The Ship. This item is unavailable.The Ship

The Ship tells the exciting story of Captain James Cook's voyage on the Endeavour and describes what happened when a BBC team of volunteers boarded a magnificent replica of the ship to retrace a dramatic stretch of its route from Cape Grafton in Australia to Jakarta in Indonesia. Simon Baker, author and volunteer able seaman, begins by taking a fresh look at Cook and the origins of his first voyage - how it turned from a scientific expedition to observe an eclipse into a far-reaching quest for the Great Southern Continent. Drawing on original journals, he re-examines Cook's motives and reputation, revealing a more complex character than the hero that history has handed down to us. The replica Endeavour provided a unique opportunity to 'test' the achievements of Cook and his company within an authentic eighteenth-century environment.

Simon Baker, a producer on the TV Series The Ship, studied Classics at Oxford University, where he first took ancient history and historiography. He joined the BBC's history department where he still works, researching new program ideas. He lives in London. This is his first book.