A series of three programmes

From the days of Brunel's first purpose-built ocean liner the Great Western, to the QE2 of the present day the Atlantic crossing has been a story of romance, disaster and big business and of ships that were symbols of national pride. Today the jet aircraft dominates the Atlantic and the great liners are ghosts of the past. In this first programme Robert Wall tells the story of the early days; of such famous ships as the Titanic, the Lusitania and the Mauretania and the power struggle to dominate the ocean.
(Part 2 tomorrow at 8.45 pm)