Yesterday uncovers the Secrets of the Transport Museum

Secrets of the Transport Museum

Friday 4 December 2020

UKTV has commissioned a new series, Secrets of the Transport Museum (10x60') for its leading factual channel, Yesterday. Produced by Middlechild Productions, the series goes behind the scenes at the Brooklands Museum in Surrey and follows the skilled and enthusiastic volunteers who work to preserve the array of historic racing cars, motorbikes and aeroplanes that have a permanent home at the museum. The series will be narrated by Sanjeev Bhaskar.

Brooklands was the birthplace of motor racing - the site of the very first British Grand Prix - and the museum is one of the most important heritage sites for auto and aviation engineering in the world. It houses some of the most important vehicles of the past 100 years - including a record-breaking 1933 Napier-Railton, Ayrton Senna's legendary 1991 McLaren Formula One car and a mighty Concorde which was originally built there.

Secrets of the Transport Museum has been commissioned for UKTV by senior commissioning editor, Helen Nightingale and ordered by Yesterday channel director, Gerald Casey and deputy director of commissioning, Hilary Rosen. Produced by Middlechild Productions, executive producers are David Sumnall, Andrew Eastel and Philip McCreery and the series producer is Andrew Walmsley. The series will be distributed internationally by Passion Distribution.

UKTV's Helen Nightingale said,

It's a real privilege to take the Yesterday viewers behind the scenes at the historic Brooklands Museum. The commitment and vast knowledge of the volunteer workforce is amazing, and to be able to get under the bonnet and kick the tires of some of the most iconic vehicles in British transport history is going to be a real treat.

Andrew Eastel, executive producer for Middlechild Productions, said,

From the moment you arrive and get sight of their incredible collection, you realise Brooklands is a very special place. We are so lucky to have been granted such unique access, to be allowed this close to the inner workings of some of the most important vehicles of the 20th Century. The staff and volunteers not only painstakingly protect our transport heritage, but inject so much life into every car, bike, plane and bus, with their unparalleled knowledge of transport history. Getting to work with the UKTV team again has been wonderful too, Yesterday is the perfect home for this series.

Yesterday's Gerald Casey added,

Keeping the engineering endeavours and monuments to speed alive at Brooklands is extremely impressive, even more so when you see it is largely done by a team of dedicated volunteers. I'm really pleased Yesterday viewers will be able to see this - both those who have never visited the museum in person before, and those who have been unable to of late.

Secrets of the Transport Museum is filming at the Brooklands Museum, adhering to all COVID-19 procedures and regulations. Other recent UKTV Original commissions for Yesterday include, The Architecture The Railways Built, Restoration Workshop, Train Truckers and two further series of ob doc, Bangers & Cash.

For more information please contact:
Dave Barnsby, Senior Press Office Manager

Notes to Editors:
Image: Mandatory Photo Credit: ©Russell Sach. Picture shows the Napier-Railton at the Brooklands Museum amongst the original 1920/30's garages.

About Yesterday
Freeview 26 | Sky 155 | Virgin 129 | Freesat 159 | YouView 26 On demand on UKTV Play | @yesterdaytweets | yesterday.uktv.co.uk

Fascinating factual stories from the world around us.

Yesterday showcases original series such as Abandoned Engineering, Secrets of the Railways and Underground Worlds as well as new and exclusive observational documentaries including Bangers & Cash, The Architecture The Railways Built and Train Truckers.

The channel also features stunning nature and science programming including David Attenborough's Natural Curiosities and Planet Earth 2, plus seminal war documentaries such as The World at War.

About UKTV
UKTV has been at the forefront of branded television for over 25 years, entertaining the nation with programmes they love. Its leading brands - Dave, Gold, W, Drama, Alibi, Eden and Yesterday - span comedy, entertainment, natural history, factual and drama, and are delivered to audiences through UKTV Play, Freeview, Sky, Virgin Media, BT, TalkTalk, YouView, Freesat and Amazon Fire. The broadcaster is a significant investor in British creativity and is committed to working with new and established writers, directors and programme-makers.

UKTV is part of BBC Studios, the UK's most-awarded production company, a world-class distributor with international branded services, and a commercial subsidiary of the world's leading public service broadcaster, the BBC.

About Middlechild Productions
Middlechild is an independent television production company based in Brighton. Run by David Sumnall and Andrew Eastel, it specialises in returning formats and documentary series including Dog Rescuers With Alan Davies, Jo Brand's Cats and Kittens, Fare Dodgers: At War With The Law, the feature-length The World's Biggest Murder Trial: Nuremberg and the series Restoration Workshop for Yesterday.