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(wind howling)

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(dramatic orchestral music)

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- [Narrator] Our coast-to-coast journey

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starts in the south-east of Scotland.

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From Edinburgh, we follow
the Forth River upstream,

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past a host of historic landmarks,

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including its famous bridge.

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Inland across the Lowlands,

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is the Falkirk Wheel,

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the only canal boat lift
of its kind in the world.

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West of Scotland's biggest city, Glasgow,

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is Faslane Naval Base,

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that's home to Britain's
nuclear submarines.

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Crossing the rugged islands
and peninsulas of the Hebrides,

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we end at a mystical sea cave,

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that's inspired artists
and writers for centuries.

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(traditional folk music)

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As far as historians can tell,

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the modern sport of golf
was born in Scotland.

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And here on the east coast,
near the border with England,

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lies one of the world's
most famous golf courses.

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Muirfield.

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(stirring music)

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It's hosted no less than
15 Open Championships,

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as well as being home to the
oldest golf club in the world,

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The Honorable Company
of Edinburgh Golfers,

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whose records go back to 1744.

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Following the coastline into

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the mouth of the Forth Estuary,

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the twin chimneys of
Cockenzie power station,

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are a distinctive landmark.

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In 2005, the coal-fired
facility was reported to be

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the UK's least
carbon-efficient power station.

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It's now set to close by 2016,

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with plans for a gas-powered replacement.

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(dramatic percussive music)

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The neighboring town of Prestonpans,

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which dates back to the 11th century,

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gained the attention of local
press on Halloween 2004,

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when there was finally
a public declaration

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of the innocence of 81 Scottish women,

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who'd been convicted of witchcraft,

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and executed back in the
16th and 17th centuries.

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Set deep on the Forth
Estuary, is Edinburgh,

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the capital of Scotland.

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The city is dominated by a volcano,

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that was last active over
300 million years ago.

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Steeped in myths and legends,

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it's even been mentioned as a
possible location for Camelot,

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the castle and court of King Arthur,

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hence its name, Arthur's Seat.

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It looms over the city.

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Edinburgh has a population
of less than half a million,

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making it a small capital
by European standards.

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(light acoustic music)

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But despite its size,

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it's the most visited city
in the United Kingdom,

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after London.

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It's helped in part by
the Edinburgh Festival,

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the biggest arts and
culture event in the world,

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attracting as many tourists
as there are residents.

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And sitting on top of
another long-extinct volcano,

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is the symbol of the
city, Edinburgh Castle.

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After centuries of battle,

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it now enjoys a more sedate role,

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as Edinburgh's biggest
historic attraction.

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It's at the heart of
a city that has one of

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the highest concentrations of
listed buildings in the world,

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around four and a half thousand.

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The 16th century Old Town still retains

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the original medieval plan of
streets and market squares.

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Built on a narrow ridge,

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the space restriction led to some of

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the earliest high-rise buildings,

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reaching up to 15 floors.

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The central area of Edinburgh
is known as the New Town,

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though it was mostly constructed over

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the 18th and 19th centuries.

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It's considered to be a
masterpiece of city planning,

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and stands as one of the finest examples

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of Georgian architecture in the world.

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In 1995, both the old and new towns

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were declared World Heritage Sites.

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To the west of Edinburgh,
along the Estuary,

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is this fine example of 19th
century landscape design.

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(bright symphonic music)

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The park surrounds Dalmeny House,

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the first mansion in
Scotland to be built in

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the Tudor Revival style.

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It's been home to the Earls
of Rosebery since 1817,

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when the house was completed.

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Its most famous resident was
the 5th Earl of Rosebery,

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who by all accounts was
a celebrity in his time.

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He is supposed to have said

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that he had three ambitions in life.

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To be prime minister,

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to marry an heiress,

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and to win Britain's greatest
horse race, the Derby.

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He managed all three.

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He was in office in 1894,

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won the Derby three times,

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and married Hannah de Rothschild,

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of the great banking dynasty.

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Today, the house which
keeps the world's greatest

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collection of Napoleonic art and objects,

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is open to the public for guided tours.

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(dramatic brooding music)

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And hidden from view behind this hill,

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is the gigantic structure,

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that is the world's
first major steel bridge.

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Spanning the Estuary's
two and a half kilometers,

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the Forth Railway Bridge took
seven years to construct,

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and was opened in 1890.

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The workforce was vast,
up to 4000 men at a time.

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57 lost their lives.
(train engine roaring)

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A structure like this
needs constant maintenance.

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So it's no surprise it's
become part of the expression,

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"painting the Forth Bridge."

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Referring to a never-ending task,

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by the time you finish at one end,

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it's time to start over
again at the other.

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Beside this marvel of
Victorian engineering,

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is the 60's-built Road Bridge,

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which replaced a
centuries-old ferry service,

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for vehicles and pedestrians.

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(stirring symphonic music)

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From engineering to architecture,

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the two bridges make up a spectacular view

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from Hopetoun House,

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one of the last works of
the great Scottish designer,

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William Adam, who died in
1748, before its completion.

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The work was taken up by his
sons, John and Robert Adam,

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who like their father, were
influenced by the style of

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the grand European palaces of the time.

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And this was the result.

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One of the finest stately
homes in Scotland.

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Today it stands almost unaltered,

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as a lasting testament to
the family of architects,

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who were to heavily influence the style of

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domestic architecture in the 18th century.

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(meandering piano music)

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Further up and sitting at the head of

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a spit of land on the Forth River,

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is the ominously named Blackness Castle.

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It was built in the 15th century,

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as a formidable stronghold,

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by one of Scotland's
most powerful families,

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the Crichtons.

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During the wars with
France in the early 1800s,

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it held prisoners of war.

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And after many years
as an ammunition depot,

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it was finally declared
an ancient monument.

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Because of its site,
jutting into the Forth,

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and its long, narrow shape,

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the castle has been characterized,

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as the ship that never sailed.

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Many of the coastal towns along the Forth,

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were once involved in heavy industry.

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Like Bo'ness, which even had a port.

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But these days, it's a commuter town,

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and one of its main employers

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is just further along the river.

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This major industrial landmark,

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is the Grangemouth Oil Refinery,

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the only refinery in Scotland.

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It was originally built in the 1920s,

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to refine oil from the Middle East,

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until the discovery in 1975,

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of North Sea oil off the Scottish coast.

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Since then, crude oil
has been piped directly

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to one of the terminals.

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Today this medium-sized plant
has the capacity to process

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210,000 barrels of crude oil a day.

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Following the Forth River
inland to its upper reaches,

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we arrive at a 14-meter high,

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elaborately-crafted stone pineapple.

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(light symphonic music)
(birds tweeting)

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It's been described as the most

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bizarre building in Scotland.

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Completed in 1761, by
the 4th Earl of Dunmore,

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the cupola adorns a garden wall that

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once contained a greenhouse
on the first floor.

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It was used to grow exotic
fruit, including pineapples.

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They were such a rare
delicacy at the time,

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that architects adopted them as a motif

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to symbolize power,
wealth and hospitality.

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And Dunmore remains the most
spectacular use of this motif.

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Today the gardener's quarters,

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and the pineapple summerhouse
provide holiday accommodation,

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and the gardens are open to
the public all year round.

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Leaving the flood plains
of the Forth River,

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we head inland to the
Central Lowlands of Scotland.

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Rich in coal and iron ore,

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this area played a key role in

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the rise of industrial
Scotland in the 1800s.

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And to transport these raw materials

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between cities and ports,

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an extensive canal network was created.

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At the turn of the Millennium,

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these waterways were not only restored,

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but in some cases, like
the example we see here,

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they were reinvented.

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Completed in 2002, this
is the Falkirk Wheel,

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one of Scotland's biggest
tourist attractions.

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It uses a giant rotating mechanism,

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to simultaneously raise and lower boats,

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24 meters between the Forth and Clyde,

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and Union canals.

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The intention was to create a dramatic,

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21st century structure,

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to replace the 11 locks that previously

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connected the two waterways.

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It's the only boat lift
of its kind in the world,

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taking five and a half minutes
to complete a half-turn.

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Surprisingly, the wheel only
uses the same amount of energy

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as it would take to boil
eight household kettles.

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(tranquil electronic music)

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West along the valley,

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is a reminder that even
across the Lowlands,

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the famous hills and mountains of Scotland

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are never far from view.

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This is the Carron Valley Reservoir,

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created in 1939 by
flooding the Carron River.

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It proved to an ideal habitat,

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for the indigenous brown trout population.

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And the source of the water
is the nearby Campsie hills,

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a picturesque range which
lie along a geological fault,

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known as the Campsie Fault.

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Erosion has left tiers of rock,

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representing some 30 lava flows,

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which date back 360 million years.

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A period when many mountain ranges

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and coal beds were being formed.

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More recently though,

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this splendid scenery has
been a place of escape,

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for those living in
Scotland's biggest city,

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just to the south.

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This is Glasgow,

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situated on the River Clyde.
(stirring music)

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Two and a quarter million
people live in the conurbation,

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that's over 40% of the
Scottish population.

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It was the founding of
its university in 1451,

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that first placed Glasgow on the map.

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The fourth oldest university
in the English-speaking world,

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its main campus is now this
fine Victorian building.

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In the 1800s, during the
Industrial Revolution,

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the city flourished.

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Glasgow was known as the second
city of the British Empire,

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for much of the Victorian era.

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It became a world center
for heavy engineering,

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particularly in the
shipbuilding industries.

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But Glasgow's industrial
heyday only lasted

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until the post-war years,

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and the city fell into a steady decline.

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Today the shipyards are no longer

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the hub of activity they once were.

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The few that remain,

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mainly focus on the
design and construction

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of high-tech Royal Navy warships.

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Glasgow's function as
a port also diminished.

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00:16:56,630 --> 00:17:00,980
Today only the King George V
Dock for ocean-going vessels,

262
00:17:00,980 --> 00:17:02,420
remains operational.

263
00:17:04,850 --> 00:17:06,700
After the decline of industry,

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00:17:06,700 --> 00:17:11,570
vast areas of the city had
become derelict and rundown.

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00:17:11,570 --> 00:17:15,480
But the 1980s saw a rigorous
program of regeneration,

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00:17:15,480 --> 00:17:17,380
to rebuild its architecture,

267
00:17:17,380 --> 00:17:18,760
as well as its image.

268
00:17:19,790 --> 00:17:22,320
But despite these examples which remain,

269
00:17:22,320 --> 00:17:24,840
many of the notoriously
unpopular tower blocks

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00:17:24,840 --> 00:17:27,910
from the 1960s and 70s were demolished.

271
00:17:29,310 --> 00:17:32,080
The City Council also began a program of

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00:17:32,080 --> 00:17:34,990
sandblasting the decades of soot and grime

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00:17:34,990 --> 00:17:37,820
from the city's many tenements
and municipal buildings.

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00:17:39,480 --> 00:17:41,200
The work finally revealed

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00:17:41,200 --> 00:17:43,660
the magnificent Victorian stonework

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00:17:43,660 --> 00:17:45,890
that graces the city once more.

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00:17:47,840 --> 00:17:51,040
One of the images associated
with modern Glasgow,

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00:17:51,040 --> 00:17:54,390
is the 3000-seat Clyde Auditorium.

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00:17:54,390 --> 00:17:58,380
It's made up of an interlocking
series of ships' hulls,

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00:17:58,380 --> 00:18:01,340
a reference to the city's
shipbuilding heritage.

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00:18:02,530 --> 00:18:06,340
(stirring symphonic music)

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00:18:06,340 --> 00:18:07,870
And on the opposite bank,

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00:18:07,870 --> 00:18:11,370
lies the titanium-clad Science
Mall that houses more than

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00:18:11,370 --> 00:18:14,860
250 interactive science-learning exhibits,

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00:18:14,860 --> 00:18:16,220
over three floors.

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00:18:18,580 --> 00:18:20,080
In 1999,

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00:18:20,080 --> 00:18:24,110
Glasgow was designated UK City
of Architecture and Design.

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00:18:26,230 --> 00:18:30,170
It was a testament to its
recovery and is now referred to

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00:18:30,170 --> 00:18:32,750
as the world's first post-industrial city.

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00:18:37,601 --> 00:18:40,061
As the Clyde widens into the Estuary,

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00:18:40,060 --> 00:18:43,830
the unmistakable 73-meter
high Dumbarton Rock,

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00:18:43,830 --> 00:18:44,870
comes into view.

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00:18:48,010 --> 00:18:50,610
A common feature along
this ancient fault line,

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00:18:50,610 --> 00:18:53,180
it's actually a hardened magma plug,

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00:18:53,180 --> 00:18:55,760
from an extinct and long-eroded volcano.

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00:18:56,910 --> 00:18:59,540
But what makes this
particular rock unique,

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00:18:59,540 --> 00:19:01,540
is the castle that sits upon it.

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00:19:02,690 --> 00:19:06,050
Dumbarton Castle has the
longest recorded history

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00:19:06,050 --> 00:19:08,190
of any stronghold in Britain,

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00:19:08,190 --> 00:19:10,320
going back to the 8th century.

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00:19:14,020 --> 00:19:14,850
Before that time,

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00:19:14,853 --> 00:19:18,353
the castle is veiled in myths and legends.

303
00:19:18,350 --> 00:19:20,530
Merlin, from the legend of King Arthur,

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00:19:20,530 --> 00:19:22,060
is said to have stayed here.

305
00:19:26,880 --> 00:19:29,800
The rock lies on the north
bank of the River Clyde,

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00:19:29,800 --> 00:19:33,350
where the River Leven flows in
from Britain's biggest lake.

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00:19:35,060 --> 00:19:35,890
Loch Lomond.

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00:19:40,070 --> 00:19:44,060
This freshwater loch
is 39 kilometers long,

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00:19:44,060 --> 00:19:46,250
and has more than 30 islands.

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00:19:48,370 --> 00:19:50,350
Many of them are privately owned,

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00:19:50,350 --> 00:19:51,910
with holiday accommodation.

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00:19:55,590 --> 00:19:58,720
And it was on one of
these islands in 1984,

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00:19:58,720 --> 00:20:01,680
that Alan Pettigrew broke a world record

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00:20:01,680 --> 00:20:03,700
for hurling a haggis,

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00:20:03,700 --> 00:20:05,470
a kind of Scottish sausage.

316
00:20:08,480 --> 00:20:13,480
He hurled the stuffed sheep's
gut an amazing 55 meters.

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00:20:14,030 --> 00:20:17,680
It was a record he was
to hold for 20 years.

318
00:20:21,000 --> 00:20:22,310
A more familiar sport,

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00:20:22,310 --> 00:20:24,590
played on the western shore of the loch,

320
00:20:24,590 --> 00:20:25,480
is golf.

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00:20:27,070 --> 00:20:29,550
This is Loch Lomond Golf Club,

322
00:20:29,550 --> 00:20:32,380
one of the most exclusive
golf clubs in Scotland,

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00:20:32,380 --> 00:20:34,240
and widely considered to be one of

324
00:20:34,240 --> 00:20:36,210
the finest golf clubs in the world.

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00:20:39,060 --> 00:20:41,760
Its members include such
illustrious names as

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00:20:41,760 --> 00:20:43,190
Prince Andrew,

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00:20:43,190 --> 00:20:44,670
Sir Sean Connery,

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00:20:44,670 --> 00:20:45,880
and Sir Nick Faldo.

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00:20:50,930 --> 00:20:55,500
The tough course measures 6492 meters,

330
00:20:55,500 --> 00:20:58,320
and makes heavy use of natural obstacles,

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00:20:58,320 --> 00:21:00,330
such as streams and marshes.

332
00:21:05,410 --> 00:21:07,700
Further west, towards the coast,

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00:21:07,700 --> 00:21:09,880
and the lochs are now seawater.

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00:21:12,310 --> 00:21:14,310
This is Gare Loch,

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00:21:14,310 --> 00:21:16,700
and unlike most other lochs in the region,

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00:21:16,700 --> 00:21:19,270
its primary use is something other than

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00:21:19,270 --> 00:21:21,160
leisure and fishing industries.

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00:21:23,750 --> 00:21:25,610
There's been a Naval base here,

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00:21:25,610 --> 00:21:27,540
ever since the Second World War.

340
00:21:29,370 --> 00:21:31,900
At the height of the Cold War in the 60s,

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00:21:31,900 --> 00:21:34,920
submarines carrying
Polaris nuclear missiles,

342
00:21:34,920 --> 00:21:35,920
were stationed here.

343
00:21:38,220 --> 00:21:41,820
And today, Faslane Naval
Base is best known as

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00:21:41,820 --> 00:21:45,300
the home of the United Kingdom's
nuclear submarine fleet,

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00:21:45,300 --> 00:21:47,440
armed with Trident missiles.

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00:21:49,500 --> 00:21:51,970
Each missile is capable of carrying up to

347
00:21:51,970 --> 00:21:55,400
12 independently-targetable
nuclear warheads.

348
00:22:00,018 --> 00:22:02,068
Given the presence of these missiles,

349
00:22:02,070 --> 00:22:04,680
Faslane has been the
subject of controversy,

350
00:22:04,680 --> 00:22:08,240
attracting demonstrations
by anti-nuclear campaigners.

351
00:22:15,003 --> 00:22:16,723
Approaching the end of our journey,

352
00:22:16,720 --> 00:22:19,180
the route takes us across
the rugged peninsulas

353
00:22:19,180 --> 00:22:22,050
and islands of the west coast of Scotland.

354
00:22:22,052 --> 00:22:23,882
(traditional folk music)

355
00:22:23,880 --> 00:22:27,820
This is Islay, the
fifth-largest Scottish island.

356
00:22:29,030 --> 00:22:31,550
It covers 600 square kilometers,

357
00:22:31,550 --> 00:22:33,810
and has a population of over 3000.

358
00:22:38,610 --> 00:22:40,300
Famous for its malt whisky,

359
00:22:40,300 --> 00:22:41,930
it runs eight distilleries,

360
00:22:41,930 --> 00:22:44,730
making it an important source
of income for the island.

361
00:22:46,640 --> 00:22:48,690
Its relatively mild weather,

362
00:22:48,690 --> 00:22:51,740
and over 209 kilometers of coastline,

363
00:22:51,740 --> 00:22:54,740
makes it popular for
tourists and birdwatchers.

364
00:22:56,750 --> 00:22:58,380
But despite the milder weather

365
00:22:58,380 --> 00:23:00,070
brought in from the Gulf Stream,

366
00:23:00,070 --> 00:23:02,380
these waters can be deadly for shipping.

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00:23:03,510 --> 00:23:06,860
And lighthouses play a crucial
role in these rocky seas,

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00:23:06,860 --> 00:23:10,130
whose waves can reach up to
30 meters during a storm.

369
00:23:15,510 --> 00:23:18,130
This remote lighthouse
is some 70 kilometers

370
00:23:18,130 --> 00:23:19,480
from the Scottish mainland.

371
00:23:21,620 --> 00:23:24,510
It's been guiding ships
safely through these waters

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00:23:24,510 --> 00:23:26,850
for around 150 years.

373
00:23:28,730 --> 00:23:31,750
(waves crashing)

374
00:23:31,750 --> 00:23:34,510
It was designed by Thomas Stevenson,

375
00:23:34,510 --> 00:23:36,640
father of Robert Louis Stevenson,

376
00:23:36,640 --> 00:23:39,370
who wrote the celebrated
novel, "Treasure Island",

377
00:23:39,370 --> 00:23:41,770
as well as "Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde".

378
00:23:44,984 --> 00:23:48,624
Up until 1971, when it became automated,

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00:23:48,620 --> 00:23:51,560
lighthouse keepers would
spend lengthy periods here.

380
00:23:56,810 --> 00:23:58,440
But it's now controlled from

381
00:23:58,440 --> 00:24:01,660
the Lighthouse Authority's
headquarters in Edinburgh,

382
00:24:01,660 --> 00:24:03,520
where we started this journey.

383
00:24:08,350 --> 00:24:10,740
We finally arrive at Staffa,

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00:24:10,740 --> 00:24:13,830
an uninhabited island made entirely from

385
00:24:13,830 --> 00:24:16,540
the hexagonal columns of ancient lava.

386
00:24:20,790 --> 00:24:23,120
The mythical giant, Fingal,

387
00:24:23,120 --> 00:24:26,290
is said to have built a
causeway from here to Ireland,

388
00:24:26,290 --> 00:24:28,400
just to settle a score with his enemy.

389
00:24:31,510 --> 00:24:34,330
But the giant is best
known for another feature

390
00:24:34,330 --> 00:24:36,420
of the island he gives his name to.

391
00:24:38,562 --> 00:24:39,712
Fingal's Cave.

392
00:24:42,180 --> 00:24:46,360
The cavern has an arched roof
that's over 20 meters high,

393
00:24:46,360 --> 00:24:48,570
and it's the eerie sounds produced by

394
00:24:48,570 --> 00:24:50,310
the echoes of the waves,

395
00:24:50,310 --> 00:24:53,320
that give it the atmosphere
of a natural cathedral.

396
00:25:01,078 --> 00:25:02,978
(stirring symphonic music)

397
00:25:02,980 --> 00:25:05,490
And it's captured the
imagination of artists,

398
00:25:05,490 --> 00:25:09,050
writers and composers ever
since the 18th century.

399
00:25:10,430 --> 00:25:12,820
The Scottish novelist, Sir Walter Scott,

400
00:25:12,820 --> 00:25:14,970
described Fingal's Cave as;

401
00:25:14,967 --> 00:25:18,677
"One of the most extraordinary
places I ever beheld.

402
00:25:18,677 --> 00:25:23,047
"It exceeded in my mind every
description I'd heard of it."

403
00:25:24,150 --> 00:25:26,320
It's a romantic account,

404
00:25:26,320 --> 00:25:29,480
and a perfect place to end this journey.

405
00:25:37,502 --> 00:25:41,002
(warming symphonic music)

406
00:26:00,639 --> 00:26:03,719
(graphics whooshing)