The Onedin Line - The Complete Collection - Series 1 to 8 (32 DVD Complete Box Set)

Arrived quickly. The box set was in excellent order. Every disc played perfectly. If you like ships then you will like this series. I love the music and such great actors who play great characters. Brilliant drama. It's nice to leave these modern times and enter another era. I will watch it again.

The Onedin Line: A Nautical Review The Onedin Line, an epic BBC drama, covering 26 years in the lives of the Onedin family, ranks with Downton Abbey, Upstairs Downstairs, and (for those old enough to remember) The Forsyte Saga. The Onedin Line series covered ninety-one 50-minute episodes over eight seasons between 1971 and 1980, with a total of about 75 hours of viewing. There are two dimensions to this story: The first is the ships – and the episodes and adventures involving the ships. The second dimension is the story of the family members and other people involved, their business ventures, their loves and conflicts, and their continued character development throughout the series. It was with regret when I finished watching the very last episode. The ships are lovingly portrayed under sail from various angles and in various weather conditions. For most of the episodes, the credits and titles are set against continuous shots of the ships under sail. The music sound track is dramatic with the opening credits accompanied by the theme from Spartacus by Aram Khachaturian. Most of the music in the film is beautifully matched to the images on the screen. These were actual tall ships sailing during the 1970s when the series was produced, and most are still sailing in 2015. Ships such as the full-rigged ships Danmark and Christian Radich; barques such as Eagle, Sagres, and Gorch Fock; the handsome brigantine Soren Larsen; several schooners and topsail schooners; and several small steamships and steam launches appropriate to the period of the late 19th Century. The photography is beautifully done, with long, continuous views of these magnificent square-riggers under full sail. A close up looking straight down from the bowsprit of the Christian Radich with a bone in her teeth – the foam white against the sapphire blue of the sea – captures my rapt gaze. In contrast, in another scene I see a broadside view of the Danmark heeling over with upper and lower topsails only, along with topmast staysails and headsails, with the unruly sea all about. Later, with wind abated, I see the Danmark off her port bow, all her sails gently full with a trade wind, her hull slowly rising and falling with the gentle seas. I have been aboard many of these ships when they called in Boston during Tall Ships Races. So when I saw deck views of the Danmark and other square riggers in The Onedin Line, I was held spellbound. I watched intently as a sailor wrapped a line around a belaying pin at the pin rail, although only once did I see a sailor finish off with the traditional half-hitch. Strangely, I saw no close-ups of a fife rail at the foot of the mast in the entire series. Long views along the deck with the web of lines, shrouds, stays, and backstays layered my memories of similar views seen previously on board and in photographs. There were numerous scenes of sailors hauling on sheets or halyards, which mimicked actions I have seen in documentaries of square riggers under sail. Some mesmerizing views were taken from the tip end of the bowsprit looking aft, with the ship under full sail rushing toward the viewer, with white clouds in a blue sky to match the white sails and the blue sea. Some aerial views, showing the ships from various angles as the scenes rotated, caught the curve of the sails from lovely perspectives. It was sheer delight to view a ship broadside and see the graceful curve of her rail, from the bow with its gilded trail boards to the taffrail at the stern. A ship under full sail seen across a shimmering sea is true enchantment. I must have memorized most of the photographs in the book Fifty South to Fifty South, because I recognized one of the pictures of a monstrous sea in the southern ocean taken from the deck of Wander Bird, the schooner Warwick Tompkins sailed around Cape Horn in 1936. Several scenes in The Onedin Line of a storm at sea used some clips from the movies that Warwick Tompkins shot. I immediately recognized the huge sea with its marbling of white foam, as well as a partial shot of the after deck of Wander Bird with its distinctive boom gallows. Even though the inserted film clips were black and white, they integrated well with the TV series which were shot in color. The acting, costumes, and direction are first-rate. Continuity and consistency, however, are problematic, especially in the sailing sequences. In some of the early seasons, the captain is fond of saying, “Wear ship,” when near a rocky shore. Wearing ship takes a lot of sea room, and doing so on a lee shore could lead to some exciting, and even perilous, moments, because the ship loses distance downwind when wearing, and could fetch up aground. For all the times that “wear ship” was given as a command, there were no scenes of a square rigger actually going through the maneuver. Square riggers also have to regularly tack in order put the wind on the other side, but again, no such maneuver of coming about was shown in the series. It would have been fun to watch such things happening. Another time I heard the captain say, “Set the royals.” That caught my attention because the ship at the time was under lower and upper topsails. Sails are normally set in sequence beginning with the lower topsails, then the upper topsails, then the courses (foresail and mainsail), and then up the mast with topgallants and royals. When sails are taken in, the reverse happens. So rather than order the royals set, the captain would first say, “Set the topgallants.” Then he would order the royals set. Taking in sails would occur down the mast, royals first, then topgallants, then skipping to the courses, then upper topsails. The lower topsails would be the last to come in. Numerous continuity problems took me repeatedly out of the story. One such problem involved numerous scenes on the deck of a square rigger with the captain talking to Onedin, followed by a close-up of the two against the background of masts and rigging of a schooner. Most viewers, I suppose, would not notice the difference, but for someone knowledgeable about such matters, it was disconcerting. On several occasions a ship would be shown in two successive scenes from different angles, but the two scenes actually showed two different ships, often the Danmark and Christian Radich. The two ships are so similar that the casual viewer would probably not notice the difference, but such discontinuities were noticeable. I have to admit I was watching for such incidents. Several commands by the captain or the mate were actually incorrect for the action taking place on screen, and this took place frequently in the series. For example, a comment was made about a following wind, but from the position of the main boom of the schooner, it was clear the schooner was close-hauled, not sailing downwind. Similarly with the command to gybe during one of the later episodes; the schooner’s main sheet was keeping the main boom amidships, not payed out as it would have been just before the command to gybe. Many shots appear of various ships under way without sufficient wind to propel them at such a speed, judging from the calm surface of the water, also merit quibbles. But enough of such carping. To sum up, the ships were magnificent and beautiful beyond words adequate to describe them. I felt a genuine appreciation for their appearances throughout the series. It’s a rousing good yarn! I recommend watching all 75 hours. Note: If you want to view the entire series in the United States, you can order from Amazon UK. Be aware that these DVDs are formatted for Europe, and cannot be played in most DVD players that are limited to North America. You need to have a code-free DVD player for all regions of the world. The packaging and labels, as well as the subtitles, of The Onedin Line, are in Dutch; be assured, however, that the Dutch subtitles can be turned off, and the spoken soundtrack is in English.

James Onedin wants to go into business for himself. By marriage of convenience he acquieres the Charlotte Rhodes and soon sets about Building a shipping empire with the help of his devoted wife Anne and his reliable captain Baines. James is an excellent sailor and shrewd business man who is not afraid to take chances or use his family to get what he wants. His sister Elisabeth is cut from the same cloth, while his Brother Robert, a provisions Merchant and ships Chandler often finds himself used and slightly abused by James in the various schemes he gets involved in. The actors are excellent and the stories are good. There is plenty of action and human interest stories both on the high seas and on land. An added bonus is the insight you get into British marirtime, Commercial and social history of the victorian age. This BBC Classic is worth every penny

Like many sets, this comes with subtitles, easily turned of at the start of each disc. Having watched some of the series when it was originally broadcast, a must for folk from Exeter, it was the most interesting experience of the early 1970’s for us locals filmed as it was partly on the quay. However I remember the episodes being an hour long. Be prepared, the first 2 discs are 3 each hours non stop......so settle down with the popcorn! it appears to have been committed to dvd in its original State, no enhanced picture, making it a truly nostalgic journey for the viewer. A must for anyone who prefers good old fashioned drama.

Once you have found a way to turn off subtitles it becomes watchable. Still have not discovered how to watch individual episodes rather than whole disk. It has been fun learning to count in Dutch. But in doubt, just look in side the cover and the disk lable itself is in English. Acting and directing is of it's time. Look out for Garibaldi in one of the earlier episodes. The acting with the eyebrows is hilarious!

Oh the Onedin Line. It’s my favorite escape from the trials that pester us all. Life on the sea, escape from poverty. Reality rules

Was impressed by series 1 to 4. Well scripted, good plots, well acted. The emergence of steam ships and their impact on trade was interesting, as was the constant rivalry and scheming between the Onedins themselves. Not sure how historically accurate it was - but it appeared to give a good account of the dangers of life at sea and the hardships encountered by the sailor's families ashore. However - like so many popular TV shows - it went on too long. It began to deteriorate in series 5, contrived plots, weak scripts, and actors that seemed bored by their roles. By series 6 to 8 it had been reduced to pathetic soap opera level. A sort of 'Coronation Street' with ships! One for the Charity shop I think!

This is without doubt the greatest TV Drama series ever to be on TV,thank goodness for the Dutch,who have done this complete eight series on DVD they have good taste in drama,dont be bothered about the Dutch subtittles they can be taken off the screen easy."The Onedin Line" is so gripping to watch that since owning this series on DVD i have watched it through twice. Anyone who has an interest in the big tea clipper ships and those last days of sail must see this series.Of all the 1970s dramas,(and there are a lot of very good ones)this is the greatest of them all.If you are thinking about buying "The Onedin Line" you will not be disapointed.And beleive me, you will want the complete eight series. It is expensive, but this Drama will give you hours of enjoyment.I know it has me. Absolutely Outstanding 👏

You do Need a Region free DVD player to play this great box set. You might have to switch off the Dutch sub titles depending on your player. Very good Picture and Sound Quality for it's age.

I have always wanted to have this complete series on DVD. However, be aware that the external DVD players sold by Staples will not play these DVDs. You must buy an external DVD drive (for example, from Amazon, get their staff to help you with this) that will play foreign DVDs.