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Love Your Weekend with Alan Titchmarsh - Season 8 - Episode 08
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00:00:00Good morning! Now, do you remember the border collie Cassie here, who was last here as a tiny
00:00:06puppy? Well, she's back and eager to demonstrate her new herding tricks, aren't you? Yeah, I know,
00:00:10very eager. We won't be long. No, she's not the only one corralling some rambunctious farm
00:00:16visitors today and that means one thing. It's time for Love Your Weekend. I'm practising me
00:00:22come by me a ways. We'll get better at it.
00:00:58By the middle of February, we're gaining daylight faster than at any other time of year. And if
00:01:04you don't sense it, the flora and fauna certainly does, even if, as today, it's absolutely tipping
00:01:11down. February may not feel or look like spring, but truly is the moment when the year begins again.
00:01:18It's all sounding as remarkably good as today's show. Coming up, from Hollywood to European
00:01:26art house cinema, from Shakespeare to contemporary drama, she's one of our most versatile actors.
00:01:32Reda Skaki on starring with everyone from Harrison Ford to Julie Christie to Laurence Olivier.
00:01:38And a plot to die for, putting pen to paper, Ardal O'Hanlon on this brand new murder mystery
00:01:44series featuring a celebrity gardener, no less. And a wise man once said, a shepherd without a dog
00:01:50is just another person in a field. We'll be celebrating the special bond between sheepdog
00:01:56and farmer. And forget the Oscars, or indeed the BAFTAs. Dream on, Alan. Today, we bring you the WAFTAs,
00:02:04the prestigious Wine and Fizzy Tipples Award. Andy Clark will be overseeing proceedings,
00:02:10awarding the Outstanding Contribution to a Sunday Roast, and Best Supporting Grape.
00:02:20But first, to quote Dylan Thomas, to begin at the beginning, and that's right here. Welcome,
00:02:27Greta Skaki and Ardal O'Hanlon. Lovely to have you both with us. And two fellow countryside lovers,
00:02:34I know. Greta, with your own sort of mini estate, you've got a walled garden, haven't you?
00:02:39I'm so lucky. It was dilapidated when I bought it 34 years ago, 33 years ago. I was 33.
00:02:50And it seems like an extraordinary thing to have invested in. And over the years,
00:02:56it's needed a lot of restoration and just maintenance of the garden walls. But it's so rewarding,
00:03:05it's so beautiful. I feel that for the short time that I'm here, I'm doing a good job in pouring
00:03:10everything into making sure that it doesn't fall down. And with a lot of fruit trees as well,
00:03:15I gather, you've got apples and... It's got its old traditional orchard.
00:03:19Yeah. As those walled gardens for a big estate
00:03:21would always have. And my house is a tiny little,
00:03:27very decorative cottage because the head gardener was an important person. So there's
00:03:32decorated gables. So it's a sort of cottage ornay then, really? In the corner of the walled garden,
00:03:38yes. It's fantastic. And we're right within the South Downs National Park, so the views of the Downs
00:03:44are breathtaking. I'm very happy there. And Ardell, living in Dublin, but I mean,
00:03:49you're a great countryman around there. A programme, I think, on Irish Islands you did in there.
00:03:54Yes, yes. We do have a garden and it has walls around it, but it is a very small suburban
00:03:59garden.
00:04:00And it's just got an old rusting basketball hoop in it. But I do love the countryside.
00:04:07Is it a Victorian one? It was the 70s Victorian.
00:04:13No. So yeah, I love the outdoors. I really love it. And I had the opportunity last year to make
00:04:18this beautiful show, this documentary show about the islands of Ireland. It was a BBC co-production
00:04:23with one of the, with the local Irish language channel in Ireland. And it was just a great
00:04:27opportunity to visit these jewels that we have on our doorstep. As a kid, I always went to Donegal,
00:04:34which is the northwest of the country. And it's really spectacular. And undersung, I would say,
00:04:38you know, a lot of people outside Ireland don't really know Donegal. It's a bit like the Highlands
00:04:41in Scotland, in terms of its landscape and everything else. And it's got a beautiful island
00:04:46off it called Torrey Island, which I used to go to as a kid. And it's very remote and it's
00:04:50very
00:04:50inaccessible, but it's just beautiful. And I've got really fond childhood memories of going to this
00:04:54island on the, on the few occasions when boats would actually travel out to it. You can't see it most
00:04:59of the time. It's covered by mist. So it's kind of mythical and great legends associated with it.
00:05:04But 120 people live there. And both of you, in the nature of your business, I mean, travel has
00:05:10been a great part of your life, particularly for you. A lot of time in Australia when you were younger,
00:05:15and then over here. Yes, well that was part of my heritage. My family moved around because
00:05:19I was born in Italy, an Italian father and an English mother. Then we moved back to England for a
00:05:25chunk
00:05:25of my childhood, which was mostly in Sussex, right near where I live now in the South Downs. But when
00:05:32I was 15,
00:05:32we moved off to Australia and that became very much part of my life. And it's a place that I
00:05:38love.
00:05:39And partly because of that incredible landscape, that incredible nature that is more powerful and
00:05:46stronger than, than your existence as, as humans. It's the scale of Australia that astonished me.
00:05:53When you're flying across it, you go on, and on, and on, after hour, after hour, after hour, and you
00:06:00suddenly think, this is really, really big, you know, after Britain, you know, a couple of hours.
00:06:04What's extraordinary about that powerful, overwhelmingly vast landscape is that while
00:06:12it makes you feel really tiny and insignificant, it's incredibly empowering. You know, I think that's
00:06:21why so many great artists and actors come from Australia. They've got a spirit that maybe has
00:06:28been passed down through generations of hardship, particularly the women you think of in, in the
00:06:35early settlers in Victorian society, who were having to deal with, with, with what was a harsh,
00:06:41so that heat, and everything about this, this new wild place gave them a courage and a spirit.
00:06:50So, we've got to talk a bit about BAFTAs, haven't we? BAFTA's coming up. Now, I'm talking into two,
00:06:56you know, I mean, I've just sit quietly here on my own, really. BAFTA winner, over there.
00:07:00BAFTA winner, yeah, I think so. I can't remember. I certainly nominee.
00:07:03Now, come along. I can't even remember.
00:07:05Now, there's carrying modesty to you. It's a long time ago.
00:07:07I can't remember whether I won a BAFTA or not.
00:07:10Yeah, well, for the purposes of this show, yes, I've won numerous BAFTA.
00:07:15But no, I was certainly nominated for Father Ted many, many years ago, yeah.
00:07:22But it's such a, it's such a special evening in the theatrical calendar.
00:07:28Yeah, it's great. I mean, like, like for me, you know, it was the first sort of big thing I
00:07:32did on
00:07:33British TV all those years ago. And it was just like, you just pinch yourself. You're in this room
00:07:40with all these incredibly talented people, people that you've admired from your couch,
00:07:44like for a decade beforehand, and suddenly you're hobnobbing with them, you know.
00:07:50I remember my wife came with me to the first BAFTA event that I was invited to,
00:07:54and she ended up in the bathroom chatting to Joan Collins. They became great mates in the bathroom.
00:08:00She had grown up watching Joan Collins in Dynasty, you know, and there she was, like,
00:08:06swapping eye shadow with Joan Collins in the bathroom.
00:08:08You say you took her the first time, but the second time you didn't.
00:08:12Oh, well.
00:08:14She behaved too badly the first time.
00:08:15I've been there.
00:08:16What did they get up to?
00:08:18Let's talk about your BAFTA experiences.
00:08:21Well, actually, it was very early on in my career. So it was 83 that I got nominated Best Newcomer,
00:08:28in the same year as Julie Walters in her Educating Rita, so I didn't stand a chance, of course.
00:08:35But I remember it was, it wasn't such a big affair. It was much more modest back then.
00:08:42It's actually, like, it's very stressful to be nominated for anything.
00:08:45Because if you lose, it's like you're a loser.
00:08:47Well, the whole business is very stressful, I think, for young actors.
00:08:49Yeah. I'm so glad I've not had to go through that stress.
00:08:53I feel for you.
00:08:55No, not our stress. The young people today, everything about image, everything about fashion,
00:09:01and being photographed. And the actors actually have to think of that. They've got to think about
00:09:05how many followers they're going to have.
00:09:08Oh, yeah. Well, it is a little bit about how it's going to be perceived on social media the next
00:09:12day.
00:09:12Yeah, yeah. Well, none of that here. You're safe here just to enjoy it with everybody at home,
00:09:17having, getting themselves ready for lunch and much more from Greta and Adel later. Coming up,
00:09:23trustworthy, loyal and vital for any farmer. Shepherd Marian Owen and sheepdog-in-training Cassie
00:09:30return to Manor Farm for a midway school report. And word is, she's doing rather well. We'll see you
00:09:36with Marian and its protégé right after this. Greta, macaroon.
00:09:43Any colour you like. I do love these. Do you like macaroon?
00:09:46No, I'd give it a go. We're very sophisticated, eh, you know. I like one of those coconutty ones,
00:09:50of course not.
00:10:05A friend of mine, the late Kit Hesketh-Harvey, said, February is a vile little month. You're cold, fat, bored
00:10:16and broke. Well, that's one way of looking at it. But once a month, you're cold, fat, bored and broke.
00:10:20One thing I love about February is that it doesn't hang around. It's quite short, but it doesn't rush either.
00:10:26It's pared back.
00:10:27Sort of honest progress is measured in small steady steps before the growing season really kicks in.
00:10:34I always see it as one final chance to take stock ahead of the coming year to decide what changes
00:10:39to make to the garden before the warmer months.
00:10:42Coming up, ever wondered if your rosty secitus could become a pair of rabbit ears? No, me neither.
00:10:49Award-winning artist Harriet Mead on sculpting great British fauna out of old garden tools.
00:10:55And Ashley Edwards on the magic of orchids and how to help them thrive.
00:11:00But first, in the rolling hills and fields of Britain, there are few sights as impressive as the shepherd and
00:11:06his loyal sheepdog.
00:11:07These remarkable dogs have been guiding livestock for over two centuries, prized for their intelligence,
00:11:14stamina and an almost hypnotic eye that can whip a flock into shape with just one glance.
00:11:22But it's not all nature. There's a fair bit of nurture involved too.
00:11:26And it takes a certain type of trainer to ensure these canines can keep the animals in check.
00:11:32Well, I'm delighted to welcome back to Manor Farm, Border Collies, Cassie and Helen,
00:11:36who've kindly brought along their trusted human, Mary and Owen.
00:11:39Mary, lovely to have you back. Thank you.
00:11:41Well, last time you came, you brought Cassie. How old was she when she came?
00:11:44Cassie was around four months of age when we brought her last.
00:11:47Now she's 14 months of age. And she is coming on, when I say, leaps and bounds.
00:11:53At that particular age, we can say she was showing interest at that particular time.
00:11:58Yeah.
00:11:58But once you start training them and giving them those four commands and, no, she's coming on.
00:12:04And that's when you see how real the potential is, isn't it?
00:12:07Well, it is because some dogs want to work.
00:12:10But when you start training them and you are telling them, let's stop, let's go right, go left.
00:12:15Not every dog loves that.
00:12:17And as we've seen on my previous visits, Megan, unfortunately, never made the grade.
00:12:22She's still with us as a farm dog, but not really in the show team or in the competitive world.
00:12:27But I've got very, very high hopes of this young dog, Cassie.
00:12:31Now, for you to say that, because, I mean, you are at the peak of your profession.
00:12:35You know, boss of heaven knows how many sheepdog trials.
00:12:38You're hosted in the world's sheepdog trials.
00:12:41So, you know, you're the lead man in the UK.
00:12:44OK, so for you to be able to say that Cassie's got that amount of potential.
00:12:48Because at what age do you think there must be a kind of tipping point, isn't it, where this one
00:12:53is not getting any better?
00:12:54Well, I give the opportunity at about 12, 13 months of age.
00:12:57Yeah.
00:12:58Because by then, you should know, really, some dogs will come two, three years of age.
00:13:02But by the time you've trained them, they're four years of age.
00:13:05Really, they're too old, really, for the competitive world.
00:13:08We haven't got many years left with them.
00:13:09How old is Helen then?
00:13:10Helen, I was coming up to be five.
00:13:12Yeah.
00:13:12And still the number one in the team.
00:13:14Right.
00:13:15How many have you got altogether?
00:13:16I've got seven dogs altogether.
00:13:17You must be, how many times a day do you train each one?
00:13:20Well, you're trying out twice a day.
00:13:22And you've got seven.
00:13:23That's 14 times a day.
00:13:24Yeah, but you don't really class it as time-wise.
00:13:27Work.
00:13:27You enjoy taking them out.
00:13:29And part of a day, really, you go round for sheep, you check with them.
00:13:32So they're with you.
00:13:33So they actually do the work and they have the opportunity of working at the same time.
00:13:36Yes, exactly.
00:13:37So you're doing the two things at the same, the training and the work.
00:13:40So Cassie now has got, she knows her basics, left, right, stop and go.
00:13:45So what really, the next stage now, she's going to start competing in October this year.
00:13:49Oh gosh, that's quite soon.
00:13:50So what we term in the sheepdog world, nursery trials for young dogs under three.
00:13:56So what she needs now leading up to the autumn is everyday work, home on the farm, different
00:14:02experiences.
00:14:02She knows the left, she knows the right, she will go and fetch sheep.
00:14:05But it's experiences working in different terrains.
00:14:08And hopefully by the time the autumn comes, we'll try and have a little bit of success.
00:14:12Does she have good days and bad days?
00:14:13Well, in any kind of, you know, training days, not every training session goes to plan.
00:14:19But with Cassie, she seems to, when you take her out, you try and teach her something new.
00:14:25She seems to know what you're asking.
00:14:26But next time it's implanted in her.
00:14:29You should remember.
00:14:29You must get really excited when you get one.
00:14:31You think there's a little kind of light bulb moment.
00:14:34Well, you know, I could be putting pressure on myself.
00:14:36You know, it's very, but you've got a fair sense.
00:14:38I say in the competitive world, the guys who are actually top of a tree, it's one in 20,
00:14:4325 dogs passes away.
00:14:45That's really tough.
00:14:46They come to compete.
00:14:47Perhaps you'll win the occasional trial.
00:14:48Yeah.
00:14:49To be on top of your sport, it's one in 20, 25 dogs.
00:14:52To be the Olympian in the sheepdog.
00:14:54You know.
00:14:54Now, you've brought your, well, not your quack pack.
00:14:57We've had your quack pack here before, but with avian flu and whatnot, you've now got...
00:15:01Well, unfortunately, because of avian flu, and it seems to be, could be with us far more
00:15:06common than it's been in the last few years, we still get invited to go to events.
00:15:10And they tell you, Marian, can you come still do the display for us?
00:15:14But we can't bring the ducks.
00:15:16So we've adapted, really, for part of a team here.
00:15:18They are static ducks, but well behaved.
00:15:21Very, very well behaved.
00:15:23So really, with the dogs, we try and show the people how these dogs actually perform for us,
00:15:28four-lick basic commands.
00:15:29And we'll try and give them a go.
00:15:31Shall we have a go then?
00:15:32And I can't promise, I've said there's a bit of pressure on Cassie here.
00:15:36And to be fair, here, we're from home.
00:15:39It could be totally a different story here today.
00:15:41Too many smells here for you, Cassie.
00:15:42Probably too much excitement.
00:15:43And we've got, you know, Finn, who's our local one, the resident here.
00:15:48So he was a note that was a bit put out this morning.
00:15:50Well, he's been on a visit, and told these it's my spot.
00:15:55OK, what are we going to do then?
00:15:57Well, we'll go towards a pen, we'll unclip these two dogs,
00:16:00and let's see, can we get these two dogs to go round the static ducks?
00:16:03Right. That's a start. We'll get moving ones for you, Cassie, when you're a bit older.
00:16:07Right-o.
00:16:08Right.
00:16:08Let me go then.
00:16:11All right, so we're coming in here.
00:16:13Stand.
00:16:14OK.
00:16:15There we are. Let them off.
00:16:17So you've got, come by, away to me, stand, walk.
00:16:22But the whistles also, so they can then, because of the miles when they're,
00:16:26they can work a long way away, can't they?
00:16:28They'd work a quarter mile, half a mile, especially on the hill.
00:16:31Yeah, yeah.
00:16:32And the sense of hearing is ten times better than us.
00:16:37Stand.
00:16:38I can see why you're keen on her.
00:16:41Bye.
00:16:41Stand.
00:16:42And she's, you know, very alert.
00:16:44Yes.
00:16:45And she's, every command you give her, she immediately obeys you.
00:16:48Away.
00:16:49Stand.
00:16:51Bye.
00:16:52Stand.
00:16:54Stand.
00:16:54Is she tuned to your voice?
00:16:56Will it be just you?
00:16:57I mean, if I can say it, she wouldn't do it.
00:16:58I would say, because she's young, enthusiastic, she could listen to you.
00:17:03Yeah.
00:17:03Try it.
00:17:04OK.
00:17:04Stand.
00:17:04In a good Welsh accent.
00:17:06OK.
00:17:07Right, let's stop her first.
00:17:08Stand.
00:17:10Away.
00:17:11Keep saying it.
00:17:12Away.
00:17:14Away.
00:17:14More on the R.
00:17:15I'm not asking that right.
00:17:16Away.
00:17:17No, it's stand.
00:17:19Stand.
00:17:21Bye.
00:17:22Come by.
00:17:24Stand.
00:17:25I've never done this before.
00:17:27I'm so excited.
00:17:30Try again.
00:17:30One bit more.
00:17:31Away.
00:17:33Away.
00:17:33Away.
00:17:34It's more on the way.
00:17:34Away.
00:17:35Away.
00:17:35Away.
00:17:36Away.
00:17:37But she, but yeah, she knows.
00:17:39She's confused now.
00:17:39She's a little bit.
00:17:40Your voice is a little bit different.
00:17:42And she knows, hmm.
00:17:43Yeah.
00:17:43She's saying, yes, you're not worse.
00:17:45I'm sorry.
00:17:46I'm doing my best.
00:17:47Away.
00:17:48Stand.
00:17:50Away.
00:18:00No.
00:18:01Because now, I'm the lead man.
00:18:03Yeah.
00:18:04I'm the alpha.
00:18:05Head of the tribe.
00:18:06Now you're gone.
00:18:06Drama.
00:18:08Drama.
00:18:09Stand.
00:18:10Stand.
00:18:10Does it respond to Welsh as well?
00:18:11Well, that was, that was, that's enough.
00:18:14We use occasional to her.
00:18:15But if she was actually gone to you, you could say, I will do the nadi gun.
00:18:19At the same time, they'll come to adjust to your, how have you gone?
00:18:25Stand.
00:18:26What have you gone?
00:18:27How many do you have trained in your lifetime now?
00:18:31I've got no fingers to do.
00:18:33No fingers.
00:18:33We've got triple fingers though.
00:18:34Well, yes.
00:18:34Yeah.
00:18:35It's something, we've got two dogs in for training for other people at the moment.
00:18:38You know, it's something I enjoy.
00:18:40Some people get very difficult to start a young dog off, to put the left, right stand
00:18:46and walk on him.
00:18:47I find that part pretty easy.
00:18:50So you can get people bringing dogs to you, you'll do the preliminary training and then send
00:18:55them off and back there and then they can take the dogs further on.
00:18:58Yeah.
00:18:59You know, everybody, I've been very fortunate.
00:19:00Father was a sheepdog trainer.
00:19:02Grandfather was a sheepdog trainer.
00:19:03It's been a way of life and I still miss father because he was one of the top sheepdog trainers.
00:19:08He was, I know, watching him on one of my list.
00:19:10I was still traveling there a council.
00:19:11Yeah.
00:19:12I think, ooh, what, you know, in that situation,
00:19:15what would father recommend to tell me today what to do?
00:19:18Yeah, that's the, yeah.
00:19:18I think we've, she's, she's gone AWOL.
00:19:21Here we go.
00:19:22Nothing you got?
00:19:22Cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss.
00:19:25Cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, cuss, stand.
00:19:29You're allowed a bit of time off for being good, well done.
00:19:32Well done.
00:19:32Stand.
00:19:33Marion, always a delight to be with us.
00:19:35Thank you ever so much.
00:19:36Do come back again with or without dots.
00:19:38And we'd like to keep an eye on Cassie.
00:19:39Well, yeah, you do too.
00:19:40Let us know how you're doing all too.
00:19:41We certainly will.
00:19:42And we wish you all the best.
00:19:43We'll be rooting for you.
00:19:44We'll have your rosette on us.
00:19:46Wonderful.
00:19:46Thanks a lot.
00:19:47Thanks, guys.
00:19:48Thank you, Helen.
00:19:49Thank you, Cassie.
00:19:50Come back.
00:19:51Still to come, Ardle O'Hanlon on surprising himself with success in shows like Death in Paradise,
00:19:57Father Ted, and Derry Girls.
00:20:13Welcome back to Love Your Weekend.
00:20:15Coming up, you can tell Midlife is having a moment when two of the sexiest stars of the
00:20:19eighties come together on screen as oldies, hitting the open road to a soundtrack of Bangers
00:20:24by Blondie and the percussive clink of a case of Australian white in their motorhome mini-fridge.
00:20:30Greta Skaggy on the crime-busting couple thrown together after a chance meeting in the hit series
00:20:36Derby and Joan.
00:20:38And inspired by the natural world around her, we meet the sculptor who turns old scrap and
00:20:42metal into incredible works of art.
00:20:44But first, we've all had them.
00:20:46A house guest from Hell, if you think you've had it bad, spare a thought for the Quinn McColl family
00:20:52when Eamon, an awkward middle-aged mummy's boy, comes to stay.
00:20:56You've some set of legs on you.
00:20:58Do you think so, sir?
00:20:59Oh, aye.
00:21:00Tell us, do you exfoliate?
00:21:02Not as far as I'm aware.
00:21:03Well, they're a gift, Eamon.
00:21:05May God give you good off them.
00:21:07Would you like a bowl of porridge, Eamon?
00:21:09And make a raven?
00:21:10I would, surely.
00:21:11Now, Gerry, I had a bit of bother with the bathroom door.
00:21:14It was sticking there.
00:21:15No worries, Eamon.
00:21:16I'll see you later.
00:21:17Great stuff.
00:21:22Just leave it here, then.
00:21:25Right, I'd better pop up and pull on me, so.
00:21:30What in the name?
00:21:32Don't start, Gerry.
00:21:33When is he leaving?
00:21:33Have a bit of sympathy.
00:21:34The fellas route fell in.
00:21:35Yeah, well, I'm starting to think he might have had a hand in that.
00:21:37He's got a cousin.
00:21:38We can't just throw him out in the street.
00:21:40Especially not since Mary killed his mother.
00:21:42I did not kill his mother.
00:21:43I'm at the end of me rope.
00:21:44The man is a liability.
00:21:45He's not that badly.
00:21:48Gerry, I think you better come up and take a look at this.
00:21:52Well.
00:21:53Be right with you, Eamon.
00:21:56Quick whip, physical comedy.
00:21:58And you only did it for the costumes, didn't you?
00:22:00That's it, yeah, yeah.
00:22:01Derry Girl seems to have taken over in our affections for Irish comedy from your original Father Ted, really.
00:22:07I mean, it's been a great hit.
00:22:09Yeah, it was good fun to do.
00:22:10I only did a few tiny bits in it, but I always loved it.
00:22:14And the writer of Derry Girls has written a new show called How to Get to Heaven from Belfast.
00:22:19Right.
00:22:19And I turn up on that from time to time as well.
00:22:22It's coming out on Netflix quite soon, I think.
00:22:23But you're also going back to your roots.
00:22:25I mean, you started to stand up.
00:22:26Yeah.
00:22:27And you're going out doing more stand up now, which I imagine now that more people know you,
00:22:32it's really rather nice having seen you in Death in Paradise and Father Ted and whatnot.
00:22:35But from the early days of stand up, when it must have been really hard, is there a degree more
00:22:41comfort for you?
00:22:42Yeah, I don't know why they come to see me, but they come.
00:22:45I'll tell you later.
00:22:45I don't bet them.
00:22:47But they come for all sorts of different reasons, as you suggest.
00:22:50Yeah, very different from the early days.
00:22:52And I used to deliberately pick out the hardest venues to play when I was starting out as a comedian.
00:22:56Like, I was quite a nervous, shy person.
00:23:00I don't know why I chose to do stand up, but I used to do everything.
00:23:04I used to do prisons. I used to do anything I was asked to do.
00:23:08Just because then, you know, when you do a show 20 years later, you think,
00:23:11well, it's not as bad as that one I did in the prison all those years ago.
00:23:14But I love it now more than ever.
00:23:16And I don't know if that's an age thing or whether you just don't,
00:23:19as you get a little bit older, you don't care quite as much what people think about you.
00:23:25And, you know, you kind of relish every moment on stage, I think.
00:23:29Writing now though, I mean, you've written two novels already.
00:23:31Third one now, coming out of London, a plot to die for.
00:23:36Yes.
00:23:36About a celebrity gardener.
00:23:38I know. I knew you would love it.
00:23:40Where you got that idea, I don't know.
00:23:41I know, I know. Not based on anyone living or dead.
00:23:46But it is about a celebrity gardener who's Irish, who had a good career in the UK on radio and
00:23:52TV.
00:23:53And he's coming back to Ireland to his hometown to help care for his elderly mother.
00:23:59And his name is Finn O'Leary. He's a little bit, you know, he's very good at his job.
00:24:05He uses his sort of horticultural knowledge and skills to, you know, help solve murders.
00:24:11But you actually get a mention in it.
00:24:13Do I?
00:24:13Yeah, I know.
00:24:15I couldn't believe it.
00:24:16I was thinking like, you know, what do I talk about the book?
00:24:19And then I remembered there was a mention of you in this.
00:24:22Would you like me to read a tiny little bit of it?
00:24:24Go on, go on.
00:24:25So this is him.
00:24:26I think I would.
00:24:27He's just arrived home.
00:24:28His mother's had a very bad fall.
00:24:29Yeah.
00:24:30And she's in recovery.
00:24:31And she's got a carer who's originally from Nigeria called Happiness.
00:24:33And his mother's called Maura.
00:24:35Now, the carer has taken an instant dislike to this guy, Finn.
00:24:40For reasons that will become apparent when you read the book.
00:24:42But so this is a tiny bit.
00:24:43So this is the first week he's home.
00:24:45Happiness had brought her a vermouth spritz.
00:24:47It was garnished with a twist of orange peel and a sprig of rosemary from the next door neighbour's garden.
00:24:53He could tell.
00:24:54This is Finn.
00:24:55He could tell the rosemary was from Birx because of the noodle of golden retriever hair caught in the needles.
00:25:00Very good detective, you see.
00:25:02I'm just going to skip a little bit here.
00:25:04We got the recipe on Alan Thingy, Titmouse.
00:25:07It took a few moments for Finn to realise his mother was referring to the vermouth.
00:25:12Titchmarsh, Finn said, the name of a bitter rival setting his teeth on edge.
00:25:17He's very good.
00:25:18Not quite as good as you, love, but he's very funny.
00:25:21There was a lot to unpack in that speech, enough to keep a therapist and work for years.
00:25:25Finn wasn't quite sure if it was supposed to be a compliment or not.
00:25:28I prefer Titchmarsh, happiness declared firmly.
00:25:31He was absolutely sure that was not a compliment.
00:25:35I shall have it bound.
00:25:39Did you have fun doing it?
00:25:40I had such fun writing it.
00:25:42Yeah.
00:25:42Like, there's tremendous fun to be had in bumping people off.
00:25:46Yeah.
00:25:47That was my favourite part of it.
00:25:49But I loved the whole creating a world from scratch, you know.
00:25:53And being completely in control of it.
00:25:55Completely in control.
00:25:56All these colourful characters, this town, there's a great rivalry.
00:26:00There's some pretty good murders, if I say so myself.
00:26:03Do you plot carefully before you start?
00:26:05Yeah, with this one, I did.
00:26:07Like, with my previous two novels, there were more the conventional sort of literary novels,
00:26:10I suppose, I didn't.
00:26:12They were more organic.
00:26:13This was something that I really thought I need a road map here.
00:26:16So I did kind of plot it out kind of loosely.
00:26:19But I had great fun once I got going.
00:26:22Like, it kind of flowed in a way that most things don't for me, you know.
00:26:25But this really did.
00:26:27And it's kind of funny and it's kind of romantic.
00:26:30There's a big romance in the middle of it, a will-they-won't-they type of romance.
00:26:34But ultimately, it is a celebration of a mother-son relationship, family, community,
00:26:39all those beautiful things.
00:26:41And a contrast to working in television.
00:26:44Yeah.
00:26:45Huge contrast.
00:26:46The solitude of writing, a nice character point to getting out.
00:26:50Yeah, yeah.
00:26:50I love spending time at home as well.
00:26:52But travelling too.
00:26:53We talked a little bit earlier about travelling.
00:26:54And of course, you did a good session of travelling out to an island called Guadeloupe,
00:26:58which masquerades as an island called Saint Marie in Death in Paradise.
00:27:05Inspector, you made a decision?
00:27:10Yes, I have, sir.
00:27:13So?
00:27:14Well, I won't be gone travelling.
00:27:18But I will be leaving Saint Marie.
00:27:24You see, a good friend of mine told me that he'd never felt the need to go and search for
00:27:30anything.
00:27:32The only thing he'd regret is if he missed out on the wonderful life he'd had.
00:27:39You're going home.
00:27:41I am.
00:27:44You came to us as a virtual stranger, but please know,
00:27:48you leave having gained the respect and affection of the whole island.
00:27:55You will be greatly missed.
00:27:58Thank you, sir.
00:28:03Was it as emotional as it looked?
00:28:06I mean, you know, you've been there for quite a while.
00:28:07Don Warrington has gone through all those series.
00:28:09I know.
00:28:10And his catchphrase has sort of become inspector, hasn't he?
00:28:14Three solid syllables there.
00:28:16Yeah.
00:28:16And he says so much.
00:28:17He's just brilliant.
00:28:18He's brilliant.
00:28:18I miss him more than anything, actually.
00:28:20I love Don and we're still very good friends.
00:28:24But yeah, that was kind of a bromance, actually.
00:28:26Like it always starts off with the new detective and, you know, very, very wary around the inspector.
00:28:32But eventually, you know, the inspector softens.
00:28:34And by the end, as you can see, the inspector is almost as cheerful as I am.
00:28:39What did it mean logistically for you?
00:28:41How long did you go out?
00:28:42Because it's Guadalupe it's filmed on, isn't it?
00:28:44Yeah, Guadalupe.
00:28:44Yeah.
00:28:45You go out for how long at a time?
00:28:46You'd be out for about like six months of the year.
00:28:49Wow.
00:28:49Yeah, it's a commitment.
00:28:52But I did love it and I kind of, you know, I'm kind of in one way glad I don't
00:28:57have to do it now because it's like it's grueling.
00:29:00Yeah.
00:29:01But I look back on it very fondly.
00:29:04Like it was a great adventure apart from anything else, as well as being like a, you know, a challenging
00:29:08acting job.
00:29:10And also a different group of co-stars coming out every few weeks.
00:29:14Yeah, I used to love that.
00:29:15Who's coming this week?
00:29:16Exactly, like some of your heroes, like some people that you grew up with.
00:29:20Like I remember Simon Callow coming out and thinking, Simon Callow's coming out, brilliant.
00:29:25You know, and all these great, great people, Nigel Plainer, I remember, Ed Edmondson.
00:29:30I used to love the young ones.
00:29:31So for two of them to come out in the space of the year, like was incredible.
00:29:35Rebecca Front, all these people, these comedy legends, these people I adored.
00:29:40And then you'd also get like the hot shots, the up and coming people who have gone on to Hollywood
00:29:44now in the meantime, you know, but like then we got them raw, you know, and because you take
00:29:51great pride in the island, because I've been there for a few years and, you know, you get to love
00:29:55it
00:29:55and you can't wait to show it off to them.
00:29:57So on the rare days off, you'd bring them to some waterfall that only you know about
00:30:02or to some boiling hot part of the sea, like where the volcano, you know, heats the water.
00:30:08Yeah, so, you know, that side of it, I really, really loved the way we got to know you right
00:30:14at the beginning, which must have been a transition from from stand up to but Father Ted.
00:30:21I mean, it was an absolute ground shaker, wasn't it?
00:30:24That series quite remarkable.
00:30:26Let's have a look at a little bit Father Ted.
00:30:29Dougal, I just wanted to say, yeah, I know sometimes I'm a little short with you.
00:30:34Sometimes I'm not as patient as I should be. But you know, in the end, we're the best of friends.
00:30:41What do you mean?
00:30:45I'm just trying to say, I know sometimes I act like maybe you get my nerves, but
00:30:50I suppose secretly, I think it's quite funny.
00:30:52What's funny?
00:30:54You know, the way you mix things up and sometimes you don't get what's going on.
00:31:00Who are you talking about again?
00:31:03It's you.
00:31:04What about me?
00:31:06I'm just trying to say, Dougal, I like you.
00:31:10Thanks very much. Who are you saying that to?
00:31:12You! I just said it there!
00:31:16Hey, we're on a plane!
00:31:19It's so off the wall, isn't it? I mean, you and Dermot Morgan are a sad loss there,
00:31:25bouncing off each other beautifully. I mean, you're not going to tell me that wasn't fun to make.
00:31:30Oh, it was amazing. It was also the first proper thing I'd ever done. I'd done a few tiny little
00:31:35cameo roles on TV shows before that, but that was the first proper decent part I ever had.
00:31:43And every day I went in, I was pinching myself. I just loved it. It was just great fun to
00:31:47do.
00:31:47It was like, it was a giddy kind of, you know, it was like a school trip or something.
00:31:52Was it frightening to be launched into that?
00:31:54Not really, not really. Like I was very much a, like a jobbing standup at the time and really enjoying
00:31:59it. You know, I'd moved to England. I was living in London, traveling up and down the country,
00:32:05gigging every night. And, and I suppose like, you know, it was just a novelty then like being,
00:32:10oh, don't want me to be in a sitcom. I'll give this a go, you know, but you know, my
00:32:15real job was out
00:32:15there on treading the boards. So it was just, it was great. And you know, it endures to this day.
00:32:22Did you have, has it always been comedy? I mean, there's drama in there as well, but it's all,
00:32:27there's always this underlying amusement or comedy. Comedy is what I always go back to,
00:32:31you know, you feel so powerless so much at the time, you know, and no one listens to me at
00:32:37home
00:32:37like, or anything. And, but for that hour and a half on stage, I've got everybody's attention.
00:32:42I control the narrative and you get to say all those things that you can't say at home.
00:32:47And there is no finer feeling than trying, than waiting for an audience to stop laughing.
00:32:53Yeah. In that great moment.
00:32:54Yeah. No, it's, it's, it's, it's joyful, you know, and, and I do treasure every moment on stage,
00:33:00you know, you, you know, treat every show as if it could be your last.
00:33:03Lovely to talk to you and good luck with a plot to die for.
00:33:07Oh, and thank you for the mention. I think you said 50 quid to put my name in the book,
00:33:11didn't you?
00:33:11Right. Okay. Centuries ago, artists like Gainsborough and Constable and Turner captured the drama,
00:33:19beauty and scale of the British landscape with oil and watercolour. That's before
00:33:24Adler was doing it on the box. Today, the subjects remain as beautiful as they were 300 years ago,
00:33:30but the medium is a lot more high tech thanks to cameras and smartphones.
00:33:35It's time to see some of those now in your walk on the wild side.
00:33:40So,
00:33:44where did you come from?
00:33:49Yeah.
00:34:01Yeah.
00:34:04Yeah.
00:34:06Yeah.
00:36:47And you're clearly a fan of orchids.
00:36:49I'm in my element here.
00:36:50I'm feeling like the dark days of February are being lit up by these tropical orchids,
00:36:55so really exciting.
00:36:56Because although we can get Phalaenopsis, the moth orchid, all year round now, this is
00:36:59the prime time for many orchids to flower, isn't it?
00:37:02January, February, March.
00:37:03Absolutely.
00:37:04That early spring.
00:37:04And a lot of people would have got them as Christmas presents as well.
00:37:07So now we need to think about how do we care for them.
00:37:10And we've got a good selection of the most common ones you would find here.
00:37:13I'm going to start with the Phalaenopsis.
00:37:15And this is also known as a moth orchid.
00:37:17You can find it everywhere.
00:37:19Most shops, even supermarkets will have these.
00:37:21But they are a warm orchid.
00:37:24So if you've got a cold house, not for you.
00:37:26Not really.
00:37:27But central eating, just a job.
00:37:28Exactly.
00:37:28So if you've got a warm spot, they like humidity as well.
00:37:31So in the wild, they're an epiphyte.
00:37:33That means they grow on trees.
00:37:34They don't have soil around them.
00:37:36They cling on to the bark of trees.
00:37:37So they like high humidity.
00:37:39They absorb moisture through their roots as well.
00:37:41They hate sitting in standing water.
00:37:43So that's one thing to remember.
00:37:44So always drain them.
00:37:45Absolutely.
00:37:46And watering, not as often as you would think.
00:37:49Yeah.
00:37:49I think a lot of the time people kill them with kindness and water them too often.
00:37:53So once a week maximum in the winter, maybe even once every two weeks.
00:37:58So yeah, phalaenopsis, easy to look after.
00:37:59Good for beginners as a first orchid.
00:38:02Then we have the dendrobiums, which are very attractive.
00:38:05They've got this form where they almost look like a bamboo stalk coming up.
00:38:09They're really thick stems, aren't they?
00:38:10Really thick stems.
00:38:11And they use those to hold water.
00:38:13So again, they don't want to be oversaturated because these will rot really easily.
00:38:18Then they're a bit of a cooler orchid.
00:38:20So they don't like being near a radiator.
00:38:22But at the same time, don't trap them behind cold windows, behind a curtain.
00:38:27Yeah.
00:38:27Yeah.
00:38:28So really beautiful.
00:38:30A showstopper.
00:38:31They'll flower for ages and ages.
00:38:33Well, look at what's got to come there on the top of these cairns.
00:38:35You've got so many buds.
00:38:36And then you can see at the bottom here, that is next year's flowering shoot.
00:38:41They're an astonishing thing.
00:38:43Lift it out so they'll have a proper look.
00:38:44Chuck it over here and I'll hold it up.
00:38:47Have a look at that.
00:38:48And you can see that they are amazing, aren't they?
00:38:50For a start, these really thick stems.
00:38:52And then here's, as Ashley says, this new shoot coming up will be the replacement.
00:38:57Exactly.
00:38:58And they're quite fragile and brittle and they're like that.
00:39:00Yeah, you have to be careful with these.
00:39:02The other thing to think about is, unlike the phalaenopsis, you don't cut these stems back
00:39:07after flowering because these are their main photosynthesizing stems, so you weaken the
00:39:11plant over time.
00:39:12You're talking about cutting back the phalaenopsis, but not entirely when the flowers...
00:39:16No, you wouldn't want to cut them entirely, so you would want to take them back.
00:39:20Let's lift this one out so we can see the nodes.
00:39:23So the nodes are these bumps on the stems.
00:39:25Yeah, you can see them here.
00:39:26Exactly.
00:39:26And that's where the new flowering stems next year will come out.
00:39:29So when your flowers finish, you want to cut those stems back to about two bumps, two
00:39:35nodes on the stem, just above a node.
00:39:37And then next year, hopefully, you'll get flowers.
00:39:39They'll flower from there.
00:39:40So we've got phalaenopsis, the moth orchid, warm.
00:39:42We've got dendrobium, cool.
00:39:44Yep.
00:39:45And then we've got a hybrid orchid here, which is cambria.
00:39:48You see, I don't know cambria.
00:39:50This is obviously quite new, two different orchid genera cross, maybe even three.
00:39:55It's an elegant flower, though, isn't it?
00:39:57It's quite starry.
00:39:58And the amazing thing about this is it has a scent.
00:40:00It's almost like a vanillary, floral scent.
00:40:02It's really delicate.
00:40:03But if you have them in a room, it will fill that whole room of scent.
00:40:07Right.
00:40:07So that's the cambria, which is new to me.
00:40:10But then this is the corker, isn't it?
00:40:12The really big, spectacular orchid, the cymbidium.
00:40:14This is an amazing plant.
00:40:15Yeah, cymbidium.
00:40:16I mean, you can't get more exotic than that, can you?
00:40:19That is a real showstopper.
00:40:20You've got them down here as well.
00:40:21I mean, they're amazing.
00:40:22But these are cool orchids.
00:40:23If you've got a really cool house, these are for you.
00:40:26Yeah.
00:40:26These are cool orchids.
00:40:27They can be tricky to re-flower.
00:40:31What you need to do is when the stems have finished flowering.
00:40:34So this one here, you can see this is an old flowering stem here.
00:40:37Shall I take that cane out?
00:40:39Take that cane out.
00:40:39And you can see the stem properly.
00:40:41And so, unlike phalaenopsis, which you take back to two buds, the cymbidium, you cut right
00:40:47back down to the base.
00:40:48Because you can see it's dead.
00:40:49I mean, that's not going to produce any more flowers.
00:40:51And then you'll get a new flower spike.
00:40:53And the best thing to do, really, is put them outside in the summer.
00:40:56So as long as the temperatures are around 10 degrees on the night.
00:40:59Not too much scorching sun, though.
00:41:00No.
00:41:00It'll be a sort of dappled light.
00:41:01Exactly, yeah.
00:41:02But aren't they spectacular?
00:41:03They're amazing.
00:41:04Now, this one's rather special.
00:41:05This one is Charlotte.
00:41:06And it's this lovely burgundy red kind of freckles.
00:41:08So is this after Princess Charlotte?
00:41:09I think it might be.
00:41:10Yeah.
00:41:11Yeah.
00:41:11And then the greeny-yellow one there.
00:41:13I love that, yeah.
00:41:15And really huge floral flowers.
00:41:17They look quite sturdy, but they are delicate flowers.
00:41:20But beautiful and sort of sammy-pink.
00:41:22They're mouth-watering, the cymbidiums.
00:41:23They are.
00:41:23There's some kind of vulgar about them, really.
00:41:26But I always think if, in the old days, you'd have a lady with a big mink stole and she'd
00:41:30have a cymbidium as a corsage on the left bosom.
00:41:33Yes.
00:41:34Very elegant.
00:41:34With the diamonds as well.
00:41:36But they just have a great atmosphere about them.
00:41:39What about feeding?
00:41:40So feeding, you can get specialist orchid feeds.
00:41:42You can get them as a liquid that you would dilute.
00:41:46Again, not too often.
00:41:47Only when they're flowering, really.
00:41:49Yeah.
00:41:49And you can also get drip feeds that will go into the compost.
00:41:53And that will slowly release feed into them.
00:41:56But little and often is better than big doses.
00:41:59Now, what about repotting?
00:42:00You've got a pot, though.
00:42:01You've got some chipped bark here.
00:42:02Orchid compost is quite special, isn't it?
00:42:05Particularly, as you say, for the epiphytes.
00:42:07Because there are terrestrial orchids that grow in very organic earth.
00:42:11And our own.
00:42:12We've got orchids that grow wild in this country.
00:42:14We have native orchids.
00:42:14But these epiphytic orchids, like Phalaenopsis, they need the bark compost.
00:42:19They need really loose, draining compost.
00:42:21Bark is what they want to grow in, really.
00:42:24Anything else and the roots will just rot away.
00:42:26Yeah.
00:42:26So what you need to do with Phalaenopsis, you don't really need to pot them up that often.
00:42:31But every kind of two years, two to three years, when you start to see the roots really
00:42:36congesting in here and coming out the top, you think, okay, it's time to pot it on.
00:42:41But you only want to go slightly larger.
00:42:43You can see that's not much bigger than that.
00:42:45You wouldn't double it or anything.
00:42:46Because, again, sitting in wet media, they're not going to like that.
00:42:50So we're going to take this out very gently.
00:42:53Look at that.
00:42:54So this is all the old stuff.
00:42:56That's all the old roots.
00:42:57You knock that all off.
00:42:58We can take as much of this off as we want.
00:43:00Yeah.
00:43:00If you've got any really brown or yellowing roots, you could trim them off.
00:43:03I'm going to leave those because they're green at the ends.
00:43:05But if you've got any dead roots, you can trim those.
00:43:07Yeah, there aren't any dead ones there, aren't there?
00:43:08It's really quite healthy.
00:43:09A little bit of a squidgy one there.
00:43:10So you can take something like that off.
00:43:12Nip that off.
00:43:13You could take that one off because it's got a bit of a rot in it.
00:43:16And then you want to kind of, okay, judge where you're going to go with this.
00:43:20Let's put a bit of one to start with.
00:43:22Right, so let's see if we can get these stems in here.
00:43:24Shall I help?
00:43:25It's almost a two-man job, isn't it?
00:43:26Yeah.
00:43:26Just holding that up.
00:43:27And then we'll give it a shake.
00:43:30And we want to really get it in there so it's stable.
00:43:32But that's great.
00:43:33So every couple of years.
00:43:34That's kind of what you want to do.
00:43:35You can see the roots are still there.
00:43:37They're able to get to the light.
00:43:38We're going to water this.
00:43:39I'm going to show you the best way to water it.
00:43:41We're going to get our bucket here.
00:43:43And really, you want to be able to...
00:43:46This is rainwater.
00:43:47Oh, it's best.
00:43:48Collect it.
00:43:49But if you can use rainwater, that is the best for these.
00:43:52If you can't, then leave some water out to become tepid.
00:43:56I would like to say at this point, it is raining on all of us.
00:43:58Therefore, we should all be able to collect rainwater.
00:44:01Let's bug it out the back door and keep your little water in count.
00:44:04Talk with it.
00:44:05We can all do rainwater.
00:44:05Exactly that.
00:44:05And all your houseplants will benefit from rainwater.
00:44:08So, we're going to give it a water.
00:44:10Give it a really good soak, but make sure you let all that water drain out.
00:44:14So, don't let your orchids sit in water.
00:44:17That's the worst thing.
00:44:18It runs right the way through.
00:44:19And you can see the roots.
00:44:21You want them to look fleshy and green.
00:44:23That's when you know it's had a really good soak.
00:44:25So, drain it before you put it back in its pot hideout.
00:44:29Let it drain off.
00:44:30And that's all there is to it, really.
00:44:32That's all there is to it.
00:44:33They look very delicate, but with a few simple tips, you can grow them.
00:44:38Nothing is difficult to grow if you give it what it wants.
00:44:41All plants want to grow.
00:44:42It's up to us not to get in the way, don't you think?
00:44:45Yeah.
00:44:45Wonderful.
00:44:46Thanks, Ashley.
00:44:47A delightful selection.
00:44:48If you thought all orchids were the same, they're all moth orchids that you get at the super...
00:44:52They're not.
00:44:53What a collection.
00:44:54And you can build up your growing skills until you get...
00:44:57You could start with a phalaenopsis and work your way all the way up to the semidium.
00:45:00Work your way through the orchid kingdom.
00:45:01I think it's the largest plant family in the world.
00:45:03Yeah, it is.
00:45:03It's one of the most diverse as well and one of the most recently evolved plant families.
00:45:08So, it was actually quite new in the fossil record.
00:45:10Yeah.
00:45:10Wonderful.
00:45:11Thanks, Ashley.
00:45:12Great pleasure.
00:45:18Now, in spite of the challenges they face,
00:45:21Small farms play a vital role in the UK, forming the backbone of British agriculture.
00:45:26And as you know, this year and every year, Love You Weekend is championing the young farmers
00:45:32picking up the mantle.
00:45:34Today, someone who's become a regular at Manor Farm and whose journey we've been following
00:45:38from the beginning, Flavian Obiero.
00:45:41Far from making a pig's ear of it, this farm is flourishing.
00:45:45We went back to visit this inspiring young farmer to see just how far he's come.
00:45:53Heel, heel, heel, stay there, stay there, stay there, hold it on fire.
00:46:02So, last time you were here was nearly two years ago.
00:46:06The lack of fencing, that was our biggest problem.
00:46:09And the pigs were getting out all the time, getting into neighbours' gardens.
00:46:12Steady, steady, steady, steady, steady.
00:46:15Ah, it caused a bit of grief.
00:46:16Steady, Rexy, here, here.
00:46:18Because we've only been here now, coming up ten months.
00:46:20So, hopefully, in two years' time, we won't be doing all these nonsense that we've done.
00:46:24Oh, no.
00:46:25Rexy, push them back, get them back, Rexy.
00:46:28But now, we've spent a fair chunk of money to fence these two paddocks.
00:46:33The cost of the two paddocks is about 1100 packs of sausages.
00:46:38It's quite handy.
00:46:39We've taken away that stress of pigs constantly getting out and spending half an hour, an hour,
00:46:44two hours fixing fences to get them back in, which means I can do other things.
00:46:49I've become more of a butcher than a farmer at the moment,
00:46:51because that side of the business is getting quite busy.
00:46:53So, we still have Tamworth pigs and a few Tamworth cross saddleback in the herd.
00:46:59And compared to when we started with 74, we've almost doubled the number of pigs.
00:47:05More pigs means more work, more mouths to feed.
00:47:08In the summer, you can probably bed up once a week.
00:47:10Yeah, winter sometimes, two, three times a week.
00:47:12But when it rains, like it has been, daily even sometimes.
00:47:16The farming industry is lacking in new talent or younger farmers.
00:47:21So, I think any opportunity we get as an industry to attract people to come and work,
00:47:25we should take it with both hands.
00:47:27Another big change we've got on the farm is that now I have a regular right-hand man, Caleb.
00:47:33Caleb isn't from a farming background like me.
00:47:36I was given the opportunity when I was Caleb's age, back in 2010, and I'm just doing the same back.
00:47:43So, I'm just checking the fences here, because these guys are really good at escaping.
00:47:49I see a lot of similarities in Caleb from when I first started in farming, because we're both not
00:47:53from farming background. And as the saying goes, when Caleb started, he was as green as a box of avocados.
00:48:02So, when I started, I couldn't quite do fences very well, wouldn't connect them properly.
00:48:08And with the pigs, I wouldn't be able to feed them so much on my own. I'd need a bit
00:48:13of Flavian's help.
00:48:14And yeah, he's been like a great mentor, bringing me up and helping me learn around the farm, so I
00:48:20can
00:48:20work independently of him and also work amazingly with him as well.
00:48:24He's definitely come a very long way. I asked him to fence a paddock a few weeks back, and I
00:48:29was impressed
00:48:29that he did more than I expected him to do.
00:48:31He clearly really enjoys teaching me and building me up in there. But now I'm confident in working
00:48:38with the pigs. I know their dynamics. I know their personalities. And through going to agriculture
00:48:43college, this has given me the opportunity to get into the world of farming.
00:48:47It's quite a good workout, through the shoulder steps.
00:48:49I think the thing that makes our pork special, I try and look after them as close to how they
00:48:56would be
00:48:56in the wild. I don't feed at a particular time every day, because they wouldn't be getting food
00:49:02at the same time every day in the wild. So it stops things like anticipatory behaviour.
00:49:09So this is fodder beet. Say it's like sugar beet's cousin. This is quite high in fibre. It's quite sweet
00:49:17as well. And it takes them a while to get through it. Whereas when they eat the pellets, they just
00:49:23eat
00:49:23that and that's it done. Whereas with this, they have to manoeuvre it. The bigger bits,
00:49:27some of them use their trotters to pull it back and eat. So for an animal that's quite inquisitive
00:49:33and intelligent, it gives them something to do.
00:49:39Now we service the local community. So we open the butcher, or we call it a pop-up shop,
00:49:46at weekends and locals come and buy their produce. And we also do markets in London
00:49:51at the weekend and sell online. As people say, farm to fork is such a good way to show people
00:49:57where their food comes from. And we even have schools visiting the farm. We're making a success,
00:50:02definitely, with the growth. But I think I would say, probably another year,
00:50:06are we going to make a profit.
00:50:07Rexie, up on the truck, up!
00:50:10Good boy.
00:50:14Thank you, Flavian and Caleb. An inspiring story, isn't it? And we'll see you back here
00:50:19at Manor Farm very soon. Coming up, she's been described as everything from a 1930s siren to a
00:50:25French cinema noir vamp. Screen legend Greta Skaki on swapping life in Hollywood for a gentler pace in
00:50:33rural Sussex. And you don't need the right tool for the job, just an old one. Harriet Meade on
00:50:40turning used garden implements into art. I'll see you with our metal sculptor and more. What's after this?
00:51:00Welcome back. Still ahead, she's the iconic Australian-Italian actress with a television
00:51:06and film career spanning more than four decades. And credits including Heat and Dust, Presumed Innocent,
00:51:12and the player Greta Skaki on how later life has given her a whole new raison d'etre. But first,
00:51:19if you've wanted to capture nature in all its beauty, you're likely to turn to classic media like pencils,
00:51:25watercolours or cameras. But what about sculpting them out of old metal and rusty garden tools?
00:51:32My next guest does just that, producing intricate British creatures that can take years to bring to life.
00:51:40Here to show us the fine art of scrap metal sculpting. Harriet Meade. Welcome, Harriet.
00:51:46Hello.
00:51:47I look at these and think, how on earth? Because they are what they're meant to be.
00:51:52And it really is just every old bit of scrap iron then.
00:51:56Yes, I like to think I've infused some of the character and the nature of the animal that I've created.
00:52:01But instead of using brush strokes, as you were mentioning earlier, I'm using pieces of metal to
00:52:06create those lines in the drawn sculpture. And when you see a piece of metal, do you instantly see
00:52:10the part of the anatomy of the creature you're about to create? Because they fit so beautifully.
00:52:14Well, I think I've got so much scrap that I've got so many things to choose from,
00:52:19so I'm constantly picking it up. It's a little bit like when you have an eye test and they say,
00:52:21is it this one or this one that's clearer? Oh, yeah.
00:52:24And I offer these pieces up and look. But yeah, I've got so many things. And then,
00:52:27obviously, there's some pieces that naturally lead themselves to a particular part of an animal. But,
00:52:32uh, but yeah, basically anything goes, as you'll see. Let's have a look at these. I mean, they are
00:52:38absolutely remarkable. Now, I recognise this Scottish bird. Yeah, with Capacayli. Capacayli.
00:52:43There aren't many of them down here. No. So, what have you made this one from? I can see a
00:52:48trowel.
00:52:49Yes, absolutely. And actually, to give you a hint, it's, I like to title the sculptures with
00:52:54something that's in part of them. So, this is called Shear Capacayli. So, where are the shears?
00:52:57Yeah, these are the old-fashioned shears and that's the hole in the middle. So, that's the hinge point.
00:53:02Yeah. So, the tip of the shears is down there. Yeah. And this is a half-moon edging iron,
00:53:07as I call them. And you've got horseshoes and this is all circular saw blades. And because they
00:53:13have this amazing red mark above their eye, I actually managed to find a pair of scissors
00:53:16that were already red. I never paint them. I always, if I have colour in them, I try and use
00:53:20a piece
00:53:20of scrap that has the right colour. And they're welded together. All welded together. I use a
00:53:24mig welder. So, yeah. So, they're quite sturdy. This is particularly heavy, this one.
00:53:29But the amount of life you've got in them, they're not static. I mean, look at this hair,
00:53:33which is bounding along. And that's what's so wonderful about making them out of welded
00:53:37metal is that welding is extraordinarily strong and so is the steel. So, I wouldn't be able to make
00:53:42this in bronze without it having some kind of, you certainly wouldn't be able to carve this in stone.
00:53:46Yeah, exactly. So, I can just weld that onto this shovel. And I love the fact that the spade is
00:53:52about the earth and it's on the base. So, yeah. I found myself spotting things. You've got a pair
00:53:57of pliers here. There's a spanner there. Yep, spanner heads. Again, a bit more of a saw there.
00:54:04Yeah. And then these, one of the things I use the most are actually pliers and plier handles. So,
00:54:09they're really lovely curves. You would not believe the variation in handles between one set of pliers
00:54:14and another. Love your falcon here. Yeah, this is actually a hobby. And just to get the detail.
00:54:20I mean, welding is quite a brutal thing to actually use tiny scissors and tiny pairs of pliers. You can
00:54:25melt it away to nothing. So, it's really quite hard work doing these more detailed pieces. And the wings
00:54:30and the standard sickles. Yes. And I think it's really important when it comes to sculpture. You really
00:54:37have to think about how it's, the physicality of it and how it's going to stand up. And so, for
00:54:41me,
00:54:41you'll notice that none of them are on bases that I haven't thought about. Or, I've tried to create
00:54:46them so they stand up on their own by using weights and things within them. When we look at the
00:54:50other
00:54:50sculptures, I can show that to you as well. They are wonderful. But yeah, I just love it.
00:54:53Well, let's come and have a look how you do it. Passing the hound here. Beautiful form. A deer.
00:54:59Yeah. So, this is a very drawn deer. You see, it's very few. It's probably about 20 pieces in there.
00:55:03Do you recognise what that is? Yes, it's a soil cultivator. Yes, it's a soil cultivator.
00:55:07Yeah, little Canterbury hoe tines that make the ears. And there's a little tiny tack hammer in
00:55:12here for the jaw. This is a coat hook. There's all sorts of things in there that are great fun.
00:55:17You've got here, you're going to have a go. I'm going to show you. You recognise what these are?
00:55:21They're very old secateurs. Very old. I mean, how old do you think those are?
00:55:24They'd be 19th century, I think those. So, I'm just going to try and show you how I would go
00:55:29about,
00:55:29because they're actually in this horse head. So, if you want to pop your teeth on,
00:55:34you've got to be careful. I don't want to burn a national treasure.
00:55:38Julian Clary tells me I'm a national trinket. Oh, really? So, that's probably better.
00:55:42So, I'll just put my ear defenders on, so you won't be able to hear me now. Okay. All right.
00:55:47Um, so, so what I'm going to do, if you can hear me through your ear defenders. Yes.
00:55:53The vice is a part of it. Yes. So, um, right. So, what I'm going to show you is how
00:55:58I would start,
00:55:59taking the tools to pieces so that they're part of my, um... Good, hefty advice. It's a great bench.
00:56:05Yes, it's a lovely borrowed bench. So, you step back a little. Okay.
00:56:08Because I don't want you to get anything. So, I'm just going to show you how I take these to
00:56:11pieces.
00:56:12Right.
00:56:22Right. We can take that off now. All right. Is that it?
00:56:24And I'll just show you because it's all about these, these drawn, drawn shapes, you see. So,
00:56:30I've cut that away. I pull this apart. Yeah. And then can we see on here, you can see on
00:56:36the
00:56:36horse head, I've used another pair of these. Yeah. And it's part of the muzzle of the horse.
00:56:43Can you see that shape there? Yes, yes, yes. And then this piece came this side. Oh, that side.
00:56:47Out that way. So, you've got two jawlines from one pair of second. Yeah, but they don't match,
00:56:50but part of that, it doesn't matter. So, you can see it, so... But your eye fills in the gaps,
00:56:55doesn't it? Exactly. I mean, look, here we've got horseshoes. I mean, it's just another hinge.
00:56:58And that's an old hinge. And then these are socket spanners. So, yeah, to make the eyes. So,
00:57:04so, yeah. So, this piece would end up becoming... I love that. And that's my lovely old lurcher,
00:57:09who I sadly lost last year. So, that sculpture's from about 13 years ago. This isn't a bit of British
00:57:14wildlife, but never mind. So, this is a sea turtle. And you can see on the back, there's a mattock
00:57:19there,
00:57:20more of a half moon. Yeah. These are all bicycle spanners. And these are chainsaw chains. And then,
00:57:26if we look underneath, he's got rather a lovely belly. Oh, he has. So, he's got a big spade,
00:57:30another trowel, more horseshoes and things. And more of your pliers. More pliers. Yeah. So,
00:57:36there's always lots to see in these pieces. And then there's a curlew. Curlew. And there again...
00:57:41I've never seen as many trowels in my life. Grasshopper. Yeah. And that is called stair rod
00:57:48grasshopper, because those are stair rods. And then this... I think half the fun is working
00:57:52out what all the bits are. It is. And it's very engaging. These are big scissors here. Yeah.
00:57:56And I find a lot of people don't go to art galleries necessarily. You know, it's not something that
00:58:01everybody does. But I find when people look at my sculptures, they're really engaged and interested
00:58:07from all sorts of different walks of life. Harriet, thank you so much. Absolutely inspiring.
00:58:11I do love them, every single one of them. The movement, the life. Now, talking of which,
00:58:15surprisingly vocal. Known for popping up in the garden when you least expect it.
00:58:20Not talking about Leslie Joseph, but her reputation does precede her. I mean, the humble frog.
00:58:26Time now for Leslie to lead us down the garden path once more, as she leaps into the wet world
00:58:32of our
00:58:33wonderful garden frogs. Why, thank you, Alan. Welcome, Rana Temporaria. Said with gusto. Also known as the
00:58:45common frog. And what a creature with its smooth skin, ranging from olive green to brown and
00:58:52irregular dark markings. I mean, who doesn't like a bit of camouflage? I know I do.
00:58:58Did you know frogs demonstrate a range of emotions, just like us humans, including happiness,
00:59:04excitement and stress. And no one wants a stressed out frog on their watch. These amazing amphibians
00:59:13spend much of the year feeding in woodland and gardens. They inhabit garden ponds where they lay eggs
00:59:18in big rafts of spawn, where up to 2,000 eggs can be laid. Wow. Tadpoles are fully aquatic and
00:59:27have gills that
00:59:28they use to breathe underwater. Once mature, the common frog can grow up to 10 centimetres in length.
00:59:35They also have the amazing ability to leap more than 20 times their body length. Oh, what a show-off
00:59:42you are!
00:59:43The primary mating position is a prolonged mating hug called amplexus. The male climbs onto the female's back
00:59:52and holds on tightly, often for hours or even days, until she lays her eggs, which he then fertilizes
00:59:59externally, simply ribbiting. Frogs can get a bad press. Their little ribbits may make you look down your
01:00:08feet in fear. However, there is no reason to feel that way. If you find it hard to believe a
01:00:15frog can help
01:00:16benefit your garden, I know someone who may just change your opinion. Alan, over to you for this one.
01:00:26Happy Sunday.
01:00:30Oh, thank you, Leslie. The frog, surprisingly sociable little garden visitor, known for its evening
01:00:36chorus and its talent for slipping quietly between ponds, lawns and flower beds. Neat slugs too,
01:00:43a real character, even if not much, for small talk. Still ahead, it's the most glamorous morning in the
01:00:49Manor Farm calendar. Andy Clark will be overseeing proceedings at the Wafters, awarding the outstanding
01:00:56contribution to a Sunday roast and best supporting grape. It's a tough category and even tougher trying
01:01:02to taste a winner. And talking of awards from Golden Globes to a BAFTA to an Emmy, she's also been
01:01:09awarded the
01:01:09Cavalier Odin al Merito della Repubblica Italiana. That's the knight in the order of merit of the
01:01:18Italian Republic to serve Sister of the Arts, Greta Scacchi, on the winning role that made her an
01:01:24international success. I'll see you with Greta, right up to this.
01:01:42Welcome back to Love Your Weekend. Still ahead, and I'm sure it's not just the Sydney Files that noticed.
01:01:47Tonight is BAFTA night, where the great and the good and British cinema come together for a hat on the
01:01:52back and a drink or two as well, I imagine.
01:01:54Well, anything BAFTA can do, Andy Clark is suitably attired, and here with the Wafters, our personal
01:02:00homage to some of the best bottles of the year, including, wait for it, outstanding contribution
01:02:06to a Sunday roast. It's the one they all want to win. But first, it's the critically acclaimed
01:02:11Merchant Ivory film, based on Ruth Prajavala's novel, a complex story about two generations of
01:02:19English women in India, exploring forbidden love, cultural clashes and themes of female
01:02:25independence. It starred the likes of Julie Christie and Sashi Kapoor, and was also responsible for
01:02:31bringing my next guest to international recognition.
01:02:36This place is sacred to the memory of Baba Firdaus, the holy man. It was built in his honour by
01:02:42my
01:02:43ancestor, Amanullah Khan. Oh, the one you told that frightful story about, who trapped all his
01:02:48guests in a tent and had them stabbed. You call that frightful, do you? I suppose you're right.
01:02:57Baba Firdaus gave him shelter here after battle. That's why he built a shrine in gratitude. He never
01:03:03forgot a friend or an enemy. The British liked him very much. I think you like such people, don't you?
01:03:10We do? Yes, you know, rough people that fight well, mostly on a horse. But best of all, you like
01:03:17the horse.
01:03:19But you're not like that. You don't like the horses, do you? You're right, I don't.
01:03:24You see how well I read your character.
01:03:27That clip just oozes chemistry with your sly flirtation and sort of look of love. You can
01:03:33feel it on screen. How was it working? Obviously, Sashi Kapoor, Gretz.
01:03:37Oh, he was wonderful. Yeah. And he was so madly in love with his wife, who was there.
01:03:46Yeah. Jennifer Kendall, older sister of Felicity Kendall. Felicity, yeah.
01:03:51When you're in a film like that, I mean, it became, it still is, iconic. And when you're out there
01:03:58in such a...
01:03:58Well, for a certain generation, I... Yeah. Yeah, well, we're still alive.
01:04:03The responsibility of such an enormous, great epic, you know, it sort of ranks for me in mind with
01:04:09things like Dr. Zhivago and Lawrence of Arabia and stuff. It's that sort of epic proportion.
01:04:14Well, quite honestly, I didn't know when I set off to India that I had a lead role.
01:04:20I heard that I was going to be working with Julie Christie and I thought the story was about
01:04:27her and that I'd have this little part of flashbacks to a relative of hers in the 20s,
01:04:33her character in the 20s. And instead, I realised when I was on the plane and I finally got to
01:04:38read
01:04:38the script, because they rushed me out there, I was really a last resort in the casting, literally.
01:04:45And then I realised, as we were flying to this exotic place, that I had an enormous
01:04:54responsibility on my shoulders. And from the moment I arrived in India and that humid atmosphere and
01:05:01those incredible sights and scenery... There is nothing like it is, though.
01:05:07Oh, it was... I just felt that I was in a dream. Yeah.
01:05:11And quite early on, a figure came towards me and I recognised everything about her, including her voice
01:05:18and how she looked when she spoke. And it was Julie saying, pleased to meet you.
01:05:25And that's very much like an actor's dream. You know, we dream about, you know, you're worried
01:05:33about learning your lines or how a play is going to go. And so you have a sleepless night and
01:05:38you
01:05:38imagine a hand on your shoulder and you turn around and it's Marlon Brando saying, you're going to be okay.
01:05:45And this actually happened to me with Julie Christie, who I adored. She was inspirational to me when I
01:05:52was a girl. How lovely. Let's bring it, we'll go back a bit later, but bring it right up to
01:05:58date now
01:05:58with Derby and Joan. You're working with Brian Brown. Let's see the promotional film for Derby and Joan.
01:06:07You're all gallivanting about the country with that outback silver fox.
01:06:11You don't think the ice bucket's a bit much? Just because we're having fish and chips doesn't
01:06:15mean we have to be heathens. My ex-wife's just arrived in town to investigate me.
01:06:21Do you remember a time we didn't argue? No.
01:06:25I'm going to hear your name. Where shall we start? The downside of traveling with a cop is that
01:06:31everywhere you go is a crime scene. And everyone you meet is a suspect.
01:06:38With Brian Brown, who we remember from the thorn birds. Graciously. In Australia,
01:06:43so back to your childhood haunts then presumably. But a different part of Australia.
01:06:47Different part, yes. I didn't know Queensland very well, but now we've done
01:06:50two seasons up in Queensland, which is spectacular. You can go from fantastic,
01:06:58huge sandy beaches and sand dunes. Within half an hour you can be in tropical rainforests or banana
01:07:06plantations or up a mountain with fantastic ancient gum trees. And each time we do another series,
01:07:16each episode we're exploring different areas. So I'm looking forward to season three,
01:07:21which they're talking about. And I hope we might go a bit further north because there's some
01:07:27spectacular things up there. When you're doing a series like that and you're really enjoying it,
01:07:31and then they start talking about season three, it must be really rather reassuring.
01:07:37It's the most popular, successful thing I've ever done. Really?
01:07:42It is really. I've never had so many people stop me in the street or in the supermarket and say
01:07:49how much
01:07:49they love it. And it's been a real eye-opener for me because of course it's great to get work
01:07:57and it's
01:07:57fun to hang out with an old mate like Brian and a lot of great Australian actors and be working
01:08:03every
01:08:03day in a lead role because only that way do you really have creative input. You know, it's the,
01:08:11if you're just visiting for the day, you might not know, get to know the names. You won't get to
01:08:16know
01:08:16the names of all the crew. When you're in a lead role, you're part of the team and it's fantastic.
01:08:21You are a good team player. I love it. I think it's a great feeling to have an adventure. You
01:08:29know,
01:08:29it's you're going to work, but you're relating to people. They've all got their jobs, but you're
01:08:34mucking together. And I think that's a very fortunate aspect of our work. Right now,
01:08:41I've just started rehearsals in the theatre and such a lovely cast. I just started rehearsals
01:08:48a few days ago and... This is Noel Coward's Easy Virtue. Yeah, it's a large cast. The play's
01:08:54hardly ever done, even though it's a good play, because it's too expensive to hire a cast of 20.
01:09:02And they're mostly young people, full of energy, so eager. And there's a lovely,
01:09:08warm feeling in the rehearsal room. I love it. And you've got Trevor non-directing.
01:09:13Yes, and Michael Prade. Oh gosh. I get married to Michael Prade.
01:09:17Do you? Robin of Sherwood. And you're opening in Cambridge, I think.
01:09:21Cambridge, yeah. Just a short three weeks in Cambridge from the 19th of February till the 8th of March.
01:09:27Wonderful. Well, we wish you well. Love Coward. Glorious stuff. Writing a list of your leading men,
01:09:34it becomes clear that they're all there, really. A little clip now with one who's very popular at the
01:09:39moment, of course, is Hugh Grant in White Mystery. Kiss me, Hughie.
01:09:53Now tell me that you love me. I love you. You know I do. Then wish me luck.
01:10:08Here's to lions, tigers, and rich men. There are no tigers in Africa. Aren't there?
01:10:14What are they then? Um, ostriches.
01:10:19You playful, teasing, Hugh Grant. He was so gorgeous, as you can see.
01:10:25That was very early on in his career, and I had such a crush on him. But unfortunately,
01:10:30he already had a girlfriend called Elizabeth. Hurley. I remember way back when I was interviewing
01:10:37on Pebble Mill, Elizabeth Hurley came in for an interview, and this boyfriend was in the green room,
01:10:42sort of lounging on the sofa at the end. And she kept going over while we were really and canoodling,
01:10:48really. And then I looked and I thought, who is he? And of course, now I know who it was.
01:10:54It was Hugh Grant.
01:10:55That was before he really made it big. I think he'd done Morris by then.
01:10:58Yeah. But talking of your leading men, I want to show you a clip from Rasputin, because you worked
01:11:03with the great Alan Rickman. I mean, a very strong character, Alan Rickman, a very strong character,
01:11:08Rasputin. The variety's been great for you, hasn't it? I've been enjoying all that.
01:11:12Very lucky. Yeah.
01:11:14Incredibly lucky, and worked with some great people. But that one, ah, that was Rasputin. He was Rasputin,
01:11:22and Ian McKellen was my husband in that, no less. This is such a letdown, you know, coming here.
01:11:29Let's have a look at Rasputin.
01:11:35I spent days on my knees, yet you have healed my son in minutes.
01:11:43Do you have faith, Mama?
01:11:45I pray, I fast.
01:11:47In your heart, do you have it?
01:11:49I try.
01:11:50Answer the question.
01:11:57I don't know.
01:11:58Then get on your knees and beg, beg, like a peasant with your knees in the dirt.
01:12:02Who dare you?
01:12:03Like a beggar, or a snake, or a thief. You are the reason the little one suffers.
01:12:08Oh, no!
01:12:08You doubt the divinity of God. Your prayers mock his name. Every time the boy screams,
01:12:13it is your knife in his body. Mama, God cursed your son. Only he can cure him.
01:12:19Do doctors listen to God? Answer.
01:12:24No, the disease will leave him. The Holy Mother promised, but only if you believe in her mercy.
01:12:29I cherish her name. Don't you see? God has sent me.
01:12:35Well, I'd have been scared. Enormously intimidated. Intimidating to do it. You can't be opposite
01:12:40Alan Rickman doing a performance like that, can you, and not be scared witless?
01:12:46Well, no. He was just so kind. He was a fantastic, generous person. So caring.
01:12:53I've never heard a bad word about him. Not that we'll go and ask for them, but people are so,
01:12:57people worked with him, loved him, talented guy, you know.
01:13:00Very generous. Yeah, yeah. We talked about BAFTAs early on. Tell me about the Italian Order of Merit.
01:13:08Ah! I mean, because this sounds... I'm going to say it sounds hilarious. That sounds terribly rude.
01:13:13It's the Italian knighthood, then, really. Well, yes, except there's no monarchy,
01:13:16so you get it from the President of the Republic. Well, heavens above. That's not bad.
01:13:21How did you get it? When did you get it? Where did you get it? It was, let's see, about
01:13:2412 years ago,
01:13:26or maybe a bit more. We had a wonderful party at the Italian Embassy in Grosvenor Square, no less.
01:13:31Very nice. That was great to have the excuse to... I could invite 20 friends and they feed you
01:13:38rather well there. And there's some rather good tapestries and golden ceilings and marble staircases.
01:13:44And does it go over your neck or whatever? No, it's a pin. It's a medal. Yeah, yeah. Do you
01:13:49wear it?
01:13:51I think I'm supposed to wear it on formal occasions, like if I go to the Italian Embassy, but I...
01:14:01Do you know where it is? No, I don't know where it is.
01:14:05I wouldn't know which cardboard box to look in, honestly. To look in and go, oh dear.
01:14:10All these exotic locations for all these exotic films, but you're living in Sussex now,
01:14:16which is where you've spent a lot of your childhood. Yes, 10 years of...
01:14:19My childhood, we moved around a lot because I was born in Italy. And then by the time I was
01:14:2315,
01:14:23I got dragged off to Australia. But in between, from the age of 7 to 15, I had a good
01:14:32solid time in...
01:14:34In... We were actually in Haywood's Heath. But my mum used to take us walking on the downs,
01:14:39particularly on one particular hill where I now live at the foot of that hill in my Victorian cottage.
01:14:48And that's a critical time that, isn't it? That 7 to 15, so formative.
01:14:52Absolutely. And when I had children, I wanted to give them the same thing. So I brought up my kids
01:14:57there.
01:14:57And that whole thing that's passed down through generations of the blackberry picking and gathering
01:15:04conkers and tobogganing, and then it's the bluebells and all those rituals I foisted upon my own children.
01:15:14And I think it's a really important... Well, it was... I felt very fortunate. And I feel it's one of
01:15:21the reasons that I'm involved with the Go Beyond charity.
01:15:25Because that's introducing city children to the countryside.
01:15:28Some children who've not had that experience. Many children today who've never been to the seaside.
01:15:34And they've got properties. They've got two farms. One down in Cornwall that I visited, and it's right near the
01:15:43beach.
01:15:43And one up in Derbyshire that I've yet to visit. And these are children who have very difficult lives.
01:15:52And it gives them a sort of family. It gives them memories. One child said...
01:15:58He wrote back and said that the photographs from their week's holiday, he had put up on the wall beside
01:16:07his bed.
01:16:07And he wrote to say, when I'm having a difficult time, I look back at those photos. And it makes
01:16:15me feel better.
01:16:16Wonderful. Thank you, Greta. Really worth doing.
01:16:19Of course, it's not always possible for anybody to get out and about in nature.
01:16:23But never fear, because each week we like to bring a slice of the countryside to you at home for
01:16:28a moment of calm.
01:16:29It's time for today's Ode to Joy.
01:16:32Thank you, Greta.
01:19:02I haven't been in a film, so we've decided to bring our own glittering gongs to Manor Farm.
01:19:07Here to host this year's Wafters, it's the Wine and Fizzy Tipple Awards.
01:19:12Please welcome Andy Clark, and I'm dressed for the part.
01:19:16Thank you very much, everybody.
01:19:17It's lovely to be here.
01:19:18It is awards season, and we're going to celebrate with some best of British tipples.
01:19:23Are we up for it?
01:19:23Well, we are.
01:19:24Yes.
01:19:24Brilliant.
01:19:25We're getting very upset if we don't wear a favorite part of the show.
01:19:27Good.
01:19:28Well, we have five golden envelopes here, five very sought-after categories, and we are going
01:19:33to start with a very important category, which is best special effects, okay?
01:19:37Right.
01:19:38So, the winner is, of best special effects, Nightingale Cider Company Sparkling Kentish Apple Juice.
01:19:48This is a non-alcoholic tipple from Tenter Den in Kent, made with pressed local apples.
01:19:53They are Cox apples and Bramley apples, and it is simply delicious.
01:19:57Do not overthink your non-alcoholic alternative to alcohol.
01:20:01This is apple juice with sparkling water.
01:20:03Imagine it's just fizz.
01:20:03Right, okay.
01:20:03This is a lovely fizz, and just lovely.
01:20:06Cheers, everybody.
01:20:08Happy awards season.
01:20:09Oh, that's lovely.
01:20:10Oh.
01:20:11And just apples, isn't it?
01:20:12Glorious apples.
01:20:14Yeah.
01:20:14Are you a fizz fan?
01:20:16The real stuff.
01:20:17Very much so, but champagne gives me a bit of a headache sometimes.
01:20:21Mm, yeah.
01:20:22But this is really light, and it's not too sweet.
01:20:25No, but it's not remotely sour, is it, Ardell?
01:20:28No, it's quite sweet.
01:20:31I don't know where you get your ideas about sweetness.
01:20:34It is sweet, actually.
01:20:35This is lovely, because the family have been fruit farming in Kent since 1948,
01:20:40and they also make ciders, which they sell.
01:20:42Ardell, I'm getting the impression you're not wild about this one.
01:20:45No, I really like it.
01:20:45You do like it?
01:20:46I like Greta.
01:20:47I do not like champagne.
01:20:48Really?
01:20:48It gives me heartburn, actually.
01:20:50Yeah, gosh.
01:20:50So, this is a fabulous alternative.
01:20:52Right.
01:20:52A very important category coming up, which is Best Rising Star.
01:20:58Oh.
01:20:58Okay.
01:20:59I was hoping for a mention there, but never mind.
01:21:00I know.
01:21:02And the winner of the Rising Star Award is Cove Point Wines from Lime Bay Winery in Devon.
01:21:10We have the, it's a double award.
01:21:12We have the Cove Bay Chardonnay and the Cove Bay Pinot Noir.
01:21:15Made in a winery in Devon, but the grapes actually come from the Crouch Valley in Essex.
01:21:20And so, we're going to start with the Chardonnay.
01:21:22It's a sort of multinational.
01:21:23Absolutely.
01:21:24So, this is 100% Chardonnay.
01:21:26Give it a little swish around.
01:21:28I always spill it when I do that.
01:21:29Both wines have seen a little bit of oak in their maturation just for texture and flavour.
01:21:35Mmm.
01:21:37So, you get that beautiful, bright fruit, but with a little bit of vanilla there from the oak in there.
01:21:42And it starts slightly tart, finishes a little bit sweeter and rounder.
01:21:46Mmm.
01:21:47Mmm.
01:21:48I really like that.
01:21:50You really like that?
01:21:50It's quite luscious, actually, which surprises me.
01:21:53I associated English wines with being sort of thinner.
01:21:57I seem to remember the last time I was on your show, even, some of the wines were a little
01:22:02bit insipid.
01:22:05Oh, dare you.
01:22:06This is lush.
01:22:07How very dare you.
01:22:08This is luscious.
01:22:10It is not insipid.
01:22:11It's very rich.
01:22:12It's very ripe fruit taken at its prime, but also it's that dash of oak.
01:22:15If you age in an oak barrel, it's not going to taste all sort of woody or too vanilla-y,
01:22:20but it will give it that texture and a little bit of richness, which hints at a little bit of
01:22:24sort of stone fruit character, I think.
01:22:26Greta?
01:22:26I think it goes down very easily, doesn't it?
01:22:29Yeah, it does.
01:22:30Good.
01:22:30So, last time you came, it was an insipid little wine.
01:22:32This is an inoffensive little wine.
01:22:34So, it's on a gradually going up, aren't we, Rick?
01:22:36It's luscious.
01:22:37It's improved, I'm taking that.
01:22:38It's 100%.
01:22:39The sister wine is 100%.
01:22:41Pinot Noir, both grape varieties that grow really well in the UK, and this, again, is the grapes are from
01:22:46Essex.
01:22:47The magic happens at Lion Bay Winery in Devon, and this is a new range.
01:22:50The reason it's a rising star is this is a new range just in the last few months, and this
01:22:55is a beautiful, juicy Pinot Noir.
01:22:57Now, you see, this is not my kind of wine.
01:23:00This is where I say, no, there's too much there for me.
01:23:06It's quite bright, it's quite bright, and it's got a little bit of tannin in there, but again, you can
01:23:11smell a little bit of the wood on the wine itself, but do you know what?
01:23:15I just think from a bright, luscious red fruit point of view.
01:23:18Greta?
01:23:18Yeah.
01:23:19I think it's very good.
01:23:20It's very good.
01:23:21Yeah, it's clearly, I've got a strange palate when it comes to that.
01:23:23No, you probably like a richer, deeper red wine.
01:23:26Red wine's such a category, it's a lot of diversity.
01:23:28I quite like Pinots, generally, and this is different than any Pinot I've ever tasted before, but in a good
01:23:34way.
01:23:34It tastes of the English countryside, actually.
01:23:37It's brambly, I would say.
01:23:38It's a hetero fruit.
01:23:39I would say hetero.
01:23:40Exactly.
01:23:41Yeah, a lot of blackberry in there.
01:23:42Right.
01:23:43Now, we have a very sought-after category here.
01:23:46This is best supporting grape.
01:23:48Ah.
01:23:49And...
01:23:50The trust category.
01:23:51Best supporting grape goes to The Grange, white from black, sparkling wine, 2020, New Hampshire.
01:23:59The indigestion may kick in here.
01:24:00This is a sparkling wine, okay?
01:24:02It is called white from black because it is a white wine made from black grapes.
01:24:07In France, it would be called a Blanc de Noir.
01:24:11You know you have a Blanc de Blanc, which is white from white.
01:24:13That's a sparkling wine, a white wine made from white grapes.
01:24:16This is white from black.
01:24:17They said, let's use the English term because it's an English wine.
01:24:19This is made from a grape, which is often known as a supporting grape, hence the supporting
01:24:25role category.
01:24:26It's called Meunier.
01:24:27And the Meunier, basically, is often put with Chardonnay and Pinot Noir to make a champagne
01:24:31blend.
01:24:32But in the UK, the wet, colder weather this time of year, this grape thrives in this weather,
01:24:38which is why...
01:24:39And it's about four miles that way.
01:24:41The Grange is only over there.
01:24:42This is delicious.
01:24:43I love Grange's Fizz.
01:24:45It's really delicious.
01:24:46Well, I'm just going to put the Rennies in it.
01:24:49That's a cocktail, Odell.
01:24:50That's a cocktail.
01:24:51And by the way, when I say I get heartburn from champagne, I mean after, like, a second
01:24:55bottle.
01:24:56So I'm sure this is...
01:24:58Something to be like that.
01:24:59But this is such...
01:25:00Now he qualifies it.
01:25:01It's not as acidic as champagne.
01:25:04No, it's not.
01:25:05There's none of that sourness, is there, about it?
01:25:07Gressy, you've been very quiet and quietly sipping.
01:25:08Well, yes.
01:25:09I'm thinking that I ought to try a couple of glasses before I can give a nice opinion.
01:25:13A proper opinion, indeed.
01:25:14Well, you can have the Ardell's, because you're on.
01:25:16So I seem to have an open bottle here as well, Gressa, so I just put that there.
01:25:20No, it really does taste delicious.
01:25:22The next category on a day like today is one of the most coveted awards there is, and this
01:25:27is Outstanding Contribution to a Sunday Roast.
01:25:31Oh.
01:25:31OK.
01:25:32Very important.
01:25:33And the winner of Outstanding Contribution to a Sunday Roast is Mountfield Reserve Rosé
01:25:39Sparkling Wine 2020.
01:25:41Now, both of these are 2020.
01:25:422020 was not a great year for humans with COVID, but a great year for grapes because the weather
01:25:47was so good.
01:25:48Of course, yes.
01:25:49It is from Mountfield Winery in East Sussex.
01:25:52The countryside there is beautiful.
01:25:53The family have lived there since 1860.
01:25:56This is two red grapes make this, Pinot Noir and Pinot Meunier, and this is a bright,
01:26:00beautiful sip of rosé.
01:26:01I love drinking out of a coupe, don't you?
01:26:03Mm-mm.
01:26:04It's gorgeous.
01:26:04It's classy.
01:26:05Oh.
01:26:06I don't know about you, but I get a little bit of raspberry, a bit of red currants and
01:26:09wild strawberries.
01:26:10Oh, it's quite different to the previous one.
01:26:11Very different.
01:26:12I wanted to show two very different fizzes.
01:26:14Yeah.
01:26:15It's not what I would associate with a Sunday Roast.
01:26:17I mean, it's...
01:26:17The reason, the reason, see where I'm going here.
01:26:19What are you roasting?
01:26:20Well, exactly.
01:26:21Well, there's a question.
01:26:22Tiny little canary.
01:26:25Something very small.
01:26:26Puss down.
01:26:27When you, so you might wonder why I've done this.
01:26:29When you make a Sunday Roast, some people want white.
01:26:33Some people want red.
01:26:34And if you're going to open one bottle, sometimes I think rosé being in the middle is a great thing.
01:26:38And if, like me, when you do a Sunday Roast, you still want to have a little prawn cocktail
01:26:41or a little smoked salmon nibbly thing.
01:26:43Rosé is the way forward.
01:26:45And I think it can go with everything.
01:26:46And when that comes down, don't serve it too cold.
01:26:48When it's a bit more room temperature, it will go with everything.
01:26:51And I think there's something about maybe a lunchtime Sunday drink.
01:26:54If you open some fizz, it feels like a party.
01:26:56Now, Greta, do you like it if not as much as the previous one?
01:26:59Not as much as the previous one, I have to say.
01:27:02Pretty colour.
01:27:04It's growing on you.
01:27:05And there we will leave it.
01:27:06It's growing on you.
01:27:06Right.
01:27:07The last award to sum up proceedings is a very special award.
01:27:10It is the last of the Summer Wine Fellowship Award.
01:27:13Oh, it's a big one.
01:27:14And this award goes to Denby's Orange Solaris 2022 from Surrey.
01:27:23Look at the colour of that.
01:27:24Look at that.
01:27:25Look at the colour of this.
01:27:25This is very different.
01:27:27I wanted to show you all different styles of wine here for every award going.
01:27:31Oh, gosh.
01:27:31An orange wine is a wine also known as a skin contact wine.
01:27:35So the skin is not taken away when the grape juice is fermenting, which gives it the colour.
01:27:39It gives it, if you smell and you taste, you will get tropical fruits, maybe a little bit of guava,
01:27:43a bit of pineapple.
01:27:44And so this wine is also a free-run wine.
01:27:48They do not press the juice out.
01:27:50They let it come out steadily, naturally on its own, which creates a very pure wine.
01:27:54Orange wines can sometimes be a bit challenging on the palate for people to like conventional wines.
01:28:00But have a sip of this.
01:28:01And it's different.
01:28:02It's not like the white wine.
01:28:03It's not like the red wine.
01:28:04It is very different.
01:28:05And I think it deserves award status.
01:28:07It is orangey.
01:28:10Liquid sun.
01:28:11Yeah.
01:28:11It is.
01:28:12Oh, there you are.
01:28:13It's good.
01:28:13We'll be on the bottle next week.
01:28:14It's good.
01:28:15All award-worthy in my book.
01:28:17Indeed.
01:28:18I'd like to congratulate all of tonight's winners.
01:28:20I'd like to thank my mother, my sister, the man who takes the dog out for a walk.
01:28:25Oh, sorry.
01:28:25No, I'm not.
01:28:26Oh, I'm not.
01:28:26It's not me, isn't I?
01:28:27Your agent, of course.
01:28:28Of course.
01:28:29Mostly my agent.
01:28:31But particularly to the real stars, to Greta and Ardell and Andy.
01:28:36Thank you very much indeed.
01:28:37Fletcher's Family Farm is up next.
01:28:39But I'll leave you with these words from the late, great Greta Garbo.
01:28:43I can't do it like she does it, though, can I?
01:28:45Is there anything better than to be longing for something when you know it is within reach?
01:28:52It was uncanny, that, wasn't it?
01:28:54And this is very much within my reach.
01:28:57You thought she was here, didn't you?
01:28:58Cheers, all.
01:28:59Cheers.
01:29:00Cheers.
01:29:06Cheers.
01:29:08Cheers.
01:29:21Cheers.
01:29:23Cheers.
01:29:25Cheers.
01:29:25Cheers.
01:29:25Cheers.
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