Stanley - The Impossible Life Of Africa's Greatest Explorer

Episode

First
Broadcast

Comments

20070305

Born in Denbigh, 1846, John Rowlands was abandoned as a baby and consigned to a Welsh workhouse.

The rejection he suffered at the hands of his mother, and his sheer determination to gain her acceptance, shaped the character of the little boy who would, one day, become Henry Morton Stanley; the man who discovered Dr Livingstone.

20070306

Stanley, now working as a journalist for the New York Herald, embarks on an epic journey to Africa, in search of the great explorer, Livingstone.

But did he really utter the immortal words 'Dr Livingstone, I presume'?

20070307

Stanley, now living in America, begins fundraising for what would be the greatest journey so far across the heart of Africa - to finish Dr Livingstone's work.

20070308

Having traced the River Congo from the heart of Africa to the sea, Stanley returns for a meeting with King Leopold II of Belgium.

But while Stanley's ambition is to open up the Congo to free trade, Leopold's motives are fuelled by greed alone.

05 LAST

20070309

Stanley returns to Africa one last time - on a mission to rescue Emin Pasha, the last of General Gordon's provincial governors still living.

Marriage puts an end to Stanley's exploration, but his spirits are raised by the arrival of a new family member.

Episodes

Episode	First Broadcast	Comments
01	20070305	Born in Denbigh, 1846, John Rowlands was abandoned as a baby and consigned to a Welsh workhouse. The rejection he suffered at the hands of his mother, and his sheer determination to gain her acceptance, shaped the character of the little boy who would, one day, become Henry Morton Stanley; the man who discovered Dr Livingstone.
02	20070306	Stanley, now working as a journalist for the New York Herald, embarks on an epic journey to Africa, in search of the great explorer, Livingstone. But did he really utter the immortal words 'Dr Livingstone, I presume'?
03	20070307	Stanley, now living in America, begins fundraising for what would be the greatest journey so far across the heart of Africa - to finish Dr Livingstone's work.
04	20070308	Having traced the River Congo from the heart of Africa to the sea, Stanley returns for a meeting with King Leopold II of Belgium. But while Stanley's ambition is to open up the Congo to free trade, Leopold's motives are fuelled by greed alone.
05 LAST	20070309	Stanley returns to Africa one last time - on a mission to rescue Emin Pasha, the last of General Gordon's provincial governors still living. Marriage puts an end to Stanley's exploration, but his spirits are raised by the arrival of a new family member.