From the first successful crossing of the English Channel by Captain Matthew Webb, there has been a fascination with long distance swimming. For several years BBC NI Sport had been seeking an opportunity to reflect this in a documentary. The dilemma had always been the waiting time for favourable conditions with less than 12 hours notice given. That would require a small, flexible team on standby with DV cameras and sea sickness tablets. The North Channel swim from Scotland to Ireland is the same distance as The English Channel,21 miles. There the comparisons end. The North Channel is colder, has bigger jellyfish and worse currents. It is ‘The Everest of Swims’. Only a handful have completed the crossing. This documentary chronicles the history of the swim and the contrasting fortunes of an ambitious but raw young American and a grizzled veteran from Somerset.