Breaking the trade : the abolition of slavery in the British Empire / Films for the Humanities and Sciences.

Thirty (30) minutes.

Historical consultant, Prof. James Walvin ; Wardrobe & Makeup, Susie Coulthard, Veronica McAuliffe, Robert Aries ; Executive producer, Jane Clarke ; Producer, Alison Field ; Director, Sabine Pusch ; Editor, Anna Turville ; Assistant Director, Anita Platzer ; Production assistant, Sophie Foster ; Camera, David Marsh ; Camera Assistant, Simon Tindall ; Sound recordist, Phil Clayton ; Gaffer, John Barker ; Graphics, Creative TV Facilities ; Online editor, Gary Sims ; Production manager, Simon Frost.

Narrator: Hugh Quarshie ; Singer: Gena West ; Percussionist: Jamie Trowell ; Additional voices: Martin Akinsehinwa, Mike Shingler.

Cast: Lindsey Elliot, Julio Lewis, Ifean Madubuku, Melanie Mills, Nigel Mills, James Norris, Antony Robinson, Amelia Trevette, Kathryn Veares.

In the early 1800s, an extraordinary event occurred in British politics: a small pressure group successfully lobbied against the entrenched, well-moneyed interests of slavery. This program uses dramatic reenactments, readings of Parliamentary minutes, and expert commentary to tell the story of the three men largely responsible for slavery's abolition: William Wilberforce, Granville Sharp and Thomas Clarkson. Michael Dottridge, the director of Anti-Slavery International, explains that the barbarous practice has not been eradicated everywhere: an estimated 27 million people are still enslaved worldwide today.