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History Daily

Philippe Petit Walks Between The Twin Towers - Original

History Daily

Airship | Noiser | Wondery

History

4.42.1K Ratings

🗓️ 7 August 2023

⏱️ 18 minutes

🧾️ Download transcript

Summary

August 7, 1974. Philippe Petit walks on a high wire between the newly built twin towers of the World Trade Center in New York City.


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Transcript

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0:00.0

There are more ways than ever to listen to History Daily ad free.

0:04.0

Listen with Wundry Plus in the Wundry app.

0:06.0

As a member of Noiser Plus at Noiser.com or in Apple Podcasts,

0:10.0

or you can get all of History Daily plus other fantastic history podcasts at the Sydney Harbor Bridge.

0:30.4

It's a clear day in the busiest city in Australia, and commuters are making their way to work.

0:35.0

But once these cars hit the bridge, they find they're going nowhere.

0:39.0

The reason for the traffic jam becomes clear to anyone looking up.

0:43.4

Between the bridge's 89 foot high pylons, the impossible seems to be taking place.

0:49.3

Dressed in black from head to toe, French performance artist Felipe Peti clutches tightly to the balancing

0:55.2

pole in his hands as he steps onto a thin rope that he hopes will support his weight.

1:01.0

After less than a week of planning, the High Wire Trapeze artist is carrying out his plan to amaze Sydney's residents with an illegal tightrope walk between the northern pylons of the city's iconic bridge.

1:12.0

It's a daring venture.

1:13.7

Philippe has no safety net. If he slips, he'll likely die.

1:17.8

The cable reacts to his first footstep with an ugly cry of metal tensing.

1:23.7

He pauses for a second as his pole angles to the left,

1:26.9

threatening to take him off the line.

1:29.1

But he corrects his posture and then continues crossing.

1:32.8

The silver gulls that encircle the bridge look on puzzled by the human presence so high up,

1:38.6

and down below a bigger audience stirs.

1:41.9

To those in the cars on the Sydney Harbor Bridge it appears as if a man is

1:45.4

floating in the air. Many can't believe what they're seeing and stop their vehicles for a better

1:50.8

view. On his second journey across,

...

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