Arctic genius : Sir William Edward Parry : the original Arctic explorer

"This is the life of a forgotten hero. He joined the Royal Navy at the age of 13, endured years of arduous patrol duty in the English Channel, the Baltic and on the coast of North America, and became a pioneer of British Arctic exploration. He led four expeditions over ten years culminating in a failed attempt to reach the North Pole over land. Parry became an international celebrity. He and John Franklin, his close friend, made headline news frequently. The British public were absorbed by the Arctic regions with their mystical reputation whilst the explorers, marvelling at the sculpted icebergs, strange meteorological events and the inexplicable display of the Northern Lights, developed a spiritual relationship amounting to near obcession."