''Tickets for the Titanic'' WP:TVNOW - always introduced in present tense a British anthology series of television plays, transmitted on

Channel 4 Channel 4 is a British free-to-air public broadcast television network operated by the state-owned Channel Four Television Corporation. It began its transmission on 2 November 1982 and was established to provide a fourth television service ...

, that ran for two three-episode seasons in 1987 and 1988. The title came from the concept of Britain in the mid/late-1980s being a sinking ship. The series was produced by William G Stewart, and made by his company, Regent Productions.

Title sequence

Although the overall title was used for both seasons, only the very first episode carried the series

title sequence A title sequence (also called an opening sequence or intro) is the method by which films or television programmes present their title and key production and cast members, utilizing conceptual visuals and sound (often a opening theme song with vi ...

, with a metaphorical theme tune about the sinking of the

RMS Titanic RMS ''Titanic'' was a British passenger liner, operated by the White Star Line, which sank in the North Atlantic Ocean on 15 April 1912 after striking an iceberg during her maiden voyage from Southampton, England, to New York City, United ...

, which included lyrics such as: "Send the lifeboats out to sea, we've only got a few. Let the women and children drown, man, we've got to save the crew." Two days after the first episode was shown, the British cross-Channel ferry MS Herald of Free Enterprise capsized with the loss of 193 passengers and crew. As a result, Channel 4 dropped the title sequence from the second and third episodes, and it was not used at all in the second season.

Episodes

Series 1: *"Keeping Score" by Guy Jenkin, directed by William G Stewart Two social misfits (

Tessa Peake-Jones Tessa Peake-Jones (born 9 May 1957) is an English actress having appeared in ''The Danedyke Mystery'' (1979), ''Pride and Prejudice'' (1980), '' When We Are Married'' (1987), '' Up the Garden Path'' (1990–1993), '' So Haunt Me'' (1992–1994), ...

and Martyn Hesford) team together to get revenge on everyone who has crossed them in the past; Charles Gray appeared as Peake-Jones's father, the

Tottenham Hotspur Tottenham Hotspur Football Club, commonly referred to as Tottenham () or Spurs, is a professional football club based in Tottenham, London, England. It competes in the Premier League, the top flight of English football. The team has playe ...

-supporting Earl of Albany. * "The Way, the Truth, The Video"

Peter Firth Peter Macintosh Firth (born 27 October 1953) is an English actor. He is best known for his role as Sir Harry Pearce in the BBC One programme '' Spooks''; he is the only actor to have appeared in every episode of the programme's ten-series lif ...

as an evangelical anti-filth campaigner; with

Ian Bannen Ian Edmund Bannen (29 June 1928 – 3 November 1999) was a Scottish actor with a long career in film, on stage, and on television. He was nominated for an Academy Award for his performance in '' The Flight of the Phoenix'' (1965), the first ...

as a corrupt police officer. * "Checkpoint Chiswick" by

Andy Hamilton Andrew Neil Hamilton (born 28 May 1954) is a British comedian, game show panellist, television director, comedy screenwriter, radio dramatist, novelist and actor. Early life and education Hamilton was born in Fulham, southwest London. He ...

, directed by Cyril Coke

Hywel Bennett Hywel Thomas Bennett (8 April 1944 – 24 July 2017) was a Welsh film and television actor. He had a lead role in ''The Family Way'' (1966) and played the titular "thinking man's layabout" James Shelley in the television sitcom '' Shelley'' (1 ...

steadily turns his suburban home into a virtual fortress. Series 2: * "Pastoral Care" by Andy Hamilton, directed by

Roger Bamford Roger is a given name, usually masculine, and a surname. The given name is derived from the Old French personal names ' and '. These names are of Germanic languages, Germanic origin, derived from the elements ', ''χrōþi'' ("fame", "renown", " ...

A naive and innocent vicar (

Tony Robinson Sir Anthony Robinson (born 15 August 1946) is an English actor, author, broadcaster, comedian, presenter, and political activist. He played Baldrick in the BBC television series ''Blackadder'' and has presented several historical documentarie ...

) is posted to a parish near a

Greenham Common Royal Air Force Greenham Common or RAF Greenham Common is a former Royal Air Force station in the civil parishes of Greenham and Thatcham in the English county of Berkshire. The airfield was southeast of Newbury, about west of London. Opened ...

-esque American/nuclear airbase, and falls foul of both the conservative locals and the security services. * "Incident on the Line" by Alastair Beaton, directed by William G Stewart A young woman (

Alexandra Pigg Alexandra Pigg (born Sandra McKibbin; 1962) is a British actress who first came to prominence as Petra Taylor in the TV soap opera ''Brookside''. Her best-known film appearances are as Elaine in ''Letter to Brezhnev'' (1985), for which she was no ...

) stops a much older man (

Warren Mitchell Warren Mitchell (born Warren Misell; 14 January 1926 – 14 November 2015) was a British actor. He was a BAFTA TV Award winner and twice a Laurence Olivier Award winner. In the 1950s, Mitchell appeared on the radio programmes ''Educatin ...

) from committing suicide at a railway station, and he moves into her squat with her. * "Everyone a Winner" by Barry Pilton, directed by Paul Joyce A vicar (

Jonathan Pryce Sir Jonathan Pryce (born John Price; 1 June 1947) is a Welsh actor who is known for his performances on stage and in film and television. He has received numerous awards, including two Tony Awards and two Laurence Olivier Awards. In 2021 he was ...

) and his family struggle in a future in which

Thatcherism Thatcherism is a form of British conservative ideology named after Conservative Party leader Margaret Thatcher that relates to not just her political platform and particular policies but also her personal character and general style of manag ...

has reached its logical conclusions.

External links

* 1987 British television series debuts 1988 British television series endings Channel 4 original programming {{UK-tv-prog-stub