Description: A hand picks an old volume of Samuel Pepys diary from a bookshelf. Handel's Water Music plays (used frequently throughout the film). An actor begins to read the entry for 7/12/1663, concerning a high tide which had flooded Whitehall. Portrait of Samuel Pepys c.1673. Aerial view of London, with St James Park at the centre, and the domed roof of the Methodist Central Hall towards the right. Aerial view eastwards along the River Thames, with the Houses of Parliament partially visible to the left of Westminster Bridge. The title and production credit are added. The narrator describes the river and says that it seems harmless, but is still a danger. Reflection of Tower Bridge, tilting to show the bridge above. More distant view of Tower Bridge, with dark warehouses and a wharf on the south bank in the foreground. The Houses of Parliament, filmed from the south bank (now The Queen's Walk), with moored pleasure cruise boats. Albert Bridge, filmed from the shore of the north bank, with small moored power boats.

Distant view of Kew Bridge, filmed across the shore and river from Strand-on-the-Green, with the Victorian standpipe of the (then) Kew Bridge Steam Museum visible. Rural-looking view of the Thames, perhaps a bit further upstream, filmed from the river shore. Closer view of the river and shore, with ducks, probably near Kew Bridge. Partial view of the Bull's Head pub at 15 Strand-on-the-Green, filmed from the river shore. A middle-aged woman, a teenage boy and a dog walk past the raised doorstep and doorway flood barrier of (I think) 49 Strand-on-the-Green.

Aerial view of the Thames and its south bank, from Blackfriars Bridge to London Bridge, including the tower of Bankside Power station. The narrator says that the city could be paralyzed if the river overflowed. Two trendy young women with black prams eat ice-creams between a flood warning sign and an ice-cream van, probably on The Embankment in Twickenham. In a pram, a young toddler mouths a plastic dummy or toy. River water laps at a smart granite embankment wall; and at embankment steps. The narrator comments on the river's historical menace to London. Partial views of two engravings from the Illustrated London News of 27/11/1875. The first includes men and women wading (the latter carrying children), as crates float outside crowded tenement buildings at Southampton Street in Covent Garden. In the second, men carry a woman and a crate near the edge of the flood water in muddy submerged gardens behind residential buildings in Wandsworth Road, Lambeth.

The narrator says that tide levels have been increasing steadily. Pictures of the Thames and its banks in the area around St Paul's Cathedral over time, each overlaid with a rippling, and sometimes surging, blue band at the base showing increases in high tide water levels and related defence levels. Begins with a partial orange-tinted copy of the early C18th engraving "A Prospect of the City of London"; then a pink-tinted engraving of the north bank from Somerset House to St Paul's; an orange-tinted drawing of the Thames with Southwark and London Bridges; an indistinct dark view of the river with smoking chimneys and tall buildings; then three tinted photographs - one dark aerial view, one pink and another dark blue. The narrator says that London's defences were overtopped in 1928 and 1953, and consequently improved in 1930 and 1972, but that this is not a permanent solution. The blue band is removed to leave a bar chart showing a clear linear progression of high tide levels. The narrator asks when the total flood disaster will occur. A siren wails, as the bar chart moves towards a large "?".

A wall plaque on the corner of Church Lane and Riverside in Twickenham shows the extraordinary 1774 high tide level, the camera panning and tilting downwards to show a couple of women with young children walking towards the riverside, past a man in a grey suit. Zoom in from the river shore towards the (then) orange plastic sign of The Dove pub, 19 Upper Mall, Hammersmith. A pint of beer slightly overflows at the tap, and is removed. A brass plaque at the bar shows the 1928 high tide mark.

The narrator introduces a 1928 b&w Pathe Gazette newsreel, with a rousing silent film score. Title card saying 14 people died in Central London floods. Men build up sandbag defences, perhaps by the Victoria Embankment at Westminster. Men work on riverside defences behind a broken up road - probably Grosvenor Road or Chelsea Embankment - and a couple of policemen arrive. Two women sweep water from their front door steps, one accompanied (I think) by an appalled cat. A couple of women buy something at the protected door of a newsagent's, and wade away. Men, women and children cross plank bridges over the floodwater, supervised by a man in the water. Four men try to push an Austin 2-seat Tourer car through the floodwaters, while behind them, a man stands on a stationary flat horse cart. A woman swims below a crowded plank bridge. Title card querying when the Moat at the Tower of London last flooded. Hazy pictures of the full moat and walls.

Newspaper articles and headlines about floods. The narrator comments that the problem has become worse.

View across the fields of Canvey island towards the oil storage depot at Hole Haven. The narrator introduces b&w news footage of the Canvey Island flood of 31/1/53-1/2/53. Aerial views. A herd of cattle surrounded by water. Flooded land and houses across the eastern side of Canvey Island, with the area centred on Newlands Road in the foreground. A flooded caravan park (probably Thorney Bay). The flooded south-eastern area, including the Ozonia Hotel on Seaview Road and the nearby crenellated Beach House. A newsreader says that the initial torrent killed over 100 people and left several hundred missing. Stirring background music plays. He praises those involved in the rescue operation. Two policemen row a boat. A soldier carries a child on a flooded residential road. PC Bill Pilgrim carries a young girl, Judy Taggart, near vehicles (a bus, a van etc) perhaps near the Police Station on Long Road. Police and soldiers punt a rowing boat around a corner, probably from Hindles Road into Brandenburg Road, as they are passed by two men in a rowing boat. Soldiers pull boats full of flood evacuees; and then help them off a boat and onto a bus. A staff sergeant and another man help a limping woman who has disembarked. A heavily-wrapped body on a stretcher is loaded into a vehicle, while in the foreground a lady in a fur coat seems to fall as she is let go. Another body on a stretcher is loaded onto an ambulance at their base by the junction of Syderveldt Road and Long Road. An injured man is loaded onto a vehicle. Flood water and houses - perhaps the Amid/ Miltsin area shot from the counter-wall in Dovervelt Rd to the west of Nevada Rd.

Close-up of the embankment stairway near the base of Battersea Bridge, turning to show a view eastwards along the river shore, towards Albert Bridge and Cadogan Pier. The narrator re-iterates the importance of defences, using a simplified map of London and the Thames to demonstrate the effect of a 1ft. increase in water levels. He says that everyone in Britain could be affected. Men in dark suits walk to work, probably along or near Parliament Square, with a couple of buses (a 53 and a 76) in the background. Commuters get onto a bus. Entrance to Westminster Underground Station on Victoria Embankment, with a view of Hungerford Bridge and the Royal Festival Hall in the background. The narrator talks about the potential effects of flooding on transport, power supplies, hospitals, factories, government and people. Camera tilts to show the chimney of Bankside Power Station, and adjoining buildings (possibly in Park St). A ship passes three large industrial chimneys and associated buildings by the river. The Royal Horseguards Hotel and the busy road at Victoria Embankment, as buses, cars, lorries, taxis etc. pass by. View down the busy Victoria Embankment road towards Big Ben, as a Rolls Royce turns the corner towards Derby Gate (unseen). Closer frontal view of traffic on a sunny day, which then stops to let vehicles cross from the right.

The narrator talks about weather conditions causing storm surges at high tide. Waves crash onto rocks. Peaceful view of a river boat on the Thames in the rain. Close-up of a man taking a photo. The narrator says that London is slowly sinking. Relaxed pedestrians and a cyclist cross Westminster Bridge. View along Victoria Embankment, taken from close to the river (perhaps a mooring bridge, pontoon or vessel). View of County Hall, from across the river and road at Victoria Embankment, with light traffic and the Bazalgette Memorial in the foreground. Closer views of the bust of Sir Joseph Bazalgette, on the Memorial. The narrator explains Bazalgette's role in developing a drainage plan for London and designing the embankments. Aerial view, beginning with the Houses of Parliament and Big Ben to the left, and turning to show the river (with Westminster, Charing Cross and Waterloo bridges) and Victoria Embankment. Lower legs of two pedestrians, one in a maxi skirt, the other in flared jeans, as they walk down steps marked "To Albert Embankment". The narrator says those embankments could no longer contain a high surge tide, and would have to be raised 6 ft which would destroy the views.

Pedestrians (including a mother and her children) wander along Victoria Embankment, with Waterloo Bridge in the background. View of Victoria Embankment, with Cleopatra's Needle, Shell Mex House and nearby buildings. Steps to the river, the view expanding to show County Hall behind. A man reads on a bench (probably outside County Hall), with a view across the river to the Houses of Parliament. Aerial view of the river and surrounding areas, from Blackfriars Bridge to London Bridge. A small boat, the Previt, goes down the river towards the Tower of London, passing various small to medium-sized boats along the way. The narrator talks about the proposals for flood gates or dams in the 1954 Waverley Committee report on the 1953 floods. Painting of "Old London Bridge" by Samuel Scott. Partial view of an engraving "The view of London Bridge from East to West" (an 1803 copy of the original 1597 plate by John Norden). The narrator says that dams had been considered since the demolition of that bridge, which had acted as a kind of barrage. He says that Rennie's 1871 Bridge had wider arches to avoid dangerous currents. Engraving of the construction of that bridge. View of the east side of the 1973 London Bridge, taken over the embankment on the south bank. The narrator says that this bridge allows the tide to pass through unchecked.

The Lock Keeper's Hands work the controls for the Teddington Lock gates. Close-up of the back of a small boat, as it passes another. Close-up of the Lock Keeper, in a smart uniform, as he talks to someone off-screen. A young man with sideburns talks to the Lock Keeper from the back of a small boat, as it passes through the gates of the Teddington Launch Lock - with a view of riverside buildings off Twickenham Road, and of another boat behind. Long view of Teddington Weir, filmed from the bank opposite Ferry Rd. The narrator says that the Upper Thames is dammed at Teddington Weir; and that a similar construction was proposed for Gravesend in 1904, which could have kept the 1928 and 1953 floods out of Central London.

The narrator talks about an article in a 1928 edition of The Times about an updated version of the Gravesend project, also shown on screen. Picture of the low-level retractable barrier proposed for the Crayfordness site at the head of Long Reach. Picture of a drop gate proposed for Woolwich Reach. Simplified maps of London and south-east England, showing the proposed Long Reach site. The narrator says that the first schemes proposed there involved drop gates, referring to Richmond Lock as a successful example of such a barrier. A Lock Keeper works controls for the sluice gates at Richmond Lock, seen relatively close-up, and then from below, as the gates slowly operate. View across the Thames towards a distant bank, presumably around Long Reach. A large vessel comes into view, passing a smaller boat and a mudbank. The narrator says that drop gates at Long Reach were rejected by the navigation authorities, and that instead the rising sector gate principle was adopted. Close-up of a model of such a scheme. Simplified map showing the location of the Silvertown site, which became the preferred option. Views across the Thames, presumably at the proposed Silvertown site. Model of the Thames Barrier, from two angles. The narrator says that construction began in 1974, and that it should open in about 5 years time. Further shots of the rising sector gate model, shown in operation and explained by the narrator, who says it will only occasionally need to be used and will otherwise allow ships through, like Tower Bridge. Long shot of Tower Bridge, after a large vessel has gone through.

Close-ups of sediment, e.g. around a rock and at the base of structures, in a detailed model at the Hydraulics Research Station in Wallingford. The narrator queries the effect of the proposed scheme on the natural river, and explains that they are studying siltation. Machinery of a model weir used in testing the scheme. A hand flicks a switch for a probe, which then operates, measuring siltation patterns. View across the Thames towards Silvertown, with boats. The narrator explains why this site was chosen.

In the Civil Engineering Department of Imperial College, a man stands on a large scale model of a rising sector gate, lowering part of the equipment, assisted by two colleagues below. Two men (one in a lab coat) manoeuver a large lever. A man in brown overalls and a hard hat winds a mechanism, while below him another steadies a large weight on a line. Close-ups of a computer printing out information. View of machinery and workers, one making notes and checking the computer data. An LED computer display. The narrator says that the final tests proved that the Thames could be tamed.

Aerial view of the Thames, from Blackfriars Bridge to Tower Bridge. The narrator says that concrete wall blocks have been added as part of an interim bank-raising operation to reduce risk while the barrier is under construction. View of Tower Bridge, from over wall blocks at Bermondsey Wall East. Two views from the steps off the south-western side of Westminster Bridge and Albert Embankment below, showing the embankment (with extra blocks), the Thames, and in the distance, Vauxhall Bridge, Millbank Tower and neighbouring buildings. Waterloo Bridge, seen over the raised wall of Victoria Embankment, just east of Cleopatra's Needle. Simplified map, with dark lines showing where the banks of the Thames were being raised downstream from the Thames Barrier. Views of those solid-looking downstream bank defences - a close-up and a wider shot with a road and bungalow. The narrator comments on the co-operation between authorities, and the multi-million pound cost of the project.

Views through the Bow Creek Flood Barrier, with West Ham 'B' Power Station visible behind. The narrator says that similar barriers are being built to dam off other creeks and inlets. A lorry (marked - I think - N4 H. Smith) passes a crane and a small tractor as it leaves a partially flooded construction site where banks are being raised. The narrator talks about the difficulty of such projects, and the care taken to blend into the environment and provide riverside walks. Next to an excavator, a large pipe spews filthy-looking water over an earth bank into a brook. A dredging vessel (with attendant barges) operates in Erith Marshes by a complex set of dams and barriers, which are - we are told - part of the land reclamation works near Thamesmead. Close-up of a vessel passing another, as a ship's horn sounds. A line of men, largely wearing jeans and dark jackets, take up the slack on a rope towing a large vessel (the Melbourne Express). The tugboat Plasma, with crew on deck, pulls the Melbourne Express - probably into Tilbury Docks, with the Power Station sometimes visible behind. Rudder of the Melbourne Express. The narrator says that the Thames Barrier will not change the river's role as the marine highway into London.

A loaded motorized trolley passes in front of a hoist, full of boxes of Black and White whiskey, which is then raised revealing messy piles of planks behind. Dockers wait below. Loading cranes operate, near a vessel. A docker releases another load for hoisting. It rises into the sky, past large cranes. Long view of a dock, with vessels, cranes and mooring posts. Magnetic lifting equipment raises two large metal containers marked DCL, probably at Tilbury Container Port. View of equipment, from below. A driver watches, from the cab of a large motorised flatbed trolley. Longer view, as the load is released onto the trolley, which then leaves.

Camera turns from a sign saying "...Thames Wharf" (probably "South Thames Wharf" in full) to derelict-looking warehouse buildings, with bridges and rubble. A derelict warehouse building, perhaps in Hays Wharf. Roofs of warehouses and bridges. Derelict waterside warehouses, perhaps at Hays Dock. A long-haired worker uses a blowtorch, high up on a red crane. The crane collapses, obstructing a view of the Tower of London. View across moored lighter barges and a sparkling river towards hazy buildings on the far bank (perhaps Hermitage Steam Wharf). The narrator says that GLC plans will allow silent warehouses a new lease of life, and that the riverside can be redeveloped as a pleasure area.

An artist sketches at an easel outside 54 Strand on the Green, with neighbouring houses to no. 57 visible. Close-up of an elderly man in a tweed jacket, looking pensive. Extreme close-up of another man in black glasses. The man in black glasses, and a brown suit, studies the paintings at an outdoor "Evening News Pavement Academy" exhibition, then wanders on. High-angled view of that exhibition on the South Bank, as well as the river and Victoria Embankment behind (with Hungerford Bridge on the far left). Close-up of an elderly lady in glasses and an elegant top; and then of a young man with sideburns, sucking his finger thoughtfully. A man in a black jacket passes a painting of black-bottomed lighter boats moored on the Thames.

A similar boat is pulled by a tug (barely seen), with a view of the Silvertown Tate and Lyle Refinery and neighbouring buildings. A man in the wheelhouse of a small boat steers using a large wooden wheel. A bulk cargo riverboat, possibly the "Victoria", passes under Westminster Bridge, watched by pedestrians above. Two small pleasure boats pass one another in the river near Victoria Embankment, the camera moving upriver and rising to show casually dressed pedestrians strolling on Westminster Bridge. The narrator talks about the completion of the long collaborative effort, saying that the GLC have now taken over the task. A small pleasure boat passes in front of County Hall. Aerial view of office blocks at 9-25 Albert Embankment, the camera tilting to show a tugboat pulling two lighters on the glittering river. Romantic-looking model of the Thames Barrier, in silver and sepia tones. The narrator emphasises that it will protect against incalculable loss, "putting the river firmly in its place and taming the tide". Return to earlier aerial view eastwards along the River Thames, with the Houses of Parliament visible to the left of Westminster Bridge. Credits are added.