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12 Episodes 2012 - 2012
Episode 1
Mon, Oct 8, 201249 mins
Lord Pirrie is building his dream at a Belfast shipyard- the first of three cruise ships surpassing even the largest war ships. American metallurgist Mark Muir convinces his Lordship that his academic knowledge and experience at the Royal Navy's Admiralty are invaluable, even indispensable. So he's hired, but soon finds the city not only suffers from enmity between dominant Protestants and local Catholics, but from pragmatically indefensible conservatism.
Episode 2
56 mins
Mark finds he must fight Lord Pirrie's deputy for a crucial quality issue, as the company policy is not tot pay for a more expensive method of riveting then competing shipyards. The intricacies of social life, invited in high society and sneaking back to his low-born catholic family roots, keep confusing Mark, despite charming interest from bored women. Social unrest culminates, challenging his lordship and the union leaders to work out a compromise, or the Titanic and many livelihoods are doomed.
Episode 3
52 mins
Mark discretely arranges humane living quarters for his father, but finds him a prey of alcohol, who lost his pride for good. The syndicalist labor movement comes together, organized from Albion, to stage a huge demonstration throughout Belfast. Lord Pirrie is prepared to negotiate, but hard-line employers have London's ear and the army is instructed to to break the march, which leads to bloodshed.
Episode 4
53 mins
After the excessive military violence against protest marchers, the mood is grim, but labor action is suspended and workers grimly return to their jobs, except those who are fired for partaking. Mark discovers the cause of the excessive steel impurities and waves the romantic flirtation of a betrothed socialite Kitty Carlton once he realizes she dares not even consider going public with him as lover. Visiting his father, Mark learns from man attacking him that he wasn't just encouraged to emigrate for a better future but also to avoid him discovering a dark family secret: his Catholic first love's pregnancy.
Episode 5
54 mins
Mark bitterly learns from his father that he wasn't told his fiancée was pregnant so he would leave and make his way in America, then that the baby girl survived unlike his first love but was given up for anonymous adoption trough a nunnery. Sister ship Olympic has crashed with a competitor's, so the repairs are given top-priority. Production capacity is diverted from the Titanic, where unskilled labors must be employed, which increases labor unrest. Mark informs the board that excessive steal impurities can only be avoided by buying more expensive Welsh coal. The stingy opposition loses out, by plots to discredit him by digging into his antecedents, which Lord Pirrie's loyal deputy Thomas meanwhile agreed not to divulge.
Episode 6
61 mins
Mark convinces lord Pirrie that safety demands a relatively small investment in either perfect, warm riveting or a double hull, to Admiralty standards. The board however not only forbids the expense, but seeks to have Muir fired, which happens as soon as his undisclosed identity change is found out. Just before, Muir has successfully mediated, at Pirrie's request, in the social conflict over effective wage loss for skilled laborers due to the hiring of unskilled ones. The secret republican Finians recruit members, such as Michael McCann, who was dismissed form the British army for insubordination and from the shipyard, while buying stolen German arms.
Episode 7
56 mins
Although Mark was fired by the board against Lord Pirrie's will, American yard owner JP Morgan first consults him about the Olylpic class's constructional risks and rehires him to execute his alternative, compartments up to the highest decks, without final commitment to it. The Finians start training their illegal militia while recruiting among yard laborers, but are betrayed to the army from within. The former strike leader decides to stand as Labor candidate MP in Belfast, spear heading the call for Irish Home Rule, which frightens even many workers. Socialite groom Ashley Stokes dumps Mark's 'tainted' playmate. Mark finds the probable identity of his adopted daughter.
Episode 8
49 mins
JP Morgan forced the board to rehire Muir, to Lord Pirrie's relief, to design a solution for the expensive sinking prevention, but even his novel compromise is ultimately rejected too, as too unattractive for first class passengers. Conor worked out which Fenians betrayed his company to the Biritish forces and traps them to an 'execution'. Trade union leader Michael McCann not only looses the Belfast parliament seat as labor candidate, a fellow yard worker who refused to join because he opposes autonomy from London leads a street to beat him up as warning to leave Ulster. Mark decides against following Sofia to London, although his work seems pointless as the board overrules him every time.
Episode 9
49 mins
Lord Pirrie asks Mark, due to his Admiralty experience, along to the London hearings about the Olympic's crash. The lord gets lord of the Admiralty Winston Chrurchill to sift all blame on the inexperienced captain, in national and industry interests. he finds disinherited society lover Kate happily working as variety star. Mark's search for his daughter looks hopeless, so he considers leaving to London with lover Sophia, who is offered a chance to study design there. The yard staff is disgruntle to be kept away from the Titanic's launch (just into the dock), a media event, as there's no work time to loose. The Home Rule controversy keeps swelling.
Episode 10
54 mins
New problems with the shipyard's steel and reverend father Thomas promising ti use his contact to rekindle Mark's search for his adopted daughter decide him to stay in Belfast and finish constructing Titanic. After Sofia's father is hurt in an animated discussion after his sculpting apprentice and her former arrange fiancé Andrea, who refuses to become a partner, she decides to stay as his nurse and temporary breadwinner, rather then go study in London.
Episode 11
48 mins
Lord Pirrie gets sick and hands over the chairmanship, till further notice, to his nephew, Thomas Andrews. He and Muir go to the Trade Board in London to plead updating the life boats requirements, albeit not retroactively, but the shipping companies obtain a non-binding gentleman's agreement. Sofia decides to seek a career in New York and hopes Mark will migrate back with her, but after father Thomas finds his daughter was adopted under the name Sarah Byrnes in a rural county, he decides to stay and search for her. German spy Altenberg blackmails Ismay's girlfriend Joanna Yaegar, whose brother is held captive, to steal and smuggle naval secrets.
Episode 12
49 mins
While the coveted ticket holders and ship's principals prepare for Titanic's maiden voyage, a little girl named Sarah boards the ill-fated beauty with her mother, in search of a better life.