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Duration: 40 minutes

First transmitted in 1969, this documentary follows the construction of the world’s most advanced underground system. Macdonald Hastings narrates the story of one of the most complex tunnel engineering feats of its time. He reveals the isolation felt by the miners who spent six years burrowing deep beneath the streets of London, shows what they did beneath one of London's most famous department stores and explains why the ground at Tottenham Court Road had to be frozen during the hottest weeks of 1966.

The result is a brave new world of transport with automated trains, two way mirrors, automatic fare collection and closed-circuit television, all choreographed by a computer programme played out by an updated version of a pianola located in a control room somewhere near Euston station.

Last on

Mon 3 Mar 1969 22:55 BBC Two

  • BBC Four London Collection

    BBC Four London Collection

    This programme is part of a collection of BBC programmes celebrating the people and places of London. Available online now.

    Go to the BBC Four London Collection

  • About BBC Four Collection programmes

    Programmes are selected, in part, for their historical context and reflect the broadcast standards and attitudes of their time, which may not accord to some current BBC editorial guidelines. We aim to select programmes which can be shown in their entirety but in some cases edits are required. In these cases, edits are kept to a minimum and are made only for technical reasons.

Credits

Presenter
Macdonald Hastings
Producer
Harry Hastings
Producer
John Shearman

Broadcasts

Featured in...

  • London

    Celebrating the people and places of London.

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