Bruce documented it all making a remarkable collection of images. ibid.
A little more than 150 years ago a young man arrived here in the mountains of the Sierra Nevada in California … He was an explorer … And one day he would be remembered with more reverence than most of America’s presidents. Neil Oliver s1e3: John Muir
Muir began his journey in Indianapolis … down through Florida … He would go to California instead to visit Yosemite. ibid.
Muir was drunk on the sheer spectacle. ibid.
‘He took risks, terrible risks, and he got away with it … The mountains were his teacher … He saw that human beings were a part of it.’ ibid. historian
Muir was offering his readers a new understanding of nature, preaching a new America. ibid.
Proposed a national park surrounding the valley … At the end of September Congress passed a bill. ibid.
Thanks to Muir, preservation was now an established and accepted idea. ibid.
300 years ago a group of men found themselves thousands of miles from home fighting for their lives. They had travelled half way round the world across unknown lands into hostile territories. But these were no hardened adventurers, they were booking academics on one of the most important scientific expeditions ever. Its outcome would fundamentally change the way we see our world, but their mission would become an eight year epic of obsession, betrayal and murder. Voyages of Discovery s1e4: French Explorers: The Figure of the Earth
This was the first scientific expedition ever. The ambitious mission was launched in 1735 to discover a fundamental truth about our planet: the true shape of the Earth. ibid.
In May 1939 the crew of the submarine USS Squalus were struck by disaster deep below the surface of the Atlantic ocean. They were trapped on the ocean floor with the air running out and no means of escape. The latest victims of what the US Navy dubbed the Coffin Service. Their fate rested on one man: Naval inventor Charles ‘Swede’ Momsen. Voyages of Discovery s1e5: USS Squalus
In the previous 20 years worldwide 22 subs had been lost along with the lives of over 1,000 men. They didn’t call it the Coffin Service for nothing … No crew had ever been saved from the ocean depths. ibid.
Water from flooding from the rear to the front of the sub. ibid.
A poisonous chlorine gas was beginning to spread. But there was no way out. ibid.
The Squalus had been equipped with Momsen lungs … This is a submarine rescue bell based on Momsen’s design … It was Momsen’s big moment … The unbelievable had happened: a rescue mission had reached the submarine. ibid.
A poisonous chlorine gas was beginning to spread. But there was no way out. ibid.
At little more than 150 years ago Japan was medieval. A land of feudal villages and knights in armour. But then on a single day on 1st January 1873 Japan declared its desire to modernize, to synchronize with the west … The architect of that revolution was a unique intrepid businessman – he was part buccaneer and part explorer – he was a Scot and his name was Thomas Blake Glover … he was a pioneer: only a handful of foreigners had ever seen Japan. Neil Oliver: The Last Explorers s1e4: Thomas Blake Glover
He had been living in Nagasaki for three years. He was only 24. ibid.
Traders like Glover felt they could do business with whomever they pleased. ibid.
Fathered many illegitimate children. ibid.
He switched from trading tea to the more profitable enterprise of running guns. ibid.
Extraordinary, iconic, lethal: these incredible ships have told our story for the past four-hundred years. And define what it means to be part of our island’s nation. Rob Bell, Great British Ships s2e1: Endeavour, Channel 5 2019
I discover the amazing story of HMV Endeavour: a humble coal-bark from Yorkshire that transformed our understanding of the world. With her famous captain James Cook, she sailed to the edge of the world to reveal a world of mystery and wonder. ibid.
James Cook was the son of a farm labourer from Yorkshire … He joined the Royal Navy and he rose quickly through its ranks. ibid.
Cook was to continue deep into the uncharted south Pacific to look for a fabled land they called Terra Australis Incognita. ibid.
Thomas Edward Lawrence: The brilliant British army officer depicted in these exhilarating moments from the movie classic Lawrence of Arabia. He is seen as a military visionary who led an Arab uprising and changed the world for ever. But Lawrence is one of the most enigmatic figures of the 20th century. Was he a man simply running from his past? A man tormented by doubts about his identity. How much was Lawrence driven by escapist fantasy? His journey took him into the heart of the Middle East, transformed by monumental forces. A lifetime of guilt was Lawrence’s reward. This is the story of the real Lawrence of Arabia. Lawrence of Arabia: Britain’s Great Adventurer, Channel 5 2020
Lawrence of Arabia is the most famous man in England. He counts kings among his friends. His name sells newspapers in their thousands. But the most famous man in England may well be the unhappiest. T E Lawrence is running for his life … [from] the fame that is killing him. ibid.
‘Lawrence did seem to have a high threshold of pain.’ ibid.
Having survived his Syrian experience, he returns to Oxford where in 1910 his research brings him a first class degree and a chance to return to the desert he loves. ibid.
Lawrence reports back that the revolt needs guns, money and support. It also requires an Arab leader worth the British investing in. ibid.
Lawrence is harbouring a secret: knowledge of a confidential British/French understanding that breaks their promise of a kingdom for the Arabs. ibid.
Deep down he feels he is to blame … Camelot with camels has crumbled before his eyes: he is full of regret and remorse. ibid.
It is perhaps one of the most famous expeditions of the twentieth century: Ernest Shackleton’s disastrous mission to cross Antarctica. When Shackleton’s Ship Endurance got snared in polar ice, the mission became an all-out fight for survival. The ship disappeared beneath the ice … What happened to Shackleton’s lost ship? Can we find it? History’s Greatest Mysteries with Laurence Fishburne s1e2: Endurance – The Hunt for Shackleton’s Ice Ship
An expedition is heading into the frozen waters of the Antarctic. ibid.
Antarctica: the most extreme place on Earth. Temperatures reach 100 below. Wind whips across it at 200 miles per hour. This frozen continent surrounds the South Pole. It’s a vast land entirely covered in ice. Somewhere in these frozen seas lies the holy grail of shipwrecks: The Endurance. ibid.
Down here the water is so cold the wooden ship is likely to be perfectly preserved. ibid.
Flying in from across the globe is an international team of ship hunters, explorers and scientists. Two years in the planning and over $250m of cutting-edge technology. ibid.
‘The wind’s unrelenting. And the snow driven like needles into your face.’ ibid. Conrad Anker, explorer
The Endurance is completely stuck [Weddell Sea]. But she’s 550 miles from where she will finally sink. ibid.
Though the crew was trapped, they had reason to believe they would escape. ibid.
Dr Who: remains every inch the Victorian adventurer. Dominic Sandbrook: Let Us Entertain You III: Modern Victorians, BBC 2015
The empire offered the inhabitants of a grey damp island in the north Atlantic the prospect of limitless adventure. Jeremy Paxman, Empire III: Playing the Game, BBC 2012
The entire ad campaign ... was intrinsically deceptive. McLibel (Two People Who Wouldn’t Say Sorry) 1997 ***** starring Helen Steel & David Morris & Eric Schlosser & Morgan Spurlock & Oliver Ford Davies, directors Franny Armstrong & Ken Loach, Stephen Gardner, Assistant US Attorney General
Hi. Welcome to the future: San Dimas, California – 2688. And I’m telling you, it’s great here. The air is clean. The water is clean. Even the dirt is clean! Bowling averages are way up. Minigolf scores are way down. And we have more excellent waterslides than any other planet we communicate with. I’m telling you, this place is great! But it almost wasn’t. You see, 700 years ago, the Two Great Ones ran into a few problems. So now I have to travel back in time to help them out. If I should fail to keep these two along the correct path, the basis of our society will be endangered. Ah, but don’t worry: it’ll all make sense. I’m a professional. Bill and Ted’s Excellent Adventure 1989 starring Keanu Reeves & Alex Winter & George Carlin & Terry Camilleri & Dan Shor & Tony Steedman & Rod Loomis & Al Leong & Jane Wiedlin & Robert V Barron & Clifford David et al, director Stephen Herek, opening commentary
Life is a great adventure. The key to all true progress lies in faith, hope and love. George VI, cited Elizabeth, the Unseen Queen
The magnificent steam locomotives of the Great Western Railway: a combination of elegance and raw power. They still evoke a spirit of adventure. Great Railway Adventures with Dan Cruickshank: Brilliant Brunel, National Geographic 2010