On 12th September the BBC released a 5 minute video about my search for messages in bottles as part of their Real Time series, which is a series for BBC News website in which “ordinary people tell their own extraordinary stories”. If you have never watched any of these mini documentaries then I do encourage you to do so, as they are all really fascinating. There are so many to choose from; the story of a bookshop on a barge, a snail farm in a bedroom, a lady who gives tours around London’s toilets (brilliant!), an upholsterer who dresses as a gorilla in his spare time and puts cushions and chairs in bus stops, an emergency poet who administers poems instead of medicine…. They really are a feast for the eyes and ears and you can find them here _http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine/22785249
I was delighted when the BBC contacted me to see if I would like to feature in one of the Real Time stories and on 16th August, BBC Director and Journalist Tom Beal came along to our Tugboat, the Hector Read, in Kent, to film the initial interview. The plan was to have the interview on Hector and then to go out on a "message in a bottle searching expedition" in Kent.
I was delighted when the BBC contacted me to see if I would like to feature in one of the Real Time stories and on 16th August, BBC Director and Journalist Tom Beal came along to our Tugboat, the Hector Read, in Kent, to film the initial interview. The plan was to have the interview on Hector and then to go out on a "message in a bottle searching expedition" in Kent.
The Retired tug boat - Hector Read
The interview went well although it’s funny how as soon as someone points a video camera at you and starts filming, it is very easy to lose your ability to be natural. What worried me more was the remote chances of me actually finding a message in a bottle when we were to go out on our expedition with Tom. What were the chances? I did say to him that it was highly unlikely that I would find one, and then decided not to worry any more about it as there wasn’t anything I could actually do about that dilemma!
So, when we set off on our search, I was absolutely delighted and somewhat amazed, to see a message in a bottle after just 5 minutes or so. Funnily enough, it really was the last thing I expected to see at that time! And….. it was legible… and it was a good one, quite amusing, and signed with a full name so I could trace the author!
So, when we set off on our search, I was absolutely delighted and somewhat amazed, to see a message in a bottle after just 5 minutes or so. Funnily enough, it really was the last thing I expected to see at that time! And….. it was legible… and it was a good one, quite amusing, and signed with a full name so I could trace the author!
 after just 5 minutes I found this message in a bottle nestled in the seaweed |  The unedited version of the message in a bottle that I found during our expedition |
I was delighted and I think I can safely say that Tom was too. David, my boyfriend was happy too, and by the way, he was also a star as he carried the camera equipment a fair way along the coastline! (thanks David!). And he took a few behind the scenes pics. Mischa the labrador was thrilled, but then she always is!!
Including one where I look like I might knock Tom over the head with my trusty tideline prodding stick!
It was amazing to find a second message too – although this one was totally illegible and I have yet to find a way of deciphering bleached messages.
So after 2 message in a bottle finds in quick succession, I rather thought I was going to find even more messages, but that was it. I would have been very happy to keep walking along that coastline for the rest of the afternoon, but reluctantly, we turned around and headed for home. Very happy!
Through twitter, I traced Sean, the author of the message. He was pretty surprised at the whole story. I don't think he ever expected his message to be found at all!!
And 3 weeks later, when the video documentary came out, I was so completely impressed with Tom’s editing work. If you haven’t watched it then you can find the link at the top of this post. For all my talk of letting go of the outcome and of expectations at the end of the video, I was still kind of apprehensive.
There have of course been comments following the documentary regarding the rubbish and pollution, and I would like to make it clear to those who are anxious on that front, that I am not advocating throwing rubbish into the water at all. The focus of this video was on the finding of messages in bottles. There’s only one place for a plastic or a glass bottle without a message in it, and that….is in the recycling bin! And that’s common sense and we can all make a difference on that front.
Post video release, I was thrilled to realise it went out on BBC News, and I even did a 45 second interview on Radio 5 live which was a great experience although nerve wracking.
But what I really love too is the fact that BBC foreign languages “Learning English” used it in one of their videos. The link is here.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/2014/09/140917_vwitn_message_in_a_bottle.shtml
So after 2 message in a bottle finds in quick succession, I rather thought I was going to find even more messages, but that was it. I would have been very happy to keep walking along that coastline for the rest of the afternoon, but reluctantly, we turned around and headed for home. Very happy!
Through twitter, I traced Sean, the author of the message. He was pretty surprised at the whole story. I don't think he ever expected his message to be found at all!!
And 3 weeks later, when the video documentary came out, I was so completely impressed with Tom’s editing work. If you haven’t watched it then you can find the link at the top of this post. For all my talk of letting go of the outcome and of expectations at the end of the video, I was still kind of apprehensive.
There have of course been comments following the documentary regarding the rubbish and pollution, and I would like to make it clear to those who are anxious on that front, that I am not advocating throwing rubbish into the water at all. The focus of this video was on the finding of messages in bottles. There’s only one place for a plastic or a glass bottle without a message in it, and that….is in the recycling bin! And that’s common sense and we can all make a difference on that front.
Post video release, I was thrilled to realise it went out on BBC News, and I even did a 45 second interview on Radio 5 live which was a great experience although nerve wracking.
But what I really love too is the fact that BBC foreign languages “Learning English” used it in one of their videos. The link is here.
http://www.bbc.co.uk/worldservice/learningenglish/language/wordsinthenews/2014/09/140917_vwitn_message_in_a_bottle.shtml
So, anyway, it’s now back to reality. I’ve found another 6 or so messages since the video documentary (I will be detailing them on my blog asap), and am looking forward to my next expedition. So thank you to Tom Beal, David Nolan and Mischa the labrador who all contributed to making this great mini documentary. It was a fabulous experience. So do have a peek at "Message in a bottle - hunting for the words of strangers" and the other videos on the Real Time Series!
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-28904275
Enjoy!
Nicola
http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/magazine-28904275
Enjoy!
Nicola
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