Tragedy and Triumph: The Heroic Age of Antarctic Exploration

Come down to The Poly for two talks in one night! 

Few stories of exploration are as dramatic as two expeditions to Antarctica in the early 20th century.

Three famous explorers dominate the story : Robert Scott, Roald Amundsen and Ernest Shackleton.

1. Scott, Amundsen and the Race to the Pole

This talk focuses briefly on early attempts by Scott and Shackleton to get to the South Pole - the Discovery and Nimrod expeditions.  It then concentrates on the 1910-11 expeditions by Scott and Amundsen, ending in tragedy and triumph.  Contemporary photographs and water colours provide a vivid, record of this frozen world and these pioneering expeditions into the unknown.

2. Shackleton’s Endurance Expedition : A Photographic Odyssey

On Shackleton’s third expedition south in 1914, his ship, the Endurance, was trapped in the pack ice and crushed.  After camping for months on the ice, Shackleton’s men rowed to a remote island.  From there, Shackleton sailed for help to South Georgia, a journey of some 800 miles.  Frank Hurley was the expedition’s official photographer – his photographs eloquently capture one of the greatest survival stories in polar history.

Thursday 21st September 7:00pm

Tickets: £8/£10 

A £1 Poly Fund payment is added to each ticket sold.