At 2100hrs tonight, Tuesday 12 June, BBC4 will be broadcasting a 60-minute documentary covering Ellen MacArthur’s visit to South Georgia as research assistant to a marine biologist to highlight the plight of the albatross.

The documentary features previously unseen footage from Ellen’s two-month visit to South Georgia in December 2005 to pursue a cause close to her heart, the plight of the albatross.

The graceful birds were frequent companions on her solo circumnavigations, but are now facing tough times in the turbulent Southern Ocean. Their numbers are massively in decline at the rate of over 100,000 albatrosses each year, mainly due to long-line fishing. Nineteen of the 21 species of albatross are now endangered, many critically so.