Did Mallory Make it to the Top of Everest First?
Episode of Stuff You Should Know · September 6, 2022 · 52 min
Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant recount George Mallory's 1920s Everest expeditions and debate whether he and Sandy Irvine reached the summit in 1924.
Summary
Josh Clark and Chuck Bryant told the story of George Mallory, the British schoolteacher and mountaineer who took part in the first three British expeditions to Mount Everest. They described how Everest was identified as the world's tallest mountain in 1852, the formation of the Mount Everest Committee, the 1921 reconnaissance expedition that mapped the North Col route, and the 1922 attempt in which seven Sherpa died in an avalanche. The hosts emphasized the primitive equipment of the era and noted the often-overlooked role of Sherpa porters.
They then covered the 1924 expedition, including the selection of engineering student Andrew "Sandy" Irvine for his skill with oxygen apparatus, Edward Norton's near-record climb, and geologist Noel Odell's final sighting of two figures on the Northeast Ridge before clouds closed in. Odell's search efforts and the signal of sleeping bags laid in a cross marking the climbers' deaths were recounted.
In the final section, the hosts reviewed evidence gathered since: Irvine's ice axe found in 1933, a Chinese climber's reported 1975 sighting of an English body, a 1991 oxygen bottle find, and the 1999 discovery of Mallory's body. Bryant argued the question of whether Mallory summited remains genuinely unsettled, pointing to the missing photograph of his wife he had vowed to leave at the top; Clark highlighted the missing Kodak Vest Pocket camera and rumors that Chinese climbers recovered Irvine's body. The episode closed with listener mail on the origin of "stop" in telegrams.
Chapters
- 1:16
Introducing George Mallory
The hosts introduce Mallory, Sandy Irvine, and the early, improvised nature of mountaineering.
- 5:10
Measuring and naming Everest
Discussion of the 1852 survey by Radhanath Sikdar, the naming after George Everest, and the difficulty of even reaching the mountain.
- 8:28
The 1921 reconnaissance expedition
The Mount Everest Committee's scouting trip maps the North Col route still used today.
- 19:10
Glaciers, camps and the 'third pole'
The hosts explain glacier hazards, the importance of high camps, why Everest attracted explorers, and Mallory's 'because it's there' quote.
- 26:01
Oxygen and the 1922 attempt
Mallory's skepticism of bottled oxygen, the 1922 climb to 26,800 feet, the avalanche that killed seven Sherpa, and assessments of Mallory as flighty.
- 31:36
The 1924 expedition
Irvine joins for his oxygen expertise, Norton nearly reaches the summit, and Mallory sets out with Irvine on the final attempt.
- 43:44
Odell's sighting and the search
Noel Odell sees two figures on the ridge, searches for days, and signals their deaths.
- 48:30
Weighing the evidence
The hosts debate the first vs. second step sighting, Irvine's ice axe, the Chinese sighting, and the 1999 discovery of Mallory's body.
- 55:56
Missing photo and camera
The missing photo of Mallory's wife and missing Vest Pocket camera fuel theories that Mallory summited or that China concealed evidence.
- 59:17
Listener mail
A listener corrects a myth about the use of 'stop' in telegrams.
Key points
What was said, by whom, with the exact words. Timestamps jump to the moment.
Linked moment · 1:50Skip to 1:50 using a listen link in the info box.
Chuck BryantBryant considers whether Mallory reached Everest's summit to be an unsettled mystery.
“And the great mystery, to me, unsettled mystery, on whether or not he ever made it to the top of Everest”
- Chuck Bryant
Bryant argues that reaching Everest was most of the challenge compared with climbing the peak itself.
“Getting to Everest and climbing it is like ascending the peak is one thing, but just getting to that point is, I don't know, 90% of the battle”
- Josh Clark
Clark says the North Col route mapped in 1921 is still used by climbers approaching from Tibet.
“you still use that route that these guys mapped in 1921”
- Josh Clark
Clark explains Everest's appeal as the 'third pole', the last frontier after both poles were reached.
“Everest itself was considered the third pole. Because people had already made it to the South Pole and the North Pole”
- Chuck Bryant
Bryant interprets Mallory's risk-taking as tenacity overriding good judgment rather than inherent carelessness.
“I think it was a little more his tenacious attitude sort of overrode good sense sometimes is the way I took it”
- Josh Clark
Clark believes Mallory was flighty, citing that he loaded the 1922 expedition's camera film backwards.
“he was in charge of the camera for the 1922 expedition, and apparently he put the film in backwards but was taking pictures the whole time”
- Josh Clark
Clark says Irvine was chosen partly because as an engineering student he could improve the oxygen apparatus.
“being an engineering student, he could fiddle and fuss with the oxygen apparatus”
- Chuck Bryant
Bryant disputes the idea that there is a consensus Mallory never reached the top, saying debate continues.
“I don't think that's true at all. I think there is still debate on whether or not they actually made it to the top”
- Josh Clark
Clark argues Odell was a highly reliable eyewitness because he was a geologist with excellent eyesight.
“So those two things combined make it seem like he was probably the best possible eyewitness around”
- Josh Clark
Clark says the consensus is that if Mallory cleared the Second Step, he definitely reached the summit.
“If he made the second step, he definitely summited. That seems to be what the consensus is”
- Josh Clark
Clark relays a climber's view that the snapped rope suggests Mallory sent Irvine back and attempted the summit alone.
“So that suggested that Mallory had sent Irvine back and tried to make the summit himself”
Listen from 55:43 · Discovery of George Mallory's body (1999)
- Chuck Bryant
Bryant finds the absence of the photo of Mallory's wife on his well-preserved body a notable clue that he may have summited.
“considering everything was found really in good condition on him and that he didn't have it is pretty interesting to think about”
Listen from 56:52 · Discovery of George Mallory's body (1999)
- Josh Clark
Clark says finding the missing camera could let modern techniques develop its film and resolve the mystery.
“it's possible using modern techniques that you could develop that film and solve this mystery once and for all”
People
In the conversation
- Josh ClarkCo-host of Stuff You Should Know
- Chuck BryantCo-host of Stuff You Should Know
Discussed
- George MalloryEnglish mountaineer who died on Everest in 1924
- Andrew IrvineEnglish engineering student and climber who died with Mallory on Everest in 1924
- Noel OdellEnglish geologist and mountaineer, last to see Mallory and Irvine alive
- Edmund HillaryNew Zealand mountaineer who, with Tenzing Norgay, made the first confirmed ascent of Everest in 1953
- Tenzing NorgaySherpa mountaineer who made the first confirmed ascent of Everest with Hillary
- Edward NortonBritish army officer who reached within about 1,000 feet of Everest's summit in 1924
- Howard SomervellBritish surgeon and climber on the 1924 Everest expedition
- Tom LongstaffBritish doctor on the 1922 Everest expedition
- George FinchAustralian-born climber and oxygen advocate on the 1922 expedition
- Radhanath SikdarIndian mathematician and surveyor who calculated Everest's height
- George EverestBritish Surveyor General of India after whom the mountain was named
- Wang HongbaoChinese climber who reported seeing an English body on Everest in 1975
- Eric ShiptonBritish mountaineer who photographed supposed Yeti footprints in 1951
Topics
- 1924 British Mount Everest expedition
- Mount Everest
- Discovery of George Mallory's body (1999)
- 1921 British Mount Everest reconnaissance expedition
- 1922 British Mount Everest expedition
- Supplemental oxygen in mountaineering
- Second Step (Mount Everest)
- Vest Pocket Kodak
- Sherpa people
- North Col
- Yeti
- Telegram use of 'stop'
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From the publisher
George Mallory was a member of the first three European expeditions to Everest, world’s tallest mountain. He wanted to summit it so badly, he gave his life trying. Since that fateful day in 1924, climbers have wondered – was Mallory the first to summit? See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
Summary, chapters and key points were generated from the episode transcript on September 28, 2026. Quotes are checked word for word against the transcript.