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RNLI lifesavers feature in new series of Saving Lives at Sea

Lifeboats News Release

Volunteer Royal National Lifeboat Institution (RNLI) lifeboat crews are set to hit the nation’s screens in the latest series of popular TV show Saving Lives at Sea on BBC Two.

Olly Rose/Blast! Films

RNLI Calshot crew member Kelley Leonard who features in the first episode

Launching on 28 September 2023 at 8pm, the popular 10-part documentary, now in its eighth series, includes the lifesaving work of the charity’s volunteer lifeboat crews from around the UK and Ireland.

Featuring footage captured on helmet and boat cameras, viewers watch dramatic rescues through the eyes of RNLI lifesavers while meeting the people behind the pagers and hearing interviews with lifeboat crews, the series will also hear from the rescuees and their families who, thanks to RNLI lifesavers, are here to tell the tale.

In 2022, RNLI lifeboat crews around the UK and Ireland launched 9,312 times, saving 389 lives, while the charity’s lifeguards aided 23,204 people and saved 117 lives on some of the UK’s busiest beaches.

If you are inspired to volunteer with the RNLI after watching the series, there are a variety of roles from lifeboat crew to fundraiser, lifeguard to shop volunteer. Fund out more at rnli.org/volunteer

Notes to Editors

  • The series is made for the BBC by Blast! Films.

Key facts about the RNLI

The RNLI charity saves lives at sea. Its volunteers provide a 24-hour search and rescue service around the United Kingdom and Republic of Ireland coasts. The RNLI operates 238 lifeboat stations in the UK and Ireland and more than 240 lifeguard units on beaches around the UK and Channel Islands. The RNLI is independent of Coastguard and government and depends on voluntary donations and legacies to maintain its rescue service. Since the RNLI was founded in 1824, its lifeboat crews and lifeguards have saved over 146,000 lives.

Learn more about the RNLI

For more information please visit the RNLI website or Facebook, Twitter and YouTube. News releases, videos and photos are available on the News Centre.

Contacting the RNLI - public enquiries

Members of the public may contact the RNLI on 0300 300 9990 (UK) or 1800 991802 (Ireland) or by email.