<i>Sorry to bore those who are fed up with the subject but I admit it still enthralls me.</I>
Me to,I have done term papers on this and read everything I can on the subject, I hope that one day a clear answer is found either way.

Sorry if I took that around in a circle, Diego. I only just read the interview today.

No problem Dave

I wish, I dream, I hope M & I summited if for no other reason, but to prove to all those masses who attacked the peak much later in huge force, that small groups, going without massive sherpa support and doing most of the work themselves, could summit, and in style. What was the 1953 "success" about? How many porters, sherpas and sahibs? How much equipment and what logistics? Beating the mountain into submission by shear numbers? Hundreds of people as part of one expedition? They knocked off the bastard, did they? I hope M & I got up there, if only to point to all of us the other way to climb the high peaks, like Buhl, Wiessner, Messner, Habeler and others did and do today, by picking up their packs, roping up with their partner and going fo it. M & I represented a total alpine spirit and I hope they made it !!

My sentiments exactly Alois.
Old school...wool...tweed and alpenstocks.
Bold pioneers.

Their exploits were read by young minds who dreamed.

Fuel for the fire

The Mallory and Irvine Mystery - Oxygen issues, a re-examination, part 3.

The Mallory and Irvine Mystery - Oxygen issues, a re-examination, part 4.

The Mallory and Irvine Mystery - Oxygen issues, a re-examination. Final.

Oscar Cadiach, well known Spanish climber who attempted Everest by the same route of Mallory and using similar wear says that he could have died because of the cold: Cadiach y el salto cualitativo (video-interview in Spanish)

Here are two links that I found that were interesting - the first was from last year
http://mountainworld.typepad.com/mounta ... vine_.html
http://www.everest1953.co.uk/MalloryIrvine.html

Given the time of the last sighting of the two climbers I don't think it is likely that they made it to the top. Mallory had too much experience on big mountains to go beyond his limits just to make the summit. He had a family to come home to and I believe he would have made the decision to turn it around considering the difficulties they would have encountered at the Second Band. We would all like to think that they made it, but common sense says they most likely turned back.
I believe that if they had summited they would not have made it back to the area where the fall occurred before darkness set in. In that case they would have spent the night out at 28,000' without oxygen or polar clothing. Anyone who has seen the clothing worn by the climbers of that era knows they would have perished in an overnight bivy on the mountain. Even making it to the summit in the boots they used would probably resulted in severe frostbite to their feet well before they started back down. Possibly frostbite was a contributing factor to their fall along with oxygen deprevation.
No! Despite our desire to "wish" they succeeded, Mallory and Irvine left no evidence on the summit or high up that would prove they were there. I am happy that the mystery still remains one of the "great" unknowns of climbing history!