Commissions

Greenlit: Franklin’s Lost Ships, Channel 4 / CBC / PBS Nova

Franklin’s Lost Ships (1 x 60’/90′) – Follows the thrilling discovery of Franklin’s flagship ‘Erebus’, lost whilst searching for the North-West passage.  For a century and a half numerous expeditions have searched in vain and it has become one of the greatest of all maritime mysteries..

Sir John Franklin and his two ships set sail in 1845 to find the Northwest Passage – a prized trade route from the Atlantic to the Pacific, through the frozen seas of the Canadian high Arctic.  Franklin took over 100 sailors, and enough supplies to last three years – but they vanished without trace.  The story is one of incredible endurance and human fortitude but also death, madness and cannibalism.

In August 2014, three arctic research vessels were guided into the search zone by a team of scientists, archaeologists and specialist divers. The  film traces the story of the expedition, as searchers battled with huge rafts of sea-ice, using icebreakers, helicopters and satellites to begin their survey.  Initially, that ice seemed like a curse; but it turned out to be a blessing in disguise – diverting the searchers towards a new area, where they put their sonar equipment to work.

Against all odds, HMS Erebus – Lord Franklin’s flagship – was found in near-perfect condition, resting the sea-floor, in just ten metres of water. Exclusive underwater footage shows the amazing moment as divers approached the wreck: the first men to lay eyes on the ship in more than 150 years.  Using dramatic reconstruction, we tell the story of the men who sailed her, and the men who died, cold and starving, in this arctic wilderness.  And the film brings to life the Inuit oral tradition which was for a long time ignored by searchers, but now appears to be true.

Channel: CBC (Canada) / Channel 4 (UK) / PBS (USA)

Producer: Lion Television / 90th Parallel

TX: 9th April 2015

Source: All3Media press release