Oh What A Time... - #57 Health & Safety (Part 1)

Episode Date: July 14, 2024

On the show this week we’re going mad for health and safety. We’ll be discussing what health and safety looked like in Ancient Rome, the various procedures in place in medieval monasteries and also, we’ll be talking about Peter Duncan cleaning the clockface of Big Ben in 1980 armed with only a mop, a plank and a rope. Lots to discuss elsewhere this week too: does buying a single toilet seat mean you’ll be buying toilet seats constantly forever? Was landfill the golden age of rubbish? And what animals could a human theoretically breed with? If you want to contribute to the conversation on this, one of Britain’s most popular history podcasts, you know what to do: [e-mail] If you're impatient and want both parts in one lovely go next time plus a whole lot more(!), why not treat yourself and become an Oh What A Time: FULL TIMER? In exchange for your £4.99 per month to support the show, you'll get: - two bonus episodes every month! - ad-free listening - episodes a week ahead of everyone else - And first dibs on any live show tickets Subscriptions are available via AnotherSlice, Apple and Spotify. For all the links head to: ohwhatatime.com You can also follow us on:  X (formerly Twitter) at @ohwhatatimepod And Instagram at @ohwhatatimepod Aaannnd if you like it, why not drop us a review in your podcast app of choice? Thank you to Dan Evans for the artwork (idrawforfood.co.uk). Chris, Elis and Tom x Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

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Turns and conditions apply. Visit MX.C. to O'Water Time, the history podcast that tries to decide if living in a time before you got targeted ads about back pain on social media really was worth living living. How did people do it? How did people survive in a time before getting targeted ads on social media about back pain? And those weird... Is that what you get? I just got one last night. I thought, what do they know about me? Do you know what I get? I get targeted ads about ways to make yourself less musely? So it's obviously... It obviously scary what they can do now how they can so specifically target. It's listening into the conversations, exactly, the conversations Claire and I are having.

Yeah, it's too much, she says as she gasps as you take off your top before going to bed and putting your pajamas on. Or in the kitchen saying, where's the cheese grater? It doesn't matter. Tom come over here. Yeah. Yeah. th. the th. th. the th. the th. th. the the th. th. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's, the the the th. It's, obviously. It's, it's, obviously. It's. It's, obviously. It's, it's, it's, it's, obviously. It's, obviously. It's, obviously. It's, obviously. It's, obviously. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. It's the the the the the the they's scary. It's scary. It's scarythe kitchen saying, where's the cheese grater? It doesn't matter. Tom, come over here. Yeah, yeah. Before rubbing cheddar on my torso. She looks at you and goes, it's unrelatable and it makes me feel bad. Just how muskly you are, Tom. And obviously your phone is listening and the ease of the targeted ads. Tom, do more cardio. Lift light lighter to to to to to to to to to to to to the weight, the weight, the weight, their their their their their their their their their their their to to to to to to to to to to to to to their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. It's. It's. It's. It. It. It's. It. It. It. It. It's. It's. It. It. It. It's. It. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's. It's.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a.a................ weights for crying out loud. You're too much of a beef cake. Give the other guys a chance.

Yeah, give the other guys a chance. Please, come on. Even though you're happily married and so is clear. We're in a time where male mental health is very important and you're making all other men feel bad. Yeah, you're setting a bad example. Exactly. What sort stuff do you get, Chris? What were your targeted ads? It's mainly West Ham, let's be honest. It's got to be mainly West Ham. There is a lot of West Ham targeted at me. Yeah, that is true. Really. 99% of the time you think, oh wow, these ads are so exactly targeted. And then every now and again you'll you you you'll you youthink, well, why has that showed up? Like, I don't know, like a divorce lawyer. They're like, whoa, whoa, whoa, I'm happily, what's gone wrong? Has your wife been using your phone?

She borrowed it for the weekend, it comes back and it's full of ads about divorce. Sheephive divorce lawyers, East London. Is that the 99%% the the th percent th percent they're so accurate, I honestly think, okay, my phone knows me better than I know myself. I've always wanted one of those, but I haven't told anyone and now I'm about to buy it, take my money. I made the mistake of Googling Sheds and now I would say I am bombarded with Shed Adverting. Shed ads. Yeah. On every platform. And now I would say I am bombarded with shed advertising. Shed lights. Like on every platform, no matter where I go, the sheds are hunting me down. You've reached that point in your life. Wow. That's amazing. You're a shed guy now.

Which stand-up comedian was it? I think it might have been an English stand-up comedian. Who said, why is it that Amazon think that when I bought a toilet seat, rather than making a one-off purchase, I was developing a 10-year toilet seat habit? I was constantly, who was he who said that really made me love? That's really, really fine. And then you get us to rate your purchases. Yes. The feedback loop never ends. No, no, no. Listen, I bought cup food three months ago. That's, that, that, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I was, I, I was, I was, I was, I was, I was, I was, I was, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, that, I was that's that's that's thi thi thi thi thi thi that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that, I was that's that's that's that's that's that's that's the. thea. thea. thea. thea. thea. ta. ta. ta'ea'era'eroe. thea. thea. thea. thea. Yes. Yes. The feedback loop never ends. No, no, no. Listen, I bought

cat food three months ago. That's, that, I don't, it was fine. Ask the cats, actually. Don't ask me. A thing I find weird on Amazon is that when you go to buy something in the basket, it will have things that you were previously nearly bought, yeah, didn't click. So it'll be like mid-December and it will still think you're looking to buy a Halloween outfit. Yes, despite the fact it's Christmas. Yeah. Obviously, that's, get rid of that. That's obviously nothing we want down here. All July and it's a warm winter court that you sort of quite liked about 18 months ago. Exactly. Normally something to do with, I had a panic to do with the kids and I've quickly tried to speed by something for them and thought, actually maybe I don't need to do this. Yes.

I just stayed there, something to do with schooling, all these sort of like past memories. Anyway, if anyone from Amazon's listening, I think you're doing a great job generally. And I cannot, I cannot fault Prime. Let's let's and I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk I talk talk talk I talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk talk I making a podcast called Everything to Play For I need to read two books about Mark Cavendish, which I must admit doesn't feel like work, it's an absolute pleasure. They were in my hand before I'd finished the order. It is absolutely insane. So however, do also use your local bookshops. There we go. Everyone is happy with that. Right. Shall we crack into what we're talking about in this episode and introduce ourselves?

You guys introduce yourself. Yes, I'm Chris Scott. And I am Tom Crane. I think Alice has already introduced himself. I can confidently say that. And each week on this show, we will be looking at a brand new historical subject. And this is no different too, previous wonders. And today, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, too, too, too, too, I, I, I'm, I'm, I'm, too, too, and, and, to, to, and, to, and, to, and, and, to, and, and, to, and, to, and, to, and, and, to, and, and, to, and, and, to, and, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, to, too, we're looking at health and safety. I think this is a really fun one actually, health and safety from the past.

It's not something I kind of really think about. We're talking about health and safety in ancient Rome, Blue Peter and health and safety in medieval monasteries. How are you guys of health and safety? Are you kind of... Dad worked on building sites in the 1970s when the health and safety did not exist? Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. Right. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. th. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the. t. ta. ta. ta. ta. ta. ta. ta. ta. ta. te. the. the. the. the. th.? Okay. And the reason it exists now is because it didn't exist then and there were some really awful accidents. It is absolutely mad some of the stuff people were getting away with. So what sort of things were he doing? Was he was he climbing up, uh, scaffolding to a great height with no all barriers or all of all of that sort of stuff. Yeah. My favorite the way he worked on what was then known as the tip and I don. And I the the the the the the the the the the the they. they. they. they. they. they. they. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th...................................... the..... the. the. the the t. t. t. t. t. t. the t. t. the t. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the way, he worked on what was then known as the

tip and I don't know what he was he was in a gang of labourers and they were working on the tip in Patalbert in South Wales. So they were leaving his little village at like sort of half a six or something. Get into Patalbert. Working on the tip all day and then driving back. It's the tip, like the tip growing up in East London was like a dumping. Yeah, yeah, the dump. So there was no recycling up, it was just a dump. I don't know what he was doing there, but he said there was no tap. So he couldn't wash your hands. So at lunchtime, he said all the pies were just eating. So he used to take pints of milk because he worked at it.

He could take the top off. No way! Uh, without really having to sort of touch the bottle. And then he would just drink milk because he was like, I'm not eating sandwiches. It's absolutely grim what I'm doing. Did your dad invent the meal replacement? Yeah. He was drinking Hul in hool in 1972, yeah.

Shewl does sound like a Welsh name as well, didn't he? Yes, it does. Sounds like a prince from medieval medieval times. Do you want to tell us? I don't know if it says something about the way my mind works. I thought that story was going to conclude, he took the top of the milk and he washed his hands with the milk. Yeah, you you top took took took took took took took took the took took took took to took to to to to the to to to to the to the th. th. the th. th. the the th. th. th. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. tho. Yes, the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the took. Yes, took. Yes, took. Yes, took. Yes, tool. He took. He tool. He was too. He was too. He was took, too. He was too. Hea. Hea. Hea. Hea. Hea. Hea. Hea. Hea. Hewoooooooooooooooooooooooo. Hea. Hea. He was the milk. Yeah, you're mad, Tom. So I went, oh yeah. That's the story of how he wasn't invented. Although, although you say that, I remember going camping when I was 18 and watching my friend Reese shave in wine because it was no tap. The tip, like ancient Rome.

The tip was one of my favorite things to do as a kid. Because it would just be a huge pile thue thue thue thue thue I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I I thue thue thue thu thui thu. I thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus thus that I that I that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's that's their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their their t. their their their tip. their th. th. the. that's that's. that's. that's. that's. that's favourite things to do as a kid. Because it would just be a huge pile of rubbish with like broken glass. My dad would go like, you can just throw whatever you want. And if you want to throw a stone at that glass and smash it, knock your skull-down. It was absolutely fantastic. It was for a kid, it was better than a soft play. Oh yeah, hard play. Sharp play. That's it, Chris. When I took my, actually it was before my youngest was born, but I took my eldest at it when he was maybe three, he basically wanted to take everything home with him. So anything that was lent up against a prefab or, you know, basically they're slightly

nicer things in the tip are normally lent up against the walls somewhere or the bit where the security guards are with some idea that it'll be re-homed he just want Charlie just wanted to take everything home yeah yeah yeah no we can't take a microwave we've got a micro one yeah yeah and it's dirty and it's broken we do not need that I think I'm sure that the tip or the nearest one to come out then. Maybe this is wrong but my mother told me this. Hey! I'm sure it's got a cafe because my mother described it as a good day out. I don't if that is true please let me know on Twitter. I mean I could text my mother she is up. But yeah it is a good day out though the tip it really really is. I'm gonna say it's not as fun anymore. my local tip now. the the tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. the tip. tip. the tip. tip. the tip. the the tip. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the th. the the th. th. th. th. I is th. I is tip. I is tip. I is tip. I's tip. I's tip. I's tip. I'm. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. tip. I tip. I tip. I tip. I'm tip. I'm tip it really really is. I'm going to say it's not as fun anymore because I don't mind my local tip now it's not one big steaming pile of broken glass

and stuff it's you've got to sort through it. Yeah yeah yeah would over here your plastics over there your hard plastics over there. There is a modern emphasis on recycling yeah it's a recycling centre if you want a if you want a tip where you can just chuck stuff the one on smugglers the way. the way. the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to to their. the the the the the the the the the the tiple. tiple. tip. tip. tip. the tip. the tip. the tip. the tip. tip. the tip. tip. the tip. to to to to to to to the one on smugglers way in Battersea. They do not care. Ellis, what we've got there is Chris is essentially lamenting the end of the days of landfill. You just, everything will just get lobed into the only man in the world who's still pro those huge piles you see out in developing countries. A steaming. Chris, the only person who's gutted those are on the way out. Yeah, although if you're, you could, there's still like a broken glass spin and you can still smash stuff. Yeah.

But in a very controlled environment. You've only got a little circle, you've got to pop it through it. I bet, it's smashing. Listen now. Should we get onto a little bit of correspondence absolute purlers, but there's been a crucial subject that's cropped up in no lie about seven emails this week, and it's Corrections Corner again. Oh God.

Yeah, it's really, its ugly head once again. Should we crack into this? Let's find out who's guilty this time. It's from Simon Graham. Hi guys, love the podcast, just listening to the latest episode about animals and more more, to to to to to, to, to, to, to, to, the the the the to, the their, the, their, the, their, the, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, the cora, their, their, their, their, and their, and the cork, the cork, the cork, the cork, the cork, the cork, the cork, the cork, the cora, the cora, the cora, the cora, the cora, the cora, and, and, and, and, and, and, and, the cora, the cora, and the cora, the cork, their, their, their, the..... theirne, correctional. the, correctional. the. the. the. the. the. the. they. theire. theirne, correctional. their, correctional. their, just listening to the latest episode about animals and more specifically zebras and here's a bit for correction corner. It's so funny we've got so many emails this week about zebras. What is this show become? How has this happened? It was stated after, and Ellis, Willie can enjoy this moment, it was stated after Skulls misremembering of the movie Racing Stripes was a documentary,

that zebras couldn't breed with other equine creatures. So let me tell you about zedonks and zibronkeys. Zebras bred with donkeys. True enough, these animals can't then breed into further generations, but they can certainly breed. Zedonks were first bred by accident. Colchester Zoo. Have they bred by accident? Steve, what are you doing? That doesn't go in there. Why have you lit a candle and given them wine? Loa' the petals on the hay. What were you doing? No, that guy! No, Steve, no! First the turtles and the tigers? Now what have you tell? That poor Otter in the elephant, Steve? That's that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, that, th, th, th, th, the th, th, the the thee, thee, thee, thee, the thee, the the the thee, the thee, thee, thee, what thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, th, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, thee, ththe turtles and the tigers! Now what if you tell?

That poor Rotter and the elephant, Steve. That was a horrible day. Okay. They were first bred by accident at Colchester Zoo in the 70s. That does look like a very 70s. Yeah, come on. Make you the wrong animals. Don't lie to me.

And were found to be far more more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be far more to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to be to me. And were found to be far more passive than the notoriously grumpy zebra. I believe citation needed. Can I just say briefly, I think if you're going to email us in with a correction, you can't be having citation needed in your email. Yes, I think you need to be confident about the information you're giving. Very, very good point. That whole point of correction corner. I believe, titation needed that the sex sex sex sex sex sex sex sex the sex female zebra make a Zadon and female donkey and a male zebra makes a Zabronki, same

as Tigons and Ligars. Although I wouldn't bet the ranch on these combinations, zebras can definitely breed with donkeys and the last time I've admitted there was still one at Colchester Zoo. Keep up the good work and thanks for leaving space for correction corner Seigram. Because a mule is the result of a donkey still meeting with a horse, isn't it? And they can't have children. Yeah. This is a grim question, but I really do want to know the answer. What could humans breed with that could then not have a child? I'm sorry, let's speculate. Let's speculate. A bit of clarity what you're asking.

If it's like the lion and the tiger that ends up having a ligone, no? You know what I mean. A liger or a taigon, that's it. Yeah. But the tigon can't have children. Okay. What is the, what is the human equivalent that we could breed with successively but not have children I think this is an experiment that needs to be run and I volunteer you to go out into the animal kingdom

I'll give you 12 months report back twelve months and 12 animals Oh great that would be a few episode time Ellis appears with a parrot that looks a bit like him. It's got a parrot with a Welsh accent. With my arm and the mother. Here she is. My new girlfriend. Mommy and baby very well. Because Neanderthals and Homo sapiens used to breed. Yes. But I think in most cases, I assume if a human were too, I don't know, she is a word, mate, love, but I think absolutely not the right phrase.

That's not what I'll be doing on this channel 5 program. I don't know what the correct phrase would be. There wouldn't be offspring most of the time. No, no, no, no. No. Tom. Tom. Tom. Tom. Tom. Tom. Tom. Tom. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I, I know, I know, I know, I that. th. that, I that, I that. that. that. that. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. the, I, I, I, I, I. the. the. the. th. th. th. th. th. th. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. th. Yes. Yes. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. to. th. to. to. to. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. ththe time. I think that's fair, no, no, no. Tom, I know what I can have sex with. It's the off, it's the offspring I'm interested in, not the sex. Come on, man. Little baby manate in a Welsh show. Yeah, I'm not mad. So why do you ask our listeners?

their listeners. to ask our listeners. Yeah, please let us know. Yeah. Put your question now at list, very simply for the listeners, so they know what they're looking to answer, and let's find out the true. What non-human animal could I successfully breed with? I'm going to assume it's going to be the orangutan or the chimpanzee or something. A primate of some sort. You wish. You wish a to some sort get the easy way out. No chance at the orangutan is going near you. Come on mate, bring it down a few levels. Something called a bloat fish or some weird thing like that is more your level mate.

That's a real insight. If like if you had a day to knock up another animal in the animal kingdom, you're going straight down London's a tactics. Big bunch of fife's. Candle and a bottle of wine. Shall we? And then midway through going, I should have really waited till it was closed. This is a bit embarrassing.

Families stood up by the fence, shocked. I've got a Sarday CD. Does the enclosure have a CD player? I'm imagining sort of families of tourists pressed them against the cage going, what the hell is? Is there any curtains for the enclosure? I'm just asking, Edith, isn't the unfunnyth line? Well, Simon Graham, look what you've done with that email? Well done, you've now put Ellis into a place where he can make love to at London Zoo. Out of curiosity, not out of desire.

Your Honor, I think, out of scientific curiosity, your honor, and that's the reason I should not be jailed. That was a brilliant email. And if you want to respond to that request for any animals in the animal kingdom that Ellis can make love to and procreate with. Here's saying get tou to the show. All right, you horrible luck. Here's how you can stay in touch with the show. You can email us and hello at O'Watertime.com. And you can follow us on Instagram and Twitter at Oh What a Time pod. Now clear off. Breaking news coming in from Bet365 where every nail biting overtime win, breakaway, pick six, three-point shot, underdog win,

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The YMCA of Greater Toronto helps you turn off whatever's holding you back. See, you can let your potential shine. Turn on confidence, turn on connections, turn on possibilities. There are hundreds of programs and services available at the Y. See what you can achieve at YMCAGTA.org. This will be the day. Do you think out of interest, boys, that that email request we've just put out is weirder than Lipstete, which is our previous weirdest bit of this podcast?

Should we enter the British podcast awards next year? Should we just submit that one clip? With Lipstete, I think what I just asked is oddly more conventional. Okay, yes. It's just, it's just territory you don't necessarily want to be going into, but I am curious. Only the most skilled podcast is convention. Right. And tread that evolutionary tightrope. We are today talking about health and safety. That's our vibe today. It should be a really fun episode.

I'm going to tell you a very brief story. A health and safety story from my life that I've never told you before, which popped into my mind this morning. When I was, I think this is probably health and safety, but I was definitely a disaster. When I was about 16 and younger, but the event happened when I was 16, I had a little hot water bottle which I loved. Oh, yes. I know this story. I called flibs.

Okay, flibs was my little, hot water. I never put a water in it. It was cold water. I'd to keep it in my bed cold water. It was filled with nothing. It had holes in it, it was cold, I'd keep it in my bed cold and it was a thing I'd had for many, many years. Is it filled with cold water? It was filled with nothing. It had holes in it, it didn't really act as a hot water in a bottle anymore, but it had previously in happier times been able to hold boiling water. Anyway, when I was watching tele one day, I was sort of just holding it and playing with the top of flibs. How old are you? I used to do. I was probably about 15. Just playing with your comfort hot water bottle. To think, you were a school hard kid. To think I'm now getting targeted ads about how musly I had.

I was playing with flibs, as I used to flip it, that's what I used to call it. Sometimes when I was sleeping I would flip it with my foot, which is at the bottom of my bed. Sometimes when I was watching tele I would flip it with my hand. Yeah. And I managed Chris to flip it so hard that my finger went through the aperture, the screw thing wasn't in it, and into flibs, the cold water bottle, and passed crucially a metal ring which meant I couldn't get my finger out of flibs. So my finger is now stuck in a hot water bottle and I cannot get the hot water bottle off on your finger. I could not get your finger out of flibs. I could not get my finger out of flibs. Okay so what animals could I successfully mate with? How do you get your finger out of flibs? It's the best history podcast out there.

So Dan Snow is hearing this shaking in his boots. We're not a threat to snow. So I've got my fingers stuck in flibs. I cannot get it out. I try fairy liquid. I try everything. I can't give it out. My only option is to ring my friend Sam because his mom is a technology teacher and I know she has a hack saw and ask if she can cut me out of flibs. Do not you do not go hack saw first off. So that's insane. Sam's mom lives 25 minutes away in the center of Bath, so I have to walk down the hill and get the 13B bus into town with a cold hot water bottle stuck on my finger. I not get it off, just sat there on the bus. The hot water bolts, hand stuck in a hot water bottle.

I get to Sam's house. And sure enough, she cuts me out with a hack saw. I have photos of this happening. I need to get these photos. I will put them on the Instagram if I can find them. Oh my God. So I was trapped in a hot water bottle for about half a day. It was so claustrophobic and panic-inducing. I cannot begin to describe how stressful the whole thing was. And also undignified, getting on to a bus when your fingers stuck in a hot water bottle. That really hurt. I would have tried to disguise it, like put it in a plastic bag or something. Yeah. Try that. How old are you that you're old enough to go get the bus, but young enough that you're going to bed with a hot water bottle and flibbbing it? Well, I've had flipped for quite a few th You have to understand it become part of my nighttime rhythm. Started flipping a bit more when you were about 13 maybe.

Yeah, exactly. Really heavily got into flibb in about then. And then I stepped up a level and went deep with a finger when I was about 15. And it got stuck. It was also really, really painful because it was pushing the other two fingers apart in a know if that's health and safety, but it is one of the weird sort of stories of my life that is on the periphery of that area. Right, shall we talk about what we're going to be talking about from the past and find out how many

people in the past have done similar things to me. Chris, what are you talking about? Chris, what are you talking about today? today? today? today? their. C. I. I. C. I. I. I. I. I. to? What to? to. to to to their. thi about thi about their. Chris, thi. Chris, thi. Chris, thi. Chris, thi. Chris, to, thi. Chris, tho, tho, tho, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is, is? What is? What is? What is? What is? their. their? their? their. I. I? their. their. I's. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. their. like back then. I'm going to be talking about ancient monasteries and health and safety there. I'll be talking about blue Peter. Okay, so huge birthday party coming up, huge birthday, 50th birthday celebrations for the Health and Safety at Work Act, which came into being in the UK on the 31st of July 1974. What are those celebrations going to look like? Will there be candles on the cake? Absolutely not.

But there will be a fire extremely sure just in case. their thanks. their candle's somewhere. It definitely won't be those candles that every time you blow them out they somehow come back a light again. Those ones? That is insane. What is that? How are they often sell those? It is mad that when you think about some really awful things that happened in Britain that wouldn't happen now. It is mad the reputation health and safety has and how annoyed people get with it. and it also oddly gets wrapped up with like political correctness. Yeah yeah people kind of conflate the two and the European

Union to an extent. And the tip and the tip and the tip and the tip into it. Yeah why are people that's so true? Because the work, you want the workplace and life to be safe don't you generally? I think maybe it's the workplace and life to be safe, don't you, generally? I think maybe it's the sense that we're becoming a nanny state. Yeah, yeah, I think that probably is. Obviously that is what it is, obviously that's being killed off. However, I will say that candles that cannot be blown out is insane. Yeah. Yeah. For what is it like a 30 second gag having a fire that cannot be extinguished. I think, I think you dip him in water, don't you? I've actually had to, you have to, I know this, you have to take them down to a depth of 200 meters.

You do, Jambuddin' you have to put in a full scuba suit. It's the only way to put them out is the ocean bed, exactly, yeah. It's like seatbelt legislation. Yeah. When that came in in the 1980s, in 1983, I think, people made such a fuss. Yeah, smoking in pubs, we've talked about this before, but that felt like I thought there's going to be mass civil disobedience. No one is going to stop smoking in pubs. And it was overnight. And now it's so strange if you see people smoking indoors. Well, Chris, remember you sent us this video once of the, I think it's the night they brought in a ban on drink drive. That's right.

It's a brilliant. You describe it, Chris, because it's remarkable. I think it's the night before they bring in the ban on drink driving and the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the their, the the the the the a pub and I think it's Shenfield in Essex, my heartland, and they go around the pub and they just interview people and people just get, they're like, oh well I've been drinking 10 pints a night and driving home and I've never had a problem. And it's fine. There's actually one person in the interview who's like a young lawyer and he says, well I've read the legislation and actually if you just don't get breath-alized and then you go back, you can you can delay the whole process by 6-7 and you're like, wow, this guy's actually like,

yeah, he's gone deep on this the night before the legislation. But people are genuine, they're genuinely livid about it, that's the thing. Yeah, the live it. They're all furious Rear seatbelts in the UK were compulsory from 1986 and they became compulsory to be worn in 1991 because I remember this and I remember the first people used to make and people who said, well, I won't wear mine. Why? Just put it on. But it's easy to think about health and safety as a modern phenomenon and we're talking about the 50th birthday coming up for the Health and Safety of Work Act, but actually way before the ban on smoking indoors,

the ban on smacking, minimum price of alcohol, health and safety has actually been around for a long, long time. And I'm going to take you back now to 20 BC and I'm going to introduce you to Roman writer Marcus Vitruvius, usually known as Vitruvius. He wrote a book called On Architecture, and it is not a thrilling read, but however, he is concerned with safety measures in place or not in Roman's public bathhouses and also loads of other notes as well, like not storing flammable substances near fire, which is an echo of modern kosh procedures, and ensuring that things were regularly and rigorously cleaned. He wrote about them because he hoped the powers that be would take these matters seriously, and ensure that the oil, for example, used by slaves prior to scraping clean the skin of bathers at these Roman bathhouses were stored properly and would not catch fire.

So Vitruvius was actually quite cautious and he had ideas and views about plumbing and what sort of pipes were best to use in the empire's water supplies. In ancient Rome you basically had three types of pipe, clay, concrete and lead, and lead is lead is actually where we get the word for plumbing from because the Latin word for lead is plumbom. And so in English, plumbing and plumber that's derived from the ancient Roman word for lead. And what's it in Welsh? I think that's similar isn't it? Oh yeah it's plum. Yeah it's plum. Said in a northern accent. Like a northern and a green grazer. Is that the most northern Welsh word?

That's a very, yeah. That's a very interesting, yeah, plum. Is there a more... Is there a more northern? I'm going to have to give that some thought. Well, we've lost Ellis for the next half hour that means. Sorry, I'm going I'm not really doing our bits. He's going to be staring into space. We're going to think about anything else, and then I come up with one in about half an hour or whenever else has forgotten it.

We've completely forgotten the context. Oh dear. So Chris, obviously my immediate reaction there is, do you know if this was drinking water through earthen pipes like clay, more wholesome than through lead and that those who worked with the metal which was using everything from water pipes to wine goblets seemed to be poisoned by it. And this was apparent by their pallid color. This is a big health and safety intervention in ancient Rome. Oh, a lot of the water was coming through lead pipes. And lead wine goblets as well. Lead wine goblets.

Oh wow. Oyoy. Yeah, I want a wine that's sort of low tannins, but quite high and cartonagenic. That's sort of the balance I'm looking for. Yeah, oh, this, this wine has got a delicious asbestos aftertaste. It's going to be lovely a spesto mouth feel. That's the one thing about time traveling into the past. Like, I think I would be, you're going to be consumed by so much worry about the lack of, I think

people who deride it now would be seriously worried going back to the past, going back to ancient Rome, and having a lovely old sip of wine out of a lead goblet. That's really funny Chris. Do you think you'd be spending your whole time in ancient Rome go don't do that? No, genuinely, actually please, no really, you really don't want to drink from that. No, don't eat that. I'd be walking around with a ruck fuk full of Evian and sandwiches. And goes toilet paper paper Yeah, and toilet paper. But, you know, I mean, once you've got kids, I think you become a risk assessor yourself. Yes, absolutely. Absolutely. Absolutely.

Absolutely. Sharp corners, plugs. What's the wiring doing here? Is that TV on the wall? Is that secured? Yeah. So I think your risk assessing would just go through the roof as soon as you use the one day time.

Do you want to hear the stupidest thing? So my eldest son had some scissors about, it was a few months ago, and he was running with scissors? Was he trying to get you out of another flibs? Well, honest, don't do that. If you're going to walk with scissors, you hold them like this, out in front of you, like this. And Claire looked at me, he said, what are you doing?

Because I have my entire life thought they were sauke to walk on you hold the scissors a really way in front of you. I only just found out you're supposed to hold onto the blade. Do you know this? Did you know this? Yes, of course I know this. I learned some primary scoom. So you were carried them like a knife. Like a dagger? Like a dagger? Yeah. But no, but really far away from me. Like I did. I hold it by the handle with a scissors pointing out, but I also th. I the hand I the hand I the the the th. I th. I th. I the the th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I th. I the. I the. I know, I know, th. thi. the. the. to know, to know, to know, to know, to know, to know, to know, to know, th. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. Yes. I know, I know, I know, I know, I, I, I know, I, I, I, I, I, I know, I th. Yes. Yes, I th. I th. I th. I know, th. I th. I th. I the. Did, the. Did, I the. Did, I the. Did, I the. Did, the. Did, the. Did, the. Did, the. Did, the. as I can. He could have walked into his brother. Yes, well we know that now, yeah, that was, Claire made that perfectly clear. I was tend to teach him. No, that's not how you do it. This is how you do it. There you go. Watch your dad stub your brother. This is how it's done. That's incredible. Well back to the lead pipes, quite a few other writers had noticed that people who were drinking out of getting their water from lead

pipes were getting a pallid color, weren't feeling well. And like I say, a few writers have noticed this. But Trevius was able to intervene in a public debate on the subject and did add something about lead piping to the health and safety laws and conventions which did exist around the Roman world. There was some of these early health and safety rules included not having to work in bad weather, that workers would get provision of safety equipment like gloves, and there was even kind of working time directive so that they were allowed a lunch break and other rest

during the day, and the working day itself was established as between dawn and dusk. There was also a few workers' rights. If a worker showed up in the weather was so atrocious that work was not possible, they would be paid. But if a worker was sick and could not work, they would not be. So it's like really advanced, in it? If they knew in Roman times that lead plumbing was bad. How come it wasn't made illegal in the UK until 1969? Really? Yeah, because my mate, he had an old house, there's actually no older than my house, it's from the same era, my house is from the 1930s and his house was the same. And so this has now just made me think differently. He had lead pipes, so they weren't drinking tap water. Because the house, yeah, yeah, this is in in in in in in in their in their in their their their their their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, th. th. th. thi. thi. thi. thi. thi. Until, thi. Until, thi. Until, thi. thi. Until, thi. Until, thi. Until, thi. Until, thi. thi. thi. thi. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. th. their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their, their. their, their. their. their. their. their. te. te. te. te. ti. ti. ti. pipes so they weren't drinking tap water. Really? Yeah, yeah, this is in the sort of 80s. I remember not drinking tap water in his house for that reason. And what about a bath? Would they have a bath? I don't know, but how come that's it's...

Yeah, that is crazy. We've known this for 2,000 years. Yeah. Did we only finally get a copy of this old Roman book in 1969. Finally someone from Britain bought it and went and flicked and oh dear, we'd be making a huge mistake. A third of the properties in the northwest of England built before 1970 are believed to have some lead plumbing. That's insane. Yeah. That's insane. The companies stop valve outside your home to the kitchen tap have been replaced. There should be no lead piping on your property, however. A third of properties in the Northburst built before 1970 you believed to have some kind of lead plumbing. That's good, that's good. Yeah, good laugh. Can't carry on.

And there was safety equipment. The easiest items are to discern are gloves and appear to have been used in various contexts. In 2018, archaeologists discovered two Roman boxing gloves, but not a matching pair, which amount to straps tied around the knuckles, made up of leather and other materials, that could absorb the shock involved in throwing punches or protecting the wearer from the punches of others. It's a really obvious example of health and safety. And also agricultural workers wore fingerless mittens which kept their hands warm whilst toiling in the fields, as did hard-working secretaries in their office, kept at work whilst their employers dictated letters and other documents in the depths of winter.

And this blew my mind. I cannot believe this, what I'm about to tell you now. And I think it's going to blow your mind as well. At the other extreme, at the height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height height, at the height, at the height, at the height, at the height, at the height, at the height, the height, the height, the height, the the the the the the the the the the tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, tho, the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, the, and, the, and the, and thea.a'ea'ea'eran, and, toooooo'ea'eruuu.ea'er, thau.ea'er, too'er, and, thea, the height of the Mediterranean summer, health and safety concerns brought to the fore protection of the eyes and skin. And Roman sunglasses were invoked during the time of Emperor Nero, who sported an extortionally expensive pair made from Emerald glass. Wow! No! They're wearing sunglasses in ancient Rome.

That's so cool! They are the best. Sunglasses? My degree was in modern history and that's such a mistake. Looking back. I should have, I should, the Romans absolutely fascinate me. Completely. Sunglass shades. Yeah, yeah. You've ever seen that picture? There's a picture that does the rounds occasionally and it's it's conspiratorial in nature. There's a guy in like 1950s America and he's wearing sunglasses and everyone says he has to have been from the future because he just looks so futuristic in sunglasses. Do you know the picture I'm talking about? Yes, yeah. I do. And Emperor Nero has got a pair of bins on in the

ancient Rome, sunglasses. I can't believe that that's incredible. Slightly tragically they were the those wrap around Oakley's they weren't they? That's the thing they were a bit sort of... You're what, the official sunglasses of the UK garage thing? Yeah, exactly, yeah. That is incredible, isn't it? I mean, it's a very hot country. There's a the the th a tha tha tha tha tha tha tha tha tha tha tha thatter thatter thatter thattap thattap thatta thattha thathea. thathea' thathea' thathea' that's a very thatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheatheathea. thathea. thathea. thathea. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. that. thatt. thattha. thattha. thattha. thattha. thattha. It's a thatthan. It's a thattha that- less of a drive to have sunglasses. Yeah, there was Gore-Tex. Yeah, exactly. No one in ancient Britain's going, God, someone needs to invent sunglasses. I bet we had like the snood in medieval times, like that or like, yeah, mad.

Suntan lotion was also knocking about. The ancient Egyptians did have a concoction made from the combination of rice, jasmine and lupine, which made a paste which was then applied to the skin. Romans borrowed all sorts of approaches. They nicked suncream from Egypt, loose clothing, they had wide-brimmed hats known as Pettasos, and they would rub oil into the skin. Another habit involved rubbing donkey milk into the skin, but the Romans came up with technological innovations, including the Valerium, which is a sun awning, which did for them what modern parasol does for us. So loads of inventions to combat the bright sunshine of ancient Rome.

Yeah, mad. You are right, El, there is some, it's just that time and that place is just fascinating because it's also wrapped it up for me in this idea of excess and wine, opulence and just everything. There's blood, there's the Colise, it's just it's a crazy time, but also there's such advances in terms of technology and it's incredible. Incredible parallels with modern life. Yes. And so many home comforts or versions of home comforts that make you think actually I could live there. Yeah. Simple a time. Also pre-Iphone and that's less stressful in that way. Yeah, you do more reading. Exactly. You could read this book on health and safety. It's perfect. All right well that's the end of part one. If you want to get part two now plus two bonus episodes a month you can become a subscriber to Oh What a Time you can become an

Oh What a Time full timer. To get the links they're on Apple another slice and Spotify just go to Oh What a Time full timer. To get the links, they're on Apple, another slice and Spotify, just go to O What a Time.com. You can sign up there. Otherwise, we'll see you tomorrow for part two. Bye. the the