Northern Sole
Cumbria has a long-standing relationship with shoe manufacturing. Roy Bell started his career in the industry as soon as he left school in 1970 at Millers Shoe Factory in Cockermouth. Millers closed its doors in the early 1990s, but by then Roy had already moved to another company. In 1982, New Balance set up a factory in Flimby, a small village just a few miles down the road, and Roy has been there ever since. At that time, the Flimby facility was the only factory owned by the multibillion-dollar American business outside the USA.
The factory, located in a farmer's field, with cattle casually grazing the surrounding area, now employs 275 people to make around 7,500 pairs of trainers every week and is planning a ten per cent increase to its workforce over the next five years. Staff work four days per week on ten-hour shifts. Roy is called a clicker because that's the sound his machine makes when it presses down on a sheet of leather to cut the various components that go into a trainer. To an untrained eye it looks easy enough, but without the skill and experience that Roy has built up over the years, it could go horribly wrong very quickly.
For Roy, the day-to-day process of leather cutting is coming to an end. Balloons and banners strung onto his workstation wish him a happy retirement. Work stops for a brief moment as his team gather round to wish him all the best.
This year, New Balance celebrated 40 years of Cumbrian manufacturing by producing a special set of trainers to commemorate its milestone. The tongue proudly says 'Made In England', and the inside of the box pinpoints Flimby on a UK map. Eighty per cent of what they make in Flimby is exported all over the world, and the anniversary trainers will be no exception.
Trailer
Recently Updated Shows
The Handmaid's Tale
The Handmaid's Tale is the story of life in the dystopia of Gilead, a totalitarian society in what was formerly the United States. Facing environmental disasters and a plunging birthrate, Gilead is ruled by a twisted fundamentalism in its militarized ‘return to traditional values'. As one of the few remaining fertile women, Offred is a Handmaid in the Commander's household, one of the caste of women forced into sexual servitude as a last desperate attempt to repopulate the world. In this terrifying society, Offred must navigate between Commanders, their cruel Wives, domestic Marthas, and her fellow Handmaids – where anyone could be a spy for Gilead – all with one goal: to survive and find the daughter that was taken from her.
Gold Rush
Gold Rush follows six men who, in the face of an economic meltdown, risk everything - their families, their dignity, and in some cases, their lives - to strike it rich mining for gold in the wilds of Alaska. Inspired by his father Jack, Todd Hoffman of Sandy, Oregon, leads a group of greenhorn miners to forge a new frontier and save their families from dire straits. While leasing a gold claim in Alaska, Todd and his company of newbies face the grandeur of Alaska as well as its hardships, including an impending winter that will halt operations and the opportunity to strike gold. In an effort to keep the operation running, the team takes fate into their own hands with a make or break venture that will change their lives forever.
When Calls the Heart
When Calls the Heart is inspired by Janette Oke's bestselling book series about the Canadian West, the series tells the captivating story of Elizabeth Thatcher, a young teacher accustomed to her high society life, who receives her first classroom assignment in Coal Valley, a small coal mining town where life is simple, but often fraught with challenges. Upon arrival, Elizabeth befriends Abigail Stanton, a wife and mother whose husband, the foreman of the mine, along with a dozen other miners, has just been killed in an explosion. The newly widowed women find their faith is tested when they must go to work in the mines to keep a roof over their heads. Set against the wild canvas of a 19th century coal town, Elizabeth will have to learn the ways of the frontier if she wishes to thrive in the rural west on her own.
Night Court
Night Court centers on the unapologetic optimist judge Abby Stone, daughter of the late Harry Stone, who follows in her father's footsteps as she presides over the night shift of a Manhattan arraignment court and tries to bring order to its crew of oddballs and cynics, most notably former night court prosecutor Dan Fielding.
Fire Country
In Fire Country, seeking redemption and a shortened prison sentence, young convict Bode Donovan joins a firefighting program that returns him to his small Northern California hometown, where he and other inmates work alongside elite firefighters to extinguish massive blazes across the region.