'Epic' biopic of mountaineer Alan's towering achievements

STARRING ROLE: Alan Hinkes

A BIOPIC of dale mountaineer Alan Hinkes is to premiere in October next year.
Filming of the 55-minute documentary about the first British man to have climbed the world’s 14 highest peaks began in the Lake District in August this year.
The movie, by outdoor filmmaker Terry Abraham, covers Mr Hinkes’ life and how he became the first British climber to summit all of the world’s peaks over 8000m.
The climber has previously featured in Mr Abraham’s Life of a Mountain series covering Scafell Pike and Blencathra.
Filming has already taken place at Roseberry Topping, in North Yorkshire, Little Chamonix, in Borrowdale, and Great Langdale, also in the Lake District. Mr Hinkes’ interest in mountain climbing began at an early age while growing up in Northallerton, North Yorkshire, and he described being attracted to the “wild, rugged hilly landscape” when on family drives into the Yorkshire Dales or North Yorks Moors. He said: “I knew from the first time that I went out into the moors that the hills were where I wanted to be. It was a kind of calling.”
He progressed to the Alps where he climbed the classic big routes such as the Matterhorn, Mont Blanc and the north face of the Eiger.
By the mid-1980s Mr Hinkes resigned from teaching and took up Himalayan climbing and qualified as a British Mountain Guide, enabling him to make a living out of the mountains he loved. He now lives near Barnard Castle.
Mr Abraham said: “I’m so excited about this documentary. It’s going to be epic, but very human and intimate too.
“I am absolutely thrilled this project is finally happening. I’ll admit it’s been on the cards for quite some time but I was just waiting for the right time in my heart and soul to execute the vision I have in mind to do Alan'’ life justice.
“The documentary will be filmed UK wide and abroad and should prove entertaining, inspiring and insightful into what makes Alan tick.”
The project is being sponsored by Scandinavian outdoors brand Fjällräven.
A spokesperson for the company said: “As well as experiencing success and climbing difficult, dangerous peaks, Alan has had a few close shaves and near death experiences.”
The biopic, titled Alan Hinkes OBE, is due to premiere on IMAX at the Rheged Centre in Penrith on Saturday, October 14, 2017.