The Day of the Roses (TV 2001)

Docudrama of the events surrounding the Granville Rail Disaster in Sydney in January 1977, and the subsequent coronial investigation.

Director:

Peter Fisk

Writers:

Murray Hubbard (manuscript), Ray Connor (manuscript),

Stars:

John Bach, Chris Betts, Aaron Blabey

7 wins & 2 nominations.

Cast

Cast overview, first billed only:
John Bach	...	Tom Weir
Chris Betts	...	Sgt. Merv Masterson
Aaron Blabey	...	Dr White
Carol Burns	...	Greta
Cormac Costello	...	Michael "Scotty" McInally
Stephen Curry	...	Rescuer
Helen Dallimore	...	Annette Gordon
Gigi Edgley	...	Erica Watson
Rebecca Gibney	...	Margaret Warby
Paul Mercurio	...	Bryan Gordon
Heather Mitchell	...	Margaret Shuttler
Peter O'Brien	...	Boris Osman
Damian Pike	...	Constable Garry Raymond
Wayne Pygram	...	Sgt. Joe Beecroft
Jeremy Sims	...	Gerry Buchtmann

Storyline

On January 18th, 1977, a crowded commuter train heading for Sydney, came off the track and struck the pillars of an overhead road bridge, crushing part of the train and killing 83 passengers and injuring more than 200 others. This story follows the coronial inquiry into the crash with flash-backs to the main story, and the efforts of the rescuers to free the injured victims.

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Plot Keywords:

train | disaster | australia | train crash

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Taglines:

The true story of the Granville train disaster.

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Genres:

Drama

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Details

Country:

Australia

Language:

English

Release Date:

22 September 2001 (Netherlands)

Also Known As:

Das Zugunglück

Filming Locations:

Brisbane, Queensland, Australia

Company Credits

Production Co:

Liberty Films International, Liberty Productions

Technical Specs

Runtime:

220 min

Color:

Color

Did You Know?

Trivia

The train used in the movie is a real 46 class loco. They served for many years after the accident, with the final trains not removed from service till 1996. 5 locomotives are preserved in rail collections.

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Goofs

The train location is out of sync with the story line. One shot shows it to be around Emu Plains, next shot shows it to be still in the mountains. The locations are also wrong. One scene shows flour mills in the background that are located near Homebush on a freight line, well past Grandville on the line to the city.

User Reviews

The Australian version of Titanic.

"The Day Of The Roses", the story about the 1972 Granville Train Crash which killed eighty-three people and its effects on the people around it, is an epic Australian mini-series which I thought was like the Australian version of Titanic. Time is always running out for the victims and their rescuers and sometimes, there is nothing they can do. It was filmed in my home of Brisbane and I could recognise some of the places filmed, which made it seem more real. The interwoven subplots each character is dealing with become even more serious when loved ones are lost and there is pain surrounding them. This is a brilliant mini-series and if you loved the epic of Titanic, The Day Of The Roses will touch your heart as well.