Philip Gilbert

Commemorative program for the 25th anniversary of the live broadcast of the ascent of the Old Man of Hoy. In July of 1967, 15 million people watched one of the most audacious BBC outside broadcasts ever undertaken - the climbing of the 'Old Man of Hoy'. Chris Bonnington and Tom Patey, took the East Face; Joe Brown and Ian McNaught-Davis, the South Face; Peter Crew and Douglas Haston took the South-East Arête. A further crew of four climbers- Hamish MacInnes, John Cleare, Rusty Baillie and Ian Clough carried cameras and transmitters. 25 years later, BBC gathers the protagonists to recover the footage and to look back on the achievement.

In July of 1967, 15 million people watched one of the most audacious BBC outside broadcasts ever undertaken - the climbing of the Old Man of Hoy. Chris Bonnington and Tom Patey, took the East Face; Joe Brown and Ian McNaught-Davis, the South Face; Peter Crew and Douglas Haston took the South-East Arête. A further crew of four climbers- Hamish MacInnes, John Cleare, Rusty Baillie and Ian Clough carried cameras and transmitters. The live broadcast consisted of 6 connections between 7th and 9th of july whose titles were: The Old Man and The Climbers, Six Men, The Bivouac, Six Men-One Challenge, The first man to the summit, The Challenge and the Conquest. One week later BBC broadcasted a 30-minute program with the highlights of the live coverage.

In August 1970 a spectacular rock climb was televised live on BBC in color. Seven climbers attempted three different routes on the cliffs of Anglesey. The event, presented by Christopher Brasher was transmitted live through 4 connections over the course of 31st of august. The routes climbed were: Spider's Web, by Joe Brown and Ian McNaught-Davis; Wen Slab, by Peter Crew and Don Whillans; and Tyrannosaurus Rex, by Laurie and Les Holliwell, and Janet Rogers. This was the first color live climbing program on BBC, following on from the success of earlier programs such as the ascent of the Old Man of Hoy in 1967.