Episode 5 Holiday of My Lifetime with Len Goodman

Childhood holidays - we all love them, don't we?

Fun in the sun, sandcastles, swimming in the sea...

Can't beat them.

So in this series, I'm going to be reliving those wonderful times

with some much-loved famous faces.

Everyone a winner! Come on! Hook a duck!

And some of the most surprising guests had the most fascinating holidays.

THEY LAUGH

-Hey!

-It's a tug-of-war!

We'll relive the fun... TRAIN WHISTLES

Oh, no, no!

'..the games...'

..and the food of years gone by...

That is a little taste of childhood, right there.

..to find out how those holidays around the UK helped shape

the people we know so well today.

I'm giving you a standing ovation.

So buckle up for Holiday Of My Lifetime.

Can you come on all my holidays?

Hey, here we go!

I'm off to meet a lady who's brought all kinds of drama

into our living rooms.

She was born in Harrow on the Hill in north-west London in 1942.

Oh, look at that face!

She started her working life as a drama teacher

before getting the call of the stage.

And in the '80s she was gracing our screens on Emmerdale Farm

and Minder.

And it was in the '80s she took on her most famous role -

a Butcher.

Oh, I do love a bit of unsmoked back.

For 26 years, we followed the tears

and the laughter that she brought to a certain square

in east London.

There was marriages, murders

and how can we forget those earrings?

You must have got it by now.

Of course you have!

It's the one and only Pam St Clement!

Oh, ho, ho!

So, I'm on my way to pick her up in this vintage Morris,

almost the same as the one she would have been in all those years ago.

Pamela! Hoo, hoo, hoo!

Lenny Boy's on his way!

Pam St Clement was born in 1942 to Irene-Ann and Reginald Clement,

but sadly her mum passed away while she was still a very young girl.

Her screen acting career began with a minor role in the TV drama

Onedin Line.

But her first big break came when she was cast in prison drama

Within These Walls.

She then appeared in Play For Today

as a nude model!

Oh, naughty!

But it was when she joined EastEnders in 1986

that she became a true household name

as the tough-talking troublemaker Pat.

Her on-screen marriage to wheeler-dealer Frank Butcher

made them one of the most iconic soap couples of all time.

Over the years, her character has survived a heart attack,

faced time in prison and become the landlady of The Queen Vic.

In 2012, she left the square for the last time

'and after all that drama, I'm not surprised!

'Our Pam definitely deserves a break,'

'so I'm taking her back to a special holiday of her lifetime'

HORN TOOTS '..in a very special car.'

Pam!

THEY LAUGH

Oh, my favourite hoofer!

-How lovely to meet you.

-Oh, it's lovely to see you.

Hello, my dear.

Oh!

Where have you been? Did you do a dance on the way?

Well, it's just... You know, it's not the fastest of vehicles.

-No, this is very true.

-So, do you recognise the car?

-Absolutely, yep.

-Yep.

-That's the one.

-That's the one, eh?

-Mm-hm.

-Morris Eight.

-Beauty.

-Lovely, isn't it?

Where we off to?

We're off to the beautiful moors.

-Dartmoor?

-Dartmoor!

-Not the prison, though. No, no, no.

-No, no, I don't think...

Not today.

And what's the year?

1953.

Queen's coronation.

-Yeah.

-Was it the coronation?

-Yeah, I remember watching it on the telly.

Course it was, yes, yes.

And I tell you what the number one was.

-Frankie Laine...

-Yeah?

..I Believe.

-BOTH:

-# I believe for every drop of rain that falls

# A flower grows. #

This is going to be a great holiday!

-Now, let me warn you.

-What?

No seatbelts.

-Oh, are we allowed?

-Yeah, this vehicle is exempt...

-OK.

-..cos it's over, whatever, 70 years old.

-Fine, fine.

So, do you trust me?

Oh, implicitly, with my life.

-But will I get into it?

-Yes, it's a bit of a struggle,

but we'll get in.

So, here we go! Off we go!

-All right, my dear.

-Dartmoor awaits!

-Yep!

LEN LAUGHS

Situated in the south-west of England

between Exeter and Plymouth,

Dartmoor National Park is

right at the very heart of Devon.

With 368 square miles of dramatic landscapes

and breathtaking views set against high open moorland,

it's easy to see why 2.4 million visitors flock here each year.

But it's not all moorland, it's also home to around 34,000 people.

As I always say, before any holiday begins,

you must start with a journey

and for Pam, it was one she'd be taking all on her own.

After losing her mum so soon in life, her dad sent her

to boarding school during termtime

and out to the country during the holidays.

'And for an 11-year-old Pam, this was the holiday that would

'change her life for ever.'

It was a point at which my life changed, Len.

It had been...

I had been...

knocked from pillar to post for absolutely years

staying with all sorts of people.

-Oh, really?

-Oh, yes. Father married many times.

Wasn't really the sort of man who should have been a parent.

Right.

He couldn't take that sort of responsibility

and, so, I didn't really have any stability at all.

Right, so, you came down on your own?

I came down on my own. I was put onto the train

at Paddington station in the care of the guard in those days!

That's right! SHE LAUGHS

And then you got picked up?

-Then I got picked up.

-In a car like this.

-In a car exactly like this.

-And who did the picking up?

Oh, it was what I thought was an elderly lady,

-but she wouldn't have been an elderly lady...

-Yeah.

-..but to me she was...

-Yeah.

..as I'd just gone 11.

And she was one of the women

who eventually became

an adopted aunt.

-Aunt Sylvia.

-Oh, how lovely.

Sylvia took Pam to her home -

a place that would live with her for ever.

It was a farm, wasn't it?

A farm, yes.

It was two women - one who ran the farm

and one who ran the household,

-in other words...

-Right.

-..for PGs, for paying guests.

-Yeah.

Of which I was, obviously... Started out as one of them.

So, these two lovely ladies really became

almost like surrogate mothers.

-They were, they were my parents to all intents and purposes.

-Yeah.

-And I owe them so much for that...

-Yeah.

..because they invested so much affection and trust

-and faith in me as a person.

-Yeah.

-This was the first taste I had...

-Of a proper family.

-..of anything like a family, yes.

-Yeah.

'It sounds like today will be extra-special for Pam.'

1953 was an eventful year

and there was big news for children across the land.

Kids like the then 11-year-old Pam

rejoiced as Second World War rationing on sweets

finally came to an end. Ho, ho!

Also in that year, I'm sure all those sweet-filled kids

were looking towards the skies

as RAF pilots spotted a white ball-shaped UFO

hovering over Kent. Whoa!

What did it look like and what were your final conclusions?

Well, it actually looked a completely circular

white object, very similar to a ping pong ball.

It was moving, bobbing about, was it?

No, it was absolutely motionless for the first 15 minutes,

but it moved off very, very slowly afterwards.

Left no trail?

No trail. No, no, no trail at all.

And the world of country music

marked the passing of the legendary Hank Williams

with the posthumous release of his classic hit,

Your Cheatin' Heart.

# The time will come

# When you'll be blue

# Your cheating heart

# Will tell on you. #

'But for Pam, that summer was all about her solo trip to Dartmoor

'and we're about to rekindle those memories as she hasn't been back

'to Southcott Farm in decades.

'But how much has it changed over the years?'

Hey, hey!

Wow.

Wow, wow, wow!

That's it.

-Gosh.

-Pam, does this bring back a few memories?

-Oh, yes.

-Oh, yes.

-Yeah?

-That hasn't changed much.

-Really?

Nothing about the yard. Nope, nothing's changed.

It's exactly the same.

So, how long is it since you've been here?

Well, we moved from here

in about '54,

-so I only had a couple of years in this house...

-Right.

-..and then we moved to another farm, a larger farm...

-Oh, right.

..further towards Widecombe.

But this was the first impression.

Yeah.

Well, shall we have a little look in?

Are we allowed to?

-Don't know. Take my arm.

-Go on. You'll protect me, won't you, Len?

We'll make out we're lost.

This is going to take Pam right back to 1953.

Gosh.

Well.

Oh, this is...

-Do you remember this?

-I'm remembering this very differently.

-Oh, yeah?

-I don't remember these doors off the hall.

Oh, here we are.

-Can you smell burning?

-No, no.

-Good.

-Look at the old fireplace.

-Mmm.

Was the fire like that, Pam? Was that the sort of thing?

No, there wasn't a wood burner.

That was an open fire.

They were big in those days because you used to

not just have the wood there, but you'd have a seat there.

-Yeah.

-People would sit round and also you could have

-a hot water facility as well.

-Yeah.

Tell me, you know, the two ladies that you...

-Mmm. It was Molly...

-Yeah.

-..who I knew as Cortie.

-Right.

-And Sylvia who became Aunt Sylvia.

-Yeah.

-Sylvia did all the farming. She was a good livestock woman.

-Yeah.

And Molly, she did everything inside.

-She looked after all the guests, paying guests...

-Yeah.

-..and the house in general.

-Right.

-They sound like a really, you know, smashing couple.

-Oh, they were.

As we've said, they were like parents.

Do you have any recollections of your mum?

I know she died when you were really young.

Do you have any memories of her, really?

No, no, I don't, Len. I don't.

I had...

a photograph of her

which unfortunately got lost in a flood

and that was the only part of her that I had.

-That was a pity.

-Yeah.

-But I could see the similarity though, between us.

-Yeah, yeah.

-And she had Irish green eyes and...

-Yeah.

-..brunette.

-Which I was when I was younger!

-Yeah, yeah.

And, yeah, but no memories. Nothing in the heart.

No.

-That's a shame, isn't it?

-Yes.

'I want to explore more of Pam's holiday farmhouse

'and find the room she stayed in all those years ago.'

Yeah, come in.

-Oh, well.

-This is my wee cubbyhole.

-So, this is where you slept?

-Yeah, yeah,

and that window looked out over the meadow and that's where

-I had my first glimpse of the cows the next morning...

-Right.

..with the mist rising and their warm breath on the...

-Aww.

-Oh, it was absolutely beautiful.

-Yeah.

-You can see the cows.

-Yes, yes.

-Yeah.

There they are, the Red Devons.

-Yeah.

-Beautiful Red Devon cows. Hmm.

What have we got over here on this old dresser?

Oh, well, of course,

we didn't have electricity.

-Oh, so it was...

-Oh, yeah, it was...

-Oh, it was the...

-Candle and matches.

-Really?

-Didn't even have oil lamps

-at this juncture.

-It was a candle?

It was a candle, yeah.

Can you imagine coming up those stairs with a candle?

No! Little girl...

-There.

-There we are.

So, we've got a...

Do you know anything?

Yes, that's a Widecombe Fair jug.

-I had no history of the area...

-Yeah.

-..so I didn't know

-what this jug meant when I...

-Yeah.

..saw it sitting on

-my dressing table.

-Yeah.

But that's what it is.

HE CHUCKLES

So, what's it like being back in your old bedroom?

-Strange.

-Yeah?

-Yes, it is.

-Yeah.

-It's very strange.

It's funny, I get the same feeling that I had

of the warmth and the welcome and everything else.

-Happy memories, really.

-Oh, gosh, yes.

-Just happy?

-Oh, I should say.

-Yeah.

-Absolutely happy.

No holiday is complete without sampling the local food

and when a young Pam St Clement came here back in 1953,

Cortie always had something good for her to eat.

Can you remember the first meal you had when you came here?

Oh, yes.

-Yes, I got here at tea-time.

-Right.

And so it was a typical Devon tea

with scones and jam and cream and flapjacks.

That was Cortie's big thing - flapjacks.

Cortie was a... Was she a good cook?

A fantastic cook.

So, what we're going to do, I'm going to try and

knock up some flapjacks.

SHE GASPS

Right, let's have a...

120... Oh, I'm no good on grams.

-Oh, no, I don't do grams.

-No.

-See, we're the same generation, really!

-Yeah.

125g of butter.

'Jamie Oliver's got nothing on me!

'Now the ingredients just need a mix. Oh, pukka!'

So, you know, as a little girl, 11 years old and so on,

were you naughty or were you a very well-behaved and demure...?

Funnily enough, I was quite demure at this juncture.

Not at school.

Oh, it was at school that I was a...

Oh, I was wicked.

-Was you?

-I was really naughty, yes.

-Cos I used to get encouraged by other kids.

-Others, yeah.

Was it a mixed boarding school, or just...?

-No, no, no.

-All girls?

-It was girls.

-Right.

The only contact we had with boys is when we broke bounds to meet them.

-Oh, yeah.

-Which we did.

-Course.

And also when we went dancing.

Was it ballroomy sort of dancing or was it country dancing?

No, darling, it was ballroom.

-It was...

-Oh!

-Oh, yes, absolutely.

-Oh!

-Yep.

So I was having all sorts of different dance influences

in those days because rock and roll was the big thing.

-Course it was!

-Oh, I loved it!

-Absolutely loved it.

-Yeah, and me.

Did you have any favourites?

-Well, Tommy Steele, Elvis...

-Yeah.

..Little Richard. But that was the sort of music I liked at school.

-Yeah.

-Loved it.

It's a shame Cortie didn't have a food mixer.

'This looks lovely and it will be even better

'when it comes out the oven.'

Now, you're allowed to lick the spoon if you want to, young man.

OK.

What do you think?

THEY LAUGH

Yes, I think it's cracking.

'If it tastes half as good as the spoon, we'll be quids in.

'I can't wait until this is ready, come on!

'It's too sunny to be cooped up indoors,

'so I've set a little spread alfresco, oh, yes!

'And it's the perfect place to find out more about Pam's eating habits

'all those years ago.'

What was mealtime like?

You know, were there other people staying and so on? Did you all sit together?

No, actually, because most of the people that stayed here

were bird-watchers,

moorland enthusiasts who were walking the moors for the day

-and they would tend to take their lunches with them.

-Yeah.

At... They'd probably come back at about suppertime,

so they'd have an early supper.

We would have supper when it suited the work schedule, really.

Now...

I've left this for a bit, because I don't want you getting over-excited

and running off to the toilet.

-I'm already overexcited being with you, so...

-Just wait a second.

-You know, the heart rate is...pumping.

-I've left this on the lower level.

PAM LAUGHS

-It worked.

-Didn't we do well?

-Thank you, my dear.

-You're welcome.

-Do I have to be a lady and eat it with my pastry fork?

-No, just...

-I'm going to pick mine up and have a go at it.

-Oh, good, I'm glad about that.

Here's to the cook.

-Yes.

-The current cook, Len.

-Yes.

-Here's to the past cook, Molly.

-Yeah, Molly.

Oh, that's outrageous.

-That's brilliant.

-That is so sweet.

'With our bellies full, it's time to get out and explore.

'Towards the north-east of Dartmoor, you'll find the exquisite Bovey Castle.

'We're here to try something that Pam will remember from her

'days on the farm - target practice.

'Though today it's clay pigeons we're after.'

GUNSHOT

-Hi.

-Pam, this is Ian.

-Hi, Ian, nice to meet you.

-How are you?

-Are you all right?

-Yeah.

-Len, all right?

-Good, yeah.

-Good.

I've got two guns with us. I've got a 12-gauge for you, Len,

-and I got a 20-gauge for you, a bit of a smaller...

-Right.

I've got a trap set up, all the electronics,

so I'll press the button and we'll go through the motions and I'll show you how to shoot.

-Shall we give it a go, then?

-Yeah.

'As soon as Ian gives us a quick lesson, we'll be good to go.

'I'm excited about this.'

-OK. Say "pull."

-Pull!

-There's the clay, point at it.

Three, two, one - squeeze the trigger.

-Pull.

-There's the clay.

Point directly at it, lock on, three, two, one, squeeze.

'Pam has more experience of this kind of thing than me,

'but I'm feeling competitive.

'Focus, Len.'

-Gun's loaded.

-Right.

Safety's off, ready to fire.

-Happy?

-Yeah.

-Say "pull" when you're ready.

-Pull!

-And three, two, one.

GUNSHOT

-Nice shot.

-I got it! You did get it!

-Wow.

-I got it! I got it! LAUGHTER

-I'm not doing it any more, I got it!

-Brilliant!

-It's the best of one.

THEY LAUGH I got it!

-Brilliant.

-You can't win with him.

Oh! Oh, slap my bum and call me Donald.

THEY LAUGH

-That was it.

-Brilliant.

-Well, Pam, you ready?

-Yeah.

-My work is done.

-Beat that.

-Beat that, indeed.

LEN LAUGHS

Just lift it away.

Now, don't forget, it's your dominant eye and pull slowly.

Just pull slowly and don't get panic...

I know you've only got one chance, but don't panic.

-He's master of the sport already.

-Very impressed, I am.

So, say "pull" when you're ready.

Pull!

-In three, two, one, fire.

-GUNSHOT

-That was close.

-Miles away.

-No, it wasn't miles away, it was just down the left.

-Oh, that was a pity.

-It was unfortunate.

-Does that mean I'm the winner?

-Yes.

-Yes, it does. Congratulations.

'Well, I'm thoroughly chuffed with myself after that,

'but Pam shouldn't feel too downhearted.

'After all, she's been involved with some explosive scenes of her own in EastEnders,

'but I want to find out what she did before moving into Albert Square.'

Did you start off in sort of repertory companies and stuff?

Yeah, I started off in children's theatre, rep, a lot of theatre,

because that's where most of the work was in those days.

And then I started to get little bits in television

and it went from there.

-And how did EastEnders come along?

-Yeah, well, I was...

I was sitting at home one day and the phone went

and a friend of mine was on the other end who was the director.

And he said, "Do you ever watch EastEnders?

And I said, "Yeah, I think it's great, you know, it's good, I like it, it's gritty."

And this was in the early days, when it very first started and he said, "Oh, thank goodness for that,

"because I've been directing quite a bit and I just want to send

"you a script to have a look at for a particular part."

And I said, "Great."

And that was just three weeks try-out

and then thereafter they wanted me to go back as a regular.

Now, look, 26 years EastEnders, what was your favourite moment?

Well... It'd be hard to beat the bowtie, wouldn't it, really?

KNOCKS AT DOOR

HE LAUGHS

SHE LAUGHS

Most of the stories around Mike, our marriage,

our affair when he was married to Peggy and later on,

the stuff I had with Barbara when Pat and Peggy

sort of put Frank aside once he'd gone

and started to become mates, then, you know, all that stuff...

-Yeah, it was all good.

-Terrific.

'Pam is a true soap legend and there are still more memories

'and surprises to come.

'We've popped along to the Widecombe Village Hall,

'which was a very special place when she first came here back in 1953.'

Eh? PAM LAUGHS

Does this bring back a few memories?

Well, do you know, it brings back two very different memories.

The first is my Aunt Sylvia's 80th birthday party, which was full of

people in here and lots of food and eats and lots of people downstairs.

But as far as my youth's concerned,

-this is where we used to have the dances.

-Oh, my.

-The village dance, the hop.

-Yes. With the farmer boys.

Yes, I'm afraid so, yeah.

Come over here.

The village record player in working order.

Got a fabulous record here.

One of my favourites.

Now, so, Pam, I was wondering if you could just pin my bowtie in.

-Surely, sure.

-Can you do that?

-Yeah.

It's quite tricky. TIE MOTOR RUNS

PAM LAUGHS

-Do you recall anything?

-You naughty man!

Except you've got your clothes on.

Well, I was going to take my shirt off, but I couldn't be bothered.

'But if I'm to be Frank Butcher, we must bring Pat back

'and that means some special earrings.'

NEEDLE DROPS

MUSIC: She Wears Red Feathers by Guy Mitchell

# She wears red feathers and a hooly-hooly skirt... #

PAM LAUGHS

Me dickie going.

# She lives on just coconuts and fish from the sea... #

# A rose in her hair A gleam in her eyes And love in her heart for me... #

-Wasn't this silly music?

-Weren't it great?

Well, do you know what? I think it's time for pastures green.

-Oh, and there's more to do.

-Oh, is there?

-Oh, yes!

I'm not going out with you dressed like that.

-I'm going to keep my dickie on as long as I can.

-All right, all right.

'I'm having a sit-down with Pam to find out what it

'was like playing one of EastEnders' most formidable characters.'

You must feel sorry for old...

..Pat, really. She went through a few ups and downs and...

-She did, didn't she?

-..traumas during her...

-She was...

A useful tool in terms of being able to take the story out

and wheel it round, even if she wasn't carrying the story herself.

And the fun days of course with Mike and then when

Mike and Barbara, you know, had the Peggy and Frank marriage

-and then the affair with Pat and all those days, I loved all that.

-Yeah.

So, did you know what was coming up or did you, you know,

did you suddenly find, "This is what's going to happen?"

Well, to be honest, Len, you could've known.

I could've gone up to the office at any time and said to them,

"What's going to happen to my character?"

Just occasionally I wanted to have an idea of a direction.

But by and large I found it easier...

To do what you do in life, which is you don't

-know what's around the next corner.

-Yeah.

-PEGGY:

-So, don't you think my Frank knows he's better off out of it?

-No, I don't.

-Well, he is.

-I know my Frank.

He's not your Frank, he's mine!

Only cos I don't want him.

Oh, yeah?

Is there anything that you really wish you'd done

and you didn't get round to it?

-What, in the acting field, what parts?

-Yes.

No, I don't have a hankering to, you know, I don't think,

"Oh, my! I should have played Lady Macbeth!"

LEN LAUGHS

-But I'd like to come back in my next life as a vet.

-Yeah?

-Yeah.

Do you feel that coming down here was a holiday of your lifetime?

Well, I think it's quite important to actually point out

the fact that this wasn't just a holiday of a lifetime,

but it's a holiday which became my lifetime.

Yeah. Yeah.

This has been a wonderful, wonderful day for me. I've enjoyed it so much.

We've laughed and it's a little tinged with a little sadness,

but it has been fantastic.

It's been great, Len.

-I really, really am so thrilled to meet you.

-Well...

And, you know, it's been wonderful.

-Thank you so much.

-Well, likewise, thank you.

I have with me a complete record of our day together.

-Really?

-Yes, in the form... of this little scrapbook,

Holiday Of My Lifetime.

Look! You on the front.

-Isn't that beautiful?

-Look at that.

'A scrapbook of memories of our time in the delightful Dartmoor

'that will help Pam remember our rural adventure,

'but still, I've got one final surprise that will surely

'bring back those memories.'

So, here it is, a little Widecombe Fair jug.

-No, of course, because that's the whole memory, isn't it?

-Course it is. There it is.

-Oh, lovely. Thank you.

-It's been great.

-Thank you very much, Len.

-No...

-It's been super.

-It's been my joy.

'It's goodbye from Dartmoor and the summer of 1953,

'when two generous ladies took Pam under their wing

'and helped shape a true acting legend.'