-
The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst
- Now filmed as The Mercy
- Narrated by: Philip Bird
- Length: 10 hrs and 12 mins
Add to Cart failed.
Add to Wish List failed.
Remove from wishlist failed.
Adding to library failed
Follow podcast failed
Unfollow podcast failed
Buy for $21.31
No default payment method selected.
We are sorry. We are not allowed to sell this product with the selected payment method
Listeners also enjoyed...
-
A Race Too Far
- By: Chris Eakin
- Narrated by: Christian Rodska
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1968, the Sunday Times organised the Golden Globe race - an incredible test of endurance never before attempted – a round the world yacht race that must be completed single-handed and non-stop, going into port for repairs or supplies would mean disqualification.This remarkable challenge inspired the daring to enter – with or without sailing experience. A Race Too Far is the story of how the race unfolded, and how it became a tragedy for many involved.
By: Chris Eakin
-
A Voyage for Madmen
- By: Peter Nichols
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1968, nine sailors set off on the most daring race ever held: to single-handedly circumnavigate the globe nonstop. It was a feat that had never been accomplished and one that would forever change the face of sailing. Ten months later, only one of the nine men would cross the finish line and earn fame, wealth, and glory. For the others, the reward was madness, failure, and death. In this extraordinary book, Peter Nichols chronicles a contest of the individual against the sea, waged at a time before cell phones and electronic positioning systems.
-
-
Not Awesome
- By Shaun G. on 04-23-19
By: Peter Nichols
-
Cape Horn to Starboard
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Legendary account of the author's voyage around Cape Horn in a 32-foot sailboat, sailing east to west (thus the Horn is to starboard, or on the right). This is a notoriously difficult and dangerous passage, especially in a boat this size.
-
-
A sailing classic
- By Andrew van Zyl on 03-16-21
By: John Kretschmer
-
Introduction to Sailing
- By: Christian Williams
- Narrated by: Christian Williams
- Length: 5 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Introduction to Sailing is veteran sailor Christian Williams’ candid and highly entertaining invitation to boats and the sea. Writing for new sailors of every kind, he evokes the joy of wind and water in an intimate style that begins with dinghies, which he advocates as most fun of all, and continues through cruising boats small and large and for every budget.
-
-
This is the real WHY for starting to sail.
- By Harry S. on 03-23-22
-
Sailing a Serious Ocean
- Sailboats, Storms, Stories and Lessons Learned from 30 Years at Sea
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After sailing 300,000 miles and weathering dozens of storms in all the world's oceans, John Kretschmer has plenty of stories and advice to share. John's offshore training passages sell out a year in advance, and his entertaining presentations are popular at boat shows and yacht clubs all over the English-speaking world. John's talent for storytelling enchants his audience as it soaks up the lessons he learned during his often challenging voyages. Now you can take a seat next to John - at a lesser cost - and get the knowledge you need to fulfill your own dream of blue-water adventure.
-
-
Fantastic book on ocean sailing
- By Aleksander Styrvold Kristoffersen on 05-09-19
By: John Kretschmer
-
Bound for Distant Seas
- A Voyage Alone to Asia Aboard the 28-Foot Sailboat Atom
- By: James Baldwin
- Narrated by: Nick O'Kelly
- Length: 13 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bound for Distant Seas begins sailing author James Baldwin's epic tale of his second circumnavigation. His story is seasoned by his adventures during his first circumnavigation in 1984-86 as told in Across Islands and Oceans. Alone with little money aboard Atom, his now-engineless 28-foot sailboat, James embarks on his odyssey without the comforts and equipment most sailors consider essential.
-
-
Sailing and social commentary
- By Dean Owens on 04-27-16
By: James Baldwin
-
A Race Too Far
- By: Chris Eakin
- Narrated by: Christian Rodska
- Length: 9 hrs and 35 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1968, the Sunday Times organised the Golden Globe race - an incredible test of endurance never before attempted – a round the world yacht race that must be completed single-handed and non-stop, going into port for repairs or supplies would mean disqualification.This remarkable challenge inspired the daring to enter – with or without sailing experience. A Race Too Far is the story of how the race unfolded, and how it became a tragedy for many involved.
By: Chris Eakin
-
A Voyage for Madmen
- By: Peter Nichols
- Narrated by: Norman Dietz
- Length: 10 hrs and 47 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1968, nine sailors set off on the most daring race ever held: to single-handedly circumnavigate the globe nonstop. It was a feat that had never been accomplished and one that would forever change the face of sailing. Ten months later, only one of the nine men would cross the finish line and earn fame, wealth, and glory. For the others, the reward was madness, failure, and death. In this extraordinary book, Peter Nichols chronicles a contest of the individual against the sea, waged at a time before cell phones and electronic positioning systems.
-
-
Not Awesome
- By Shaun G. on 04-23-19
By: Peter Nichols
-
Cape Horn to Starboard
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Tom Perkins
- Length: 6 hrs and 52 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Legendary account of the author's voyage around Cape Horn in a 32-foot sailboat, sailing east to west (thus the Horn is to starboard, or on the right). This is a notoriously difficult and dangerous passage, especially in a boat this size.
-
-
A sailing classic
- By Andrew van Zyl on 03-16-21
By: John Kretschmer
-
Introduction to Sailing
- By: Christian Williams
- Narrated by: Christian Williams
- Length: 5 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Introduction to Sailing is veteran sailor Christian Williams’ candid and highly entertaining invitation to boats and the sea. Writing for new sailors of every kind, he evokes the joy of wind and water in an intimate style that begins with dinghies, which he advocates as most fun of all, and continues through cruising boats small and large and for every budget.
-
-
This is the real WHY for starting to sail.
- By Harry S. on 03-23-22
-
Sailing a Serious Ocean
- Sailboats, Storms, Stories and Lessons Learned from 30 Years at Sea
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 10 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
After sailing 300,000 miles and weathering dozens of storms in all the world's oceans, John Kretschmer has plenty of stories and advice to share. John's offshore training passages sell out a year in advance, and his entertaining presentations are popular at boat shows and yacht clubs all over the English-speaking world. John's talent for storytelling enchants his audience as it soaks up the lessons he learned during his often challenging voyages. Now you can take a seat next to John - at a lesser cost - and get the knowledge you need to fulfill your own dream of blue-water adventure.
-
-
Fantastic book on ocean sailing
- By Aleksander Styrvold Kristoffersen on 05-09-19
By: John Kretschmer
-
Bound for Distant Seas
- A Voyage Alone to Asia Aboard the 28-Foot Sailboat Atom
- By: James Baldwin
- Narrated by: Nick O'Kelly
- Length: 13 hrs and 12 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Bound for Distant Seas begins sailing author James Baldwin's epic tale of his second circumnavigation. His story is seasoned by his adventures during his first circumnavigation in 1984-86 as told in Across Islands and Oceans. Alone with little money aboard Atom, his now-engineless 28-foot sailboat, James embarks on his odyssey without the comforts and equipment most sailors consider essential.
-
-
Sailing and social commentary
- By Dean Owens on 04-27-16
By: James Baldwin
-
Endurance
- Shackleton's Incredible Voyage
- By: Alfred Lansing
- Narrated by: Simon Prebble
- Length: 10 hrs and 20 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In August of 1914, the British ship Endurance set sail for the South Atlantic. In October, 1915, still half a continent away from its intended base, the ship was trapped, then crushed in the ice. For five months, Sir Ernest Shackleton and his men, drifting on ice packs, were castaways in one of the most savage regions of the world.
-
-
Superb in so many ways
- By David on 01-19-14
By: Alfred Lansing
-
The Voyage of the Beagle
- By: Charles Darwin
- Narrated by: Barnaby Edwards
- Length: 25 hrs and 17 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
I hate every wave of the ocean', the seasick Charles Darwin wrote to his family during his five-year voyage on the H.M.S. Beagle. It was this world-wide journey, however, that launched the scientists career.
-
-
High Adventure - Well Written
- By wbiro on 09-16-17
By: Charles Darwin
-
The Stranger in the Woods
- The Extraordinary Story of the Last True Hermit
- By: Michael Finkel
- Narrated by: Mark Bramhall
- Length: 6 hrs and 19 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
For readers and listeners of Jon Krakauer and The Lost City of Z, a remarkable tale of survival and solitude - the true story of a man who lived alone in a tent in the Maine woods, never talking to another person and surviving by stealing supplies from nearby cabins for 27 years.
-
-
A one-sitting listen
- By NMwritergal on 04-20-18
By: Michael Finkel
-
Shadow Divers
- The True Adventure of Two Americans Who Risked Everything to Solve One of the Last Mysteries of World War II
- By: Robert Kurson
- Narrated by: Michael Prichard
- Length: 15 hrs and 37 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
In 1991, acting on a tip from a local fisherman, two scuba divers discovered a sunken German U-boat, complete with its crew of 60 men, not too far off the New Jersey coast. The divers, realizing the momentousness of their discovery, began probing the mystery. Over the next six years, they became expert and well-traveled researchers, taught themselves German, hunted for clues in Germany, and constructed theories corrective of the history books, all in an effort to identify this sunken U-boat and its crew.
-
-
GRIPPING!
- By Douglas on 07-03-04
By: Robert Kurson
-
Across Islands and Oceans
- A Journey Alone Around the World By Sail and By Foot
- By: James Baldwin
- Narrated by: Spencer King
- Length: 13 hrs and 2 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
Across Islands and Oceans is the memoir of 25 year-old James Baldwin and his epic two-year, solo circumnavigation in Atom, his trusty but aging 28-foot sailboat.
-
-
Amazing Adventures
- By Jon on 05-03-19
By: James Baldwin
-
Sailing into Oblivion: The Solo Non-stop Voyage of the Mighty Sparrow
- By: Jerome Rand
- Narrated by: Jerome Rand
- Length: 5 hrs and 8 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
The true account of the 2017-2018 solo nonstop circumnavigation by Jerome Rand aboard the Westsail 32 Mighty Sparrow. A testament to endurance and adventure, this memoir recounts what life is like aboard a small sailboat during a 271-day voyage around the globe, alone, and without stopping. One of the greatest challenges of both body and mind, the author will take you onboard during the good times and the bad. As one of only a handful of people to have ever succeed in such a small boat, this story is truly the adventure of a lifetime.
-
-
What not to do!
- By j daly on 09-30-21
By: Jerome Rand
-
The Cult of We
- WeWork, Adam Neumann, and the Great Startup Delusion
- By: Eliot Brown, Maureen Farrell
- Narrated by: Thérèse Plummer
- Length: 13 hrs and 14 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
WeWork would be worth $10 trillion, more than any other company in the world. It wasn’t just an office space provider. It was a tech company - an AI startup, even. Its WeGrow schools and WeLive residences would revolutionize education and housing. One day, mused founder Adam Neumann, a Middle East peace accord would be signed in a WeWork. The company might help colonize Mars. And Neumann would become the world’s first trillionaire.
-
-
Incredible
- By Reeka on 08-02-21
By: Eliot Brown, and others
-
Under the Banner of Heaven
- A Story of Violent Faith
- By: Jon Krakauer
- Narrated by: Scott Brick
- Length: 12 hrs and 29 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
This extraordinary work of investigative journalism takes listeners inside America’s isolated Mormon Fundamentalist communities, where some 40,000 people still practice polygamy. Defying both civil authorities and the Mormon establishment in Salt Lake City, the renegade leaders of these Taliban-like theocracies are zealots who answer only to God.
-
-
Makes you think
- By Ashley on 04-06-06
By: Jon Krakauer
-
At the Mercy of the Sea
- The True Story of Three Sailors in a Caribbean Hurricane
- By: John Kretschmer
- Narrated by: Patrick Conn
- Length: 7 hrs and 3 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
"The tale of Carl Wake and the hurricane that was waiting for him goes straight to the heart of the greatest sea stories: they are not about man against the sea, but man against himself. John Kretschmer's audiobook is as perfectly shaped and flawlessly written as such a story can be. In addition to being the best depiction I have ever listened to of what it is like to be inside a hurricane at sea, At the Mercy of the Sea is as moving a story of a man's failure and redemption as can be found anywhere in the literature of the sea. This audiobook is surely destined to become a classic."
-
-
Great writer, distractingly unsupervised performance
- By AJay on 07-16-19
By: John Kretschmer
-
Old Man Sailing
- Some Dreams Take a Lifetime
- By: John Passmore
- Narrated by: Charles Robert Fox
- Length: 8 hrs and 5 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
When COVID-19 struck the UK, the government advised the over-70s to "shield" while the country went into lockdown. One old man went sailing instead. Single-handed and self-isolated, retired journalist John Passmore used the pandemic to achieve an ambition that had eluded him for 60 years. For 3,629 miles, he disappeared into a world of perfect solitude, adventure, and adversity, arriving back 42 days later, short of water and with shredded sails, to find himself celebrated on national radio as the embodiment of everybody’s lockdown dream. This is his story.
-
-
Inspirational!
- By Brad M. on 02-22-22
By: John Passmore
-
American Prometheus
- The Triumph and Tragedy of J. Robert Oppenheimer
- By: Kai Bird, Martin J. Sherwin
- Narrated by: Jeff Cummings
- Length: 26 hrs and 30 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
J. Robert Oppenheimer was one of the iconic figures of the 20th century, a brilliant physicist who led the effort to build the atomic bomb but later confronted the moral consequences of scientific progress. When he proposed international controls over atomic materials, opposed the development of the hydrogen bomb, and criticized plans for a nuclear war, his ideas were anathema to powerful advocates of a massive nuclear buildup during the anti-Communist hysteria of the early 1950s.
-
-
A "Blast" from the Past
- By Roy on 07-10-09
By: Kai Bird, and others
-
A Long Strange Trip
- The Inside History of the Grateful Dead
- By: Dennis McNally
- Narrated by: Sean Runnette
- Length: 29 hrs and 25 mins
- Unabridged
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
From 1965 to 1995, the Grateful Dead flourished as one of the most beloved, unusual, and accomplished musical entities to ever grace American culture. The creative synchronicity among Jerry Garcia, Bob Weir, Phil Lesh, Bill Kreutzmann, Mickey Hart, and Ron "Pigpen" McKernan exploded out of the early 60s roots and folk scene, providing the soundtrack for the Dionysian revels of the counterculture. Dennis McNally, the band's historian and publicist for more than 20 years, takes listeners back through the Dead's history.
-
-
Amazing story!
- By Michael Knoll on 11-04-18
By: Dennis McNally
Publisher's Summary
Now a major motion picture starring Colin Firth and Rachel Weisz, directed by James Marsh (The Theory of Everything).
In 1968 Donald Crowhurst was trying to market a nautical navigation device he had developed and saw the Sunday Times Golden Globe 'round the world sailing race as the perfect opportunity to showcase his product.
Few people knew that he wasn't an experienced deep-water sailor. His progress was so slow that he decided to shortcut the journey, falsifying his location through radio messages from his supposed course. Everyone following the race thought that he was winning, and a hero's welcome awaited him at home in Britain.
But on 10 July 1968, eight months after he set off, his wife was told that his boat had been discovered drifting in the mid-Atlantic. Crowhurst was missing, assumed drowned, and there was much speculation that this was one of the great mysteries of the sea.
In this masterpiece of investigative journalism, Nicholas Tomalin and Ron Hall reconstruct one of the greatest hoaxes of our time. From in-depth interviews with Crowhurst's family and friends and telling excerpts from his logbooks, Tomalin and Hall develop a tale of tragic self-delusion and public deception, a haunting portrait of a complex, deeply troubled man and his journey into the heart of darkness.
More from the same
What listeners say about The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst
Average Customer RatingsReviews - Please select the tabs below to change the source of reviews.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- charles Piso
- 08-06-22
A truly strange tale
I want to say loved this book but it's hard to say about such a sad tale of desperation being lost as a soul and struggle to do what is right even when it's not in your ability to see the path or act on it
All of us can break and the human mind can be justcas fragile as it is resistant.
Lessons to be learned
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- RWR
- 08-30-21
Well written and well read
Great unfolding of a classic sea story.
Tremendous lesson for those who may not quite fully respect the sea.
Indeed, one of the great see stories of all time
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story
- Mike
- 03-27-18
Wallowing in failure
An Abridged version would be better. An interesting story, however having to live through his total failure isn't the best learning experience. The reader did a good job.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Simon Zohhadi
- 01-07-17
Many Lessons In This Excellent Book
Donald Crowhurst proves that highly intelligent (and brave) men can make many bad decisions, leading to ultimate failure. This brings into question: what really is intelligence? The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst is a fascinating account of his last voyage. Taking part in the global race was not enough for him. Deceit and ramblings about disembodied intelligence are consequences of his vanity. Nevertheless, all fascinating stuff. A very interesting but deeply flawed man. The best decision would have been to wait the following year to embark on the race but to Donald Crowhurst, hesitation was minus time and action plus time. Neither he nor the boat was ready. There are many lessons in this book.
My rating: 5/5. Highly recommended.
4 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- toveyc1
- 05-21-17
A man taken to the brink
This book is a fascinating look into the 'mind' of an intelligent and articulate man, who was brought to the very edge of sanity. The narrative is carefully constructed so that you can understand how Crowhurst got from A-B. B being the final scenario we are left with. Well written (although slightly meandering at times) and well read by the narrator. A perfect voice and pace for this subject matter. Crowhurst very much appears to be a jack-the-lad with a conscience. A victim of his own internal moral code.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Vicuña
- 03-01-17
Huge con, hubris or a flawed ego?
If you could sum up The Strange Last Voyage of Donald Crowhurst in three words, what would they be?
Astonishing, compassionate, honest.
What did you like best about this story?
Non judgmental; the facts are presented and the reader can draw a conclusion. The authors don't point fingers...
Which scene did you most enjoy?
Crowhurst's final night at home was memorable, but not enjoyable.
Was there a moment in the book that particularly moved you?
His final night at home and some observations by his wife.
Any additional comments?
I followed this round the world yacht race as covered by the Sunday Times at the time and was bewildered and then angered by the cheating and duplicity. But this book goes below the public personna of Crowhurst. It reveals a flawed man; one whose ego and judgement ruled over practicality and common sense. His arrogance was rarely tempered, but his vulnerability and fears are laid bare in this account. Fascinating and compelling listening and I'm looking forward to the film.
1 person found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Rachel Redford
- 01-09-17
'Tremble for the Man'
Since the disappearance of Donald Crowhurst at the end of the 1968-69 Sunday Times Golden Globe round the World Yacht Race, there have been all kinds of recreations in fact and fiction. This comprehensive and definitive account of Donald Crowhurst's voyage and of the man and his mind was published in 1970 by Nicholas Tomalin and Ron Hall and has been released as a download in advance of The Mercy, the new film with Colin Firth as Crowhurst.
As a sympathetic, insightful and scrupulously researched account, it is excellent. Crowhurst, the adventurer, larger-than-life, clever, mercurial, set off on the race completely unprepared and by today's standards, inexperienced in his barely finished catamaran to sail single-handed across some of the most dangerous oceans of the world. The letter he left behind for his wife Clare to read if he did not return is loving and moving and shows a serious and apparently well-balanced mind. By the time he slipped into the waters of the Atlantic 243 days later he was well advanced into 'time madness,' into which lone sailors can descend, which led Crowhurst to be believe he was some kind of god or cosmic being who had unwrapped the secrets of metaphysics.
The authors have scrutinised every word of Crowhurst's voluminous log books, both his 'real' ones and his 'fake' log books with which he intended to fool the race officials that he had indeed circumnavigated the world and not merely circled aimlessly around the Atlantic. As an intimate insight into Crowhurst's mind it is brilliant, and listening to his agonies in 'life's tortuous game', you cannot but feel a terrible pity for him caught in the hideous position he had made for himself. As his arrival in Teignmouth approached closer and closer and radio messages reported the hordes waiting to welcome him it becomes almost unbearable. His obsession with Einstein fed his delusions and madness which in the end clouded even his deep love for his wife and children who were waiting to welcome him home.
It's a very fair, undramatic book (there's drama enough in Crowhurst's life) and the final assessment that he fell short of his own vision is a fitting epitaph. The narration is first rate and captures the whole spectrum of Crowhurst's feelings as his mind disintegrated.
2 people found this helpful
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- nicolette king
- 04-29-22
Amazing!
Extraordinary story of a man somewhat unprepared
for an extreme journey. One can only feel compassion for him. You could,nt make it up .Beautifully read and much respect to the journalists for untangling this complex story .
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- svhappymondays
- 04-28-22
Biblical
As a boat owner with only 500 nm under my belt
I found this a truly fascinating and profoundly saddening at the same time, the reading was fantastic and I just couldn't turn it off.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Mrs Alison Moore
- 04-22-22
Outstanding
This is a fantastic tragic story told with great style and compassion. Hard to believe it's true (but it is!), it stands as an extraordinary example of self-inflicted folly. The narrator is perfect for the book, and so the telling is gripping and every moment captivating. Outstanding.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- I M Sepion
- 05-18-20
Amazing account of entrant to original GGR
I was totally enthralled by this account of the characters and certain of the events involved in the first Golden Globe Race, though I've never had any interest in yacht racing before, and particularly by Donald Crowhurst, who in spite of the deceipt was also revealed to have admirable qualities. In view of the miles he covered, I'm not sure why he did not feel able to sail to Cape Town and retire from the race there, with his dignity in tact. Even if this was risky, surely it would have been worth a try, bearing in mind the final outcome? The authors appear to have been even handed and fair in their narrative, and this moving tale has greatly sparked my interest to read accounts of the other competitors. I would certainly recommend this book to others.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- P. S. Clarke
- 10-11-19
GRIPPING AND SAD
A tale of ambition and desperation, loneliness and resourcefulness, and an end of a mind beset with inner demons. A great story well told.
-
Overall
-
Performance
-
Story

- Daithi
- 06-08-19
Excellent Account of True Event
The only thing I found not so good was the factual ramblings of the log book which I know must be included. Maybe just to long from the writers point, a flavor would do as it looses the reader/listener