Edward ('Teddy') Norton was a member of the 1922 Everest expedition and the leader of the 1924 attempt on the mountain.  In 1922, climbing with Mallory and Somervell, he reached a then record height of 26,985ft.  Two years later he set a world record without oxygen of 28,126ft, a record that stood for 54 years.  A few days later, Mallory and Irvine disappeared high on the mountain:  it fell to Norton  to call off the search for them when all hope was lost.  The qualities of leadership which he showed that year in the face of appalling adversities have led to him being regarded as one of the greatest of all Everest expedition leaders.

A man of many parts, Norton was also a naturalist and a fine amateur artist.  His Everest paintings and diaries have recently been published  (Everest Revealed - The Private Diaries and Sketches of Edward Norton, 1922-24, edited by Christopher Norton, History Press, 2014), and a new edition of the expedition book will appear later this year, illustrated with additional documents from his personal Everest archive (The Fight for Everest, 1924, Vertebrate Press, 2015).  The talk will consider some of the new insights into the pioneering Everest expeditions afforded by these previously unpublished sources, and will be illustrated by his watercolours and pencil sketches, which bring the expeditions vividly to life.