Supporters of the British Antarctic Monument Trust will be interested in a new series on the Antarctic from National Geographic Channel also being broadcast on Channel 5 on Friday evenings at 8.00pm. The programme 'Ice Patrol ' follows HMS Endurance, the Royal Navy's Ice Patrol Vessel, during a season in the South Atlantic, Falkland Islands and the British Antarctic Territory.

The first episode was filmed mainly in the Falklands, but later episodes promise to provide an interesting insight into work in the Antarctic Peninsular area and Weddell Sea during the summer relief season.

It is remarkable how much things have changed in 50/60 odd years from days of the old John Biscoe, the pre-war HMS Protector and poor transport and communications, to the modern ships and aircraft, and satellite communications.

The next episode is shown at 8 pm on Friday 16 April, on Channel 5,  and presumably will continue on forthcoming Friday nights. You can download and view the first episode directly from the  Channel 5 website.

The relationship between the Royal Navy and the British Antarctic Survey has always been close. It should be remembered that two of our colleagues Leading Seamen Reg Hodge and Able Seaman Lane were killed whilst prepping a depth charge for seismic research whilst serving on HMS Protector, 6 December 1963.