BBC Documentaries

Family Goldmine (2015x59)

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Documentary about a French gold miner and his Scottish wife; their family's quest to start a remote eco-friendly gold mine in Africa with no prior experience. Frenchman Claude Nicolay (62) has no experience whatsoever in the mining business. Yet he has chosen to bring his Scottish wife Moira (60) and their two sons Craig (22) and Pierre (19) to Mali in West Africa on one last family adventure: to start an eco-friendly goldmine. Starting in primitive conditions in a remote mining camp, Claude has acquired a concession of 100 square kilometres with a tiny initial investment of $1m. Learning on the job, he seeks to identify and locate a seam of gold which he is convinced must lie on the land. Claude's mission is to create an eco-friendly enterprise where gold is produced without the use of mercury or cyanide, the land is well cared for, and there is a fair deal with the local (technically illegal) mining community. But reality soon intrudes: mistakes, malaria and mishaps lead to delay and soon the money is on the verge of running out as Claude struggles to protect his mine from a mini gold rush and his family from the onset of war.