What is #Livetitanic about?

#LiveTitanic profile picture Picture by: YLE/Annukka Palmén-Väisänen titanic

Published 22.03.2016 - 22:00. Updated 28.04.2017 - 08:27

#Livetitanic is a story of individuals who, among tens of thousands of other Finns, decide to fulfill their dreams and search for a new life in a new world. They buy themselves tickets to world's most modern and glamorous steamship: RMS Titanic.

In 1912, 63 Finnish passengers were on board the Titanic, of which only 20 survived. Now, over hundred years after the ship sank, it's possible to relive the voyage in real time. Among those sailing the ship are: Helmi Juurakko, an 18-year old vicarage maid girl from the town of Ylistaro; Karl and Tilda Myyri, a young couple from Helsinki; a songstress by the name of Lempi Jokela; family Panula from Lapua; and Emil Kelo, who gets a job from Titanic's kitchen.
"American Matti", a Finnish immigrant in New Jersey, instructs the travelers and many letters from the US guide the Finns planning to set sail. The characters base on real historical persons. And every second, a certain iceberg travels South from Jakobshavn of Greenland...

Twitter narration covers the events of the traveling Finns from 30 March to 18 April 2016.

The journey begins by traveling 104 years back in time. It's 30 March 1912, and the Finns wait for a departure to Britain in the coast city of Hanko. The cruise of the dreams face a dramatic turn of events during the night between the 14 and 15 April, as some of the Finnish passengers manage to survive, others will end up immersing into the freezing Atlantic Ocean. #LiveTitanic will finish in 18 April, when the survivors of the shipwreck arrive in America.

All the highlights of Finnish stories (hashtag #Titanicilla) will be translated in English and posted by Twitter account @titanicfi under hashtag #LiveTitanic.

Finnish speaking audience can follow the events from Yle Puhe radio station, which broadcasts special "Titanic News" from 2 April to 18 April. Finnish stories can be found from Twitter, Facebook and from Instagram (#Titanicilla). All the material, including all related Twitter accounts, is composed to the project's web site yle.fi/titanicilla.

Master account in English

Finnish-speaking characters:

Main characters

Students and teachers from the Lapua, Iitti and Kuopio high schools also take part with their own characters:

The Panula Family (Lapua high school):

The Panulas base on a true family that lived in Ylihärmä, Finland. Father Juho was waiting for her wife Maria and their five sons, who all traveled on Titanic, to join him in Pennsylvania. The boys were called Ernesti, Jaakko, Juho, Urho and Eino.

Juhani Hiltunen (Iitti high school) Juhani Hiltunen
Ida-Sofia Rosblom (Iitti high school) Ida-Sofia Rosblom (Iitin lukio)

Yle Historia facebook #Titanicilla 22.3 - 20.4.2016
Instagram #Titanicilla

Edit 26.3. 12.46: "Helmi Juurakko" isn't Laestadian.