Force of Nature Episode Guide

Episode Guide

Force of Nature: Season 1

• Season 1 Episode 4: The Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst

  Insight into Donald Crowhurst's doomed attempt to win the 1968 round-the-world yacht race in a poorly built and ill-equipped trimaran. As the competition progressed, it seemed he was covering record-breaking distances and was actually leading the race. But he now faced the choice of taking the glory or admitting to his deceit - as it quickly transpired he was faking his results

• Season 1 Episode 1: Survival in the Southern Ocean

  Yachtsmen Pete Goss, Tony Bullimore and Raphael Dinelli describe their ordeal and the horrifying dilemmas they faced when a force 12 hurricane struck as they attempted to navigate the southern ocean during the 1996 Vendee Globe race

Force of Nature:

• Branson's Crash Landing

  Account of Richard Branson and Per Lindstrand's 1987 attempt to cross the Atlantic by hot-air balloon. The pair recall the last leg of their journey, which saw the wind turn, leaving them completely at the mercy of the elements. Lindstrand - the more experienced of the two - managed to escape, leaving Branson stranded in the gondola, heading out to sea and ascending rapidly

• Campbell's Final Run

  The career of Donald Campbell, whose obsession with speed drove him to reach 248mph on Lake Coniston in 1958 and achieve a unique double in Australia in 1964, breaking both the land and water speed records. Three years later, he was determined to be the first person to travel at 300mph on water, but his second attempt ended in disaster after his boat somersaulted and smashed into pieces. Last in series

• Death in the Alps

  Rescuers, survivors and those who lost loved ones provide an account of an avalanche that ploughed into the Austrian village of Galtur, killing more than 50 people. The scene of the tragedy was known to be in the path of a possible avalanche, but tragically barriers were not in place despite warnings of impending danger

• Disaster on Everest

  The story of a group of amateur climbers who attempted an ascent of Everest in 1996, believing the mountain to be more of a tourist attraction. They reveal how their ambitious excursion turned into a fight for life as gale-force winds, oxygen deprivation and freezing conditions set in, killing 11 of their number

• Lost in Low's Gully

  Account of an expedition in Borneo by a group of British soldiers in 1994, which saw them almost lose their lives when they became stranded in an isolated, narrow jungle ravine, sandwiched between two 700ft waterfalls. The men were trapped for 18 days and faced a slow death from starvation after rescue helicopters struggled to spot them through the clouds and dense vegetation

• Rescue at 19,000 Feet

  The story of two teams, one American and one British, who set out to climb America's highest mountain, McKinley, simultaneously in 1998. However, as they struggled to reach the top, two weather fronts collided, sending three of the mountaineers plummeting 300ft down the mountain. As their companions set out to find them, they encountered members of the other team, seriously injured. The two factions were forced to endure the storm on a narrow ledge at 19,000ft, as a death-defying helicopter rescue operation was organised