The bungee trailblazers
QUESTION
When was the first bungee jump? The Oxford University Dangerous Sports Club was formed by a group of thrillseeking students in the late Seventies.
The members were dedicated to formal dress, wild parties and imaginatively insane stunts such as sending a grand piano down the slopes of Saint-Moritz, bike racing down the Matterhorn and skateboarding with the bulls in Pamplona.
The club was led by burly, bearded adventurer David Kirke, with co-founders Chris Baker, ed hulton and Alan Weston.
They went on to pioneer hang gliding and bungee jumping and initiated the modern craze for extreme sports.
The bungee jump was inspired by a combination of the Clifton Suspension Bridge and an ancient New Guinea ritual.
The bridge, 245ft above the river Avon between Bristol and Clifton, is a notorious suicide spot. In 1979, Chris Baker was living close to the bridge when he conceived the new ‘sport’ for the club.
he recalled: ‘I remembered that at school we were shown a film of New Guinea vine jumpers who would build these bamboo towers, tie one end of the vine to the tower, the other to their ankle, and dive off.’
The group already had large quantities of bungee cord available to tie the club’s hang gliders to the car roof.
The attempt was scheduled for April 1, 1979, and was preceded by a major party. Unfortunately for Baker, he was still getting out of his tails when the others descended on the bridge at 6 am to take the leap.
Kirke led the way and had alerted the Daily Mail, which photographed the event. A camera crew was also on hand. ‘We want to trigger a worldwide craze,’ he told the Mail. ‘That’s our master plan.’
In 2014, the BBC’s Inside Out programme tracked down film footage of the event, unseen for decades.
It showed the Dangerous Sports Club practising in a garage on the morning of the jump.
Kirke then jumped off the bridge in top hat and tails with champagne in his hand (which fell out on the way), followed by Simon Keeling going over the edge in the second jump.
The final section of the video shows Kirke being placed in the back of a police car.
The jumpers were arrested but released on the promise they would never do it again. They continued with jumps in the U.S., from the Golden Gate Bridge and Colorado’s Royal Gorge Bridge, the latter being filmed for the TV programme That’s Incredible!
A bungee tour of Britain followed, helping spread the concept worldwide.
Jim Oliver, Bath, Somerset.
QUESTION
Further to the question regarding the most Oscar winners in one film, which film featured the most knights and lords? ThIS award goes to the 1977 film A Bridge Too Far, in which six knighted actors appeared: Sirs Dirk Bogarde, Laurence Olivier, Sean Connery, Richard Attenborough, Anthony hopkins and Michael Caine.
At the time of release, only Olivier (knighted in 1947) and Attenborough (1976) had knighthoods.
The film in which the most knights appeared when it was made was the World War II multi-cast movie The Battle of Britain (1969) with Laurence Olivier, Michael Redgrave and Ralph Richardson.
It also featured Michael Caine. There were three knights in Lord of the Rings: Sirs Christopher Lee, Ian McKellen and Ian holm. Danny Darcy, Reading, Berks.
QUESTION
Has any couple ever divorced after their golden wedding anniversary? The world record for the longest marriage ending in divorce went to an Italian couple in 2011. They were married for an incredible 77 years.
The 99-year-old Italian man, known to the courts as Antonio C, filed for divorce after uncovering letters that revealed his wife, 97-year-old Rosa T, had had an affair in the Forties.
The couple had tied the knot in Naples in 1934, where Antonio met Rosa after being sent there to serve in the carabinieri paramilitary police. But she had a secret affair ten years later.
Perhaps believing the 60 years that had passed would be enough to forgive her indiscretion, Rosa admitted to the affair and attempted to salvage the marriage, reminding Antonio of their five children, 12 grandchildren and great-grandchild. It did not sway Antonio. Ultimately Rosa did not contest the divorce.
Edward Morehouse, Chester.
QUESTION
Is it true that because of a sixth sense no animals are ever washed up by a tsunami? FURTheR to the earlier answer, as a professional biologist who was present on Malaysia’s Pulau Pinang island when the Indian Ocean Tsunami of Boxing Day 2004 rolled up the beach, I feel that I can contribute.
I can confirm that many animals can be killed by a tsunami. I felt an earthquake at about 9am local time. At about 1pm I saw a large wave on the horizon and, realising what was coming, moved off the beach and up to the second floor of my hotel.
Pulau Pinang was spared the worst of the catastrophic tsunami. It is to the east of Sumatra and was shielded from the epicentre at Banda Aceh.
however, the coastal zone suffered damage to homes and infrastructure and some human deaths. The beaches in the main tourist areas were soon cleaned up by hotel staff and municipal workers. The more remote beaches were not cleaned up.
Within a few days, these remote beaches, such as those in the Taman Negara nature reserve, were closed off because of the appalling smell of rotting fish carcasses.
Also present was a range of other marine animals. Some land animals may be able to avoid the effects of a tsunami, but the animals in the sea certainly suffered.
David Francis, MRSB CBiol, Northampton Is there a question to which you have always wanted to know the answer? Or do you know the answer to a question raised here? Send your questions and answers to: Charles Legge, Answers To Correspondents, Scottish Daily Mail, 20 Waterloo Street, Glasgow G2 6DB. You can also fax them to 0141 331 4739 or you can e-mail them to charles. legge@dailymail.co.uk. A selection will be published but we are not able to enter into individual correspondence.