Plymouth diver filmed for French TV show

A prime-time French TV show filmed an historic hard hat diver at Living Coasts in Torquay recently.

Ray Ives, from Plymouth, is well-known in diving circles.

The retired commercial diver, aged 79, previously went diving with the penguins to mark Living Coasts’ 10th birthday in 2013.

He used an old diving suit dating from the 1900s and a heavy brass helmet from the 1930s. Hand-driven pumps fed air to him down a hose.

Thalassa is one of the long-running and most popular programmes on French TV.

Shown every Friday on France 3, the French public channel, it is entirely focused on the sea – Thalassa is ancient Greek for sea.