The Last Place on Earth

The Last Place on Earth was a 1985 Central Television mini-series based on the book "Scott and Amundsen" by Roland Huntford. The book is a biography of Captain Robert F. Scott and his Norwegian rival in polar exploration, Roald Amundsen.

The series ran for 7 episodes and starred a wide range of UK and Norwegian character actors as well as featuring cameos from some famous names, such as Richard Wilson and Hugh Grant.

Subsequently Huntford's book was republished under the same name. [ The Last Place on Earth, by Roland Huntford, 1999, Modern Library Exploration, ISBN 978-0375754746] The book strongly put forth the point of view that Amundsen's success in reaching the South Pole was abetted by much superior planning, whereas errors by Scott (notably including the refusal to use sled dogs) ultimately resulted in the death of Scott and companions.

Recently there has been an attempt to redress the balance of opinion about Scott by the British adventurer and baronet Ranulph Fiennes. Fiennes asserts that Huntford, who lacks direct experience of Polar travel and man-hauling, is not qualified to draw the conclusions he does on Scott's alleged technical deficiencies. In his book, Fiennes offers a rebuttal of some of Huntford's assertions of Scott's deficiencies by relating to Fiennes' own experience and knowledge, ultimately encouraging the reader to form their own conclusions.

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