Americans React to Fred Dibnah - British Steeplejack Takes Down a Massive Chimney
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- Опубликовано: 6 май 2024
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Reacting To My Roots
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In this video, we react to Fred Dibnah taking down a huge chimney stack. This was the first time Lindsay has ever seen Fred Dibnah or even heard of a Steeplejack. Seeing him scale up this chimney with ease and take it apart brick by brick is incredible.
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👉 Original Video:
• 1979: Steeplejack FRED...
Fred Dibnah is a true British Legend. He's from a time when there was no health and safety. It's sad that he passed 20 years ago now at the age of 66.
Steeplejack deaths were a regular occurence and considered to be an occupational hazzard up to the 1980's when Heath and Safety laws started to be taken seriously. Childrens TV presenter John Noakes climbed Nelsons Column in 1977 for Blue Peter. Watching it again today is frightening but I remember watching it with delight as a child and not considering the implications of a fall. The cavalier attitude to not looking at risks and trying to mitigate them was institutionalised and everyday. I work in the rail industry and sfatey has changed beyond all recognition for the better. We no longer fulfil our disabled employee numbers by making them disabled in the course of their daily job and how anyone (who isn't retired and therefore unaffected) can have a problem with health and safety laws is beyond me!
@@timothyphillips679 Even madder than John Noakes was the camera man who was also up there with him!
@@timothyphillips679 As a kid in the 1970's London I saw a steeplejack fall from a church spire.
@@davidwallin7518John Noakes was a Blue Peter presenter in the 1960s🤔
Martin Lightening did the Fred Dibnah chimney filming
English legend he's from Lancashire England
The "celebrities" make all the noise, but the world is full of people like Fred. Just down to earth hard workers.
Or in Fred's case - an up in the sky hard worker !
So many hard working skilled and courageous men go unappreciated. Without these men modern society would cease to exist. Men should be celebrated.
i'd rather have 1 Fred than 20 Cardassians or similar.
I feel ya ,too many ppl getting footballers wages and not enough down to earth been given that . !!
Fred was also a celeb and by all accounts he enjoyed been a celeb.
Apparently that's part of the reason his first wife Alison left him, she couldn't take the spotlight.
Lots of 'down to earth workers' are of limited charm, limited interests and don't come over well on-camera either.
He's from my hometown, Bolton, where there's a statue of him. It's in front of a stream engine that he renovated.
Most fitting that Fred has a statue,I'm glad but it should be statues
Fred Dibnah was such a legend, he didnt expect to be respected (like our celebrities of today), he earnt it.... the hard way. Such a true legend of the working class.
Aye and he were a reet character anole. You should see the guy's 'pad', all self-built. He were a proper old-school mechanical engineer.
I'm a steeplejack and have had the pleasure of having a beer with him. Great guy.
If you had a beer with Fred I bet you paid for it. Fred was famed for having deep pockets and very short arms.
@@davec1768 are you a Jack? I know a DaveC.
@@gflow7 No. I met Fred at an engineering prize giving. He was the guest presenter. Great raconteur, loved quality beer and someone who had hollow legs. A night I'll never forget.
We use to see him driving his steam engine, 0:02 I don't if he was brave or stupid doing this lol great unique person 😊
@@janolaful He would do all his own Planning and drawings:)
RIP died of cancer but carried on to the bitter end! absolute legend
Fred was a British national treasure. He was a steam engine fanatic and built his own traction engine in his backyard.
I'm a female Bridge Maintenance Engineer in my late 50s, with an interest in history, and well over two decades ago now I had the pleasure of meeting Fred Dibnah at a Steam Engine Rally in England.
I also had the privilege of spending a good half hour shooting the breeze with him before he was dragged away (unwillingly but perfectly reasonably) to focus on the book signing event he'd been paid to attend!
I'm a simple man. I see Fred Dibnah, I click. Practically a British institution unto himself, the late Fred Dibnah. "D'you like that?" is forever ingrained in my mind. In today's money, the £7000 he was paid for the job is a little over £44,000.
And the average house price back then was £19k
Closer to £90,000 in terms of value adjusted inflation.
@@paulleach3612 SIR YOU'RE HIGH PLS LOG OFF
Also worth noting back then in the late 70s, I believe this aired in 79. The pound was worth 2.16 dollars. So £7,000 was more like $15,000 back then. Obviously the pound has tanked but yeah.
IMDB lists 1982/83 and the exchange rate hovered around 1.6 at the time.
Fred was an absolute legend. The last of his type.
and 'e weren't even a Yorksherman
@@LordEriolTolkien we all have our crosses to bear!
Guy Martin is not a steeplejack but is in a similar mindset to fred.their brain works in fixing,maintaining,imagination,planning,dare,excitement etc
I'd say David Attenborough has the same legend status
@@LordEriolTolkiennot everyone is perfect
Fred Dibnah was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire in the 2004 New Year Honours for services to heritage and broadcasting. He said "I'm looking forward to meeting the Queen but I shall probably have to get a new cap. And I'd like to meet Prince Charles because we share the same views about modern architecture."
On 7 July 2004, Fred went to Buckingham Palace to receive his award from the Queen. He initially planned to drive his traction engine into the palace grounds, but was refused as the Royal Parks Agency feared that its weight would damage the surface of The Mall. Eventually, he was allowed to drive the engine to Wellington Barracks, a short distance from the palace. He collected his medal wearing morning dress and a top hat.
At the time I expected him to have a stove pipe hat as many of his heros wore (Brunel etc)
A friend of ours received her OBE in the same ceremony as Fred. She wasn't sure which was the greater honour, getting the gong or meeting Fred. 🙂
You mention Steve, the fact that people of Fred's generation always bring their food and a drink to work. I'm retired now, but that was what I did for almost 52 years when I was working. By the end of my career almost all my colleagues would go out at lunchtime and buy food each day. It always amused me, as I would be finished, relaxed, and ready to start again by the time they got back, and they were eating as fast as they could before they had to resume work. Fred was a British icon, and typical of his generation. Great review! 👍
An absolute legend. I am a roofer who has been in some very precarious positions, on some very tall buildings in central London during gale force winds, but there is not a chance in heck that you would catch me going up and down a chimney stack with just a plank of wood under my arse.
No,the climbing ladders is bad enough but the bosun chair!fu k that😫🤒
😂😂😂😂
You're a very brave Man,yourself,my friend.
Can you imagine how many times he has to take apart the scaffolding and rebuild it as he's taking the chimney down, all by himself ....Absolute Legend
None, the scaffold sits on the top of the chimney and drops down as the bricks are removed. He would have to adjust it a few times as the chimney is tapered and gets bigger towards the base.
There are plenty of people on our wonderful island like him😂😂😂
You need to show her John Noaks climbing Nelsons column for a children's show.
Heck yes, for a children's programme that was something else again. Not many episodes of Blue Peter were shown in NZ - not when we had a telly at least, don't know about before - but that clip certainly made it onto the evening news.
Absolutely yes!!
that's what I thought too 🙂🙂
Yes definitely.
John Noaks on BBC's Blue Peter.
@@ABC1701A thats nothing Special. They are document arms for kids about the mountains and extreme sports
Loved watching Fred on the TV 📺, his passion for the old steam and traction engines was infectious, a generation much missed and a health and safety inspectors worst knightmare 😂😂
For sure! That's all I could think about while watching 😂
He dug a shaft in his back garden and erected pit head gear all without planning permission to demonstrate how they sunk the pit shafts, the local council weren't impressed! The pit head gear is now at the museum of mining at Astley which is worth a visit (my dad worked there when it was a working coal mine).
This Guy Typifies British Ingenuity & Above All Courage
The thing about Fred was that he existed in a time when health & safety regulations were sparse. In spite of the fact that watching a man dismantle a chimney should be mundane & boring, his TV series were incredibly addictive. He was a very special breed of human, the modern day equivalent in terms of passion has to be Guy Martin, a man of so many talents. Best wishes to you both
As Fred always said " one mistake and it's a half day with the undertakers!"😂
What a legend
Fred is from the era when people just got things done.
Fred was also a skilled engineer. He rebuilt and restored an old traction engine and took it on a tour of the UK, visiting interesting places relating to engineering and the Industrial Revolution. He turned it into a great documentary series called 'Fred Dibnah's Made in Britain'. The episodes are on RUclips.
Think he was also a trained Carpenter and Joiner as well.
Fred was a real character. Reminded me of my Granddad.
He loved his steam engines. A true legend.
I loved him holding up traffic on his steam engine and stopping for a pint. Truly great man.
His surname is pronounced Dibner. Fred was an absolute legend, and was a good old Northern bloke. I really enjoyed seeing Fred again - great character.
Our Fred is an institution. He was incredible. He actually dug a mine in his garden! I truly loved this guy. Of course, we was nuts! Amazing man who didn't care about health & safety.
As many have said Fred was a national treasure and true legend . The type of man who built the UK during the industrial revolution and beyond . He really was born in the wrong time , his love of Victorian engineering and those times point to this . He had several TV series during the 80s and 90s all to do with British history / engineering , worth checking out . Even his funeral is on RUclips , he was held in such regard .
Yeh I can just imagine him smoking a cigar with Brunel or Stephenson
@@dasy2k1🤣imagine the conversation with Fred and Isambard! Fred with cloth cap and cheese butty and Brunel top hat and cigar,I imagine they would get along just fine.
@@martindunstan8043 In that case the only difference between the two men, (a difference which would probably have left both of them indifferent), can be typified in their names. One was Isambard Kingdom Brunel, the other was Fred Dibnah....
I feel a lot of people in the UK still take their homemade lunch to work! I know I do, and probably 95% of the people I work in my office with do, you don't see many people going out and buying food constantly. We have a huge fridge in the office kitchen and its always full of lunchboxes and peoples leftovers dinners from the night before to re-heat lol
I figured that buying food n coffee out costs around £8 or more a day. I make luxury sandwiches [eg; whatever is your fav!] & fresh coffee I make for around £1 a day that's £35+ a week I can do something else with.
@@jhmasterson3087Just makes sense,do the same meself
Fred lived in my town, I drove past his house a few times, it was a nice house, nothing spectacular. He used to drive his engine past our pet shop on this way to events every year. I'm used to seeing his exploits so it doesn't phase me watching him. He did a TV series about old industrial machines and went to different sites to show the viewers what they were used for, he wasn't a one-trick-pony. He's been gone a few years, but we have a statue of him in our town centre, he certainly was a character.
Those mills are in my hometown of Oldham, Manchester. I've worked in them in my 20s. After he knocked down the chimney, they built a bridge from one building to another and put a conveyer belt in it because its a shopping warehouse...... I can't believe I'm watching you watching something happening in my town where I live amazing
A construction company I worked for years ago were demolishing an old factory with a huge chimney. Fred came along and felled the chimney for us, he had a sweepstake as to how long it would take to fall, he mentioned to one of the lads almost to the minute when it would drop, he was spot on. Absolute legend & sadly missed. There are chimneys about still, I can see three from my window as we speak in our village on the mills.
I bet they didn't have apostrophes!
@@hefinhughes7263 thanks
It was men like Fred Dibnah, in boiler suits, who built Britain and the US. It's people in smart suits who have wrecked both countries.
Drones didn't exist then and I'm not sure there were any cranes that would a) go that high, and b) be available to rent at a price the BBC could afford. The cameraman was up there with him.
Totally agree with you. Fred Dibnah lived in the next major town to me, in Bolton Lancashire. A true down to earth Lancastrian who loved the job he did and the history of industry that made our once great country. If he was still alive think he’d be appalled that we have now lost so much of our history.
I think they had a cherry picker to film it. I remember it being visible in another episode.
@@JungleTunes94not for that chimney. Cameraman had to climb up there with him. You can tell by how the picture moves about.
@@JazHaz Interesting, I guess you cant see it from the ground shots either
men in boiler suits definitely, i was at a place near Bluebellway railway and this oldish chap in a dirty boiler suit came up and had a coffee with us, i thought he looked recognisable but couldnt put a name to him, it was only after he left me fellow workmates explained, thats pete waterman hes got a train up there, he quite often uses our coffee machine and has a chat
I've watch Fred for years and he still scares me every time I see him climb those
Ladders. legend!
A modern day equivalent of Fred, with a similar accent is Guy Martin, you should check out some of his projects. He's as mad as a box of frogs too!
When Fred's old house was sold off I always thought it would have been great if Guy Martin had bought it
Fred's accent is pure Lancashire. Guy Martin's is pure Lincolnshire accent and totally different.
£7,000 in 1975 would be the equivalent of £60,000 today ($75,000)
This actually was 1979 so the value today would be £33,000.
Funny I got a shade under£45k... did we all use Google?
@@JazHazFilmed in 1978 though
@@B1gLe0 I’ve not seen anyone calculate it correctly.
We’re comparing what he earned in 78 with what that would be worth today in the US therefore you first have to convert it from £ to $ using the 1978 exchange rate (about £1 = $2) then apply US inflation between 78 and today.
If Fred moved to the US with his £7000 in 78, that is how you’d calculate what that is worth to an American today.
Add 5% per year or 50% per decade to account fir inflation. Then add 10%.
Always get a chuckle out of Fred and his cheese butty 😅 just a slice of cheese on buttered white bread. Classic working mans lunch 😋
& the fact he goes back down for lunch instead of taking it up with him😓
Fred was a legend in his own life time. A true hardworking man. The British public liked watching Fred's programs. He was a super person with out a cape. R. I. P Fred Dibnah.
Fred was and still is a British legend
Fred is a legend, i was in a couple of mile traffic jam/tailback from alfriston to newhaven, turned out it was Fred and his bloody steam tractor and trailer, he was waving at all the traffic past him when he went into a layby at last and we all waved and beeped him back
Fred Dibnah was an amazing man. He was an expert on Victorian engineering and a restorer of steam engines.
They used to get him in for precision demolitions where explosives could not be used and he used to fell the chimneys by hand and/or with fire.
The demolitions were his least favourite part of his job as he never liked destroying these lovely old things.
I enjoyed his programmea on Buildings. Specially Tudor ones.
I live in Chorley just a few miles from Fred’s hometown of Bolton Lancashire…. Love peoples reactions to seeing Fred for the first time
He was a proper Lancashire man ❤
And I am from Bolton myself, how funny! Small world lol! Chorley is popular with our lot. Never realised Fred was this prominent nationally until the past two years never mind international!
Fred Dibnah is a LEGEND. I love him. He was such a special man.
And when this was filmed, (not videod), there was a BBC cameraman up there with Fred. They where built different back then.
Was wondering how the camera was up there
@@fuhqsideways He was actually on a platform hoisted up by a crane. There were supposed to be 2 of them but the other bloke bottled out. There's an interview with him which must be on RUclips because I've watched it.
Margaret Thatcher came into power in the year this was filmed in 1979, soon after a system began where people could buy social housing i.e. council owned houses, my Dad bought a 3 bedroom council house around 1979 for £6000, when my Dad passed away around 3 years ago I had to deal with his estate and the same house was valued at £150k but £210k if modernised, so basically he was paid enough to buy a 3 bedroom family home at the time. My Dad was a train driver and actually drove steam trains for a few years before they were replaced by diesel and electric, he absolutely loved Fred Dibnah, Fred owned a steam traction engine which was basically just a steam train for the roads, he made a series where he drove it around the UK, and during the series he had terminal cancer so it was a very emotional journey.
Filmed in 78, broadcast 79
@@Millennial_Manc lol, really?
Fred Dibnah saying "Did you like that" is such a fond memory for me. My Dad absolutely loves watching Fred on TV so I spent many evenings watching him when I was little.
The thing i loved about Fred was his passion for continuing and preserving the skills . Real salt of the earth man bless him . 😊
It is crazy how effortless and fearless Fred carried out his work. I don't care how much anyone is paying me, but that I will not do. Respect to those in the trade.
Apart from an amazing personality, Fred had something that is now very rare in the world, common sense....
You think common sense is very rare? You need to surround yourself with better people ;)
There are load of idiots in the world, there always have been and always will be because that's humans for you. And usually the idiots garner the most attention so it stands out more. But the majority of people, normal people have a lot of common sense. The ones without are the outliers.
As I've said elsewhere, the U.S had the Space Program, and Britain had Fred and an infinite supply of ladders.
As the number of working chimneys diminished, Fred started branching out into showcasing Victorian building and engineering. In his steeplejacking career, he felled 90 chimneys with the last one being done back in 2004.
The Boltonian in me likes to hear a proper accent as well.
12:35 Yes, the cameraman climbed up there too 😳!
Woah! Which was no easy feat back then, I'm sure, as the cameras were much much bigger/bulkier to carry.
You need to show Lindsey how Fred ladders the chimney's, and how he brings a chimney down from the bottom using fire.
Climbing a chimney with an overhang was an amazing one too as he's effectively leaning backwards.
It warms my heart, being from Bolton myself, that people are interested.
Hello from Preston.
People came in their droves to watch when Fred was setting fire to the bottom of the chimney. He would sound a big horn and shout it’s going to go!
Sometimes he had to run like hell because a chimney fell not quite where he thought it was going to land. A legend, very entertaining Pauline
he was a legend back in the day, gives me anxiety just watching. back in the 70s/80s when there was no health & safety LOL
Makes my palms sweaty watching Fred.
We used to live in Bolton. I was shopping one day when I noticed Fred doing his "rope and ladder" up Bolton Church steeple!! I stood for a while marvelling (and worrying).. Never will be done again with the "Elf and Safe" Laws we have now.
ELF N' 'SAFETY...
Fred is a legend and I always go back to watch his videos. He got a calming voice and no sign of fear. He loved it
I met Fred at a steam engine rally with his steam engine on proud display. He was not only a legend in his lifetime but was always a very down to earth character. When that documentary was made I believe he was in his mid forties and was one of the last true steeplejacks. You are right about health and safety regulations brought in during the 80's and 90's, due to the EU which curtailed his work somewhat, however his passion for engineering from by-gone ages never diminished and he made a series of documentaries with Fred visiting many places around the country showing old engineering that was still being used. There will never be anyone like him again and even today is surely missed.
You cound offer me a million pounds, I still won't do that, fred is one brave dude
The BBC are actually renowned for their strictness in safety so Fred’s footage is always so remarkable. I was in an all Girl Motorbike Stunt Team for 10 Years, the BBC HATED filming us 😂
I got vertigo just watching him!
That's why the BBC cameraman is safely tucked away on a hydraulic crane platform and not on Fred's scaffold 😅
I guess that strictness in safety didn't apply to Noel Edmond's shows! 😥
The B.B.C may have "hated filming you's"but I imagine the public adored you all, especially the male population(although I imagine they could probably be really condescending as well)
@@SirHilaryManfat Nor to Blue Peter.
There are many films to watch of this legend well worth watching and I hope you do....
He has done about 5 before of the big ones people normally react to
@@LilMonkeyFella87 ok I will need to look at the previous posts
The man possessed the balls of an elephant in doing what he did.
I remember as a kid watching the documentaries from the late 1970's/early '80's and he was comedic and entertaining to boot.
When he came back on TV in later life the knowledge he imparted was second to none.
Sadly missed and a true Northern legend.
RIP Fred.
Fred is what we refer to as a National Treasure, the kind of man every boy/young man wishes was their Grandaddy, just a salt of the earth mans man! It was his character as much as his work that drew so many people to him. He personified the word Humble! RIP Fred 😊😊
Can definitely see how that's the case! He seemed like an awesome guy.
top comment amongst many others
Fred Dibnah as a steam engine tv show going round the uk in it was a good watch :)
Where I live (Carlisle, England), we still have 'Dixon's Chimney' which is the 8th largest chimney in the world. Built in 1836. It's amazing to walk past it and to think that someone had to climb it.
Didn't someone die up that chimney not so long ago?
was the 8th largest at the time
Fred Didnah is a Man's Man! Total legend RIP
Sadly he was a wife beater
Dibnah
In Fred's day it was not out of the ordinary to do do dangerous hard work like this, it was expected of you. I was born in Bolton, Freds home town and my fathers side of the family wers all from there. People from Bolton as Fred has shown you just got on with life, however tough it was and a good work ethic was the norm. Fred became a national treasure and rightly so not just through his work but through his TV programs which showed his love of steam engines. RIP Fred I'm proud to be a Boltoner because of people like you. By the way pesple, check out my uncle Sandy Strickland he was a grafter from Bolton too, he played marathon piano sessions all over the country in the 50's totalling well over 150 hours at a throw.
Fred was a legend in the real sense of the word.. He totally ignored ALL health and safety.
I'm not so sure "ignored" is the right term. I think health and safety was foremost in his mind. Just not the "Health and Safety" rules we have on paper now. I think he used his huge amount of experience and good common sense and had his own rules.. I would love to have seen his own personal book of health and safety. The rules he had learned over the years to keep him and others safe. And I bet his rules would have been far better than the rules written by someone in an office who has never even seen a steeplejack at work, let alone done the job.
Fred never IGNORED health and safety, he did a cool calculation, about the danger, and always, always remembered he couldn't walk on air. Which I am told by professionals and experts in the field, is what kills most people who work at heights.
@@GnrMilligan Yup it's also worth noting that at the time he was working there was only a fraction of the safety gear we take for granted now (the likes of fall arrestors iirc didn't really come into general use until around the 90s and legally required until the early 00's). He was one of the "careful" steeplejacks (some might say lucky ones), he learned early enough to survive the initial main early risk period, and then (unlike many) never forgot that. I'm always reminded of a saying that pilots apparently have "you start off with a bucket of luck that is full, and a bucket of experience, you hope to fill the latter before the former runs out" (I've probably got the wording very wrong).
Unfortunately for every Dibner there was probably a dozen who either made a mistake at the wrong time, or just had bad luck/missed checking a rope at the wrong time.
I've actually got one of his DVD sets waiting to be watched, as I picked it up for a couple of quid at a charity shop.
Watching almost any construction/industrial site footage from before the 80's always makes you realise how little "proper" safety gear there was, and how much of safety was left down to experience, and how easily things could go wrong without that experience (tunnellers on the Underground hoping on and off moving digging equipment with inches and maybe a second to spare before "life changing injuries"), and why we now have the safety stuff formalised.
On a related note, my father used to work at heights (roofs etc) on and off, and whilst he was always fairly fearless with it, he always made the point he worked out the "safe" way to do it, wouldn't work on it if it was windy or icy, and made very sure his ladders were in good nick. secured and in the right place "always better to spend 15 minutes getting them correct than an ambulance trip if you're lucky".
We've still got the "wall hooks" he put in to do the end walls of our house when he painted and repaired the plasterwork in the 90's (some fairly basic looking scaffold tied to the wall, then the ladders on that), so the scaffold could not go anywhere, IIRC that sort of practice only became common/law to secure ladders and as an option for scaffold in the 00's (I think the preferred method is you stick scaffold legs out at an angle to prevent the risk of toppling, but that isn't always practical).
That's a mill chimney where I live in Oldham, Fred was busy round here with 504 cotton mills and chimneys in 60s and 70s
he came over to Colne and demolished the very tall chimney and Skillfully dropped it into Colne water (the local beck) avoiding some 30 dwellings the chimney was built of brick (banded ) for the council owned incinerator.....
Fred was a true living legend in his own life time but would laugh at you for saying so. He was a true champion.
In the UK Fred was a true national treasure, loved by all. What you saw on TV was the Fred you got in real life. An incredibly fit and strong man as well as a brilliant mind
A steeplejack is a tradesperson who works on tall structures, such as chimneys, power stations, high-rise buildings or castles, including reporting any damage due to high winds, repair and demolishion. They also assemble ladders and scaffolding, mobile work platforms, traditional harnesses and industrial ropes for abseiling
My stepdad used to be a steel erector. He used to work on pylons back in the 70s/80s. Fred Dibnah was his hero - we used to panic when we saw him hanging around on pylons and scaffolding.
Fred Dibnah was not only a national treasure he was a bloody genius.
He was an outstanding man ...and hes sadly missed ..he had an enormous amount of knowledge of buildings and masonry ..a true legend
Fred Dibnah - GOAT! Nuff said.
I work for a small building maintenance company, about 20 blokes on various sites. Pretty much all of us bring a packed lunch but I've noticed some of the younger ones will sometimes leave it if there is a cafe or suchlike close to the work site. They are the ones still being fed by their mums.
One of the beautiful things about Fred Dibmah, was that he didn't just marvel at the industrial prowess of the eras gone by, but he was truly proud of it and could show you its architectural beauty and its cultural amd historical significance from a small community right up to the global markets of the world.
He appreciated not just the fuction of something like a water pump or a static engine but also the design of it, the sheer intellectual fortitude required to envisage a solution to a problem the world had never faced. Then to often make those things beautiful or ornate too. He restored and ran traction engines and had a good appreciation of the masonry and generation spanning building of cathedrals too. Any Brit should be very proud of their industrial heritage, as should any American or European brother. It is a pillar of who we are as a people.
No joke, was just talking about Fred Dibnah to someone a few days ago. An absolute legend of a Brit. He could never understand why people were interested in him.
Back before the days of pesky health and safety rules....Fred just got on with it.
Yes, he loved steam, and built a beautiful steam engine, he was also an excellent draughtsman,they'll never be his like again!
well there were health and safety rules even then, but they also knew that the chimenys he was felling had to be brought down somehow and his 2 to 3 man team was the safest way, there were several other demolition crews who tried to take down chimneys and got the wind wrong, ending up with it falling in completely the opposite direction to what it was meant to, thats what happened when you didnt go to professional steeplejacks in the 70's and 80's
And if he'd fallen to his death, people would have been saying health and safety laws should have been in place and adhered to. It's only because he was lucky enough not to die that you call those laws 'pesky'. Thankfully nowadays, we're a lot less cavalier about the loss of human life and the destruction of the families they leave behind.
That was 20,000 bricks removed one at a time and it took him 5 months to do it.
Really impressive feat!
I'm a Roofslater by trade and I've worked some silly heights in my time including the window cleaners type cradles on the high rise tower blocks. The cradles were the only thing that scared me as they swing side to side in any decent wind, but what that man did still terrifies me. He was so down to earth and humble, a real throwback to a bygone age and an absolute Gentleman. A remarkable man who is sorely missed.
He probably built his own ladders when God took the fella to heaven. R.I.P Fred.💪😣
A True British Icon.
Fred is an absolute legend.
I myself am a steel worker and I still take a packed lunch to work. This is essential because I work on a secure site and when you are on a 12 hour night shift and actually casting steel like I was last night you soon get hungry with all the heavy manual labour but you can't go anywhere to buy food.
Every day, prior to my shift starting my partner will make my packed lunch for me for that shift and I will take it in my work bag when I go.
lots of people take lunch into work where i am because the canteen is too expensive for the wages we get
When Fred Dibnah was getting famous in the 70's and 80's there were pretty much no safety regulations until you got to the level of using explosives. You can see that in the way that he put up ladders. He was also massively into steam engines and did a fair few programs with the BBC about those.
Fred was emblematic of the sensible. clever straight forward British working man - the sort that made us the greatest country in the World. RIP
When people say, "They don't make'em like they used to" I always think of Fred.
My dad met fred twice here in cornwall at bocconoc steam fair, One i beleive would be the early 90's where for the entire day he did not see him without an Ale/Beer and rollie (cigarette) in his hand the other time would of been the late 90's which i actually do remember and he was an utter joy just to talk to....But the strangest bit of all was he remembered my dad from the first meeting as my dad used to fix type writers for people and he was amazed by it...Utter legend...Both of em tbf...Cheers for the video and do carry on he's a UK great.
Fred was a true legend. He was big in steam and engineering heritage as well.
Lyndsey & Steve love watching your reaction to this. I hail from a town 10 miles away from where this happened. Mills and mill chimneys are part of my family’s heritage. Fred Dibnah a true working class Lancastrian, sadly missed, still love watching his videos
legend
Fred was a skilled engineer, he knew how that tower went up and so knows how it comes down, there is no safety nets etc , he just knows what he is doing
A man who appreciated quality engineering in all forms. From construction to de-construction Fred lived it with a passion, a true connoisseur.
And remember as he reduces the height of the chimney he has to take apart the scaffold and move it down many times.
The scaffolding _he's standing on...._
love fred, he also built a mine shaft in his garden for fun great british legend
Though I loved the man to pieces, not certain I want to live next to him 😅
Fred was a guest in the radio programme 'Desert Island Discs'. Interviewer Sue Lawley memorably asked him: "So, Fred, is steeplejacking a young man's job, or is it something you'll do 'til you drop?"
This man was a local hero in my neck of the woods, the North of England. Great you guys appreciating his skills. The broad accents, I've been told, stem from the working conditions of the cotton mills of this area where the workers had to shout and lipread over the tremendous noise. Unfortunately, the resulting dialect is less than mellifluous. But the hearts of these people, pure gold.☺️
We all loved 🥰 Fred he was a Legend bless him ❤
Theres a video on here from the 60s of an interview with some steeplejacks and a bit about their trade
"1965: Could YOU be a STEEPLEJACK? | Tonight | Classic BBC Clips | BBC Archive"
Thanks! We'll add to the list :)
In the UK someone like Fred would be referred to by some as a working class hero’. Admired by his type but by others too. He had great knowledge of engineering, history and architecture. I loved Fred, such a sad day when he passed. Awesome video, it’s nice to see Fred get recognition further afield from his own soil. ❤ on a previous video you watched Fred burn down a chimney. You only saw the final show. I think you mentioned ‘does he remove the bricks’. You were correct. As he cuts the brick away he inserts short, thick logs which are held with wedges. He does this in a wedge shape, until the chimney is supported by half brick and half wood. The fire destroys the integrity of the wood and the chimney collapses in the direction of the cut away wedge. The cut away brick is how he aimed where it was going to fall. He said it was the old fashioned way of doing it, but he preferred this way because he said it was safer and more predictable than explosives.
Fred’s a local legend, there’s a statue of him in the town centre in his traditional flat cap. He’s also got a traditional Bolton accent that you don’t hear so much these days except in older generations. There is another video of him going up a chimney in Blackburn or Darwin (India Mill I think) which has two huge over hangs, gets to the top “E yer cud ride a bike round ‘ere”
Brilliant reaction I hope you show your wife more of Fred.
No. The man at the bottom has to pick up all the bricks as they come down, moving them to a truck or a heap nearby, as well as keeping an eye on Fred & watching for people coming near into danger. Factories often have workers canteens where the staff got a decent cheep meal at lunchtime prepared on site. This series on Fred was made many years ago, before Health & Safety rules were enforced. He did a series on Victorian engineering, showing how steam engines etc were made & used in the old days. He had his own steam tractor that he restored.
He died some years ago in his bed. Yes a Steeplejack originally worked on Church steeples, & Fred did work on these, putting up weather vanes, & repairing roofing etc. He also took down chimneys by setting fires at the base so they collapsed. There are fewer old industrial chimneys now, because people like Fred have brought them all down. Many old factories etc have become redundant, & modern places don't use steam power, so the chimneys which were part of the old systems are no longer needed. They are removed to stop the need to repair & maintain them. It is more cost effective to demolish them, & it stops the chances of them falling dangerously through neglect & age. Also many old industrial sites are being redeveloped, with the necessary removal of old structures. In more recent times it is more likely that explosives or big machines would be used to remove these chimneys, with much less need to do things the old, Fred Dibnah way.
Sadly.😢