The Story of an Epic Chase Introduced by Ludovic Kennedy Thirty years ago this week - 27 May, 1941 - the ship Hitler called ' the pride of the German Navy' was sent to the bottom by the guns and torpedoes of the British Fleet. So ended one of the most fantastic chases in the history of Naval warfare. It lasted seven days, spread over some two million square miles of ocean, and during it 3,500 men died. At stake was Britain's lifeline, the convoy route to America. For Ludovic Kennedy it is a very personal story. As a Sub-Lieutenant in the destroyer HMS Tartar he took part in the pursuit, and witnessed the end of Bismarck. Tonight he tells the story of her last voyage with the help of those on either side who were there. Among them, the actor Esmond Knight , blinded by a hit from Bismarck; Robert Tilburn , one of the three survivors from HMS Hood; and Baron von Mullenheim-Rechberg, the Third Gunnery Officer of Bismarck, who was in Scharnhorst when she sank HMS Rawalpindi, commanded by Ludovic Kennedy 's father. Written by LUDOVIC KENNEDY Studio director ROBIN BOOTLE Producer GORDON WATKINS