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00:00A workshop full of wonders.
00:03I heard the word watch.
00:05Home to experts and time-honoured crafts.
00:09There you go, that's a good sound.
00:11Together repairing treasured pieces of the past.
00:15Oh, I like that. That is really good.
00:19Wow, look at that.
00:20Wow, look at that.
00:23Quite proud of that.
00:24And unlocking their stories.
00:27I'm completely blown away by this.
00:30Oh dear.
00:31Bringing the broken.
00:33I don't know where to start with this.
00:35Back to life.
00:36Wow.
00:38Stunning.
00:40Wow, fantastic.
00:43I think it's just amazing.
00:46Yeah.
00:47Welcome to the repair shop.
01:00Today, joining the cobbler, the shaker and the table leg maker, Steve Fletcher is admiring the barn's first assignment.
01:11Lucia, come and have a look at this.
01:15Wow, this is something.
01:17It is, isn't it?
01:18I love things like this.
01:21This miniature marvel comes courtesy of ex-coal miner John Wiltshire from Hollywell in North Wales.
01:30Hello, sir.
01:31Hello.
01:33So, John, this is an amazing model.
01:36It sure is, it sure is.
01:37It was built by my grandfather in 1904.
01:43It's amazing.
01:44What is it?
01:44Well, this model is a model of a coal mine.
01:47When you turned the handle, all these used to turn and them shafts would go up and down.
01:54So, where was the handle then?
01:55It was just there.
01:56Can you see a little hole?
01:57Oh, I can see a little hole.
01:59Yes.
01:59There was like a crank going over there and it was housed over here.
02:03Yes.
02:04John, what was your grandfather's name?
02:06His name was John Joseph Wiltshire.
02:10So, why did he make it?
02:12Because he hurt his back and he couldn't go down the pit anymore.
02:16In them days, it was very dangerous, yeah.
02:19Very, very bad conditions, you know.
02:21There was accidents all the time.
02:24So, he just took to making models.
02:27Did you end up going down the mines?
02:29I did, sir, yes.
02:30I did.
02:31I went down the mine in the very, very early 70s to 1994.
02:37That's a long time.
02:38Yeah.
02:39Was it scary?
02:40No.
02:41It's dark.
02:42It's dirty.
02:44But I just loved the camaraderie.
02:47You're watching your heads back, you know.
02:49I think that's when I realised it.
02:52Coldest in my veins, you know.
02:54Tell me a bit about your grandfather.
02:56What was he like?
02:58Oh, he was a lovely old boy to me.
03:00He used to tell me stories.
03:02I always remember that.
03:05Fantastic fella.
03:07When I was told that it was coming to me in the will, I was elated, you know, really.
03:13It's an honour, isn't it, to have this.
03:16I run a little museum.
03:18I am all sorts of mining artefacts.
03:20And of course, this little beauty was pride of place.
03:24And was it working then?
03:25It was working, yeah.
03:26It was working fine.
03:27But then it started sticking, you see.
03:31I went to a model maker.
03:33This guy says, we'll fix it for you.
03:35Yep.
03:36So when I went to pick her up, the mechanism had gone.
03:40When you turned, you know, gone.
03:42That's very unfortunate.
03:43Oh, flipping that guy.
03:45I guess because this is a one-off, your grandfather wouldn't have done drawings of the mechanism.
03:52He would have just done it as he went along.
03:54No.
03:54That's what he'd do, you know, Steve.
03:56He'd be so brilliant.
03:58My brain is whirring at the moment, just thinking about the cages going up and down.
04:03But I'm probably going to have to sleep on that one.
04:06What is the plan for the model if I can get it all working?
04:09It will go in pride of place, in my museum, to keep all the memories of mining alive, you
04:17know.
04:18And this will be the, you know, the crown on it then.
04:22I'll see what I can do.
04:23Thank you so much for bringing it in.
04:25See you, my dear.
04:26See you soon.
04:27Bye-bye.
04:27See you again.
04:28Thank you very much.
04:35Steve, where on earth are you going to start with this?
04:37Do you know what?
04:38I've no idea.
04:39I've got to try and get my head into John's grandfather's head to work out what sort of
04:45mechanism it would have had.
04:47Well, there's certainly a lot to do with the paint surface.
04:50Yeah.
04:50And just getting this cleaned up a little bit, actually, but not too much.
04:54Let me know when you want me to come in and do the work on the surface.
04:58Might be some while.
04:59Okay.
05:11This is incredible.
05:15I'm slightly worried because I've got to design and make a complete new mechanism underneath
05:24that's going to drive everything.
05:27I've got to turn that motion of turning the handle to raise and lower the cages.
05:35Yeah, there's a lot to think about here, actually.
05:44As Steve minds his imagination, Will Kirk is awaiting the arrival of Sarah Kelly and
05:51her daughter, Laura.
05:53It's lovely, isn't it?
05:55Yeah, it is.
05:56They've come from Belfast with an heirloom that inspired a family vocation.
06:03Hi there.
06:03Hello.
06:04Welcome to the barn.
06:05Thank you very much.
06:07This is lovely.
06:09This is a writing box, right?
06:11It is.
06:11As far as I know, it's a Victorian writing box.
06:13So if these panels sort of sit like that.
06:16That's right.
06:17And then this is the surface that you write your letters on.
06:20Yeah, that's right.
06:20It belonged to my grandmother.
06:24She was given it by what had been her fiancé, I think, at the time, my grandfather.
06:29I know he gave it to her before they were married because he put her name on it.
06:34So Dolly McCormick was my grandmother.
06:37My grandmother died in 59.
06:40My mum had it all her life until she died and she died in 1993.
06:45Was your mum quite a writer then?
06:47Yeah, my mum was known as Kay Kennedy.
06:49She left school when she was only 14, went on to become a journalist.
06:53Really just through force of character, which sums my mum up.
06:59OK.
07:00And then she worked her way up to becoming an editor of one of the papers called The Ulster Star.
07:07And she was one of the first woman editors in Northern Ireland, which I'm very proud of.
07:14That's amazing.
07:15It was amazing.
07:16And she was quite an exceptional woman.
07:19Yeah.
07:19She did very hard-hitting news stories at a difficult time in Northern Ireland.
07:25She was right on the front doing that.
07:27But she also met all sorts of celebrities.
07:31Did she?
07:31She got to know Johnny Cash quite well.
07:33Yeah.
07:34Roger Moore, the Beatles, the Rolling Stones, the Bee Gees, you name it.
07:41She was well respected and well admired.
07:44What she achieved for a woman with very little formal education who just really had a love of words.
07:51Granny really was a trailblazer.
07:54And so it's really important for me to say that and to talk about Kay Kennedy because she broke so
08:00many boundaries.
08:01I'm a journalist because my grandmother was a journalist.
08:05She would have brought me into the offices whenever I was like a toddler.
08:08My grandmother was definitely my hero.
08:11Being the writing box, it's all about that link to the craft of words and to, you know, to telling
08:16those stories.
08:17But in its current condition, it doesn't really do justice.
08:19Exactly.
08:20Yeah.
08:20I mean, it's a bit of a sad wreck at the moment.
08:22And it would be really nice if it's not quite so sad looking.
08:27The fact that it's a writing box and writing is so important in our family, this sort of encapsulates that.
08:34You know, linking back through all of those generations of, you know, my family and the women in my family
08:40keeps that legacy alive.
08:43Yeah.
08:44I'm going to take very good care of this and get it worthy of a journalist again.
08:48Thank you so much.
08:49I'll see you very soon.
08:50Bye.
08:51Bye.
08:51Bye.
09:03I've got to devise a mechanism that make the cages go up and down, alternately like this.
09:10Oh God, that's complicated, isn't it?
09:12The thought about rack and pinion.
09:14And I don't know what your mind would come up with because you're very mechanical.
09:19I'd go with cams.
09:20But again, it's distances, traveling and all this sort of thing.
09:26Yeah.
09:36Now this is a great box.
09:38It's a real shame that this is in the condition that it's in.
09:41It doesn't really reflect Kay's work.
09:43And she sounded like a real powerhouse in the world of journalism.
09:46You've got two compartments, one at the top, one at the bottom.
09:49And it would have been held together by sort of one piece of leather on the inside.
09:54But I'm hoping Chris can have a look at that.
09:58This box gives you the illusion that it's made out of solid walnut.
10:02There's actually pine on the core on the inside.
10:05And a very thin amount of wood will be veneered onto the surface.
10:09When it gets damaged around the edges, it looks not very nice.
10:13I'm going to start off by removing the surface dirt and residue.
10:20The solution is made up of a bit of turps, a bit of meth, and a few other ingredients.
10:30Well, it's cleaning up really well.
10:31Once I've finished the other side of the box, then I can start on the repairs.
10:50While Lucia begins restoring the paintwork of the model mine.
10:55The thing with acrylic paints, you have to move really quickly because they dry really quickly.
11:01Steve has been racking his brains on how to create the missing mechanics.
11:07I think I've now come up with a plan of how to drive all of the mine.
11:13And I've split it into two different sections.
11:16I've got this crank arm that I've made.
11:18We'll have various pulleys on.
11:21And that's going to drive the grinding wheel, saw bench and the air pump as well.
11:27The tricky bit then comes in this stage two for the lifts and cages.
11:34To start with, what I'm going to do is just fit the pulleys onto this shaft,
11:39which is the same sort of pulley as I see used in my construction set when I was a kid.
11:47So I just need to now pop the pulley belt into place.
11:51And I've got a mirror in there just to help me see what I'm doing.
11:55Otherwise I'm just feeling in the dark a bit.
12:04Good.
12:05It's gone on really well.
12:06Let's see if it works.
12:11Brilliant.
12:25I'm really chuffed with that.
12:27All working absolutely as it should do.
12:30But that is the simple part of this repair.
12:34I've now got to turn my attention to getting the lifts to work.
12:59I'm now working on the part of the mechanism that will drive the winding wheels to lift the cages up
13:07and down.
13:08One of the things that makes this mechanism not straightforward is that I'm turning a sort of radial movement into
13:16an up and down movement.
13:18I'm just going to make this crank arm.
13:22I'm just going to make this mechanism.
13:24I'm just going to make this mechanism.
13:49If someone turns the handle, the crank handle turns this little wheel here, which then turns
13:56this big wheel and moves the rack one way or the other, and I'm really hoping that my
14:03final calculations are correct so that there's the right amount of up and down movement for
14:10the cages.
14:13If not, then I'm in the spot of bother, I think.
14:24Did you ever have a favourite toy as a kid?
14:26I have a little pig, he's called Porky.
14:29Oh, Porky Pig.
14:30And he had a little girlfriend called Porkat.
14:32Oh, I love that.
14:34Here to see plastics and toy restorer Charlotte Abbott is Jackie Harris from Barrow & Furness,
14:42with a beloved family treasure.
14:45Hello.
14:46Hello.
14:48Hello.
14:49So, who do we have here?
14:50This is Rose Budd.
14:51She belonged to my mum.
14:53She's about 75 years old, we think, and given to my mum when she first went to live with
14:59her adoptive parents.
15:00Gosh.
15:01What was your mum's name?
15:02My mum was called Myra.
15:03She died in 2016, so nearly nine years ago.
15:07Mum lost her dad when she was about seven, and then her mum when she was about nine.
15:13Her mum had a brain tumour and knew that she was really poorly.
15:16So, she tried to find a home for all the nine children before she died.
15:20Oh, my goodness.
15:22Nine.
15:23Yeah.
15:24Seven of the children went to live in Ireland with an aunt there.
15:27And then my mum and my mum's sister, my auntie Mary, lived in Barrow with families that
15:33she knew that could look after them.
15:34Wow.
15:35So, overnight my mum lost her mum, her siblings and her home.
15:40That is just tragic, isn't it?
15:42It is really tragic, yeah.
15:44Wow.
15:45I mean, she'd never met the family before, before she went to live with them.
15:49But I also know that she was loved there.
15:52Yeah.
15:52And she was happy there.
15:54So, my mum was really, really lucky to have that family.
15:56She was looked after like their own, yeah.
15:59And what were her parents like?
16:01So, your grandparents?
16:02Yeah.
16:02What were they like?
16:03Violet and Walter, they were lovely.
16:04They just loved my mum.
16:06Yeah.
16:06And obviously wanted to get a doll.
16:09Yeah.
16:38It's a lovely welcome gift, really.
16:39That is lovely.
16:41What do you think, when you look at Rosebud?
16:43Oh, I think of my mum straight away.
16:44Do you?
17:13Absolutely.
17:15She never had legs then, either.
17:16What would you like me to do?
17:18Yeah.
17:19I think of her legs, hopefully.
17:20Yeah.
17:20It would be a really wonderful thing to have back.
17:23A head.
17:24Mm.
17:25Secure as well.
17:26The head's been taped on.
17:27All her hair's quite matted and there's not much hair.
17:30I'd love to see how my mum had first received her, but she's still got a gorgeous face.
17:36She does.
17:37She's still got a rosebud lips.
17:39Yeah, which is how she got her name from her rosebud lips.
17:40Oh.
17:41And the lovely blue eyes.
17:43And what's the plan for Rosebud if she's restored?
17:45Well, she'll go back to my dad's little wicker chair in his bedroom and then she'll
17:50get passed on through the generations as a family heirloom and the story will be told.
17:56Rosebud is in very safe hands.
17:58I know you'll take really good care of her.
18:01Thanks for looking after her.
18:02No worries.
18:03Bye.
18:03Take care.
18:17You can tell that she's been wearing something that's been sleeveless because her body is
18:23this lovely shade of peach, whereas her arms have faded quite substantially, so it would
18:28be nice to get her colour back to how she was.
18:32God bless her.
18:33She's lost most of her hair as well.
18:35What is left is pretty matted.
18:37I need to make her a new wig.
18:44That is going to be the hard bit.
18:45It's just making two completely brand new legs.
18:47I don't know what they looked like, but I think before I tackle this, I'm just going
18:52to start taking her apart so I can see how much repair is needed.
19:02The safe is really stuck.
19:08I'm inclined to think that it is a ceramic composition.
19:13I'm going to start rebuilding this missing piece.
19:34As Charlotte works on Rosebud's broken body, Will's already stripped the writer's box back to its bare bones.
19:43It might look quite dull at the moment, but once I've finished all my woodwork, I'm going to
19:47spruce it up with some French polish.
19:49The cleaning has really brought out the areas of damaged veneer.
19:54My plan is to remove the damaged areas and replace them with a fresh section of veneer.
19:59This is actually off an old writing box as well.
20:02I always keep spare bits of veneer in case I need them.
20:05It's time for me to remove this old glue and old bits of wood easily with this very small chisel
20:11here.
20:12That's why I have so many different chisels because they all have a purpose.
20:18I'm going to start off by cutting a bit of a curved shape to blend in well with the grain
20:23and the pattern in the wood.
20:25You want it to sort of end up blending in with the surrounding area.
20:28You don't want it to stick out like a sore thumb.
20:31That is a really good fit.
20:34Right, all I need to do now is cut that section out and stick it on the box.
20:56That's now glued in place.
20:58I'm going to let that fully dry once it has.
21:01I can trim off the excess veneer and move on to the next patch.
21:20That looks perfect to me.
21:22The only thing that doesn't look perfect at the moment is the leather.
21:25So I'm going to speak to Chris and see if he can help.
21:33Hey Chris.
21:34Oh my goodness.
21:36Slight bit of damage there.
21:37To say the least.
21:38It's really important to keep as much of this leather as possible because that's where the history is.
21:43That tooling is absolutely lovely.
21:45Do you think you could try to replicate that?
21:49I'll give it a go.
21:50Brilliant.
21:50Thanks a lot mate.
21:57Lucia is applying her fine art finesse, bringing a miner's miniature world back to life.
22:05Steve's done a great job making these cages that go up and down and through the hole in the floor
22:10of the model.
22:12And now it's my responsibility to make them look original old parts.
22:19I'm happy with the colour match.
22:21It's just the actual surface finish.
22:23It just needs a bit more distressing.
22:25Might get a hammer and bash it a bit.
22:29Horrify Steve.
22:33It's good.
22:45I've sketched out the dimensions of what I think Rosebud's leg would have roughly looked like.
22:50Having seen a lot of dolls over the years, you start to get a sense for how they probably would
22:54have looked.
22:56The next stage in this is I'm going to make a framework out of wire mesh.
22:59And this allows me to make Rosebud's leg quite hollow and nice and light like her arms and her torso
23:05are.
23:07It doesn't seem to be perfect shape, it's just a rough template.
23:15So this is a two part epoxy putty.
23:20You get the two equal parts of it mixed together and after a couple of hours they go hard.
23:26So the first layer is going to just cover everything and then the next layer I can go in and
23:32sculpt all the nicer details.
23:36I'm going to use this dowel as like a point that I can push against.
23:46When I was younger I used to love playing with clay.
23:49I would, I really liked making food so I'd make like three course meals out of clay.
23:54I'd like roll loads of little peas and I'd make little paskis.
23:59I've always been into sculpting and making things like this.
24:32All of these bits and bobs are working.
24:35But then the cages are going to go up and down as well.
24:38One's going to go up, one's going to go up.
24:40How do you work that one out then?
24:43Smooth.
24:45You are just enjoying yourself far too much.
24:59I'm going to put in a nice little rounded heel.
25:06I'm again using a two part epoxy.
25:18I'm just using a little sculpting tool.
25:22I actually have a weird collection of things that aren't really sculpting tools that I use.
25:27Like I've got a metal chopstick that I think is great.
25:30The ends of pencils and paintbrushes and things like that.
25:41That is really...
25:44Starts to look like a leg.
25:47I just need to leave to cure.
25:49And then next stop is making the satin leg.
26:03Applying his bookbinder's art to a writer's box,
26:07Chris sets about repairing the torn leather interior.
26:11The problem with this box is this joint.
26:15It's very badly warped.
26:17When you close it, the gap just gets bigger and bigger.
26:21The leather is getting pulled and that's why it's broken along there.
26:25I would like to put some supporting cloth and a new piece of leather and eventually stick the original down.
26:31The problem I've got is will it rip once I've put the cloth in place and the leather.
26:38And I won't know that until I get to that point.
26:55It's always a nice feeling doing collaborations and it's a really traditional when it comes to writing boxes for a
27:03cabinet maker like Will to team up with a bookbinder.
27:08Goodness.
27:09It's raining out there, cats and dogs.
27:14Wow.
27:19Immersive experience.
27:20It really is.
27:23Wow.
27:24I am so pleased I'm in here, not out there.
27:28OK.
27:28I'm off.
27:29No, we won't match.
27:34So that's the leather in place.
27:35I'm really happy with that.
27:37Now I just need to leave to dry and then I can see whether it's going to work or not.
27:41And if it doesn't, well, I'll have to come up with a plan B.
27:45Right, go, go, go, go, go, go, go.
27:57Now it's the moment of truth.
27:59Is it going to split when I close and all my hard work so far will be wasted?
28:26It didn't.
28:28What a relief.
28:29So now I know Laura and Sarah can open and close this with ease.
28:35It's all, as the young people would say, gravy.
28:37So now I can start sticking the original leather down and then I can start thinking about retouching and retooling
28:45the missing pieces.
29:09So I'm really happy all the original now has been stuck down and dry.
29:13And now I need to retool and put back in the missing bits of gold.
29:19This is 22 or 23 karat gold.
29:22I've had some tools made of the exact pattern.
29:26And to do that I've taken a rub in and you send it off to a fantastic company that can
29:31reproduce the tool for me to regold the missing area.
29:40So the gold's now in place and now I'm going to tool it with a hot tool.
30:09So that looks really good.
30:11I just need to do it to the other side.
30:13And then I can blend the old and new leather together.
30:31It's taken hours of mind-bending pondering, planning and production.
30:37But Steve's vision for the model mine is about to be realised.
30:43I've got all of the pieces of the mechanism made.
30:48So I'm just going to assemble it all, oil it all, and then it's all going to be ready to
30:54pop into the mine.
30:56And fingers crossed, hopefully it'll all work.
30:59I've really enjoyed doing all of this so far.
31:03Actually having to reinvent what I thought John's grandfather may have put in.
31:24I'm just going to connect one of the lines up to see whether it all works and lifts one of
31:29the cages.
31:37It's coming up all right.
31:38That's going down there.
31:41Oh, that's really good.
31:45That's working absolutely true.
31:49Everything is working exactly as it should do.
31:52I just need to get the other three cages in place now.
31:56And, yeah, I can play with it a bit longer then.
32:05Once the prize exhibit in a mining museum,
32:08this detailed model of a working pit had fallen into disrepair
32:14and the internal mechanism had been lost.
32:19For John, the model is a reminder of his enduring connection to the tradition of mining,
32:25but most poignantly to his grandfather who crafted it.
32:31Hello, John.
32:32Hello.
32:33I wonder what you've got up there.
32:36How are you feeling about being here today, John?
32:38I'm excited, really, you know.
32:41And I'm looking forward to what Stephen has worked his magic on, you know.
32:45Have you done any magic, Steve?
32:47I hope you've done some magic as well.
32:52What are you hoping to see?
32:54If I get them things working there,
32:57it'll come to life again then, you know.
32:59And what will that mean to you?
33:02It'll mean the world.
33:04Yeah, it'll mean the world to me.
33:08Would you like to see it?
33:09Oh, yes, please, sir.
33:28Oh, my God.
33:30Oh, my God.
33:35Steve.
33:38Thank you very much.
33:45From the bottom of my heart.
33:47Absolutely brilliant.
33:55Oh, my God.
33:59Steve.
34:01You're brilliant, mate.
34:03Absolutely brilliant.
34:06Is this how you remember it?
34:08Better than I remember it, you know.
34:12Absolutely fabulous.
34:14Lucia has done all the painting work that has needed to be done.
34:18Thank you, my dear.
34:19Oh, it's been an absolute treat.
34:22Yeah.
34:23You've done a fantastic job.
34:25I mean, this is made in 1904,
34:29and I think it'll be going now for another 120 years.
34:32This has been an absolute honour to work on,
34:36not just for you, but for all of the mining community.
34:40Thank you so much.
34:46I am feeling ecstatic to tell you the truth.
34:49What a job that they've done on that.
34:52Brought all the memories flooding back, you know.
34:54My granddad would be so proud.
34:58He's going from here straight to the museum.
35:01The community would be very, very, very pleased.
35:05Yes, to see this thing that was created in 1904,
35:10I'm still going.
35:12And it's brilliant.
35:28From mines to megastructures,
35:31Tilly Newnham has a mighty piece of British engineering history
35:35for the attention of paper conservator Angelina Bacalarou.
35:43Hi there.
35:44Hello.
35:45Welcome, welcome.
35:46Please take a seat.
35:48What did you get for us?
35:49That's interesting.
35:50So this is a drawing.
35:52It's an original engineering drawing of a design for the Humber Bridge.
35:56Wow.
35:56My God, this is amazing.
35:59Is this all drawn by pencil?
36:01I believe so.
36:02Wow.
36:03So tell us a bit more about it.
36:04So this was a drawing that was owned by my grandfather,
36:07but it actually dates back to 1930.
36:09What was your granddad's name?
36:11Bernard Wex.
36:12The detailing is absolutely amazing.
36:14Was this drawn by an artist or...?
36:16No, it was drawn by Sir Ralph Freeman Senior.
36:20He was a civil engineer in the trade of building bridges.
36:22He was commissioned to come up with a design
36:24either for a bridge or a tunnel to cross the Humber Estuary.
36:31Linking the industrial heartlands of Lincolnshire
36:34to the docks at Hull and beyond with a bridge
36:37took decades of planning and building.
36:41But this original multi-span design was never realised.
36:46Thirty years later,
36:48the government decided they wanted to potentially invest again,
36:50so my grandfather was approached
36:52and he was given this drawing by the firm as a...
36:55Here's some inspiration.
36:57Oh, wow.
36:57Here's what we designed previously.
36:59So how long did it take for the bridge to be built?
37:02So it actually took ten years in the end
37:03and was opened finally in 1981.
37:06The Queen attended to open it with Prince Philip.
37:09Wow.
37:10We have pictures of my grandfather meeting her
37:12and eventually he was awarded an OBE for his contribution with the bridge.
37:16That's amazing.
37:18And is Grandpa still with us?
37:19No, I'm afraid he died in 1990.
37:21He's just fondly remembered.
37:24Our family generally view the bridge as that legacy that stands of his
37:27that keeps us connected to him.
37:29Yeah, I bet.
37:30We call it Grandad's Bridge.
37:31Do you?
37:32Yeah, so if we drive under it we say hello Grandad.
37:34Oh my God, that's so sweet.
37:35I took my daughter to see it about four or five years ago.
37:39It's quite sweet because I've got pictures of me at a similar age to her
37:41in front of the bridge.
37:42So it's a very emotional connection for us to Grandad's bridge.
37:46It's part of the story of how he came to build the bridge he did.
37:50It's something we will always cherish as a family
37:53and want others to know as well
37:55because we're so proud of what he achieved.
37:58It's a one of a kind.
37:59I can't wait to get my hands on it.
38:02Thank you, we really appreciate it.
38:03We'll see you very soon.
38:04Thanks a lot.
38:20I am so amazed by how much detail this drawing has in it.
38:25However, there are quite a few issues on the paper itself.
38:28First and most obvious is this difference of color.
38:33The middle side actually is much lighter than both of the edges.
38:37Something that is quite interesting is all of these losses.
38:43This is a very, very typical damage caused by silverfish.
38:47Silverfish are not fish.
38:49They are little insects that live in the damp, dark places in your home
38:54and they love eating paper.
38:57These really small black dots on this side of the paper,
39:03some bug has left their droppings on it, which is lovely.
39:08We call this frass.
39:09I love the name.
39:10I don't like how it looks.
39:12It needs to be removed.
39:24Rosebud, the 75-year-old doll, is heading for a fresh new look as Charlotte addresses those tresses.
39:33I don't want to glue the hair directly to her head.
39:37That wasn't how her wig was originally.
39:39There was fabric there and the hair was sewn to that.
39:42So I'm going to be following that process.
39:45Let's see if this fits.
39:48I managed to clean Rosebud's hair and there is some of it here that is in good enough condition
39:55that I can integrate this into the wig.
39:57Looking at Rosebud's original wig, I can tell what style of hair she had.
40:02She's got the parting kind of running all the way along, but no hair was here.
40:06This tells me that she had a hairstyle that would have come down like this
40:10and then been in little plaques.
40:13I managed to source some really good replacement hair.
40:17This is sewn together and then I can then sew that onto the wig cap.
40:22It's great to be able to take Rosebud back to how she was originally
40:27because Jackie has never seen her with beautiful pigtails.
40:48Well, job done.
40:49Let's have a look.
40:53No.
40:54What kind of trickery is this? And it opens.
40:57So I feel like a child on Christmas Day and it's not even my box.
41:00No.
41:01This is unbelievable.
41:02How have you drawn those two together?
41:04Well, if I told you I'd have to kill you.
41:06Oh God, don't do that.
41:08I'm still needed to polish the box.
41:10Yeah.
41:10And it's going to look great.
41:11I think it will.
41:12Have fun.
41:12Have fun.
41:13Cheers.
41:21It's been dirty work for Angelina,
41:24cleaning the creepy-crawly calling cards from the rare engineering plans.
41:30This looks really much fresher now.
41:33And especially now that all of the frass has gone from this side.
41:37Unfortunately, there's quite a bit of tape.
41:40It creates stains that are sometimes impossible to remove.
41:44The best way to tackle tapes like this is to use a little bit of heat.
41:52Reactivating the adhesive on the tape.
41:58Oh, there we go.
41:59Fantastic.
42:00It's already moving.
42:07Done.
42:16Once I remove as much of the residue as possible,
42:20then I will start preparing the drawing for washing.
42:48I am washing the Humber Bridge drawing.
42:53It's so yellow and so discoloured.
42:56It might look quite scary that I'm introducing water to paper,
43:01but paper is surprisingly strong if it's not handled too much
43:06and should allow any discolouration to be absorbed through it
43:10and allow the drawing to start cleaning.
43:16Well, I think this is already a really, really good sign
43:19that the blotting paper is starting to work
43:21and it's allowing the discolouration to come through.
43:37I've got to paint quite a lot of limbs, so I'm going to make quite a lot of paint.
43:42Making this kind of flesh tone is mainly a balance between red and yellow.
43:49Sometimes with a little bit of blue to kind of cool it down and matching to her face because,
43:55well, that's the bit of rosebud that Jackie remembers.
43:58So it makes sense that the rest of it would be the same colour as well.
44:12Chris and Will are rewriting the future of a writer's box that once belonged to Kay Kennedy,
44:19one of Northern Ireland's pioneering female newspaper editors.
44:25I'm now applying a really thin coat of shellac polish to show off that beautiful walnut.
44:32And I'm also going to add an extra little touch so Kay's name lives on in the box.
44:42The once tattered and battered writer's box has inspired four generations of women.
44:49From original owner Dolly, through trailblazing reporter Kay Kennedy,
44:54to Sarah and journalist daughter Laura, this box continues to inspire.
45:03Hi there, come in, come in.
45:05Hello.
45:05Lovely to see you both again.
45:07It's lovely to see you too.
45:08Kay was a very important lady in both your lives.
45:11Yeah.
45:11She was an absolute tribulacer and she deserves to be remembered with the kind of reverence that,
45:18you know, that she deserved and she earned in her lifetime.
45:22Are you ready to take a look?
45:23I think so.
45:24Yeah.
45:25Okay, here we go.
45:29Oh, my goodness.
45:34Oh, it's beautiful, Will.
45:35It's absolutely beautiful.
45:39I want to get it open.
45:41I'm like, yeah, let me open it.
45:44Okay, here we go.
45:47Oh.
45:48Oh, wow.
45:52Absolutely gorgeous.
45:54Absolutely beautiful.
45:54This is the original, isn't it?
45:56Uh huh.
45:57It looks like it's healed itself, doesn't it?
46:00I cannot take all the credit.
46:02Chris, our bookbinder, he's actually retained the original surface, but he's somehow managed to,
46:08as you say, heal...
46:09Yeah.
46:10...the join line.
46:11It's really beautiful.
46:12It's such a lovely tribute.
46:14Yeah.
46:15Well, I know that as people pass away, keeping their name going, it's important for you.
46:19Yeah.
46:25Oh, that's lovely.
46:28Oh, that's so lovely.
46:30Oh, that was so thoughtful.
46:32Well, as you know, I was like, say her name, say her name.
46:35And there she is, Kaye Kennedy, and she's so important.
46:38And that's just such a beautiful way of honouring her.
46:42It's been great to be able to keep Kaye's name alive.
46:46Thank you so much, Will.
46:47It's a pleasure.
46:47Right, it's over to you.
46:48Absolutely beautiful.
46:52Thank you so much.
46:53Bye-bye.
46:53Bye.
46:59I'm feeling very happy.
47:01I'm feeling proud of my family, both past and present.
47:05It's important that people should know who Kaye Kennedy was.
47:09She was right there in the forefront, as well as covering some of the hardest times in Northern
47:14Irish history.
47:15And I think that we should honour powerful Irish women.
47:19And for there to be one of those in my family, I've got to champion her name and keep that
47:24flame alive.
47:43With the Humber Bridge plans now clean and bright, Angelina can tackle the tears.
47:51I am using wheat starch paste.
47:54It has really good age properties.
47:56It will not discolour and it will not break down over the years.
48:08This repair tissue has very, very long fibres and it makes it extra strong.
48:16I will just trace the shape of the repair with my water pen.
48:28So all I need to do is just apply it on.
48:34Beautiful.
48:53Don't worry, I'm not making breakfast.
48:55I just finished with the support of all of the tears and all of the losses.
49:00And now I'm thinking the best way to do my infills.
49:04Cellulose powder is like powdered paper that when it's mixed with some methicelulose or an adhesive,
49:12it creates a paste and it will effectively dry just like paper.
49:17However, this is so white right now.
49:20And if I want to avoid retouching too much, I think the best way to do it is toast it.
49:28Toasting the cellulose will help it become a little bit browner.
49:32It's pretty much like toasting bread.
49:36This is starting to get brown now.
49:37This is lovely.
49:40All I need to do is just allow it for a few minutes to cool and then mix it with
49:43my methyl cellulose and apply it on my losses.
49:47This is very exciting.
49:53It looks a little bit darker, but as it dries, it should lighten up.
50:01What I need to do is just continue working my way through all of the rest of the losses.
50:06And then hopefully at the end we will have a much more unified image of the Hummer Bridge.
50:31With Rosebud's head, shoulders, knees and toes all painstakingly restored,
50:38Charlotte's ready to bring her back to life.
50:41I've got this really long string of elastic, really nice and pointy.
50:56The tension all looks great inside, but I think the final test is can she sit up?
51:03Oh, well, she can.
51:05Just getting her back together again is amazing.
51:10Yeah, to be honest, I'm a bit overwhelmed myself.
51:12Jackie has never seen Rosebud in one piece,
51:15and it's just going to be so wonderful for her to experience Rosebud like her mum did.
51:19I need to fit her wig and then I'll dress her in some kind of period-appropriate clothing.
51:34Rosebud was gifted to nine-year-old orphan Myra by her newly adoptive parents over 75 years ago.
51:44Hoping to see her mother's childhood companion whole again, Jackie is back, accompanied by her dad, Ron.
51:53Hello.
51:56Hello.
51:57Hi.
51:58Lovely to meet you.
52:00How are you feeling?
52:02Excited.
52:03Yeah, emotional.
52:04Yes.
52:05She sits in a wicker chair in our bedroom next to Teddy, and Teddy's lonely.
52:10Aww.
52:11Yeah.
52:12Yeah.
52:12So what are you hoping that I've done?
52:14Giving her her legs back.
52:16That would be a big thing for me.
52:17And just to see how my mum first saw her on the day that she was given to her.
52:23Are you ready?
52:24Shall we do it?
52:25Please.
52:32Yes.
52:33Yes.
52:33Oh, thanks.
52:35Oh.
52:40Oh.
52:41Oh, my God.
52:44Oh, she's amazing.
52:45Look at her hair.
52:46Oh.
52:47Oh, yeah.
52:49Oh, look at her dad.
52:50Yeah.
52:50Look at her feet.
52:52Yeah, her legs.
52:54And she's sitting up like we've never seen her sitting up.
52:58Oh.
52:59Oh, look at her dad.
53:01Yeah.
53:03Oh, she can move her legs and everything.
53:05How did you do that?
53:07You are so clever.
53:08Yeah.
53:09Yeah.
53:12Holding Rosebud now, what's going through your mind?
53:16My mum holding her.
53:18Yeah, just my mum's face when she first saw her.
53:20And just, she was comforted by her, didn't she?
53:23Oh, my mum would be absolutely over the moon, Charlotte.
53:28I wish she was here.
53:29Oh, yeah.
53:31She looks brilliant, doesn't she dad?
53:33A million dollars.
53:35Honestly, thank you, Charlotte.
53:44Rosebud symbolises my mum's and family's story that we just want to be able to pass on and tell forever.
53:51And now we can do that, now we've got rosebud in one piece.
53:57Myra would never have expected to see a hole again.
54:01So, today's quite a big day.
54:03She, you know, I find quite touching.
54:07Yeah.
54:16The Humber Crossing drawing is no study, but the repairs have left some gaps to bridge.
54:24I'm going super, super soft with a pencil.
54:28Because I don't want it to be a very, very distinct and sharp line.
54:34There we go, first line in.
54:37Tilly is incredibly proud of her grandfather, so now the drawing has been conserved and treated.
54:44The family will be able to appreciate it without having to take a trip up to Hall to just see
54:50the real thing.
54:56The Humber Bridge may have been a triumph of British engineering, built to last, but these original plans were showing
55:04all of their 95 years.
55:10Oh, Angie.
55:12Do you like it?
55:13That is amazing.
55:15Where's the rip?
55:17Where indeed?
55:18Yeah, Clara, aren't you?
55:22For Tilly, the drawing is a reminder of her grandfather, his achievements and the proud family legacy they still celebrate
55:30generations later.
55:33Hello.
55:34Hi again.
55:34Welcome back.
55:35Hi.
55:36Good to see you.
55:37Have you been excited to come back?
55:39Yeah, I have.
55:40I'm so intrigued to see how it's looking now.
55:43We really cherish the memory of my grandfather.
55:46It's just part of the whole story of how the Humber Bridge came to be and it's something we're so
55:50proud of as a family.
55:53Would you like to see what I've done to it then?
55:55Love to.
55:56All right.
56:03Wow.
56:04That's amazing.
56:08It looks so beautiful.
56:10I'm really glad.
56:11So lovely.
56:15It looks loved.
56:18Wow.
56:23What do you think of when you look at the drawing?
56:26To build a bridge, it blows my mind and, you know, it's still standing.
56:30How incredible is that to have achieved this?
56:32And that's always been a real source of inspiration.
56:36My parents will be over the moon to see it.
56:40Thank you so much.
56:41Like, this means so much to us.
56:42So thank you for all your work on it.
56:45Let me give you a hand.
56:48Let's go.
56:49There you go.
56:53I'm feeling so impressed with the final outcome.
56:57It's really nice to have another connection to my grandfather.
57:00It can continue to be appreciated by our family and stay part of that pride that we have in the
57:08bridge.
57:16If you have a treasured possession that's seen better days and you think the team can help, please get in
57:22touch at bbc.co.uk slash techpart and join us in the repair shop.
57:29We'll see you next time.
57:32We'll see you next time.
57:33Bye.
57:34Bye.
57:42Bye.
57:46Bye.
57:49Bye.
57:51Bye.
57:52Bye.
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