David Webb (born 26 April 1935) is an English filmmaker, caver and conservationist. He has produced over a dozen films about

caving Caving, also known as spelunking (United States and Canada) and potholing (United Kingdom and Ireland), is the recreational pastime of exploring wild cave systems (as distinguished from show caves). In contrast, speleology is the scientific ...

and

mine Mine, mines, miners or mining may refer to: Extraction or digging *Miner, a person engaged in mining or digging *Mining, extraction of mineral resources from the ground through a mine Grammar *Mine, a first-person English possessive pronoun M ...

exploration (mostly in the

Derbyshire Derbyshire ( ) is a ceremonial county in the East Midlands of England. It borders Greater Manchester, West Yorkshire, and South Yorkshire to the north, Nottinghamshire to the east, Leicestershire to the south-east, Staffordshire to the south a ...

region) and has contributed articles to ''

Descent Descent may refer to: As a noun Genealogy and inheritance * Common descent, concept in evolutionary biology * Kinship, one of the major concepts of cultural anthropology **Pedigree chart or family tree **Ancestry **Lineal descendant **Heritage ** ...

'' magazine.

Early and personal life

Originally from

Grimsby Grimsby or Great Grimsby is a port town in Lincolnshire, England with a population of 86,138 (as of 2021). It is located near the mouth on the south bank of the Humber that flows to the North Sea. Grimsby adjoins the town of Cleethorpes dir ...

, Webb graduated in

pharmacy Pharmacy is the science and practice of discovering, producing, preparing, dispensing, reviewing and monitoring medications, aiming to ensure the safe, effective, and affordable use of medication, medicines. It is a miscellaneous science as it ...

and remained in pharmacy management up until his retirement. In 1958, he was called up for national service in charge of medical stores and dispensary at a hospital in

Malaysia Malaysia is a country in Southeast Asia. Featuring the Tanjung Piai, southernmost point of continental Eurasia, it is a federation, federal constitutional monarchy consisting of States and federal territories of Malaysia, 13 states and thre ...

during the

Malayan Emergency The Malayan Emergency, also known as the Anti–British National Liberation War, was a guerrilla warfare, guerrilla war fought in Federation of Malaya, Malaya between communist pro-independence fighters of the Malayan National Liberation Arm ...

. Webb later moved to

Nottingham Nottingham ( , East Midlands English, locally ) is a City status in the United Kingdom, city and Unitary authorities of England, unitary authority area in Nottinghamshire, East Midlands, England. It is located south-east of Sheffield and nor ...

with his family in 1963.

Films

Webb's films have been presented to outdoor enthusiasts and made available in museums, caving shops and visitor centres across Derbyshire. Extracts from his films have been televised on programmes such as ''

The One Show ''The One Show'' is a British television magazine and chat show programme. Broadcast live on BBC One weekdays at 7:00 pm, it features topical stories and studio guests. It is currently co-hosted by Alex Jones, Roman Kemp, Ronan Keating ...

'' and ''

Countryfile ''Countryfile'' is a British television programme which airs weekly on BBC One and reports on rural, agricultural, and environmental issues. The programme is currently presented by John Craven, Adam Henson, Matt Baker, Tom Heap, Ellie Har ...

''. He has been a regular feature at the Hidden Earth caving conference. Webb is particularly known for his film ''Fight For Life: The Neil Moss Story'' about the death of Neil Moss in

Peak Cavern The Peak Cavern, also known as the Devil's Arse, is one of the four show caves in Castleton, Derbyshire, England. Peakshole Water flows through and out of the cave, which has the largest cave entrance in Britain. Overview Unlike the other s ...

in 1959. The film is notable for its detailed account of the rescue attempt and interviews with individuals who were present at the rescue operation. His film ''To Titan From The Top'' documented a three-year dig by Dave 'Moose" Nixon and team as they attempted to excavate a direct path from above to the deepest cave in Britain:

Titan Titan most often refers to: * Titan (moon), the largest moon of Saturn * Titans, a race of deities in Greek mythology Titan or Titans may also refer to: Arts and entertainment Fictional entities Fictional locations * Titan in fiction, fictiona ...

near Castleton,

Peak District The Peak District is an Highland, upland area in central-northern England, at the southern end of the Pennines. Mostly in Derbyshire, it extends into Cheshire, Greater Manchester, Staffordshire, West Yorkshire and South Yorkshire. It is subdivi ...

. After inheriting the 1968 film ''Underground Journey'' on

16mm 16 mm film is a historically popular and economical gauge of film. 16 mm refers to the width of the film (about inch); other common film gauges include 8 mm and 35 mm. It is generally used for non-theatrical (e.g., industrial, ...

, Webb undertook its digitisation and subsequent DVD production which includes an interview with expedition leader Doug Nash. Webb was commissioned by the Ecton Hill Field Studies Association to produce a film of the

Ecton Mines A group of mines on Ecton Hill, Staffordshire, are unusual for the Peak District in producing predominantly copper rather than lead and zinc. The most important, Deep Ecton mine, has been mined since the Bronze Age, and in the 18th century was ...

as a record of this historic site.

Conservation work

As Conservation Officer for the Derbyshire Caving Association (DCA) he played an integral role in setting up the

Site of Special Scientific Interest A Site of Special Scientific Interest (SSSI) in Great Britain, or an Area of Special Scientific Interest (ASSI) in the Isle of Man and Northern Ireland, is a conservation designation denoting a protected area in the United Kingdom and Isle ...

Monitoring Scheme for

Natural England Natural England is a non-departmental public body in the United Kingdom sponsored by the Department for Environment, Food and Rural Affairs. It is responsible for ensuring that England's natural environment, including its land, flora and fauna, ...

which audited the special features of 67 caves in the Peak District. This led to it being the first region in the U.K. to complete the monitoring of cave SSIs, for which Webb and the DCA received an award. With the help of volunteer cavers, Webb oversaw the removal of accumulated waste at various cave sites throughout the county, rendering them to an 'acceptable condition' after years of neglect. As well as implementing the Cave Conservation Monitoring Scheme, he also coordinated regular meetings of landowners, caving instructors and representatives from organisations such as the

National Trust The National Trust () is a heritage and nature conservation charity and membership organisation in England, Wales and Northern Ireland. The Trust was founded in 1895 by Octavia Hill, Sir Robert Hunter and Hardwicke Rawnsley to "promote the ...

English Heritage English Heritage (officially the English Heritage Trust) is a charity that manages over 400 historic monuments, buildings and places. These include prehistoric sites, a battlefield, medieval castles, Roman forts, historic industrial sites, Lis ...

Bat Conservation Trust The Bat Conservation Trust (BCT) is a registered British charity dedicated to the conservation of bats and their habitats in the UK. BCT was founded in 1991 and is the only national organisation solely devoted to bats. Its vision is a world where ...

and

Awards

In 2000, the Film and Video Institute awarded Webb the title LACI for his standard of filmmaking. In 2012, Webb won the prestigious Giles Barker Award in recognition of excellence in his work in cave videography for over 20 years.

Filmography A-Z

* ''Bagshawe Resurgence: A Source of Potential'' * ''Darfar Ridge Cave: A Conservation Project'' * ''Ecton Stone Quarry Mine'' * ''Fight For Life: The Neil Moss Story'' * ''Goodluck Mine: A Living Legacy'' * ''A Guided Tour of Temple Mine'' * ''Hidden Hydraulics: Sir Francis Level'' * ''Mow Cop: Tunnels and Tramways'' * ''Mud & Water'' * ''Overton Mine: A Mine and its Miners'' * ''Tearsall Pipe Caverns'' * ''The High Rake Lead Mine Dig: Reclaiming a Legacy'' * ''The Hollow Hill: The Story of the Ecton Mines'' * ''To Titan From The Top'' * ''Underground Journey'' * ''When Streams Run Dry: P8 in Drought'' * ''White River Series: A Conservation Audit'' * ''Wild Majorca (Sun, Sea and Stalagmites / Torrente De Pareis)''

External links

David Webb official websiteDerbyshire Caving AssociationGoodluck MineMasson Caving GroupThe Peak District Mines Historical Society

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Webb, David 1935 births Living people British cavers English conservationists English filmmakers Mining