Everest and the Dancing Lamas of Tibet

Sir Michael Palin and author Mick Conefrey join Evan Davis in conversation about Everest 1924, Captain John Noel and Tibetan monks.

Following the 1924 attempt on Everest which ended so tragically with the death of George Mallory and Sandy Irvine, Captain John Noel’s Explorer Films released ‘The Epic of Everest’ documenting both the climb and some of the earliest moving images from Tibet.

Between 1924 and 1925 Captain Noel presented the film across Europe with a group of Tibetan monks who performed a prologue to the screenings featuring masked dance and Tantric music.  The visit of the Monks led to a controversy which became known as 'The Affair of the Dancing Lamas' and resulted in future expeditions to Everest being refused for nearly a decade.  

Illustrated with clips from John Noel’s seminal films, Sir Michael Palin, Mick Conefrey (author of a new book about the 1924 expedition ‘Fallen’), Professor Julie Brown and journalist and broadcaster Evan Davis discuss the background to this extraordinary period in climbing and cultural history.

Book online at: http://tinyurl.com/everest-lamas 

Ticket prices: £17, students £13

Phone: 01722 782265

Email: info@tashi-lhunpo.org.uk