Films

The following films / documentaries were filmed within the system:

To Titan from the Top - The Story of the Titan Dig DVD (2008) by David Webb

Titan was discovered by Dave “Moose” Nixon  and his team in 1999 following an arduous and protracted dig to establish a dry route from Speedwell Mine, and an equally challenging dig up through a 35m boulder choke! They entered a vast cavern stretching upwards beyond the reach of even the most powerful lights, but using specialised climbing techniques the great shaft was eventually climbed and topped out at a staggering 145 metres above the floor, making Titan the biggest and highest enclosed underground space in the UK.

Several inviting side passages warranted investigation but the sheer remoteness and physical demands of hauling the equipment necessary for exploration up to these great heights led eventually to a plan to forge a route from the surface to intercept both the top of Titan and the most promising of the unexplored passages known as West Passage.

The idea of driving straight down to the top of the shaft was considered but dismissed as impractical. The vertical separation from the surface to West Passage was calculated at around 40 m, but a nearby depression had revealed a connection via a natural shaft filled with loose material deposited during the interglacial period some 50,000 years ago.

However, what appeared to be a relatively simple excavation of this loose material was to lead to a three year test of patience and commitment, but as Moose says “no-one said it would be easy!” The film’s dramatic sequences vividly illustrate the frustrating ups and downs of cave digging and the camera captures unique footage—some of which has been broadcast on BBC and ITV—as the team is followed on their drive towards their goal. It is a story of extraordinary endeavour and persistence.

Footnote: The total amount of tape used for this project amounted to some 30 hours, all of which was logged and sorted before the daunting task of editing down to 1hr and 20 minutes of completed film could begin. It was first shown at the Hidden Earth cavers’ conference in September 2008 to a packed and enthusiastic audience.  (A rough edit was produced in 2003, but I am grateful to Emma Porter, one of the organisers of HE, and members of the Titan team for encouraging me to dust it off and get stuck in to finishing it!)

Post Script. After a few months’ break work was resumed digging vertically down though a stubborn choke to intercept West Passage which should have revealed itself at –18metres! However at a depth of around 35 metres and with no prospects of success, we gave up and the dig was reluctantly abandoned to a future generation of diggers. DW

Fight for Life - The Neil Moss Story DVD (2006) by David Webb

Castleton’s Peak Cavern is one of Derbyshire’s foremost show caves, with a centuries-old history of legend and human habitation. On Sunday March 22 1959 Neil Moss entered the extensive and labyrinthine passages beyond the show cave in the company of a small party of fellow cavers; they were set to explore a narrow shaft that led down from a large chamber nearly a mile from daylight.

Neil willingly descended the shaft in the hope of discovering new passages beneath, but a series of unfortunate circumstances led to his becoming trapped. Subsequent attempts to free him began what developed into the biggest cave rescue attempt this country has ever seen. Well over 200 cavers and rescue workers, as well as countless villagers, were involved. Many fought deep underground to release the Oxford undergraduate from the grip of the hard unyielding rock, but he sadly died 35 hours after first becoming trapped.

The events of that weekend and its tragic outcome were themselves the stuff of nightmares, but the persistence and heroism of his would-be rescuers, many of whom had never ventured underground before, lifted the spirits. Today the rescue attempt is remembered by cavers not only for its sad outcome, but for being a catalyst for the complete reorganisation of the Derbyshire Cave Rescue Organisation.

This film has been extensively researched to be as factually accurate as possible in the hope that it will help dispel some of the myths that persist to this day surrounding the rescue attempt and its aftermath; the tragic circumstances are related by some of those directly involved nearly fifty years ago. D W

Footnote: “Fight for Life” has taken nearly ten years to complete, but was frequently set aside for other more pressing film projects - and caving trips - much to the frustration of several interviewees who thought they might not live to see the finished product! Many caving colleagues have given unstintingly of their time, and the film could not have been completed at all without their full co-operation. “Fight for Life” is my first major project and has received countless favourable reviews both as a film, and for its accuracy and the sensitive handling of a difficult subject.

These DVD's can be purchased from Caving Supplies or Hitch N Hike.