American Reacts to Fred Dibnah How to Repair Church Steeple Weather Cock 

Man had balls of steel.. and intelligence, love everything I've seen of him , different breed 👍👍👏👏

Fred was one of those Englishmen that made Britain Great,hope everyone has a great new year ✌️

Fred is a British legend I was lucky enough to see him when I was a kid

I'm a 72yrs old retired Bricklayer from the UK. a simple thing like pointing a chimney stack on a house. which could take no more than a couple of hours to do. All we did? A ladder up to the gutter, then a roof ladder hooked over the ridge. Up to the stack, and we walk on the tiles around the stack These days you have to have a proper roof scaffold all tied and secure. A days work that we used to do in 2hrs.

Have you watched his funeral. Apart from being very emotional, it’s fascinating to watch the local TA band leading them off. His coffin on the trailer of a stems engine. The crowds waiting for him as he gets to the church. He really was Bolton royalty ❤️. (I lived about 10 miles from Bolton and he really was a star )

I like the comment Fred's mate said about becoming to reliant on safety equipment and as you said safety equipment can in some cases be more hinderance than help. What I loved about Fred was even in the most dangerous places he always had his sense of humour

That was lovely Alan thank you. I've never seen that one before. Most churches in the England are Norman, which means they are about 1000 years old, but the Victorians suddenly decided to put spires on as many as they could. It's really rare to find a Norman church in its original state without a spire.

You have to remember that before repairing the weather cock, Fred had to peg the ladders into the church wall one by one - hauling ladder 2 up as he climbed ladder 1 etc.

Random information: Mill and factory chimneys were often around 300 feet tall. Many English church spires are around 150 to 200 feet tall. Salisbury Cathedral has the tallest spire in England at 404 feet (Fred Dibnah would say "that's a bluddy long way down to th' undertaker")

A wonderful man. His natural conversation brings me to tears

It may not be as high as many of the chimneys he worked on, but when you get to the top of the ladder on a chimney, you've still got the massive bulk of a 12-15' chimney around you. When you get to the top of that steeple, it's just like you standing on top of the ladder alone. And he's still probably 90-100' up in the air.

You are 100% correct about people taking risks because they think they are safe.. Here in the UK when the seatbelt law was introduced, meaning it was illegal to drive without a seat/safety belt on... It caused an increase in speeding fines and accidents. But oddly enough the fatalities didn't change. Same with airbags and soft bumpers and crumple zones. An increase in speeding and accidents but fatalities still always hover around 10 people killed each day... You might think that's a lot, but it really isn't, it's a very very small percentage of road users. Back in the 1960's there was thoughts about the idea of making car manufacturers put an 8 inch spike in the middle of the steering wheel to reduce speeding and reckless driving. Which would work, but then conjures up all kinds of other legal and mainly practical issues

I never tire of watching fred, he was a natural in front of the camera, with a great philosophy on life. 👍

44 years later and that weather vane is still there, theres a video by mr h's hotpot where he visited the church 4 year ago

On the matter of safety equipment, many people thought that when ABS brakes first came in, they possibly caused as many accidents as they prevented, because people would just go barrelling into curves & junctions at far too great speeds, 'knowing' that they could just stamp on the brakes, and " nothing" could go wrong. It's over-reliance, like safety lines on board boats; it's very reassuring to know that if you fall overboard you are still attached to something, but far better not to fall overboard in the first instance.

Guy Martin and Fred Dibnah is an excellent comparison, totally different almost but the same grit 💯 keep up the good work 👏

Many years ago I worked for a historical Restoration company, along side National Trust Stone Masons, ON alot of Churches and Cathedrals, They were Fantastic at there work ,and very knowledgeable about an history of what ever building we were working on .I eventually was trained to dress and face stones .Very interesting work .

When I was a nipper I saw Fred bring down a good few chimneys in Tyldsley. He was a star turn and always cheerful. Truly a Beloved Son of Bolton.

Fred Dibnah is a North-West England legend... but I was late to the party and didn't really appreciate him until later on in life especially his outlook on life. I had a younger family member calling Fred Dibnah a badass for taking down a cotton mill chimney by hand (another classic Dibnah episode if you get chance to watch it) because it's was the only way to get rid of them back in those days, especially when there's still houses in the immediate area.

He is the symbol of a generation that were fearless and infinitely skilled and useful. We pale in comparison to people like this!

If you haven’t already seen it there’s a vdo of him climbing a council office tower and that is absolutely heart stopping 👍

Had a mate who was a Steel erector, didn't have an accident untill harnesses and such like came in, late 80's. Said it made him feel safe and stretched a little further than was wise, dangled a couple of times.

Oh. Dear Fred. Wonderful chap.

Here in the UK even window cleaners have stopped using ladders even thought most homes have windows less than 25 ft high

You have just reiterated what I always say! The more Health & Safety Regulations there are the less you take personal responsibility. An accident happens? Blame the company and sue! Such a pity.

I was in Bolton on Saturday. There is a great statue of Fred, the great man remembered in his home town.

I used to see him quite regularly around Bolton

Fred was multi-talented, I believe he also went to art school.

Hi there this is John from England great video I watched some of your every action videos specially the one about Monty Python and the parrot that was really funny Fred Dibnah was a great guy he was very interested in steam engines as well as architecture

Fred became a TV personality in the 70s and 80s following these shows. He began presenting kids tv and music tv using the stage name Jimmy Saville.

you learn from mistakes and accidents you learn to defend or adapt but with health and safty dangers removed but if some thing happens theres no instint because its been removed learning by mishaps happy new year all and family and all the discord crew .............thanks alan another good vid bro

Impressive to see the graft our predecessors put it to get us where we are today. Mainly independent working class people doing these sorts of jobs back then and they wouldn't even come close to being able to afford to hire a crane so not really a choice. Great reaction!

remember watching him do our local parish church spire and weathercock in the early 80s it is still there looking good

Fred is a Legend of our Country, The last of his kind and never to be seen again sadly.. not many have a bad word to say about him!

My aunt's (by marriage) sister was married to a dentist who was deep into steam traction engines to relax to after a day of fiddly dental work. Guy Martin is a what you see is what you get type of a bloke too.

Loving seeing all the Fred Dibnah stuff. He was extraordinary 😍

I concur with what you say about health & safety today. I ironically remember when I had paid time of work due to falling over a ' WARNING wet floor sign' long after the floor had been mopped. All those safety warnings outside construction sites amuses me. By the time you read them you would of been sacked for being late! Any way 1st time I have seen your vids, I like your manner, I have subscribed. Yours Tin Hat Tony.

The rooster is the old one, Fred had restored it. What they were talking about was the gold leaf to cover it.

I'm so scared of heights. But I like them. lol. I love being terrified and scared. There's a roller coaster in an amusement park close to where I live (50 miles). To get on it you have to walk up a metal staircase until you're about 60ft up then there's a little walk way from that winding metal stairs to the ride station. It's only maybe 3 meters long but the railings on each side are maybe only a meter high, about hip hight to a an average person. On busy days you might be standing on that walkway for a few minutes. My Son 11 years old at the time was holding on to that little railing and being amazed that he could jump at the resonating frequency to make it wobble. lol. I'm a glasses wearer and knew I couldn't wear my glasses on the ride but by glasses case was in my left breast pocket meaning I'd have to stop gripping the railing with my dominant right hand to retrieve it and then no hands as I opened the case to put in the glasses. My brain just wouldn't let me let go of the railing. lol... My son is now 16, we went to that amusement park again this year. It was the last day they were open before closing until next Spring time. My Son wanted to ride a coaster called "The Big ONE". When it was built in the 90s it was the tallest, fastest, steepest coaster in the world. My son had only been on it once before at 11 but hated it. We'd been to the park many times since his first visit and always refused to go on it again. But our last visit he wanted to. We went on it and enjoyed at lot more since the first time. Even more so he wanted to ride it again but spend extra time queing to sit on the front. As we were getting strapped in he says, "Dad, arms up all the around, ok?". Fine, son. But as we poked over that first drop I just could not let go of the handle. I just couldn't. Hahaha We get off, he's calling me a pussy, pointing and laughing, I turned around and said "my hands just would not let go on that first drop. I wanted to, my brain wanted to, but my deep inbuilt human programming for survival made it impossible".... "Oh, and let's not forget Joe, you started crying because I wanted to ride it twice on your first visit"... Haha. He said "Fair enough, Dad, *Cough Cough "pussy" Cough*."... I taught him well. ;)

I am a BOLTON lad and Fred's a legend in my eyes You should see the chimney he built on his mums terraced house lol Bolton Council won't let the owners take it down its that nice

Hey EB👍 hope you and your family are well and you've had a great Christmas, love a bit of Fred, so down to earth for someone that was usually so far away from it😂 best wishes for the new year mate✌️

Always watch Fred with my mouth hanging open😂😱😱

Perfect video for Christmas. Good on ya .

I totally agree with you about Guy Martin being like Fred

I worked in a quarry with ,a 257foot high stack but it had fixed steel ladder

Very difficult man was our Fred. The quintessential “Funny bugger”

That was really cool to see, there is no way you'd catch me up that high without any safety gear, a brave man for sure. I agree with what you said about people being a little less cautious these days with all the safety requirements, people act like these thiings will stop anything from happening, and for the emost part they will but you still gotta have some respect for dangers, even if it's only a .005% chance something will happen.

I would have liked to see old Fred in New York. Laddering the Empire State Building.

Fred was a professional,you want to check out the TV presenter John Nokes climbing Nelsons collum for the kids TV show blue peter

Sadly, we lost another one of our brilliant satirists, John Bird, who used to partner the late John Fortune in some marvellous interview sketches. Taking it in turns, in each, to play interviewer and politician, they equalled Yes Minister in some insisive comedy sketches. John Fortune passed away around the festive season nearly a decade ago. Damn it. We seem to be losing everyone at the moment.

I imagine that if asked, Fred and Guy would probably have to look up "Ego" in the dictionary.

Great video 👍 The car insurance companies in the USA charge higher premiums for vehicles fitted Abs brakes,in reference to your safety observation then and now.

Brilliant thanks 👍

EB(Alan),the late Fred Dibnah,was discovered by British TV,late in his working life;and he was,what we call in the UK 'a (real/natural) character' and I know,you have reacts well in prev.vids to Fred's work.👌 P.S. Saw your input on 'ItsJPS LiveStream' today and hopefully,will send you,a gift through your P.O.Box address for the New Year! 👍

As the man falling from a 300ft tower was rumoured to say about half way down, OK so far.

As he said, you only fall off once. And then is half a day out with the undertaker!

You would like his Book Called Did you like That. You can probably get it on Kindle. He answers that question. He peed over the top of the Chimney. Yes Guy Martin came to my mind just before you said his name. You had people like that in America who walked along the girders building the empire State building.

That's not my idea of heaven but I love the honest and unique answer. Hope he is up there now mending away in peace 😄

The stories my mates have told me from working in the construction industry is properly scary. They've all seen people die in horrific ways, most of them talk about what they've seen but 2 of them won't/can't because what they saw massively messed them up. Worst thing I've ever seen working in hospitality, was when a guy looked like he had been punched in the face. But was actually stabbed, his whole cheek was gone on the left hand side and his mouth went all the way up to his ear. I had to use about 10-15 buckets of water and a brush to clear the promenade out the front due to the mess.

Someone hauled an old school camera up there for some of those shots!!!

Fred and Guy: without doubt originals.

fred was a talented artist as well from a boy. His mother wanted him to concentrate on this.

Try looking up Brian Blessed. He's an actor who climbed everest. Great character.

Fred said he prefer not to use a harness for the reasons you listed Alan.

Hey Alan, still sounding pretty stuffed up. Get well soon mate and I hope the little lady is felling better too.

It is a cockerel, very traditional.

He was a legend but not so famous in germany, this is sad. As a freesolo and Lattice Climber, i love it to watch his Videos

Health n safety gone mad i tell thy . Made from a different cloth back then

Back in the day when Englishmen wore flat caps

Yaaaas this is terrifying and mighty all in one 🥺 rip dibnah

That church really isn't that high, I used to walk past it all the time, I still wouldn't wanna climb up it

What I want to know is how did they get those ladders up the side of the church?

Thrislington co.Durham

I still don't know how he climbs the ladders that are so tall

Love your background

R.i.p. fred

I think you should react to full shows and series of Fred

Hi Alan There was a Bbc tv series about him going to various uk places by steam engine & sep do seek out Jack Hargreaves vidros he sought out found/showed people still doing historical jobs/skills well into later part of last Century Enjoy

bare with me on this comment ..i'm glad fred has passed ..simply because health and saftey would've drove him up the wall as we say ..god bless fred Dibnah my he rest in peace a true #legend

You would have to believe in God walking up then ladders that is scary

God rest his soul

Brilliant...Health&Safety He'd Of Said Go Careful & Dont Fall Off Ffs 👍

Fred called "Health and Safety" as "Sickness and Danger".

why didnt he go up the inside like the camera crew did?

I totally read that wrong lol

Count how many times Fred says "You know"

2022 "I'm not climbing the ladder because they didn't use my correct pronouns" 😂😂😂😂

Please react to this Fred talked about this weather cock in a speech Here is the joke about it Fred giving a speech like a funny comedian It's at 2:27 the story about the weather co ck is a few minutes but it's brilliantly funny until about 20 mins with a story about him crashing his steam roller after going down a very steep hill with around 6 ton on the back and no breaks on the trailor ru-vid.com/video/%D0%B2%D0%B8%D0%B4%D0%B5%D0%BE-LzgKCSMyNVA.html

Well if he did fall off he's not far to go to heaven 🙏

5:12 If you need the bathroom someone will get shit on from a great height

the difference between then and now, with no saftey gear the crap workers only got it wrong once, they either didn't do it again or never got the chance, now we get the same idiots coming back repeatedly,

👍😉

Why do you use adverts....I hate greed....UNSUBSCRIBE

Thankyou for your happy xmas message video I hope you have a very happy new year to you and yours ❤🇬🇧😊

Imagine Health and safety allowing this now.

would've loved him as a teacher ..reminds me of my history teacher