Shackleton’s Cabin (BBC Four Monday 18 December 2023)

On 5 January 1922, Antarctic explorer Ernest Shackleton died aboard The Quest. His cabin, saved from destruction, is now being restored by master craftsman Sven Habermann for a BBC Four documentary airing Monday 18 December 2023 at 8.10pm.

Restoring Shackleton’s Legacy

BBC Four will air a documentary called “Shackleton’s Cabin” on Monday, 18 December 2023 at 8:10pm. The documentary follows master craftsman and Shackleton enthusiast Sven Habermann as he painstakingly restores Ernest Shackleton’s cabin to its former glory. Shackleton was a world-famous Antarctic explorer who died of a heart attack in his cabin aboard The Quest during his final expedition to the South Pole on 5 January 1922.

After Shackleton’s death, The Quest was broken apart, but one of the dockers removed Shackleton’s cabin and took it home, where it served as his family’s garden shed for three generations. Nearly 100 years after Shackleton’s death, the cabin has been donated to a museum in the explorer’s hometown, where Sven Habermann is working on rebuilding it.

Only one surviving photograph of the cabin’s interior exists, so Sven is going to extreme lengths to retrace every detail, from the wood to the original wallpaper used. The documentary offers viewers a unique insight into the life and final days of the legendary explorer, as Sven reconstructs the cabin and explores Shackleton’s legacy.