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FromZDF’sawardwinningcontemporary
historydepartment

Idealcomplementtofictionaltwo-parter
“ShipofNoReturn–TheFinalVoyageof
the‘Gustloff’”

1 x 50’

Documentaries

inus 20 degrees. The coldest winter in memory.
Fleeing from the Red Army, thousands of terror-

stricken refugees are desperate to get a passage on the

“Wilhelm Gustloff.” Yet the great majority who make it

on board will never live to tell about it … Torpedoed by a
Soviet submarine on 30 January 1945, the Gustloff sinks,
sending more than 9,000 people to their deaths in the icy
Baltic Sea. It is the biggest disaster in seafaring history.

This documentary examines the events leading to the catas-

trophe as well as some of its unsolved mysteries. It is an
ideal complement to the ZDF two-part fictional drama “Ship
of No Return – The Final Voyage of the ‘Gustloff.’” It describes
how millions of ethnic Germans from the eastern confines of
the German Reich fled from the Soviet troops. Finding their
escape routes blocked, they could only hope for rescue by
sea. Those lucky enough to find a place on board of one of
the ships departing from a Baltic port believed they were
saved. Those who made it onto the Gustloff thought that their
flight was nearly over – but they were wrong.

More than 10,000 people were on board the vessel that
was originally designed to hold around 2,000 passengers
and crew. The torpedo attack had consequences that not
even the Soviets could have imagined: nine thousand died,
more than six times the number who perished in the sinking
of the Titanic. Through eyewitness accounts of some of the
last living survivors, as well as of former crew members of
the submarine that attacked the Gustloff, the documentary
paints a moving and detailed portrait of the calamity. And
through extensive archival research, valuable unpublished
film footage has also come to light, including exclusive foot-
age of the shipwreck.

The documentary also seeks answers to fundamental ques-

tions: Why did the captains select a route that was known to
the Soviet submarines? What is the truth about the mysteri-
ous radio message that resulted in the navigation lights be-
ing turned on? Was there a saboteur on board? The answers
will help clear up one of the biggest tragedies of the 20 th
century.

Address ZDFEnterprises

Distribution,MerchandisingandInvestments

Lise-Meitner-Strasse9

D-55129Mainz

Contact

programinfo@zdf.de

www.sales.zdf-enterprises.de

Phone:+49(0)6131-991281

Fax: +49(0)6131-991259

Documentaries

Format 1x50’

Script ChristianFrey,AnjaGreulich,

RicardaSchlosshan

Producer

GuidoKnopp,ChristianFrey

Produced by

ZDF