Reunited: Our first date was on a blazing cruise liner

A single text to BBC 5 live sparked an investigation which reunited two people who were separated by a tragedy that few now remember.

On 22nd December 1963, 15 year old Robert and 14 year old Patricia were on the back row of a cruise ship’s cinema when smoke was spotted on board. The fire which broke out on the TSMS Lakonia, and the chaotic evacuation which followed, claimed the lives of 95, mostly British, passengers and 33 crew.

In the chaos, Patricia made it to a lifeboat while Robert, who lost his father in the tragedy, was forced to jump into the open sea. After hours in the water they were miraculously picked up by the same rescue ship. Despite trying to keep in touch they lost contact but never forgot that first date in the ship’s cinema.

53 years on, a single text from Robert sparked an ‘I Was There’ investigation which traced Patricia and many other survivors and rescuers.

On 20th December 2016 several of those people joined 5 live daily’s Adrian Chiles in the BBC Radio Theatre in London to retell the story of this forgotten disaster. During the live broadcast, Patricia and Robert were reunited where they last left off, in the seats of the historic theatre’s otherwise empty back row.

‘I Was There: The 1963 Lakonia Cruise Ship Disaster’ is available as a BBC Podcast.

This clip is from 5 live Daily on Wednesday 22 December 2016.

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