Forty years ago, on a wet Oxford evening,
Roger Bannister ran the race of his life in six-tenths of a second less than four minutes.
Since then 12 other athletes have progressively lowered the mile record, which now stands at the mark established by Algerian Noureddine Morceii , three minutes 44.39 seconds.
Tonight's programme celebrates the enduring fascination of the mile race and includes the reminiscences of all 13 record holders. They include Sir Roger Bannister , of course, who was spurred on to his achievement by his training partners Chris Brasher and Chris Chataway , and the Australian John Landy , who took away his record after just six weeks. Producer Steve Gowans
A Chrysalis production for BBCtv
Roger Bannister 's sporting legacy
SEE FEATURE page 30