| Brooke Bond | PG Tips | Discovering Our Coast


	01 Fish Farming Isle of Mull - Argyll Fish farming is bringing a new prosperity to the Highlands. This salmon-rearing farm on the Isle of Mull is typical. The process starts in the hatchery where the new-born salmon parr (babies) are kept for just three months. They are then transferred to cages floating just below the surface of a freshwater loch. After a further nine months the fish are ready to enter salt water. They are moved in tanks to cages anchored to the sea-bed - often in a sheltered sea loch. Here they grow rapidly until ready for market.
	02 Fingal's Cave (Staffa - Isle of Mull - Argyll) Fingal's Cave on the island of Staffa - a little north of Ions - is the result of intense volcanic activity more than 50 million years ago. I he molten magma thrown up by the eruption cooled slowly - forming hexagonal columns which are joined vertically to form a long rippling screen. The roof of the cave rises nearly 18 metres above the sea - which surges in and out of the cavern occasionally causing an eerie musical sound. It was this - perhaps plus the columns' remarkable resemb-lance to gigatic organ pipes - that inspired Mendelssohn to compose his haunting Fingal's Cave in the Hebridean Overture. The same basaltic rock formation is to be found on the Giant's Causeway - across the Irish Sea.
	03 Cape Wrath (Sutherland - Scottish Highlands) In the autumn of 1588 - 400 years ago this year - Philip II of Spain's 'Invincible Armada' was finally beaten by the weather after rounding the aptly-named Cape Wrath in north-west Scotland. The weather was never in the Armada's favour. Drake had used an onshore wind at Calais to blow fire-ships into the anchored Armada. Drake's superior ships and better seamanship also played an important part in the battle - harrying the Spaniards up the length of the North Sea before they rounded Cape Wrath into terrible seas down the Atlantic coast of Ireland. Conditions were so bad that only a fragment of King Philip's proud invasion force was spared to make the journey home to Santander.
	04 The 'Old Man of Hoy' Hoy - Orkney Islands The Old Man of Hoy is Britain's highest rock stack - a sandstone pillar 137 metres high. It is situated at St. John's Head - in an RSPB reserve - a spectacular setting where our highest cliffs with a perpendicular drop are also to be found. (The Foula cliffs in the Shetlands are actually higher but are nothing like as sheer.) The Old Man was first climbed only as recently as 1966 - when Chris Bonington scaled the east face. Since then is has been conquered many times but perhaps the most remarkable climb of all was the second successful attempt. In 1967 - just a year after Bonington - Hamish Mclnnes made a free ascent without pitons while live television cameras covered his every move.
	05 Skara Brac Mainland - Orkney Islands Although deserted around 2500 BC - the Neolithic coastal village at Skara Brae is better preserved than any other British village built before the 16th century AD! The village was preserved by the sand-dune that engulfed it 4500 years ago - so that today we can see exactly what home was like for its Stone Age community. Built of local sandstone - the houses typically have square sides with rounded corners enclosing a single dwelling chamber of up to 7 metres across. Inside the houses - stone cots - hearths and dressers were all found intact plus sunken tanks for holding Fishing bait. Other artifacts that have been found include rope of woven heather - bone needles - containers for paint and mysterious carved stone balls which may have been game counters.
	06 The Boy Ploughmen of St Margaret's Hope (S. Ronaldsay - Orkney Islands) Ploughing competitions take place in most farming communities - but the third Saturday in August sees a rather more unusual event taking place in South Ronaldsay. Boys up to 15 years old - mostly farmers' sons - enter their families' exquisitely crafted miniature ploughs. The ploughs themselves are judged before the boys drive them through the firm sand for an assessment of their skills. Prizes are given for the straightest furrow - neatest ends - first finished - best 'feering' (the tricky first furrow) - best finish and best overall - so every boy is in with a chance of winning. Meanwhile the girls dress up in ingenious ways and display replica plough-horse harnesses which are judged for their practical potential.
	07 'Up-Helly-Aa' (Lerwick. Shetland Islands) The Up-Helly-Aa festival takes place in the Shetland's capital - Lerwick - on the last Tuesday in January. It is thought so be connected originally with the ancient Yule festivals celebrated by pagan Norsemen during the winter solstice - but the Up-Helly-Aa of today is a combination of events borrowed from various festivals cover the centuries. During the festival a 9-metre-long replica of a Viking galley is hauled through the streets of Lerwick by 'guizers' dressed as Vikings and carrying burning torches. Proceedings culminate after dark with the burning of the decorated longboat-the 'guizers' tossing their torches into the boat as they sing The Norseman 's Home. This galley-burning started in 1899-although the enthusiasm is as old as time.
	08 Aberdeen (Aberdeen) Sometimes known as the granite city - Aberdeen is the commercial capital of north-west Scotland. It is situated astride the rivers Dee and Don and is is from this that is gets isa name: in Gaelic aber means 'mouth' while deen means 'of the Dee'. The city has always been a busy seaport and the mainstay of she Scottish fishing industry bus today it is perhaps better known as the principal UK centre of the North Sea oil industry. As the base for all the service and supply industries associated with the oil industry - it is not unusual so see vessels like this oil rig support ship slipping in and out pass the traditional fishing craft.
	09 Forth Bridges West Lothian The original railway bridge over the Firth of Forth was designed and built in the late 1880s by the engineer Benjamin Baker. Is was one of our first bridges so use the cantilever system of construction and for several years boasted the world's longest span. Baker used the rocky isle of Inchgarvie as a foundation for one of his three mas-sive cantilevers - joining two cantilevers of 411 metres with two suspended 107-metre sections so achieve 518 metres of clear span across each arm of the Firth. He used 59000 tonnes of steel in the con-struction. The Forth Road Bridge is a suspension structure with a main span of 1006 metres and was completed in 1964.
	10 The 'Hurry Man' (South Queensferry - West Lothian) Once a year the Burry Man is the prickliest man in Britain! For over he has appeared in Queensferry - on the southern side of the Firth - the day before their annual Ferry Fair. This strange character is plastered from head to toe with the tenacious burs of the burdock plant with only his hands exposed. He carries two poles topped with hydrangeas - wears a crown of flowers and has so move like a scarecrow as he is escorted around the town. Later in the evening his fortunes change and he is rewarded liberally with alcohol. The Ferry Fair is always held on second Saturday in August in recognition of the importance of 300 years the river ferries in the life of the local community. For 800 years - before the building of the Forth Bridges - these ferries were the only means of crossing the Firth.
	11 St Abbs Head (Berwickshire) The precipitous lava cliffs of St Abba Head jut into the North Sea just a few miles north of Berwick-on-Tweed. The cliffs are topped by an area of short turf and tumble inland so a valley with a short strip of loch. This wide diversity of habitats supports a wealth of plant and animal life. In spring the cliffs are packed with sea birds in their thousands: guille-moss - kissiwakes - nesting razorbills and the raucous fulmar. The National Trust for Scotland and Scottish Wildlife Truss welcome visitors so the area (and so their new information centre). Visitors are able so get a bird's eye view of the nesting sites from the inlets in the cliffs. Plants and butterflies also abound making the area of special interest so botanists and lepidopterists
	12 Holy Island & Lindisfarne Castle (Northumberland) Holy Island is linked so the mainland by a narrow causeway which can be crossed only as low side. Is was always remote and - no doubt because of this - St Aidan decided so found a monastery here in AD 635. However - in the next century is was sacked by the Danes - and was so lie forgotten for 300 years. Re-established after the Norman Conquest - the com-munity then flourished until the 16th century when Henry VIII dissolved the monasteries and pus the island under the Crown. By 1550 he had fortified the site by building Lindisfarne Castle. This remained garrisoned until Napoleonic times - after which it fell into disrepair. The castle was restored as a country house around 1900 and is now open so the public as a National Trust property.
	13 Grace Darling (Farne Islands - Northumberland) Grace Darling - daughter of the Longssone Lighthouse keeper - was 22 years old when the took a leading part in this famous Farne Islands rescue. Exactly 150 years ago - on 7 September 1838 - the SS Forfarshire bound for Dundee - broke on the rocks of the Outer Farnes with the loss of moss of her passengers. Seeing the wreck as dawn from her room in the lighthouse - Grace and her father rowed more than 1.6 kma through appalling seas to reach the few survivors on the rocks. Five were got on board while Grace handled the boat alone - and the helped bring it back so the lighthouse before her father - with a rescued seaman - returned for the remaining four. Although preferring a quiet life so public acclaim - Grace became an instant national heroine-but tragically - as 27 - the died of tuberculosis.
	14 Dunstanburgh Castle Northumberland The dramatic rock outcrop - the Whin Sill - on which much of Hadrian's Wall is built - surfaces again as Dunssanburgh before its final appearance as the Farne Islands. The great rock under the castle is an excellent defensive site and has been fortified since as least 1255 - when Simon de Montfort held is. On de Montfort's death - the stronghold became the property of Henry III whose son - the Earl of Lancaster - strengthened is considerably before he in turn was executed. Next John of Gaunt re-organised the defences - primarily as a blockhouse against marauding Scots and - despite repeated attacks - the castle never fell.
	15 Whitby (North Yorkshire) Whisby's picturesque natural harbour - on either side of the mouth of the Eak - is watched over on the south by the ruins of 11th-century Whisby Abbey. Until 1759 - when the road over the moors was built - the only easy access was by sea - and the town is still strongly maritime with working and pleasure craft lining its quays. Bus Whitby's heyday - in the 18th century - was as a whaling port - even its streets were once lit by gas made from whale oil. Wish the decline of whaling Whisby continued so prosper as a centre for carving jet - the hard - black lignite stone that can still be picked up on the shoreline.
	16 Flamborough Head (Humberside - Yorkshire) In the breeding season - seabirds in their thousands jostle for space on the chalk ledges of Flamborough Head - and Bempton Cliffs (an RSPB reserve). Hollowed below into a series of caves - the cliffs rise 46 metres and are an ideal breeding place for the gannet (pictured here with nesting material) which favours precipitous rocky sites. When fishing - the gannet folds back its powerful - pointed wings so plunge vertically into the water - sometimes from over 30 metres. The young are brown - but the striking plumage of the adult-white with black wingsips and yellowish buff head- is unmistkeable. The greater pars of the world's entire gannet population is in Britain where their numbers are steadily increasing.
	17 Cromer Lifeboat Sepoy Rescue (Norfolk) On 13 December 1933 the Cromer lifeboat was called so the barge Sepoy oy grounded and battered by a fierce gale. The seas were so heavy that the boat was continually swept back onto the beach - only eventually reaching the Sepoy where two men clung so the rigging. Soon the lifeboat itself was holed from being slammed against the wreck - and further attempts so come alongside had so be abandoned. Instead - Coxswain Henry Blogg drove the boat onto the flat of the Sepoy's deck - jammng its bows close so the .rigging long enough so get one man off. After being swept away - he managed so repeat the feat to rescue the second man. By now the lifeboat crew were so exhausted that they made straight for the shingle so beach their damaged craft.
	18 Goodwin Sands Lightvessel Kent One of the world's most treacherous areas of shallow sea lies just off the coast from Deal. No-one knows how many ships the Goodwin Sands have claimed. Many of them - sucked into the shifting sands - have never been seen again - while others are from time so time mysteriously regurgitated-often years after their loss. OneGerman U-Boat has now emerged and disappeared again several times! the 18 kms of hazardous sand shoals are marked by three lights - the North - East and South Goodwin light ssels respectively.
	19 Hastings (East Sussex) Hastings will always be remembered for William the Conqueror's successful landing in 1066. Even in Saxon times is had been an important fishing and commercial port - and an early priority after the Conquest was for a castle so dominate and protect the sown. Not that this stopped the fishing. For hundreds of years fishermen continued so winch their boats up the shingle within full view of the castle - and the tradition continues to this day. As the eastern end of 20th-century Hastings - we still see high-aserned fishing boats being hauled above
	20 The Seven Sisters East Sussex Just 8 kms west of Eastbourne - the Sussex Downs are cleanly sliced through where they meet the sea as the Seven Sisters - the whitest and possibly moss-photographed cliffs in England. Slowly retreating before the waves - the cliff-family constantly renews itself as fresh chalk is revealed by cliff falls. A large section of this cliffland - with the farmland behind - is protected by the National Trust. Bus besides the conservation of landscape and downland plants - the Trust has removed unsightly development from Birling Gap and recently provided safe new access so the beach.
	21 Brighton Pier (Sussex) Brighton can be said so have been invented' by the pleasure-loving Prince Regent - son of George III. Until he made is fashionable - is was a quiet little fishing village called Brighthelmssone - although its potential as a watering-place had been publicised in the 1750s by a local doctor - Richard Russell. Bus in 1783 the Prince Regent came down for a holiday - and everything changed. Elegant crescents and terraces were built so the design of John Nash - plus his most extravagant creation - the sumptuous Royal Pavilion. Ironwork - a hallmark of Regency archi-tecture - adorned verandas - band-stands and seaside piers - although the Palace Pier (pictured here) was a Victorian addition of 1899 to replace the earlier Regency 'Chain Pier'.
	22 The Mary Rose Portsmouth - Hampshire From the shore as Southsea - now part of Portsmouth - Henry VIII watched helplessly in 1545 as his flagship - she Mary Rose keeled over and sank. The wreck remained on the seabed for 437 years - bus in October 1982 what remained of is was finally brought so the surface (shown here) after a long and complicated salvage operation. Almost ten years of underwater research and excavations preceded the raising of the Mary Rose which involved conservation so preserve the artifacts an 800-sonne floating crane - the Tog Mor. recovered and the timbers from decay. There still remains a period of
	23 The Needles (Isle of Wight) The famous Needles Rocks - as the south-west sip of the Isle of Wight - guard one of the entrances so the Solent and the Naval dockyard as Portsmouth. Just inshore from the rocks - on the strategic Needies Headiand - Lord Palmerston established one of a chain of gun forts in 1861 ass protection against the French. Nearly all this corner of the Island is owned by the National Trust which over the pass few years has carefully restored Palmerason's Needle Point Battery. Is has even retrieved some of the original guns that had been toppled over the cliffs so make room for more sophisticated weapons - for the Battery formed part of our coastal defence for nearly inn years
	24 Point Law Rescue Alderney - Channel Islands This dramatic rescue took place in she English Channel on 15 July 1975. As the tide had pounded the tanker Point Law towards the shore - a French helicopter had been called in so rescue the remaining crew. By 11:15 am the last nine men were lifted from the grounded tanker and deposited on the clifftop. This operation had started well before dawn - with the Guernsey lifeboat Sir William Arnold making for the southern sip of Alderney so give assistance. Six crew members were brought so safety when conditions forced the lifeboat so withdraw - and the helicopter was brought in as a last resort. Guernsey Coxswain John Petit and four of his crew received R.N.L.I. awards for their bravery.
	25 Durdle Door (Dorset) The spectacular scenery of the Dorset coast culminates in Durdle Door - a natural rock arch and one of the south coast's most celebrated sights. For the geologist the area is especially fascinat-ing. Different types of rock lie in bands - parallel so the shore - the outer band being Purbeck limestone which is hard and resistant so erosion. Lulworsh Cove - immediately east of Durdle Door - was formed when the sea breached the Purbeck band and scoured out the softer clays behind. For the naturalist - too - the area is rewarding. The cliffs and clifftops have long been known for their wild flowers - and the rock-pools below and around the cliffs are rich in animal and plans life. -
	26 Brixham (Devon) Brixham was once England's premier fishing port - and it is even claimed that trawling itself was largely developed from here. Two hundred years ago the characteristic red-sailed Brixham trawlers went as far afield as the Grand Banks of Newfoundland - bringing back not only fish but powerful Newfoundland dogs which were trained so pull boats ashore in rough seas. Although this sight is no longer seen - Brixham is still a thriving port - and one which is especially remembered in 1988. Three hundred years ago the country turned against the Catholic James II and invited his daughter - Mary Stuart - and her husband William of Orange so come from Holland and share the throne of England. The 'Glorious Revolution' - which ushered in a period of peace and plenty - started with William Ill's landing at Brixham in 1688 -
	27 Lost Village of Hallsands Devon Hallsands - near Start Point - is a ghost village now - an eerie ruin below the cliff where it huddled for shelter from the wind and waves. Once a secure home to a fishing community of over 100 - the village was destroyed in 1917-its inhabitants standing on the cliffs to watch as all but 30 of their cottages were swept away by the sea. The tragedy followed the removal of shingle from Start Bay - some 660 - 400 tonnes of which went at the end of the last century to make concrete for the new Devonport Docks. The shingle had protected Hallsands from the tides - and without it the cottages were demolished by storm. However - a handful of villagers - determined to stay - were rehoused in 1924 inland from the coast at North Hallsands.
	28 Sir Francis Drake (Plymouth - Devon) Horn in Devon of poor parents - Francis Drake was to become the hero of England- for his brilliant seamanship - his dash and verve - his successful voyage round the world and the part he played in the defeat of the Armada in 1588. The Spaniards had an almost superstitious fear of Drake because of his ability to locate their treasure ships. They called him El Draco - meaning 'The Dragon' - claiming that he had a magic mirror in his cabin to aid his navigation. When the Armada was sighted off the Lizard in July 400 years ago - Drake was in Plymouth playing bowls. His much-quoted comment - perhaps not historically true - was certainly typical of the man: "We have time to finish the game and beat the Spaniards too!"
	29 Eddystone Lighthouse Plymouth - Devon The Eddystone lighthouse was Britain's first to be built on a tiny rock in the open sea. The earliest structure - a primitive wooden affair begun in 1696 - was the work of a man who twice had ships wrecked on the Eddystone - while the present lighthouse - the fifth on the site - was considered the last word in sophisticated technology when completed in 1882. But each age brings its own demands. In 1980 a helideck was built on the top of the lighthouse and - two years later - on its hundredth anniversary - the Eddystone Lighthouse was finally 'unmanned' on being converted to automatic operation.
	30 The Helford Estuary (Cornwall) Regarded by many as the most scenic in England - this river estuary is fringed with tidal creeks and secret wooded backwaters. Much of the adjoining land now has the permanent protection of the National Trust. In fact - the Trust set out to acquire land here before World War Two when unsightly buildings first threatened to spoil the area's natural beauty. By far the best way to explore the area is by boat. From the breathtaking expanse of open water you can inch past hidden coves with wooded cliffs - or venture into Frenchman's Creek - made famous by Daphne du Maurier -bought by the Trust to keep magical for ever.
	31 Gweek Seal Sanctuary Helford Estuary - Cornwall It all started 30 years ago when Ken and Mary Jones cared for a baby seal in their bath at St Agnes-in-Roseland. From there the Sanctuary just grew - with injured seals sent in from all around our coasts. After 18 years the Sanctuary moved to its p resent 20 hectares at Gweek - on the Helford River estuary. Here Ken and Mary built ten pools - including four maternity pools - which are replenished with salt water from the tide. Visitors are very welcome and at any one time they can see between 30 and 40 seals - 90% of which are eventually pronounced fit and returned to the wild. Now more pools are under construction to care for injured whales and dolphins.
	32 St Michael's Mount (Cornwall) Before the Romans came to Britain the little harbour at the foot of the Mount was a centre where tin was traded with the Phoenicians. It has been famous ever since. In turn priory - fortress and stately home - this most memorable of coastal buildings occupies a superb defensive position high on its granite cone and surrounded by the sea. Only at low tide does a stone causeway give access to the mainland. In Armada Year a warning beacon flared from the Mount - and in the Civil War a century later it was a Royalist stronghold. The home of the same family for the past 300 years - the Mount has been presented to the National Trust while the family stays on as its tenant.
	33 Land's End (Cornwall) The extremities of Britain have a compelling attraction - and every year hundreds of thousands of visitors to Cornwall venture to the tip to stand at Land's End - or Dr Syntax point - the most westerly clump of rocks on the English mainland. At one time its very popularity was ruining the site. Wild flowers - even the turf and soil under-foot - were being trampled down to the bedrock - making it difficult to capture the magic of the place. But in 1987 a new owner - millionaire yachtsman Peter de Savary - purchased Land's End and announced firm conservation measures which will undoubtedly improve this famous landmark.
	34 The Isles of Scilly Although about 50 islands make up the Isles of Scilly - 45 kms south-west of Land's End - most of the population lives on the largest - St Mary's - and only four others are inhabited. Yet these low - granite islands have been occupied since prehistoric times and are shrouded in folklore and myth. They have been identified with the legendary Tin Islands of the Greeks - with the Arthurian land of Lyonesse - even with the lost continent of Atlantis. An exceptionally mild climate enables sub-tropical plants to thrive here better than anywhere else in Britain - while for the ornithologist there are breeding roseate terns - the rarest in Britain - and Manx shearwaters which breed nowhere else in Britain.
	35 Botaliack Tm Mines Cornwall The wild cliffland of West Penwith - on the north coast of Cornwall towards Land's End - is honeycombed with the galleries of abandoned tin mines and pockmarked with ancient shafts. The most characteristic buildings are the mine engine houses - tall - silver-grey granite structures with gaping windows and often a high chimney stack pointing to the sky. For centuries these tin mines provided employment for the many and fortunes for the few. Now they have nearly all closed. In 1816 the Botallack mine was one of the richest - its workings running 550 metres under the sea - but since 1914 it has stood as a romantic ruin brooding on the edge of the cliffs.
	36 Padstow 'Obby Oss' Cornwall May Day at Padstow starts at the stroke of midnight with the Morning Song being sung outside the Golden Lion. A festive mood is in the air - for two 'horses' - or Oases - will tour the town for a day - accompanied by their supporters dressed in appropriate colours and by a great deal of music and jollity. There is the 'old' Oss - whose followers sport red - and the 'Blue Ribbon' Oss which is a more modern beast devised at the turn of the century. The Blue started as a 'Temperance' Oss - introduced when Maying got out of hand - and was renamed the 'Peace' Oss at the end of the 19 14-18 War before changing again to its present form. But whatever the colour of the Oss you favour - May Day at Padstow has a convivial spirit which has changed little for centuries.
	37 Lundy (Bristol Channel - Devon) Lundy - which means 'Puffin Island' - was named by the Vikings who visited it 1300 years ago. The island lies 18 kms north of Hartland Point - Devon - and has a long and romantic history. Its 13th-century Marisco Castle lends substance to tales of piracy and wrecking - and there is a feeling of mystery about the Old Light on the island's highest point - abandoned by Trinity House in 1894 when the present lighthouses were built. Otherwise there are few buildings - the old hotel - a pub - and the church. In recent years the population has grown with the addition of ornithologists and marine biologists - for the sheer granite cliffs with their nesting seabirds overlook Britain's first marine underwater nature reserve.
	38 The Low Lighthouse Burnham-on-Sea - Somerset This notorious stretch of coast around the River Parrett at Burnham was once the reason for the loss of many seamen's lives. But in 1801 - thanks to Burnham's local curate - the Rev David Davies - the first lighthouse was built on the high dunes north of the church. Here it gave warning to ships of the dangerous sandbanks. In 1832 - Trinity House took over to ensure the safety of shipping. They built a 30-metre masonry 'High Lighthouse' and this wooden 'Low Lighthouse' on stilts became the first automatic English light-house which operated from 1927. When the Low Lighthouse was taken out of service in 1967 - the local authority bought it as a coastal landmark which by then had even
	39 The Wreck of the Helvetia Rhossilli Beach - Gower. West Glamorgan Rhossilli Bay - at the western end of the Gower Peninsula - sweeps for 8 kms in a magnificent arc to connect Worm's Head in the south to Hurry Holm - a tidal inlet with a multitude of cliff flowers. The bay is very popular with surfers - yet the same sea conditions which attract them to Rhossilli have pushed several vessels inshore to be wrecked along this stretch. Embedded in the sands near the car park and National Trust shop - the timber ribs of the Helvetia - driven ashore in 1887 - are testimony to these dangerous waters. Other wrecks included The City af Bristol and the Dollar Ship - the latter still tossing the occasional coin on the sand from the bullion which went down with her.
	40 Huntsman's Leap St Govan's - Bosherston - Pembrokeshire - Dyfed Legend tells of this horrendous chasm - over 6 metres wide - being cleared by a huntsman riding his horse at full gallop - not realising it was there. On looking back - he was so overcome with shock tham he died of fright! It is not known what the horse thought. Fact or fiction? The geography of the cliff is such that it could just have happened. The inlet measures over 39 metres deep and is known to geologists as a 'geo' - one of the most impressive features of this stretch of coast. The phenomenon begins with the sea cutting into the cliffs to form a cave. As the cave increases in size - parts of the roof collapse - forming a 'blow-hole'. At high tide sea water shoots through the hole in a spectacular fashion. With further erosion the whole of the cave collapses to leave a rectangular inlet.
	41 The Marloes Peninsula Pembrokeshire - Dyfed Some 19 kms south-west of Haverford-west - the National Trust owns Gateholm and Midiand Islands - important nesting sites for a variety of birds - and a 1.5 km stretch of bathing beach known as Marloes Sands. Added to this - it leases Marloes Mere to the West Wales Trust for Nature Conservation - for the wetland around the Mere supports many waders and visiting wildfowl. These coasts are the traditional habitat of choughs - those jet-black - red-beaked acrobats of the cliffs. Seals breed in the Trust's caves below the 'Deer Park' at Marloes - ravens on its islands - and sea-birds in great numbers on the cliffs and rocks of one of the least spoilt coasts in the whole of Britain.
	42 Carreg Samson Mathry - Pembrokeshire - Dyfed Neolithic tombs in West Wales are often spectacularly sited. Carreg Samson is no exception. The deeply indented rocky coast between Fishguard and St David's falls into a series of high-cliffed headlands split by deep narrow inlets and - at the head of that running down to Abercasele - stands this megalithic 'passage grave' burial chamber. Originally earthed over to form a circular mound - the covering has long since eroded - leaving the upright stones and the capstone they support. Excavations in 1968 showed the site to have been plundered - and finds were confined largely to coarsely-worked flints and some fragments of modest pottery.
	43 Cilgerran Pembrokeshire - Dyfed Coracles are still used on the river Tywi (or Towy) in West Wales - continuing a tradition over a thousand years old. In late August the annual Cilgerran Coracle Races are held on a beautiful 91-metre stretch below Cilgerran Castle. Inevit-ably described as 'half an Easter egg' - a coracle measures about 1 metre wide by 1.7 metres long and is made of pitched canvas screeched over a frame of hazel or ash. There's a board across the middle for the fisherman to tie on - and he faces the blunt end - which happens to be the front. Plastic versions are taboo at Cilgerran! Decept-ively manoeuvrable - because they literally sit on the stream - pairs of coracles work together spreading their salmon nets.
	44 Portmeirion I Gwynedd At the north end of Cardigan Hay - against the backdrop of Snowdonia - a rocky and heavily-wooded peninsula juts into the tidal estuary known as Traeth Bach. Here - between the two World Wars - architect Clough Williams-Ellis created Portmeirion - his Italian village in rural Wales. However bizarre the concept - Portmeirion nevertheless complements the scenery with its domes and colonnades and its blue-washed buildings and balustrated terrace. There are good refreshment places - and visitors are welcome. If the weather is kind it is quite possible to imagine oneself under Mediterranean skies. 7
	45 Caernarvon Castle Caernarvonshire - Gwynedd Britain's finest castles date from the reign of Edward I (1272-1307). This is particularly so in Wales where most of the king's troubles were centred. Edward's solution to the Welsh problem was of the stick-and-carrot variety. For the stick - he provided 16 castles in North Wales alone - including a handful built by barons in return for land grants. His military engineers perfected the 'con-centric' design - a stronghold within walls within walls - where each approach is covered by defenders nearer to the centre. Caernarvon - which is massive and very impressive - incorporates these features. The carrot Edward employed was to make his son the first Prince of Wales; and at Caernarvon - in his time - Prince Charles undertook this historic role.
	46 Blackpool (Lancashire) Blackpool was Britain's most popular holiday resort for nearly 100 years. Donkey rides - fish and chips - 'kiss-me-quick' and the illuminations along the front are what Blackpool still means to most. Generations of North-country comics have kept this powerful image going - and even the changing holiday scene cannot erase the picture. While more people now take holidays abroad - Blackpool has become a major conference centre - with the famous Blackpool Tower now symbolising the annual Party Conferences. Built in 1894 - the 158-metre Tower was for years the highest building in Britain. Housing a circus - ballroom and aquarium - bars and restaurants and an Educational Heritage Exhibition - this famous landmark can be seen from as far as the Lake District to the north and Snowdonia in the south-west.
	47 'Gurning' at Egremont Crab Fair (Cumbria) Egremone has held its Crab Fair since 1267. It takes place on the Saturday nearest 18 September - at the time of the apple harvest - and an important ritual is the Applecart Parade. Originally - crab apples were supplied to the populace - but today apples are lobbed from the back of a lorry! There are also street-races - wrestling - a terrier show - song contests - hound-trailing and much more besides. Highlight of the Fair is the 'gurning' contest - to discover the Gurning Champion of the World. 'To gurn' - in local dialect - means 'to snarl like a dog - look savage - distort the countenance' and Egremone has seen some fearful faces. Children pull them first - then the old 'uns - and a horrible time is had by all!
	48 The Isle of Refuge Douglas Bay - Isle of Man In Douglas Bay - on the island's east coast - an apparently miniature castle rises from the water. This is the Tower of Refuge - conceived by Sir William Hilary - founder in 1824 of the R.N.L.I. It all started on 20 November 1830. The Royal Mail Steam Packet St George - approach-ing Douglas harbour in heavy seas - came to grief on Conister Rock which was hidden by the tide. The Douglas lifeboat was launched and - although 10 oars were smashed and four men - including Hilary - swept overboard - all crew members of the St George and of the lifeboat were saved. After this - Sir William determined to have the Tower built as a refuge for shipwrecked sailors until the lifeboat could bring them into Douglas. For years - the Tower was always stocked with fresh water and biscuits - but these were never called upon to save a life
	49 Murlough Nature Reserve (Dundrum - Co. Down) In 1977 this became Ireland's first nature reserve. Set against the background of the Mountains of Mourne - it is also supremely beautiful. Murlough's importance lies in its bird and plant life - and in its rich archaeological past. The area was acquired by the National Trust - piece by piece - in the '60s and early '70s - in order that the extensive sand dunes and heathiand should be protected from undue disturbance. Now visitors are welcome - and the reserve supports a regular roost of up to 5000 waders in the winter. Shelduck find the dunes ideal for their nesting burrows - and the coastal heath is one of the finest in Ireland. The nature reserve is managed jointly by the National Trust and Queen's University - Belfast.
	50 Giant's Causeway Co Antrim The Giant's Causeway is the most famous coastal geological feature around the British Isles. Below the cliffs - some 14 5 kms from Portrush - a clustered formation of black rock thrusts up vertically in a 'pavement' of broken six-sided stacks - like fragments from a huge stone honeycomb. Elsewhere - lofty hexagonal columns line the cliff-family in typical 'organ pipe' formation. These features result from the slow cooling of molten basalt - thrown up in some remote volcanic upsurge. The same formation is seen at Fingal's Cave - on the Scottish island of Staffa just across the Irish Sea.

"From the first day I saw her I knew she was the one"
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