Church that prayed for 2003 kidnap victim to see his film

A DOCUMENTARY made by the son of the mayor of Pateley Bridge about his terrifying kidnap ordeal at the hands of armed Colombian guerrillas is to be screened in the North Yorkshire church where an entire community prayed for his safe return.

Mark Henderson's acclaimed documentary on his 101 days of captivity after being kidnapped during a trek in 2003 details his trip back to Colombia in 2009 to confront one of his captors who contacted him a year after he was set free.

Having played at film festivals around the world, it will now be shown next week at St Cuthbert's Church in the small market town which rang its bells and raised the flag of St George when news of his release first broke.

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Mark, 38, who was eventually released after three months and arrived back home in Yorkshire on Christmas Eve 2003, will be giving a talk at the screening and will also be showing the film to pupils at his former school, Ashville College in Harrogate, the following day.

His dad Chris Henderson, mayor of Pateley Bridge, said: "The support we received from people in the town while Mark was being held was utterly invaluable.

"It was so hard and the community helped get us through.

"Even now there is still hardly a week goes by when I don't bump into someone in the village and they ask how Mark is.

"The film has been shown all over the world but we wanted to put it on here to say thank you to the community for the support we had."

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The film, called My Kidnapper and released last year, follows Mark and three fellow hostages as they return to the Sierra Nevada mountains in northern Colombia, where they were held after being kidnapped during a trek to the 2,500-year-old ruins of the Lost City.

It features emotional interviews with Mark's parents and fellow hostages, as well as a gripping confrontation with a former kidnapper who has since left the group and wants to make amends for what he did.

The screening takes place on February 2 at 7.30pm. Tickets cost 5 and are available from The Pateley Pharmacy or on the door.