First circumnavigation via both Poles, surface

The first surface circumnavigation via both the geographical Poles was achieved by Sir Ranulph Fiennes and Charles Burton (both UK) of the British Trans-Globe Expedition. They travelled south from Greenwich, London, UK on 2 September 1979, crossed the South Pole on 15 December 1980, the North Pole on 10 April 1982, and returned to Greenwich on 29 August 1982 after a 56,000 km (35,000 mile) journey.

Sir Ranulph Fiennes discusses his experiences of climbing Everest in our 60th anniversary video below.