Comedy icon Joanna Lumley pursues a life-long dream to track down the elusive and beautiful Northern Lights. She travels North across the Arctic Circle, up through Norway and finally to Svalbard, the most northerly permanently inhabited place on Earth, where she has to cope with temperatures approaching minus 30° C. Joanna’s journey takes her from train to boat and huskysled to snowmobile as she is pulled ever northwards and finally, in a breathtaking climax to the film, Joanna gets to see with her own eyes the spectacular beauty of the Northern Lights. As seen on ABC1.
Acting
Joanna's genuine gasp at first sight of aurora—unscripted perfection.
Cinematography
That green sky rippling like curtains in a cosmic breeze.
Production
Minus 30° filming—crew suffering so we don't have to.
Director
Archie Baron
Trivia, insights & behind the scenes
Director Archie Baron had to scrap three nights of aurora footage because Joanna's reaction wasn't emotional enough—her authentic gasp was worth the wait.
This 2008 special helped spark a tourism boom to Svalbard; local guides still reference 'the Joanna effect' when British visitors arrive.
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