06/03/2017 Inside Out South


06/03/2017

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Transcript


LineFromTo

Hello.

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Tonight, park-home residents who say they are living in fear of eviction.

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It's horrible, horrible.

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You've got it in the back of your mind all the time.

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He is, in our opinion, Mr Nasty of the first degree

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against residents.

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We're on the trail of the park-homes businessman accused of making

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residents' lives a misery.

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I am not involved in these sites. This is...

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This is a trial by media, ladies and gentlemen,

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and it's gone wrong.

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And the toxic city that's been told to clear up its act and its air.

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Welcome to Inside Out for the south of England.

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First, one of the lovely things about life in a park home

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is you own it but the running costs are much lower than

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bricks and mortar.

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Unless, of course, you're unlucky enough to live on a site

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in West Sussex owned by one particular businessman,

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where some residents say they live in fear of extortionate fees,

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massive legal bills and even eviction.

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The people living in these park homes have had enough.

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People are frightened of him.

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You know, frightened of him.

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I'm going to make sure that we get together

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and fight him for all we can.

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They're getting demands for thousands of pounds,

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and being threatened with legal action.

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I was actually thinking about committing suicide.

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I couldn't go on like this.

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They believe they're being exploited.

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Only a change in the law can help them.

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Reform. Stop it.

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Treat people fairly.

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In this country, we believe in fairness.

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Do it.

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I've come to meet Rose.

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She lives on Marigolds Park in Bognor Regis,

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one of six parks owned by Silverlakes Property Investments

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Limited which is co-owned and run by this man,

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Barry Weir. More about him in just a moment.

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?6,336. Yeah.

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So that's for the maintenance? Yeah.

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In the UK, park home residents own their home but not

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the land it sits on.

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They pay a pitch fee to cover the upkeep of communal areas.

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However, here at Marigolds, residents like Rose

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are constantly being hit with extra charges.

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?347.04. Yeah.

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?287.40.

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Another skip for ?290.

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And we get charged for absolutely everything.

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Every little thing they get and buy we have to pay for.

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?50 here, ?13 here...

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This is just a little taster of the paperwork you get, isn't it?

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Yes.

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The pitch fee here is ?2,400 per year per home -

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a third higher than the UK average - but still the extra

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bills keep rolling in.

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All work that is done on site, we get charged for.

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Nearly all of them forwarded from Silverlakes Property Investments.

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My husband had a stroke two years ago.

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I think it was because of the worry of everything that's, you know,

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going on in the site.

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It's horrible. It's horrible.

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Sometimes I could sit here and cry thinking, oh,

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God, what have we done?

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What have we moved onto?

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When you buy a park home, you inherit the original contract.

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Rose's original contract is signed by Barry Weir.

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We've heard from dozens of people living across all six

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of Silverlake Properties' parks, and they're all having

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the same problems as Rose.

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So how is this happening?

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Well, a park-homes contact by law has to include certain terms,

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and one of those terms clearly states that it's the obligation

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of the owner of the park to maintain the site.

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The hedge at this park in the New Forest is trimmed

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and paid for as part of that legal obligation.

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In fact, all the park owners we spoke to foot the bill

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for this type of thing.

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All, that is, except Barry Weir.

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The law doesn't explicitly mention a financial obligation,

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so his contracts include some unique clauses that allow him

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to charge his residents instead.

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Lawmakers say Barry Weir and the operators of his parks

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are using this loophole to unfairly pass the financial buck

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to residents.

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That's caught the attention of local MPs, including Sir Peter Bottomley.

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It's quite clear that some park home residents are being exploited.

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They're being exploited by intimidation, by bullying,

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by costs, and by fees which aren't justified.

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So, who exactly is Barry Weir?

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?625,000 bought Dunderaeve for the Weirs.

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In the 1990s, he appeared on BBC Scotland when he was renovating

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a castle he'd bought.

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It came with the title "The Laird of Dunderaeve".

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I was a gas fitter.

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I left school, took an apprenticeship...

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Rags to riches!

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Well, rags to riches indeed.

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Barry's also a published author, and wrote this book,

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Driving Ambition.

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He loves his Aston Martins.

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In fact, he commissioned them to build one just for him.

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It's worth more than ?1 million.

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But classic cars and castles are a far cry from the lives

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led by the residents of another of the parks Mr Weir owns.

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Here at Orchard Park in West Sussex, they pay one of the highest

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pitch fees in the country - almost ?300 a month.

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It's the same story as at Marigolds - home owners

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are being hit with extra charges on top of their already high

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pitch fee and it's taking its toll.

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Really, living here is bad for my mental health,

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and I was off with stress because I couldn't sleep at night.

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I was worrying about all these bills, and how I was going to pay?

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Is he going to evict me?

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Some people have been served eviction notices because they're

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paying their pitch fee but withholding the extra charges.

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But many residents we spoke to simply don't want any hassle.

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You get a letter to say, you know, you owe this money,

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and my husband's quite ill and he doesn't want any worry

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about anything, so we paid it.

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So this is beautiful!

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Life should be good.

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It is good.

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You know, on this park, it's excellent.

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Brian Doick is the President of the largest organisation of park

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home residents in the UK.

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What's the appeal of living on a park?

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The appeal, really, is that it's a cheaper product to buy the home,

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as opposed to bricks and mortar.

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Brian was awarded an MBE for his years spent fighting

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for park home residents rights.

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You've helped a lot of people out at parks right across the country,

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but how bad is Mr Weir?

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I believe personally that Barry Weir is more than bad.

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I've seen bills sent to a park for 35 pence for a light bulb.

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I mean, that's how pathetic it is.

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And he's, in our opinion, Mr Nasty of the first

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degree against residents, and it's got to be stopped.

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But far from being stopped, the demands for money

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have kept coming.

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I got a letter in May last year saying I owe ?3699.50.

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Ashley Rivett lives in Bognor, on another of the parks owned

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by Silverlakes Property Investments.

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They tried to charge us an extra...

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He received letters demanding money for legal costs,

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but experts have told us that legal costs can't be charged

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without going to tribunal first.

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Ashley has never been to a tribunal, but he has been

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threatened with legal action.

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It made my wife quite ill and myself quite ill.

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My wife threatened to leave me because of this money.

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I was actually thinking about committing suicide,

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because I couldn't go on like this.

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Barry Weir says neither he nor Silverlakes Property Investments

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sent any letters asking for legal fees.

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But what he's not saying is that the six parks owned

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by Silverlakes Property Investments are leased out to four

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different companies, the directors of which are Barry's

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three daughters and his accountants, and the demands for legal fees

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come from one of those.

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We wanted to put our allegations to Barry Weir directly,

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but we kept being told the parks were nothing to do with him.

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But it's Barry's name that's on the contracts -

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he's the one who attends the tribunals and

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inspects the sites.

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We've tracked him down here to Guernsey in the Channel Islands.

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I managed to catch up with Mr Weir after he'd done his shopping.

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Hello, Mr Weir.

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It's Jon Cuthill from BBC Inside Out.

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Yes, hello.

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Can I just ask you about the contracts that you have

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between yourself and the residents of your mobile park homes?

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Are they fair, do you think?

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I don't have any contracts.

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The lease, the freehold lands owned by, erm,

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Silverlakes Property Investments, of which I'm a director and that's

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it, it's leased to other companies.

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They have the contracts, not me.

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But you're still doing the park visits.

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No, no, no. Hold on.

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The residents are saying...

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There are 300 people on these parks.

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I know an awful lot of them they're very good friends of mine.

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I go on to the sites to see them.

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I don't inspect the parks at all. No need.

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But do you think it's right to have pitch fees and then on top of that

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management fees as well?

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I have no idea what you're on about.

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One of the only mobile park companies in the entire

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country who do that?

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All I can tell you, all I can tell you...

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Everyone else says it should just be a pitch fee and the management...

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No, no, no...

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Now listen to this viewers at home, very carefully.

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Listening ears on, as I say to my little grandchildren.

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I am not involved with these parks.

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Silverlakes Property Investments holds the freehold and leases it.

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I am not involved.

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Can I quickly just talk about the contracts? No!

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I'm not involved in them, I know nothing about them!

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End of story, guys.

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I'm going home.

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Bye, everybody.

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Thank you.

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There we go.

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Barry Weir - a man whose got nothing to do whatsoever with those mobile

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park homes(!)

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Despite Mr Weir's protestations, MPs say

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they are fighting to close the legal loophole that they say allows

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the people on his parks to be exploited.

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People like him should not be allowed to take actions like that,

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and I intend with fellow MPs to make sure that some of the excesses

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are ended and most of the abuses are stopped.

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You think you move here for a peaceful settled

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life in your retirement, but you don't.

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You don't.

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In fact, I've never met a man like him ever in my life.

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As ever, I'd love to hear your thoughts on that story.

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Here's the e-mail address.

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Still to come: Dorset's hidden treasures.

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Normally you can't actually get inside Rufus Castle, but we've been

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granted special access.

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Next, take a deep breath - do you ever worry

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about the air quality?

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There is nothing to worry about here but Southampton is one

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of our most toxic cities.

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The European Commission just last month issued Britain

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with a final warning - clean up your act or

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face the consequences.

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My name is Archie.

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I'm ten years old.

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My favourite thing in the entire world, erm...

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I do rather like bouncing on the trampoline.

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But there's one thing Archie's not head over heels about -

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Southampton's air.

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Now, today looks like a beautiful day, but a day like today

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causes you a few problems.

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Why?

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Yeah, because the air is very flat and moist,

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feels very tight round your neck, and all the bits that go off

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into the rest of your body that lead off from your neck feels

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like they are Tube stations and the train is stuck in them.

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There is just a tiny little gap for air to get through.

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Archie has a severe form of asthma.

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Poor air quality can leave him struggling to breathe.

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It's a real worry for his mum Kirsty.

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On a day when there is an air quality alert, or on a day

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like this when it's very still and so the pollution is pushed

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down, he will generally be more wheezy on those days.

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Fumes, car fumes, things like that.

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Basically if it is a strong noxious smell,

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that will start his asthma off.

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The World Health Organisation names Southampton as one of the most

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polluted cities in the UK.

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Pollution is linked to 110 deaths a year in the city,

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and costs Southampton's health services annually

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an extra ?50 million.

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Where there's more pollution, there are more cases of lung

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and heart disease, and asthma.

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One, it's absolutely disgusting.

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Two, it makes me cough and its really annoying,

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and I have to wear scarves and it makes me look like a marshmallow.

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It makes me feel quite guilty that my choice of where to live

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might impact Archie's asthma, and it does give me pause

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for thought and make me worry.

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To get an idea of how polluted the city is,

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we've borrowed a smog-mobile.

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This hi-tech electric vehicle hoovers up the air and tells us

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what nasties are in it.

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Duncan Mounsor is in the driving seat.

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It definitely is something for people to worry about,

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particularly people who may be socially disadvantaged,

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and people that live in very built-up, congested areas.

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You can choose the quality of the water you drink from a bottle

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if you don't want to drink the tap water, and you have a choice,

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but none of us can choose the air that we breathe.

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So we have some more spikes here.

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The smog-mobile is detecting high levels of nitrogen dioxide, or NO2,

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a gas produced by burning fuel.

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Most of what we're seeing today is from rush-hour traffic.

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What sort of levels are we seeing this morning?

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Well, I think we have seen upwards of 200 micrograms per cubic metre,

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which is very, very high.

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If those levels had stayed at 200 micrograms for longer then one hour,

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that would be breaching one of the UK guidelines values for NO2.

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And that's on a wet and blustery day, when typically air

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pollution levels are lower.

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Now a lot of people will think, if I am stuck in traffic,

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it's all right, I'm inside my car, everything's fine.

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Is it?

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Well, I don't think we can be lulled into a false

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sense of security there.

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You are essentially in a sealed box.

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We have made measurements ourselves where the NO2 levels

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inside the driver's cab can be up to 20% higher than they are outside.

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To see the scale of the city's problem, you need some serious kit.

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Dr Matt Loxham, a scientist from the University of Southampton,

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is studying airborne pollutants.

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The biggest ones that can get into our lungs are ten microns wide,

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so that's about an eighth of the width of the human hair, so

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tiny, and they're the biggest ones.

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The very smallest ones could be about a 100 times smaller than that,

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so about 1,000th the width of a human hair, and they don't just

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get into the depths of our lungs, they can actually get

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into our bloodstream.

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And recently it's been shown it can get into the brain

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and other organs as well.

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We know that in young people who are born in areas

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where there is a lot of pollution tend to be born with

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a lower birth weight.

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More people get asthma when they live in polluted areas,

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and growing up we are beginning to see an association not

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just with heart disease and cardiovascular disease

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like strokes, but also suggestions that diabetes and Alzheimer's

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disease and dementia might be associated with pollution.

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What we need to know now is how this happens,

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and what is it about the pollutants that are doing that so we can better

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understand the problem.

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The Government has told Southampton and four other cities in the UK

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to implement clean-air zones by 2020.

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That means penalty charges for the most polluting HGVs, buses,

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and taxis entering the city centre.

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But, surprisingly, it won't include private cars,

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which by the council's own figures are a significant

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source of pollution.

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So, Councillor Christopher Hammond, why not?

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This isn't about banishing the car forever more.

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It's about encouraging people to, where they can, take that one bus

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journey to walk to the shops rather than driving or cycling to work,

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because usually it's quicker, you'll be fitter for it,

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and that's a better way to go about it.

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# All I need is the air that I breath...#

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As well as busy roads Southampton has a busy port

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with a dirty secret - heavy-fuel oil.

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Scientists reckon one cruise ship emits as many air pollutants

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as five million cars on the same distance.

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Heavy fuel oil can contain up to 3,500 times more

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sulphur than diesel cars.

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So the port is a real worry for keen cyclist and clean-air

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campaigner Colin McQueen.

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Nobody has been able to monitor air quality

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within the docks, and I think that's really regrettable.

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We don't know how much they push out, but we do know, for example,

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that container ship at the moment is berthed and it's running

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at the moment on auxillary generators which are collossal.

0:19:240:19:27

So we have the poor air quality, but we have the noise

0:19:270:19:30

coming from them as well.

0:19:300:19:34

One solution being used elsewhere virtually eliminates air pollution

0:19:340:19:36

from ships whilst they're in port.

0:19:360:19:40

A growing number of cargo and cruise ships, including

0:19:400:19:42

the Queen Mary II and Britainnia, have the ability to cut

0:19:420:19:46

the engines and plug into a port electricity supply.

0:19:460:19:50

The only problem - Southampton doesn't have a socket.

0:19:500:19:55

Port Director is Alastair Welch.

0:19:550:19:57

In the cruise ship world, there's this idea of shore power,

0:19:570:20:00

and yet Southampton can't provide that facility at the moment.

0:20:000:20:03

Why not?

0:20:030:20:04

Well, no port in the UK provides shore power for large ships.

0:20:040:20:06

The challenge has been in particular there is no one

0:20:060:20:09

standard for shore power.

0:20:090:20:10

That's now in place.

0:20:100:20:11

My background's very much in the aviation industry,

0:20:110:20:14

where it's quite normal that you'll plug your aircraft in

0:20:140:20:16

when you come onto stand and run off power locally.

0:20:160:20:19

I'd like it in place as soon as possible,

0:20:190:20:21

but we can't yet give a specific date, as we're reliant on working

0:20:210:20:24

with others to make sure we can work together to get to that place.

0:20:240:20:27

But I should emphasise shore power is not the only answer and that's

0:20:270:20:30

why we're working with solar power now, and working with hybrid ships

0:20:300:20:33

now, because all of them have a part to play for the future.

0:20:330:20:36

Currently the port does not monitor its own air pollution levels,

0:20:360:20:39

but this is about to change.

0:20:390:20:42

Do you have any plans to do your own monitoring on site?

0:20:420:20:45

We are currently exploring that right now, yes.

0:20:450:20:51

ABP and all the associated companies that work within the docks

0:20:510:20:56

have a responsibility to the residents of Southampton.

0:20:560:21:00

They are here to trade and we understand that

0:21:000:21:04

we're not anti-trade.

0:21:040:21:06

We want them to trade in a cleaner way.

0:21:060:21:11

There's no doubt a cleaner Southampton would be good news

0:21:110:21:13

for the next generation.

0:21:130:21:17

When I see the impact on children like Archie,

0:21:170:21:19

I think everybody wants to make air quality better.

0:21:190:21:27

It's annoying when people drive constantly, because the only thing

0:21:270:21:30

you have to do is get up a bit earlier, and, I mean,

0:21:300:21:33

like, getting up earlier, and that could help save the world,

0:21:330:21:36

and the asthma world.

0:21:360:21:42

Don't forget you can find out more about the show on Twitter.

0:21:440:21:47

We are at...

0:21:470:21:51

Now, finally, time for a whistle-stop tour

0:21:510:21:53

of the Jurassic Coast to find Dorset's lesser-known castles.

0:21:530:21:57

Actor and historian Craig Henderson is your guide

0:21:570:22:00

and he starts in Weymouth.

0:22:000:22:08

The World Heritage Jurassic Coast - 95 miles of stunning scenery,

0:22:080:22:15

stretching from East Devon to Studland Bay in Dorset.

0:22:150:22:20

185 million years of history, written in its rocks and fossils.

0:22:200:22:24

But I want to introduce you to some man-made features -

0:22:240:22:27

the lesser-known castles of the Jurassic Coast.

0:22:270:22:34

They, for hundreds of years, protected Britain from invasion.

0:22:340:22:38

Castles at the cutting edge of design, and one that was perhaps

0:22:380:22:43

more of a vanity project.

0:22:430:22:47

Tucked down side roads on the outskirts of Weymouth is one

0:22:470:22:50

of the town's best-kept secrets.

0:22:500:22:56

This is Sandsfoot Castle, filmed by a Dorset enthusiast whose

0:22:560:22:59

footage has been described as one of the ten most beautiful

0:22:590:23:02

drone videos of all time.

0:23:020:23:05

# We left our sweethearts and our wives along that pier

0:23:050:23:12

# Cheer up, they said

0:23:120:23:13

# You'll soon return in half a year...#

0:23:130:23:19

This romantic ruin was saved by a lottery grant,

0:23:190:23:22

thanks to the determination of the council and local residents.

0:23:220:23:26

It's one of several on the south coast built by Henry VIII.

0:23:260:23:30

Back in 1500, Henry VIII fell out with the Pope big-time.

0:23:300:23:34

Determined to divorce his first wife, Catherine of Aragon,

0:23:340:23:38

he was excommunicated, and went on to make himself head

0:23:380:23:40

of the new Church of England, and that, as they say, is history.

0:23:400:23:45

But it's a moment of time perfectly captured in

0:23:450:23:47

the ruins of this castle.

0:23:470:23:50

Due to his need to divorce, he fell out with the Catholic church,

0:23:500:23:54

and everybody knows the history in terms of his approach to most

0:23:540:23:58

of the monasteries, and, in fact, this building contains pieces

0:23:580:24:05

of stone that were taken from a nearby abbey,

0:24:050:24:07

and they can actually still be seen.

0:24:070:24:09

Now, because some of the outside stone has been taken away,

0:24:090:24:11

you can actually see the skeleton of this building,

0:24:110:24:13

how it was made up.

0:24:140:24:15

So there are a couple of stones, aren't there,

0:24:150:24:17

which are really obvious, can you just point them out to me?

0:24:170:24:20

Yes.

0:24:200:24:21

We've got one over on the floor level they are, in the far alcove.

0:24:210:24:24

OK.

0:24:240:24:25

And then on this side, we've also got,

0:24:250:24:27

high on the tower there, we've got actually a nice,

0:24:270:24:30

curved piece of scallop stone that shows quite ornate carvings.

0:24:300:24:37

Henry is in a position, a difficult position.

0:24:370:24:40

His divorce has rendered him a limited from the Pope.

0:24:400:24:45

-- alienated.

0:24:450:24:46

The Pope has two major allies in Europe, France and Spain,

0:24:460:24:49

and they have allied together and are looking towards Britain.

0:24:490:24:54

And Henry at that time chose to take defensive measures.

0:24:540:24:57

His intention was to secure safe anchorages, harbour points,

0:24:570:25:01

to prevent either raiding for commerce or potential invasion.

0:25:010:25:09

Now, what we have here is Sandsfoot at that time built on a promontory

0:25:090:25:13

overlooking what was then called the Portland Roads,

0:25:130:25:15

and it is now Portland Harbour.

0:25:150:25:20

Without the large harbour structure so it is quite easy

0:25:200:25:23

to sail into it and cause problems and move out.

0:25:230:25:26

We've got the port of Weymouth just adjacent,

0:25:260:25:28

merchantmen coming and going, really important for trade.

0:25:280:25:30

So what Henry did at that time was to build opposing castles,

0:25:300:25:32

so we have Sandsfoot on this side of the harbour, on the north side,

0:25:320:25:36

and we have Portland Castle on the south side.

0:25:360:25:41

They've got the ability to create a crossfire situation,

0:25:410:25:46

if any foreign ship or aggressor was foolish enough to move

0:25:460:25:49

into that arc of fire...

0:25:490:25:50

And also they could reach the entrance to

0:25:500:25:52

Weymouth harbour as well.

0:25:520:25:57

Henry was very keen on changing designs, taking ideas from Europe,

0:25:570:25:59

and artillery was developing very quickly at that time.

0:25:590:26:05

For a while, Sandsfoot was the cutting edge.

0:26:050:26:07

The only issue was that, as time went by, artillery improved

0:26:070:26:10

and became more mobile and more reliable, and, as a result

0:26:100:26:14

Sandsfoot fell away.

0:26:140:26:18

To a certain extent, it only lasted for maybe 50 years.

0:26:180:26:23

On the other side of the harbour, Portland Castle survived,

0:26:230:26:25

and was still in use during World War II.

0:26:250:26:30

Maybe it owes some of its longevity to the fact that it wasn't built

0:26:300:26:34

from the leftover bits of a monastery, but instead used

0:26:340:26:36

local Portland stone.

0:26:360:26:40

Even less long-lived than Sandsfoot was another innovative and older

0:26:400:26:42

castle that was built in Portland at the wrong place

0:26:420:26:45

at the wrong time.

0:26:450:26:49

What's left of Rufus Castle now stands at the end of the garden

0:26:490:26:54

of a clifftop bungalow, behind an impressive swimming pool.

0:26:540:26:56

Normally you can't actually get inside Rufus Castle,

0:26:560:26:59

but since it's about to change hands again,

0:26:590:27:01

we've been granted special access.

0:27:010:27:04

I suppose the most important features are the small

0:27:040:27:06

circular windows.

0:27:060:27:08

You can see them behind me.

0:27:080:27:11

These are in fact gun-ports.

0:27:110:27:13

This is one of the oldest buildings anywhere that was actually

0:27:130:27:15

built to take advantage of the new invention of cannons.

0:27:150:27:22

And they would have used what were essentially large handguns

0:27:220:27:25

within the building to defend it, and to stop invaders coming

0:27:250:27:29

onto the island of Portland.

0:27:300:27:31

At what point did this castle become obsolete?

0:27:310:27:33

Very, very soon after it was built.

0:27:330:27:35

We know it was built in about 1450, but less than 100 years later,

0:27:350:27:42

the castle was a nonentity, and was not even referred

0:27:420:27:44

to in the records when they built the present

0:27:440:27:46

Portland Castle done by the harbour.

0:27:460:27:50

As the years went by, Rufus Castle became a rich man's folly,

0:27:500:27:56

a place for picnics in the grounds of a brand-new Gothic style castle.

0:27:560:28:02

Pennsylvania Castle was built by John Penn, grandson of the man

0:28:020:28:05

who founded Pennsylvania in the United States.

0:28:050:28:08

Penn discovered Portland with King George III,

0:28:080:28:11

whose physicians had recommended sea-bathing

0:28:110:28:13

as a cure for the episodes of physical and mental

0:28:130:28:15

illness that plagued him.

0:28:150:28:16

Today, though, Pennsylvania castle offers a happy end to my journey

0:28:160:28:21

around some lesser-known castles of the Jurassic Coast.

0:28:210:28:28

Craig Henderson there and some of Dorset's wonderful castles.

0:28:280:28:31

That's it for now.

0:28:310:28:32

Until next time, bye-bye.

0:28:320:28:36

It's FA Cup action next week, but we're back on the 20th behind

0:28:360:28:39

the scenes of a rather special buzz on the Isle of Wight.

0:28:390:28:44

There is the kindness of people's hearts, where they do

0:28:440:28:46

give people a chance.

0:28:460:28:48

It certainly gets people of the streets and make them safe

0:28:480:28:50

and it gives them the chance to get their lives back together.

0:28:500:28:54

Hello.

0:29:100:29:11

I'm Riz Lateef with your 90 second update.

0:29:110:29:13

Questions over Vauxhall's future in Britain after it was sold

0:29:130:29:15

to French car maker Peugeot-Citroen.

0:29:150:29:16

Vauxhall employs 4,500 people but its new owners

0:29:160:29:18

may want to cut jobs.

0:29:180:29:19

This is a new campaign to get the public to report

0:29:190:29:22

terrorism suspicions.

0:29:220:29:23

Police say they've stopped 13 possible attacks in four years.

0:29:230:29:26

There are 500 investigations going on at any time.

0:29:260:29:30

President Trump has signed a new version of his travel ban.

0:29:300:29:32

It affects several mainly Muslim countries.

0:29:320:29:35

The previous one ran into legal problems and claims

0:29:350:29:37

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