1 00:00:02,370 --> 00:00:06,690 Wisley Common in Surrey is a haven for rare and unusual species 2 00:00:06,690 --> 00:00:09,210 of all types, and full of surprises. 3 00:00:11,370 --> 00:00:15,050 Just around the corner, on Chatley Heath, is something 4 00:00:15,050 --> 00:00:16,850 that's genuinely one of a kind. 5 00:00:18,530 --> 00:00:23,850 Amongst the bustle of the M25 and the A3 and the austere beauty 6 00:00:23,850 --> 00:00:27,810 of the heathland stands a monument to our naval history. 7 00:00:32,490 --> 00:00:34,210 Now, on Countryfile, we wouldn't 8 00:00:34,210 --> 00:00:37,450 normally be filming on a building site, but the chance to explore 9 00:00:37,450 --> 00:00:39,970 this incredible building is one I just couldn't miss. 10 00:00:42,970 --> 00:00:44,890 This mysterious structure 11 00:00:44,890 --> 00:00:48,570 is the last surviving semaphore tower in Britain. 12 00:00:48,570 --> 00:00:52,850 Semaphore is a type of signalling by means of flags, lights 13 00:00:52,850 --> 00:00:57,530 or moving arms, which were used to represent letters or numbers, 14 00:00:57,530 --> 00:00:59,650 a precursor to Morse code. 15 00:00:59,650 --> 00:01:03,170 Invented by the French in the late 18th century, 16 00:01:03,170 --> 00:01:08,050 signalling towers like these allowed large-scale transmission of messages 17 00:01:08,050 --> 00:01:12,090 faster than horse-riding messengers could carry. 18 00:01:12,090 --> 00:01:15,930 Britain's long wars with Napoleon underlined the need for rapid 19 00:01:15,930 --> 00:01:20,850 communications between London and key naval ports like Portsmouth. 20 00:01:20,850 --> 00:01:26,970 In 1816, work began on a chain of 15 semaphore stations linking London 21 00:01:26,970 --> 00:01:28,810 with the South Coast. 22 00:01:28,810 --> 00:01:32,250 The Chatley Heath Tower would be its vital link. 23 00:01:32,250 --> 00:01:35,770 200 years on, old age has taken its toll. 24 00:01:35,770 --> 00:01:38,730 The tower is crumbling with damp problems. 25 00:01:38,730 --> 00:01:41,570 The Landmark Trust - a charity which restores important 26 00:01:41,570 --> 00:01:45,210 historic buildings - has made the tower their latest rescue. 27 00:01:45,210 --> 00:01:47,250 Ah, Caroline, hi! 28 00:01:47,250 --> 00:01:49,610 How are you? I'm very well, thank you. 29 00:01:49,610 --> 00:01:51,010 Welcome to Semaphore Tower. 30 00:01:51,010 --> 00:01:54,090 Caroline Stanford is the historian at the trust. 31 00:01:55,450 --> 00:02:00,090 So, this was where the messages were sent from? Exactly. Exactly. 32 00:02:00,090 --> 00:02:04,010 You can see that the handle is here, on the mast. 33 00:02:04,010 --> 00:02:06,690 Unfortunately, the scaffolding's in the way at the moment, 34 00:02:06,690 --> 00:02:08,450 so we can't set it today. 35 00:02:08,450 --> 00:02:10,690 But you would spin it round. 36 00:02:10,690 --> 00:02:13,410 These brass dials on both sides, 37 00:02:13,410 --> 00:02:16,370 they show you what position the arms are in 38 00:02:16,370 --> 00:02:19,410 and which letter they're spelling out. 39 00:02:19,410 --> 00:02:21,810 And the messages were often sent in code. 40 00:02:21,810 --> 00:02:25,970 I mean, even though the semaphore arms could do all 26 letters 41 00:02:25,970 --> 00:02:29,410 of the alphabet, and more in fact, it was quite long 42 00:02:29,410 --> 00:02:30,690 to spell everything out, 43 00:02:30,690 --> 00:02:34,450 so for the regular messages like "French ships on the horizon," 44 00:02:34,450 --> 00:02:38,450 or something, they could just send an abbreviated code. 45 00:02:38,450 --> 00:02:41,210 So, a little emoji, almost, to say, "This is the story in full." 46 00:02:41,210 --> 00:02:43,930 Exactly. It's like text speak, yes, exactly. 47 00:02:45,690 --> 00:02:49,250 So, was this state of the art in its day? It really was. 48 00:02:49,250 --> 00:02:52,810 So, if you think way back, centuries ago, they would have spelled out 49 00:02:52,810 --> 00:02:56,330 such messages of alarm through simple beacons, through fires. 50 00:02:56,330 --> 00:02:59,170 This, with its semaphore arms and its letters of the alphabet, 51 00:02:59,170 --> 00:03:01,730 is like the 5G of fire beacons. 52 00:03:03,010 --> 00:03:05,130 Standing at 90 feet, 53 00:03:05,130 --> 00:03:08,530 Chatley Heath's tower was the tallest in the chain, 54 00:03:08,530 --> 00:03:12,970 meaning its signallers could see and be seen by neighbouring towers 55 00:03:12,970 --> 00:03:14,690 a full seven miles away. 56 00:03:16,130 --> 00:03:19,690 Each manoeuvre was reckoned to take about 30 seconds. 57 00:03:19,690 --> 00:03:23,570 The messages relayed could range from taking in a ship full of 58 00:03:23,570 --> 00:03:27,170 French refugees to reporting the death of a Prime Minister. 59 00:03:27,170 --> 00:03:31,690 Incredibly, getting a message 103 miles from Portsmouth to London 60 00:03:31,690 --> 00:03:34,690 could take as little as seven minutes. 61 00:03:34,690 --> 00:03:38,290 What was the job like? It was obviously relatively desirable. 62 00:03:38,290 --> 00:03:42,490 It was a kind of perk for retired naval officers who perhaps 63 00:03:42,490 --> 00:03:44,330 were a bit down on their luck. 64 00:03:44,330 --> 00:03:47,930 We know there was the first lieutenant, who was Edward Harris, 65 00:03:47,930 --> 00:03:50,730 and he had a wife and five kids who lived here. 66 00:03:50,730 --> 00:03:53,490 All in this building? All in this building, 67 00:03:53,490 --> 00:03:57,450 plus two more naval ratings, who were the kind of gofers for him. 68 00:03:57,450 --> 00:03:58,850 For over 20 years, 69 00:03:58,850 --> 00:04:02,090 the tower relayed messages between London and Portsmouth. 70 00:04:02,090 --> 00:04:04,290 In 1839, 71 00:04:04,290 --> 00:04:07,250 the electric telegraph came along, 72 00:04:07,250 --> 00:04:11,690 so London to Portsmouth suddenly got even faster than seven minutes, 73 00:04:11,690 --> 00:04:15,450 and after that, the Chatley Heath Semaphore Tower 74 00:04:15,450 --> 00:04:17,650 really became rather redundant. 75 00:04:20,570 --> 00:04:22,650 Seeing this imposing structure in action 76 00:04:22,650 --> 00:04:24,970 must have been really impressive. 77 00:04:24,970 --> 00:04:27,970 I can't wait to come back when all the scaffolding has come down. 78 00:04:29,490 --> 00:04:32,490 Oh, it's just lovely to think that a building that's been such 79 00:04:32,490 --> 00:04:35,410 a big part of our history will be saved for future generations 80 00:04:35,410 --> 00:04:36,930 to understand and explore. 81 00:04:36,930 --> 00:04:39,610 Yeah, absolutely, and given a new use too, 82 00:04:39,610 --> 00:04:41,930 so it won't just be sitting here as a museum. 83 00:04:41,930 --> 00:04:45,530 It will be open for people to come and stay here for holidays 84 00:04:45,530 --> 00:04:48,570 and hopefully, be sending a few messages of their own.