BBC Chronicle 1970 - The Great Iron Ship - SS Great Britain Rescue

Isambard Kingdom Brunel's SS Great Britain was abandoned in the South Atlantic in 1937.
This 1970 film documents its rescue from the icy shores of the Falkland Islands and homeward journey to Bristol where it is now an award-winning visitor attraction.

[@louisberwanger5398]

Thank you UK for placing a high value on your maritime history. I wish our government here in the U.S. could collectively grasp this concept. Our SS United States has been rotting away in Philadelphia. Not respectable treatment for a national maritime treasure .

[@steveb8433]

Just been to see her today. Absolutely stunning piece of engineering. Brought back to Great Britain when anything was possible where there was a will for it.

[@twcmaker]

Remember my Dad taking us to Bristol to see the SS Great Britain in the dock. We walked around the dry dock and went inside the huge space. I remember the engine outline chalked on an upright flat surface. This was pre 1975. I remember seeing through the floors and joists. It was a dark and dismal place.

[@simonwilson6022]

It’s a shame Brunels great eastern didn’t survive, now that would have been a sight to see.

[@gquayle]

It has in a way. The bottom of the keel and hull are still embedded in the mud in the river Mersey at Birkenhead, where she was broken up for scrap. The flagpole also exists outside Liverpool football club.

[@nw8000]

@@gquayle And a bit of the funnel that exploded and was used by a water company as a sieve is now housed at at the Museum in Bristol, In fact the Ships Bell was there as well. I was informed when I was there the Museum is collecting monies to build a full size replica! They have bought the dock and the land needed already!

[@RailPreserver2K]

Oh that would be incredible ​@@nw8000

[@georgenorris2657]

Where do you find a tree the thickness of those masts and, if you don´t, how do you make one? What I love about this documentary is: no heaving music, no dramatic narration, no dragged out slow bits to fill up the time. The Great Britain was a masterpiece of its time . . and so is this documentary.

[@rstone286]

Toured her today at Home. The only parts of the masts that were wooden were the top sections, and they were built up from four main core sections and then an outer layer of timber as circular cladding. The main sections of the masts and spares are all riveted wrought iron. But like basically everything else on board… Hugely impressive, thank you to the uploader for putting this on KZbin.

[@spankflaps1365]

Dude when the ship passes under the Brunel Bridge… *goosebumps* 😃

[@JP-su8bp]

Tears for me, each time I watch it.

[@rugosetexture2716]

Chronicle was a great series. It ran for a long time. I wish more were available. Thank you for posting this one up on KZbin.

[@MrDaiseymay]

Agreed. There were other Great documentary series ,about Historic events, that also ran for many years. Can't name them at the minute.

[@pdunderhill]

@@MrDaiseymay Timewatch is the only other long running series I can think of.

[@tonyfeuerhelm]

...it amazes me how the salvage crews are like...What ever...bring it on...Bigger...Better...Stronger...A.C.Feuerhelm

[@peterrebic4436]

Ingenuity,,lol..its insane.

[@danischeel4846]

So very informative! The English have such a good sense of their heritage. US Americans( on the whole) don't seem to. We have the USD Olympia, of which I've heard is in terrible condition. There is even talk of scrapping this historic ship. Nobody wants to alot any funds for preservation. This is only one of very few protected cruisers(Aurora in Russia comes to mind) from the late 1800's to still be in existence. If she is broken up, we should be ashamed of ourselves.

[@peterrebic4436]

Shut up,,,lol

[@peterrebic4436]

Weii we preserved Britain during WW2,,,hahahahahah

[@ianmcsherry5254]

You're actually very good at preserving WW1/WW2 warships. Better than us, I would say. We have very little left from those eras.

[@FannyShmellar]

That’s a modern ships compared to the SS Great Britain. The thing is, America is still a baby as a nation. There really isn’t any American heritage to preserve since you all come from us anyway really.

[@MrDaiseymay]

@@peterrebic4436 BUT, we preserved the FREE world, by beating the Nazi Luftwaffe in 1940. Had we lost, so would you have lost, eventually. Check it out.

[@KKTR3]

I’ve seen this documentary in color and I’ve also seen a black-and-white version of it

[@billyrubin7378]

A pity whoever wrote the script knew absolutely nothing about the screw. It was tested for its efficiency and contrary to the drivel about the screw that; "it was a miracle it worked at all," is, -- if you will forgive the characterisation -- complete horse manure. It was tested and found to be 3% less efficient than the latest designs of propellers.

[@stephenmcdonagh2795]

Yep, that's true, I've read the same about its efficiency.

[@iandocherty5278]

One hundred and forty odd years or so before CAD, CNC machining and with imperial measures ect.... Pure wrought engineering at scales we don't even have the iron or steel works (even the south Wales monumental succumbed) anymore. thanks Margaret... After the closure's of the colliers the men in the mines took to steel works. The coal from the valleys forged the finest steel. British steel made by working men in the foudrys. They were sold out by the Tories who closed the collieries and sold the steel works for foreign investors (Tata) or Corus steel as was known in Europe. Of which many members of parliament and their subsidiaries had a great vested interest in..... Shitting on the little guy as has always been the case. The south Wales steel works shutdown/sellout in port Talbot and orb electrical steel made places poor. For your foreign investment gain. The beginning of the end of the working class man you thought.

[@runlarryrun77]

@@iandocherty5278 Fkn tory shits man.

[@twcmaker]

Thank you for this.

[@vet-7174]

Outstanding Video !!

[@VictoriaN72]

Amazing feat!

[@peterrebic4436]

Hmmmm,,why the owners at one one point covered her with WOOD is interesting,,.Ya think they where trying to disguise it in some manner.?? And jesus those masts were insane,,lol

[@ajenkins0155]

John. Isn't the bit at the end a load of old bull? Waiting for a high spring tide on a river that isn't tidal just doesn't make sense to me. Once she was through the Cumberland Basin they'd only have to top up the water from the Feeder Canal - or am I wrong? Is that what took 2 weeks or were they waiting for the significant date? Nice bit of drama for the TV viewers, with the "only having 20 minutes" bit, but I'm confused as to why.

[@Great_King_Rat]

It's quite possible (only a guess, you understand) that, as Bristol's importance as a port diminished, maybe the channel has been allowed to silt up?

[@mikecorleone6797]

10:07 brunel made a break water out of what? 🤔 dress in drag?

[@randomchannel3638]

A break water made out of what?

[@freemanv4056]

No political correctness, no race-based wokery... just a brilliant documentary.

[@tripwire3992]

Do you genuinely believe "the woke" is the source of britains problems? Get a grip

[@daverichmond3228]

Well why the hell did i just watch a black and white version of this instead?

[@WarhammerWings]

If we could do this to the Great Britain, surely we can have a chance to raise the HMHS Britannic.

[@roelofjan1986]

The bow would snap off while raising her. And it’s a huge huge ship, I think she is conserved better in the water then out of the water. One thing I would like them to do is to upright the Britannic to make it more accessible to divers

[@tripwire3992]

@@roelofjan1986 i wonder if the fact its lying on its side preserved some paint on the buried side

[@roelofjan1986]

@@tripwire3992 it did

[@randomuser9883]

It is a war grave

[@ADrunkCrayfish]

You don’t raise a war grave

[@IcelanderUSer]

Imagine 700 people on this boat for months at a time.