Mud Men is a British television series on History. The series follows members of the Mudlark

Mudlark

A Mudlark is someone who scavenges in river mud for items of value, especially in London during the late 18th and 19th centuries.Mudlarks would search in the muddy shores of the River Thames during low tide, scavenging for anything that could be resold and sometimes, when occasion offered,...

s Society's as they hunt for items on the River Thames

River Thames

The River Thames flows through southern England. It is the longest river entirely in England and the second longest in the United Kingdom. While it is best known because its lower reaches flow through central London, the river flows alongside several other towns and cities, including Oxford,...

 foreshore that may have changed the course of history. The series is presented by Johnny Vaughan

Johnny Vaughan

Jonathan Randall Vaughan is an English broadcaster and journalist. Vaughan has become well known as a television and radio personality and has also built a reputation as a film critic. He co-presented Capital Breakfast alongside Lisa Snowdon on 95.8 Capital FM between 2004 and 2011...

 and Steve "Mud God" Brooker, chairman of the Mudlarks Society.

Episode 1 – Guns

Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker hit gold on day one, as they mudlark on the holy grail of Thames foreshores at the Tower of London

Tower of London

Her Majesty's Royal Palace and Fortress, more commonly known as the Tower of London, is a historic castle on the north bank of the River Thames in central London, England. It lies within the London Borough of Tower Hamlets, separated from the eastern edge of the City of London by the open space...

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While Steve investigates the military origins of a mysterious golden trumpet, Johnny re-unites a 250 year old musket ball with the Brown Bess gun that fired it. Together the boys go ballistic as they head to the firing range and try out the guns that have shaped 200 years of British Military history.

Major Items Found

• Regiment Cap Badge
• Musket
  Musket
  A musket is a muzzle-loaded, smooth bore long gun, fired from the shoulder. Muskets were designed for use by infantry. A soldier armed with a musket had the designation musketman or musketeer....
  
   Balls
• Chain Mail
  Mail (armour)
  Mail is a type of armour consisting of small metal rings linked together in a pattern to form a mesh.-History:Mail was a highly successful type of armour and was used by nearly every metalworking culture....
  
  

Episode 2 – Tough Trades

Johnny Vaughan and Steve Brooker take a journey into London’s historical trades via the Thames at Wapping.

Steve’s on a quest to find out about London’s historic alternative coinage and return an ancient trading token to its original home while Johnny gets to grips with the murky world of tobacco

Tobacco

Tobacco is an agricultural product processed from the leaves of plants in the genus Nicotiana. It can be consumed, used as a pesticide and, in the form of nicotine tartrate, used in some medicines...

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Together they try out some very smelly 17th century trades and get a bit more than they bargained for with a gutsy sheep as they learn how to make condoms in the style of the 17th century

17th century

The 17th century was the century which lasted from 1601 to 1700 in the Gregorian calendar.The 17th century falls into the Early Modern period of Europe and in that continent was characterized by the Dutch Golden Age, the Baroque cultural movement, the French Grand Siècle dominated by Louis XIV, the...

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Major Items Found

• 17th Century Trading Token