Titanic (ITV-1 2012, Linus Roache, Steven Waddington)

Lavish, big budget dramatic account of the ill fated supership and supposedly unsinkable Titanic.

It’s April 1912 and people of all classes are going aboard the White Star Line’s amazing new ship for the trip of a lifetime as it travels to America.

Some are going purely for the adventure, some are going to try and start a new life. There are aristocrats, celebrities and people who have sold everything for a ticket. As friendships are formed and sometimes broken what the passengers and crew don’t know is that their lives are about to change forever.

When the ship collides with a giant iceberg the “unsinkable” vessel starts to sink and everyone’s lives are at risk.

Made with great attention to detail and with Downton Abbey’s creator Julian Fellowes typical eye for wonderfully authentic dialogue Titanic is superb British period drama. Fabulously cast too. The final episode aired on 15 April 2012 which just happened to be the 100th anniversary of the disaster.

Cast: LINUS ROACHE as Hugh, Earl of Manton; TOBY JONES as John Batley; GERALDINE SOMERVILLE as Louisa, Countess of Manton; DAVID CALDER as Captain Smith; STEVEN WADDINGTON as Second Officer Lightroller; PERDITA WEEKS as Georgiana Grex; GEORGIA McCUTHEON as Theresa Maloney; LEE ROSS as Barnes; JENNA-LOUISE COLEMAN as Annie Desmond; WILL KEEN as Chief Officer Wilde; BRIAN McCARDIE as First Officer Murdock; BEN BISHOP as Stoker Lyons; PETER McDONALD as Jim Maloney; GLEN BLACKHALL as Paolo Sandrini; RUTH BRADLEY as Mary Maloney; DRAGOS BUCUR as Peter Lubov; IFAN MEREDITH as Officer Lowe; MILES RICHARDSON as John Jacob Astor; MARIA DOYLE KENNEDY as Muriel Batley; CELIA IMRIE as Grace Rushton; RALPH INESON as Steward Hart; DIANA KENT as Eleanor Widener; ANTONIO MAGRO as Mario Sandrini; LYNDSEY MARSHAL as Watson; JAMES WILBY as J Bruce Ismay; SOPHIE WINKLEMAN as Dorothy Gibson; STEPHEN CAMPBELL MOORE as Thomas Andrews; PETER WIGHT as Joseph Rushton; CHRISTINE KAVANAGH as Mrs Thayer; SOPHIE RUNDLE as Roberta Maioni; SYLVESTRA LE TOUZEL as Lady Duff Gordon

Writer: Julian Fellowes / Music: Jonathan Goldsmith / Production Design: Rob Harris / Costume Design: James Keast / Executive Producers: Simon Vaughan, Julia Sereny, Jennifer Kawaja, Adam Goodman, Howard Ellis / Producer: Chris Thompson / Director: Jon Jones

UK / ITV1 Network / 4×60 minute episodes / Broadcast Sunday 25 March – Sunday 15 April 2012