A NEW documentary film will chronicle the life of the late Maryport-born rock climber and artist Bill Peascod.

The film, called At Home in the Steep Places, has been commissioned by The Settlement at Castle Hill in Maryport and should be out on May 5 this year.

The film will include interviews with people who knew and worked with Bill, and a mixture of shots of the Cumbrian landscape he once called home.

Director Steve Wharton said: “If you look at the whole of his life, you can see that he was never afraid to take on new challenges.

“He was always happy to be an apprentice to a new craft and he applied himself to mining, climbing, teaching and painting.”

Mr Wharton, who also co-presents the podcast 28 Dales Later, said Bill was “someone you could identify with” and had been a real inspiration for him growing up.

Mr Wharton added: “Like many people who grew up in the fringes of the Lake District around Cumbria, it was a long time before I discovered and started to enjoy the Fells.

“I think that part of his story of discovery will resonate with a lot of people in Cumbria.

Bill Peascod, who was born in 1920 and died in 1985, was also famous for being one of Britain’s first rock climbers.

Mr Wharton hopes it will be safe enough for the film to be shown in Maryport and schools across Cumbria, but added: “we will just have to wait and see.”