This is volume one (episode 1 – 6) of a two disk series. A 12-part series was completed by Fred before his death in November 2003. He sets out on a grand tour of Britain’s industrial past, aboard his beloved 1912 steam traction engine.
Episode 1: The Passion of a Lifetime
In the last series he made before his death last November, the Bolton steeplejack attempts to fulfil a lifelong ambition – a tour of the UK on the 1912 steam traction engine he’s spent 27 years restoring. He’ll be seeking out the bygone skills used to build the engine, but first he has to ensure that the vehicle is roadworthy.
Episode 2: Collecting the Coal
Stocking up with coal fuel is Fred’s first task and a mine near Wigan is his destination – but it’s an uphill struggle as the engine runs out of steam and water just a few miles from home. Fuelled up at last, it’s off to Astley Green Colliery Museum near Manchester-home of Lancashire’s only surviving pit headgear and engine house.
Episode 3: The Source of Iron
The picturesque Lake District is not usually associated with industry, but iron ore was once mined here on a large scale. Fred visits the Florence Mine at Egremont – the last operational deep iron ore mine in western Europe – before heading to the local pub to chat to some former steel workers about the old days.
Episode 4: Castings
Heading north of the border, Fred and his steersman Alf marvel at the ingenuity of the Falkirk wheel and visit one of the few surviving traditional iron works in the area. Then, after some repairs at the Bo’ness and Kinneil railway, they take off to cross the Forth Road Bridge.
Episode 5: Water and Boilers
As well as visiting Ryhope pumping station in Sunderland, which ceased operation in 1967 after 100 years of service, Fred travels across the Middlesbrough transporter bridge and also drops in at the Israel Newton boiler works in Bradford, where the product is still made in the traditional way using rivets instead of welding.
Episode 6: The Road to Steel City
Fred fulfils an ambition when he drives his traction engine across the imposing Scammonden Bridge over the M62 near Huddersfield. Plus a visit to Sheffield for a tour around a fascinating forge to watch crucible steel being produced by the experts at Abbeydale Industrial Hamlet.
Details
Format: PAL
Classification: Exempt
Studio: Contender Entertainment Group
Release Date: 16 May 2005
Run Time: 174 minutes
