Most people have a problem when asked what is their favourite TV show ever. Understandable, given how many great shows have graced our screens in the last fifty years or so, and the continuing (in the main) high quality of programmes being developed today. So choosing your favourite, out of all the shows you've ever seen, has ot be hard, right? Not for me it's not. I have already noted in the introduction to this journal that Babylon 5 stands as my second-favourite show ever, but I have no hesitation or indeed concerns about naming my all-time favourite, and this is it.
This may seem strange, when you consider that back when the show originally aired I didn't watch it, but remember its haunting theme and the scene of a sailing ship tacking into the wind, an image which remained with me through my later youth, and together with the music became indelible icons of the show in my mind. It was only in later years, with the advent of digital television and its rerun on one of those new channels that I had a chance to actually watch the show, and find out if the sailing ship and the theme were all there was to the show, or if it actually had any merit as a series. Suffice to say, I was pulled in immediately and from then on never missed an episode. In a very real way, an almost lost element of my childhood had resurfaced in adult life, and unlike many things that come back to you in later life, this was not a disappointment, not a reminder that sometimes we see things with the eyes of a child that when we grow up do not measure up to our original impressions of them. This, on the contrary, vindicated my childhood wonder and supplemented it by showing me a drama that was every bit as good as I had hoped it would be, and then some.
The Onedin Line was one of the very classiest dramas produced by the BBC in the 1970s. Originally broadcast as a one-off Drama Playhouse, the show charted the lives of a shipping family in late nineteenth-century Liverpool, focussing in particular upon James Onedin, the ship captain with "ambition enough for an army of Napoleons". Securing the purchase of his first ship through the convenience of marrying the seller's daughter, James Onedin soon proves he is not above trickery and hard-heartedness to survive in the busy, cut-throat world of trade and shipping.
Faced on all sides by business rivals, mounting debts and though sometimes even the very elements themselves seem to conspire against him, James uses his practical business sense and knowledge of ships and the sea, as well as men's hearts and minds, to keep his fledgling empire afloat. In the best tradition of BBC pseudo-historical drama though, things do not always go his way, and the master of the Onedin Line has more than his fair share of disappointments, failed ventures and losses. He is supported in his endeavours by his wife Anne, who, despite knowing initially little of the ways of the sea, comes to learn, and proves herself in fact an astute businesswoman. In addition to this, she is more or less the "power behind the throne", as although James will seldom admit it, he does everything he does with his wife in mind, and would not hurt her for the world.
The show gained huge audiences and became one of the favourite shows of the day. Viewers remember the stirring, triumphant and romantic theme to the programme, Khachacturian's glorious adagio from Spartacus, as the camera travelled towards and then up along the ship, before the title credits appeared emblazoned on the screen.
The writing is superb, the acting first-rate and the stories both interesting, entertaining and informative. So well researched is the series that it is very easy to gain an almost firsthand knowledge of Liverpool in the 1860s and the sea trade in general, maritime practices and rules, and even the state of politics and the economy during the latter half of the 19th century. It's a true family saga, in the grand old tradition, in that people are married, sons and daughters are born, grow up and take their place in the unfolding storyline. However, the series centres around James Onedin, and he is never far from the storyline. Like a colossus bestriding the world of trade, he compels and demands our attention, and we cannot help but wonder where his next adventure will lead, how he will get out of this particular pickle, and in all honesty, who will end up paying the price for his survival? For as James is quick to point out to his wife soon after they are married: "In matters of business, I give nothing away!" He is not above sacrificing the happiness, wealth, futures or dreams of his close family and friends to further his ambitions. He is a tough man, uncompromising, but capable of occasional feats of compassion and kindness. Even his best friend, his First Mate Baines, he will not acknowledge as such, preferring to keep him at arm's length, as a trusted employee, but no more, although the truth of their relationship is later explored in depth.
The Onedin Line ran for a total of eight seasons, from 1971 to 1980, though when rebroadcast it was rare for anything further than the third to be screened, whereupon they would return to the pilot episode and start all over again. I was lucky enough to see the entire thing when it was first rerun, and was in fact amazed that there was so much of it, as at the time the only episodes available on VHS tape to buy were seasons one and two, and possibly three. For a long time I thought that was all there was. Imagine then my surprise and delight when, expecting the series had come to an end on UK Drama, the channel showing it, they carried on into season four, five, six, seven and finally eight! I was, as Kryten from Red Dwarf once put it, in hog's heaven!
As I review this series, I'll be doing it on an episode-by-episode basis, even though for a British series this flouts the tradition now normally followed of a season consisting of no more than ten episodes, usually much less; seasons one and two have fifteen episodes each. But there is so much to talk about in this series, and given it's landed the place of top show for me --- an unassailable position I believe, borne out by the fact that fantastic a show as it is Babylon 5 still occupies position number two --- that I really think I'll have to devote a full post -- or more! --- to each episode.
Cast
Like any of these big "family-dramas" of the seventies and early eighties, the cast list for The Onedin Line grows exponentially as new characters are added and indeed new family members born. Of course, as in any drama other characters die or are written out --- sometimes temporarily, sometimes not --- so I'll be concentrating on, apart from the core main cast members and characters, those who impact on each season, and as new ones are introduced I'll note them.
James Onedin, played by Peter Gilmore.
The focal point of the series and the man whose name it bears, James is a sea captain living in Liverpool but spending much of his time at sea. Dreaming of greater things for himself he decides to go into business on his own, and over the course of the series uses means both fair and foul to defeat or takeover his competitors. Something of a mix of Richard Branson and Gordon Gecko, though ostensibly the hero of the series he is not above using dirty tricks to get what he wants, and he essentially sees his family as means to that end. Unswervably ambitious and true to his convictions, he is a tough but mostly fair master to those who work for him, but has generally nothing but contempt for his rivals. Many of his more daring schemes will pay off, but many will land him in worse hot water than he was in when he began. The epitome of a self-made man, it is self that best defines Onedin, as he bows to no man.
Anne Onedin, played by Anne Stallybrass
If there's one thing James loves more than his ships it's his wife. Originally a marriage of convenience, a device by which Onedin procures his first ship, the relationship between James and Anne develops to a point far beyond which either of them ever expected it to. A pragmatic woman, Anne knows her place but is not afraid to speak up when she feels she needs to, and is probably the only one who can prevail upon her fiery husband and calm him down when he is ready to go off half-cocked, but even she knows when to remain silent.
Elizabeth Onedin, played by Jessica Benton
The pretty, socialite sister of James, Elizabeth is in love with Daniel Fogarty, but his position as a lowly sea captain impresses neither her nor her brother, and she takes up in a scandalous affair with the younger foppish Albert Frazer, an alliance much better liked by James, who sees that he can use Frazer's father's shipbuilding yards to his advantage.
Robert Onedin, played by Brian Rawlinson
Elder brother of James, Robert has none of the adventurous nature of his brother and is content to run his chandler's shop, an attitude which earns him contempt from James. Robert is more concerned with rising through society --- mostly at the behest of his social climber wife, Sarah --- and refuses to back James' wild schemes, leading to bad blood between the two brothers.
Mister Bains, played by Howard Lang
A bluff old seadog, Bains is James Onedin's right-hand-man, First Mate on most of his ships and occasionally captain, and though James treats his with gruff and grudging grace, the two are fast friends, even if neither will admit it. Onedin needs Bains, and vice versa, and they will see many an adventure through together.
Sarah Onedin, played by Mary Webster
Sarah is married to Robert, and thinks little of James and his machinations. She has no love for or regard for the sea, and thinks the chandler's life is beneath the status Robert should be striving for. She has a high opinion of herself, an attitude that brings her into conflict with James, who she barely masks her intense dislike for. She is sympathetic to Elizabeth, but more to spite James than that she actually likes her.
Albert Frazer, played by Philip Bond
The son of a powerful shipbuilder, he is smitten with Elizabeth and she with him. He woos her and she agrees to a relationship with him, but this is complicated by her promise to marry Daniel Fogarty, and the scandal the affair will produce (especially when it's revealed that she is pregnant with Daniel's child) places James in an uncomfortable position, where he has to choose between ordering her to marry Fogarty (this IS the nineteenth century, remember!) for the sake of her social standing --- and his --- or bless the relationship with Frazer, which benefits him commercially and financially.
Daniel Fogarty, played by Michael Billington
Fogarty is a First Mate, looking for his own captaincy and in love with Elizabeth. He does not know, being away at sea, that she is carrying his child. He does however know how lowly she sees his status, as she has tried to persuade him to give up a life at sea and take a "more respectable" desk job at the dock. But Fogarty's first love is the sea, and now it seems that he has a second rival for Elizabeth's affections in Albert Frazer.