A one-hour documentary on Channel swimmers and their coaches will be shown tonight (Monday).

Swim the Channel will broadcast on BBC Four at 9pm.

It looks into the community who every summer strive to swim the English Channel, training at the Dover Harbour beach.

Captain Matthew Webb, in 1875,was the first man to do it but since then more people have climbed to the top of Mount Everest than successfully swim across the Channel.

It remains the ultimate open water swimming challenge and participants are allow no physical aids or wetsuits.

They just have goggles, bathing cap and grease to stop chafing.

The programme also focuses on pensioners Freda, Irene and Barry who every May to September in Dover train, feed and grease the swimmers.

It also explains the role of pilots who navigate the swimmers safely through the busiest shipping lane in the world.
The documentary was made over two years and includes archive footage of Dover and Channel swimming in the past.

Swim the Channel was produced and directed by Steph Kelan and Emmar Harpin and made by Mother Hen Films with S+O Media.