The Worst Jobs In History (C4); Krakatoa - The Last Days (BBC1): TONY Robinson was lying on his back with his feet in the air doing one of the worst jobs in the world.
He hadn't joined the oldest profession but become a legger, which involved pushing a boat three miles through a canal tunnel using only his feet.
With no tow path for a horse to pull the boat, the legger would get to work - on his back, his feet on the side of the tunnel, pushing the equivalent of a load articulated lorry
"This is the worst job I've done on my back," Robinson said. This episode of The Worst Jobs In History found him plenty of horrible tasks to perform standing up in lousy jobs brought about by the 18th century industrial revolution.
Brunel is remembered for building Clifton Suspension Bridge, although the hard graft was done by someone else. The first job was constructing a narrow walkway across the ravine. Today, people still have to go up to check the cables in a frightening echo of the original bridge-builders.
Robinson stepped out on what looks like a solid walkway but is actually a series of chains that waft in the wind. With no handrail, it looked like walking on air. A safety wire was installed eight years ago so he wouldn't have plunged the 250ft or more into the river. He'd have hung from the wire like a conker until a qualified abseiler rescued him.
At least he was working in the fresh air. A bone cleaner's job was a stinker. I'd never really thought about bone china actually being made from old bones, but it is - after the rotting meat has been stripped off by hand. Next time you sip tea from a bone china cup try not to think about the owner of the bones from which it's made.
As for soap, back in the 18th century they'd boil up dead sheep and other animals to make it. At least they skinned it and took out the entrails first. It wouldn't do to wash your hands in something made from other's waste products.
He named the worst job as that done by child miners as young as five. They worked underground dragging tubs of coal along narrow tunnels. Robinson struggled to do it, ending up black and bloody.
Those in the cast of Krakatoa - The Last Days who survived the volcanic eruption were similarly sooty. This economy class disaster movie shouldn't be confused with Pompeii - The Last Day although, on second thoughts, perhaps it should as the formula was the same with a few personal stories woven into the wider tapestry of a natural disaster.
While the special effects of giant waves and volcanic clouds were passable, the dialogue was as shaky as a house after the eruption, leaving familiar faces from Spooks and This Life struggling to make themselves heard as waves crashed, buildings collapsed and hot ash rained down.
The animals began behaving oddly because they knew something terrible was coming. So did I as soon as the volcano began emitting thick clouds of smoke.
Published: 08/05/2006
