As the centenary of the sinking of the Titanic approaches, a TV series with Strictly Come Dancing judge Len Goodman looks at the lasting impact of its tragic maiden voyage.

The sinking of the Titanic is the most famous maritime disaster in history, killing 1,517 people on its maiden voyage from Southampton to New York.

In a new three-part TV series, Titanic With Len Goodman, the Strictly Come Dancing head judge finds out how the impact of the Titanic disaster is still felt a century after the ship sank.

Len, who runs a ballroom dance school in Dartford, has his own connection to the Titanic. Before he was a dancer he was a welder for Harland and Woolf, the company that built Titanic between 1909 and 1912 in Belfast. Len worked for them 50 years later at their yard in east London.

To mark the centenary of the Titanic tragedy Len explores the ship’s 100 year legacy and learns how the sinking of the ship was just the beginning of the story for the victims’ families and the survivors themselves.

Generations later, those stories linked to the Titanic are still unfolding. Len meets the modern-day descendants to learn how the Titanic’s legacy lives on.

In the first programme of the series – leading up to the 100-year anniversary of the liner sinking on April 15, 1912 – Len discovers how Titanic claimed the lives of eight men in Belfast before she even touched the water. He tries his hand at riveting, experiencing first-hand the blood and sweat that went into building a ship a century ago.

He visits Southampton, to find out why it was the city hit hardest by Titanic’s death toll. He also meets relatives of Titanic’s crew, who describe how just traumatised the disaster left their relatives.

Also the head judge on USA show Dancing with the Stars, Len explores the story of the Titanic band. It’s one of the best known stories from the ship, but few will have heard how the death of one of the musicians tore his family apart for 100 years. Len meets a descendant who tells him how and why this happened.

Len said: “Making this series has been a fascinating journey for me. You might think the Titanic story was just about a ship that sank. But I’ve found out there is so much more to it than that.

“The real story of the Titanic isn’t about a ship, it’s about people, and in making this series I’ve been lucky to meet some wonderful personalities who astonished me with their tales of how Titanic affected their families forever.

“We filmed all over the UK, but spent a whole week in Belfast where I had a wonderful time meeting people. I thoroughly enjoyed myself, and really hope everyone will get as much enjoyment watching it at home.”

The series’ director and producer Edward Hart said: “Working with Len was a total pleasure. He’s a constant professional who’s determined to get it right.

“He’s also sharp as a tack, with a curious mind and, as we all know from Strictly, a lovely manner with people. That, and his own experience in a Harland and Wolff shipyard, made him the ideal man with whom to explore Titanic’s legacy.”

Life in dance

Ballroom and Latin dance specialist Len has run the Goodman Dance Centre in Dartford for more than 30 years. Bethnal Green-born Len only tried dancing in an attempt to recover from a foot injury he got playing football.

He turned professional, won various competitions, and retired from dancing after winning the British Championships at Blackpool in his late 20s. He is a recipient of the Carl Alan Award, in recognition of outstanding contributions to dance.

For information on the Goodman Dance Centre, found on Market Street, call 01322 222508.

The first of the three-part series Titanic With Len Goodman is on BBC1 on Friday, March 30 from 8.30pm to 9pm.