Season 1

London's oldest wholesale market is on the verge of its biggest change in over a thousand years. Under pressure to modernize, its iconic and ancient traditions are under threat. Will ancient custom or modern commerce win out?

Smithfield has been supplying the capital with meat since the 12th century, but what does the future hold for the men of the meat market?

The fruit and veg trade in England was once a closed world dominated by traditional British costermonger families. But then London changed. Successive waves of immigration have brought new people to New Spitalfields market in east London, people for whom food has a deeper meaning.