Over 100 years after the Titanic sank, the lasting legacy of this history-making tragedy has been revisited in a widely-praised new retelling.
Since its infamous sinking in 1912, the doomed vessel has been the subject of immense fascination across history, pop culture and general knowledge.
Whether told through the lens of the Oscar-winning movie Titanic (1997) or remembered in museum exhibitions around the world, the fatal maiden voyage of the Titanic, cut short by an iceberg collision, remains the most well-known maritime disaster in the world.
Now the BBC has dropped a fresh four-part docu-drama, Titanic Sinks Tonight, to add to the already-rich canon exploring exactly what happened on that fateful journey, and the countless lives lost.
As the official synopsis reads: ‘Minute by minute – the night the unsinkable ship sank. Vivid first-hand accounts from passengers and crew tell the story of the most infamous disaster in maritime history.’
Tracing the 160 minutes which led up to the ‘unsinkable’ ship submerging beneath the sea, the show pieces together what happened to the 2,208 passengers and crew on board in this powerful new dramatisation.
Viewers will discover testimony from First Class passenger Jack Thayer (Rhys Mannion), First Class stewardess Violet Jessop (Vicky Allen) and Officer Fred Fleet (Matthew Cassidy), among others.
As for the experts providing ‘fresh insight’, these include: presenter and ex-marine JJ Chalmers, Professor Suzannah Lipscomb, Admiral Lord West and novelist Nadifa Mohamed.
Certainly, the show seems to have won fans over who have been compelled by its unique storytelling and faithful adaptation of the startling source material.
‘Got goosebumps already, watching Titanic Sinks Tonight – an enduring tragedy we’re all still fascinated by,’ Pip wrote on X.
Henry Writes dubbed it a ‘real emotional watch’ and Sarah Wilde said she was ‘absolutely enthralled’ by this ‘compelling piece of television’.
‘I always think of how absolutely terrifying it must have been. This programme brings the dead to back to life & tells their stories which must never be forgotten. Excellent series,’ Antony Corrigan shared.
‘Great talking heads, touching performances, a sense of realism, with the focus on real experience where it belongs. No melodrama, no Titanic cliches, no bullshit,’ Dr Macclevoid echoed.
Chris Leigh praises the show for ‘powerfully convey[ing] the growing sense of dread that passengers must have felt. Gripping.’
Shot in Belfast and using virtual production, executive producer Kieran Doherty said when it came to casting, ‘they looked for people who were not just the most talented storytellers out there, but they also had to be curious and ambitious enough to throw themselves into the unknown.’
Meanwhile, discussing what sets their series apart from the endless retellings, showrunner Helen Sage added: ‘What makes this series distinctive is the ‘real time’ storytelling approach – with each minute of screen time broadly representing a minute on the ship – from striking the iceberg to sinking.’
Titanic Sinks Tonight airs tonight and tomorrow at 9pm on BBC Two. All four episodes are available to stream on BBC iPlayer.
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