The Onedin Line

Episode image for The Onedin Line

Episode 5 of 8, The Cult of..., Sunday Night

Duration: 30 minutes

The series which unearths the history and anecdotes behind cult British Sunday night dramas looks at the 1970s seafaring saga The Onedin Line, which followed the fortunes of James Onedin and his flagship, the Charlotte Rhodes.

Its theme music, Khachaturian's Spartacus, became forever associated with the sea, and Peter Gilmore's sideburns became objects of desire. But if it wasn't for German viewers The Onedin Line would have run aground after a single series. A massive 60,000 pounds over budget, producer Peter Graham Scott was being shunned in the BBC canteen before the sale of the series to Germany wiped out the overspend.

The programme reveals the reasons behind Philip Bond's premature departure from the series; tells exactly how the storm-at-sea sequences were filmed; uncovers the impact of Peter Gilmore's struggle to remember his lines; and shows how The Onedin Line was directly responsible for Jane Seymour being cast as Solitaire in the Bond film Live and Let Die.

  • Sea Fever

    Sea Fever

    This programme screened in Sea Fever – The Story Of Britain And The Sea, a major season on BBC Four that looked at the ways in which the sea helped to shape modern Britain. Sea Fever focused on maritime history, culture, economics and science and coincided with an exhibition at the National Maritime Museum.

    Go to the Sea Fever website

Credits

Narrator
Meera Syal
Director
Kevin McMunigal
Producer
Kevin McMunigal
Executive Producer
Toby Stevens
Executive Producer
Alan Tyler

Broadcasts

See all broadcasts of The Onedin Line (8)

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