by c. a. RICHARDSON : based on the book The Last Blue Mountain by RALPH BARKER
In 1957 four young members of the Oxford University Mountaineering Club, led by an experienced Himalayan climber, set out on a reconnaissance of Haramosh, a 24,000-ft Himalayan peak. Weather and bad conditions delayed them but they plugged on and eventually at more than 20,000 feet realised thev had reached their maximum possible altitude and completed their task.
The tragedy began when an avalanche swept two members of the party into an ice basin far below. A nightmare saga of courage, tenacity, and endurance was about to begin. Producer ALAN BURGESS
(Shortened version of the broadcast in 1970)