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Buiding Britain's Canals


dor

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On Channel 5 tonight,  7pm.  A repeat but still worth a look.

 

Dan Jones examines Britain's most iconic canals, beginning with the 152-mile Grand Union Canal, which runs up the spine of the country. Constructed at the height of the Industrial Revolution, the task challenged even the greatest engineering minds of the time, including pioneers such as James Brindley, the man behind Britain's first commercial canal, and William Jessop, the person with whom responsibility lay for the building of the main link from Birmingham to London. Travelling along its route, Dan experiences first-hand the innovations behind its construction, including the Blisworth tunnel.

 

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3 hours ago, dor said:

On Channel 5 tonight,  7pm.  A repeat but still worth a look.

 

Dan Jones examines Britain's most iconic canals, beginning with the 152-mile Grand Union Canal, which runs up the spine of the country. Constructed at the height of the Industrial Revolution, the task challenged even the greatest engineering minds of the time, including pioneers such as James Brindley, the man behind Britain's first commercial canal, and William Jessop, the person with whom responsibility lay for the building of the main link from Birmingham to London. Travelling along its route, Dan experiences first-hand the innovations behind its construction, including the Blisworth tunnel.

 

Erm. Exeter Ship Canal

Edited by stegra
To add 'ship'
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4 minutes ago, Alan de Enfield said:

Amazing how the viaduct had to be built strong enough to take the weight of the water + the weight of two boats + the weight of their cargo.

 

And I thought a boat displaced its weight of water - just shows how wrong you can be !!

Ah, but what if the boats sink on the aqueduct?

 

JP

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9 minutes ago, Captain Pegg said:

Ah, but what if the boats sink on the aqueduct?

 

JP

The sunk boat will displace the water over the side of the aquaduct, causing the fairy lights to catch fire, and the whole thing will burn to the ground in a massive all consuming fireball. 

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Just now, rusty69 said:

The sunk boat will displace the water over the side of the aquaduct, causing the fairy lights to catch fire, and the whole thing will burn to the ground in a massive all consuming fireball. 

Damn. So obvious. Why didn’t I think of that?

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On this evening's K&A episode the presenter rode through Bruce tunnel on the roof of the boat.

So much for obeying the tunnel sign part which says about staying within the profile of the boat.

Not a good example to set for less experienced boaters.

 

Steve

 

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25 minutes ago, Just Heaven said:

On this evening's K&A episode the presenter rode through Bruce tunnel on the roof of the boat.

So much for obeying the tunnel sign part which says about staying within the profile of the boat.

Not a good example to set for less experienced boaters.

 

Steve

 

But which way up does the tiller go on a horse drawn boat?

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I enjoyed the programme, but wished that the presenter could have decided whether iit was the "A-VON" or the "A-vun". I would favour the latter pronunciation, though perhaps the former is a local variation.

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On 08/10/2019 at 21:14, Alan de Enfield said:

Amazing how the viaduct had to be built strong enough to take the weight of the water + the weight of two boats + the weight of their cargo.

 

And I thought a boat displaced its weight of water - just shows how wrong you can be !!

That's a very good point.

The weight of water if taken with the water at its maximum possible level would be all that is required.

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10 hours ago, Just Heaven said:

On this evening's K&A episode the presenter rode through Bruce tunnel on the roof of the boat.

So much for obeying the tunnel sign part which says about staying within the profile of the boat.

Not a good example to set for less experienced boaters.

 

Steve

 

The CRT boating page on twitter posted a pic of “Dane” going into Harecastle with CRT volunteers hanging off the gunnels and standing on the cants of the counter.....??

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4 minutes ago, David Schweizer said:

Dan Snow also stated that Caen Hill was the longest flight of locks in the UK. I seem to remember there being more locks on the Tardebigge Flight. 

I don't think he did!

I wonder if Caen Hill, at about two miles (albeit with a bit of a gap) is physically the longest?

Edited by Athy
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12 minutes ago, Onionman said:

My abiding memory of the GU episode was the boat coming out of the Blisworth Tunnel at a speed sufficient to have breaking wave at the bow.

...because he was so blooming relieved to get out of the awful thing, no doubt.

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4 hours ago, Athy said:

I don't think he did!

I wonder if Caen Hill, at about two miles (albeit with a bit of a gap) is physically the longest?

Oh yes he did. 25minutes in he said "It still boasts the longest continuous flight of locks in the country"  Tardebigge with it's 30 locks is also a quarter of a mile longer, so wrong on both counts. And that does not include the six locks immediately below Tardebigge bottom lock, wheras the Caen Hill 29 locks includes five below the main flight.

 

 

Edited by David Schweizer
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15 hours ago, Athy said:

I enjoyed the programme, but wished that the presenter could have decided whether iit was the "A-VON" or the "A-vun". I would favour the latter pronunciation, though perhaps the former is a local variation.

No, those of us who live in this part of the world definitely say AvUn.

The other pronunciation only came about due to a certain door to door cosmetics company.

 

Steve

 

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I think the word "continuous" gives the clue that he was referring to the central 16 locks at Caen Hill. The presenter is Dan Jones, not Dan Snow who would probably have done a bit more research and been more precise in his assertions.

Overall we enjoyed it.  

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18 hours ago, Athy said:

I enjoyed the programme, but wished that the presenter could have decided whether iit was the "A-VON" or the "A-vun". I would favour the latter pronunciation, though perhaps the former is a local variation.

I liked the programme too and like always watching something you are familiar with, one has to enjoy it for what it is and not get too fixated on any mistakes.

 

For pronunciation I prefer and have known the river as the first option you list and is closer to the original Brythonic (and Welsh) word for river, afon (and abona).  The "f" is pronounced as a "v"

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3 hours ago, grahame r said:

I think the word "continuous" gives the clue that he was referring to the central 16 locks at Caen Hill. The presenter is Dan Jones, not Dan Snow who would probably have done a bit more research and been more precise in his assertions.

Overall we enjoyed it.  

Which makes his statement even more inaccurate, as there are 29 continuous locks at Tardebigge.

 

 

Edited by David Schweizer
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