A new primetime show starts 13 September on ITV, featuring the dramas large and small that make up the workload of the RNLI lifeboats.

The show, Mayday Mayday, runs every Tuesday at 7.30pm, fronted by Holiday presenter Craig Doyle.

The eight-part series uses footage from both the charity’s helmet cams and lifeboat cameras to capture the real-life dramas that RNLI volunteer crews and lifeguards experience every day as they save lives at sea.

Tonight’s episode features incidents from Torbay, Plymouth and Dunbar, and sees the crew rescue a man who slips on rocks and falls into the sea, seriously injuring himself in the process, as well as the rescues of a couple and their dog from their sinking motor cruiser and a family cut off by a fast rising tide during a seaside picnic.

While the RNLI has featured in many television shows in the past, notably Seaside Rescue, this is the first time an entire series has been devoted solely to them.

Speaking for the RNLI, their Film and Image Unit head Eleanor Driscoll said: ‘The increasing availability and affordability of technology has enabled us to give a real close-up view of the action. As well as showing our supporters exactly what their donations are helping us to do, and providing the RNLI with a valuable training resource, this footage allows us to show the general public what it is we do 24 hours a day, seven days a week – helping those in distress and saving lives at sea.’

Image: RNLI