signed him - they were the

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Manchester United of their day, the Barcelona of their day. But that's

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just the tip of the iceberg. He was the world's first 100 yard record

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holder, British Cycling champion, professional cricketer, and played

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Italy looked at his sporting achievements in the context of

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today, if it you looked at his sporting achievements and the

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context of today, -- if you look at the sporting achievement and the

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context of today, he would be the Usain Bolt of his day. His memory

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had a secret kept hidden in the some box. Arthur was married to the

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sister of Sheila's grandmother. His personal belongings. Magor to a

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close link. He committed -- his personal belongings point to a

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close link. He committed adultery. Arthur Wharton was actually the

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grandfather she never knew. Sheila is heading from her home in

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Yorkshire to Ghana. It is the last chance she will ever get to trace

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This is where Arthur's father preached. In his later life, I

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think he forgot about his religion. Because of his illicit love affair,

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he lost his family, and then, his celebrity status. He ended up as a

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miner in Doncaster, living in poverty. He had gone from being

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somebody well known in the country to practically being a nobody, and

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he was buried in an unknown grave. An undignified end to a champion --

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for a champion whose life had started so promisingly. Shaun

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Campbell's mission is to get recognition for Arthur Wharton,

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first through a statue. I just wondered how many statues or money

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men's were out there for a black footballers. -- money immense. It

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took me two and a half months to find one. These small bronze

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replicas have been bought by football's most powerful

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organisations. We have won at the home of FIFA in Zurich and one in

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the presence lounge, and when we go back to England, we have won at

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UEFA. The timing of the campaign could not be better. There are wars

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being raged -- waged against racism in football in England right now.

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Somebody like Arthur Wharton could be the icon and the symbol for

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overcoming racism. The Arthur was loved by many across the North, he

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had to fight his own battles. they reported on matches, they

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would refer to him as the darkie or say that he had features like a

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monkey. In 1886, the people of the northeast of England called for

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Arthur to play for England. He was denied the opportunity because of

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the colour of his skin. Being a black player and playing in the

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1800s, that is mine boggling. I never knew anything about Arthur

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Wharton until six or seven years ago. That is a crying shame. You

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speak to Andy Cole and they all know about him. We are doing our

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little bit to get his name up there. They are doing exactly that him

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Ghana as well. It is the birthday of Arthur Wharton, and any place

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where he was born, there is a football tournament held in his

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honour. This is a deprived community. A gentleman such as

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community. A gentleman such as Arthur brings hope that despite

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body adversity and the obstacles, one could make it through and reach

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to the top. -- despite all of the adversity. Arthur Wharton has

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finally come home, and in a sense, so has his granddaughter. She has

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one last surprise. A local journalist has tracked down an

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entire family she let never knew she had. -- an entire family she

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never knew she had. He is your family, an entire sample. My work

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here is done. I wondered if I had a grandfather and I asked my mother

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but she never answered me. I am very proud to be a member of your

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family. I just feel so full. It is very emotional to be here with you

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all. Thank you. We are very happy. This is the first time I have heard

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of any bite people chasing their black ancestors. She has come home

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to look for us. -- any white people. For a ball is known as a beautiful

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game and it unites people. -- football. We are all united. People

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from all over the world have come together all because of one man and

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his journey. It is 50 years since comedienne Jackie Hamilton first

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took to the stage to make them laugh in Liverpool, but I am

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guessing that most of you have never heard of him. Another funny

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man from Liverpool pinks it is time you did. Ricky Tomlinson, star of

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the award-winning sitcom The Royle Family, pink that Jackie belongs

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right next to the all-time greatest comedians. -- thinks that Jackie.

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If we can get a bargain of the bottle blowers and store stoppers

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club, the world is your oyster! I married a girl from X -- Manchester

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because I wanted to share the Scouse gene. I everyone thinks

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Liverpool is full of comedians, but not all of them go on stage. The

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funniest man I had ever seen, who did not make the big time, was a

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wonderful, wonderful man. I want you to meet and greet the one and

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only, Liverpools own Jackie Hamilton! I was waiting for a cap

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and an automobile came around the corner very slowly and stopped by

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the bus-stop. I jumped in and it started off again. There was no

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driver! I got out at the Princess and there was a guy standing on the

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other side. I asked him if he was waiting for a lift. I said there is

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a ghost driving that taxi. He told me I must be joking. He said that

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he pushed it all the way! He was a 24 hour comic. Watching him on

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stage, I remember as a kid thinking that maybe one day I could be that

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good. As soon as he came on stage, what came out of his mouth, you

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knew they were going to laugh at Jackie. It is 50 years since Jackie

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Hamilton first stood on stage and told a joke, and it is 10 years

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since he passed away. He established a reputation as the,'s

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comic, the best in the business. Up -- as the comics,. But Jackie never

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made the big time. He said it was 35 a bar and asked why where the

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woman wanted it. She said at that bloody price they would put it in

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the display cabinet or stop Jackie Hamilton -- Cabinet. Jackie

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Hamilton may not be the most famous comedian to come out of Liverpool,

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but he was such a legend in this city that a play was a Briton about

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him. -- that a play was written about him. Or audiences know when

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you don't mean it. That is why I go onstage with a pint in my hand,

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because they know that I like a drink, and then when I come off,

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they can feel part of it. They say sometimes that comics say funny

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things and comedians say things funny. He is a material was funny

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but he was a funny man. Turkey had a tough upbringing -- Jackie had a

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tough upbringing. That is him on the right, with his father and

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younger brother Joey. My mother was always in hospital. Whenever we

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were down, he always seemed to pull us up. He had that way about him.

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Jack Dee and his wife had five children -- Jackie and his wife had

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five children, he sometimes thought it was strange to have a comedian

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:21:57.:21:58.

or a father. He was just my dad and he was just funny. I used to ask

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him what he did and he would say he was a fireman or a cowboy and that

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he was in the Marines. I never knew what he did. When Jackie left

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school, he drifted from job to job, working on building sites, and

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later on, at the docks. I never talk about the dogs because I used

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to work at the docks myself, working. It's became obvious that

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he should be on the -- it as soon became obvious that he should be on

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the stage. He was part of a trio. There were no prizes for her

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guessing which one of Jackie is a bright -- supplied, but the then

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dropped him when he missed a gate. He liked a beverage. Every day was

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Christmas. I never seen him nervous. He never let me on. The thing with

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a Jackie was that he mixed with everybody. He mixed with the people

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that it matters. You have not got a cigarette, I left mine in my shoe!

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His solo career went from strength to strength on his home patch, and

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when the BBC made a programme about the arts in Liverpool in 1973, they

:23:21.:23:31.
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knew exactly where to go. Mr Jackie Hamilton! My wife this morning said

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to me this morning that it is nice now. You think you would get out

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there and turn the garden over. I told her to get hold of the other

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end. The producer that they became a lifelong friend. He has now

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written the play that was inspired by Jackie. A night featured program,

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there were parts about the camellia -- him that feature programme,

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there were part about the community, but the guy he was telling us what

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it was really like to be in Liverpool and tell it in a

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wonderfully humorous but also really perceptive way was Jackie

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Hamilton. I got stopped by a copper who asked me who I thought I was. I

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told him, the Luton Girls' Choir. He was a funny man who never met

:24:25.:24:33.

the big time. He did not want to be shooting their or doing -- shooting

:24:33.:24:38.

there. He wanted to do what he wanted to do. I do not think he

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would have liked the big time because he would have lost a lot of

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mates and he would not have handled the big time. I do not think he

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would have been happy with the big time. Two men who knew him as well

:24:50.:24:59.

as and when are these to a veteran comics. He could have stormed them.

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He just would not conform to discipline. That was not Jackie.

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All he wanted to do was make people laugh. What a joke that he tell

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that made people laugh? He was talking about this woman at the

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chippy. She has got a goldfish bowl and a goldfish and she -- and a man

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asked her if she did fishcakes and When he was on a recently -- when

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the play was arm recently, the audience included Jackie's children.

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I am a little bit anxious. It feels like I am going to see my dad again.

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Very nervous because we do not know what to expect. I hope I do not

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come out crying my eyes out. I am looking forward to it, to be honest

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with you. It is more of a celebration than anything anxious

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or nerves. I am going to watch it and enjoy it. They still have a

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sense of humour though. They don't lose that witty thing about them,

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like the names they give one another. There is one fella who

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used to go down to his grandmother's and they called him

:26:30.:26:40.
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Little Red Riding Hood. And my favourite, the one about the man

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who was always saying these could fit the kids or the wife. The show

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has got the verdict from the family. When I first seen him coming out, I

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thought it was my brother come back to life. It was a fitting tribute

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to him because he was full of laughter. When he was in the

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dressing room in the show, he was very lonely, thinking of things

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himself. But I really enjoyed it. 10 years after his death, Jackie's

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reputation is as strong as ever. We will certainly never forget him he

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was a great comedian who had the love of his own local people.

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some ways, I think that is sometimes called surely more

:27:27.:27:33.

important, to be known within her own city and to become a statesman

:27:33.:27:43.
:27:43.:27:43.

of your city. For Jackie is probably having a good laugh

:27:43.:27:47.

because he is more popular now than when he was alive, but it is no

:27:47.:27:54.

more than he deserves. He was a wonderful comic. Only a docker

:27:54.:28:04.

would go on a world cruise. I turned around to the steward, he --

:28:04.:28:09.

and asked where the tour that were. The steward said that they were a

:28:09.:28:19.
:28:19.:28:22.

How great to see Jackie still leaving people laughing. That is

:28:22.:28:26.

all for me here in Northwich. If you have missed any of the

:28:26.:28:32.

programme, you can catch it on the BBC iPlayer. I will be back next

:28:32.:28:42.

Monday on BBC One. Goodbye. Next week, we ask, is it time to

:28:42.:28:45.

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