Tonight we celebrate the unsung heroes of Britain. People who, for one reason or another, haven’t received the global recognition that rightly deserve. The invention of the collapsible buggy revolutionised parenthood, but what is its connection to the Spitfire, so loved by the allied pilots during World War II? As Paul realises a childhood dream by flying in a Spitfire, proclaiming it “the best thing I’ve ever done in my life”, we learn how the buggy’s folding system, which is now so complex that it is studied at a number of universities, was inspired by the Spitfire’s wheel folding system. Owen Maclaren, one of the engineers who worked on the Spitfire’s undercarriage, realised that the prams of old were heavy and impractical and noticed that the solution was right in front of his eyes. Owen went into production with the new lightweight aluminium Maclaren Baby Buggy 01 in 1967. Alex, Owen’s granddaughter, reflects that this invention “liberated the way mothers could be with their children”. Most people think that Britain’s last invasion was the Battle of Hastings in 1066. However, in 1797 the town of Fishguard, Wales, fended off the advances of Napoleon’s soldiers hoping to stir up an uprising, who had inadvertently landed there after being blown off course from their intended destination of Bristol, as Suzannah investigates. Christopher John, a local historian, tells how “a local heroine in Fishguard, Jemima Nicholas, advanced from Fishguard with a pitchfork singlehandedly and captured 12 Frenchmen, and led them by the point of her pitchfork back to Fishguard.” She then organised the women of the town to dress up in their traditional Welsh costume of black hats and red shawls, and line up along the hill so that the Frenchmen, who had been drinking all the booze from the abandoned farmhouses, would think they were the British army. This bizarre and little known story had widespread repercussions both at the time a
Paul Martin becomes a 12th century human loo in a journey of discovery about how the British invented the toilet. Suzannah Lipscomb reveals the humble beginnings of the toothbrush from a prison cell, and Steve Mould heads down a 4000 year-old mine in Wales to dig out a substance that changed the world.
Paul Martin heads to the ‘Centre of London’ - the point to which all distances are measured from. Suzannah Lipscomb jumps on a horse to reveal why we drive on the left and Steve Mould discovers a great British invention that has gone on to save millions of lives across the world.
Paul Martin reveals the surprising beginnings of the traditional tiered Wedding cake. Suzannah Lipscomb visits a graveyard for the iconic British red phone box, and Steve Mould reveals how a man from Ditherington changed the skylines of cities across the globe.
Paul Martin heads to Bathgate in Scotland to uncover the birthplace of the oil industry and the world’s first oil tycoon. Suzannah Lipscomb learns how a 17th century coffee house gave birth to the London Stock Exchange, and Steve Mould heads to Sheffield to reveal one man’s invention that’s used across the world and beyond!
Tonight the team uncover some strange myths. Paul Martin heads to Hartlepool on the trail of a monkey legend. Suzannah Lipscomb hunts for the most expensive gold on the planet, and Steve Mould asks - will we ever fly to work?
Paul Martin uncovers the secret British pioneer that invented the world’s first aeroplane. Suzannah Lipscomb investigates if a man from Bristol gave America its name, and Steve Mould reveals a forgotten inventor by stepping into the limelight.
Paul Martin reveals the man who put an engine on a bicycle and changed the world forever. Suzannah Lipscomb reveals the heartbreak that paved the path to the industrial revolution, and Steve Mould uncovers the crazy invention that makes life infinitely better for 80,000 of us a year in Britain.