*This video reflects attitudes of its time and contains some information which is dated.*
“We shall attempt to navigate 7,000 miles of river and falls, lake and swamp, salt bed and desert, from the Atlantic Ocean to the heart of the African continent.”
Ten tons of hovercraft arrive in the West African republic of Senegal, and the first stage of the expedition, the journey from St Louis to Bamako, begins.
This edition begins in Dakar, the capital of Senegal, as the SRN6 hovercraft and its crew make their way along the coastal route to St Louis, where the expedition begins in earnest.
00:00 Introduction
00:45 Dakar
02:31 Leaving for St Louis
03:36 The expedition route
04:35 Gorée Island
06:23 St Louis
10:55 Richard Toll arrival
12:16 Scientific expedition aboard The African Queen
14:02 Richard Toll departure
15:24 Podor
18:38 Podor departure
20:25 Cascas
23:33 Cascas departure
25:10 Scientific expedition reaches a fishing village in Mauritania
25:48 City of Nouakchott
26:50 A photograph for the Chief
27:52 Nigel Hepper, biologist
28:23 Leaving the fishing village
29:46 Hovercraft struggles at Matam
32:42 Scientists debate on The African Queen
34:15 The end of the Senegal River
35:05 Kayes in Mali – mounting the hovercraft on a train
43:54 Leaving Kayes by train
46:44 End credits
48:00 Part 2 teaser
Script by John Pilger, narrated by John Stockbridge.
Clip taken from The World About Us, originally broadcast on BBC Two, 12 July, 1970.
You have now entered the BBC Archive, a time machine that will transport you back to the golden age of TV to educate, entertain and enlighten you with classic clips from the BBC vaults.
Make sure you subscribe so that you never miss a single stop on our amazing journey through the BBC Archive – https://www.youtube.com/c/BBCArchive?sub_confirmation=1
You can also dive into plenty more BBC Archive on our website – https://www.bbc.co.uk/archive
source
