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Christmas 2025
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00:00They can't wait, I bet.
00:02In the repair shop this Christmas,
00:04from a poorly reindeer...
00:06He looks like he's gonna be trouble, I can see it in his eye.
00:09...to a unique book of carols.
00:11This is disintegrating in our hands.
00:13...some challenging festive fixes.
00:16If I've got this even half a millimetre out, the player will feel it.
00:19Even a millimetre out?
00:20Oh, even quarter of a millimetre.
00:22Really?
00:23And there are stars shining brightly for good causes.
00:26Look at this.
00:27Dame Helen Mirren visits the barn.
00:30Oh my goodness!
00:32What an iconic place to find myself.
00:34And Rob Brydon forms a double act...
00:37...with beloved author Julia Donaldson.
00:40We would play exciting adventures where one of the zoo animals invaded the farm.
00:46And there's time for the swift half.
00:49Hello everyone, welcome to the hammer and spanner.
00:52Before unwrapping the gifts...
00:54I want to see the red nose.
00:56...that means so much.
00:58Can I peek up under the...
00:59Under the sky?
01:00No peeking!
01:01No peeking!
01:02No peeking!
01:03No peeking!
01:04No peeking!
01:05No peeking!
01:06No peeking!
01:07No peeking!
01:08No peeking!
01:13We've walked a long way, Julia, across fields, over hedges.
01:17Oh no.
01:18No peeking!
01:19The way you left that last hedge, by the way, I thought was very impressive.
01:22last hedge by the way i thought was very impressive first to arrive at the barn gruffalo creator julia
01:29donaldson it's the 13th christmas her books have been turned into animations and rob bryden has
01:36been a key voice in every one look at this hello hello and welcome merry christmas merry christmas
01:44christmas we've walked a long way have you it's such an honor to have you both here we are huge
01:52fans of your books and me having two children we read all of them thanks so much now this looks
02:00well-loved shall we say it was my granny's and so this was what my sister mary and i played with
02:07when we were little girls sometimes some of the farm animals would escape through a gap
02:13in the fields and i think we had some zoo animals too so sometimes we would play exciting
02:18adventures where one of the farm animals joined the zoo or one of the zoo animals invaded
02:25do you think that this helped to encourage you to write those fantastic books yeah i think it probably
02:31was at the root of some of my books books like what the lady bird had which is set on a farm
02:36and now this christmas is the scarecrow's wedding animation which rob has a real star role and that
02:43all takes place on a farm now i play uh reginald rake the rather caddish scarecrow that comes in total
02:52card well all right i was giving him the benefit of the doubt he's an absolute cad who comes in and
02:59threatens the happiness of betty and harry the finest marshmallows and make no mistake no one can toast
03:08them like reginald rake i mean the first one was the gruffalo and um yeah it has become a part of the
03:16christmas tradition yeah i've been in all of them rob so loyal you know because even if he's just what's
03:22the smallest well the the cat in room on the broom all i did was go and yet i still imbue it with
03:31the professionalism and the discipline that i bring to all my roles well what do you love about julia's
03:37characters there's a clarity to them they connect with you straight away the pictures of course are
03:44oh wow yes of course and well axel scheffler who's done loads of julia's illustrations has such a
03:50distinctive style that pulls you into the story beautifully but it all comes down to that
03:56imagination and that sort of ties into this really you know having a little farm and your zoo animals
04:02and things like that how vibrant were the colors when you first received it when you were a child
04:06the roof was this kind of maroon because it wasn't like scarlet or anything i've had it on display and
04:12i did get the roof quite crudely oh i thought you just ripped that off it does come off well the door
04:18handles come off here it all needs some paint now julia if we can restore this for you what's the plan
04:25for it well i live quite near a children's hospice called chestnut tree house i've quite often visited
04:32and done little acted out the stories with the children and especially with the brothers and sisters of
04:37some of the old children it's really nice for them to have something to play with so i'd like to donate
04:43the restored farmers and especially if there were some extra animals and fences as well i think we
04:49can manage that well you know what would be nice you could have a little gruffalo a snail a whale you
04:54could have a highway rat it might be a bit difficult there to make them on the right scale i suppose
04:59there's nothing that these people not him but there's nothing these people can't do it's been
05:07absolutely wonderful to meet you thanks very much bye bye bye bye right back out into the cold
05:16weren't they lovely and this is absolutely charming but it's looking rather tired isn't it these doorknobs
05:23probably not so safe for children to be playing with so i might work out somewhere opening up the doors
05:28and maybe some shutters on the window there i think i'm gonna do a little bit of tidying up and
05:33retouching perfect the barn's next visitor has already arrived taking a much needed break from his
05:43delivery duties wow look at that reindeer at christmas it is wow it's very realistic there's a fire service
05:52badge on the back here what is a reindeer doing with a fire service badge i don't know well i guess we'll find
05:58out bringing answers and a second helping of good cheer to the barn hello hello firefighters jerry
06:06ascom and darren weston from leicestershire hi welcome and merry christmas
06:14please explain so this is rudolph of course yeah yeah rudolph belongs to leicestershire fire and rescue
06:21service and we use him every christmas to raise money for local children's charities we'll walk around
06:27with rudolph who's pulling santa on a sleigh supported by a fire engine or two typically and as we walk
06:33down the streets the residents come out and give us a loose change and donations and where does the money
06:38go that you raise so every year we raise about 10 000 pounds for um local children's charities typically
06:4410 000 pounds 10 000 pounds yeah wow well incredible where did this all start so it started in 1949
06:52they set up the rudolph fund and that reindeer ran right up until 1978 when it started falling to
06:58pieces and we got this one and the then committee approached this firm that did stuff for film sets
07:04and said could you build us an animated reindeer to replace the one we've got and they did so he moves
07:10he moves yeah he doesn't walk but no way nods his head does this blinks his eyes people were just
07:17amazed because back in the 70s that that was pretty spectacular now it's a big part of the christmas
07:22culture in leicester really but the real problem we've got is rudolph looking really tired and old
07:27now his mouth is supposed to chew and a lot of them actions aren't working his nose lights up as well but
07:33it doesn't oh really it's got of course rudolph's a red nose so we need to do some some major surgery
07:40yeah but also his first quite matted and dull looking the fur on his ears is different to the
07:46fur on his head and we've got the leather work around his neck that would have been bright red
07:49and really shiny at one point ah right that's interesting god there is quite a list yeah there's
07:54quite a lot to do it would be devastating to think it failed on your watch it would yeah it would i think
07:59that would be my biggest fear is that he falls into such bad disrepair that he's no longer usable
08:04and then we one we lose tradition but more importantly all those children that benefited
08:08don't get that money coming in we can't let that happen not on your watch not on mine quite literally
08:13well we'll do the best we can thanks for taking him on yeah see you soon
08:18he looks like he's going to be trouble i can see it in his eye look this is going to be a job i'm
08:23going to go and get some help david brenton oh here they are perfect can you give us a hand yeah
08:28yeah brenton can you steer yeah i'll try aim for over there somewhere okay brilliant here we go
08:34i feel like rudolph's gonna go wherever he wants i think so
08:41will is setting to work on julia donaldson's farmhouse
08:46and the experts have a clear brief for the tiny characters who go with it
08:51but with rudolph there are lots of unknowns i'm kind of intrigued as to what we're going to find
08:57inside here what do you think berth or in it's full of mechanical wiggly bits oh there we go
09:04oh this is that's actually a legal right what does that do though hang on what this one back and
09:09forwards oh am i moving hey look i'm moving his head that turns his head there's some wires cut in
09:16here so that's not a good sign a lot of mechanical bits are just just worn out let's see if i can get
09:22into the head good luck thank you yeah i don't need you moving around it it's all very funny i've
09:31got a feeling i wouldn't be a very good apprentice for you steve you drive me mad
09:38well there's a lot of mechanisms in here as well there is a huge amount to get done but i'm confident
09:43between us we can all pull together okay we'll get it ready for christmas absolutely brilliant
09:48right let me just see if i can get to these bolts then there we go that's it you got it steve yes i
09:56have will has made new doorknobs for the toy farmers oh look at that it looks like a little toad
10:06stool and he's been mudding over some replacement shutters i've got a couple of different designs i
10:12could go for one would be a kind of modern staggered slatted shutter but really i mean this is it's like
10:20a simple farmhouse for like a child it's not over complicated i'm quite sure i've seen some farmhouses
10:26some really old ones with this kind of design here i think that's kind of what i'm gonna go for
10:30i just hope that i've got enough space in that very small window frame to make this look absolutely spot
10:35on design ideas are also key to making 3d versions of the characters who populate the farm i'm making
10:50a whale and rather than making out of silver which would what i would normally do i'm going to try some
10:56polymer clay i'm challenging myself using a different material having looked at these lovely children's
11:03books i can't wait till my grandson is old enough for me to be able to read these stories to him
11:16arriving at the barn with memories of adventures in a winter wonderland
11:21ean and kate mckenzie and daughter april from carrick fergus in northern ireland hello hi there
11:28hello folks welcome look at this very nice wow oh this is incredible it is i've had it 60 years but it
11:39was 40 years old when i got it so the sleigh's almost 100 years old wow it's called a flexible flower
11:46this particular one was made in 1928 and only made this version for one year so it's quite an hour one
11:53where did you get it then 1963 i was nine ten it was a gift from my brother who got it from a family
12:01who no longer had a use for it i was the envy of all the friends and kids in the street i bet did you
12:08use it a lot then oh that year when you were nine ten years oh that was a year of the big freeze it snowed
12:14from just before christmas right through january february three months of snow three months and the
12:21drifts were like six feet wow i just spent every day on the sledge you must have some great memories
12:28of those times yeah the actual main damage at the front there was myself and two friends on it and
12:34there was a a big tuft of snow which i thought was just a bit of sage grass covered in snow and it
12:40turned out it was a large boulder oh no and the front of the sledge this has been straightened out
12:47but that was as you can see this is all bent here yeah we've had lots of accidents this one here
12:51i was a great repair as you can see a friend he was holding us and it snapped is that your handiwork
13:00it's very good done a long time ago kate what's your earliest memory of the sledge we had been going
13:05out together for a while and he said would you like to have a go on a sledge and i says oh yeah and then
13:11there was a hill that was nearly vertical oh no i was so frightened and this is whilst you were still
13:16getting to know each other yes i love that how long have you both been together for 50 years how
13:21many children do you have nine they all had their turn on it i remember my second child was about
13:28three years of age she had a little santa suit on and pulling around the street all the local kids
13:34chasing after us there could be santa one of my earliest memories would probably be going to school
13:40on it and then more recent my own children being on it they love it absolutely love it and getting
13:46pulled along by their granda i'm 14 grandchildren they all have to have this so when did you stop
13:54using it then yourself oh 20 years ago i was lying down on my belly i had a great time oh if you could
14:03have anything you want what would this look like the way it was today i got it all this paint paint
14:10that over you know make it good looking again i can understand i'll never be the way it was but
14:16be nice to see it gleaming again and looking how you remember yeah as a nine-year-old kid
14:24yeah we are going to have so much fun working on this thank you very much thank you thank you we'll see
14:29you soon bye-bye thank you bye-bye i absolutely love this it's amazing isn't it yeah he does want
14:38it looking a bit smarter than it currently does let me take this outside i'll get it stripped down
14:42and bring the wood back into you lovely okay
14:48i'm now having a look at rudolph's head and neck
15:18mechanism this is really what gives him his character you've got an electric motor and this
15:24drives a belt onto a big pulley the pulley then drives a shaft which has got cam wheels on so the
15:32cams they're basically like little hills and valleys on a disc and then you've got this lever so as you
15:40get a hill comes along that moves away and then when the valley comes along it moves back again and then
15:46this particular one this actually moves his head up and down these cams are made out of a type of
15:52plastic and it looks like they're warped basically where they run on this little lever they could slip
16:01down the side and then that lever could then get jammed that would then cause the motor to stall so i
16:09think basically what i've got to do take it all to pieces and then get all of that nice and sturdy
16:15straightened out so that we can guarantee that he's going to run for many many years to come
16:21i'm making a new bridle with reins for rudolph and uh chosen this really bright red color so that
16:38once he's all dressed up it's really going to stand out so i've got a fair amount of sewing to
16:43do here but once the bridle and the reins are completed i can turn my attention to the red collar
16:48here that need some work as well next at the barn acting royalty academy award winner dame helen mill
17:07she has a little known story of resilience from wartime germany to put center stage
17:12oh my goodness this is beautiful oh my god it's exactly the same as it is on the tv
17:24what an iconic place to find myself welcome to the bar thank you it's sort of a lot of people's dream
17:30to be here so thank you so much for having me how lucky are we i know i know but how can we help
17:37well got a big challenge for you interesting well i work with a residential home called denville hall
17:44that specializes in people from the performing arts so musicians actors directors producers
17:53people in front of the camera people behind the camera so you can imagine the stories that get told
17:59and that is what i bring to you today is one of those incredible stories so one of the supporters of
18:05denville hall was a man called martin landau and he was a theater producer he worked in his whole life
18:11in the theater but martin had the most incredible story martin was on a kinder transport at the age of 14
18:19children were put on these trains by their parents to escape the nazis and they came to england
18:25and obviously little kid you can't carry much with you but the one thing he wanted to bring with him
18:31was his cello he brought it with him so he brought it must have been as big as he can you imagine this
18:37kid on this train yeah with a little bag and this huge cello says how much it means to him absolutely
18:43there's a movie in there i think i think you know the the image of that young boy and the moment of
18:49having to say goodbye to his parents at that point not knowing that he would never see them again but we
18:55know that he would never see them again but before he got on the train the nazis who were you know
19:02bullying everyone getting on the trains broke the cello cruelly deliberately monstrously just broken
19:09nonetheless he held on to his cello and loved it and he had it for the rest of his life and when
19:15martin died he left it to denville hall and that is what i would love you to restore so what's the
19:22plan if we're able to get it repaired well this beautiful instrument hasn't sung for 80 years wow
19:29so we're really hoping that this christmas it will be heard again it will be singing
19:33to the residents of denville hall there is no one that doesn't enjoy a good old sing-song or just
19:39quietly sitting in the corner listening to some beautiful music so where is it well it was a little
19:45too big for me to carry so if it's okay i'll have it delivered to you would that be okay that sounds
19:50perfect thank you so much we're all incredibly excited thank you you're welcome thank you thank
19:56you everyone bye bye oh it's snowing
20:02will is making quick work of reviving the wooden slats on the old sledge
20:20but dom is faced with a trickier task as he starts on the metalwork it's not good news unfortunately
20:27these two bars that run to the front of the rails they are both completely different shapes
20:33and they're supposed to be the same i've clamped the two runners together and even these are completely
20:39different shapes the ends are way off i think all these years of ian being such a daredevil
20:46have taken their toll on this sledge it's bent and twisted things i need to straighten everything out and
20:51get it back where it should be because i've got lots of holes which need to line up and at the moment
20:57this one lines up quite nicely but this side is just so far off so i've got some bending to do
21:07so i'm using the rail that i know is good and is the right shape to draw around on the bench as a reference
21:14as i try and bend the other rail to match that line so i need to clamp it in the vice heat it up
21:23and try and bend this front section back round until it lines up with that white line
21:44it's looking pretty good once i've got all these pieces straightened up i can start thinking about
21:54stripping this paint
21:55work on rudolph is also galloping along while david coaxes his warped plastic cans back to perfect
22:10flatness amanda is starting an upgrade to his tatty old ears so i've got two types of fur that i'm working
22:18with here this piece of fur has come off of rudolph but i've also got this lovely new fur which is also
22:24going to be a part of his ears it's all got to blend through and look seamless like he has always
22:30had it so the first thing i'm going to do is to decide which piece to use this one is original so
22:37there's a couple of little holes and things here so i don't really want to go for those i think it's
22:42going to come from over here so i'm going to start drawing my template onto the back
22:47i'm working on this part of the mechanism that does the chewing motion of the bottom jaw
22:58like that something like that anyway
23:02there's a little cam on this shaft which runs onto a micro switch and just turns it off and on
23:10and that's connected to a light and that makes rudolph's nose glow red in the dark so this hasn't
23:18been working not only were the the wires not connected to the motor but also this shaft was
23:24bent so that when this turned round the jaw went up too high and would get locked so what i've done is
23:30i've i've straightened that up right i'm just going to pop the jaw on see if it all works
23:44i think that's a sort of chewy motion i'm just going to put on the new micro switch
23:51and uh make sure that the light's going to work when i was in the fire service we would have
23:56uh the children's christmas party and father christmas would come along but uh
24:03not on a sleigh he would come on a an old vintage fire engine right that's connected
24:12pop these connectors on and uh it should all work
24:17that's working so well that's brilliant
24:29will has turned his attention to the handrails of the old sledge
24:34one is made out of pine and one's made out of ash originally this would all have been ash
24:39he's done a pretty good job at replacing it but it kind of sticks out like a sore thumb
24:43now i thought it'd be really nice to replace that with ash because he really wants this to look
24:48much like it did when he first got it as a child i've sourced a new piece of ash here it's quite angular
24:54because it's just been cut the original has this slightly rounded off profile on the top and i think
24:59that kind of makes it a lot better to hold on to i'm going to use my hand plane to try to recreate
25:04this lovely curved edge onto that new section there
25:16i've got all of the meta work for the sledge stripped down straightened primed and ready for
25:23its first coat of this beautiful shiny red and i've managed to find the original color the very
25:30first layer of paint on this meta work which i've matched it's looking good
25:37renovation of julia donaldson's toy farmhouse has passed to kirsten i'm now just starting to
25:45fill any areas of loss i'm using a wood filler here in a way the way that this has been made it's quite
25:53rustic that's quite helpful because some of the areas that have been damaged and broken i can fill
26:00and i can leave the filler with quite a rough finish
26:12it's taken many talents rather than hay and carrots to revive rudolph but now he's almost ready for festive
26:20duties he's a bit of a lump he's a bit of a lump
26:27oh thanks for the help he's made it through the blizzard he has and oh that's his new neck
26:38peace fantastic and is that how they work very very good you've been having too much fun in the
26:47barn i know i know how are you guys getting on actually quite well so we can leave you to it
26:53to put it together it sounds like it that's all yours thank you thank you bye okay should we try and
26:59get him back on his face absolutely after 46 years of fundraising and bringing christmas magic to
27:07leicestershire rudolph's joints were aching and immobile his fur matted and his nose not even remotely
27:16shiny or red he's huge isn't he absolutely several generations from the county are relying on the barn team
27:24to recreate the magic and get rudolph slaying again for good causes goodness me the sides of him
27:33hello down hi you okay jerry hi who have you got with us today so these are some of the uh children
27:40that um come from wishes for kids these uh have benefited from some of the charities that we link up with
27:45and uh we've brought them down to see rudolph today are you all excited to see what what we've been able
27:50to do so i saw him when he was brand new and if you've been able to get him anywhere close to what
28:01he looked like then i think that would be fantastic which i will say is quite a big ask i'm so hopeful
28:07that we can get him back and look in his best okay everyone are you ready to see rudolph we're ready
28:12we're ready we're really ready let's do it
28:30oh oh that's good oh that's amazing yeah that's good look at that that's taking me right back to
28:371979. i had no idea it was going to look so realistic again the fur looks great doesn't it
28:45please feel free come in and have a look can we have a yeah come around this side let's have a look
28:48oh they've done on the harness as well yeah i've never seen them bells shine like that
28:53so we've repaired the ears as well new ears yes look at those look at the ears really appreciate it
28:58nice to see it it looks amazing job amazing this really has been a huge team effort well do you know
29:05what in the fire surface we're really used to working as a team so to see that teamwork replicated
29:10with the the care they've put into rudolph is great and that will really resonate through the service
29:14i think well you haven't seen everything yet i want to see the red nose should we dim the lights
29:19so you can have a proper look oh yeah
29:20wow that's so cool oh wow oh yes
29:36this is just what he used to do i mean you take your wall to take it all in yeah
29:40we just want to say thank you it means a huge amount to us well it's yours to take away are we
29:45we okay to drive it absolutely let's give it a go we should get the doors yeah okay
29:59well that's the first for us isn't it yeah i'm not sure the next time we're going to fix rudolph no
30:18no no i don't right who knows what's coming next
30:30rudolph's back in action but the christmas creations for julia are still a work in progress
30:36well i'm carving the gruffalo which is one of the most well-known characters from julia's books
30:41i think he looks quite charming and the vandalized cello which dame helen mirn hopes can be played
30:52again has been delivered it's a task for stringed instrument restorer becky horton this is such a
31:00gorgeous instrument i feel so sad that it's been brutalized in this fashion it just breaks my heart
31:08and the fact that martin kept it all these years it must have been so special to him because
31:13who keeps a cello that's in two parts like this already i can hear the sound post is loose there's
31:20cracks all over the place this is a particularly nasty one in the ribs the most obvious area of
31:26damage is the fact that the neck is out of the body of the instrument this is never good and it's in a
31:32real mess so i have to work out a way of putting everything back where it belongs fitting the net
31:38back in and getting this cello playable again the first thing i'm going to have to do though is remove
31:43the front so i can see what's going on inside what i don't want to do is splinter out any more of this
31:50very dry old front usually you do not want to hear cracking noises but when it's glue
31:57it's a different sort of noise and that's what i'm after
32:03i can just feel this seam starting to give now so far so good
32:07hailing from sheffield andrew and his wife emily with a challenge for chris shaw's book binding
32:20skills merry christmas merry christmas what have you brought that looks rather well loved certainly
32:29is that's well used it is it's a carol book that's been used by our family for over 40 years now wow
32:37yeah so this book was originally my granddad's he only lived a street away from where i grew up as
32:43well so um we were we were very close he passed this on for me when i was really learning how to play
32:50my first organ probably to accompany him singing but he loved it it's full of local christmas carols
33:00that we play in pubs in and around the north of sheffield all through the christmas period
33:07north sheffield has a 200 year old tradition of carols that are unique to the area being sung by
33:14locals in their pubs the gatherings are known as sings why are they singing pubs that comes back
33:21from the victorian area where the carols were sent to be too extravagant to be sung in churches
33:27and people still wanted somewhere to sing so they brought their songs and their carols into the local
33:32pubs wow that's where it's evolved yes into a real tradition it's a feeling of community and family and
33:39belonging and i wouldn't be anywhere else on a sunday in december a lot of the christmas songs are
33:45probably recognized words but all the villagers will have adapted their own tunes to the songs
33:53and this book is the book that i've used for every sing that i've played for for 28 years now i'm having
34:01to run in from one pub to the next and it's folded up in my back pocket and you can tell
34:05it's got knocked off the organ while i'm playing and yeah it's had a life of all of its own i thought
34:13this is disintegrating in our hands and is there any way that we can restore it stop it getting any
34:21worse not to be a museum item and not to collect dust to be used this christmas and the next 20 30 40
34:28years as well i'll give it my best shot that would be brilliant thank you so much bye-bye thank you
34:37well chris this is fantastic is it not it's amazing let me know when it's ready and i'll
34:42come along for a sing-along that's a date
34:49brenton that's amazing thank you you've got two snails there yeah i'm just working on the tail
34:55okay the tail of the whale to scale not quite i've got this little tiny snail and we've got the
35:03big one there so you can see what it's meant to look like absolutely love it you're so clever thank you
35:15andrew has really used this book almost to death it's at a point where the front covers
35:22are at a stage where they could totally collapse the amazing thing and hats off to andrew he's kept
35:30all the bits but it is in a bit of a sorry state pages need to be ironed it needs to be flattened
35:39and i've got to think of a cover for the outside but the first thing i need to do is remove the staples
35:45they sort of corrode and eventually that will eat through the paper now i can dismantle the book
35:53and iron these pages flat
36:05crikey do you recognize any of these there are a few but on the whole it's a mystery to me oh i know deck the
36:13halls how does that go oh oh deck i've got such a lovely voice will well it's usually after a few
36:20mild wines that's when i really kind of get into the swing of things do you have a favorite carol
36:25i do will i don't know what it's called but it goes a bit like this and feel free to join in if you want
36:30oh
36:51now she has access to the interior of the cello becky can begin repairing the many cracks in its body
36:58i've heated up my bending iron and the water bubbling on the top tells me it's really hot
37:04i'm going to use it to bend this little bit of wood that i'm going to use as a stud for this big
37:09area of cracking on the rib of the cello i'm going to get it really wet and i'm going to steam bend this
37:15lovely thin bit of maple
37:17i am feeling pretty anxious about this because it's so important this doesn't come undone again
37:27so that's why everything has to be absolutely right i'm going to start gluing now
37:40i'm going to have to throw a whole load of clamps at this crack and this stud to make sure it all adheres
37:45perfectly because i need to make sure that all of this stud is properly stuck to the rib it looks
37:53a bit random and haphazard but i hope i've got just enough pressure to hold that crack shut while it dries
38:03hopefully this should all line up with the paintwork perfected and the runners rejuvenated
38:09dom and will have joined forces i love this teamwork this is why it's handy have an extra pair of hands
38:15to reassemble the old sledge great i think that's the main sort of chassis part of it on and all
38:23looking good we could tackle the wood now yes screws down the middle that's my favorite screwdriver
38:31how long have you had my screwdriver for weeks have you and you haven't even noticed well i have i've
38:37been blaming steve what have you got that for it's just quite nice it's quite it is nice because it's
38:42mine okay middle bit in looking really good that adrenaline just steaming down the hill i'm feeling
38:50it yeah i'm there i'm there right what's left to do we've really just got the steering the steering oh
38:56gosh i forgot about the steering not yet not yet we're not quite there and the all-important rope
39:00and then we're done it's ready to go back to ian the sledge was given to ian just before the big
39:08freeze of 1963 but years of downhill adventuring had left it dangerously dilapidated
39:17right pop that on there let's get it covered up
39:21ian and family including granddaughters leah and bethany have high hopes of snowy fun for many more
39:28years hi everyone hello hey folks how again welcome back hello hello how have you all been
39:35feeling you've been excited about today i have been great i've been very excited looking forward to
39:40a little monthly it's been part of my life for so long my kids my grandkids and i like to see it going
39:46on and on i'm hoping that we can take you back to being that nine-year-old kid again are you ready
39:50to take a look more than ready how about you two are you excited okay here we go
39:58that's where i was
40:14up to try this oh i'm over the moon just when she was a caddy kid yeah
40:21yeah this is great better job an icon it's beautiful i don't know what i was expecting
40:30but it's beyond what i have never seen it like that the writing and all all it's lovely the fact
40:36that just didn't do it clearly you know it's the eraser it's brilliant i'm so pleased just looks
40:43beautiful but there's no time like the present should we take it outside you get on gas you're not getting
40:55too jealous are you in on the back here one two three it works that's really good marvelous it looks
41:07right at home out here doesn't it yeah yeah purple belongs
41:26i'm making betty the scarecrow and she's coming on really well but it's time now i started putting
41:31some little clothes on her reattaching the neck of the cello is a demanding process becky's drafting
41:41in will to play more than just second fiddle you're going to have the most important job
41:46of operating the clamp so i'm going to take it all out glue it and then you're going to clamp it but
41:53it might slide around all sorts of horrible things can happen so if i start being cross with you just
41:58sorry no i'll just take it okay fine all right if i've got this even half a millimeter out the
42:02player will feel it and it will have a bearing on the sound even a millimeter oh even half a
42:07millimeter even quarter of a millimeter really yeah yeah you grab the clamp and the cork are you ready
42:12to do this because this is a one here only we've got one chance to get this perfect okay up for it
42:17yeah right okay we're ready we're ready time is absolutely of the essence because this glue is
42:24gelling all the time i'm using it and i don't take any chances of this coming out ever again
42:31i've never seen you work so quickly oh you've not seen anything yet okay okay all right i'm gonna no
42:37not yet i've got to push this in nope nope i'll tell you okay clamp ready yep
42:46get that wedge the right way around yep tighten a bit yep that's brilliant that's a brilliant angle yeah
42:53bit more bit more bit more stop right okay we're not done yet no no right no i've got to check don't
43:02right i just need you to move it a little bit unnip it okay
43:07okay and down again tighten yep tighten
43:12okay let me just double check that oh god i'm shaking
43:15you're doing really well i'm checking the angle of the neck here there's a certain measurement that
43:21i'm after which is 80 mil it's slightly higher i just don't want to take any chances of this cello
43:27having any more problems because it's been through enough i would like that a bit lower but i don't
43:33think i don't think i want to move it so to go low would this have to be back i no we can't take it
43:38out now can you oh what do you want oh
43:47unnip it and just move it slightly you sure yeah just slightly yeah it's like yeah yeah yeah now now
43:53nip it down there yeah yeah yeah okay tension
43:59yes yes yes yes yes i'm happy you okay i don't know well done thank you
44:14walk away let's walk away it's done literally literally just walk away
44:19the pages of the carol book have been flattened and chrissy's next task is a spot of invisible
44:29mending this cover is at the point of complete collapse i'm going to remount these onto some blue
44:37paper but obviously because of all the years of andrew handling it it's got grubby so i've made an
44:45initial attempt of grubbing it up and because it's in pieces it's a bit like fitting the jigsaw puzzle
44:51together by remounting this it's going to stabilize it and at the same time add strength it's going to
44:58make it still very flexible just lining up the puzzle and it fits over very very nice and now i'm going
45:06to get it into the press i'm going to allow it to dry
45:17muscles is this the toy you're making steve it is this is tiddler this is the the character out of
45:24the book i can see that i'm making a mechanism that uh when i put the tail inside and you move
45:31the tail from side to side it's going to open and shut the mouth lovely there we go now it's christmas
45:42okay maybe maybe i've overdone this a little bit
45:48with the more stressful part of the cello repair behind her becky's work is nearly done
45:54the neck is solid and the cello's actually sounding really resonant i couldn't be happier i've never
46:02been so nervous in my life with an instrument because it was important to martin and it's going
46:07to be played in the retirement home i think it's going to be beautiful for them and i hope they love
46:12it as much as i do now because i've fallen in love with this instrument so all i need to do now is put
46:18the last two strings on and then i get to hear it this cello was brutally smashed as its 14 year old
46:27owner martin fled hitler's germany and it had remained unplayable ever since okay let's get it covered
46:40now dame helen mirren hopes it can be the centerpiece of christmas celebrations
46:45at the retirement home to which martin donated it
46:52hello hello welcome back thank you i presume this is the baby it is indeed yes let me introduce you
47:01to becky becky was it a challenge it was a challenge yes yes it has tested me the love that this
47:08instrument carried with it i hope communicated to you very much because it carried the history of
47:14family of love of dreams definitely definitely you can feel it in the world you can really yes well
47:20are you ready to take a look i am i'm so excited i can't tell you i'm so excited to see it can i peek
47:27go on then becky okay yes are you ready hello martin sent his love
47:49becky that's fantastic many many many congratulations
47:57wondrous absolutely wondrous wow i wish i could play would you like to hear it play well of course
48:05i would is that possible it is we've got a special guest really yes very much so um we have rafael
48:12warfish in the barn rafael would you please come and join us thank you rafael how very very nice to
48:19meet you thank you so much for coming for us you'd be careful with that
48:34uh
48:41uh
48:43uh
48:45MUSIC PLAYS
49:03Bravo! Bravo, Becky!
49:08Well done, Becky. Thank you.
49:11How incredible to hear that. Yes.
49:14Thank you so much, Raphael. That was beautiful.
49:16Great pleasure. Becky, thank you.
49:18Bye-bye. Bye. Bye.
49:23Brilliant. Well done.
49:26I'm just so pleased. Yeah.
49:39New covers have made the carol book more durable,
49:42but Chrissie's repairs also need to look harmonious.
49:47The final thing I need to do to the covers
49:49are to just sort of blend in
49:51and just take the eye away from these creases.
49:54So I'm using a watercolour pencil,
49:56and it's a blue sort of turquoise-y,
49:59but coming around here to where Andrew's handled it,
50:02I'm going to have to mix in a bit of green.
50:03Kirsten has painted the exterior of the toy farmhouse,
50:10but for interior decor, she's turning to paper and paste.
50:15The only wallpapering I've done is in my own house,
50:18so that's quite a number of years ago.
50:21But I do think this will transform the inside of the farmhouse.
50:26If I can just get that in there.
50:29There, that's gone on really nicely.
50:32Now, I'm going to carry on putting the paper on the other walls,
50:36and then it's going to be ready to go back to Julia,
50:39and I hope that this will give the children at the hospice
50:43many hours of play.
50:48Julia's toy farm was faded and fragile,
50:52and its animals long since lost.
50:54Now she plans for a new generation of children at the hospice
50:59to be delighted and inspired by the farm,
51:03and a farmyard full of fantastical creatures.
51:07Hi, Julia.
51:08Hello. Oh, my goodness.
51:11This is the biggest Christmas present ever.
51:15Well, I think it's really lovely
51:17that this is going to go to Chestnut Treehouse.
51:20Yes, it's such a wonderful place.
51:22Would you like to take a look?
51:23I'd love to take a look, yeah.
51:31Oh, so beautiful.
51:36It looks just perfect, because it doesn't look over the top.
51:39It just looks like I remembered.
51:43Animals.
51:43I remember these little sitting-down calves.
51:48Who's outside in the garden?
51:51Oh, gosh.
51:53Oh, look.
51:53We've got the Gruffalo, of course.
51:56Made by Will.
51:57So clever.
51:58Oh, I think that's brilliant,
52:00because you've got two types of toy.
52:02You know, you've got the farm,
52:03but they could have adventures
52:04with all these characters outside their world.
52:08It really has been a team effort, hasn't it?
52:11So, Steve made Tiddler.
52:13Thank you, Steve.
52:14You're very welcome.
52:15Yes, Tiddler's gorgeous.
52:16I think when you move the tail,
52:17the mouth opens and closes.
52:19Oh, can I have a go?
52:20Oh, that's wonderful.
52:22That's really good.
52:23Hello, Tiddler.
52:24Hello.
52:25Oh, look, he's a baddie.
52:29That's Rob Brydon.
52:30It's Reginald Rape.
52:32Which is made by Kishtons.
52:33He sort of tries to lure Betty away
52:37from her true love, Mary.
52:39And they're going to get married, aren't you?
52:41Yes.
52:42Oh, lovely.
52:45I think children would enjoy, you know,
52:47they could act that story out, couldn't they?
52:49Yeah, definitely.
52:50You have brought so much joy and imagination
52:52to so many children's lives,
52:54so it's quite nice for us
52:55to give something back to you.
52:57Thank you so much.
52:58And thank you all.
53:00You're so welcome.
53:02Bye.
53:03Bye.
53:06She is lovely, isn't she?
53:08This is the magic of children's farm animals
53:11and toys and things like that.
53:12Imagination.
53:12Yeah, exactly.
53:13You can go anywhere.
53:14Well done, everyone.
53:15Good job.
53:24Chrissie's skills have got the carol book almost back on song.
53:29So the moment's come of joining the pages to the cover.
53:34I'm using a linen thread and sewing it as opposed to stapling it
53:37because Andrew's going to use this an awful lot
53:40and I want to be able to provide the book
53:43with as much strength and longevity as possible.
53:47So the final knot that seals and joins the pages together
53:52ends my absolutely joyous repair of the joy of Christmas.
53:58This carol book was given to Andrew by his grandfather
54:04but decades of use at Sheffield's Carol Sings
54:08had left it in tatters.
54:12Andrew and Emily are hoping the book can continue playing its part
54:16in keeping a remarkable tradition alive.
54:20Hello, hello.
54:21Hello there.
54:22Hi.
54:22Absolutely fantastic to see you.
54:24How are you both feeling?
54:26Really excited.
54:27Are you?
54:28Yeah.
54:28It's more than the book.
54:29It's the tradition and certainly now not having my grandad
54:33there in the pub with me, his book's always there.
54:37That's really lovely.
54:38Yeah.
54:39Well, are you ready to see what I've managed to do?
54:42Certainly are.
54:51Wow.
54:52Oh, look at the back.
55:05That's fantastic.
55:09Wow.
55:10That's a Christmas breath.
55:12Yeah.
55:12Thank you so much.
55:14That's brilliant.
55:15Look.
55:15I can't believe it.
55:16I can't believe it.
55:19I can't.
55:21And there was whole...
55:23I can't believe it, Chris.
55:25The joy of Christmas.
55:27I know.
55:27Yeah, it is.
55:28It's fantastic.
55:29It's such a beautiful thing.
55:31It'll certainly feel special to stand it on the piano or the organ for the first time.
55:35It'll feel really nice.
55:37Andrew, how would you feel about doing a sing for us now?
55:41Yeah.
55:42Come on, everybody.
55:45Outside.
55:47Pond at your finest, please, landlord.
55:48Oh, coming right up, sir.
55:52Paying in chocolate coins.
55:53Perfect.
55:57Here they come.
55:58Wow.
55:59It's a pub.
56:00Look at this.
56:01Oh, look, there's a crier.
56:02Oh, is that a bar?
56:04Hello, everyone.
56:04Welcome to the Hammer and Spanner.
56:06Cheers.
56:08What can I get you?
56:09There you go.
56:10Oh, you pour a decent pint.
56:12The usual.
56:12Oh, yes.
56:13We sing as big bold out in days of old to celebrate Christmas and bring you good cheer.
56:27Glad tidings we bring of Messiah, our King.
56:34So we wish you a Merry Christmas.
56:36We wish you a Merry Christmas.
56:39We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
56:48We wish you a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.
56:49Woo!
56:49Yay!
56:50Merry Christmas!
56:56Hello, everyone.
56:58Hello.
56:58Hello.
56:58I've got a surprise for you.
57:00We wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a Merry Christmas, we wish you a
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