Cold as a Mountain Top
Seriously...25 Mar 2022

Cold as a Mountain Top

WH Murray was one of a pioneering group of climbers in Scotland in the 1930’s, establishing new routes in Glencoe, Ben Nevis and The Cuillin. But it was one particular mountain that he loved – and climbed – the most; the iconic Buachaillie Etive Mor at Glencoe. This was the last mountain he climbed just before leaving for war in 1941. Murray was captured in the African desert but his life was saved when he uttered the words, ‘Cold as a mountain top.’ The German officer was also a mountaineer and took him prisoner instead of shooting him on the spot. During his imprisonment in Italy and Czechoslovakia he wrote the seminal ‘Mountaineering in Scotland’ completely from memory, recalling the intimate details of climbs he undertook in the 1930’s. The book has been a talismanic text for climbers like Robert Macfarlane. He's turned to it often, particularly when the cold of the mountain top has felt very far away during recent periods of confinement. In this immersive audio voyage, Robert returns to Murray’s beloved Buachaille with 'Mountaineering in Scotland' by his side. Produced by Helen Needham in Aberdeen. Readings by Cal MacAninch. Sound design and composition by Anthony Cowie. Sound consultation and mixing by Ron McCaskill. Our mountain Guide was Richard Parker. Thanks to Robin Lloyd-Jones, WH Murray's biographer, for help with the preparation of this programme.

Episoder(484)

The People's Pyramid

The People's Pyramid

The KLF aka The Jams aka The Timelords aka The K Foundation aka K2 Plant Hire aka The Justified Ancients of Mu Mu... it's complicated. Whatever name or weird mythology they happened to be operating un...

21 Jan 202028min

The Last Exposure

The Last Exposure

Photographer Garry Fabian-Miller has spent much of the last 30 years either in his dark room, or out walking on Dartmoor. That is about to end. Fabian-Miller began his career in the 1960’s but quickly...

17 Jan 202028min

The Diagnosis

The Diagnosis

For most of her life, Janice Wilson suffered from strange and terrifying attacks at night. She would wake up, suddenly, feeling as though she was being choked or strangled. The next day, there would b...

14 Jan 202028min

A Small Matter of Hope

A Small Matter of Hope

Life is getting better. Child mortality rates have tumbled worldwide, more girls are in education, malaria is in decline and hunger is a thing of the past for most of us. So why don't we believe it? W...

3 Jan 202027min

A Guide to Disagreeing Better

A Guide to Disagreeing Better

Why do we hold our opponents in contempt? Former politician Douglas Alexander believes that disagreement is good, it's how the best arguments get refined. But, today, public discourse has become so il...

17 Des 201937min

Hurting

Hurting

Sally Marlow talks to some of the men and women who have self-harmed, and the experts who treat them, to find out what is driving so many people to self-harm.Clinical guidelines define self-harm as an...

22 Nov 201928min

Art of Now: Playing Well - Frightened Rabbit

Art of Now: Playing Well - Frightened Rabbit

In the first of the three-part series "Playing Well" Chris Hawkins has an intimate conversation with the band mates of Scott Hutchison, who took his own life in May 2018.In conversation with Scott's b...

15 Nov 201929min

The 21st Century Curriculum

The 21st Century Curriculum

As a teenager, the writer Varaidzo lost interest in school. She investigates the so-called "educational dip" and talks to teenagers about ways they think the school curriculum might be made more appea...

12 Nov 201929min

Populært innen Samfunn

rss-spartsklubben
giver-og-gjengen-vg
aftenpodden
konspirasjonspodden
aftenpodden-usa
popradet
rss-henlagt-andy-larsgaard
rss-nesten-hele-uka-med-lepperod
lydartikler-fra-aftenposten
wolfgang-wee-uncut
grenselos
alt-fortalt
min-barneoppdragelse
fladseth
rss-dannet-uten-piano
rss-dette-ma-aldri-skje-igjen
synnve-og-vanessa
krisemoter
198-land-med-einar-trnquist
rss-frekvens-med-anine-olsen