In 1914, Ernest Shackleton set out with 27 men aboard the Endurance on one of the boldest expeditions of the Heroic Age of Antarctic exploration: an attempt to cross the frozen continent from the Weddell Sea to the Ross Sea. But before they could even reach land, the ship became trapped in pack ice. Months later, crushed by the pressure, the Endurance was lost, leaving the crew stranded in one of the most hostile environments on Earth with no contact with the outside world. What follows is an extraordinary story of survival, leadership and endurance. Shackleton abandons the original goal and focuses entirely on bringing every man home alive, leading his crew across drifting ice, open ocean and some of the most dangerous seas on the planet. Using Frank Hurley’s remarkable original photographs and film footage, archived voices and letters from expedition members, interviews with their descendants and newly filmed images of the actual locations, the documentary brings this legendary 1914-1916 ordeal vividly back to life.
In 1915, the ship Endurance sank near Antarctica. Explorer Ernest Shackleton and his crew miraculously survived. In 2022, the ship was discovered, some 3000m beneath the water’s surface. Documenting contemporary polar explorers and drawing on original expedition footage preserved and restored by the BFI National Archive, Endurance is an inspiring celebration of scientific curiosity and the indefatigable human spirit of discovery. Maritime Heritage Trust locates Shackleton's shipwrecked Endurance near Antarctica. Shackleton and 27 crew survive incredible journey to South Georgia to seek rescue after ship sinks, showcasing human resilience against all odds.
In the fourth episode, leading landscape photographer Peter Eastway follows in the footsteps of Frank Hurley – the pioneering Australian photographer on Shackleton’s expedition to the south a century ago – to capture the wilderness and wildlife of Antarctica and South Georgia.
What follows is an extraordinary story of survival, leadership and endurance. Shackleton abandons the original goal and focuses entirely on bringing every man home alive, leading his crew across drifting ice, open ocean and some of the most dangerous seas on the planet. Using Frank Hurley’s remarkable original photographs and film footage, archived voices and letters from expedition members, interviews with their descendants and newly filmed images of the actual locations, the documentary brings this legendary 1914-1916 ordeal vividly back to life.