0:00:27 > 0:00:31'Tranquillity and peace, a place for reflection
0:00:31 > 0:00:34'from the hustle and bustle of city life and industry.
0:00:34 > 0:00:38'This is a green oasis, the border land of Birmingham
0:00:38 > 0:00:40'and the Black Country.'
0:00:40 > 0:00:43But it's more than just nectar for the soul,
0:00:43 > 0:00:46it's a place of inspiring beauty, and some of the most
0:00:46 > 0:00:51influential 18th century landscapes in Europe can be found here.
0:00:51 > 0:00:53'Ellie's exploring the dramatic impact
0:00:53 > 0:00:58'this area's natural resources had on the Industrial Revolution.'
0:00:58 > 0:01:03This geologically rich landscape was a victim of its own treasures.
0:01:03 > 0:01:07Industry took a hold, but now nature, as it always does,
0:01:07 > 0:01:08is claiming it back.
0:01:11 > 0:01:15'Charlotte asks if there are too many drugs in modern farming.'
0:01:15 > 0:01:17Antibiotic resistance has been
0:01:17 > 0:01:21described as one of the greatest threats to modern human health.
0:01:21 > 0:01:26But could using antibiotics on farms be making the problem worse?
0:01:26 > 0:01:29'And Adam is always one for a bit of healthy competition,
0:01:29 > 0:01:32'even if it is with his own son.'
0:01:32 > 0:01:35This is a pure Pekin cockerel.
0:01:35 > 0:01:37Obviously not going to lay any eggs, and he's not for meat,
0:01:37 > 0:01:41but hopefully he's going to win my son Alfie over there
0:01:41 > 0:01:45a prize at one of the agricultural shows in the poultry classes.
0:01:45 > 0:01:46Are you ready for this, chicken?
0:01:59 > 0:02:01'The heart of England.
0:02:01 > 0:02:05'For ever associated with the Industrial Revolution.
0:02:05 > 0:02:08'But the West Midlands and the Black Country also have
0:02:08 > 0:02:10'their fair share of green surprises.
0:02:11 > 0:02:14'Bookended by wild hillside, the Stour Valley hides
0:02:14 > 0:02:18'pockets of nature reserves and breathing spaces for city dwellers.'
0:02:20 > 0:02:22I'm in Halesowen in the LEAsowes
0:02:22 > 0:02:26or the LEHsowes, depending on who you speak to around here,
0:02:26 > 0:02:31in about 150 acres or 60 hectares of open green space.
0:02:31 > 0:02:36Now, this place is open 365 days a year for dog walkers and picnics
0:02:36 > 0:02:38but it is also a globally important
0:02:38 > 0:02:41Grade One registered historic garden.
0:02:42 > 0:02:46'This wild-looking landscape was actually the life's work of
0:02:46 > 0:02:50'its 18th century owner, local poet William Shenstone.'
0:02:52 > 0:02:56So, John, who exactly was William Shenstone, and when was he around?
0:02:56 > 0:02:58William Shenstone was, for his time,
0:02:58 > 0:03:02quite a famous poet and landscape gardener.
0:03:02 > 0:03:05He was born in 1714 here at the Leasowes.
0:03:05 > 0:03:07The Leasowes was a farm in those days.
0:03:07 > 0:03:10Right, and when did the landscape gardening come in, then?
0:03:10 > 0:03:12I mean, was he always a passionate gardener, or...?
0:03:12 > 0:03:14Yes, I think he was.
0:03:14 > 0:03:17I mean, one of his early poems was called The Schoolmistress,
0:03:17 > 0:03:21and in that poem he talks about his schoolmistress having a garden,
0:03:21 > 0:03:25- and he lists the flowers.- Mm-hm.- So I think it started very early with him.
0:03:25 > 0:03:28And quite a different approach to gardening, cos back then,
0:03:28 > 0:03:30I mean, it was all about formal gardens, wasn't it?
0:03:30 > 0:03:31It certainly was.
0:03:31 > 0:03:35He wasn't original in the idea of the natural landscape,
0:03:35 > 0:03:38- but it certainly was unique in the way he did it.- Mm.
0:03:38 > 0:03:41The landscape of Italy was what he had in mind.
0:03:48 > 0:03:50Even though this wasn't a formal garden, there was
0:03:50 > 0:03:53a definite order that he wanted people to experience...?
0:03:53 > 0:03:55Oh, yes, there was an order.
0:03:55 > 0:03:59All his visitors were supposed to walk around this path
0:03:59 > 0:04:04because the features that he wanted people to see could only be
0:04:04 > 0:04:07seen properly from one particular point.
0:04:07 > 0:04:10And who paid for it all, cos it's massive?!
0:04:10 > 0:04:13- Well, basically, Shenstone did.- Right.
0:04:13 > 0:04:17He did own property in the end because he spent
0:04:17 > 0:04:19so much money on this place he became bankrupt.
0:04:19 > 0:04:21Was there a timeframe that he had in mind,
0:04:21 > 0:04:25- and how long did it kind of take? - It took 20 years.
0:04:25 > 0:04:27It was an evolving landscape.
0:04:27 > 0:04:30Towards the end of his life,
0:04:30 > 0:04:34he realised that he couldn't spend any more money on it,
0:04:34 > 0:04:37so he retired to his house
0:04:37 > 0:04:40and carried on doing research.
0:04:48 > 0:04:51Shenstone died in 1763,
0:04:51 > 0:04:55but left behind a garden much admired for its pioneering approach,
0:04:55 > 0:04:58and the focus on the Leasowes in gardening books
0:04:58 > 0:05:02and high society circles even after Shenstone's death
0:05:02 > 0:05:03meant that famous visitors,
0:05:03 > 0:05:07including American presidents John Adams and Thomas Jefferson,
0:05:07 > 0:05:10came here to see it for themselves.
0:05:11 > 0:05:13'But time takes its toll,
0:05:13 > 0:05:16'and the reflective quiet of his landscape was interrupted by
0:05:16 > 0:05:18'the building of the Dudley No.2 Canal,
0:05:18 > 0:05:20'now a haven for wildlife.
0:05:22 > 0:05:26'The Leasowes has been council-owned since 1934.
0:05:26 > 0:05:29'The wardens and volunteers who look after this park
0:05:29 > 0:05:30'have quite a task.'
0:05:30 > 0:05:34We've got a 10-year management plan, a 10-year conservation plan,
0:05:34 > 0:05:36which not only looks after the historic landscape
0:05:36 > 0:05:38but the ecological landscape as well.
0:05:38 > 0:05:41And do you have to use traditional methods to manage?
0:05:41 > 0:05:44We can see here this scene of everyone cutting down the grass.
0:05:44 > 0:05:45"Leasowes" means meadows,
0:05:45 > 0:05:49so there's always been traditional management of grassland on the site.
0:05:49 > 0:05:53We're using it here on this site to help the diversification of
0:05:53 > 0:05:56- the wild flowers by removing the bramble and grasses.- Yeah.
0:05:56 > 0:06:00But we've also got the added benefit with this field
0:06:00 > 0:06:03that we've got Red Data Book species of fungi on site.
0:06:03 > 0:06:06We've got the waxcap family appearing in good numbers.
0:06:06 > 0:06:08And so we do this, and it benefits those as well.
0:06:08 > 0:06:11Talking of numbers, you've got workers in force here.
0:06:11 > 0:06:14Now, then, team! How are we doing, all right?
0:06:14 > 0:06:16Good. We'll give you a hand while I'm here!
0:06:18 > 0:06:21So a lot has gone on, erm, in this spot over the years.
0:06:21 > 0:06:24- Is there a plan for the future, Anthony?- Yeah, yeah, I mean,
0:06:24 > 0:06:26the plan for the future is just to keep going
0:06:26 > 0:06:29the way we are, which is, you know, continue to reintroduce
0:06:29 > 0:06:31the historic landscape back to the site.
0:06:31 > 0:06:35You know, it'll be small scale, like Shenstone used to do.
0:06:35 > 0:06:37So it's not just human help you've got,
0:06:37 > 0:06:41I've noticed the bovine workforce over the top there.
0:06:41 > 0:06:43Yes, we have, we've got longhorn cattle on site.
0:06:43 > 0:06:45Erm, we've got an original drawing
0:06:45 > 0:06:48- that shows longhorn cattle on the site.- Really?
0:06:48 > 0:06:52So it keeps us in the past and things but also benefits the future.
0:06:52 > 0:06:55I mean, a real spectacle for those that do come here to walk
0:06:55 > 0:06:57and wander and see a herd of those.
0:06:57 > 0:06:59Yeah, I mean, set in the middle of the Black Country,
0:06:59 > 0:07:02there's a lot of people who don't come across cows every day,
0:07:02 > 0:07:06but, you know, you come to the Leasowes, you can see it all.
0:07:15 > 0:07:20Sometimes keeping cattle like this fit and healthy requires medication,
0:07:20 > 0:07:24but is the use of antibiotics on animals a threat to human health?
0:07:24 > 0:07:27Well, Charlotte has been investigating.
0:07:32 > 0:07:35'Much of farming in Britain today is big business,
0:07:35 > 0:07:38'requiring industrial-scale facilities to provide us with
0:07:38 > 0:07:42'food that is both competitive in price and tasty too.'
0:07:44 > 0:07:47One of the things which helps farmers achieve all that is this,
0:07:47 > 0:07:49an antibiotic.
0:07:49 > 0:07:53'Since Alexander Fleming discovered them more than 80 years ago,
0:07:53 > 0:07:56'antibiotics have been at the heart of modern medicine,
0:07:56 > 0:07:58'for both humans and animals.'
0:08:00 > 0:08:04But nature has a habit of finding a way around them, and increasingly,
0:08:04 > 0:08:08infectious bacteria are becoming resistant to these wonder drugs.
0:08:08 > 0:08:10This growing resistance has been
0:08:10 > 0:08:14described as one of the greatest threats to modern human health.
0:08:19 > 0:08:21'Whether fairly or unfairly,
0:08:21 > 0:08:23'some of the blame for this growth in resistance is being
0:08:23 > 0:08:27'attributed to the farming industry's use of antibiotics.
0:08:28 > 0:08:32'I've come to Cote in Oxfordshire, where James Hook runs one of
0:08:32 > 0:08:36'the leading independent chick hatcheries in the country.
0:08:36 > 0:08:39We're entering the hatchery now through the foot bath.
0:08:42 > 0:08:46'The family has been breeding chickens since the 1950s.
0:08:46 > 0:08:49'Today they produce more than five million chicks a week,
0:08:49 > 0:08:53'and selective antibiotic use is a key part of the process.'
0:08:55 > 0:08:59- Oh, my goodness!- There's roughly about 100 chicks in this tray.
0:08:59 > 0:09:03- So how many in there? - There are 24,000 in that hatchery.
0:09:03 > 0:09:06- 24,000.- 24,000, there's 400,000 in this room
0:09:06 > 0:09:09that'll be taken off tomorrow morning.
0:09:09 > 0:09:13- It's almost unimaginably big, isn't it?- It is quite large, yes.
0:09:13 > 0:09:17So where do the antibiotics come in, then? Why do you use them in farming?
0:09:17 > 0:09:19You have to be able to treat animals if they're sick,
0:09:19 > 0:09:23otherwise they become poorly, they can't enter the food chain,
0:09:23 > 0:09:26and economically, it would be a huge amount of wasted product.
0:09:26 > 0:09:28So what are you trying to avoid?
0:09:28 > 0:09:31What infections or illnesses are you trying to prevent?
0:09:31 > 0:09:33Infection of the yolk sac, which,
0:09:33 > 0:09:36if they were to get it, is probably E-coli.
0:09:37 > 0:09:40'Farming uses many of the same groups of antibiotics
0:09:40 > 0:09:44'that doctors prescribe to us, and just like in human health,
0:09:44 > 0:09:48'these drugs are an invaluable weapon in the fight against disease.
0:09:48 > 0:09:50'But there's a catch.'
0:09:50 > 0:09:53The more we take antibiotics, the greater the chance the bug
0:09:53 > 0:09:57will evolve into a form which is resistant to the medication.
0:09:58 > 0:10:02'In recent years, new types of E-coli and other bacteria
0:10:02 > 0:10:06'like salmonella and livestock MRSA have done just that.'
0:10:07 > 0:10:11That's led some pressure groups to argue that British farmers are using
0:10:11 > 0:10:13too many antibiotics,
0:10:13 > 0:10:17which could lead to the development of antibiotic-resistant superbugs.
0:10:17 > 0:10:20That's obviously bad news for animals.
0:10:20 > 0:10:22But it could be bad news for humans too.
0:10:24 > 0:10:28'Back in 2011, Tom Heap visited the University of Cambridge
0:10:28 > 0:10:30'to meet Dr Mark Holmes.'
0:10:31 > 0:10:36We are currently surveying over 1,000 dairy farms
0:10:36 > 0:10:38up and down the country, including Scotland,
0:10:38 > 0:10:40and we're looking for MRSA.
0:10:42 > 0:10:44'MRSA is a bacterial infection
0:10:44 > 0:10:48'resistant to a wide variety of antibiotics.
0:10:49 > 0:10:52'We know it as the superbug found in hospitals, but there are also
0:10:52 > 0:10:56'strains found in farm animals, known as livestock MRSA.
0:10:57 > 0:11:00'Three years ago, Mark was building the evidence
0:11:00 > 0:11:01'for a frightening theory.'
0:11:01 > 0:11:07We have discovered a new version of MRSA.
0:11:07 > 0:11:11We know that the bug is travelling between people and cows.
0:11:12 > 0:11:17'Wind forward to the present day, and what's Mark concluded?'
0:11:17 > 0:11:21We do now have evidence that it travels from animals to people.
0:11:21 > 0:11:25But how? How does it go from an animal to a human?
0:11:25 > 0:11:28Farmers and people who work on farms pick up any bacteria,
0:11:28 > 0:11:32any bugs that we find on the animals, just because they work
0:11:32 > 0:11:36with them every day and they have direct contact with the animals.
0:11:36 > 0:11:37But this is fairly rare.
0:11:37 > 0:11:41The most likely way that we would get infected is through
0:11:41 > 0:11:46eating contaminated meat or drinking unpasteurised milk.
0:11:46 > 0:11:48If we were to compare, for example,
0:11:48 > 0:11:53what unpasteurised milk looks like, here are quite a lot of bacteria.
0:11:53 > 0:11:55If one of those is MRSA,
0:11:55 > 0:11:59then if you ingest that unpasteurised milk,
0:11:59 > 0:12:02you will inevitably be at slightly higher risk of
0:12:02 > 0:12:04becoming contaminated, and of course,
0:12:04 > 0:12:07if we looked at pasteurised milk, there'll be no bacteria.
0:12:07 > 0:12:08There's nothing to see.
0:12:08 > 0:12:12So, from a human point of view, how concerned should we be?
0:12:12 > 0:12:14I think we should be worried.
0:12:14 > 0:12:18I think we should be concerned. It is not a time to be complacent.
0:12:18 > 0:12:22Antibiotic resistance is clearly a big issue,
0:12:22 > 0:12:27and whether it is for humans or for farm animals, we do not want to lose
0:12:27 > 0:12:30these valuable, essential tools
0:12:30 > 0:12:32in our battle against disease,
0:12:32 > 0:12:36in either veterinary health or human health.
0:12:36 > 0:12:39There is definite proof, then, that we can catch MRSA
0:12:39 > 0:12:42from animals, either from direct contact
0:12:42 > 0:12:46or eating raw or undercooked infected meat.
0:12:46 > 0:12:49So should the farming industry reduce
0:12:49 > 0:12:51its reliance on antibiotics
0:12:51 > 0:12:54to help counter the rise of drug-resistant superbugs?
0:12:54 > 0:12:55If you look at the resistance
0:12:55 > 0:12:59levels in bacteria that cause problems to animals,
0:12:59 > 0:13:00there isn't a problem.
0:13:00 > 0:13:01There is no clinical problem.
0:13:01 > 0:13:04That would suggest we are using the right amount of antibiotics,
0:13:04 > 0:13:07in the right way, to keep animals healthy,
0:13:07 > 0:13:09to keep good welfare standards up,
0:13:09 > 0:13:13and to ensure we can provide safe food for consumers to eat.
0:13:13 > 0:13:15John Fitzgerald is from RUMA,
0:13:15 > 0:13:19the Responsible Use of Medicines in Agriculture Alliance.
0:13:19 > 0:13:22We need to be very careful that we don't introduce
0:13:22 > 0:13:26disproportionate controls on the use of antibiotics on animals
0:13:26 > 0:13:29that will have no beneficial effect
0:13:29 > 0:13:31to the levels of resistance in humans,
0:13:31 > 0:13:33but could quite seriously damage
0:13:33 > 0:13:37the health and welfare of the animals we breed in the UK.
0:13:37 > 0:13:40Isn't that, though, the industry saying, "Don't change anything,
0:13:40 > 0:13:42"because it works and it's cheap."
0:13:42 > 0:13:45No, it's the industry saying, "We need proper data,
0:13:45 > 0:13:46"scientific data, to support
0:13:46 > 0:13:51"any decisions that are made to control antibiotic use in animals."
0:13:51 > 0:13:53However, the Government feels resistant bugs in animals
0:13:53 > 0:13:56pose a significant threat to our health.
0:13:56 > 0:13:59Last September it launched a five-year strategy
0:13:59 > 0:14:03to tackle the problem in both humans and animals.
0:14:03 > 0:14:07But if antibiotics are such a vital part of animal health,
0:14:07 > 0:14:10how can we reduce their use without animal suffering
0:14:10 > 0:14:12or food prices rising?
0:14:13 > 0:14:16It's something they've been wrestling with at James Hook's hatchery
0:14:16 > 0:14:19in Oxfordshire.
0:14:19 > 0:14:22We stopped two years ago using any of the antibiotics
0:14:22 > 0:14:25- that are used in human health. - And what impact did that have?
0:14:25 > 0:14:27To start with, the mortality
0:14:27 > 0:14:29in those hens was a little bit higher,
0:14:29 > 0:14:32but we've gradually got that down to acceptable levels.
0:14:32 > 0:14:36We use a traffic light system, red, amber and green.
0:14:36 > 0:14:39If they're green, which these are, it means the chicks are clean,
0:14:39 > 0:14:42the farm that they are going on to was clean last time.
0:14:42 > 0:14:43We won't use antibiotics.
0:14:43 > 0:14:46That's probably 80% of our chickens.
0:14:46 > 0:14:48The other 20%, we may use antibiotics
0:14:48 > 0:14:52if we think there will be a problem with a yolk sac infection
0:14:52 > 0:14:55or there's been a problem on the farm previously.
0:14:55 > 0:14:58How much have you managed to reduce use by, then?
0:14:58 > 0:15:02We have probably more than halved our use in recent times.
0:15:02 > 0:15:05But we will still always need to keep antibiotics in our armoury
0:15:05 > 0:15:07to use when we get a problem.
0:15:07 > 0:15:09I don't see us, for the foreseeable future,
0:15:09 > 0:15:14not being able to use antibiotics at all.
0:15:14 > 0:15:16James' reduction is voluntary,
0:15:16 > 0:15:19but in the last ten years, farmers in the UK
0:15:19 > 0:15:23have been banned from using antibiotics to promote animal growth.
0:15:23 > 0:15:25And now there is increasing pressure
0:15:25 > 0:15:29to stop them being used simply as a preventative measure.
0:15:29 > 0:15:33Some, though, would like to go even further.
0:15:33 > 0:15:35Helen Browning is chief executive of The Soil Association.
0:15:35 > 0:15:42She believes antibiotic overuse is the result of intensive farming.
0:15:42 > 0:15:43We're using antibiotics often
0:15:43 > 0:15:45to allow farming systems
0:15:45 > 0:15:47to continue that would not be viable
0:15:47 > 0:15:49without the use of antibiotics.
0:15:49 > 0:15:52We need to be reducing the use of antibiotics
0:15:52 > 0:15:54in animal husbandry systems,
0:15:54 > 0:15:57which should benefit the animals as well as making sure
0:15:57 > 0:16:01we are viable for us in the longer term, too.
0:16:01 > 0:16:03Helen runs a 1,400-acre organic farm
0:16:03 > 0:16:06in Wiltshire, where she has managed to cut back
0:16:06 > 0:16:09in antibiotic use in the treatment of mastitis,
0:16:09 > 0:16:14an endemic disease in dairy cattle, where the udders become inflamed.
0:16:14 > 0:16:16What have you been doing with this lot, then?
0:16:16 > 0:16:21- With this lot, we've been trialling a peppermint oil.- Seriously?
0:16:21 > 0:16:24Yeah, a peppermint oil which you massage into the udder.
0:16:24 > 0:16:27Has peppermint oil made any difference, honestly?
0:16:27 > 0:16:29It does seem to have made a difference.
0:16:29 > 0:16:31We seem to be getting lower cell counts
0:16:31 > 0:16:34in the lactation after using peppermint oil at calving.
0:16:34 > 0:16:38Can that really ever replace antibiotics? Don't eat me!
0:16:38 > 0:16:40It's only one part of the jigsaw.
0:16:40 > 0:16:43There are so many things you need to do
0:16:43 > 0:16:45if you're going to reduce antibiotics.
0:16:45 > 0:16:47You have to reduce the stress on the cow,
0:16:47 > 0:16:49you have to make sure you have a really clean system,
0:16:49 > 0:16:53that the bedding quality is good, the ventilation is good and the diet is right.
0:16:53 > 0:16:55All those things are really important.
0:16:55 > 0:16:58You have to take the pressure off the cow overall.
0:17:00 > 0:17:03While Helen is having some success treating mastitis here,
0:17:03 > 0:17:06there are still many infectious animal diseases
0:17:06 > 0:17:12where really there is no alternative to antibiotics.
0:17:12 > 0:17:14'Making farming less intensive may help,
0:17:14 > 0:17:18'but the result is likely to be more expensive food.
0:17:18 > 0:17:20'In other countries, though, they have been able to reduce
0:17:20 > 0:17:25'antibiotic use without dramatically changing farming methods.
0:17:25 > 0:17:29'In the Netherlands, they used to use far more antibiotics on farms than we do,
0:17:29 > 0:17:32'but the Dutch government set draconian targets
0:17:32 > 0:17:35'to cut their use by half.'
0:17:35 > 0:17:38You might expect that at that point there was a bit of a revolt,
0:17:38 > 0:17:42but in fact, Dutch farmers have done pretty much what their government wanted
0:17:42 > 0:17:47and have radically reduced their reliance on antibiotics.
0:17:47 > 0:17:51'So is it time for a tougher approach here in the UK?
0:17:51 > 0:17:55'Nigel Gibbons is the chief veterinary officer for Defra.'
0:17:55 > 0:17:58We've been promoting responsible use of antibiotics
0:17:58 > 0:17:59in animals for many years.
0:17:59 > 0:18:02There's some really good work being done by farmers and vets.
0:18:02 > 0:18:04Are you doing enough, really, though,
0:18:04 > 0:18:08given the potential scale of this problem? Shouldn't we be doing more
0:18:08 > 0:18:11and doing it faster?
0:18:11 > 0:18:13I think we are doing enough.
0:18:13 > 0:18:16if you look at us in the context of the rest of Europe -
0:18:16 > 0:18:17we're part of the Europe plan -
0:18:17 > 0:18:20we are actually leading on a piece of work in Europe to improve
0:18:20 > 0:18:24the surveillance for antibiotic resistance and make that
0:18:24 > 0:18:28directly comparable to the work done in humans, really good work.
0:18:28 > 0:18:30We've heard concerns that, really,
0:18:30 > 0:18:36not enough is known about the transmission between animals and humans. Do you share those?
0:18:36 > 0:18:39Yes, there's a lot of work to do to understand
0:18:39 > 0:18:42exactly what makes antimicrobial resistance
0:18:42 > 0:18:43or antibiotic resistance happen.
0:18:43 > 0:18:45But we shouldn't act in a way
0:18:45 > 0:18:47that really damages livestock production,
0:18:47 > 0:18:50which gets in the way of animal welfare.
0:18:50 > 0:18:54Things like blanket reductions on antibiotic usage could do that.
0:18:54 > 0:18:57We think it is better to improve the way
0:18:57 > 0:18:59we are gathering information
0:18:59 > 0:19:01about what antibiotics are being used, by whom,
0:19:01 > 0:19:02on what animals, and when,
0:19:02 > 0:19:06and focus changes on places it will really make a difference.
0:19:15 > 0:19:18The problem of resistance to antibiotics
0:19:18 > 0:19:20is, frankly, down to us.
0:19:20 > 0:19:23As humans, we have overused these drugs.
0:19:23 > 0:19:28Now farmers and vets are working to reduce their use on farms,
0:19:28 > 0:19:31but for some, that simply isn't happening fast enough.
0:19:31 > 0:19:36And so, they say, we still have the potential to face major problems
0:19:36 > 0:19:37in the future.
0:19:49 > 0:19:50'On the edge of the Black Country
0:19:50 > 0:19:53'lies a natural landscape that has shaped
0:19:53 > 0:19:56'and been shaped by its industrial past.'
0:19:59 > 0:20:04Here, in one of the UK's largest urban nature reserves,
0:20:04 > 0:20:06it's hard to imagine that this
0:20:06 > 0:20:12was once one of the most industrialised places in the world.
0:20:12 > 0:20:14'200 years ago,
0:20:14 > 0:20:19'this land was smoke-filled, strewn with furnaces and factories,
0:20:19 > 0:20:21'the beating heart of the Industrial Revolution.
0:20:21 > 0:20:24'It was the area's exceptional geology
0:20:24 > 0:20:27'that brought the industry here.'
0:20:27 > 0:20:29Thick seams of coal,
0:20:29 > 0:20:31the biggest in Europe,
0:20:31 > 0:20:32ran just below the surface
0:20:32 > 0:20:35and fuelled the growing industries.
0:20:35 > 0:20:38An abundance of valuable minerals,
0:20:38 > 0:20:42limestone, ironstone and clay, were quarried in vast quantities
0:20:42 > 0:20:43from the surrounding hills.
0:20:46 > 0:20:48This is a glass cone,
0:20:48 > 0:20:51a gigantic chimney under which was once
0:20:51 > 0:20:55a furnace of molten glass.
0:20:56 > 0:21:00'Back in the 1600s, glass-making took off in this area.
0:21:02 > 0:21:04'They didn't just come for the coal,
0:21:04 > 0:21:06'they also came for the clay,
0:21:06 > 0:21:10'not to make the glass but to line the furnaces.
0:21:10 > 0:21:13'Charlotte Hughes-Martin has been blowing glass for 17 years.'
0:21:17 > 0:21:20Glass is really corrosive. It will eat through absolutely anything.
0:21:20 > 0:21:21You need something to contain the glass,
0:21:21 > 0:21:24something that will withstand over 1,000 degrees,
0:21:24 > 0:21:26and the fireclay is perfect for this.
0:21:26 > 0:21:27That's the only thing you can really use.
0:21:27 > 0:21:30- Would you be able to do some blowing for me?- Yeah.
0:21:30 > 0:21:32OK.
0:21:32 > 0:21:34So get blowing.
0:21:35 > 0:21:37THEY LAUGH
0:21:39 > 0:21:41OK. So a bit harder?
0:21:42 > 0:21:45Keep going, keep going!
0:21:45 > 0:21:47It's really hard work.
0:21:47 > 0:21:49Go on, you can do it!
0:21:49 > 0:21:53'Rich geology meant manufacturing exploded here.
0:21:53 > 0:21:58'The Black Country became the workshop of the world.
0:21:58 > 0:22:01'Iron production went into overdrive,
0:22:01 > 0:22:04'and amazingly it was another local natural resource
0:22:04 > 0:22:06'that sparked it.'
0:22:06 > 0:22:07Limestone.
0:22:07 > 0:22:10But this abundant mineral wasn't easy to access.
0:22:10 > 0:22:12To get the purer stuff,
0:22:12 > 0:22:15you had to follow the seams deep underground,
0:22:15 > 0:22:17so that is when I am heading.
0:22:17 > 0:22:20And to get there, I'm going by barge.
0:22:23 > 0:22:29'This is one of the world's first underground canal tunnels.'
0:22:29 > 0:22:33That is a snug fit. I see how you need these.
0:22:40 > 0:22:43'Today, this vast network is punctuated
0:22:43 > 0:22:45'by limestone quarries
0:22:45 > 0:22:47'whose roofs have collapsed.'
0:22:49 > 0:22:51It looks like a tropical lagoon!
0:22:53 > 0:22:58And there it is - nature reclaiming the land.
0:22:58 > 0:23:00Into the dark again.
0:23:00 > 0:23:03'Deep underground lies an extraordinary labyrinth,
0:23:03 > 0:23:06'miles of limestone tunnels.'
0:23:07 > 0:23:10This is straight out of a Bond movie.
0:23:10 > 0:23:11SHE GIGGLES
0:23:11 > 0:23:14'And vast caverns.'
0:23:14 > 0:23:17Incredible to think it would've been carved out
0:23:17 > 0:23:18by the hands of the miners.
0:23:20 > 0:23:22'In the cavernous depths,
0:23:22 > 0:23:26'I'm meeting Graham Worton, Dudley's keeper of geology.
0:23:26 > 0:23:29'There can't be many councils that have one of those.'
0:23:29 > 0:23:31The cavern we're in is a big cavern
0:23:31 > 0:23:33but behind us in this direction
0:23:33 > 0:23:35there's a cavern called Dark Cavern.
0:23:35 > 0:23:36It's a mile in length
0:23:36 > 0:23:38and the limestone that was extracted from there
0:23:38 > 0:23:41would fill seven St Paul's Cathedrals.
0:23:41 > 0:23:43As they dug into the ground,
0:23:43 > 0:23:45they found other things in the limestone
0:23:45 > 0:23:47that became of great interest to science.
0:23:47 > 0:23:50Here we have a surface rock layer
0:23:50 > 0:23:52and it was once an ancient sea bed.
0:23:54 > 0:23:58But we have a better example for you to see just down here.
0:23:58 > 0:24:02It's covered in beautiful preserved fossils.
0:24:02 > 0:24:05There isn't a millimetre without a fossil on it.
0:24:05 > 0:24:07The limestone miners didn't have,
0:24:07 > 0:24:10initially, a lot of interest in these fossil creatures.
0:24:10 > 0:24:14They put so many of these into the furnaces it makes me weep.
0:24:14 > 0:24:15Oh, no!
0:24:15 > 0:24:18But eventually, when the gentleman scientists came,
0:24:18 > 0:24:20they came with money in their pockets,
0:24:20 > 0:24:23and the limestone miners became great fossil hunters.
0:24:23 > 0:24:24SHE LAUGHS
0:24:24 > 0:24:26I have a perfect example with me.
0:24:26 > 0:24:27We call it the Dudley Bug.
0:24:27 > 0:24:29This is an incredible example!
0:24:29 > 0:24:31This would have fetched a pretty penny, then?
0:24:31 > 0:24:33It would. A very good Dudley Bug,
0:24:33 > 0:24:35back in the 1830s,
0:24:35 > 0:24:37would have been paid for by the gentry to the sum of
0:24:37 > 0:24:40about 12 shillings.
0:24:40 > 0:24:42That was about a month's wages.
0:24:42 > 0:24:46That was well worth finding one of these.
0:24:46 > 0:24:49'The Black Country contains some of the most extraordinary
0:24:49 > 0:24:53'geology found anywhere on earth,
0:24:53 > 0:24:57'and it is remarkable how nature has shaped this incredible landscape.'
0:25:11 > 0:25:15'Just a few miles from Stourbridge, and swathed in beautiful countryside,
0:25:15 > 0:25:17'lies Hagley Hall.'
0:25:18 > 0:25:21It is a very impressive pile,
0:25:21 > 0:25:24but it's the 18th-century gardens that I am here to see.
0:25:24 > 0:25:28Just like its contemporary on the other side of the hill, the Leasowes,
0:25:28 > 0:25:30the landscape is Grade I-registered
0:25:30 > 0:25:33and there's a lot of restoration work going on here
0:25:33 > 0:25:36to put it back to its former glory.
0:25:37 > 0:25:41'It's home to the 12th Viscount, Lord Chris Cobham,
0:25:41 > 0:25:44'who inherited quite a legacy.'
0:25:44 > 0:25:46What we see here, Lord Cobham,
0:25:46 > 0:25:49is very much down to your relative,
0:25:49 > 0:25:50George Lyttelton,
0:25:50 > 0:25:54but it looks very different today to how it looked back in his day.
0:25:54 > 0:25:57Well, it does, because when he started living here,
0:25:57 > 0:26:00the house didn't exist but the park did.
0:26:00 > 0:26:03And he spent an immense amount of time and love on the park.
0:26:03 > 0:26:07And then he decided the house he had just didn't fit.
0:26:07 > 0:26:09So he decided to build a new house.
0:26:09 > 0:26:11The right place for the park.
0:26:11 > 0:26:13And so for him it was all about the landscape.
0:26:13 > 0:26:15What was his vision?
0:26:15 > 0:26:18The vision, I think, was something he had picked up back when he was on
0:26:18 > 0:26:22the Grand Tour, about 1728 or 1730.
0:26:22 > 0:26:26He had come back, having had been absolutely stunned by the views
0:26:26 > 0:26:29on the Alps and in Italy, particularly,
0:26:29 > 0:26:32and he decided he really wanted to capture
0:26:32 > 0:26:34a piece of that here.
0:26:34 > 0:26:38As far as history is concerned, has it always been protected?
0:26:38 > 0:26:39I wish it had.
0:26:39 > 0:26:42Unfortunately, in the 19th century,
0:26:42 > 0:26:44my family had an immense amount of children,
0:26:44 > 0:26:47and a very expensive house to maintain,
0:26:47 > 0:26:49and the money just wouldn't stretch
0:26:49 > 0:26:52around all of it, so the park fell into terrible disrepair.
0:26:52 > 0:26:55In fact, it remained in disrepair
0:26:55 > 0:26:57till some five or six years ago,
0:26:57 > 0:26:59when we started looking at it and seeing if we could mend it.
0:26:59 > 0:27:02And I guess, if you can put the money to one side,
0:27:02 > 0:27:04a great experience and brilliant fun to have done.
0:27:04 > 0:27:05Oh, huge fun!
0:27:05 > 0:27:07MATT LAUGHS
0:27:07 > 0:27:09I can't stay away from it. I'm up here twice a day.
0:27:09 > 0:27:12Lovely! And do you have a favourite part, then?
0:27:12 > 0:27:14I do, and I think the rotunda
0:27:14 > 0:27:17and some of the views of the rotunda are absolutely stunning.
0:27:17 > 0:27:18- Let's go and have a look.- OK.
0:27:25 > 0:27:27So this is your latest pride and joy, Chris?
0:27:27 > 0:27:29It certainly is.
0:27:29 > 0:27:31It has been for years without any roof at all.
0:27:31 > 0:27:35And in the last year the roof has been remade
0:27:35 > 0:27:38and put back on again, all made out of stone.
0:27:38 > 0:27:41And every stone has to be carved in three dimensions.
0:27:41 > 0:27:43It's the most fantastic piece of work.
0:27:43 > 0:27:44Remarkable work from the stonemasons...
0:27:44 > 0:27:47- Oh, fantastic!- ..to get that shape!
0:27:47 > 0:27:49I can see why you love being here
0:27:49 > 0:27:52because there's just the most remarkable feel
0:27:52 > 0:27:54as you stand here and you look out.
0:27:54 > 0:27:55It's stunning.
0:27:55 > 0:27:58When I was growing up we had no idea there was a view
0:27:58 > 0:28:02like this, because it was all overgrown.
0:28:04 > 0:28:06'It's not just the buildings -
0:28:06 > 0:28:09'every inch of this landscape gets special attention.
0:28:09 > 0:28:12'Hard at work repairing one of the many water cascades
0:28:12 > 0:28:17'is Hagley's head of landscape, Joe Hawkins.'
0:28:17 > 0:28:20Now, then, Joe, what Hagley job have you got in store?
0:28:20 > 0:28:23- Ha-ha-ha!- Are you all right? - Do you like mud?
0:28:23 > 0:28:26Do I like mud? Oh, yes, I do!
0:28:26 > 0:28:29This is all very, very impressive.
0:28:29 > 0:28:31Just talk us through what you've recreated, I suppose.
0:28:31 > 0:28:34It was a collapsed cascade.
0:28:34 > 0:28:36Up on the bank up there we've got
0:28:36 > 0:28:38loads of tree roots. They've been searching
0:28:38 > 0:28:40for water and they have gone underneath the cascade,
0:28:40 > 0:28:43then gradually grown bigger and bigger until they've lifted
0:28:43 > 0:28:45all the stones up, so we've rebuilt the whole lot.
0:28:45 > 0:28:49I was expecting some backbreaking work here, but it looks like you've finished.
0:28:49 > 0:28:50We've done all that section
0:28:50 > 0:28:53and down inside the bank there is a solid clay seal
0:28:53 > 0:28:56and all I have to do now is finish that last piece off.
0:28:56 > 0:28:58Basically, how I normally do this
0:28:58 > 0:29:01is I get a dollop of it out
0:29:01 > 0:29:04and then just hurl it into the sides.
0:29:04 > 0:29:06Just slap it in there? Oh, it's satisfying!
0:29:06 > 0:29:10- You're like a natural!- It's lovely!
0:29:10 > 0:29:12Oh, that was a good one, that!
0:29:12 > 0:29:15You're loving it, aren't you?
0:29:15 > 0:29:16I get paid to do this!
0:29:16 > 0:29:18THEY LAUGH
0:29:18 > 0:29:24- Love it!- Mind you, I need the money for the cleaning bill after.
0:29:24 > 0:29:27'With the clay skilfully placed, a bit of puddling.'
0:29:27 > 0:29:31- This is formed like a seal, to stop the water sinking through. - That's it.
0:29:31 > 0:29:35Normally they would have sheep doing it but we can't afford sheep so we get BBC presenters.
0:29:35 > 0:29:37HE LAUGHS
0:29:37 > 0:29:40'And we are ready for the final piece of the jigsaw.'
0:29:40 > 0:29:42Go for it.
0:29:43 > 0:29:45- Happy?- Yep.
0:29:46 > 0:29:49It seems, Joe, that you have quite a bit in common
0:29:49 > 0:29:50with George Lyttelton, cos isn't it
0:29:50 > 0:29:53right you have an MA in 18th-century landscaping?
0:29:53 > 0:29:56I have, yeah. I just find it fascinating. I think that anyone
0:29:56 > 0:29:58who goes out into landscape will benefit from it.
0:29:58 > 0:30:01It's good for in here and in here as well.
0:30:01 > 0:30:04- I couldn't agree more.- It's a real healing thing, I think.
0:30:04 > 0:30:06Good. How's that looking for you, my man?
0:30:06 > 0:30:08I like that idea. I think you could come back
0:30:08 > 0:30:10and do some more. What I need to do
0:30:10 > 0:30:13is get a few more pieces of stone in, and then I'll seal through the top
0:30:13 > 0:30:15but you've made a fantastic job of that.
0:30:15 > 0:30:17- Good!- Good work.- Muddy handshake!
0:30:17 > 0:30:19You can't beat...slap on the cheeks.
0:30:19 > 0:30:21THEY LAUGH
0:30:21 > 0:30:23Later on in the programme, we will be following
0:30:23 > 0:30:25the water course down to help
0:30:25 > 0:30:27breathe new life into another fine example
0:30:27 > 0:30:29of this restoration project.
0:30:29 > 0:30:32But there are just a few hours left
0:30:32 > 0:30:34for you to vote for the winner of this year's Countryfile
0:30:34 > 0:30:36Photographic Competition,
0:30:36 > 0:30:38so here is John with a reminder of the finalists
0:30:38 > 0:30:41and how to pick your favourite.
0:30:44 > 0:30:48From more than 32,000 photos you sent in,
0:30:48 > 0:30:51here are the final 12.
0:30:51 > 0:30:54In a moment I'll give you the phone numbers
0:30:54 > 0:30:56to vote for your favourite.
0:30:56 > 0:30:59Calls cost 10p from a BT landline.
0:30:59 > 0:31:01Other operators may vary
0:31:01 > 0:31:04and calls from a mobile will be higher.
0:31:04 > 0:31:06You can also vote for free on our website...
0:31:11 > 0:31:13So here are those final dozen photos
0:31:13 > 0:31:17with their all-important numbers.
0:31:17 > 0:31:20If Sunlit Sheep is your favourite, call...
0:33:17 > 0:33:19The lines are open until midnight tonight.
0:33:19 > 0:33:22The online vote closes at the same time.
0:33:22 > 0:33:24Please don't call after midnight
0:33:24 > 0:33:27because your vote won't be counted and you may be charged.
0:33:32 > 0:33:34'Most of us think of the humble chicken
0:33:34 > 0:33:37'as a bird bred for the oven or for laying eggs.
0:33:37 > 0:33:39'But this week, Adam and his son Alfie
0:33:39 > 0:33:42'are entering a different world of birds,
0:33:42 > 0:33:44'at a big poultry show.'
0:33:47 > 0:33:50We've kept chickens on the farm here for as long as I can remember.
0:33:50 > 0:33:51These are Cream Legbars,
0:33:51 > 0:33:53but we have various different breeds
0:33:53 > 0:33:55of all different shapes and colours and sizes.
0:33:55 > 0:33:58My son, Alfie, here, likes picking a few chickens, don't you?
0:33:58 > 0:34:00I like eating their eggs and watching them scratch about.
0:34:00 > 0:34:04But one thing we've never tried is showing chickens.
0:34:04 > 0:34:07I've shown lots of sheep and cattle before,
0:34:07 > 0:34:09but that world of poultry fancying, it's called,
0:34:09 > 0:34:12it's completely alien to me.
0:34:14 > 0:34:16'Which is why I've asked Andy Corfrey,
0:34:16 > 0:34:17'a seasoned bird-shower, along
0:34:17 > 0:34:20'to help Alfie and I prepare some birds for showing.'
0:34:20 > 0:34:24Andy, Alfie and I have a few different types of chicken.
0:34:24 > 0:34:27We have that little Pekin
0:34:27 > 0:34:29and then this Silkie here.
0:34:29 > 0:34:33I have to admit I went out and bought them,
0:34:33 > 0:34:34because I didn't think
0:34:34 > 0:34:36any of the chickens we had the farm were show-quality.
0:34:36 > 0:34:38What do you reckon to that one?
0:34:38 > 0:34:40It looks reasonable, like a tidy example.
0:34:40 > 0:34:43Ultimately, when you put the bird in the show, that's when you'll find out.
0:34:43 > 0:34:45The judges will give you some idea if it's a good quality
0:34:45 > 0:34:47and a good type.
0:34:47 > 0:34:50- Can anybody try doing it? - Yeah, anybody can have a go at it.
0:34:50 > 0:34:53It's a very accessible form of livestock showing.
0:34:53 > 0:34:55A lot of people keep chickens in their back garden
0:34:55 > 0:34:57and everybody can have a go at it.
0:34:57 > 0:35:01I'll put this chicken away, and we need to get him ready, don't we?
0:35:01 > 0:35:04- We do indeed. There you go, Alfie.- Thank you.
0:35:04 > 0:35:06'Andy has brought along one of his own birds
0:35:06 > 0:35:09'to demonstrate how to prepare poultry for showing.'
0:35:09 > 0:35:13One of the first things you need to do is make sure it's in the right condition.
0:35:13 > 0:35:15Make sure it's not carrying any passengers.
0:35:15 > 0:35:18If you point the bird so the head's pointing toward you...
0:35:18 > 0:35:21- Do you know why that is?- No.- Cos if it poos and you're holding it
0:35:21 > 0:35:23the other way around, you'll have it all over your shirt.
0:35:23 > 0:35:25THEY LAUGH
0:35:25 > 0:35:27But if you tip the bird as well like that,
0:35:27 > 0:35:29its feathers will automatically open the tail.
0:35:29 > 0:35:31See how that happens like that?
0:35:31 > 0:35:34You can have a look in there and check around
0:35:34 > 0:35:36and make sure there's nothing in there.
0:35:36 > 0:35:38Have a look in there, tip him forward.
0:35:38 > 0:35:40So we are looking for lice or anything like that?
0:35:40 > 0:35:43Anything that might suggest there is a problem.
0:35:43 > 0:35:46Check over the feet and toes as well.
0:35:46 > 0:35:50Make sure there's no sign of any scaly-legged mite on there.
0:35:50 > 0:35:52What you get with scaly-legged mites
0:35:52 > 0:35:55is the scales on the leg of start to lift up.
0:35:55 > 0:35:57That's cos a little mite gets to live there
0:35:57 > 0:36:00and it's quite difficult to get rid of.
0:36:00 > 0:36:02It seems to be OK so whilst you've got the bird in your hand,
0:36:02 > 0:36:06hold it up and look at the eyes, make sure the eyes are bright,
0:36:06 > 0:36:08and whilst the bird is there, just try and smell...
0:36:08 > 0:36:11Can you smell the breath? Can you smell anything?
0:36:11 > 0:36:13- No.- That's good then.
0:36:13 > 0:36:17If it's got a sweet smell, it can be a sign of a crop problem.
0:36:17 > 0:36:20- So what's the crop? - The crop is this area here.
0:36:20 > 0:36:22If you hold the bird and just feel there,
0:36:22 > 0:36:24that's where they keep all their food.
0:36:24 > 0:36:28- So, it's the hard bit.- That bit there, yeah. Like a little ball.
0:36:28 > 0:36:31- Yeah.- OK, shall we give them a wash then?- Give them a wash.
0:36:31 > 0:36:32BULL BELLOWS
0:36:32 > 0:36:34What do you reckon, bull?
0:36:34 > 0:36:37I've washed lots of bulls in my time but never a chicken.
0:36:37 > 0:36:38A bit different, isn't it?
0:36:38 > 0:36:40THEY LAUGH Come on then, Alfie!
0:36:44 > 0:36:47'The first part Alfie washes is the dirtiest, the feet,
0:36:47 > 0:36:50'and, after a good scrub, we pick the nails clean.
0:36:50 > 0:36:52'Then it's on to the feather.
0:36:52 > 0:36:55'Alfie's not shampooing the whole bird, just its bottom.
0:36:55 > 0:36:59'When that's clean, the bird is rinsed and then it's ready for a blow-dry.'
0:37:00 > 0:37:02- Is this yours, Alfie?- No, no!
0:37:02 > 0:37:04THEY LAUGH
0:37:04 > 0:37:07You need to make sure it's on the coolest setting.
0:37:07 > 0:37:10It's amazing the amount of effort that goes into preparing
0:37:10 > 0:37:12a bird for showing. Some breeders take months.
0:37:12 > 0:37:15We're doing it the day before.
0:37:15 > 0:37:18He's clucking away, quite happy. How do you fancy his chances?
0:37:18 > 0:37:21I think he looks a lot better than he did an hour ago.
0:37:21 > 0:37:24But it depends what the other chickens look like, really.
0:37:28 > 0:37:32'There will be plenty of competition at the Cheshire County Show which has
0:37:32 > 0:37:36'been going since 1838 and attracts in excess of 80,000 visitors.
0:37:38 > 0:37:42'We're meeting Andy again to guide us through the day.'
0:37:42 > 0:37:43It's a new day and we had an early start
0:37:43 > 0:37:47because we had to get to the Cheshire Show here by 7:30 to get them
0:37:47 > 0:37:49prepped and into the pens by 8:30.
0:37:49 > 0:37:51Right! Let's get them in, Alf.
0:37:57 > 0:38:01'Andy thinks the black Pekin cock stands the best chance.
0:38:01 > 0:38:03'But Alfie has other ideas,
0:38:03 > 0:38:07'and has brought along a hen which he really likes and got ready himself.'
0:38:09 > 0:38:11Well done, Alf. That's great!
0:38:11 > 0:38:13'So, that's Alfie sorted.
0:38:13 > 0:38:16'And here's my attempt with my black Silkie.'
0:38:16 > 0:38:17Just try your best.
0:38:21 > 0:38:23'We've done all we can.
0:38:23 > 0:38:24'Now, it's up to the judges.
0:38:24 > 0:38:28'But before they start, we're having a quick look around the show.'
0:38:28 > 0:38:30Why are there so many different types, Andy?
0:38:30 > 0:38:32They don't all have different purposes, do they?
0:38:32 > 0:38:35There are different breeds for different needs.
0:38:35 > 0:38:36You've got the game birds there,
0:38:36 > 0:38:38that used to be used in cockfighting.
0:38:38 > 0:38:41Then the laying breeds that lay huge volumes of eggs.
0:38:41 > 0:38:43Then you need something for the table
0:38:43 > 0:38:45so you've got larger breeds used for table purposes.
0:38:45 > 0:38:48And then you've got dual-purpose breeds.
0:38:48 > 0:38:50These are ones that produce eggs
0:38:50 > 0:38:52and they also produce a decent amount of meat for the table.
0:38:52 > 0:38:56Ideal for a smallholder in that respect.
0:38:56 > 0:38:58Andy, how many types of chicken are there?
0:38:58 > 0:39:01There are over 100 different varieties of chicken,
0:39:01 > 0:39:03ranging from the Serama, the smallest of chickens
0:39:03 > 0:39:06through to this, the king of chickens, the Brahma.
0:39:06 > 0:39:08So, are they all in the same family?
0:39:08 > 0:39:11They all originate from the same species, yes.
0:39:11 > 0:39:15These are just different breed type of all different varieties.
0:39:15 > 0:39:18- It's huge!- I know! - It's stunning, isn't it?
0:39:22 > 0:39:24'With over 700 birds entered,
0:39:24 > 0:39:27'the judges have really got their work cut out.
0:39:27 > 0:39:29'Everyone has to leave the arena
0:39:29 > 0:39:31'as the birds are put through their paces.'
0:39:35 > 0:39:36We're not allowed in.
0:39:36 > 0:39:39The judging's taking place and we're not allowed to influence the judges.
0:39:39 > 0:39:43We're looking on from a distance. They're on our birds, Alf.
0:39:43 > 0:39:45He's checking the type for the Pekin.
0:39:45 > 0:39:49It should be like a ball and it should be very low on the ground,
0:39:49 > 0:39:54with good foot feather which you can see outside the body.
0:39:54 > 0:39:58- He's behaving himself, isn't he? - Yeah, he's looking good.
0:39:58 > 0:40:01She's quite nice, but the light undercolour spoils her.
0:40:01 > 0:40:04I reckon we'll be taking some of these cups home with us.
0:40:04 > 0:40:05Yeah, all of them.
0:40:05 > 0:40:07The whole lot!
0:40:07 > 0:40:10'Actually, it seems as though they didn't think much of the cock,
0:40:10 > 0:40:13'but what about Alfie's prized hen?'
0:40:13 > 0:40:15That's fine, that's 100% better.
0:40:15 > 0:40:17- That's better than the male bird. - 100% better.
0:40:23 > 0:40:26'I wonder what they make of my Silkie.'
0:40:26 > 0:40:29He's got too much crest, which is this.
0:40:30 > 0:40:32'As the judges make up their minds,
0:40:32 > 0:40:34'they start awarding the prizes.
0:40:34 > 0:40:37'The very best birds go on to the championship row
0:40:37 > 0:40:41'and from there, just one will be awarded best in show.
0:40:41 > 0:40:44'As the tension builds, Alfie can't help peeping
0:40:44 > 0:40:45'to see if we won anything.'
0:40:45 > 0:40:48- We have!- Have we?!
0:40:48 > 0:40:50- No!- Yes.
0:40:50 > 0:40:51- What colour is it?- Red.
0:40:51 > 0:40:53That's a first!
0:40:53 > 0:40:55Fantastic!
0:40:56 > 0:40:58If we pull that off...
0:40:58 > 0:40:59That'd be brilliant, I'd love that.
0:41:01 > 0:41:03'Alfie thinks he's won first,
0:41:03 > 0:41:05'but from where we were standing, it was difficult to tell,
0:41:05 > 0:41:09'so once the judges are finished, we can check.'
0:41:09 > 0:41:12- We won.- No!
0:41:12 > 0:41:13Fantastic!
0:41:16 > 0:41:18- First!- A first.
0:41:18 > 0:41:19First prize!
0:41:19 > 0:41:22Quite a lot of competition. There must be, what, 10-15 birds here.
0:41:22 > 0:41:24About 15 birds in here, yep.
0:41:24 > 0:41:27- And that's the bird that you prepped yourself.- Yep.- Completely.
0:41:27 > 0:41:29Get her out, then, Alf. Let's have a little look at her.
0:41:32 > 0:41:35'Incredible - on Alfie's first attempt at showing,
0:41:35 > 0:41:38'he got a first in his class with his very own choice of bird.
0:41:38 > 0:41:42'A few more like this and Alfie will be looking to get best in show,
0:41:42 > 0:41:45'which was won by this beautiful Barbu d'Anvers.
0:41:46 > 0:41:49'Alfie's done brilliantly, but how did my Silkie do?'
0:41:50 > 0:41:52Is that a prize on my pen?
0:41:52 > 0:41:55- No, a close rosette again. - Yeah, that's yours.
0:41:55 > 0:41:57- I'm afraid not.- Oh, no.
0:41:57 > 0:41:59- Think I might have beaten you. - I think you have!
0:41:59 > 0:42:01- You got a first prize, I got nothing.- Yep.
0:42:01 > 0:42:04- I think I'll just stick to showing cattle.- Yep.
0:42:06 > 0:42:08Not bad for our first day out chicken-showing.
0:42:08 > 0:42:10- Thanks for all your help, Andy. - You're welcome.
0:42:10 > 0:42:13We really have discovered the wonderful world of poultry fancying
0:42:13 > 0:42:16- and I've won a rosette. - No, I've won the rosette, Dad.
0:42:16 > 0:42:18Oh, yeah. THEY CHUCKLE
0:42:28 > 0:42:31Venturing out just five miles from the historical hub
0:42:31 > 0:42:35of industry in Stourbridge and into the countryside,
0:42:35 > 0:42:36you'll find Kinver Edge,
0:42:36 > 0:42:41home to more than 1,400 recorded species of wildlife,
0:42:41 > 0:42:45a lesson in social history and a geological melting pot.
0:42:49 > 0:42:52'Archaeologist Edmund Simons lives by Kinver Edge
0:42:52 > 0:42:56'and has always had a passion for its rare qualities,
0:42:56 > 0:42:59'from the remains of the hilltop Iron Age fort
0:42:59 > 0:43:04'to the vibrant red sandstone dating back more than 270 million years
0:43:04 > 0:43:08'that's provided Kinver residents with more than you'd think.'
0:43:10 > 0:43:11What's the story with this place?
0:43:11 > 0:43:13This is Nanny's Rock, or the Foxearth,
0:43:13 > 0:43:15as it was known for a long time,
0:43:15 > 0:43:18and this is one of the many rock houses in the area.
0:43:18 > 0:43:21It looks primitive, it looks like some big holes in the ground,
0:43:21 > 0:43:25but what you're looking at is the remnants of natural cave at one end
0:43:25 > 0:43:26and a rock house at the other,
0:43:26 > 0:43:29so they're rooms that have been purposely excavated from the rock
0:43:29 > 0:43:32and then they've had stone fronts put on.
0:43:32 > 0:43:35What sort of records are there of the people who lived here?
0:43:35 > 0:43:38There's not a lot apart from almost anecdotal mentions
0:43:38 > 0:43:40of old ladies living in the rock,
0:43:40 > 0:43:42people going and visiting the "nannies" who lived here
0:43:42 > 0:43:45and I've always made the mistake, and I think a lot of people have,
0:43:45 > 0:43:47of thinking of them as sort of troglodytes
0:43:47 > 0:43:50living in grinding poverty sitting in a cave somewhere...
0:43:50 > 0:43:52- Yeah.- ..whereas really, when you look at it,
0:43:52 > 0:43:54by the standards of the early 17th century,
0:43:54 > 0:43:57there's big rooms in it, there's a big moulded fireplace
0:43:57 > 0:43:59and they owned it, they owned it in their own right.
0:43:59 > 0:44:02They bought part of the rock and created their own house?
0:44:02 > 0:44:04They probably owned it with their own families,
0:44:04 > 0:44:05so people who owned their own property
0:44:05 > 0:44:07and are living in quite a comfortable house,
0:44:07 > 0:44:10quite a fashionable house, almost.
0:44:17 > 0:44:21'Many cave dwellings in the area fell into disrepair,
0:44:21 > 0:44:24'but some of the Holy Austin rock houses have been restored,
0:44:24 > 0:44:27'opening to the public in 1997.
0:44:27 > 0:44:31'The eroded, narrow middle tier is off-limits to the public,
0:44:31 > 0:44:34'but is a haven for wildlife, as David Bullock,
0:44:34 > 0:44:38'head of nature conservation for the National Trust, explains.'
0:44:38 > 0:44:40Tell me about the wildlife that is up here.
0:44:40 > 0:44:44Lots of individual mason or solitary bees here.
0:44:44 > 0:44:47Adders are here and in the evening.
0:44:47 > 0:44:50This rock radiates out warmth
0:44:50 > 0:44:53and insects are attracted to that warmth,
0:44:53 > 0:44:57the bats will come out of tree roosts in this woodland all around here
0:44:57 > 0:44:59- and feed along the slope as well. - Fabulous.
0:44:59 > 0:45:02- So these holes here, these have been created by solitary bees?- Yes.
0:45:02 > 0:45:05- Wow!- Yes. - It's actually remarkably soft.
0:45:05 > 0:45:08I can wear it away just with my fingertips, this stone.
0:45:08 > 0:45:12What they're doing is this little bee is making a honeycomb
0:45:12 > 0:45:14of some of this lovely sandstone,
0:45:14 > 0:45:16which actually generates an issue for us.
0:45:16 > 0:45:19If some of that then starts to become more than a honeycomb
0:45:19 > 0:45:23and starts to peel off, we've got to watch for that.
0:45:23 > 0:45:25I guess that's the challenge, isn't it?
0:45:25 > 0:45:27How do you preserve the heritage of these houses
0:45:27 > 0:45:30while also allowing nature to have a place?
0:45:30 > 0:45:33I know. I use the term, "When nature moves in."
0:45:33 > 0:45:35That's what nature's done here.
0:45:35 > 0:45:37For a long time, people were living here,
0:45:37 > 0:45:39and, if you like, nature was repelled.
0:45:39 > 0:45:42Then they were in a period of neglect and, of course,
0:45:42 > 0:45:45nature then started to move in big-time.
0:45:51 > 0:45:55'The land was gifted to the National Trust in 1917
0:45:55 > 0:45:57'by a local family, the Lees.
0:45:57 > 0:46:00'Their legacy meant Kinver Edge would remain
0:46:00 > 0:46:02'a public but protected open space
0:46:02 > 0:46:05'and it's been popular for more than 100 years,
0:46:05 > 0:46:07'with curious visitors.'
0:46:07 > 0:46:11Kinver's regeneration as a tourism hotspot
0:46:11 > 0:46:15was thanks in part to a rather imaginative campaign,
0:46:15 > 0:46:18marketing it to the Black Country and beyond
0:46:18 > 0:46:20as the Switzerland of the Midlands.
0:46:21 > 0:46:25'The introduction of an electric tramway in 1901
0:46:25 > 0:46:29'saw thousands of visitors from the neighbouring industrial towns
0:46:29 > 0:46:30'pour into Kinver.
0:46:30 > 0:46:33'Enterprising families in the rock houses
0:46:33 > 0:46:36'opened tearooms to cater for them.
0:46:36 > 0:46:39'The last baby to be born here, Nick Novak,
0:46:39 > 0:46:42'spent his formative years here on Kinver Edge with his family
0:46:42 > 0:46:45'until his grandfather and great-grandmother
0:46:45 > 0:46:48'were the last to move out in 1963.'
0:46:48 > 0:46:50What were the practicalities of living here like?
0:46:50 > 0:46:51Were there any mod cons?
0:46:51 > 0:46:54There weren't any mod cons back then -
0:46:54 > 0:47:00no electricity, so the only lighting was from gas. We had a gas mantle.
0:47:00 > 0:47:05Everything was carried up to the house, coal and so on.
0:47:05 > 0:47:08We had running water, but originally it was from the well.
0:47:08 > 0:47:10What did the rooms feel like?
0:47:10 > 0:47:14- The rooms were quite warm, bit like this.- It is warm, isn't it?
0:47:14 > 0:47:16We had a range exactly like this.
0:47:16 > 0:47:19There was a fire and all the cooking was done on there.
0:47:19 > 0:47:22The walls were painted, the rock, that is,
0:47:22 > 0:47:26white like this, but in the summer, it was always nice and cool
0:47:26 > 0:47:27and in the winter, warm.
0:47:28 > 0:47:31But when it was damp, the rocks sweated,
0:47:31 > 0:47:35so there was always a bit of a damp feel to the rock.
0:47:35 > 0:47:38And what was it like being around Kinver Edge,
0:47:38 > 0:47:40not just here at the houses?
0:47:40 > 0:47:44We were always on the rocks and sometimes climbers would come in,
0:47:44 > 0:47:46put their ropes and things out on the steep side
0:47:46 > 0:47:48and we'd just scurry past them
0:47:48 > 0:47:52with our bare hands, cos we knew every nook and cranny, basically.
0:47:52 > 0:47:54Kinver Edge was our garden,
0:47:54 > 0:47:57so it was fantastic.
0:48:15 > 0:48:19'Hagley Park, near Stourbridge, surrounded by the industry
0:48:19 > 0:48:23'of the West Midlands, is itself a hive of activity.
0:48:25 > 0:48:28'In a bid to restore the Grade I-registered gardens
0:48:28 > 0:48:32'to their former glory, owner Lord Chris Cobham, and head
0:48:32 > 0:48:34'of Hagley's landscape, Joe Hawkins,
0:48:34 > 0:48:38'are two years into a 20-year to-do list.'
0:48:40 > 0:48:44The restoration of this wonderful bit of architecture was finished
0:48:44 > 0:48:48in the spring, as the original bridge had virtually disappeared.
0:48:48 > 0:48:52But now this park really is a testament to all of those
0:48:52 > 0:48:54that have had a hand in it over the centuries.
0:48:58 > 0:49:01How pleased are you with how things have gone so far?
0:49:01 > 0:49:04I think it is the most exciting thing I have ever been involved with.
0:49:04 > 0:49:09It has been fantastic to see it coming out of the totally enclosed
0:49:09 > 0:49:14and lost landscape that was here, and back to where it was in 1770.
0:49:14 > 0:49:17- This afternoon is quite a big day, isn't it?- It is a big day.
0:49:17 > 0:49:19We are going to have life back in the water again
0:49:19 > 0:49:22and it will not be me falling in! We will put some fish in.
0:49:22 > 0:49:25- What have you gone for? - We are going for golden rudd.
0:49:25 > 0:49:27Would they have been here in the 18th century?
0:49:27 > 0:49:30Typical estate fish from the 18th century.
0:49:30 > 0:49:32Because they feed close to the surface,
0:49:32 > 0:49:34it means there will be lots of animation in the water
0:49:34 > 0:49:37so when you stand on the bridge, you will have something else
0:49:37 > 0:49:41spectacular to hold your eye rather than just the rotunda up at the top.
0:49:41 > 0:49:43Yeah, great. They've arrived, haven't they, the fish?
0:49:43 > 0:49:47We're all here for the moment so let us not hang around and get them in.
0:49:47 > 0:49:50Little beauties, aren't they? How old are these ones?
0:49:50 > 0:49:54- These are about two to three years old.- OK.
0:49:54 > 0:49:57How old would you expect them to grow to be in this pond?
0:49:57 > 0:50:00They can actually live up to about 18 years old.
0:50:00 > 0:50:07- They produce something like 100,000 to 200,000 eggs.- Really?- Yes.- Gosh.
0:50:07 > 0:50:11- So they will multiply very, very quickly?- They will.
0:50:14 > 0:50:18- Get your hand in there. Set one free.- Set one free myself.
0:50:18 > 0:50:20Go on, mate, enjoy yourself.
0:50:21 > 0:50:26Gently does it. And off they go. Happy times ahead.
0:50:26 > 0:50:30- You got a good feeling?- We will see. We'll see.
0:50:30 > 0:50:31Excellent, look at those.
0:50:33 > 0:50:37- How fabulous. Look at that colour. - Yes. Vibrant, aren't they?
0:50:39 > 0:50:41'And look who has arrived to get in on the action.'
0:50:46 > 0:50:48- Now then, have I missed all the fun? - Well, we have got a few left.
0:50:48 > 0:50:50- Oh, good!- I am not sure how many have gone in.
0:50:50 > 0:50:53- These are the last ones, are they? - About six or so left.
0:50:53 > 0:50:56Let's get them gone then. Oh, gosh, I don't want to drop them.
0:50:56 > 0:50:59- It is a lovely experience.- Is it? I will be a bit gentle here.
0:50:59 > 0:51:01Just give it a little tilt. They will all swim away from you.
0:51:01 > 0:51:05- They are gone.- That is golden rudd. - Job done.- There we are.
0:51:05 > 0:51:08Yes, it is goodbye to the fish, and it is goodbye to all of you
0:51:08 > 0:51:10because that is all we have got time for this week.
0:51:10 > 0:51:13Next week, Countryfile will be in Norfolk
0:51:13 > 0:51:16and Jules will be exploring a long-forgotten landscape.
0:51:16 > 0:51:19And Anita will be looking at the history of the humble shepherd's hut.
0:51:19 > 0:51:21- So we will see you then.- Bye-bye. - Bye.
0:51:21 > 0:51:23Right, I've got a lovely route down for you.
0:51:23 > 0:51:25- It's a beautiful meander. - Go on.- Follow me.