Uploaded May 2026 | Updated September 2026, 2 weeks ago
The ingredients for magic brews in the North East are not bats' blood and toads' warts, but farm manure and Epsom salts. They seem to work, nevertheless: the prizewinning leeks they nourish in Tyne and Wear and Durham make southern leeks look like shallots by comparison.
For men like Brian Shave of Ryton Leek Club, leek growing is a tie with a traditional culture that is still firmly held on to. Look Stranger follows Brian as he prepares for the hotly contested Annual Leek, Flower and Vegetable Show at Ryton Social Club.
Clip taken from Look Stranger: Giant Leeks and Magic Brews, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 7 March, 1972.
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The ingredients for magic brews in the North East are not bats' blood and toads' warts, but farm manure and Epsom salts. They seem to work, nevertheless: the prizewinning leeks they nourish in Tyne and Wear and Durham make southern leeks look like shallots by comparison.
For men like Brian Shave of Ryton Leek Club, leek growing is a tie with a traditional culture that is still firmly held on to. Look Stranger follows Brian as he prepares for the hotly contested Annual Leek, Flower and Vegetable Show at Ryton Social Club.
Clip taken from Look Stranger: Giant Leeks and Magic Brews, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 7 March, 1972.
You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults.
Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive - youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1
You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website - bbc.co.uk/archive
