American Couple Reacts: London WWII: Red Sand Forts! How Did These Weird Structures Defend England??

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

We noticed these structures in a previous video and wondered what the heck are they? Well in this episode not only do we find out that answer but SO much more fascinating, interesting information and history than we could have anticipated! We are sure that you will be equally as fascinated as us (if you don't already know) or proud of these "Weird" structures! Join us in this episode to unlock a very important and unique part of British History from WWII. If you enjoy our content, please consider subscribing to our channel, it is the BEST way to support any KZbin channel and it's FREE! Also please click the Like button. Thanks so much for watching!

[@neilgayleard3842]

I get the star wars reference. But they also remind me of the film waterworld

[@bethcushway458]

Dan Snow is such a fantastic historian. His TV programmes are second to none. He mostly covers historical battles, which is fascinating, but he also did an incredible programme with a couple of our other TV presenters (naval historian and a naturalist), a geologist and a group of experts from the US called Operation Grand Canyon where they followed John Wesley Powell's famous trip down the Colorado River through the Grand Canyon. They built copies of the original boats and followed his exact journey. It is so heart stopping, exciting and emotional I can't recommend it enough.

[@jaytondurrant8357]

I did know about these cool things as I love military history and live in the UK, a cool thing I think you guys might enjoy is m.kzbin.info/www/bejne/aH6mnn6om55kpZY it’s about what it was like to be in a First World War tank

[@Al8minium]

These structures were featured in the 1975 film "Slade in Flame"; it's worth checking out.

[@dzzope]

The SS Montgomery is worth a look at on it's own.. It's been put off for near 80 years now and has the potential to devastate london and the other surrounding areas but has always been seen as too hard and expensive to deal with.. there isn't the political will (or capital) to invest the necessary funds to deal with it. There was 220 people max in Red Sands Sea Fort.. each fort had multiple towers, 7 in the case of this one, there were multiple others. Sticking with the WWII theme, have you seen The documentaries Jeremy Clarkson did on the history of the Victoria Cross or "The Greatest Raid".. I think you would be blown away if you havn't seen them yet.

[@DerkHat]

These are my favourite things in the world, and I'm so happy to see my favourite KZbin couple discovering all about them.

[@jeremyclitheroe1545]

They said about Army engineering and how long it can last, there was a serious train crash in 1957 in SE London, where 2 trains collided and then a bridge fell onto the wreckage, killing 90. The Army turned up to build a 'temporary' bridge so the trains could get running again ASAP. It's still there today!

[@mayajrj]

Well it's still temporary because some day , some idiot could decide we really need to replace the bridge and the replacement won't last as long!

[@terryreeves4290]

Built by the Royal Engineers. Ubique!

[@whitechocolate072]

I recommend you watched the movie The Boat That Rocked this is about Pirate radio, the soundtrack is amazing and a really good movie.

[@goldencherry9033]

Funny fact about Dan Snow (who is a famous historian in the U.K. and presented this video). When I was 8 months pregnant my partner and I went to see a show on Dan Snow’s tour at a local theatre where he talked about local history (we’re super geeks!) After the show he did a book signing and we bought the book and queued up to meet him. At this point, absolutely no one but ourselves and our dogs knew what we were going to call the baby, and everyone spent months trying to guess. However when we met Dan Snow to get the book signed we asked him to sign it to the baby and told him the name, and the fact he was the only other person than us who knew what the name was, which he thought that was really funny! My son’s grandparents didn’t😂 So my little claim to fame is that Dan Snow was the only person to know our son was going to be called Tomasz! Ultimate geek brag🤣

[@generaladvance5812]

That's a fun story. Hope you and your family are doing well.

[@goldencherry9033]

@@davidwolfe9722 hahaha, that would’ve probably freaked him out🤣 History geek fan girl naming her child after him🤣

[@andrew_koala2974]

Tomasz - is a popular Hungarian Name The only other language that uses the SZ letter combination is Polish. The Hungarian language is known as Magyar []▶ Caro Emerald Live A Night Like This Sziget 2012 kzbin.info/www/bejne/fJSZmq2PmbGbhKc Aug 11, 2012 08:04 ----------------------------- CHANNEL: Sziget Festival kzbin.info/door/FPuTxN3n9iesF0I6-gyOjA Caroline Esmeralda van der Leeuw is a Dutch pop and jazz singer. She debuted on 6 July 2009 with her single "Back It Up". Her 2009 single "A Night Like This" reached the number 1 position in the Netherlands. Her debut album "Deleted Scenes from the Cutting Room Floor" set a new all-time Dutch chart record on 20 August 2010 - spending its 30th week at number one on the country's albums chart - ❏ beating the previous record set by Michael Jackson's Thriller by one week. Title: A Night Like This Artist: Caro Emerald Album: Deleted Scenes From The Cutting Room Floor

[@goldencherry9033]

@@andrew_koala2974 We love Eastern European history (I have a geeky obsession with the 1956 Hungarian Revolution - bonafide geek!). Also, a Polish footballer named Tomasz played for the team we support about 15 years before our son was born. When his name flashed up on the screen we both loved it and said that if we ever had children, and if we had a boy, that would be a cool name. After being convinced I was having a girl, and having my gorgeous Nanna’s name ready to pass on, I was totally thrown when we found out we were having a boy and it was only then my other half reminded me of the name we’d liked so many years before.

[@sassyjintheuk]

I love this and the name you chose! What a gr8 piece of your family history. Thank u 4 sharing with us. 😊💕

[@dawnkalve8203]

I live in Southend on Sea in Essex , I can see these structures from where I live. It’s amazing how much you take for granted and never appreciate just how amazing these are and so close , so thank you for enlightening me , I knew they were there but never knew to this level . I will go and have a look today when I walk the dog with new eyes ! Thank you both and love the videos , sending love .

[@ListerDavid]

Hello fellow Essex dweller.

[@jamescorr9383]

I'm from Southend also, there is a nice Old Leigh video taken in the snow kzbin.info/www/bejne/oXebpYujbdKlmbs

[@dawnkalve8203]

@@ListerDavid hello fellow Essex fella .

[@raythomas4812]

Been to Southend more times than you can shake a stick at ( Living in Basildon and day trips with Mum and Dad ) and have never seen them ! shame on me

[@astockley9786]

Hi guys I live on the east coast in a place called Felixstowe in suffolk and on a clear day I can see a fortress on the horizon this type is a one big type which has been taken over by a family that have declared themselves as a independent country. They have there own passports stamps and money you can go out and visit if you wish I thought you might be interested in this fact oh by the way the place is called “ Sea Land “. Love you guys Andy from Felixstowe X.

[@jackdshellback3819]

There are two sets of forts, Red Sands, as featured in the video, and Shivering Sands a few miles away, both sets are practically identical and both can be seen from Whitstable on the horizon. So when they said there were 200 men on each set of towers, they were referring to the two sets of seven towers, not 200 in one tower. In the sixties they were taken over by the radio pirates, playing the latest pop music which was not widely available on the BBC at the time. Shivering Sands forts was the home of firstly Radio Sutch, run by eccentric horror rock singer and founder of The Monster Raving Loony (political) Party, "Screaming" Lord Sutch, later to be taken over by Radio City. The Red Sands forts housed Radio 390 and were a middle of the road family station playing easy listening, country and jazz. All the other pirate stations around the coast of Britain (and there were many) played pop and were mostly on ships anchored just outside the 3 mile limit. The story of the pirate radio stations of the sixties in the UK is a fascinating subject in it's own right and worth further investigation. Another thing they didn't explain in the video was how the forts were constructed. They obviously had to be built in secret, so they were constructed up river. The feet of the towers were basically pontoon barges, so when the towers were completed, they simply towed them out to sea and sunk them in the shallow waters of the Thames Estuary, genius eh? If you come to the UK you can take boat trips from Whitstable (summer only) to see the towers close up.

[@stuartarundale6219]

Not to forget of course, that Caroline is still there!

[@mayajrj]

@@stuartarundale6219 is It I used to listen to Caroline and Lux. . Great days.

[@Mike-James]

@@mayajrj Yeah Caroline now has a licence and is broadcasting on the isle of man and the south coast so I am told.

[@sassyjintheuk]

What a history! It's never ceases to amaze me how we have the capacity, with our backs against the wall, to create such amazing things. What inspirational people. Heroes one and all. 😊💕

[@mayajrj]

@@Mike-James They become respectable?!

[@iantcvf6cfffv726]

I live in Kingston upon Hull on the banks of the River Humber We have two forts Bull sand fort and Haile dand Fort at the mouth of the humber. Armed with large calibre guns 59 ft tall 82 foot in circumference holding 200 soldiers built in WW1 reactivated in WW2 now empty but fairly intact

[@angelus2141]

Some interesting facts. After the S.S. Montgomery sank with all those explosives, in the early years there was discussion about how to offload it but due to bureaucracy, cost, and a myriad of other reasons it never was. Eventually it became too dangerous to offload as the explosives deteriorated and started leaking from containers. To this day it is still to dangerous to do anything with the ship and the explosives might one day spontaneously detonate without any external influence. They cant control detonate it even though its in the water because the 1500 tonnes is 1.5 kilotonnes which is 10% of the yield of the bomb dropped on Hiroshima (obviously theres be no radiation or anything but still). If it ever did detonate its projected that houses inland from the river would have their windows blown in. Anything on or near the water would be subjected to a small tsunami. A failed attempt to make safe another sunken ammunition carrier near folkestone resulted in detonation measuring 4.5 on Richter scale with a 20ft deep crater left in the seabed.

[@thatguyuk1]

There is also the refinery on the isle of grain, which is within the blast radius of the montgomery, if this exploded then the shockwave would be felt in london and beyond. Strangely the refinery was built with the knowledge of the montgomery being where it is. 😮

[@arthurgoonie4596]

@@thatguyuk1 strangely

[@mariahoulihan9483]

I always felt funny sailing near SS Montrgomery.. I was convinced it would explode under us.

[@Grummash]

When I was a kid we rented a TV… and every so often the fella from the shop had to come to the house and replace the valves! 😊

[@derekgibson2589]

As well as the WWII forts in the Thames estuary there are two forts in the Humber estuary built during WWI to protect the river Humber.

[@deeboneham2738]

Knew of these vaguely but they are so much more impressive than I thought

[@mouse580]

You two should look into Kent. It’s the garden of England. Very pretty

[@philrobinson981]

Yes they are completely different to look at, As you heard during the vid they were used for Pirate radio broadcasting, Perhaps an idea for a future vid looking at UK offshore radio stations in the 60s, Keep up the good work &..Keep The Faith

[@SeanSenior-f8b]

Amazing us brits. In time of need we show what we can do.

[@breeeldred2168]

25:32 just to say that as a UK resident I was sort of aware of these towers, I think from a doc about the sunken munitions ship and their pirate radio days, but I knew virtually nothing about them. Also I loved the moment when Natasha connected with the old radio valves. ❤❤❤

[@ChrisReadUK]

I look at them every morning from the Herne Bay seafront!

[@januzzell8631]

Fascinating! Thank you

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

Glad you enjoyed it!

[@glamstarlady]

This is such a cool reaction video, thank you. I live on Sheppey an island on the Kent coast side of the Thames. I can see the Forts from my balcony and I have always loved abs been fascinated by them ever since I moved here from Kondn. I am really hoping those guys and gals can do the restoration of such an amazing piece of British heritage.

[@robertgrant4987]

I am from Southend-on-Sea. It is located in the southeast on the Thames coastline. We can see the masts of the 'Montgomery' at low tide from the shore.

[@Yankees89]

U should check out the portsmouth sea forts there pretty cool also

[@gremlin181]

Thank you ladies this if one of the best reaction videos yet and I have watched and liked quite a lot of your others. I knew of these forts but had only seen pictures. Very pleased they are being restored may they still be there in another 80 years. Based on what he said I make it around 40 men per fort and they must have had a shift systen some on duty manniing the defences, others asleep and of course cleaning cooking replenishing supplies. It must have been very noisy most of the time. They were a special generation what they went through is unvelievable. I regret I never said that to my parents while they were still here. Mother worked in food production and ran the house. Father was converting American aircreft for use by the RAF and fleet air arm, After a full days work he came home ate a meal put on a uniform and went out on patrol in the home guard.

[@nedrasellayah9314]

Absolutely amazing all the thought that went into it. Every detail has been thought of!! The Brits seem to have a real ability to think about every angle. I had the same response when I saw the British Rapid Respinse Air Team (( not the correct name sorry), and every aspect gad bednthought off to specific airports for hijacked planes to refuelling in the air during operations etc etc. Quite amazing. Kudos to the Brits!!! 🙏🙏🙏

[@sconaldo7]

Never was so much owed by so many to so few

[@MrPaulMorris]

Structures like these forts survived long after their planned life in part because of the limitations of engineering technology. Not being able to accurately calculate requirements, they simply over-engineered to be 'on the safe side'. While it's remarkable that these forts survive 80 years later, bear in mind that the Martello towers (coastal defence mini-forts mentioned in passing early in the video) built throughout the British Empire in the early 19th century are, in the most part, still intact even though rendered obsolete nearly 150 years ago (by improved naval guns). From Britain to Australia, Ceylon (Sri Lanka) to Canada, the Caribbean to India these towers still stand (some now converted to private dwellings). Even the USA copied the design and examples can be found along the Atlantic coast. Designed to withstand smoothbore naval cannon and deter wooden hulled warships they still survive long after their expected utility. With modern engineering we ca calculate finely the tolerances, loadings, mean time between failures and economic repair time span and build to accurately meet targets. To put it another way, we build just 'good enough' to meet requirements or, to be less kind, design for built-in obsolescence. As a one-time engineer myself, I know we always have a tension between the engineers wanting to design something as well as possible and the accountants (and sales managers!) wanting to come in at the lowest price that met the spec. In some ways things were simpler way back when; it was just "Build us an air defence fort asap. It doesn't matter what it costs just as long as it doesn't fall into the sea at the first storm." "OK, bring on the 6 inch thick steel and four foot thick concrete. That should do the job for the next century or so...".

[@mariahoulihan9483]

The River Medway is in Kent and leads out into the Thames Estuary.. which in turn leads up to London.

[@hfenton7174]

Kent has a fantastic and interesting history, particularly Medway which is mentioned in this video. The Montgomery is a fascinating story. I believe that if it did explode it would take out a huge part of the county. Hugely proud to be from this area!

[@katydaniels508]

I’m glad you were so curious about these weird things! This is brilliant 😁❤️

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

We have very curious minds...had to know! Glad you are enjoying it!

[@tonyporter4530]

Hi Natasha & Debbie Ref the Thames Forts Check out Radio 390 and the Sealand fort which is now a principality

[@Aoife24601]

Hi girls....i live in Whitstable on the Thames Estuary, remember you did a video ...😀 I can see the Maunsell Forts from my bedroom window on a clear day...we have boat trips round them in the summer. 😀 its funny i notice below another person can see them from his bedroom in Southend....which is directly across the Estuary from me...we are seeing them from opposite sides of the water..🤣🤣🤣

[@Morbicity]

My grandfather was a REME 😊

[@greatdelmondo]

Dan mentioned Southend on Sea in his video - you need to find a video about Southend which is an important seaside city as it hosts the worlds longest pleasure pier. It also in Great wakering has one of the most dangerous walks ever ()broomfields) which if you look for Tom scott you will see.

[@31051982loz]

Never heard of these before, I love learning about the ingenuity of people in history

[@davidhoward5392]

War of the worlds these remind me of

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

Yesss!

[@davidhoward5392]

@@TheNatashaDebbieShow the original 1952 version not the nonsense Tom Cruise offering also the art work on the front of Geoff Lynn War of the World's, double album.

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

@davidhoward5392 yes! Totally with you! Not a Tom Cruise fan...at all

[@bobbieburdett8079]

I live on The Isle of Sheppey. Right where the SS Ship Montgomery is and not far from these forts. They are soon removing the masts from the boat because of decay and fear of them falling on to the bombs. We have bombs every now and then washed up onto our beaches. Experts have warned that if the bombs ever exploded, the shockwave could create a deadly tsunami which would be devastating for us on Sheppey, Southend could even be for London.

[@johnnorman7097]

have a look at pirate off shore radio from the ships and the sea forts, radio caroline, radio north sea international, they changed pop music in the uk and the u.s.in the 60's and the 1970's

[@brigiddinsmore]

Well done Debbie.

[@BikersDoItSittingDown]

Good afternoon, ladies. Dan Snow is my favourite historian. I once met him in real life when he did a documentary on the battle of Taranto. The fella with him must be about 5'10" as he is HUGE. He has to duck when he walks into a room as doorways are not made tall enough for him.

[@annpoulton5358]

Thanks for the video. It was a more indeath view

[@bobclarke1815]

Red Sands fort was home to Radio Invicta and Radio 390. Shivering Sands fort was home to Radio City.

[@texbankuk]

Over 200 miles north at the mouth of the Mersey Wallasey side,known as the Western Approaches We have Fort Perch rock which is a substantial Napolean fort and it is used currently as a museum. Also further out in Liverpool bay there was another WW2 steel fort sadly demolished many years ago. Not much known about this. 2000's... The site is Populated by the massive Mersey wind turbines farm which can be seen from the shore.

[@kumasenlac5504]

31:32 It's your willingness to head off down rabbit holes that keeps your site fresh and worth following.

[@oxfamshop]

Thank you for another fantastic video .

[@kathryncoleman6973]

Liked the video,it's a bit of history,of what the solodrrs went through,keeping Brian safe.thankyou.

[@paulobrien7985]

hey Natas en Debbie thanks for the vid i am from the uk and i did not knouw they were restoring them i thought the left them to rust such a shame great to preserve them

[@mouse580]

On a clear day you can see these from a town in Kent they look like small dots as far out but still cool

[@RJE48]

If you like these... Just down the coast near the Isle of Wight in the Solant there are three forts! Two have been renovated and you can stay there!!! Search KZbin for "solant forts"

[@lindamason570]

I'd love you ladies to look into the British crusade against slavery. One of our nations proudest achievements. Xxx

[@stephenkayll5241]

Wow, great skills Debbie, I wouldn't have guessed your day job.

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

That's not her day job...she's a full-time hairstylist. She's just incredibly skilled at anything she tries

[@musik102]

Pirate radio? Well, the BBC were the only radio broadcasters allowed on British soil for decades, but in the 60s a commercial radio station - Radio Caroline - started broadcasting from just outside UK sovereign waters. For us youngsters, at the time, it was a marvellous event as the BBC didn't air much rock music.

[@colrhodes377]

Not sure if you know but at Portsmouth, there is something similar from the Napoleonic wars

[@Chris-cp7ys]

Very interesting video as always Natasha and Debbie. I knew about those but didn’t realise they were being restored which is amazing. There is a fort off the Suffolk coast called HM fort roughs which you can see. Since 1967 it’s the Principality of Sealand which is an unrecognised sovereign state! Very brave people who defended the UK with so many lives lost in the bombings of WW2, may they rest in peace ❤

[@clarelawton4653]

Wow never seen these before in my life, you can’t go wrong with info from Dan Snow, great historian and presenter

[@LittleNoiseBoy]

Sending you love from within sight of those fortresses (Southend, as mentioned towards the start of the video) - thanks as always :-)

[@bluesilvahalo3576]

Once again I'm being schooled on my own country, never knew these existed so a wonderful video to watch. Thank you!

[@paulwalker9746]

I've sailed round those forts at night - and the Montgomery - quite strange................

[@brucewilliams4152]

Ladies my brother in laws family are all navy right back and beyond 17th century.. In fact my distressing cake was cut with a napoleonic sword carried by Lt Hurry at the Battle of the Nile 1798. Both of my sister's husbands dad and grandfather served unwieldy war 2. Grandad was Admiral hurry, served and commanded Hms Rodney that fought the Bismark. Dad as a minesweeper commander based in Alexandria in the war. He described it as 99% boredom and 1 % terror. I remember him watching Das boot just before he died, a German film about a u boat crew. He said 'we fought the same war, boredom, terror and the se a'. He loved the movie.

[@normanwallace7658]

Maunsal Army Air Defense Forts in the Thames Estuary!! their was another set up in the River Mersey off of Liverpool,The Navey ones (also designed by Maunsel) were Two sunken Tubes joined by a raised gun deck between accommodation inside the tubes, Google Maunsel Forts.Don't ask about the USS Richard Mongomery It won't be safe till the Hull is buried I the sandbank then it can be safely exploded.The Metal Army Forts were set in a set of 7 the navy Forts were single setups.

[@johnmh1000]

Hey - shout out for Southend, my home town! It has the longest pleasure pier in the World. 👍I noticed you exchanged looks when pirate radio was mentioned. In the 60s the only official broadcaster was the BBC and Independent companies. Pirate radio set up on ships and also the forts. These were usually outside the 3 mile territorial waters limit and so could not be prosecuted. They played rock, new wave music and were a great hit with young fans.

[@jasonkey3494]

The 1968 Doctor Who story 'Fury from the Deep' was filmed here! ( I'm such a nerd! )

[@teresafell2514]

I was born in London and I didn't know about these forts but I did know about the ship

[@spitfireace87]

i live in margate and have been out to these a few times on my jet ski

[@andrewfitzgerald2327]

Knew about them but not the full story just missing one thing an ice-cream boat. Great video.

[@AnnMcKinlay-zp2ef]

I think it would probably be correct to say that it is likely to be quite a long time before the activity of renovating one of these towers, is completed. We have a great tradition of “doing things properly”. The organizations responsible for “supervising” such work, especially if it involves the Army or the Royal Air Force, will insist that it is restored to at least its original standard. Those kind of activities are expensive and lengthy but, assuming it is completed, will be amazing!

[@christinebakewell3475]

I can see these maunsel forts from where I live there is another almost identical set of forts just a few miles along the coast these are the ones I’m closest too = the shivering sands forts ( approx 5 to 6 miles nnw off herne bay - Kent) - there are several other even older individual forts also- I used to go sea bass fishing by boat around the legs of these towers - used to be some of the best marks in the country, pirate radio was common in the 60/70s ( most notable was radio Caroline a pirate ship approx 11 to 12 miles nne from me ). All the best djs started off on these - tony Blackburn- kenny Everett ect.

[@paulgardner304]

These structures would make a cool Hotel

[@S1RD2]

love the star wars fact, very interesting

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

Right!?

[@davidricks7128]

Oooh cool idea for your channel Debbie doing DIY projects small ones I would love to see that x

[@simonc858]

Fabulous video, I had a vague idea that these were out there, but I am definitely learning with you guys about the history and use of these towers x

[@tomcoward16]

Ive actually met the guy presenting this : )

[@johnperry503]

An update to my comments earlier, the best example of the Victoria Cross video is the Timeline - World History Documentaries,.

[@morganrussell8150]

That was awesome and amazing video, Ladies thank you guys ♥️🇦🇺

[@nigelbundy4008]

During WII my mother was in the army (ATS) part of the sighting crew to aim Anti Aircraft guns (Ack ACK). One of her officers had been based on one of the forts. He was so hated by his men that one stormy night they tried to throw him into the sea. That's how she ended up with him. They shot down a lot of V1's. Constant speed , height and direction. An ack ack gunners dream. They used to sleep in their uniforms in their tents. If he alarm went off they would jump up and dash to their posts removing their tent on the way.

[@bigupbebop4706]

Please check out an American woman called Virginia Hall. She became the most despised spy by the Germans in WW2. Basically she shot her foot off in a hunting accident. Then moved to the UK because she wanted to help the war effort. She was parachuted into occupied France and caused mayhem for the Germans. She had to learn how to walk without a limp cause the Germans called her the limping spy. After the war she worked for the CIA. Her story is amazing.

[@arm6372]

I always get educated when I watch your videos. I'm born and bred in the UK and did not know any of this. This was very interesting. Thank you Natasha and Debbie.

[@trailerman2]

Thank you ladies for this great video. :-)

[@alasterjordan1197]

You should take a look at Spitbank fort, even more incredible.

[@sarahealey1780]

They would make a cool air b&b xx

[@catieburnside3751]

Thank you so much for this video, I knew nothing about these structures, but now I do 👍

[@marlecmarine5393]

In 1979 l was sailing down the East Coast on route to Ramsgate with some friends. We became disorientated while crossing the Thames Estuary in thick fog and almost zero visibility at 3am in the morning. We were under engine, seeing a red light we assumed to be a buoy we motored towards it hoping to get a name or number off it so we could get a good fix on our position from the chart. Unfortunately we crashed into one of those tower legs damaging the side of our boat....lol......idiots at work !! but at least it gave us our fix and carried on our merry way........🙂 l have since sailed past those towers and other like them many times without incident. There are seven sets of sea forts on the East Coast and Thames Estuary, Red Sands is just one of them. There is also one of the worlds biggest offshore Wind Farm called the 'London Array' with 175 massive turbines sitting in the sea. You should do a reaction to this it's a true engineering marvel.

[@bennyfactor1]

I was a teen in the 60s and loved the pirate radio stations. At the time I was working on the tugs around the Thames Estuary for the Ministry of Defence. To my everlasting shame I was involved in the operation with the Army to go out to these forts and blow the gantries and walkways up, and pretty much make them inhabitable. Luckily the stations that broadcast from the ships lasted a bit longer.

[@geraldbruce840]

Check out the Principality of Sealand

[@delsdepot4853]

Hi Natasha & Debbie. I have known of these forts since I was a boy of about 5. I will be 60 this year. My family used to holiday at a resort on the Isle of Sheppey which is in the Thames estuary. We had a chalet outside the village of Leysdown on the island and when we would spend time on the beach you could see these forts in the far off distance. We just knew them as "The Forts". I think my dad told me they were something to do with the military. It's great to see that finally they are being restored and maintained as a part of our history. Love your videos by the way. Happy New Year.

[@donny121able]

The way the world is today i could quite happily live on one of them.

[@sgpsimonb]

I remember pirate radio alright, but I'd be hard-pressed to say I knew where they were or anything about the history of them.

[@jillybrooke29]

River Medway is in Kent

[@alistairhudson8163]

3:35 Follow the River Thames eastwards from London on a map, when you get the the very wide part and are almost in the North Sea that’s where these forts are located.

[@tanyacampbell29]

Medway is Kent, Dover is also in Kent which is just across the water from France.

[@stuarttaylor1799]

FYI. A Doodle Bug is a slang term for a V1 Flying Bomb.

[@pv-mm2or]

N&B its always more interesting going down the roads lest traveled, England has more hidden gems to uncover but you need time to truly explore, Only one thing for it , you have to come and live here!, so when will we be see you ? he he.

[@marymanning5150]

Check out the Martello towers along the coast.

[@SuperDancingdevil]

The war for us Brits was a time of innovation think of the many outlandish things that were invented, The Bouncing Bomb, The Great Panjandrum, Flail Tanks, Mulberry Harbour, Pluto, Radar, Exploding Rats, And Rupert’s To name but a few it was a time of need and no idea was too odd or strange not to be explored like these sea forts it was seen as odd but they got built anyway, Even early plastic surgery was innovative and improved, There is far more than the sea forts to explore there’s a whole history of the odd that helped during the war and don’t even get me started on Inflatable Tanks and Ghost armies, Anyway a great video both and I’m looking forward to the next one .

[@dnorfed]

Ladies, the Montgomery is just 12 miles away from my home on the Thames, a place called canvey island, which is actually an island in the Thames, they say if the ship with all its explosives actually blew up, my home would be washed away with water, who knows, I’ve seen that ship many times as I visited Southend and Thorpe bay

[@TheNatashaDebbieShow]

Wow!!!

[@Markus117d]

They have regular surveys of the wreck to check it's condition and the risk it poses, General consensus is to not disturb it for now, As the water temperature is cold enough to keep the explosives stable and they don't want to risk triggering the ships collapse, The hope is time and the sea will neutralise the risks of a explosive chain reaction before the ship crumbles. If the ship deteriorates too quickly they will have to decide if it's worth the risk to try and remove any more of the cargo...

[@Ishotsherlock]

Hi from a fellow islander/fraggle rocker lol

[@trevorwarr5192]

@@TheNatashaDebbieShow Check out this video on the subject kzbin.info/www/bejne/roLTYaFur9qieZY . I'm about 60 miles away from The Montgomery and 12 miles from the Thames, I will just about be safe if it ever goes up!

[@davesmith8620]

Theres loads of these the 2 near me in the North one is for sale and the other was meant to be a detox centre but it hasn't opened in the 5 yrs since they planned it.

[@davidshattock9522]

Doodle bugs were v,1 flying bombs (like early cruise missiles)ram jet powered gyro operated huge warhead

[@traceywright6510]

There are also some off the east coast of UK - Lincolnshire Had not known they had them to the south so I learned!

[@janetravelqueen3033]

Well, i never! I've always wondered what they were..thought they were just water towers . Every day is a school day!!

[@blaire85]

Look up the history of Chatham Docks in Kent.

[@johnnewham2235]

Love the video Girls, Radio 390 and Radio City broadcast from these forts, sadly they were forced to close down by the Government, great music sadly missed, you should make a video on the Pirates, check out Radio Caroline the only Pirate to survive