Episode 1

Image for Episode 1Not currently available on BBC iPlayer

Episode 1 of 2

Duration: 1 hour, 30 minutes

Part one of a two-part drama. On the 12th September 1942 the Laconia - a cruise ship turned troop ship - was torpedoed and sunk by German submarine U-156 commanded by Werner Hartenstein. She carried a motley crew of women, children, wounded soldiers and Italian Prisoners of War. Having sunk the ship, Hartenstein should have left them to their uncertain fate in the water, but instead he made the incredible decision to save as many lives as he could. A true story of unexpected gallantry and humanity in the fog of war.

More episodes

See all episodes from The Sinking of the Laconia
  • The Laconia: Sinking an ocean liner onscreen

    The Laconia: Sinking an ocean liner onscreen

    Production designer Knut Loewe on the challenges of bringing The Sinking of the Laconia to life: "We needed to sink a 600-foot ocean-liner on screen and both the interior and exterior of a 200-foot submarine needed to be constructed from scratch as our primary filming location."

    Read Knut's post at the BBC TV blog

Credits

Hartenstein
Ken Duken
Mortimer
Andrew Buchan
Hilda
Franka Potente
Elizabeth Fullwood
Lindsay Duncan
Captain Sharp
Brian Cox
Laura Ferguson
Morven Christie
Mannesmann
Jacob Matschenz
Fiedler
Frederick Lau
Weber
Jarg Malchow
Remmert
Stefan Rudolf
Rostau
Matthias Koeberlin
Schaht, Harro
Simon Verhoeven
Danitz, Admiral
Thomas Kretschmann
Walter Drexler
Nikolai Kinski
Sarah Fullwood
Jodi Balfour
Captain Coutts
Nicholas Burns
Declan McDermott
Ciaran McMenamin
Billy Hardacre
Lenny Wood
Harry Townes
Ben Crompton
William Williams
Matthew Aubrey
Di Giovanni
Ludovico Fremont
Henry Bates
Paul Hilton
Director
Uwe Janson
Producer
Hilary Norrish
Producer
Jonathon Young
Writer
Alan Bleasdale

Broadcasts

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Available on: DVD

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