Catch up on all the latest history news from across Kent with Finn Macdiarmid.
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00:00Hello and welcome to Kent Chronicles, where we turn back time on all of Kent's history,
00:25from the Mesolithic era to the Industrial Revolution and everything in between.
00:30I'm Finn McDermott, and join me as we turn back time and discuss all things history.
00:35But first, it's another one of our classic history roundups.
00:39Now, as much history as Kent does have, it's time to take a look at what's making the headlines around the country.
00:44So, here's another instalment of the history roundup.
00:46This week, we ask to be or not to be, as we reflect on one of the most influential playwrights in history.
00:52He loved the people, and the people loved him.
00:54We take a look at King Charles II and the English Civil War.
00:57And finally, yesterday marked the celebration and 57th anniversary of Earth Day.
01:02And we take a brief look into its origins and the environmental law it encouraged.
01:06First up, on today's history roundup.
01:11408 years ago today, William Shakespeare passed away.
01:17Born in Stratford-upon-Avon and baptised in 1564, he became an incredibly influential poet and playwright,
01:25not only in the Elizabethan and Jacobean ages, but also in modern day.
01:30Many popular phrases we use today were written over a hundred years ago by the playwright.
01:37These include phrases like,
01:38A world's goose chase, which was written in Romeo and Juliet,
01:43and Neither rhyme nor reason, from the Comedy of Errors.
01:47His plays and legacy continued, especially in 1997,
01:51when a recreation of the Globe Theatre was built,
01:55an iconic venue that many of Shakespeare's plays were performed at.
01:59On this day, in 1661, Charles II was crowned King of England.
02:06His father, Charles I, was defeated by the parliamentary commander Oliver Cromwell
02:11during the English Civil Wars.
02:14Between 1649 and 1660, the British Isles had no monarchy.
02:20Following Oliver Cromwell's death in 1658,
02:24the republic state he created became unstable,
02:28and many grew unhappy under the regime.
02:31After spending nine years in exile,
02:33Charles II was invited back to London to restore the monarchy.
02:38Finally, on the 22nd of April, 1970,
02:42the first Earth Day was celebrated.
02:45It was founded by conservationist Gaylord Anton Nelson
02:48in the late 1960s to encourage more environmental awareness amongst Americans.
02:55Around 20 million Americans participated in the first Earth Day.
03:00All of this built support to encourage many environmental acts to be passed in the US,
03:06including the Clean Air Act of 1970.
03:09That's it for this week's History Roundup.
03:12Now, actress Sarah Sugarman's Grade II listed home on the Isle of Sheppey is now on the housing market.
03:21It was built for some of the top-ranking naval officers stationed on the island at the beginning of the 19th century.
03:27In 2010, in a project spearheaded by Will Palin, son of Monty Python's Michael Palin,
03:32the Spitalfields Historic Buildings Trust bought the entire site.
03:35During the renovations, Miss Sugarman has made sure to keep the building's eccentricities.
03:40The walls and woodwork have been painted in historically accurate colours,
03:43with the traditional practices of lime rendering and wax polish used to restore architectural features.
03:48Now, a Folkestone schoolteacher will be the second woman in the world to attempt to swim from Monsel Forts to Whitstable.
03:57Jess Laurent will be jumping off the abandoned Second World War Seafort in August
04:01and will have to swim eight miles back to the Kent coast to raise money for Aspire,
04:05a charity who supports spinal cord injury victims.
04:08She's no stranger to the waves and was part of a channel swimming relay team in 2023,
04:13but this will be her longest swim yet because of the more physically demanding tides
04:17and choppiness of the Thames estuary.
04:19And a derelict shop in Margate will be revived as a diner with a particularly spooky theme.
04:26The Santa Carla will open this summer in the centre and is designed to be a tribute to The Lost Boys,
04:30a cult classic vampire film from 1987.
04:34The mind behind the diner, Pete Klukas, also runs the vampire-themed Lost Souls Pizza in Camden
04:39and says the two spots exist in the same universe,
04:41but now the new site will pay homage to the boardwalk shown in the film.
04:45He says he fell in love with Margate straightaway and is a self-confessed hoarder,
04:49so is looking forward to borrowing and reclaiming items for the diner.
04:53Now, Earth Day has been a global environmental campaign since the 1970s,
04:57but I took to Maidstone's High Street to find out what they're doing this year around
05:03and what people think of it.
05:05Today marks the 75th anniversary of Earth Day.
05:08It was started back in the U.S. in 1970 by Senator Gaylord Nelson,
05:13who created it after seeing an oil spill.
05:15It's come a long way.
05:17Even in 2020, the Paris Climate Agreement was signed on this very day.
05:22And today's aim is all to unite around renewable energy
05:25so they can triple the amount of clean electricity by 2030.
05:29But is this possible?
05:30And here in Kent, do people actually know about Earth Day?
05:33So what, is it like a happy birthday for the Earth and that?
05:36No one ever did, no. It's the first time.
05:39Yeah, I found out through work a couple of years ago.
05:42Yeah, I've heard of Earth Days. I mean, it's the 22nd of April.
05:45Do you guys know what Earth Day is? Do you guys know tomorrow is Earth Day?
05:49No.
05:50Exactly. What is Earth Day?
05:51But with the cost of living crisis still going on,
05:54can people really afford sustainable energy sources,
05:57like the ones here on Maidstone High Street?
05:59A hundred percent. Cost of living is too much, man. It's too, too much.
06:04So, of course, it's going to cost a lot, you know.
06:08All the energy has just gone up ridiculously, you know.
06:12My has doubled. Gas, electricity, everything doubled this month.
06:18So the quicker everybody gets the green energy,
06:21I think the better will be for us, for Earth, for everything.
06:26Yeah, but then also there's that more to think about,
06:30because if you're living in rented accommodation,
06:32how do you choose where your energy comes from?
06:35Because it's given to you by the landlord,
06:36and they're only interested in their, line in their pockets.
06:40If you've got an option of doing solar panels,
06:42I don't think too many people have.
06:43Most people are renting nowadays.
06:46Probably are someone who's got a mortgage or something like that,
06:48or whose landlord really cares, you know what I mean?
06:50Now, according to Earth Day themselves,
06:51they say they want people to educate, advocate and mobilise their communities
06:55to create real change.
06:57But here in Maidstone, many people aren't even aware of the day itself.
07:01So, rather than shining a light on solar panels,
07:04we might need to start shining a light on Earth Day.
07:06Finn McDermid for KMTV in Maidstone.
07:09Now, yesterday might have been Earth Day,
07:13but today is a very different kind of holiday.
07:16It's St George's Day, and many people might know it
07:18just for seeing the England flag flying everywhere,
07:22but it also has some historical links.
07:25You might know the classic story of St George slaying the dragon,
07:29saving the maiden, and, of course, saving the village as well.
07:32He's a sort of icon of English history,
07:34but I have to confess, I don't know that much about him.
07:37So, I was joined earlier by Etterley Reynolds,
07:40one of the reporters here at KMTV.
07:43She helps me out on lots of the history show
07:45that you're currently watching.
07:47She told me all about the actual background of St George
07:50and a bit about what people in the county are doing to celebrate.
07:54So, Etterley joins me now.
07:55So, Etterley, on St George's Day,
07:57talk to us a bit about who St George actually was.
08:00So, in its simple terms,
08:02St George is the patron saint of England.
08:04Scotland, Wales, Northern Ireland.
08:09They all have their own ones.
08:11St David is Wales, St Andrew, Scotland,
08:14and arguably the most famous St Patrick for Northern Ireland.
08:18He's represented by our flag,
08:20which is that white flag with the red cross.
08:23There are lots of stories about St George,
08:26some that are more mythical than others.
08:28For example, there's a story,
08:29he became a saint because he slayed a dragon,
08:32a dragon that was terrorizing an old village,
08:35and he even saved a maiden or a princess,
08:37depending on which story you read.
08:40This type of story was actually printed
08:42in a book called The Golden Legend in 1483.
08:47But to play on more of the side of realism,
08:50it's believed that he wasn't actually English.
08:53He was Turkish, and he was born in around the 3rd century AD.
08:59Stories are believed that he was a Roman soldier
09:02who protested how the Romans were treating Christians.
09:07It's also believed that he was chosen to be a patron saint
09:10by King Edward III in 1348
09:13for his bravery in the face of adversity
09:16and noble defence of the innocent.
09:19Now, whether you believe those more mythical stories,
09:21you can see that noble defence of the innocents
09:23with the protecting the village from the dragon
09:25and bravery in the face of adversity,
09:28standing up to the Roman soldiers
09:30for their treatment of Christians.
09:32But whatever you believe,
09:34it seems that those are the sorts of things needed
09:36to be chosen as a patron saint.
09:38Amazing.
09:39And how are people here in the county
09:41actually celebrating St George's Day?
09:43So there's actually lots of celebrations going on
09:45in and around Kent.
09:47In Gravesend and Dartford,
09:49pupils from 23 different schools
09:52are joining together to do, like, a little parade,
09:55a little march.
09:56Apparently, they've all got shields and signs
09:58that they've been making in class this week.
10:01And Swansea Town Council have said
10:02that they're organising activities for Saturday.
10:05Swansea have always had some fun
10:07St George's Day celebrations.
10:09Back in 2020, they had a best-dressed knight
10:12and best-dressed damsel competition,
10:14which I think would be really cool.
10:15I'd love to dress up as, like, a knight
10:17and just, I don't know,
10:19with a little sword or something.
10:20No, I'm the exact same.
10:21On all the different history stories and stuff I've done,
10:24I've met a load of different people
10:25who love doing reenactments,
10:27whether it's military
10:28or whether it's, like you say, medieval.
10:30Well, thank you so much for joining us, Cetely.
10:32We've learned a little bit more about the holiday.
10:35I think everyone just sort of knows it
10:36as a bank holiday, but, you know...
10:37A little bit more of the story behind it.
10:40Yeah, which is what history's all about.
10:41So, thank you so much for your time.
10:44Well, I certainly learned a bit more
10:46about St George there.
10:47Hopefully, you did too.
10:49Now, it's time for a history question
10:51to test your knowledge.
10:52I like to call it Trivia Through Time.
10:54We've seen a lot of Trivia Through Time
10:56over the episodes of this show.
10:58Like, did you know that Folkestone
10:59was, in fact, the first place
11:01to have an international beauty pageant?
11:03Well, let's have a look at this week's.
11:05How did John Dean of Whitstable
11:07come up with the idea
11:08for the fireman's mask and diving helmet
11:10in the 1820s?
11:13So, yeah.
11:13How did John Dean of Whitstable
11:15come up with the idea
11:17for the fireman's mask and diving helmet
11:19in the 1820s?
11:20You might not know that.
11:30If you do know the answer,
11:31stick around after this short break
11:33to find out more.
11:34There's a lot of inventions
11:35that have happened over Kent's history.
11:36Algebra is another one of them.
11:38Well, it looks like the clock
11:39has hit its halfway mark.
11:41But don't worry,
11:42there's still more history
11:43to be uncovered.
11:44So, join us after this very short break.
11:47We'll speak to the conductor
11:48for the Leeds Castle concert
11:49about their plans for the summer
11:51at the historic site.
11:52See you in just a few minutes.
15:20Hello and welcome back to Kent Chronicles Live
15:23here on KMTV.
15:24I'm Finn McDermid
15:25and here's your trivia through time.
15:28Here's the answer if you missed it.
15:29How did John Dean of Whitstable come up with the idea for the fireman's mask and diving helmet
15:39in the 1820s?
15:40He witnessed a stable fire, grabbed a suit of armor
15:43and got the fireman to pump air into it instead of towards the fire.
15:46He managed to rescue the horses, patenting his design as an anti-smoke inhalation device.
15:51Eventually, he worked on it to become the first ever diving helmet.
15:54Next, tonight, a unique underwater statue in Canterbury has been criticised after becoming covered in algae and silt,
16:04leaving it barely visible from its home at Westgate Towers.
16:06I went down to find out exactly why this was and what people made of it.
16:11Now, the Aluvia statue has been here for about six months,
16:15but over that time, as you can see, it's gained quite a lot of dirt and algae.
16:19And locals have even been saying that for them and for tourists,
16:22it can be a bit creepy, disturbing and even hard to spot.
16:25I mean, we'd come down, my brother had told us a bit about it.
16:28I was expecting a bit more.
16:30There wasn't much to it, really.
16:31I thought there might be more in there.
16:33Yeah, I thought it looked a bit creepy.
16:35And it's very dark.
16:36It's really cool.
16:37Yeah, you can't really, you have to look right down to actually see the outline of the statue.
16:45Well, to be honest, we didn't actually notice it was there.
16:48We had to be told by the local journalist that it was there.
16:51We didn't see it the first time we walked past.
16:53A little bit disappointed because it's a bit covered now in the algae,
16:58but just about managed to see the outline.
17:03But according to the creator, that's actually how it's supposed to look.
17:07It's supposed to change with the seasons and naturally weather with the algae.
17:11But the question remains, should it be cleaned to help Canterbury's tourism
17:14or should it stay as it is to help Canterbury's environment?
17:18Do you know much about how it's a water centre as well?
17:21No, I didn't know that.
17:23No.
17:23No, I didn't notice it.
17:24Do you think it should be cleaned up?
17:27I personally say yes.
17:28Yeah, I say yes.
17:29Well, I guess if it's the artist, then maybe we should respect them
17:33because it's their kind of ownership, their artistry.
17:37But, yeah, I don't know.
17:39I guess I can see what they mean blending in with nature.
17:42But if they want it to be an attraction that people can see,
17:44then maybe it's got to be cleaned.
17:45So Canterbury's city council have said they won't commit to regularly cleaning the statue,
17:50but they will check on its condition.
17:52So for now, it'll stay as the artist and nature intended.
17:57I'd like to take a look at some of our older stories concerning anniversaries in history,
18:01like this one about the anniversary of Brands Hatch,
18:03where they hosted a 24-hour race with 30 different teams.
18:06Mark Moore Park is a racetrack located just outside of Chatton.
18:34And this weekend, on Saturday, the 27th of April,
18:37they'll be hosting their flagship event of the year,
18:40a 24-hour endurance race.
18:43The 24-hour race is the ultimate test of endurance
18:46and has been a historic part of Buckmoor Racetrack's long history.
18:49The event has been running since 2013
18:51and has become their main attraction of the year.
18:54With more and more races taking part each year,
18:56the challenge has become bigger and more enjoyable.
18:59I was able to talk with managing director Philip Ling
19:01to explain the format of the race and how it works.
19:04It is what it says on the tin.
19:06Essentially, it is an endurance race event.
19:1030 teams taking part in it for 24 hours.
19:13So there's a practice session first,
19:15teams to get used to everything that's going on,
19:17conditions for the day,
19:19a qualifying session to set the grid for the actual start of the race
19:23and then competing in teams 24 hours of straight racing.
19:27The person that completes or the team that completes the most laps
19:30at the end of the 24 hours is the winner.
19:33The teams will compete in one of two classes, professional or rookie.
19:37The race itself starts with a traditional Le Mans standing start,
19:40with the racers running into their carts for the start of the race.
19:43The event starts at 2.30pm on Saturday
19:45and will take place all through the night until 2.30pm on Sunday afternoon.
19:50In previous years, celebrities and YouTubers such as The Sidemen
19:53and a team from Formula One's Lando Norris have competed in the competition.
19:57After winning the previous two years at Botmore,
20:00Sean Daybin spoke to me about how he's feeling ahead of this year's race
20:03and how it felt to win it.
20:04I feel all right, to be honest with you.
20:06I think our team's well prepared.
20:09I've done two now, so not really that nervous anymore.
20:12I heard about the 24-hour race and thought,
20:14you know, this sounds awesome.
20:16We should go and give it a go.
20:17Got a few mates together.
20:18Went there with hopes of top seven, top five.
20:22And then we ended up winning it.
20:23And we were just all like, wow.
20:25Like, it's really cool.
20:27Really cool achievement.
20:29And it goes down in the history books at Botmore.
20:31So, very cool to win it.
20:33Despite not being a public event,
20:35Kent's racing fans can tune in to a live stream
20:37to see who will finish top of the podium.
20:40Jack Darkin for KMTV at Botmore Park.
20:43Now, every year, Leeds Castle hold their classic concert.
20:47But this year, they're looking for a choir,
20:49a community choir from Kent to be specific.
20:52But we need to find out who can enter
20:53and who will be on the judging panel for this concert.
20:56We spoke to conductor Dr John Rigby,
20:59who joined us on the Kent Morning Show earlier.
21:01Well, the concert has been going for over 40 years now.
21:04I've been involved for the last 14, 15 years.
21:08And we thought, as it is a concert very much
21:10for the people of Kent,
21:12we thought it would be fabulous to try and find a way
21:14of including the people of Kent a little more.
21:16So, we've launched a search for a community choir
21:20to find a choir within the Kent area
21:25that maybe wants to perform with us on the night.
21:27It's the 12th of July, Saturday the 12th of July.
21:30And we play with the Royal Philharmonic Orchestra
21:33and myself conducting.
21:35And we have a number of international soloists.
21:37And this year, we also have
21:38the London International Gospel Choir joining us.
21:41And we thought it would be great
21:43to involve more of the people in Kent
21:45and the actual performance of it.
21:47So, we're looking for a community choir
21:49to come and take part.
21:50And this all sounds very X Factor.
21:53It sounds very, you know,
21:54an amazing opportunity for a local choir.
21:57Tell us what you're going to be looking for
22:00in that, I guess,
22:01that kind of Gareth Malone-esque sort of figure.
22:05Oh, I would hardly put myself in that bracket.
22:08But what we're looking for really more than anything
22:10is people who have a love of music,
22:12have a love of performing.
22:14I mean, obviously, in this country,
22:15we have a great tradition of music making
22:18and amateur music making especially.
22:21And we want to try and find a choir
22:23that encapsulates all those values,
22:25the values of coming together,
22:27community spirits,
22:29and the power of music that brings people to.
22:31You can see you're showing footage
22:33of Leeds Castle concerts.
22:36Music is a great bringer together of people.
22:40And so what we're looking for is a choir
22:44that encapsulates those that want to take part,
22:49that want to be part of a bigger event
22:51and come in music simply for the joy of music making.
22:54So I hope it's not a X Factor
22:57and what we're looking for is some magical ingredient.
23:01What we're looking for is people who love making music
23:04and are not a part of the community.
23:07You do keep cutting out slightly,
23:09but we can still hear you.
23:10So we'll keep going.
23:11So can any choir enter?
23:16Absolutely.
23:17Any choir within Kent can enter.
23:19They just admit a video of them sitting in Jerusalem
23:23or Land of Hope and Glory,
23:26along with a message telling us
23:28why they feel they should be the choir that takes part.
23:32And if they send their entries in by the 23rd of May,
23:36we will choose a choir to come and perform with us on the night.
23:39And all classics that you just mentioned there,
23:42very much staples of choir singing.
23:45You yourself, as you mentioned,
23:46you're a staple of the Leeds Castle concerts.
23:50What keeps bringing you back to this event?
23:54Oh, I think it's night of the year.
23:56I think it's a real hard to describe the Wimbledon of classical.
24:03And it really is.
24:05I mean, the Club of Kent come out in numbers.
24:09And it's a great night.
24:10I love performing there.
24:12The orchestra is performing there.
24:14It's tremendous.
24:16There's nothing else like it.
24:18What can this opportunity do for a community choir
24:21to get them on the map of Kent, maybe?
24:26Well, that remains to be seen.
24:28But I think in the first instance,
24:30it's more of taking time
24:32and hopefully having a wonderful night
24:35with the rest and being part of that event.
24:38Obviously, there's about 10,000 people come to the event
24:42and it's very much in the region.
24:46So it's certainly some publicity.
24:48But I encourage people not so much for the publicity
24:52but more for the experience and the joy.
24:56And we saw some footage there from Finn
24:59going to the event last year with Allegra, our reporter.
25:04And they had, obviously, a fantastic time
25:06and a real explosion of colour, as it always is.
25:11And, you know, the costumes.
25:13And it's a real celebration.
25:15What can we expect with this year's concert?
25:20What's going to be...
25:21Give us an idea of some of the themes,
25:23what you're going to kind of expect
25:25from the audience members going.
25:27Because I know there's a lot of involvement
25:28and a lot of audience participation in these events.
25:33Well, we try and do some...
25:35We try very much on a concert
25:37that is absolutely inclusive.
25:40So we have a lot of the pop,
25:43maybe some classics that people don't know as well.
25:46And we try to write various anniversaries
25:49that are coming up this year.
25:50But also some popular music.
25:53We have some opera soloists.
25:55We also have some soloists from the world
25:57of musical theatre and pop music as well.
26:02We have Tim Howard this year,
26:03who's recently been playing the Phantom of the Opera,
26:06currently on tour as the lead singer
26:08with Mike and the Mechanics.
26:10So it really is a diverse collection
26:13of musicians and of music.
26:15And we hope there's something for everybody.
26:17Yes, as you say, everybody always gets involved
26:19or have a bit of a party sing-along.
26:22This year celebrates the 40th anniversary
26:24of Live Aid.
26:26So I'm sure we'll be paying tribute
26:29to that in some way.
26:31Well, it looks like that was one for the history books.
26:34You've been watching Kent Chronicles Live here on KMTV.
26:37Don't forget there's always history happening around us
26:39and feel free to send us any history stories
26:41that you might have.
26:42Well, that's all we have time for.
26:44See you soon.
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27:02You