The Old Man of Hoy (1967)

Overview

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.

Philip GilbertDirector