In 1851 Isaac Singer brought onto the market the first practical sewing machine in history. He had combined all the ideas that had gone before to make a machine that actually worked. The result was explosive. By the 1870's the humble sewing machine had become the most wanted item on the planet. Why? Because with it, anyone could pop down their local market on Saturday and wear a new dress to church on Sunday! Cheap material from the Northern Powerhouses, and the sewing machine, meant that beautiful clothes were no longer the sole domain of the upper classes. Here is the fascinating story of the rise and fall of Singer manufacturing in Britain, brought to you by world renowned author Alex Askaroff