Overdue: The Story of a Missing Ship

Set against the golden age of the clipper ship, this memoir thrusts listeners into the bustling decks of the Salamis, a sleek vessel racing the wind on its way from London to Melbourne. Through the eyes of a seventeen‑year‑old midshipman‑apprentice, we hear the creak of rigging, the roar of fresh nor‑nor‑west breezes, and the camaraderie of a crew intent on setting a record passage.

The narrative pivots when a violent snap of a studding‑sail boom sends the second mate plummeting overboard, disappearing beneath the churning bow wave. The midshipman’s quick thinking—hurling a lifebuoy amid rising panic—captures a moment of heroic impulse and the raw, unfiltered chaos of life at sea.

As the ship scrambles to reef its sails and regain control, the listener is left with the lingering tension of a voyage half‑completed, and the haunting question of what lies ahead for the spirited crew and their daring vessel.