More muddy, historical adventures
Mud Men Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker are off on more muddy historical adventures, mudlarking along the banks of the Thames, and beyond, not for buried treasure but hidden history which could change our understanding of the past forever. Their excitement and fascination with history is evident as the extraordinary artefacts that they find propel them on quests to discover all about our shared British past.
The artefacts the Mud Men and their crew of fellow mudlarks find in this 11 part second series range from mortar cannon balls at Deptford to a rare medieval pilgrim’s badge at Blackwall, 16th century trading tokens in Westminster and even a 1911 German hand gun on the Isle of Dogs.
Their finds are all verified by Dr Michael Lewis from the British Museum, deputy director of the portable Antiquities Scheme. The star artefacts launch them on a historical adventure to find out more about our history, from the jobs we used to do such as lock making and glass blowing to the weapons we used in war from guns to tanks.
The Mud Men tackle British history with energy and plenty of humour as their quests take the boys all over the country in their new Mud Men HQ campervan and include learning how to shoot a long bow from actor Robert Hardy in Warwick, the life of a smuggler in Hastings, canal bashing in the Black Country and civil war pike and musket drill in Norfolk.
As well as scouring the Thames for finds, Johnny and Steve venture further afield on their Mud Men tour. They become “sandlarks” on the beach at Folkestone where they find 2000 year old Roman artefacts, hunt for buried treasure on a pirate adventure in Plymouth and try their hand at magnet dipping for evidence of the Industrial Revolution in Regent’s Canal. Finally they travel to Poland to discover the history that lies beneath the woodland of an ancient Polish city and embark on an adventure into Poland’s World War 2 past.
Episodic Synopsis
1.Fulham Palace:
Mud Men, Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker, mudlark on the foreshore by Fulham Palace Park, the summer residence of the bishops of London from the middle ages until 1975.
The boys’ finds on the foreshore include a piece of masonry that Steve is convinced comes from the original palace and a beautiful medieval tile which take them off to sample the life of the bishops in the middle ages and Tudor times, and find out how the English became the elite fighting force in Europe.
Johnny and Steve speak with award winning author and Tudor historian Philippa Gregory about the luxurious life of the bishops, and the not so luxurious life of his lowly yeoman.
Their quest then takes them deep into the hierarchical world of Tudor England, as they learn the art of falconry. But things get competitive as the boys find out about archery and battle it out to impress their teacher, world famous actor and authority on the longbow Robert Hardy, to find out which of them could have been an archer in the indomitable English army.
2.Surrey Quays
This week’s episode is all about bottles of booze, as Mud Men Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker get stuck in the mud at Surrey Quays. Home to London’s oldest and largest dock it’s no surprise when the boys start pulling up Victorian bottles of beer, but much to Steve’s irritation it is Johnny who pulls up their favourite find - an almost complete 19th century torpedo bottle by J. Schweppe.
Following his superb find, Johnny discovers the evolution of bottles while Steve puts his hot air to good use blowing glass bubbles to make his very own torpedo bottle. Then our Mud Men find out about gin soaked 18th century London and learn how to make the perfect Victorian cocktail.
After finding out about the evolution of the British pub, it’s the Mud Men versus the locals as the boys try they’re hands at a tournament of 19th century pub games.
3.Isle of Dogs:
Today’s Mud Men comes from the Isle of Dogs which lies on a loop in the River Thames in the East End of London, between Limehouse and Blackwall. During World War Two it was badly hit, as Germany tried to bomb the heart out of Britain’s trade and shipping network.
It’s not long before Steve Brooker and his trusty side kick Rock God, start pulling up the remnants of two world wars but it’s Johnny who liberates a 1911 German Mauser handgun sending the boys off on an explosive quest to learn about firearms and firepower in the early 20th century. It wouldn’t be Mud Men without a trip to their favourite place the National Shooting Range at Bisley! Johnny and Steve pit themselves and their weapons against each other in a WW2 shoot out.
Then it’s off to the world’s largest armed forces fair- War and Peace- to find out about the iconic artefacts and vehicles of WW2 and a chance to tear up the track in a drag race – Tank style.
4.Westminster:
Today’s episode comes from the foreshore at Westminster, the epicentre of political power and the heart of our capital city for nearly 900 years. In their hunt for medieval finds linked to the palace, Mud Men, Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker are joined by keen mudlark and antiques expert, Geoffrey Munn who shows off a remnant of the original medieval palace he’s found.
Their finds range from rare trade tokens, medieval brass strap end and book clasp to a piece of controversial chainmail and which send Johnny and Steve to the Tower of London to discover whether Steve’s mail is original and how valiant knights dressed ready to fight for their country and honour.
Inspired by the world of the medieval knight, Johnny and Steve delve into the complexities of heraldry and Steve learns how to make authentic armour.
Finally, their courtly quest takes them deep into medieval battle, and Johnny finally fulfils his destiny and becomes a knight, but it’s Steve who has to prepare for the Joust.
5.Folkestone:
This week our Mud Men Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker leave the Thames behind them and head to Folkestone to switch the foreshore for the seashore.
Our Mud Men meet the team of archaeologists racing against time to excavate a Roman villa before the cliff erodes and the remains fall into the sea. Joined by eagle eyed GM and Rock God, Steve and Johnny search for all things Roman and discover rare Roman quern stones- used to grind wheat to make bread- before heading off on a quest to find out about life after the Invasion for both the Roman invaders and the local tribes.
They find out about the diet of a Roman soldier, grind wheat using quern stones and sample some delicacies such as fermented fish guts. They adopt the typical dress of a Roman centurion and an Icenian tribesman and discover that the Romans kept the locals under control with entertainment in the form of chariot races.
Then Johnny and Steve swap horses for horse power as they compete in a modern day chariot race.
6.Deptford:
This week the Mud Men go back to Brooksey’s old stomping ground in Deptford. A stop off for pilgrims travelling to London and later a major shipbuilding dock.
Steve and Johnny pull up some fantastic finds, including a rare 17th century trading token and an 18th century fake guinea used in gambling. But it’s not long before Johnny and Steve set the standard with a 17th century mortar cannon ball that may have fallen off a war ship in the boat yard 400 years ago.
Their explosive 17th century find sends Johnny and Steve on a quest to discover more about the English civil war and its weapons, but first they must leave their mortar cannon ball at the National Army Museum to make sure they aren’t carrying around a dangerous bomb.
Then finally, its time for battle as our Mud Men experience life as a pikeman and a musketeer in a 17th century civil war siege.
7.Billingsgate:
Today the Mud Men, Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker are getting down and dirty at one of the oldest trading sites in the heart of London – Billingsgate Market. With all that trading going on it’s not long before the boys are digging up some choice finds including a 15th century bone dice, a 1602 portcullis halfpenny, ancient fish hooks, a Roman coin from Constantine 1st and a medieval reckoning counter- a jeton. Their hoard of finds sets the boys on a trading quest.
At the British Museum they discover all about how the medieval traders kept their accounts and tallies and Steve heads off to New Billingsgate Market to find out about the ordinary men and women who worked in the market and exactly what went on when the original fish market was the most important trading-place in the City.
Their fishy quest leads Johnny and Steve to make a 19th century London food favourite, jellied eels. Then it’s every Mud Man for themselves as the boys practice their trading patter and compete to sell their products at modern day Brixton market.
8.Regents Canal:
Today the Mud Men are dipping their toes into different waters. They’ve drifted away from the foreshore to explore what lies beneath the surface of London’s Regents Canal. During the Industrial Revolution Britain’s canals were the motorways of the day. Sleek man-made waterways were the fastest way to get you - and your stuff - from A to B. Dipping their magnets into the canal, it’s not long before our larkers start pulling up all things industrial, from padlocks to iron chains and even some Victorian jewellery.
It’s time for a Mud Men road trip as the finds send Johnny and Steve to the home of the industrial revolution, the West Midlands. The heartland of heavy industry, Birmingham and the Black Country have a lot to offer the boys. Steve heads off to find out more about making padlocks, his personal obsession.
Then the Mud Men do what they do best, and learn all about Birmingham’s greatest exports- guns- at one of the oldest manufacturers who still make all their guns by hand in a process that can take 2 years!
Finally the boys head off to the canals to learn about working on the canals and become canal bashers, legging their way through the tunnels.
9.Blackwall:
Today’s Mudmen comes from Blackwall, a stones throw from London’s financial district. Although these days it’s most famous for its tunnel, in Blackwall’s heyday pilgrims, explorers and shipbuilders rubbed shoulders with emigrants and convicts waiting for passage to the new world. And that means the boys are hoping for finds going right back into the medieval history of London. Access to the foreshore at Blackwall is by invitation only and hasn’t been touched for years, so today our Mud Men are joined by a whole crew of mudlarks lending their eager eyes to the search.
They find a medieval bounty of finds including a pilgrim’s Canterbury bell, an apothecary’s mortar and a priceless pilgrim’s badge that Dr Michael Lewis claims for the British Museum.
The boys set off on a medieval quest to investigate plague and pilgrimages starting with a visit to a medieval herbalist to try and cure Rock God’s bout of the black death.
The boys discover about the link between Plague and Pilgrimages in Medieval Britain with a visit to the science museum and Johnny decides that the only cure for his sins is to send Steve off on a pilgrimage to Canterbury to pray for him.
Along the way Steve learns to make a pilgrims’ badge to satisfy Johnny and learns the hard way, just how seriously the medieval sinners took their pilgrimages.
10.Plymouth:
On today’s show the Mud Men pack up their buckets and spades and head to the south west for a spot of marine larking. Johnny, Steve and his trusty lieutenant Rock have heard about a mudlark splinter cell larking up a storm in Plymouth, and the boys are keen not to miss out on the finds, so they’re waving goodbye to the Thames foreshore and heading to seashore in the Mud Men HQ.
The coast at Plymouth was littered with naval docks, which always means some top finds for the Mud Men, including 18th century brass naval rivets, naval buttons, bullets, musket balls and grape shot.
It’s not long before Johnny and Steve are off on a nautical quest in search of courageous sea-captains and sly smugglers on the South Coast.
Johnny and Steve board the Golden Hinde to track down the Britain’s most famous pirate and adventurer, Sir Francis Drake, and experience how hard it was for the Captain to find his way when he circumnavigated the globe.
But the boys’ brains quickly turn back to their favourite pastime, BOOZE, and they begin a smugglers adventure to experience the life of the 18th century booze runners.
