Leicester Mercury

One woman’s flight to save the planet

- JOANNA LUMLEY AND THE HUMAN SWAN ITV, 9pm

LUMLEY brings her trademark enthusiasm and sense of wonderment to this one-off documentar­y about an extraordin­ary conservati­onist called Sacha Dench.

Sacha recently embarked on a green paramotori­ng tour of Britain to raise awareness of climate change.

Paramotori­ng is like paraglidin­g, but with a heavy motor strapped to your back (in this case an electric one), and if you’re wondering who the “human swan” is, it’s a nickname Sacha picked up on a previous challenge.

When she embarked on her journey, she aimed to cover thousands of miles through the air ahead of the COP26 climate change conference.

Joanna visits Sacha at various stops along her route, learning about the engineerin­g and physical strength involved in paramotori­ng.

But the main aim of the programme is to give a greater insight into the climate emergency and to meet the people inventing genius solutions to this urgent crisis.

From beach cleaners in Swansea, to food growers proJOANNA

ducing crops without a scrap of soil, Joanna hopes to prove that there is still lots of positive action that can make a real difference to global warming and that there are practical steps we can all take to help.

You may have read about the outcome of Sacha’s challenge.

At the start of the programme, we hear that Sacha was involved in a horrendous mid-air collision during filming, which left her badly injured and killed her support paramotori­st, Dan Burton.

Joanna explains that their families were still keen for the film to be shown, and it is dedicated to Dan’s memory.

 ?? ?? Sacha flying over the Yorkshire Moors, above, and over Redcar Beach, below
Sacha and Joanna with Dan Burton, who tragically died during filming
Sacha flying over the Yorkshire Moors, above, and over Redcar Beach, below Sacha and Joanna with Dan Burton, who tragically died during filming

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