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00:00Here at the repair shop, countless treasures have been brought back to life
00:07Deep breath
00:08Oh gosh
00:09That reveal so much about who we are
00:12It is
00:13And where we're from
00:15It's perfect
00:15But there's so much more out there
00:18Let's do it
00:19That's not yet made it to the barn
00:21Beautiful, isn't it? Absolutely beautiful
00:24So the team are hitting the road
00:26This is the perfect opportunity to meet some new people
00:29Learn some new skills and maybe fix a few things on the way
00:32Yeah, I'm up for that
00:33On a unique adventure
00:37Whoa
00:38We're going to get some looks on the way back to the barn
00:40To join forces with expert craftspeople
00:44We're putting 130 hours just hanging on the hazels
00:48On their most ambitious restorations yet
00:50They all need replacing
00:51Yes, hundreds of pieces of stone
00:53Wow
00:53Keeping heritage crafts alive
00:56We're just with friends
00:56I know, isn't it?
00:58And passing precious skills to future generations
01:01Is he a good student?
01:02He is, yes
01:03Does he listen to you?
01:04He does, for the most part
01:05Sparking restorations across the country
01:08You're part of the history of this now as well
01:10Today, Will and Steve visit one of England's most vibrant cities
01:23Well, hello, Manchester
01:24To help restore the towering clock atop Manchester Town Hall
01:30Look at that scaffolding
01:32A job so huge, one Fletcher is not enough
01:37Whoa, that's heavy
01:38Do you want to give us a hand for it?
01:40Yeah, it is
01:40Will has the whole world in his hands
01:45You're going to have to stretch it by about eight millimetres
01:49That is a real stretch, isn't it?
01:51And the team take a jackpot of a repair
01:53Back to the barn
01:55This won't hurt a bit
01:57Trust me, I'm a fruit machine doctor
01:59In the heart of the north of England
02:06Lies Manchester
02:08A city that powered the Industrial Revolution
02:11And reshaped the world
02:13A bustling hub of innovation
02:16Manchester was the engine
02:18That drove change in Britain
02:20And beyond
02:22Today, its rich history survives in its grand architecture
02:29None grander than the magnificent Town Hall
02:32Much loved by the people of the city
02:35It's a very important building
02:38That's been here a long time
02:39And means a lot to people
02:40It was an iconic building
02:41And it's just a disaster at the moment
02:46This neo-Gothic gem
02:49Is undergoing an extensive renovation
02:52With hundreds of craftspeople and artisans
02:56Working together beneath the scaffold
02:59But with the works now running into their sixth year
03:03The people of Manchester
03:05Long to have their beloved building back
03:08The Town Hall is beautiful
03:10But, you know, it would be nice to actually go in there
03:12And explore it
03:12But I'm just waiting for it to finally open
03:14Time is ticking on this vast renovation
03:19And the team behind it
03:20And the team behind it have asked the repair shop to lend a hand
03:23It's a challenge sure to excite resident horologist
03:26Steve
03:28I've got something right up your alley
03:30Big old clock in the centre of Manchester
03:33Oh, fantastic
03:34Yeah?
03:35And you know I'm terrified of heights
03:36Oh, please, can we drag you up there?
03:39Fred's coming along as well
03:40Yeah
03:41There you go
03:42Father and son double act there
03:44So while Will heads inside
03:49To get a first look at the scale of the project
03:52With facilities manager Andy Himes
03:55Where are we going?
03:55We're going to go off to the top of the clock tower
03:57Right, let's go
03:58Go on
03:58Steve's making sure his apprentice and son, Fred
04:02Doesn't miss out on this once-in-a-lifetime chance
04:06To work on this iconic clock
04:09Hello
04:09You all right?
04:11Yeah, you
04:11You have a good trip
04:12How's it all right?
04:14Excellent
04:14Can't complain
04:15I'm looking forward to today
04:22Yeah, it'll be good
04:24Are you going to be all right walking up all the stairs?
04:27Yeah, I'm still all right doing that
04:29Okay
04:29Fred has been learning his craft from Steve for five years now
04:35Making him the fourth generation of Fletcher family horologists
04:40Spot on
04:41Follow
04:41First time
04:45Welcome
04:45You've picked up so much knowledge now on clocks
04:50I mean, you've taken over a lot of the clocks that I used to do
04:55Your grandfather and great-grandfather
04:57I'm sure would be very proud of you doing this
05:01Yeah, well, they used to go up to the church every week, didn't they?
05:05Well, your great-grandfather used to go up every single day and wind it up
05:09Every day?
05:09At the local church, yeah
05:10That's what kept him so fit
05:13I mean, it was a real workout
05:15That looks like it might be the place
05:18Looks like it, indeed
05:20Back of a building site
05:33It is
05:35Look at that scaffolding
05:36That's an art in itself, isn't it?
05:39Yeah
05:40While the approximately 10-ton clock has been under wraps
05:48It's been taken apart
05:50Every piece cleaned, repaired and painted
05:53Something Steve is very used to doing in the repair shop
05:57Albeit on a much smaller scale
06:00Leading the team, fellow horologist Mark Crangle
06:03Who has invited Steve and Fred to help with the rebuild
06:07Assembling the mechanism that turns the giant hands
06:11Perfect, well, good to go
06:13Lovely
06:13They'll be over 200 feet up inside the tower
06:20Helping reassemble the mechanism
06:22All hidden away behind those monumental dials
06:26I worked on some pretty big clocks
06:29But this is huge
06:31Yes, yeah
06:32The scale of it is quite big, yeah
06:34And heavy, yeah
06:35I wouldn't like that dropping on my toes
06:36And what's wrong with the clock?
06:39The dials were starting to look their age
06:41Some of the original glass had been replaced over the years
06:43There was a bit of bomb damage during the war
06:45And the cast iron framework was starting to rust and corrode
06:49These are the bits we're going to be working on today
06:51You've got your hour pipe here
06:53Which your hour hand goes on
06:55Yes
06:55And then inside that, there's a rod that runs through it
06:57Which is the minute rod
06:58That the minute hand's attached to
07:00Yeah
07:00So we've got all these bits here ready to go back on
07:03OK, so if I put that over there
07:07You're going to lift up the wheel
07:09And just lift it up a little bit
07:10Whoa, that's heavy
07:14Yeah
07:14Do you want to give us a hand for it?
07:15Yeah
07:15Slightly different to the clocks we work on
07:18It is, isn't it?
07:20We've got the bolts there
07:21Do you want to time that up?
07:24Yeah
07:24When was the last time that this clock was worked on like this at this scale?
07:31I don't think it's ever been worked on on this scale before
07:33In its 150 years, this is the first time it's had this amount of work done to it, yeah
07:38That's incredible, isn't it?
07:39And there's hardly any wear on any of the teeth
07:42Yes, yeah, yeah
07:43It just shows you how well made it was
07:45Exactly
07:45Those Victorians, eh?
07:47Those pesky Victorians, eh?
07:48The Victorian revival of Gothic medieval architecture inspired incredible buildings like Manchester Town Hall
07:57Architect Alfred Waterhouse won a competition to design it
08:02Based on a plan fitting the chambers, offices and reception rooms into the tight triangular site
08:10He even designed easy tread staircases to enable Victorian ladies dressed in their finery to ascend safely
08:18But today, Will is taking the lift
08:22All right, let's go
08:24Top of the shop, please, mate
08:26Manchester born and bred, Andy knows every nook and cranny of the Town Hall
08:32Having started work here straight from school
08:35He learned everything there is to know about the building and the clock on the job
08:41When I look to the left, oh, jeez
08:44It took 50 scaffolders working with around 3,700 tonnes of steel to support and encase the building
08:54There's so much scaffolding here
08:56Scaffolding alone, how long did it take to put up?
08:59Erm, I think this took something like 18 months just to put the scaffold up
09:03Wow
09:04So there must be like a huge team of people here
09:07There's a massive team of people, yes, because we're doing all the stonework
09:11Erm, joineries, windows, erm, there's mosaic work, they're doing restoration to the fine arts, the metalwork
09:19The big old overhaul then
09:21It's huge, it's a massive project
09:22It is, yes
09:23Would you like to go a little bit further up?
09:24I'd love to
09:25OK, follow me
09:26Do you know what, I'm pleased that it's enclosed though, Andy, I don't think I could have come up otherwise
09:31Right, what's the next job?
09:33Erm, the next job is that, okay, you put that in, the brass wheel
09:37It is heavy, isn't it?
09:40It is heavy, isn't it?
09:41It is, isn't it?
09:42Yeah
09:43Right, so how are we doing it?
09:44OK, Fred, you put it, you aim for the slot there
09:46Yep
09:47Prop it down a little bit and I'll put these two bearings on either side
09:52That one and that one
09:53And then we'll just lower it down gently
09:57How's that?
09:58Yep, perfect
10:00You must love it working on really well made pieces like this
10:04Oh, yes, yeah, the older clocks, they're all a little bit handmade
10:08There's a bit of wiggle room and a little bit of, yeah, you can see where they evolved
10:13But these here, these are the Rolls-Royce of the clock world
10:17So what's left to do?
10:18It's the last piece of the jigsaw, it's this wheel here
10:22And it is quite heavy
10:23Oh, it is heavy, isn't it?
10:25I'm glad he's doing it
10:27Yeah
10:28So yeah, so the wheel comes to the front
10:30Yeah
10:31Does this come forward a little bit?
10:32Yeah, the wheel just comes forward
10:34That's it, perfect
10:36Right, so that's that done
10:38Do you want to give it a spin?
10:39I do
10:40So it doesn't spin, it's your fault
10:42Yeah
10:47That's absolutely beautiful
10:48That is as smooth as a small clock
10:53Amazing
10:54Just beautiful
10:55There's something about it, isn't it?
10:56When you get something done like this and you just move it and you just feel something
11:01It goes right through the body, doesn't it?
11:03Yes, yeah, you know you've done it, you know you've cracked it
11:05Yeah, yeah
11:06That's it, exactly
11:10First part of the rebuild complete and Will still hasn't reached the top of the tower
11:17So how many flights of stairs are we going up now?
11:19Well, we're going up five flights at the moment
11:21Five flights, right
11:22But the other week when the lift wasn't working, we did 26
11:26Oh Andy, 26 flights?
11:28Yes, it's a long way before you start a day's work
11:31I just have to call in sick
11:33We're there now, so we're just going to go round the corner
11:36And we're going to step over this wall
11:38Step over this wall?
11:40Yes, yes
11:41Yes
11:42Oh, it's a tight squeeze
11:49Woohoo, it's windy up here
11:52Oh my gosh
11:55Well hello Manchester
11:57It turns out Steve and Fred aren't the only father and son duo to play a part in the upkeep of this landmark
12:05This is a huge project, how long have you been part of it?
12:09Well, I actually worked for Manchester City Council
12:12I started in 1979 as an office junior
12:17And round about 1990 I became a member of the Building Services Department
12:22One of the problems that we had was that the clock became quite unreliable
12:28My dad being my dad, he was interested
12:31So between us, we came in over a couple of weekends
12:36And then we made a few parts for it
12:38You can't go to the local DIY shop and buy parts for a Victorian clock
12:42So everything has to be handmade
12:44And after about six weeks, the clock was running nicely
12:48And it just carried on running
12:51Now, what kind of training did you have before this?
12:54Because, I mean, it's a big old clock
12:56And surely you need to know what you're doing
12:58I didn't have any training
12:59And my dad and myself had never worked on a clock before
13:04What?
13:05No
13:06So my dad made a good point really
13:09Which was, it's only a machine
13:11Somebody made it, so you can fix it
13:14So you thought that you'd be up for the challenge then?
13:16Yes
13:17It's a landmark in Manchester
13:19The town hall is a beautiful building
13:22And the centrepiece is the clock tower
13:25And the focal point is the clock
13:27And it should be right
13:28And it's just how it should be
13:31You know, it's run for nearly 150 years
13:33And I'd like to think it'll go for another 150
13:38The Fletchers will be back to help out with the clock later
13:41But for now, Fred's off to continue the family business
13:45While Will and Steve hit the road
13:48What's it like working with Fred?
13:49It's great
13:50He's an absolute natural
13:51And also my daughter sort of is a part of the business as well
13:55So she keeps us all in order
13:57Yeah
13:58Family business
13:59It is
14:00Yeah
14:01At home with the Fletchers
14:02While in Lancashire, Will has travelled to Oldham
14:14To collect a quirky piece from John Geraghty's past
14:17In need of expert attention
14:20John, what have you bought me?
14:22This one-armed Bandit, my dad bought 48 years ago
14:25It was a present for my mum
14:27A birthday present
14:28So at the time, I was in the process of looking for a new house
14:31Okay
14:32My dad always wanted a games room in the house
14:34So I think deep down, this was just a present to himself really
14:37And it was just an excuse to go and buy it
14:39So was this warmly received by your mum then?
14:42Erm, I think her words were, what the hell
14:46How old were you at the time then?
14:49I was 12 at the time
14:51Oh, past six age
14:52Yeah
14:53At 12 years old, to be told you'd have a games room
14:55Well, I was more excited than mum, you know
14:57So how many years has your mum had this for?
15:00My dad bought it in 1976
15:04Unfortunately, not long after we'd bought the new house
15:08My dad was involved in a car accident
15:13Down at the new house that we hadn't quite moved into
15:15He gets a phone call from a very good friend
15:17He'd broken down
15:19My dad, me and my dad always wanted to help somebody out
15:22So we both jumped in the van, reversed off the drive
15:24And as we did, a friend of mine appeared
15:27My dad said, why don't you jump out of the van?
15:29You stay here with Neil, I'll be ten minutes, I'll be back
15:32My dad drove around the corner
15:34Car came out of a junction without stopping
15:37By the time the fire brigade got there, etc.
15:39It was, unfortunately, it was too late
15:41Oh God
15:43That's been tough
15:44Yeah, because my dad was my soul mate
15:46He was, you know, I'm an only child
15:48And me and my dad did everything together
15:50And I think about it every year
15:52And on that day of 28th June
15:54And on his birthday
15:55And, you know, we were so close
15:57And it still hurts now
16:00So what was your dad like?
16:02Erm, big character
16:04Life and solar party, I would probably describe him as
16:07And it's the one big thing we've still all got
16:10That, you know, I can walk past it in the house every day
16:13It reminds me of my dad, it reminds me of mum
16:15Yeah
16:16And it'd just be lovely to see it restored and working again
16:19You'll notice there's some scratches on the glass where the pennies are
16:22Yeah
16:23That was caused by somebody breaking into the house
16:26Yeah
16:27They actually took a large spanner to try and smash
16:30What, to try and get the pennies out?
16:31To steal the pennies, yeah
16:33And lo and behold, it held up
16:35The ants managed to smash the glass
16:37And it fought back, if you like, you know
16:40And survived the attack, if you like, you know
16:42See, it fought back even with one arm
16:44Yeah, there you go, yeah
16:46So I quite like the fact that the glass is still scratched
16:48Yeah
16:49Because it's a little bit of memory, you know
16:51It wouldn't give up the pennies to the guy that broke in our house
16:55Have you ever seen this light up?
16:56No
16:57Never?
16:58Never, never
16:59Never since it's been in the family
17:00No, my dad bought it as it is now
17:01With that wire sticking out the back
17:03But never had it actually fully working and glowing
17:06No, no, not at all
17:08And that's the dream, to see it
17:10Because that's what my dad wanted it
17:11Yeah
17:12He wanted to see it lit up and working
17:13And one day I want to see this back to as my dad would have liked to have seen it, you know
17:17Yeah
17:18All restored and lit up and properly working, you know
17:20I love this, I think it's great
17:22Yeah
17:23Yeah
17:24Well, we've got just the person for it
17:25Jeff has worked on many a machine like this before
17:28I'm sure he'll love to give it a go
17:29That'd be fantastic, thank you
17:30Will and Steve's Lancashire visit gives them the chance to reflect on some fascinating fixes
17:47Not least, Manchester Town Hall's massive clock
17:51That is one big old clock
17:53Do you know what, it is the biggest clock I've ever helped work on
17:57It's an amazing clock
17:59It's huge
18:00With Fred, our saviour
18:02The 19th generation of clock fixers
18:06I tell you what, it was so lovely to have him up there
18:09Helping reassemble the motion work of one of the dials
18:15It's great to have your son next to you working
18:17Did he enjoy himself?
18:18He really enjoyed himself
18:20I have been to pick up John's one-armed bandit
18:22Oh, I love a one-armed bandit
18:24The feel of pulling that down, all the mechanism there
18:29That's more important than the payout really
18:31Really?
18:32Yeah, there's something about it
18:33It's just a beautiful feel
18:35Oh, the sun is glorious
18:38What do you do when it gets really sunny?
18:40Because I know that you always have two pairs of glasses on you
18:42Do you ever have two pairs and then sunglasses?
18:46Sometimes I'll put my reader glasses on and then sunglasses over the top
18:51On the top?
18:52Yep
18:53Can you put those glasses on the top of those glasses?
18:55Would that do anything?
18:56Yes
18:57When? No
18:58These are threes, these are twos
18:59Two together, that's fine
19:01You're not like it's into the future of those glasses
19:03The one-armed bandit has arrived at the barn
19:24And is safely in the hands of arcade aficionado Jeff Harvey
19:28Jeff's had an obsession with pinball machines since he was ten years old
19:34And started collecting them soon after that
19:37Luckily his talents extend to renovating all kinds of vintage games
19:42And he's brought many a machine back from the brink in the repair shop
19:47So he's putting his best foot forward with this one-armed bandit
19:52Well, this rather iconic fruit machine has arrived
19:56Will's dropped it off, I had no idea what it was going to be like
19:59The most amazing thing was it actually had a key
20:02Which is a great start
20:03I noticed that it's sadly lacking in electrics
20:06So I'll need to check that out
20:08Also it's quite an interesting one because it's on new pennies
20:12It might have been on old Sixpence originally it had converted
20:16I'll look
20:17But the Mad Money one is a very iconic one
20:19Because Mad was a magazine with this rather strange character you see there
20:23I always remember it had a fold out middle page
20:26That if you folded it along the lines it made a completely different picture
20:30So it would be a scene
20:31You opened it up it was a completely different scene
20:33It's all very very clever
20:34Now I'm just going to see if anything works mechanically on this at all
20:39By cheating, pretending I've got a coin in there
20:42That is amazing
20:47It's basically in half decent condition to be honest
20:50Which is incredible
20:52Because this would be 1960s I would say
20:54I do see one problem, what they call the escalator
20:57Where all the pennies go along
20:59That's all jammed up
21:00That's quite common
21:01I need a good clean and taking apart
21:03First things first
21:05A bit of degreasing
21:06Getting rid of all the gunk that's accumulated over the years
21:09This won't hurt a bit
21:13Trust me, I'm a fruit machine doctor
21:39It works, it's amazing
21:50It needed some degreasing
21:52Cleaning up and a bit of fiddling about with
21:54But a very sound little mech
21:55You can tell by the number of clicks and it sounds right
21:58So that is lovely
21:59Now onto the escalator that was completely jammed
22:02When you insert a coin as people being charmingly devious
22:05Especially when gambling is involved
22:07Would put in the wrong coins or washers
22:10And the escalator shows them in visually
22:13So it's actually a way of anti-cheat device basically
22:16It's a way of stopping people from fixing the machine
22:20Now one of the problems on this
22:22Is it hasn't been undone for a very, very long time
22:25See how that looks
22:31Might be able to get them out actually doing it like this
22:34This is well and truly completely stuck
22:38And I'm trying to work out why
22:40But the whole mechanism is completely jammed
22:43So I'm going to take a couple of things apart quickly
22:46And see if we can get a bit of movement
22:52Oh, got that one out, lovely
22:55Part one, the fibula
22:57That's a little bit there
22:58So this is part of the locking mechanism
23:08What I love about these old fruit machines
23:10They're incredibly well made actually
23:12Because I don't think anyone thought in 50 years time
23:15In a half century
23:16Some would be fiddling around with them
23:18And they think of the abuse they got
23:20They're very mechanical and very, very, very physical
23:22And people do bash them around a bit
23:24So they were really made to last
23:32Nice
23:33The mechanism now moves
23:34It is now sliding along
23:37So that's great
23:40So a penny in the slot
23:42Then let's see what happens with this mechanism
23:53Hooray!
23:55Bob's your uncle
23:57Remarkably, I don't think we need any parts
23:59It's just wear, tear
24:00And hasn't been serviced for years
24:02And that's a big thing really
24:03It needs a bit of love and attention as we all do
24:05And then hopefully we'll last as long as this fruit machine
24:12Once that's done
24:13And get on with the electrics
24:14And see what state they're in really
24:19While Geoff works on the one-armed bandit
24:22Half a world away
24:23Will is meeting a man whose skills have really put him on the map
24:27Globe conservator and maker
24:29Jonathan Wright
24:31Hello
24:32Hi Will
24:33Hi there
24:34Missy Jonathan
24:35Yes, nice to meet you
24:36Good to meet you
24:37Globe making is an ancient, endangered heritage craft
24:41And Jonathan is one of the few people still practicing the art of
24:45Both making brand new globes and restoring antique ones
24:51I've actually got a globe from the early 1700s that I can show you
24:551700s?
24:56This is quite a rare example actually of an English globe
25:00Wow
25:01This looks really fragile
25:02It is
25:03So it's had a life to it
25:05You've got to imagine a few hundred years of wear and tear of use
25:09Yeah
25:10Globes were practical objects
25:11They were a thing of beauty but also a scientific instrument as well
25:15Right
25:16There are records of the world as a moment in time
25:18Yeah
25:19So it's important to try and preserve that
25:21Unfortunately for the globe this has been damaged in a way that it's split in half
25:25Right
25:26Unfortunately for us it means we can have a look inside
25:28Oh
25:29Yeah
25:30If I could pass skews to support the wooden colour
25:34What kind of skills would you need for globe making?
25:36Because I can see you've got sort of pape-mache here, wood, metal I presume
25:41Yeah
25:42Yes
25:43A lot of what we know about globe making we've had to discover by looking at old glues
25:47Because it was a very secretive trade
25:49What was that?
25:50Globe makers were very keen to have the most up to date cartography of the latest voyages
25:54And like our understanding of the world so it became a very competitive process
26:00Yeah
26:01So it's about working with lots of different materials in a very precise way
26:06That's from the map making itself to constructing the sphere to the artistry involved in painting the globe itself
26:19Oh, oh
26:21Now this, this is very nice
26:25Restoring antique globes is only part of how Jonathan is keeping the dying arts involved in this craft alive
26:33He also uses his skills to create new examples
26:37You've made this, right?
26:38Yes
26:39That's really nice and smooth
26:42So this is a plastic sphere but it's made in two halves in a mould and then they're joined together
26:48Under Jonathan's guidance, Will is hand painting the broad brush strokes of the map itself
26:56Starting with the oceans and the seas
26:59How wet do I need to make this brush?
27:01I think you've got it perfect there
27:02Yeah
27:04Like that?
27:05Yeah, now the paint's drying quite quickly so you need to move quite rapidly
27:09Otherwise you'll end up seeing where your brush starts and stops
27:13You sound like my old boss
27:15Come on Will, you need to be faster than that
27:17Okay
27:18Now, how did you get into this?
27:21I never imagined when I was growing up that I'd become a globe maker
27:24I studied a design engineering course
27:27Okay
27:28And after finishing that I stumbled across an apprenticeship for a globe maker
27:34And it immediately captured my imagination
27:36The artistry but also the technicality involved in creating those things
27:40With the land and sea painted, Will's next task is getting the map on the globe
27:47It's placed on in segments known as gores
27:50So we've got 12 segments of map that are going to be applied to the sphere
27:54So we're going to soak the pieces of paper that we have in water
27:58All right, I'm going in
28:00Uh...
28:01Now's about a good time
28:03Remove it by probably by the equator
28:06Just where it's a bit less delicate
28:08Yeah
28:09Remove some of the excess water
28:11That looks about right
28:13Yeah
28:14Are we ready to go on?
28:15Yes
28:16Right
28:18Here we go
28:20Straight onto the surface
28:21Straight on
28:22Lining up the equator as you're doing is a good start
28:25Yeah
28:26Then we can just gently let the paper fall into place
28:30Yeah
28:32Like that
28:33Okay
28:34So what you're going to have to do is try then manipulate this paper to move in the direction you want
28:39We're looking for large movements with your hands
28:42Yeah
28:43So that we're not distorting small areas
28:45Small areas, yeah
28:46And you can see you're going to have to...
28:48For this you're going to have to stretch it by about eight millimetres
28:51That is a real stretch, isn't it?
28:53You might feel the paper drying out now
28:55Yeah
28:56So you're going to have to start working a bit more quickly to get it into position
29:00Otherwise it's going to be stuck
29:02Jonathan, can you please help me out?
29:06Yeah
29:07We just need a few bigger movements going on
29:11And then should be able to move it into position
29:15What happens if something goes wrong? Do you then have to make one from scratch?
29:19Whenever I'm creating a new bespoke globe I always paint two sets of gauze just in case
29:25Do you?
29:26Yeah
29:27A little backup
29:28Always
29:29So once this is properly done then what is next?
29:31Further painting?
29:32Yeah, so for something this size I'll probably spend a couple of weeks painting in details
29:38After that the globe will be varnished and the carpentry and the brass work for the stand that the globe goes into will be completed as well
29:46I had no idea how these were made but I've got a greater idea now about the amount of work that goes into creating such a beautiful piece so thank you very much
29:53Back in Manchester the town hall restoration is a hive of busy crafts people
30:00A host of specialist skills and heritage crafts are needed for this immense collaborative project
30:15From stonemasons to roofers and art restorers to stained glass specialists
30:21Not forgetting a dedicated team of mosaicists restoring the 4,000 square metres of flooring
30:28And above work on the clock is ticking along nicely
30:33This is us in the dial room where the dials are and up there there's lots of motion works and the bevels we were working on before
30:39And if you look through that door there you can see behind the clock tiles
30:52But there is more to be done so Steve and Fred are back to help with the decorative work on the clock
30:58Welcome back
30:59Right you've got something for us to do
31:01There's a bit of gilding for you today is that alright?
31:03Yeah definitely
31:04I love a bit of gilding
31:05Excellent
31:06What we're going to do is gild these rings here on these suns
31:09So I've got two here there's four on each dial
31:11Yeah
31:1212, 3, 6 and 9
31:13You've both got a book of gold so yeah if you just lay the transfer down rub it with your finger
31:19Your dad's done this before
31:21Steve is an old gilding hand
31:23But novice Fred is feeling the pressure
31:26A bit nervous
31:27Yeah
31:28You're doing a grand job
31:30So these are suns that go on the dials there's four on each dial
31:35It was one of the original design features
31:37It's to give it good colour and a bit of depth to the dial as well
31:40It just looks good
31:41Yeah
31:42What's the most challenging thing that you find with working on a clock like this?
31:47When you're working on something of this scale when you look at the dials the dials are massive
31:51They don't look that big from the ground but they're just under 16 foot
31:54Wow really
31:55I've seen you've got some cotton wool here I've never used cotton wool while I'm doing any gold leafing
32:01No
32:02When you've got some rough edges here and sort of tight corners it's easier to use a bit of cotton wool when it helps push it in rather than use your nail
32:10OK
32:11Which can tear the paper
32:12I've learned something to take so thank you very much
32:14Yes, no fear
32:18Considering this is the second time I've done it I feel privileged that it's going on Manchester Town Hall
32:23I'm sure they'll be up there for years to come shining away
32:26I'm sure they'll be up there for years to come shining away
32:30To get the vintage fruit machine back to its blinking beaming best
32:44Its vital Jeff replaces the 1960s wiring
32:48That's the last of the old electrics out and I'm very pleased I did it because the thing I was worried about was safety
32:56And I found a lot of these mains wires were broken in places so it would have been dangerous
33:01So goodbye to the 240 volt rather dangerous wiring
33:05And hello to the 12 volt safe wiring
33:08Doo doo
33:28Lovely, that's nice and tight, that's perfect
33:30My next task is to feed this cable through
33:34Like this
33:35And then get it all round the machine so all the LEDs are connected
33:38Then it should light up
34:00I'm painting where the paint had flaked off just on one bit of the cabinet
34:11And I'm just retouching it just to make it look a bit more in keeping with the rest of the machine
34:16I'm using an enamel paint actually which is nice and hard
34:20Because fruit machines do take quite a lot of bashing around actually
34:23And these are amazing machines because think of how many thousands or tens of thousands or hundreds of thousands of people have pulled that handle
34:35It's had quite a life, I'm sure it's overheard some fascinating conversations as well actually
34:40Right I just need to finish this then I'll give the metalwork a polish and a bit of cleaning and it'll be ready
34:48Get ready
34:57One armed bandit complete
34:59Will is taking it home to John in Oldham
35:03John really loves this one armed bandit and it means quite a lot to him
35:06So I'm really hoping that we've managed to get this right
35:09Very nervous, yeah, excited and nervous as well at the same time, it's mixed emotions
35:15John's dad bought the fruit machine in 1976, hoping to do it up for their new family home
35:22Sadly, he never got the chance to see it in action
35:26Hi John, good to see you
35:28Nice to see you again
35:29Are you excited?
35:30Very, just hope you could bring it back to life, you know
35:33Now this has been needing to be fixed for many years now
35:36Yeah
35:3740 years?
35:3840 odd years, yeah, 40, 44, 46 years now since
35:41Yeah
35:42You weren't planning on having this looking brand new, like straight out of the factory
35:45No, no, no, it needs to have a bit of that character still there with it
35:48It was second hand when my dad bought it
35:50It wasn't immaculate then, it needed some work then, which my dad was obviously planning to do
35:54But unfortunately that never happened
35:56My dad always wanted to see it all lit up again
35:59Shall we take a look?
36:00Absolutely, let's do it
36:03Oh wow
36:11That's amazing
36:17And I can see straight away, the pennies are not junked
36:20Perfect
36:22Now the lights are working, it's just the fact that we are in your garden
36:25Oh right
36:26And it's quite bright outside
36:28So you can just about see his eyes there
36:30Oh yeah
36:31Are lighting up, and there's lights on the inside as well
36:34Now that this is home, where's it going to live in the house?
36:36Erm, just in our little chill room at the back of the house there
36:40Where we spend most of our evenings
36:42We've actually bought a special table for it
36:44Have you?
36:45Yeah, because of the weight of the thing
36:46It's so heavy
36:48It's going to be pride and joy in that room there
36:50Perfect, what do you think that your dad would make of the restoration?
36:52I think he'd be well chuffed
36:54Yeah
36:55Yeah
36:56Job well done
36:57Yeah
36:58John, we know this looks lovely
37:00But the proof is in the pulling
37:02So we'd like to take a penny
37:03Absolutely
37:04And give it a go
37:06Very good
37:08Fingers crossed
37:10Come on, John
37:11Come on
37:172p
37:18You got your money back
37:19Yay!
37:20How does that feel?
37:21It feels great
37:22Yeah?
37:23Yeah, it's been a long time since we've actually seen that work like that
37:25Yeah?
37:26It's been really good
37:27John, it's been a pleasure to see you again
37:28And I'm happy that you love what Geoff's done with the machine
37:31Absolutely, yeah
37:32He's put on our big thanks to him for that
37:34Yeah?
37:35Great work, yeah
37:36Well, it's an heirloom to hold on to now
37:37Absolutely, yeah
37:38And I'm sure at some point you'll get that big payout
37:41That's that
37:42That's the dream
37:43The dream
37:45It's a great tribute to Mum and Dad
37:47Yeah, fantastic
37:48They'll be really pleased
37:49To see it all working again
37:51Cleaned up and full of working hard
37:53Fantastic, really pleased
38:02Ten miles down the road
38:04It's a landmark day
38:06Six years into the restoration of Manchester's town hall clock
38:10And the four massive dials are finally getting their hands back
38:15Welcome back, Steve
38:16Thank you
38:17Good to see you again
38:18Come on up
38:19Fantastic
38:20Horologist Mark has invited Steve back
38:22To join forces on this titanic timepiece
38:25Yeah, here we are at the dial level on the scaffold
38:28Yeah, here we are at the dial level on the scaffold
38:31Oh-ho
38:35Wow, look at that
38:37That is amazing
38:38Yeah, yeah
38:39You don't realise exactly how big it is
38:40No, absolutely
38:42This has been a mammoth restoration
38:45What's your favourite part been?
38:47I think it's the bit that everybody sees are these dials
38:50Yeah
38:51So, yeah, to see them like this in this condition
38:53When you've finally stepped back and you've finished
38:54And you look at them
38:55And they're gleaming
38:56The gold's gleaming
38:57And the hands are on and they're turning
38:59And they're turning
39:00And everything looks fresh and clean
39:02It's a nice project to be part of
39:04So, what is the stage you're at at the moment?
39:06So, this is the last dial we're working on at the moment
39:09Yeah
39:10So, we've just got to put the hands on
39:11Yeah
39:12And get it ready to set to time
39:13So, if you just go in and go up onto that scaffold there
39:15Yeah
39:16Okay
39:17And close the gate behind you
39:18Ah
39:19Thank you, dude
39:20Perfect
39:22These are a bit bigger than you're normally used to, aren't they?
39:24They are so much bigger
39:27Oh, excellent
39:28What we're going to do is lift it up and slide it over the nose there
39:31Yeah
39:32Onto the hour pipe
39:33Yeah
39:34We've got our safety line on here so it can't go anywhere
39:35Andy's upstairs with
39:36He's going to help us with that
39:38Hi, Andy
39:39Hi, Steve, how are you doing?
39:40Yeah, good, how are you?
39:41Great, thanks
39:42Good, Dave
39:43I'm not sure who's got the hardest job yet
39:45There we go
39:46So, there we go
39:47Just feed it on nicely
39:48And then right on
39:51Right, there we go
39:52Perfect
39:53There we go
39:54It's okay
39:55So, we've just got to slide this hand forward a little bit
39:57And I can get this wedge in behind
39:59Yep
40:00Just sit
40:06Is that in place?
40:07It is, I just need to keep you sliding back with it
40:10Sliding on nicely, isn't it?
40:12Yeah
40:13Minute hand next
40:14That's it?
40:15Yes
40:16Roughly weighs about 70kg so
40:17Wow
40:18Yes
40:19So, I hope you're feeling strong on this one
40:23Crikey
40:25That is so...
40:27Okay, it's up to you now
40:28Oh my...
40:29So, if you slide it right on
40:33There we go
40:34Okay
40:35Phew
40:36It's built like a battleship
40:37Yeah, well
40:39It needs to be
40:40It gets a few gale force winds up here
40:42Oh, I'll bet
40:43Yeah
40:44I'm just...
40:45I'm terrified of dropping it
40:47I usually put my thumb through it in the middle
40:49Ah
40:50Yeah, like that
40:51There you go, nice experience
40:52There we go
40:53Perfect
40:54Lovely
40:55It's very satisfying
40:59Yeah, it is actually
41:00Yeah, you get to see it revealing slowly in front of you
41:04There you go, you've got the knack now
41:11Lovely
41:12So, if I hold it up?
41:13Yep
41:14I'll line up the holes
41:15Finally, those suns, gilded by Steve and Fred
41:18can be attached to the dial
41:20ready to glow above the Manchester skyline once again
41:25Try not to drop the screw
41:27Yeah, please not
41:32It looks good
41:33Yeah
41:34Brings it all together
41:35When you put that on, it brings it all together
41:36It does, doesn't it?
41:37Yeah
41:38Big, big thank you for letting me be a part of the restoration of this amazing clock in this amazing building
41:47Thank you for all your help
41:48And it's great that you're part of the history of this now as well
41:51Yeah, well done
41:52Yeah
41:55Can I give you a spin?
41:56Please do, yes
41:57You can be the first one to test it
42:04There we go
42:05Look at that
42:06Nice and free
42:07Beautifully smooth
42:09Yeah
42:12Beautiful
42:13Absolutely beautiful
42:15Yeah
42:16It's been an absolute joy
42:17Yeah
42:18No, no, thank you
42:21After six years of renovations, the people of Manchester finally have their clock back
42:28It's wonderful to see that clock working again, because I know it's been broken in such a long time
42:33It probably competes against Big Ben, no
42:36It's the heart of Manchester
42:46With the clock back in gleaming working order, Will and Steve can head off on their next adventure
42:53Do you like working on big clocks or small clocks, Steve?
42:56When I was younger, I used to really like working on big outside clocks
43:00Yeah
43:01But it's really quite physical
43:03I mean, you'd have to do a lot of swinging around on ropes
43:06Yeah, hard work
43:07So Fred's the guy for that
43:10Love it
43:11Love it
43:12I love it
43:13I love it
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