Morning.
You've just caught me at a tricky moment,
I was just turning the boat round
because we were moored there. That's where the other boat hit us,
but we had to turn the boat around because the boat hit, obviously the off side, the river side.
So we had to turn the boat round the other day, so that we could get access to the window to fix it.
So just turned it back around again, Shaun's just walking ahead to the lock to get the lock ready.
We moored just above Day's Lock
and it's really easy turning the boat around on a river when it's as wide as this.
All we have to do is get the bow out a little bit, the current
sort of takes it anyway, so you'd have to use the bow thruster.
The current just kind of takes the boat round
and there's loads of room, apart from the swimmers.
[Music playing]
That was a bit luck, I was just going up to the lock and there's a boat coming out of it.
So he's left the gates open, we can go straight in.
[Music playing]
Just after Day's Lock, did you notice the bridge?
Do you know what's famous about that bridge?
No idea.
It's so famous it got a shoulder shrug.
Famous.
That is where up until recently, the annual
World Championship Pooh Sticks takes place.
That's fantastic.
I haven't played Pooh Sticks for years,
well we kind of play a different version now we've got a composting loo. don't we.
[Laughing]
It's like a lucky dip bucket isn't it? Find the Pooh Sticks.
OHHH!
So yeah, it was not invented it was created. The championships were created by the
former lock keeper not the one that you saw on the GoPro
but so the former a lock keeper. He started it as a fundraising idea for the RNLI,
that's the Royal National Lifeboat Institution for our non British viewers.
Yes.
and yeah, Pooh Sticks, great, if you don't know what it is. Basically you go on a bridge drop the stick
run to the other side and what should come out.
Yeah, first one wins.
Only the British can come up with ideas like that.
Yeah, they're crazy.
[Music playing]
That bridge that we've just passed,
What was that coming out of the bridge?
Water.
It was the River Thame.
Ahhh!
Thame as in Thames without the 'S'
So pronounced completely differently because it's got one letter missing.
It starts about 40 miles that way in the Vale of Aylesbury.
The Vale of Aylesbury.
The Vale of Aylesbury about 40 miles away
Now,
officially and according to some more learned to people than me,
I'm not going to claim to be learned.
When Shaun saw the script he thought he said learned.
I did.
[Laughs]
From where we started up at Lechlade,
to that point there and the River Thames is
actually called the Isis.
There you go.
and it's only from the point where the Thame at that bridge meets the Isis,
from this point further this way, that it's actually known as the River Thames.
But we've already called like half a dozen vlogs saying that we're on the River Thames
So it's all called the River Thames
[Laughing]
Shot ourselves in the foot there haven't we.
Now people disagree on the namings and things like that this is just what the majority of the belief is,
so between Lechlade down to Oxford and down to this point
which is just near the village of Dorchester on Thames.
Not the Dorchester, that's in Dorset, which is a few miles that way.
It's a tiny village.
It is the Isis and
the Thames Isis as it was known, was shortened to Thames,
it's believed.
Watch all the complaints start coming in now.
Don't complain because we'll ignore it.
I've had enough of this.
[Laughing]
[Music playing]
We're just coming towards the village of Shillingford,
it always reminds me of 5 pences
My Nana used to give us five pence and say go buy a packet of rainbow drops.
With this shilling.
Nope, a bottle of White Lightning, mate.
[Laughs]
So Shillingford is only a tiny little village, there's a bridge and a pub coming up,
but did you know the Irish poet, Yates lived here in the 1920's?
Really?
Yep.
Did he open a wine bar?
Ask him if he knows who Yates is.
Did he open a wine bar?
There you go you see, that's culture for Shaun is that.
[Laughs]
Vivian Stanshall from the Bonzo Dog Doo-Dah band, he was born here in 1943.
I didn't understand any of those words.
[Laughs]
Have you never had,
Have you were had Dog Doo-Dah Band album?
No
I've never even,
Are they maid up words?
Is this all a dream, are we dreaming? We're just gonna wake up in a minute and none of
this ever happened and we're going to be back on Macclesfield Canal aren't we?
[Laughing]
Bonzo what?
[Laughing]
[Music playing]
[Music fading]
That bridge with the two people stood on top of it gongoozling us,
[Colin Shouts] Hello!
[Laughs]
How cool would it be if that appeared on Twitter now.
[Laughs]
It's Shillingford Bridge.
That's not original one, the original one was made out of wood,
but it got a bit decrepid.
and so they,
Why does he always point at me?
I was pointing over there are some decrepit thing.
Errr,
so they rebuilt it in 1827 out of stone
and the sun's shining on it which makes it look better.
The pub just to the side of it is there a hotel as well
and it's got one of those what they called? Open-air swimming pool?
Lido
Like the board game.
[Laughing]
Board game?
Yeah, board game
That's Ludo.
Is it Ludo? I thought that.
Ludo? No, that's the one with Professors plums and Colonel Colemans
No. that's Cludo.
Colonel Coleman's mustard?
Yeah.
Coleman's mustard?
I know what I'm talking about.
[Music playing]
Apparently RAF Benson is not far away from here
Ahhh right.
Back in the Second World War, there was a squadron of Havilland Mosquitos
Sounded itchy don't they?
and these to go do reconnaissance flights during the Second World War
and it's still in operation today,
although it's now the base for the Thames Valley Police helicopter and the air ambulance
and there's a squad of Pumas and Chinooks there as well.
I like Chinooks because they make everything shudder right down to your bowels.
Bowels?
Don't they?
[Laughs]
When they're flying overhead it's just like De de de de de
Everything shuddering. [Laughing]
[Laughing]
Oh dear.
Look a these monsters,
told you, there's some right monsters on here.
That's like the one that came through our kitchen window.
No ir weren't quite that big.
It was when it was in our galley.
[Laughing]
[Music playing]
This is where the hire boat firm 'Le Boat' is based
and they do, as you can see some really nice
river cruiser boats.
They are very nice, it's like a different world
when you compare this to the Grand Union Canal up where we were, wasn't it?
Yeah.
But there's nice water front, I don't even want to call them caravans, they're like lodges.
Yeah that's what I'd call em, a lodge.
and it's really nice.
[Music playing]
Super duper Widebeam, it was like a garden center at the front.
Amazing.
A wide beam would be ace because you've got more living space
and opportunities for all the plants and stuff like that .
The problem is, is you're limited to where you can go on the network,
so you can't get through all the narrow canals and places like Birmingham.
with the narrow locks around there, so it just limits you.
Whereas on a 57 foot narrowboat, you can access about 99% of the system.
Right got to concentrate now, going in the lock.
[Music playing]
These little towns are like little mini seaside resorts.
They are, yes.
You've got people and kids kind of playing on the banks and in the river.
This is Wallingford,
that's Wallingford bridge.
There's five arches that cross the river,
there's actually 17 arches in total,
but only 5 of them cross the river.
I wonder if the river used to be wider or they just thought
we liked making arches let's just keep making them.
[Laughs]
See how far we can get.
Can we get to Lundwood.
[Laughing]
[Music playing]
It's definitely not the most welcoming river
in Britain is it?
No.
I have never seen, I have lost count of the amount of signs that say No Mooring,
Private Mooring, No Mooring,
go away.
[Laughs] Go away?
Honestly, in the last, this is not, you'll see if this is an exaggeration
because Shaun will laugh if it is.
In the last 2 miles
we've probably seen at least
200 signs that say No Mooring
or Private Mooring.
It is just not welcoming at all, can't wait to get off this river.
Yeah.
It's a good job we're coming up towards the Kennet and Avon isn't it?
It is.
[Music playing]
[Shaun] Arggghhh!
[Sound of engine revving into reverse]
I've just had to go and check where we are, because I don't know where we are.
We came out of Wallingford and then it just got very tree-lined
and every about 3.4 feet
on each side of the river and No Mooring signs
literally everywhere I've never seen, have you?
No.
a river or a canal in this country
with as many No Mooring or Private Mooring signs.
It just,
it comes across as unfriendly doesn't it?
It does
and unwelcoming, because this stretches where you could easily moor.
But for some reason it's just
nope, no mooring.
No mooring!
[Laughs]
It is isn't it?
Yeah
So we got the first place we could get in,
which is here
just behind that long grass.
Over the other side is Withymead Nature Reserve.
I wish it was a Naturist Reserve.
Oooh!
I'd be quite welcome there wouldn't I, bit of skinny dipping over and I've run about in the woods.
We're near South Stoke which is just before another lock, which I've forgotten.
Is it Gorly or Galey, I don't know, something like that.
I'm sure I'll be corrected several hundred times.
I've no idea.
There you go.
[Sighs]
Relax.
[Laughs]
It's been a stressful few week,
we need to chill.
Yes, we're gonna chill.
We could do with a holiday,
But the weather's gonna be nice for the next couple of days
so we're gonna chill here
for a few days
and then we're going to make our way into Reading.
We've got a very important appointment in Reading.
We have.
Which you'll find out about sortly, shortly,
snortly.
Snorty?
Shortly.
[Laughs]
We hope you've enjoyed your little cruise with us today if you have
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We look forward to seeing you next time.
Awww I'm looking forward to this fry-up, take care, see you later.
Ta-ra.
[Music playing]
I wondered what that was then,
kids domestic going on.
Is it me or are we leaning?
It feels like we leaning this way.
It's because we're turning.
We need to counter-lean
Counter-lean? [Laughs]
Stand like that, does that look straight to you?
Oh there's nothing straight about this.
Does that look straight to you? [Laughs]
We're crazy.
Blah blah blah.
Ooooh!
I could right do with a dip in an open air pool.
Yeah
There you go.
Nooo.
[Laughs]
After, errrrrr.
He's looking at his book.
Yeah, shilling thing.
Don't suppose you know if there's any moorings round here.
Look, no mooring.
No mooring.
You can't even moor there anyway.
I have absolutely no idea where we are.
In a field
[Laughs]
Oh hang on there's a sign over there.
I ought to go see where we are really didn't I?
[Music plays to the end]