Olympic Titanic Britannic - by Simon Mills (Hardcover)

About the Book

The Titanic. The Britannic. The Olympic. They are some of the most famous ships in history, but for the wrong reasons. With original blueprints, never-before-seen photos and new digital recreations, this book
reveals fascinating new insights about the shared history of these magnificent ships.

Book Synopsis

The Titanic. The Britannic. The Olympic. They are some of the most famous ships in history, but for the wrong reasons.

The Olympic Class liners were conceived as the largest, grandest ships ever to set sail. Of the three ships built, the first only lost the record for being the largest because she was beaten by the second, and they were both beaten by the third. The class was meant to secure the White Star Line's reputation as the greatest shipping company on earth. Instead, with the loss of both the Titanic and the Britannic in their first year of service, it guaranteed White Star's infamy.

This unique book tells the extraordinary story of these three extraordinary ships from the bottom up, starting with their conception and construction (and later their modification) and following their very different careers. Behind the technical details of these magnificent ships lies a tragic human story - not just of the lives lost aboard the Titanic and Britannic, but of the designers pushing the limits beyond what was actually possible, engineers unable to prepare for every twist of fate, and ship owners and crew who truly believed a ship could be unsinkable.

This fascinating story is told with rare photographs, new computer-generated recreations of the ships, and unique wreck images that explore how well the ships were designed and built. Simon Mills offers unparalleled access to shipbuilders Harland & Wolff's specification book for the Olympic Class, including original blueprints and - being made widely available for the first time - large fold-out technical drawings showing how these extensive plans were meant to be seen.

Review Quotes

"BOOK OF THE MONTH: This very well-produced book contains so much information about the Olympic class ships, and is a must for all ocean liner enthusiasts." --Ships Monthly

"A very well researched book and I would very highly recommend it to anyone with an interest in this area." --Shipping Today and Yesterday

"Olympic, Titanic, Britannic has much to offer readers who are interested in any aspect of these ships. [Mills] presents a lively narrative with many intriguing anecdotes. He has uncovered many rarely seen archive photographs [and] also recent ones; among them are some stunning images of the wrecks. A beautifully presented volume, and the images add greatly to its value." --The Mariner's Mirror, journal of the Society for Nautical Research

About the Author

Simon Mills has worked in the film industry for over 40 years, contributing camerawork to over 70 films, TV dramas and documentaries, including several James Bond, Indiana Jones and Harry Potter films. As a qualified HSE scuba diver he has also worked beneath the surface. He has helped research numerous maritime-themed documentaries, and authored or edited countless articles and 12 books, including Exploring the Britannic, also published by Bloomsbury. He has owned the wreck of the Britannic since 1996.