The RNLI crew had to contend with choppy seas and strong winds during the three-and-a-half-hour operation to tow the 80-tonne vessel into harbour.

BBC: Lifeboat (gen)

During the 10-and-a-half hour operation the men were carried to safety by Brecon Mountain Rescue Team before the weather improved enough for them to be airlifted to hospital.

BBC: Pen y Fan rescue in blizzard conditions on Beacons

The inquest in Southend heard Mr Blowes had undergone a seven-hour operation to remove his bladder at the end of June.

BBC: Robin Blowes 'accidentally' fell to his death from window

The five-hour operation to give him the organs of someone who had just died was carried out by the renowned surgeon Sir Magdi Yacoub.

BBC: Special bond of heart-op friends

Likewise, ordering The Godfather, a monstrous sandwich with four different meats, mozzarella, roasted peppers, pepperoncini and extra virgin olive oil, from Villa, a classic deli near East Hampton train station, is a ten-minute operation, as opposed to an hour.

BBC: Escape from New York

Divers brought it to the surface and then took it to a spot off Kent, during a "delicate" seven-hour operation.

BBC: Huge explosion as experts detonate large WWII mine

The Americans reportedly calculated that the operation to recapture Hue would be a "24-hour job", but it quickly turned into a prolonged battle, with exchanges of mortar and artillery fire.

BBC: 24 February