[theme music] ♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): My name is Peter Davison, and I've always loved classic cars.

Such an elegant way of traveling.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): I'm Christopher Timothy.

I have a passion for history and Britain's great heritage.

I just like finding out about the past.

It's intriguing.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We've been friends ever since our All Creatures Great and Small days.

♪ ♪ Just take it easy, will you?

Relax, Jim.

Enjoy yourself.

Woo.

Into first gear.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Now, 40 years later, we're returning to the golden age of motoring and setting off on a series of classic road trips, 1930s style.

You see the map in your hand, that's for navigating.

Yeah, but it's-- We don't have a satnav, we don't have any other means-- It's not as easy as all-- it's not as easy as all that.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We'll uncover incredible historical secrets.

Fantastic!

It's fascinating, it's fascinating.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We'll tackle the toughest driving challenges we've ever faced.

[tires screech] Take it easy, buddy.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): And meet some truly remarkable people.

- Rob.

Hi, Steve.

You are what real heroes are, aren't you?

You're the genuine article.

An absolute privilege.

- And me-- Thank you so much.

Hats on, roof down.

Home, James.

♪ ♪ [vintage music] ♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Today, we're off on a seaside adventure, following roads that were popular with 1930s holidaymakers traveling to resorts on the South Coast of England.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Along the way, we'll uncover the origins of one of the nation's favorite tongue twisters.

She sells seashells on the seashore.

She sells seashells on the sea four-- oh.

No, no.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): We'll recreate a classic cliff road race.

Slow down, Pete.

Slow down.

I should be talking, but I've got no time.

Sorry.

[laughs] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): And we'll go camping, 1930s style.

- It smells, Pete.

- What?

It smells.

I don't remember it being as complicated as this.

[chuckles] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): But before we can start our journey, I need to pick up my driving partner for the road ahead.

I'm on the southernmost tip of Hampshire's New Forest, and I'm on my way to pick up Chris.

And we're off on a classic British summer holiday, and we're using the routes that used to whisk millions of holidaymakers out of the cities and into the great outdoors.

It's going to be fun, Chris.

It's going to be fun.

♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): I'm collecting Chris from Calshot Beach.

Looking out towards the Isle of Wight, it also sits on the southeastern edge of the New Forest, a place I visited a lot as a child.

♪ ♪ It's the ideal place for us to begin our very British holiday adventure.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Well, typical summer holiday weather.

Just as long as the rain holds off before Peter arrives.

Come on, Peter.

♪ ♪ [laughs] Hi.

Oh!

Let's get this bit done first.

[laughs] PETER DAVISON: How are you?

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: I'm all right, you?

PETER DAVISON: I'm very well.

- Look.

Look at these beautiful beach huts.

PETER DAVISON: Oh, beautiful beach huts.

It's a great view of the Isle of Wight over here.

I had no idea it was so close.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Well, I think this is fantastic, but I'm very eager to get on our way.

- Oh, really?

- Yeah.

Aren't you?

We could just stay here for the week, couldn't we?

No, come on, let's go.

Excellent.

[upbeat music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Our set of wheels for our holiday is a Morgan 4/4, the longest running production car in the world.

It has no satnav and is going to give us a taste of motoring 1930s style.

♪ ♪ So we're off, then.

We're off on the classic British summer holiday.

And so, we're going to retrace the steps or the routes of all those holidaymakers in the past.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: All the holidays that we took as children were by rail.

So in a way, I'll be seeing things from a different perspective.

[vintage music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Peter and I will be driving from the New Forest, along roads that took '30s holidaymakers to resorts on the South Coast of England.

We'll travel through Dorset, visiting picturesque seaside towns, before finishing our adventure on Burgh Island, an exclusive '30s holiday resort off the South Devon Coast.

♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON: Do you know about Burgh Island?

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: I know it exists, but that's all I know.

PETER DAVISON: It's a very beautiful place.

So have you packed-- you got your bucket and spade, things like that?

I've got my trunks.

Oh, very good.

Well, you can't be too careful, can you?

I've got a tent.

- A tent?

- A tent, yeah.

Why have you got a tent?

Camping.

- Camping?

- Yeah.

Now, wait a minute.

No, I didn't agree to that.

I didn't-- nobody mentioned camping.

That's all you, Chris, because you never read the small print.

Ah, how true is that.

[quaint music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Yes, in the boot, I brought along an original 1930s two-man tent made from good old-fashioned canvas.

♪ ♪ Before we motor on towards the coastal roads that will take us to the campsite where we'll be pitching it, though, we're making a short detour into the New Forest.

Over the cattle grid, and we are now in the New Forest.

I used to come here a lot.

I used to come here on school camping trips.

Our English teacher used to take a bunch of us down.

We would camp in this little place called Fritham.

And one year, I think probably about the second time we'd been down there, we were having a great time.

And there was a little pub in Fritham, no one ever went in it.

And so we kind of would go down there in the lunchtimes and in the evenings, just drinking soft drinks.

And they didn't mind at all, because, you know, they were selling us soft drinks.

And then one day, the games teacher at our school, he went straight back to the headmaster and said, they're down there in the pub, hanging out in the pub, drinking.

And immediately, the school holiday was scrapped.

It was not allowed again.

And we thought this as a betrayal.

Absolutely.

You know who you are.

[gentle music] ♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): The New Forest is a special place, but we're not just here to admire its beauty or to visit the places Peter holidayed in his youth.

We are on our way to the National Motor Museum at Beaulieu.

♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Owned by the Montagu family, it's home to a very special car that I'm keen to drive for the first time.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Amazing.

LORD MONTAGU: Well, hello.

Welcome.

PETER DAVISON: Lord Montagu.

LORD MONTAGU: Very good to meet you.

Peter.

Very nice to meet you.

And this, eventually, will be Chris.

Sorry, it takes a long time to get out of these.

Oh, these low cars.

How do you do, sir?

Good to meet you, too.

Look at this.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): This is Bessie, a vintage car replica that featured in Doctor Who on and off across two decades.

First driven by the third Doctor, Jon Pertwee, in 1970.

[quaint music] By the time I took on the role 11 years later, Bessie didn't feature, so I never actually got to drive her.

How did you acquire it?

Why is it yours?

Well, actually, it's not mine.

It's on loan from the BBC.

I've been entrusted with her.

Oh, I see.

As a model, these were produced as kit cars in the late 1960s to go on a 1954 Ford popular chassis.

And, you know, they were just a fun novelty car.

Fiberglass body.

But this one, of course, is a little bit special.

You can see from the number plate, WHO 1.

And do you have to keep it in the exact condition it was?

Because I seem to remember it wasn't very reliable.

That's right.

And I mean, you can actually see that in some of the episodes.

Also, I have to say, actors are never very good at driving cars on camera.

And there is a shot of Jon stalling this.

But for you, of course-- PETER DAVISON: For me?

I get to ride in it?

LORD MONTAGU: Yes.

And it's going to actually work this time.

Oh, yes.

She's working.

She's running just fine.

That's fantastic.

Oh, you're going to love this, Chris.

Love it.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): The gauntlet's laid down.

Can I do a better job than Jon Pertwee?

Right, Chris.

[engine starts] That's a start.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): I found the starter motor, now for the gears.

I'm really very excited.

I can tell.

I'm a Doctor, and I'm driving the Doctor's car.

OK, here we go.

Wish us luck.

[engine revs] Whoa!

Put it in first first.

No wonder Jon Pertwee had trouble with this.

Here we go.

Oh, look at this.

What a smooth takeoff.

I'm driving Bessie, and it's working.

[laughs] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): After three series of All Creatures Great and Small, in 1981, I became the fifth Doctor, playing the role for three years.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Does the recognition of you-- how does it vary between All Creatures and Doctor Who?

PETER DAVISON: Oh.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: For example.

Well, I think-- I think the basis of everything to do with me is Tristan in All Creatures.

So I think even when I was Doctor Who, I was kind of, oh, it's that bloke Tristan playing Doctor Who.

And that's absolutely fine.

Doctor Who is very good for calling things out, you know?

So if people recognize you, they can easily say things like, "oi mate, where's your TARDIS?"

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): It's only taken 38 years, but I finally got to drive Bessie.

The whole thing is rather strangely put together in terms of pedals, so that's a bit difficult.

And I was doing it with an audience.

And also, Lord Montagu had just told me that actors are terrible driving cars on camera.

[laughs] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: In all the years, he never got near the car, did he?

So hey.

And I got to go in a Doctor Who car, too, so that's got to be good, isn't it?

[lively music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Leaving Bessie and the New Forest behind, we're back in the Morgan and heading for the coast.

♪ ♪ Right, so where are-- oh yes, I see.

What?

This is sort Boscombe-ish.

[laughs] It's Boscombe-ish?

Yeah, Boscombe-ish.

What more do you want?

Come on.

We're going in the right direction.

♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We're on our way to Bournemouth, a popular 1930s holiday destination, to find out more about its surprising and little-known motoring heritage.

♪ ♪ We can play who sees the sea first.

You've never played that game?

We can play what?

Who sees the sea first.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: OK.

PETER DAVISON: Whoever sees the sea first-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Loses.

PETER DAVISON: Loses.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: No, wins.

PETER DAVISON: No, wins.

Well, therefore, the other person has to buy the ice cream.

OK, so I buy ice cream if you see the sea first.

That's correct.

[upbeat music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): As we approach the seafront, our eyes are peeled.

I see the sea!

No, you don't!

You just see a big-- that's not the sea.

That's not physically-- all you can see is sky.

No, no-- There's a big expanse of sky there-- I see a sea!

That's the sea.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Damn you!

PETER DAVISON: Yes, yes!

Damn, confound you!

Oh, very well.

[bright music] ♪ ♪ We're going toward-- can you-- - Sorry about that.

- I'm trying to read.

There's bumps in the road.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): 34 miles into our trip, we've reached Bournemouth.

♪ ♪ In the golden age of motoring, holidaymakers flocked to its sandy beaches, and we're on the way to the seafront to find out more about its little-known motoring history.

Right, so now we're going further away from the sea.

But you know what you're doing, don't you?

No, you're the navigator-- Chris.

[chuckles] What?

You see the map in your hand, that's for navigating.

Yeah, but it's not-- We don't have a satnav.

We don't have any other means-- It's not as easy as all-- it's not as easy as all that.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): We're meeting Gary, the owner of a Sunbeam Alpine Series 5, an iconic sports car that has its roots here in Bournemouth.

PETER DAVISON: Gary.

GARY: Hi, Peter.

PETER DAVISON: Hi.

Peter.

This is Chris.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: All right, Gary?

- Hi, Chris.

- OK.

Amazing car.

And this is a Sunbeam Alpine.

GARY: Yes.

PETER DAVISON: How long have you had this?

GARY: Two years.

PETER DAVISON: Two years?

GARY: Yeah.

Why did you end up buying a Sunbeam Alpine?

I didn't know these cars.

Right.

And I wanted to avoid buying a TR or an MG, which is more mass produced.

Yes.

So these were produced in smaller volumes, so I think there were 69,000 made.

PETER DAVISON: And did you have to restore it?

GARY: Yes, it's been a labor of love.

PETER: Right.

GARY: The car was completely rotten.

It hadn't been on the road since 1979.

PETER: It's beautiful.

It is beautiful.

[vintage music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): The Sunbeam Alpine was the brainchild of George Hartwell, a Bournemouth car dealer and rally team member of the Rootes Motor Company.

♪ ♪ Based on the existing Sunbeam Talbot, his design caught the eye of the Rootes hierarchy, who further developed it and launched it in 1953.

This was, sort of, to me, the ultimate swinging '60s car, you know?

Because it's got a friendly look about it.

GARY: Yes.

Sadly, I could only ever afford a Hillman Minx.

I had an Austin 7, do me a favor.

So are you-- Gary, are you passionate about old cars?

I belong to a car club called the Afro Classics Register, and what we've done is attended a number of festivals across the UK just to change the perception of classic car ownership.

Right.

GARY: So I think it's perceived as being the preserve of the White middle classes.

And so we've come along.

We're probably as middle class, I think.

[laughter] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: As anybody else, yeah.

So we go to festivals.

It's still quite interesting, because people come up to us and they say, oh, are those your cars?

[laughs] And you're standing right by it.

Yeah, yeah, yeah.

Yeah, yeah.

GARY: But it's-- it's good fun.

PETER DAVISON: Gary, thank you very much indeed.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Yeah, great pleasure, mate.

Thank you.

Really good, really good.

[vintage music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Having uncovered a little-known gem of South Coast motoring history, we leave Bournemouth in our rear view mirror.

I like the Sunbeam Alpine.

So did I. PETER DAVISON: You know, I think I heard that it was, what, James Bond's first car?

Is that right?

- Yeah.

The first car seen?

A blue one in Doctor No.

Yeah.

[gentle music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We're now almost a third of the way into our holiday adventure.

And after crossing Poole Harbor, our route takes us south towards Corfe Castle and the Purbeck Hills.

We used to go on caravan holidays to Swanage, which is very close to Corfe Castle, and we would go out for a day trip, look around there.

And there is Corfe Castle.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Oh, right.

PETER DAVISON: You can see it.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): This is an Area of Outstanding Natural Beauty, and one of the guidebooks in our glove compartment has some advice to help 1930s holidaymakers find a spot where they could fully appreciate how special the countryside they were traveling through was.

PETER DAVISON: Right.

You keep to the left after Corfe.

After Corfe Castle?

And soon after Church Knowle, take to the Purbeck Hills.

Right.

It does not matter which you choose out of the two or three roads hereabouts, so long as you come to that fine place where the road lies over the hill crest like a piece of string blown by the wind.

- OK.

- Isn't that lovely?

[laughs] It's lovely.

Doesn't that conjure up-- PETER DAVISON: It does.

Now all we have to do is-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: A piece of string.

What you've got to do is look out for a piece of string.

And hope the roads haven't changed since 1936.

Is that right?

- Let's hope.

Let's hope.

[upbeat music] ♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): While the guidebook may have waxed lyrical about the viewpoint, its directions to it are a little imprecise.

PETER DAVISON: It said take any road.

Did it say?

- One of three.

♪ ♪ Are you suggesting that we should have chosen one of the other two?

- I haven't seen-- I haven't seen any of them.

Be patient.

♪ ♪ Ooh, ooh, ooh.

♪ ♪ I just saw a sign for Army Ranges.

- Oh, did you?

- Yeah.

Well, just keep your head down.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Thankfully, there are no military exercises today.

There it is.

Look.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): And we arrive in one piece at the stunning Creech Viewpoint.

Oh, look at that.

Yes.

[gentle music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Well, it is nice, isn't it?

PETER DAVISON: It is nice, yeah.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Yeah, very.

PETER DAVISON: Where's the piece of string?

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Throughout the 1930s, this view would have looked much as it does today.

But at the end of the decade, its character was changed dramatically by the outbreak of war.

A lot of this land was requisitioned for Army training and for billeting of troops in probably temporary barracks leading up to D-Day.

And it was from over there, just over the hill there, in Portland, where thousands and thousands of troops left on D-Day.

Extraordinary.

It's the juxtaposition of this beautiful landscape and war.

- Yeah.

Would have looked very different.

And that water would have been littered with warships, wouldn't it?

PETER DAVISON: Yeah.

Amazing.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: A bit parky, though.

PETER DAVISON: Yes, a parky.

[dramatic music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Driving down from the viewpoint on the Purbeck Hills, we're now heading to Weymouth, one of the towns that was transformed at the end of the 1930s.

You don't remember anything about the Second World War, do you?

- I do, yeah, actually.

Yeah.

What I remember is my parents lived in a mansion block of flats in Warwick Gardens, and the basement was commandeered as an air raid shelter, so it was full of bunks.

And it was quite noisy.

Lots of conversation and babies crying.

And then they would go quiet, and I would be aware that everyone was listening.

And you'd hear [whistles] then there'd be a silence, and then there'd be [mimics boom], and the place would shake a bit.

I remember the next morning, and there were houses where-- and the fronts had been blown off.

I've never, never forgotten it.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Born 10 years after Chris, I have no memory of the Second World War, but having arrived in Weymouth, we're meeting a woman who lived through the dramatic changes that war brought to this seaside resort.

POPPY: Hello.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Poppy, I'm Chris.

Hi, lovely to meet you.

- Nice to meet you, too.

- Hi, Poppy.

Peter.

How are you?

Very well, thank you.

Good.

[vintage music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Poppy Butcher was a child when her home town was turned into a vital military port.

♪ ♪ She was here when thousands of GIs were shipped in during the 1940s and is now the proud owner of a World War II American Willys Jeep.

How on Earth, Poppy, did you come into possession of an American Jeep?

Well, my husband was very keen on Jeeps, and we bought it in 1988.

I've had it ever since.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: It's fab.

Is it possible to have a-- to sit in it?

Will you take-- you wouldn't take us for a drive, would you?

Well, I can't drive.

I used to, but I shrunk.

Oh, did you?

I couldn't see over the windscreen, and I couldn't put cushions because I couldn't reach the pedals.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Ever the gent, GI Davison is stepping into the breach.

And Poppy is taking us around her town to explain how it was changed by the war.

So there would have been barbed wire all along these beaches?

All along the front here, yes.

Yeah.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: And sandbags and-- POPPY: Yeah, yeah.

Over there is where all the landing craft of the American soldiers.

PETER DAVISON: Oh right.

POPPY: All along here.

And all these big hotels were taken over by the American troops.

Right, OK.

Yes.

They would take over the best hotels, wouldn't they?

There's one of the American memorials there.

PETER DAVISON: Uh-huh.

Did you like having the Americans around?

Oh, very much so, yes.

Well, they had tinned fruit and tinned food.

And we used to-- the girls, they used to go out with them, and they had, like, a tin of fruit, and they used to break open the top and drink the juice and throw the fruit away.

So we used to collect all the tins up and take home-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: And have fresh fruit.

POPPY: Yes.

And have the fruit-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Well, tinned fruit.

How amazing.

Chewing gum, cigarettes, because, you know, they're hard to get.

Of course.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): In 1944, aged just 15, Poppy went to work in the stores in Weymouth docks.

A year later, she joined the rest of the town, celebrating victory in Europe.

The seafront was full up.

They was doing the Hokey Cokey and-- Yeah, of course.

Yeah, doing the conga, you know.

Yes, yes.

Oh, it was wonderful.

Yeah.

[vintage music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Like so many others of her generation, Poppy is an incredible woman.

She's a leading light in the local D-Day museum, just a few miles away in Portland, where she's arranged a driving surprise for us with museum director Steve.

Hello, Steve.

Hello.

PETER DAVISON: Hello.

- Hello.

- I'm Peter.

- I'm Steven.

Pleased to meet you.

- Hi, Steve.

Chris.

- Chris, pleased to meet you.

- You too.

- Welcome to Portland.

- Thank you very much.

- Welcome to this vehicle.

Is it a truck or is it a tank?

Basically, it's an M3 half track.

PETER DAVISON: But this same kind of vehicle would have been transported over on D-Day?

STEVE: Absolutely, yeah.

So these are the exact same vehicles that are loaded from Portland to go over to Normandy.

And how often is this driven?

Actually driven.

STEVE: Quite often.

- Is it?

- Yeah.

- By you?

- Yeah, yeah, yeah.

All our vehicles we take out quite regularly.

We had her out in a convoy a few weeks back, and we occasionally nip to the pub in them.

Are they easy to drive?

Yeah, yeah.

A bit heavy on the steering, but a strong lad like yourself would be all right.

So can we-- can we have a go on it?

STEVE: Absolutely, absolutely.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Amazing.

Let's give it a go.

He wants to wear the helmet.

You're coming with me.

[lively music] ♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: I'm putting this on, Pete.

Not because-- not just because I like wearing it.

A safety precaution.

OK, good.

Take it easy, buddy.

♪ ♪ Whoa!

You're doing good.

Really good.

♪ ♪ [laughs] Poppy, thank you, thank you.

It's been an absolute privilege.

And me-- Thank you so much, and God bless you.

- It's been great fun.

- Yeah.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: The highlight of today was meeting Poppy, without a doubt.

And the fact that we went through Weymouth and she described things and pointed out things and lived it again, didn't she?

And it was, oh, it was just extraordinary.

Extraordinary.

[vintage music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): The following morning, we're back on civvy street and motoring along in the Morgan towards an authentic 1930s holiday experience.

PETER DAVISON: As I told you, we've got a tent in the back.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: So we are camping, are we?

Well, I've got a tent, Chris.

That's all I'm saying.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Well, all I'm saying is that it's never been mentioned to me.

♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON: I see the sea.

Does that mean I win?

Do we have a running bet-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Oh!

PETER DAVISON: --for I see the sea?

Yes.

Was that "ooh" because you nearly drove into that car?

Yeah, that was the first.

And also, oh, it's the sea.

Crash.

Just let me wipe the sweat from my brow.

[laughs] [lively music] ♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We've now reached the B3157, better known as the Jurassic Coast Road, an 18-mile stretch running from Weymouth to Bridport.

Sadly, because you're driving, you can't really look at it, but I'll tell you how spectacular it is, all right?

- I can't.

Yeah.

I trust you implicitly.

- Wow!

It's spectacular.

Oh, it's that good, is it?

[laughs] [grand music] ♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Running parallel in parts to the cliffs made famous in Broadchurch, the road was named because the rocks along this coastline are a dinosaur fossil hunter's paradise.

♪ ♪ They also supposedly gave rise to perhaps the nation's most famous tongue twister.

She sells seashells on the seashore.

She sells seashells on the sea four-- oh.

No.

No.

She sells seashells on the seashore.

Seashells-- no.

[gentle music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Legend has it that this tongue twister is based on the 19th century paleontologist Mary Anning.

She was responsible for a number of highly significant finds, but gender restrictions meant she lived in relative obscurity and was often forced to sell her discoveries to make ends meet.

She sells seashells on the seashore.

She sells seashells on the seashore.

If you don't think about it too much, it's OK.

[quaint music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): As we're making good time, we've decided to stop off at Charmouth Beach to do a little fossil hunting of our own, just as motorists in the golden age of motoring would have done.

See, any one of these could be-- Yeah, I know, I know.

♪ ♪ I'm not sure it's our thing, really, looking for things.

Well, I mean, I'm just hoping that Hawkeye Timothy will spot something.

OK.

You'll sort sniff it out?

A bit of a eureka.

Yeah, I mean, you know.

Our mistake was not to get David Attenborough along here.

David-- well, he was here, apparently, a couple of years ago.

- Was he?

Yeah.

Bet he had more luck than us.

[laughs] [vintage music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Having come up empty handed, we motor on.

Leaving Charmouth Beach, we're heading on past Lyme Regis to the next stop on our 1930s holiday adventure.

♪ ♪ It's time to try and persuade Chris that camping 1930s style is a good idea.

♪ ♪ Do you have any fondness for camping?

Do I what?

Do I have any fondness for camping?

[laughs] You must be insane.

You know-- you know me.

Surely, anybody who knows me, if you said, does Chris Timothy like camping?

I guarantee you they'd all say no.

It's a conversation starter, all right?

[laughter] How about caravans?

I-- I'm not over enamored, but I did very early on in my first marriage, I was working in the theater when we got married, and we had a caravan in Barmouth in North Wales for a week.

And it was-- You went-- hang on, let me get this right.

So it was a belated honeymoon in a caravan.

Let me get this right, you went on your honeymoon in a caravan.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: It was in the early '60s, and I was at the National Theater earning 14 pounds a week.

But the combination of a honeymoon-- how can I put this delicately?

A honeymoon and a caravan-- Don't go together?

Not really.

Not as far as I can see.

If romance is not dead.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Camping and caravanning may not be my cup of tea, but back in the 1930s, greater access to cars and the introduction of paid holidays helped boost their popularity.

♪ ♪ 80 years later, they remain a popular way of getting away.

We've popped off the road to meet Angela and George.

PETER DAVISON: Hello.

GEORGE: Hello, Peter.

ANGELA: Hello.

PETER DAVISON: I'm Peter.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): A couple who fell in love with a classic '30s caravan and painstakingly restored it to its former glory.

Look at this.

Yes.

- Tell us about this.

- Well-- Amazing thing.

GEORGE: This is a Winchester Imp.

This one was one of four made, and it's the only known survivor.

How long have you had it?

Well, we've had it seven years, and we've rallied up and down the country in it.

You've rallied up and down?

Rallied up and down the country with the club.

PETER DAVISON: Can we have a look inside?

ANGELA: Of course.

GEORGE: By all means, come and have a look.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Thank you.

[laughs] I like the inside even better than the outside, actually.

GEORGE: As you can see, it's like a TARDIS inside.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: That's what's clever, isn't it?

PETER DAVISON: Yes, nice little touches-- Every inch of space is utilized here.

PETER DAVISON: Yes.

So here, we've got the sink here.

This is the original sink.

Yeah.

So that also folds flat, does it?

That also folds flat.

That comes down.

And this is-- And that's the cooker.

That's the original bottle cooker, with the little grill.

PETER DAVISON: Yeah.

And you use all this, do you?

Yes, we use it all the time.

Wow, this is extraordinary.

I fell in love with it.

As soon as I saw this, I had to have it.

It was just wonderful.

I am so impressed by it.

I mean, so impressed.

But it does not change my attitude to caravans.

- It hasn't?

- No.

I mean, I will admire them for as long as they exist, but I have no desire to be in a caravan.

Even less do I have a desire to put up a fizzing tent.

PETER DAVISON: Well, I'll tell you what-- I tell you what, though.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: I'm sorry.

The way to appreciate caravans is to spend a few nights in a tent.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Is that right?

Yes.

PETER DAVISON: And then you'll think, luxury.

That would be amazing.

Come on.

There's not a chance!

Let's do it!

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Time to try and change Chris's mind about camping.

There, you take that.

[upbeat music] So I thought we could do it, like here.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Having found the perfect spot-- [chuckles] Oh, lots of bits to fall off.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): --we're pitching an original 1930s tent.

- It smells, Pete.

- What?

- It smells.

- OK.

Hang on.

I don't remember it being as complicated as this.

[laughs] OK, where's the other hole?

PETER DAVISON: So these have got to be-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Ah, like a skirt.

Yeah.

PETER DAVISON: Right, OK.

Hey.

Just hold-- you hold your end up, Chris.

I am holding my end up.

Psst.

Yeah?

No hands.

♪ ♪ PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): A camper's guidebook that would be familiar to '30s campers has some wise advice.

"The one who invites a friend and who has taken part in a previous expedition should be skipper.

It will not be necessary to state this formally to the chum, but there must be no doubt left about it."

Chris?

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Yeah?

- Have you finished yet?

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: No!

Well, get a move on.

♪ ♪ It's a tent.

Well done.

You did it in very good time, I thought.

Yes.

You're a real man, ain't you?

[laughs] Let's get in.

I think this is really bloody good.

I do.

PETER DAVISON: Admittedly, there's a bit of a through draft.

Would you think ill of me if we went and sought out a hotel now?

Chris, you're staying here.

Good night.

Now, come on.

I can't spend the night in here.

I'm too old for this.

[upbeat music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): The following morning, having checked out of a nearby hotel-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Thank goodness.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): --we motor on towards Torquay.

Water on both sides.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: The English Riviera.

PETER DAVISON: The English Riviera, yes.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): We're on our way to the Babbacombe area of the town, home to a beautiful funicular cliff railway that was first opened over 90 years ago.

In the 1960s, racing from Oddicombe Beach at the foot of the railway to the top of the twisting cliff road that runs alongside, was a popular pastime.

We've been given special permission to put our own spin on it.

PETER DAVISON: I thought it might be fun to race the-- race the train up the hill.

Well, I'll go on the train.

Is that all right?

Just-- well, hairpin bends and all that.

So it's the Babbacombe Railway.

PETER DAVISON: It's the Babbacombe Railway.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Up Oddicombe Hill.

PETER DAVISON: Oddicombe Hill.

And it's a race against the car and a train.

Yeah.

See who gets-- So it's in the lap of the "Goddicombes."

Oh, dear.

Did you get that out of your book of bad jokes?

No, it just-- it just came to me.

Yeah, that's exactly what we're doing.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Well, it's a bit of excitement.

PETER DAVISON: Yes, let the battle commence.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Let's.

I'm not driving the train, am I?

[lively music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Thankfully not.

The railway ascends over 700 feet from the bottom of the cliff to the top.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Whilst I'm in the train, Peter will be racing up the road, which measures over 2,000 feet and includes four hairpin bends.

The Morgan against the Babbacombe Cliff Railway.

I just want to see him take off as we take off.

Oh, there he is.

Don't go yet.

Don't go yet.

Don't go yet.

♪ ♪ I feel just like Lewis Hamilton.

[train dings] [upbeat music] Yes!

And we're off.

♪ ♪ Slow down, Pete.

Slow.

Slow down.

♪ ♪ I should be talking, but I've got no time.

Sorry.

[laughs] Oh, here we go.

♪ ♪ Yeah, no.

Is the car there?

Is the car there?

Yes, it is.

Yeah, well done.

Well done, you smug-- whatever.

[laughs] [upbeat music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Triumphant in victory, the mighty Morgan carries us forward into Torquay, the heart of the English Riviera and the birthplace of the nation's favorite murder mystery writer.

You know, Agatha Christie was-- her birthplace was Torquay.

I did know that, actually.

- Did you?

- I did, yes.

I can't tell you anything, can I?

[laughs] Have you ever been in an Agatha Christie thing?

No, I haven't.

Have you?

Yeah!

I've been in-- actually, two Miss Marple's.

In A Pocketful of Rye, I was the murderer.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): With around 2 billion copies of her books sold worldwide, Agatha Christie stands second only to Shakespeare as the best-selling British writer of all time.

So we are heading towards her holiday home, her place of escape, really, I think.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Agatha adored her holiday home, and it featured in some of her novels.

But as she wrote in her autobiography, it wasn't the only great passion in her life.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: I will-- Sorry.

I'm trying to read, Peter.

[laughs] "I will confess here and now that one of the two things that have excited me most in my life, and the first was my car, my gray bottle-nosed Morris Cowley."

Can you tell me what the other thing that was-- most excited her in her life?

Yes, she dined with the Queen.

Oh, OK.

[bright music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Blimey.

It sounds as though Agatha was one of the first petrolheads.

We're going to find out what all the fuss was about by taking a look at the same model of the car she loved so much at her holiday home, Greenway House.

♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Agatha lived here for 38 years, and three of her books featured the house, including the Poirot mystery, Dead Man's Folly.

In 2000, her family gifted this special place to the National Trust.

Hello.

- Hello.

- I'm Peter.

Hello.

Welcome.

- Hi, I'm Chris.

- Hello, I'm Elaine.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Elaine is one of the managers.

It's a very impressive house to have as a holiday home.

It is.

[laughs] It is, yes.

PETER DAVISON: And it's got this wonderful view.

ELAINE: Oh, yeah.

Great views around the Dart, particularly from her bedroom, which was a lot of her inspiration.

You can imagine Poirot walking up the grand staircase to his bedroom, looking out of the French windows.

It's here.

She wrote quite prolifically.

She wrote over 86 books.

She wrote numerous plays, poems, poetry, The Mousetrap being her most famous play, which is still going on in London today.

Now, Chris, when we were coming down here, he read this quote from Agatha Christie where she says one of the two most exciting things in her life was driving her Morris Cowley.

ELAINE: She was very fond of her Morris Cowley.

She was quite a nervous driver to start with.

But at that time, as you know, you didn't have to pass a driving test.

There wasn't as much traffic on the road as what there is now, so she basically got in the car and drove.

PETER DAVISON: Excellent.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): Which is just what I'm going to attempt to do.

PETER DAVISON: OK, here we go.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Good luck.

Now, the very good thing about this, Chris, is I noticed that it's got a Christopher Timothy profanity hooter.

[honks] You know?

So every time-- For those moments when you get a bit carried away, I'll just go [honks].

I've got to say, this place is-- [honks] --marvelous.

[laughter] [engine revs] [quaint music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): That's quite enough of that.

It's time to follow in Agatha's tire tracks.

♪ ♪ Are you quite comfortable, Mr.

Timothy?

I feel-- I feel I'm in the position to which I'm entitled.

It's really comfortable and really nice.

PETER DAVISON: I'm going to try and get into second gear.

[engine revs] - Is that second?

- Yep.

- Well done.

- Thank you.

You're coming along.

[laughs] And you look very at home, can I say, in the back.

Well, you know.

PETER DAVISON: It's one of those cars where they put the brake on the right-hand side, so you just don't know where the brake is when you have to slow down.

Plus, the brake isn't the greatest in the world, which, of course, they weren't on those cars.

But, yeah, I could get-- I could get used to it.

If someone wanted to give me one, I suppose.

[laughs] [vintage music] CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): Driving away from Greenway, we head further into the Devonshire countryside.

The roads get a little-- a little hairy, shall we say.

Cue the tractor!

[laughter] [gentle music] PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We're closing in on our final destination, Burgh Island.

♪ ♪ It's home to an elegant art deco hotel, which was one of Agatha's treasured writing spots and the setting for two of her novels, And Then There Were None and Evil Under The Sun.

♪ ♪ At high tide, the island is cut off, and a sea tractor transports guests to and from the hotel.

♪ ♪ I shall be a bit narked if we can't go on the tractor.

Oh, will you?

Now that you-- you've offered it up.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): If we're going to make Chris's wish come true, we need to get a move on.

We're in a race against the retreating tide.

Time and tide wait for no man.

It's not going to wait for us.

[dramatic music] Well, fingers crossed, eh?

Yeah.

But it'll be worth it, I promise you.

♪ ♪ There you go.

There it is.

Look.

Wow.

PETER DAVISON: But unfortunately, as you can see, there's no sea between us and the island.

Never mind.

I so wanted to go on the transit.

Yeah, I know.

PETER DAVISON (VOICEOVER): We're out of luck.

Time to put our walking shoes on.

I am seriously narked about the tractor.

Seriously.

It's a nice walk, Chris.

And when we get there, you can look at the tractor.

A nice view of the hotel.

You see?

Look.

And it's had notable guests in the past, from-- CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Edward and Mrs.

Simpson.

I know that.

- Noel Coward.

Yeah.

Churchill.

Churchill.

And the Beatles, I believe, stayed here as well.

Now, here is the sea tractor.

This is what we should have been on.

Jolly big, isn't it?

Yeah.

This has been around for some time.

And just sorry we didn't get here in time.

Didn't you promise me a drink in the bar?

Yeah, OK.

[lively music] ♪ ♪ CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY (VOICEOVER): We've definitely earned a drink.

[pop] And to match the elegant surroundings, it can only be one thing.

Wow.

PETER DAVISON: Oh, thank you very much indeed.

Journey's end, chaps.

Journey's end.

There he is.

♪ ♪ Cheers.

Salud.

Well done.

CHRISTOPHER TIMOTHY: Likewise.

- We got here.

Yeah.

What a few days, eh?

Mm.

We've had British weather, we've had beautiful weather.

We've had dodgy roads and wide roads.

Yeah.

We've had old caravans-- Broad roads, old caravans.

We erected a tent.

PETER DAVISON: Yeah.

Well, what.

And then we've ended up here.

This wonderful view-- It is.

It is.

Yeah.

It's stunning.

I mean, it is, and it's-- Oh.

I've spilled it now.

How many-- well, you see, you're not used to champagne.

No, I'm really not.

You hold a glass like that, one finger up.

PETER DAVISON: OK, all right.

OK.

You don't hold it by the stem.

I've been learning from you my whole life, Chris.

[chuckling] [theme music] ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪ ♪