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00:00Across the UK country estates have been transformed from private homes into
00:10national treasures where history and heritage as you get to play in the
00:18biggest historical sweetie shop in the world are surrounded by breathtaking
00:23landscapes it's magical it's absolutely magical I would actually stay up here in
00:29this series we'll soar above some of Britain's greatest estates the view it's
00:36just fantastic we'll watch as the seasons change meet those whose families
00:44have owned them for generations it's an enormous responsibility but a great
00:49honor as well this place is constantly evolving constantly changing and the
00:53people working to conserve and restore them it is a huge undertaking
00:59it's about holding on to what is important and making sure it survives
01:03there's a huge amount to do and we will get it done well we'll get most of it done
01:16stretching across 12,000 acres of Oxfordshire countryside on the outskirts of the
01:24village of Woodstock is the Blenheim Palace estate at its heart a masterpiece of
01:32English baroque built to embody military triumph inside 187 lavishly decorated rooms
01:42the palace is surrounded by Versailles inspired formal gardens and 2000 acres of parkland for over three centuries this estate has been the seat of the Duke of Marlborough and it was the birthplace of British Prime Minister Winston Churchill
02:04each year nearly a million visitors flock to this world heritage site welcome to Blenheim Palace
02:13welcome to Blenheim Palace it's January as freezing temperatures bring a frosty start to the year at Blenheim Palace beneath a heavy fog work is beginning on the biggest restoration project ever undertaken an ambitious 12 million pounds
02:32project to repair the palace's badly leaking roof in order to save the priceless historic artworks which sit directly beneath it
02:39today Blenheim's head of built heritage Kelly O'Driscoll
02:44and heritage architect Edward Lewis are on the roof to assess the latest damage
02:51oh careful this is very very shallow bit of lead you can feel the waters tracking up underneath
03:04we've seen some really really hard frost recently some wind driven rain and effectively that's that's a perfect storm for stone failure and water ingress the palace
03:15there's a really big gap there and this joint here is completely open and cracked
03:22oh god this is absolutely crumbling away look at that
03:26vanborough bragged about how he would build a building that looked like it cost three times more than it actually did
03:32and so there are inherent defects from the build
03:36in 1705 Queen Anne commissioned the visionary architect John vanborough to design Blenheim Palace
03:45it was to be a gift from the crown and the nation to victorious army general John Churchill the first Duke of Marlborough
03:55vanborough's design was monumental in its size and scale
04:01emphasizing symmetry and grandeur and covered in ornamental symbols of victory
04:14after 300 years of being open to the elements this grand public monument is in urgent need of repair
04:22look up there I think we've lost his bottom oh yes that's fairly new isn't it
04:29here it is here's a bit of it that's not everything though is it no it's not
04:34beneath this section of Blenheim's crumbling roof is the great hall
04:40whose original 18th century ceiling fresco painted by Queen Anne's favourite artist Sir James Thornhill
04:47is in danger of being destroyed by water damage
04:54that's a lot of water
04:57it's actually worrying
04:59here look at that absolutely dripping
05:04yeah this is just all completely sodden and rotting
05:06and mouldy as well look at that
05:08mouldy
05:10we're right over that giant great hall ceiling painting right now
05:14the painting is incredibly vulnerable to all of this wet damp cold and relentlessly dripping space
05:23very careful
05:25you can see there that's the back of the painting
05:29not even a foot from the face of the painting on the other side
05:34if I took a wrong foot down I'd end up in the middle of the great hall
05:37which is why it's very precarious through here
05:42to save these priceless artworks an entire acre of roof must be replaced
05:48but first 30 miles worth of scaffold poles must be built over the palace
05:54the bespoke scaffold build will take six months at a cost of six million pounds
06:00it's not just urgent now it was urgent ten years ago we've been planning this for a really really long time
06:09this project has been the sort of thing that's just hovering in the background with that fear
06:15but also exhilaration that we're going to finally do it
06:19as the roof works get underway business as usual must continue inside the palace
06:26over eight weeks at the start of the year
06:31Blenheim's 187 rooms and tens of thousands of artefacts
06:36are meticulously cleaned by a team of conservation experts
06:42we are in the first state room at the moment
06:49and this room would have traditionally been used for visiting royalty this suite of rooms
06:57head of collections Kate Ballinger is overseeing Blenheim's annual winter clean
07:03so they are very ornate there's a lot of gilding
07:07so it's quite a process to remove the dust from every little piece
07:13so in some areas you can see the dust coming off the walls
07:17especially at the high level so that makes it a really satisfying job
07:20I love it
07:23I love it because I think the ones involved in the deep glean
07:26we get to be up close to part of the history of the palace
07:31it is a huge undertaking
07:34it can feel like a mammoth task at the beginning
07:38but it's very rewarding because you know that you're protecting the artefacts
07:43as well as cleaning Blenheim from head to toe
07:46Kate is working on an exciting project in Blenheim's basement
07:51which will see a brand new area of the palace open to visitors
07:56we are in the undercroft of the palace
08:00which is the lower ground floor
08:02and this would have traditionally been the servants area
08:05for the last 20 years
08:08this below stairs area has been used as a modern kitchen
08:12but Kate and her team are working on returning the kitchens
08:15to how they would have been in the 19th century
08:18we're working on a date and we had a royal visit here at the palace
08:25so the servants would have come in from all the surrounding villages
08:30to come and help because it would have been all hands on deck
08:32to be able to do such a huge operation
08:35when the 9th Duke of Marlborough inherited Blenheim in 1892
08:39the estate was close to financial ruin
08:42it was saved by his marriage to billionaire American heiress
08:47Consuelo Vanderbilt
08:49they had two sons
08:51the eldest was a godson of the future King Edward VII
08:55who visited Blenheim in 1896
08:59on such royal occasions
09:01up to 100 staff and servants would have been deployed
09:05it's obviously a work in progress
09:08we've had to strip back all of the modern features
09:12and go back to the original stonework wherever we can
09:16and so this will be our butler's pantry
09:18and then on the right there is the staff mess area
09:21where the staff would have relaxed in their very short breaks
09:25this is our treasure trove of artefacts we're going to be dressing the space with
09:37lots of beautiful stoneware, wooden barrels, all of the Victorian glassware
09:42some really lovely gas lamps that would have been everywhere
09:46because we didn't have electricity
09:48it was at that period where it was just starting to come in
09:50but there was mainly gas down here
09:52and of course a Victorian kitchen wouldn't be a Victorian kitchen
09:55without lots of beautiful copper pots and pans
09:58I just can't wait to see it all in place
10:02now that's a spoon
10:04Kate and her team have just seven weeks before the Victorian kitchens are due to open to the public
10:11there's still a long way to go
10:15there's a lot of work to do
10:17but I'm sure that we'll get it all done
10:20as Vanbrugh began building the palace
10:23Queen Anne's gardener, Henry Wise
10:26began work on designing the formal gardens
10:29to the southeast of the palace
10:32is the oldest part of Wise's design that still survives today
10:36a large walled kitchen garden
10:43seven acres are enclosed by a five metre high wall
10:48which was designed to retain heat and protect crops
10:52for over two centuries this walled garden supplied the palace kitchens with fruit and veg
10:58but like many market gardens in the post-war years
11:02as intensive farming increased it fell out of use
11:08but today gardener Harrison Fanon is on a mission to once again transform the walled garden
11:15into a thriving allotment to supply Blenheim's cafes and restaurants
11:20so we're doing a no-dig kitchen garden
11:22which is essentially a form of regenerative agriculture
11:26it's a kind of revolutionary way of going about kitchen gardening
11:30Harrison's no-dig garden means no rotavating or tilling the ground
11:36instead the grass is covered by layers of cardboard
11:40the point of this is to act as a suppressant to the grass
11:45so underneath these cardboard rolls
11:48it will block out the light and the grass won't be able to grow
11:51six inches of rich compost is laid on top of the cardboard
11:55and the beds are edged with wood chippings
11:58eventually the cardboard that we've put underneath decomposes over time
12:05and we're left with a much deeper healthier soil in the long run
12:08this is quite a fresh and new idea
12:13so it's still yet to be proved that it properly works
12:16we're aiming for about 80% of what the kitchen needs
12:21to be able to be grown here
12:23it's nice and warm in here
12:27it's nice and warm in here
12:30so this is where we start off all of our seedlings
12:33until they're big enough to grow outside
12:36I can't grow things which the kitchens won't use
12:41so we kind of have to settle on what we both want and need to grow
12:50we're going to be growing the whole range of herbs, salads, cabbages, root vegetables, kales, rainbow chard, lots of onions
12:59essentially anything that you can sort of think of
13:02we've at the very least considered growing it here
13:05I would say like over 10,000 seeds are going to be planted in this greenhouse
13:11maybe even 100,000
13:13it's a really exciting time
13:15because it's in these crucial steps now
13:17that the rest of the season will depend
13:20Blenheim's 12,000 acres of gardens and parkland have evolved over the centuries
13:38in 1763 the fourth Duke of Marlborough commissioned the fashionable landscape designer Capability Brown
13:49to redesign the park
13:52influenced by the romanticism of the picturesque movement
13:56Brown created sweeping naturalistic vistas
14:01he planted hundreds of mature trees
14:04designed and engineered the great lake
14:07and built the grand cascade
14:12on the western edge of the estate
14:14is an area of ancient wood pasture
14:16that remained untouched by Capability Brown
14:19this is High Park
14:23one of the most biodiverse woodlands in Europe
14:26it's home to 3,000 species
14:30including nearly 900 oaks classed as veteran trees
14:35over four centuries old
14:37this oak is known as King Oak
14:42and has stood here for a thousand years
14:44in order to preserve Blenheim's veteran oaks
14:48and the thousands of species they support
14:51the forestry team have embarked on an ambitious project
14:56during the summer I'll be travelling around the estate
14:59looking at the oak trees to see if there's any acorns developing
15:02and then around September
15:05I'll start to pick them when they're ready to come off the tree
15:09Forrester Rob Burgess has been collecting acorns
15:12from the oldest oaks on the estate
15:14for the last eight years
15:16My record is 36,000 in one year
15:19all by hand
15:21all the acorns are picked off the tree
15:24I don't pick anything off the floor
15:26but you also have to check at the same time
15:28when you're picking
15:29if there's any small little brown dot
15:32on the acorn where the cup is
15:34and that's a sign that the weevil's been
15:37and laid an egg
15:38so you don't want any of those
15:39because they'll just eat the root
15:41and the tree's growing
15:42These saplings have grown from acorns
15:45that Rob collected just over a year ago
15:47and are now ready for repotting
15:49I'm picking this one
15:51because it's nice and short
15:54but it's got a nice fixed stem
15:56this one's tall and a bit skinny
15:59same with those ones there
16:01so there's more energy in this one
16:03for what we want to purposely grow on
16:06these trees will now stay in these pots
16:09for two to three years
16:11until they're probably a maximum of ten foot
16:15When they're ready
16:17these little acorn trees
16:19will be planted out in High Park
16:21to continue the lineage of the veteran oaks
16:24With our help
16:25at least one in its lifetime
16:27will replace it
16:29because that's all it needs
16:30just one
16:31but we're just giving it an extra hand
16:34to produce an extra few hundred thousand
16:48Blenheim Palace is beginning work
16:50on its biggest restoration project to date
16:53to repair its badly leaking roof
16:55and crumbling stonework
16:58It's now eight weeks into a six month long scaffold build
17:02that will allow expert heritage teams to get to work
17:11Project manager Kay Rizuki
17:13is taking head of built heritage Kelly
17:15up the scaffold for the first time
17:18We've never had an opportunity to get so close before
17:21You can see the hairline cracks
17:23The damage is huge isn't it?
17:25It's really sad
17:26I've been up this high in a cherry picker before
17:30but not from this perspective
17:32and so it's really nice looking at all the stonework
17:34and seeing the damage up close
17:36Oh wow, look at this
17:40The view, it's just fantastic
17:44The lake looks beautiful doesn't it?
17:47What a view
17:49So we've spent so long designing this
17:51Yeah
17:52But just being up here right now
17:53seeing the scale of it
17:55imagining the public being up here for the first time
17:59The 40 metre high scaffold will not just be used to allow heritage architects to reach the crumbling roof
18:06It's been designed so that Blenheim's 1 million annual visitors can witness the conservation works first hand
18:14We made a really conscious decision not to apologise to the scaffolding
18:18The repair and restoration conservation is what we do
18:21and so we could have covered the scaffold in a big wrap that looked like the palace
18:25which would have probably cost us £150,000
18:28or what we do instead is we build a visitor platform
18:32and make it as accessible as possible to get the public right in on the action
18:35which is a far better use of funds
18:40You know it's really lovely that you'll be up at the same height as all of our statues
18:45and then we can properly look over can't we and see the workers
18:48Exactly
18:49How happy are they about being much?
18:51Oh very excited
18:52I'm sure they are
18:54It's pretty immense isn't it?
18:56It's absolutely incredible
18:59It's quite a unique scaffold design
19:02making sure it works around our works
19:04and making sure the public also has access
19:07and enough space to feel comfortable to walk through
19:10feel involved and still be able to see such a beautiful view
19:16God this is cool isn't it?
19:17Oh look at this
19:21I've never seen this this place
19:24It's really exciting to see this
19:27daft idea that we had about 18 months ago
19:30let's get the public up on the scaffolds actually happening
19:34it feels like it's a dream
19:36so yes brilliant
19:37from the rooftop to the basement
19:43Blenheim is a hive of activity
19:46I'm going to put it in the pantry
19:52lifting 3, 2, 1
19:54let's go
19:55oh
20:01oh look
20:03I think that works
20:05just needs a bit of love
20:09and a good clean
20:10hmm
20:11it's now less than a month to go until Blenheim's new Victorian kitchen exhibition is due to open
20:21it clearly needs a really good dust
20:24I just want it to look perfect now
20:26Kate and her team are racing to dress the scullery, kitchen, pantry and staff mess area with thousands of antique artifacts that have been sourced from across the country and some much closer to home
20:43we've tried as much as possible to use stuff from our existing collection
20:48so these copper pots are a perfect example
20:50so you've got the beautiful M for Marlborough
20:53they've been part of our collection for over a hundred years but they have been used many times to entertain by the family
21:01today they've had a delivery of a 40 piece dinner set
21:05because that's beautiful
21:07that is beautiful
21:09this is one of the most exciting parts of the whole project
21:13it was really important to us to have lots for people to look at because it would have been a really busy working area
21:21I mean it was servicing a whole palace
21:26it feels really really good
21:28a lot of work
21:30a lot of imagination
21:32but also a lot of research has been put into this space
21:34to find authentic taxidermy in this format hanging that you can use in a Victorian kitchen
21:50it literally took me months and I've pretty much given up
21:53they've got to be celebrated
21:55beautiful things
21:57still got quite a bit to do
21:59we've got to install our taps
22:02in here
22:04some more artefacts there
22:06finish hanging the cups
22:08finish setting up the cellar
22:10add some more copper to the kitchen
22:12finish the ranges
22:14finish dressing the pantry
22:16and more cleaning
22:18is a long to-do list
22:20very much so
22:22but um
22:24we'll get it done
22:25so
22:26sorry
22:28she is
22:30it's March
22:33and after a long winter at Blenheim Estate
22:36the first signs of spring are beginning to emerge
22:39it's a lovely day
22:43in short sleeves
22:45so I'm enjoying that
22:47grass just beginning to get that nice fresh smell
22:51birds are beginning to sing a bit as well
22:53so
22:55that's the first signs of spring for me
22:57on that
22:58in High Park the ancient oaks are just beginning to leaf
23:04and Forrester Rob has headed out from the greenhouse
23:08to plant six oak saplings
23:10which he has cultivated from the acorns of the ancient oaks
23:16I'm a bit biased but I think I've got one of the best jobs
23:19just working outdoors and growing stuff
23:20yeah just sitting amongst the trees
23:30he's planting the trees in an area of High Park that was previously used for sustainable forestry
23:35this area has now been cleared with the aim of returning it to a natural woodland where the lineage of the ancient oaks can flourish
23:46you've got that one there is a veteran oak
23:50even the dead one is now a veteran oak for its own different characters
23:56and then just to the right of it in front of it is another veteran oak
24:01and then you actually got a group over there
24:04so we're surrounded by veteran oaks
24:05we want these to store up a nice lot of carbon
24:10for the way that climate's going
24:15we need to plant more trees so that we can store more carbon
24:20hopefully this tree
24:23will be here in about a thousand years time
24:26sadly I don't think I'll be here for that
24:28unless modern science has moved on
24:38ever since I've been a kid I've been interested in just doing this sort of work
24:42I've always been interested in growing the trees and not doing the felling side of it
24:47I get more enjoyment from creating new life
24:51new life
24:54the oat bud is just beginning to swell up
24:56which is a sign that the sap's beginning to rise
24:59and in a few weeks that should be out in leaf
25:04I'll call that success
25:06it's only six but it's a start
25:09so ready for lunch
25:10ready for lunch
25:27it's the first of April
25:29and today Blenheim's head of operations Emily Spencer
25:33is overseeing a very special anniversary celebration
25:3675 years ago today we opened up the palace doors for the first time
25:42so we really wanted to take the opportunity to celebrate that
25:47the story is that they opened up they expected just a few people to come through
25:51and actually there was a big queue of people already formed
25:53this photograph was taken on the 1st of April 1950
25:57on the day that the 10th Duke of Marlborough opened his family home to paying members of the public
26:02the aim was to raise money to fund repairs to Blenheim's roof
26:07to celebrate the anniversary and the fact that a full roof restoration is finally underway
26:13Emily is hoping to recreate this iconic photograph
26:17so currently stood in the centre of the great court and it is pretty much empty
26:22hopefully by 4 o'clock we will have a queue of 200 plus people stretching from the steps at the front of the palace
26:29all the way here to the very centre of the courtyard and then out through our clock arch
26:35people have responded and said they're coming
26:37but it's a sunny day they might have gone to the beach I don't know
26:40I might look a little silly if it's a very short queue
26:42in High Park the ancient oaks have burst into leaf
26:54and Rob's oak saplings are establishing their place in the woodland
27:00Blenheim's oaks host thousands of species
27:03including a rare species of honeybee
27:06and we've got 76 nests of which 53 are permanent that we say are long-lived nests
27:14most honeybees in the UK belong to a non-native species introduced by beekeepers in the last century
27:21but Blenheim's biodiverse woodland is home to wild tree nesting honeybees that until recently were thought to be extinct
27:31you get all these special plants you get daffodils dandelion and then you'll get your willow coming out
27:42so we've got huge amounts of pollen and nectar the bees don't have to travel very far at all to find forage
27:49Bee conservationist Philippe Solbany closely monitors these rare bee colonies
27:55If there's a sudden die-off of bees it's our responsibility to be aware of potential for disease
28:03and that involves climbing getting into the canopies and having a look at the top of the tree and how the bees are living
28:10Today he's checking on a nest 16 meters up a 400 year old oak tree
28:15okay so the bees are quite active you just start listening to the hum of the bees
28:23we're getting towards the middle of the day and we can see a lot more flight activity
28:30so the foraging bees are coming back so it's a really really good sign
28:35it's what should be happening at this time in the afternoon
28:37there is quite a bit of grey pollen coming in and some yellow
28:44there's a diversity in the pollen loads which is really good for their health
28:49this variation of pollen not only shows the health of the bee colony
28:54but signifies the strength of the ecosystem of Blenheim's woodland
28:57this is just extraordinary
29:01it's magical it's absolutely magical
29:04I must have a few hundred around me over here
29:08and they are extremely calm
29:11just really special
29:13I would actually stay up here
29:17but with 75 other nests to monitor
29:20it's time for Philippe to come back down to earth
29:30we've got what 10 minutes to go
29:32and yeah hopefully we'll end up snaking right through the archway
29:35that's the plan
29:37we're underway
29:41events manager Julian Newman
29:43just mind your head
29:45and freelance photographer Stephen Hicks
29:47have been set the challenge of recreating the iconic queuing photograph
29:51along the little bridge there
29:53and then we'll get the perfect view on the other side of this roof
29:58I think it's about here
30:00I'm trying to work out if the other photographer is leaning a lot more over the balcony
30:03in the courtyard below a queue is beginning to form
30:07Head of Built Heritage Kelly has joined the growing line
30:10At the moment we're trying to get everyone a bit closer together
30:13because we're still
30:15I think we go in a few minutes
30:17and it's still gathering, it's still building
30:19Testing, testing
30:21Anybody hear that?
30:24Okay, that's a no then, thanks
30:30Testing, testing, any better?
30:33Can you hear me at the back of the queue? Raise your hands
30:36No
30:37No
30:39Part 6 to Part 3
30:43Go ahead
30:45Just at the front, can you see the lady in the sort of beige top
30:48if we sort of bunch everybody back, that would be ideal
30:51Will do
30:53I'm actually really amazed about how many people we've got here today
30:56What's lovely is that it's all full of staff as well
30:59so it's all of staff and everyone who works in here
31:00everyone has a really special connection to this place
31:01We are standing here, you know, 75 years after the palace was first opened to raise money for repairing the roofs
31:08and now we're here doing it all again, it's amazing
31:1075 years, an iconic photograph and I thought it would be really good history to be part of it
31:16We're in position, we're good to go in the roof
31:18When you're ready, can you let us know and we'll start clicking away
31:21Fab, I'll get on the speakers, see if they work
31:24Can you hear me at the back?
31:27Can you hear me in the middle of the great court?
31:30Yay!
31:32This looks fantastic
31:34If we could have a serious pose please
31:36Three
31:38Two
31:40One
31:42Perfect
31:44It matches almost identically for the photo
31:47Okay folks, you have done a great job of queuing
31:50And now give yourselves a bit of a cheer, thanks
31:57Everybody looks beautiful, thank you
32:00Ah, really proud of everyone
32:05That's exactly what I'd imagined
32:08Yeah, really happy indeed, really happy
32:10As spring rolls towards summer, Blenheim's formal gardens are bursting into bloom
32:23In Blenheim's historic kitchen garden
32:28Over 50,000 seeds have been germinating in the greenhouses
32:32Now Harrison and a team of volunteers are gradually planting them out
32:45It's been going really well, we've had a really sort of warm, hot spring so far
32:51Unusually so, we haven't had very much water
32:54So that's been a bit of an issue
32:57But by and large everything is growing really well in this heat that we've got
33:00I've been coming here since September, I think, last year
33:04And it's basically the best thing I do all week
33:07I really look forward to it
33:09It's really nurturing and satisfying
33:12And it's nice to do it in a team actually
33:14It's really great
33:16Today the volunteers are planting 600 cabbage plants
33:20We have a mixture of winter and spring cabbages here
33:23And so cabbages are part of the brassica family
33:25Which means that they're very vulnerable to insect damage
33:30So we've found that by planting onions in the vicinity
33:35It kind of frightens off the insects
33:38Cabbages are going to get used in the kitchens
33:41Roasted or fried greens on the side of roast dinners
33:44They may even make some pickles and kimchi if they have a glut
33:47We didn't grow any last year because of space
33:50So I'm looking forward to seeing how they develop
33:53The cabbages will be ready to harvest in the autumn
33:58But some crops are ready to be picked
34:01And with one of Blenheim's biggest events just a day away
34:05Head of catering Jack Butler has come to get some supplies for the weekend ahead
34:10We're doing a barbecue, like a Blenheim Garden barbecue
34:15So we've got salad, radishes, some mustard leaves, which Harrison's promised me
34:20And I'm hoping to get some garlic and some onions just to put in the salad
34:24Just to make it a nice flavour
34:25Hey Harrison
34:26Hey Jack, how are you?
34:27Hey good, thanks
34:28Good
34:29I've got here some red mustard leaf
34:31I was thinking of mixing through it to create that kind of nice kind of occasional bit of mustardy heat flavour
34:37Brilliant and perfect with barbecues
34:39Yeah, exactly
34:40And we've got some radishes there
34:42Wow, look at the size of those
34:44They're like apples
34:45Well I can do maybe ten bunches of these or something like that
34:48Yeah, well thank you very much
34:50I want more lettuce every year and I want more tomatoes and I want more of everything
34:54Because it's brilliant
34:56I need more though, I want more, I'm getting greedy now
35:00We're on a much bigger scale this year
35:02So it's gone from being a kind of glorified allotment to being a proper market garden
35:07And that's really exciting because if we can prove that it works here
35:10Then I think it sets a good example to lots of other estates
35:14That's what you can do
35:15Yeah, perfect
35:17Brilliant Harrison, thank you so much, this looks great
35:19No worries, thank you
35:21There's more where this came from by the way
35:24Blenheim's summer months are packed with outdoor events
35:41And the first event of the season is just hours away
35:45So we're setting up, the PA system's going around the arena as well
35:48The catering units have arrived
35:49And now I'm doing the glamorous part of the job is putting the bins out
35:51We've got an hour until the visitors come through now so last minute pressures but it's why we do events, it's what we enjoy
36:04Events manager Julian is overseeing the transformation of the South Lawn
36:09Which today will host Blenheim's annual jousting tournament
36:12There's lots going on today, your first joust today is at 12 o'clock and don't forget your suntan lotion because it's going to be a hot one and have a jolly joust
36:23Typically I reckon we'll get about five to six thousand visitors coming through here
36:26So potentially over the three days we could have 18,000 people
36:31I have a lot to do, yes
36:35Best start to the day is the fact the sun's shining
36:38These things don't go too well when it rains
36:40Head of catering Jack is preparing the salad he collected from Harrison's kitchen garden
36:45When I first came here three years ago we didn't use anything from the estate
36:54And now I would say 50% of our produce are coming from the estate
37:00Which I'm really proud of
37:02Hopefully we'll do some record sales today
37:04Whilst Blenheim's team are setting the stage for the crowds to arrive
37:09The jousting crew are busy preparing their trusty steeds
37:12My role is a compare today so I'm hosting the show
37:16Make sure we're keeping those knights and characters in check
37:19And make sure we've got the crowd cheering as loud as we can
37:22Stunt performer Carl Uda-Martinez will lead the Knights of Middle England into battle
37:28So yeah, we'll go over and do a sound check
37:31Team are nearly finished setting everything up
37:33Horses have had breakfast and yeah, it'll be team talk
37:36And then start to get changed
37:38Yeah, don't think the sound check's going as well as planned
37:43In the centuries before the palace was built
37:48Blenheim was home to a royal lodge, Woodstock Manor
37:51Which would have hosted jousting tournaments in the late medieval period
37:56This particular jousting tournament has been running at Blenheim for the last 15 years
38:01But today is rider Ollie's first time performing
38:03This is Picasso, she is my jousting horse for today
38:08She is one of our best jousting horses and you can basically put anyone on her
38:13And they will look like they know what they're doing
38:15In this show I am working with some fire
38:19Which I haven't done very much of before
38:22Potentially something could happen because there's an actual danger element there
38:26This show isn't as scripted as some of our other ones so there is the chance to ad-lib and just have a bit more fun with it
38:36We will properly like compete against each other
38:39Perfect, remember you've got such a big space here so let's utilise it
38:49This is our pre-show fight call
38:52So it's to make sure that we get all of our moves and we know them and we're going to be safe
38:56Casting properly, not about to take each other's head off
38:59And not about to burn my hair off
39:01In Blenheim's basement after months of work, the Below Stairs Victorian Kitchen exhibition is due to open in just 24 hours
39:13Oh no, I need this
39:15What am I doing? I need the steps
39:17Kate and Carmen are making the final touches
39:20That's really nice
39:22Do you like it there?
39:23Yeah, I do
39:24There's always something that you see, what if we add that or what if we change
39:29So it's something we need to stop
39:31Kate always is really good at stopping me at that, otherwise I will continue forever
39:36It's been one of the best projects I've been able to do
39:39The fact that it is original and this was what was here and to be able to reinstate that is just really exciting
39:46We're ready and we can welcome people in
39:48The team have transformed Blenheim's basement
39:52Curating over 1,500 individual items
39:56And meticulously recreating the scullery
39:59The kitchens
40:01Featuring hundreds of items from Blenheim's private collection
40:05And original Victorian ranges
40:08The butler's pantry
40:10And the staff mess area
40:13Blenheim's CEO Dominic Hare has come to inspect Blenheim's newest exhibition
40:19I love that in the midst of this humming, busy workplace
40:25People sit down
40:27They've had the time to sit down, the table is together
40:30And that was really part of the set up
40:32I am utterly stunned by how transformed this space is back into something that really feels like
40:39You could have walked into it 200 years ago
40:42I must be thrilled that they've pulled this off
40:45I think every visitor will want to come in here
40:50This sadly is the last project I'll be doing at Blenheim
40:54Because I'm moving on after this, after 19 years
40:58So it's been such an incredible note to end on
41:02But I will always love this place and the people here
41:06I mean, they'll be my friends for a long time
41:09So I'll always come back and see them
41:11I'm going to take a picture of her
41:14And make it look like a 19th century
41:16And I'm going to put it on the housemate's desk
41:18So she's going to be in this exhibition forever
41:20I think it's a really lovely idea
41:22I'm really touched
41:28On Blenheim's South Lawn, the jousting event is in full medieval swing
41:32Thousands of people have arrived to see the clash of the knights
41:37And sample the delights of Harrison's bounty
41:43Busy already, we've been open for the last hour and a half
41:46Visitors coming through, getting their prime locations
41:49It's last minute preparation to make sure it all runs smoothly
41:52In the jousters camp, newbie knight Ollie is getting into character as the Earl of Warwick
41:59Yeah, this is where the butterflies start coming in
42:02And you start going over what you're doing
42:05Like in your head, remembering your fights, remembering what jousting order we're doing
42:09Just to make sure that we know what's going on before we go in
42:12This is a big thing for him, this is his first time riding as a knight
42:17And that's a huge arena and that's a big crowd
42:20If he said he wasn't nervous, he's lying
42:21Ladies and gentlemen, put your hands together for the Knights of Middle England
42:35The Earl of Warwick, riding his trusty team
42:39Then let the games begin
42:40Let's begin
42:45Let's start off with the gold rings
42:47This is incredibly hard
42:49The lance is about 12 foot in length
42:51The rings are very small and they have to gallop
42:53As quick as they can
43:01I reckon we've got about 2,000 people around the arena here
43:05Really enjoy themselves, great atmosphere
43:07Ladies and gentlemen, do you want to see some jousting?
43:14Let's see a jousting corner
43:161, 2, 3
43:18See what the Earl of Warwick has to offer
43:22Here we go
43:28Give him a round of applause
43:31Ladies and gentlemen, do you want to see some fire?
43:32Give him a round of applause
43:50Good feeling, good feeling, happy all round
43:52Fire bit went spot on
43:54And I think the crowd really enjoyed it, really loved it
43:57Yeah, I'm really happy with Oli
43:59I think he did really, really well
44:01He's just going to get better and better
44:02So I'm really happy
44:04You can't but help smile
44:06When you've got that backdrop behind you
44:08It was amazing, the buzz of the audience watching the joust go through was fantastic
44:15So no, it's been a great morning here with the jousting
44:17It's now six months into Blenheim's two year long project to fix the leaking roof
44:32We have a giant white sugar cube
44:35It is very big and very white
44:4130 miles worth of scaffold has been covered
44:45And Kelly's visitor viewing platform is now open to the public
44:50Where we're standing right now is over thin air
44:54So no one will have ever seen this view before
44:57So it is just lovely to see people up here
45:00It's lovely to hear what they're saying
45:01I mean I've got the goosebumps about it
45:04It's genuinely exciting
45:10It's sort of once a lifetime really you need to be able to come up here
45:15The engineering involved in putting all this scaffolding up is phenomenal
45:20It's amazing what you can see on the horizon
45:23I'd love to see it when all this gets done
45:25So we have to come back
45:26Exactly, yeah
45:28So the wonderful thing about this is I don't have to check any buckets anymore
45:32Because we have a nice big lid on now
45:39I would say this portion of the palace is probably more protected now than it has been for the last hundred years
45:45Now that the scaffold build is complete, Kelly and her team can begin the mammoth task of replacing Blenheim's roof
45:53We've not even lifted a slate
45:59We are right at the beginning of what is the biggest thing we've ever done
46:04We are absolutely itching to get started
46:0775 years after Blenheim opened in order to fund roof repairs
46:12Work is finally underway to help preserve this great estate for centuries to come
46:17To be continued...
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