The Shipwrecked Marriage | Adrift | 2

Now Maralyn and Maurice are adrift in a raft, with dwindling supplies and no way to call for help. Survival demands more of them than they could have ever expected. Can they hold it together long enough to be found? And do they both still want to be? Do you have a suggestion for a scandal you would like us to cover? Or perhaps you have a question you would like to ask our hosts? Email us at [email protected] See Privacy Policy at https://art19.com/privacy and California Privacy Notice at https://art19.com/privacy#do-not-sell-my-info.

Speaker names marked ? are inferred from speaking time and the show’s known hosts — they are not voice-verified.

• 0:00Alice Levine?

  Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes of British Scandal ad-free right now. Join Audible today by downloading the Audible app. There is some swearing in this episode and some pretty gory references to consuming animals.

• 0:13Matt Forde?

  Or as I call it, a ham sandwich. Alice, I don't want to be negative, but I think a lot of the changes you're implementing in the way that we record the show are actually making it very, very dangerous.

• 0:24Alice Levine?

  No, I'm doing a little bit of cost cutting, saving, so that we can spend on the important stuff like microphones, making the show sound good.

• 0:33Matt Forde?

  Yeah, but I'm teetering on a girder here. I'm 15 floors up. All of the floorboards have been removed.

• 0:40Alice Levine?

  Matt, we cannot spend the whole budget on making this building a palace for you.

• 0:46Matt Forde?

  I put my foot on a spike earlier, on a rusty nail. It's gone black. I think it's got gangrene.

• 0:51Alice Levine?

  Okay, I'm only going to say this once, but you need to be a team player.

• 0:55Matt Forde?

  If you say that, I'm the only one here. You're dialing in from Audible HQ.

• 1:00Alice Levine?

  I'm taking one for the team. I've got the bloody bosses breathing down my throat when they bring me an iced coffee.

• 1:05Matt Forde?

  You know what? I think I've overreacted a bit. Do you know what? This is fine. I think I'll be telling...

• 1:14Alice Levine?

  This is what I said. Those microphones sound fantastic.

• 1:22Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, June 1973. Marilyn stares, the heat of the cabin intense. She reaches instinctively across the bunk beside her. Maurice isn't there, but he always rises earlier than her. He likes the calm first thing in the morning, likes to watch the seabirds in the rising sun. Keeping her eyes closed, she listens to the slap of water against the cabin hull, then detects the smell of fresh coffee, has he burnt it again. She hears footsteps moving towards her. Maurice's hand settles gently on her shoulder.

• 2:03Alice Levine?

  But as she goes to thank him for their daily ritual, something feels wrong. The smell isn't what she'd initially recognised. It's more acrid. It catches in her throat, the bitterness turning her stomach. It's not coffee. It's putrid. It's meat, old, rotting meat.

• 2:32Alice Levine?

  Her eyes snap open. It takes a moment to make sense of the colours and shapes. Aware now that her hands are touching foreign textures, she can't make sense of the beige sky above her. It dawns on her. It's a torn tarpaulin. She can feel the difference of the movement of the water now, more aggressive than usual. She's on a life raft, no larger than the box room of their bungalow. The rubber sides are cracked from months beneath the sun. Beyond the raft, there's nothing but ocean, stretching endlessly to every horizon. Maurice is beside her.

• 3:16Alice Levine?

  She tries to sit up, but she realises her body is too weak. We need to eat. She stares in confusion as he holds up a slither of rancid turtle meat. She recoils at the smell. Oh, it's spoiled, Maurice. That's inedible.

• 3:36Matt Forde?

  I just can't choose, mate. Was it nip back and change it? Come on.

• 3:41Alice Levine?

  Not every dinner's going to be your favourite dinner, as my friend's mum used to say. Maurice's hand grips hers. Maurice, stop. It'll kill us. Don't you? Don't you want this to end? She freezes as she realises what Maurice is suggesting. Our bodies would only need a little. Then we'll go. This could all be over. She takes in Maurice's sores, his hollow eyes, his desperation. She promised herself she would never give up. Her instinct has always been to fight, to win.

• 4:23Alice Levine?

  She lifts the meat towards her sunburnt lips and gazes out across the vast ocean. And for the first time since they were cast adrift, Marilyn realises they're about to choose death over survival.

• 4:47Speaker 02

  The NBA's back on PrizePicks. Pick a shootout in the West and a boards battle in the East. PrizePicks is bringing out their best offer yet. New users who sign up will get $150 in lineups if you win your first $5 lineup. That's right, if you win your first $5 lineup, you'll get $150 in lineups. On PrizePicks, you simply pick two to six players, pick more or less on their stat projections, and submit your lineup. Then sweat it out as you watch your picks play out live. It's the best way to get more locked in on game day. Make all the picks you want this season, all in the same app. And now PrizePicks is available nationwide. The NBA's on PrizePicks. What you want?

• 5:31Speaker 03

  Download the PrizePicks app today and use code WONDERY. That's code WONDERY. To get $150 instantly in lineups if you win your first $5 lineup. PrizePicks, run your game.

• 5:43Speaker 04

  Must be present in certain states. Visit prizepicks.com for restrictions and details. Confidence. It's listening to your gut. It's moving forward even when the path ahead is unclear. For nearly 160 years, Pacific Life has helped people keep their promises, building confidence for generations. Whether you're confident in your financial future or just beginning to envision it, we're here to help. Ask a financial professional how. Pacific Life, the power of a promise. Pacific Life Insurance Company, Omaha, Nebraska. And in New York, Pacific Life and Annuity, Phoenix, Arizona.

• 6:21Alice Levine?

  I'm Alice Levine.

• 6:23Matt Forde?

  And I'm Matt Ford.

• 6:24Alice Levine?

  And this is British Scandal, an Audible original.

• 6:36Alice Levine?

  Okay, Matt, what are your thoughts so far on Maurice and Marilyn?

• 6:41Matt Forde?

  I like them. They don't seem an obvious match. She is impulsive and very fun-loving. She follows her heart and seems quite whimsical. Maurice seems more methodical and definitely more cautious.

• 6:55Alice Levine?

  Yeah, it sounds a bit like us. Which way around would you say we are?

• 6:58Matt Forde?

  Let me just check my spreadsheet because I've kept a record of all our interactions and I think that will let me know which one is the more methodical.

• 7:05Alice Levine?

  So how do you think we would fare on a round-the-world sailing trip that was attacked by a massive whale and we sank? What roles would we take on?

• 7:14Matt Forde?

  Well, I think you're the more sensible one.

• 7:17Alice Levine?

  Oh, wow. Okay.

• 7:18Matt Forde?

  I'm an idiot. You're sensible. That much I think is clear. I also think the dark irony of two people that do a series about things like this ending up in that scenario. We'd have a bit of a laugh about it.

• 7:31Alice Levine?

  But we'd have learnt nothing. Even 70 series in, we'd have learnt nothing.

• 7:37Matt Forde?

  I think our final words would be from Audible Originals and SamusDats Audio. I've been Matt Ford.

• 7:43Alice Levine?

  And I've been Alice Levine. I think there's been an interesting shift in their dynamic, though.

• 7:49Matt Forde?

  Yes, Maurice has ended up becoming a bit more Marilyn because he became a bit more impulsive and he didn't buy a radio for the boat because he wanted to leave at a particular time and he thought it was going to cost too much. And that, you can't help feeling, is going to have major consequences.

• 8:06Alice Levine?

  Yeah, let's see if that was a smart money-saving move, a delightful and charming purist's decision, or in fact, a terrible, terrible omen. Will their relationship survive? Will they survive? This is episode two, Adrift.

• 8:29Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, four months earlier, 4th of March 1973. Day one of the voyage. Marilyn stares down at the blood-red water pumping into the boat. She drops to her knees, grabs the jib sheet from Maurice's hands, then pushes it over the hole and spreads her entire body across it. She shouts over, "Help me!" Maurice throws himself on top of her.

• 8:56Matt Forde?

  Not now, mate.

• 8:57Alice Levine?

  Not today as well. Marilyn feels the flow of water stop under the force of their combined weight. But then the boat tilts violently and Marilyn is flung across the cabin. She grabs the leg of the chart table to stop herself rolling further. The sheet tears free and water explodes through the hole, this time darkened with torn whale blubber. Her nostrils fill with the putrid metallic smell. Her stomach lurches. The whale, is it still alive?

• 9:35Alice Levine?

  Another deep shudder from below gives her the answer. The lockers spring open. Knives start spilling out into the rising water. Tins, tools, coffee jars, plates. Doug, there's nothing more we can do. She hears a terrible, guttural wheezing hiss under the boat.

• 9:57Alice Levine?

  She's pulling us under. Can't, it's... The boat, Marilyn, not the whale. Marilyn frantically nods. Find the sailbags, grab as much food as you can carry. The emergency bag, first aid kit. Then get up on deck, I'll get the drinking water and the raft. Marilyn wades through the cabin and grabs two sailbags as the boat throws her against the wall. She fights back to her feet, stuffs whatever she can into the bags, then hauls herself up through the hatch. As she bursts out, she squints into the sunlight. The deck feels steeper. She finds Morris wrestling the life raft over the side. Get everything in there now.

• 10:41Alice Levine?

  Marilyn scrambles to the side and begins throwing supplies into the raft. Only then does she see Morris inflating the yellow dinghy. What are you doing? There's not enough room in the life raft for us and the water containers. We need this too. Marilyn takes in the five water containers still on the main boat, then glances at their small life raft with its inflatable orange canopy, barely bigger than the average bathtub. Can I help? Get in the raft.

• 11:12Alice Levine?

  Marilyn sees the urgency in his eyes. She climbs into the raft as Morris throws the dinghy into the water, tying its rope securely to the raft with a tight bowline knot. Her heart races as the Orlin's stern tips up behind him while he lowers in the containers. Together, they watch the Orlin sink lower and lower into the water, then slip below the surface with a final, terrible gulp.

• 11:41Alice Levine?

  Their pride and joy, their life savings, their future, gone.

• 11:49Matt Forde?

  This was always the slight flaw in the plan, was it?

• 11:51Alice Levine?

  Slight?

• 11:54Alice Levine?

  Yeah, go on.

• 11:54Matt Forde?

  They'd sold everything to do this. And now, everything they have has sunk to the bottom of the ocean floor.

• 12:05Alice Levine?

  Objects bob to the surface, Morris's spare glasses, framed wedding photos. Marilyn looks past them into the vast ocean, then rests her gaze on Morris and forces herself to say the thing that has been running through her head for the past hour. What the hell are we gonna do now?

• 12:40Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean a minute later. Morris leans over the side of the dinghy, grabbing anything useful floating by. A flask, a tin of luncheon meat, a ball of string. That's your ideal night.

• 12:54Matt Forde?

  It's like my stag do.

• 13:00Alice Levine?

  Then he climbs into the raft where Marilyn sits motionless, gazing out into the ocean, tears silently tracking her cheeks. He can't let her fall into sentimentality, not if they're going to survive.

• 13:15Alice Levine?

  Marilyn, make sure your jacket's done up tight. She doesn't move.

• 13:19Matt Forde?

  Oh yeah, she can't swim.

• 13:20Alice Levine?

  Oh, for God's sake, I forgot.

• 13:24Alice Levine?

  Marilyn. He exhales as she straightens up, pulls at the straps of her life jacket. In the emergency bag, there's a pen and paper. I need you to make a list of all the food we have. Morris turns away. Before he can come up with any kind of plan, he needs to get his bearings, find out how far they've strayed off course. If they're still heading in the direction of the Galapagos, they might be okay. His eyes frantically search the dinghy, then his pulse slows as he closes his fist around a small triangular brass object with a miniature telescope mounted on the end, near two equally tiny mirrors, his trusty sextant.

• 14:09Matt Forde?

  At the risk of offending the nautical community, I don't know what one is. What is a sextant?

• 14:13Alice Levine?

  I knew this was coming. Eye roll. A sextant is a device which helps you locate your position in relation to a celestial object like the sun, the moon, a planet. You basically look in a series of mirrors, then draw a line in between your position and the position of, let's say, the moon. Then you work out the angle, then you work out the time, and it's a sort of proto-triangulation device.

• 14:39Matt Forde?

  That's really clever.

• 14:40Alice Levine?

  Very clever and very beautiful. I mean, I would definitely rather have GPS, but in lieu of that, sure. Morris glances back at Marilyn, who starts going through the tins. Two Frabentos steak and kidney, two walls of luncheon meat, six Heinz vegetable salad and mayonnaise, two tin hamburgers. Morris holds the telescope to his eye, one hand on the sextant's wooden grip, the other on the lever that adjusts its position. He tilts it until he can see the clean, flat line where the ocean meets the sky. He works the index arm slowly, bringing the reflected image of the sun down through the mirror until it sits exactly on the horizon. He checks his deck watch.

• 15:26Alice Levine?

  Two tins condensed milk, one blue band margarine.

• 15:30Matt Forde?

  We didn't even take butter.

• 15:33Alice Levine?

  Morris scribbles the figures down, then reaches for his nautical almanac. Finding the day's date, he scans the tables for the sun's exact position. Then he opens his book of sight reduction tables, cross-references the figures. One big tin, big D peanuts, one Dundee cake. Morris plots one straight line, then another, and marks where they meet in the middle to find their location. He feels his heart sink as he checks the map. One tin Ambrosia rice pudding. Morris tunes Marilyn's voice out. One Sainsbury's curry, one Tate and Lyle treacle. He checks again, desperate to be wrong, but there's no mistaking it.

• 16:17Alice Levine?

  He mutters under his breath. It can't be. He sees Marilyn look up in concern.

• 16:25Alice Levine?

  I'm sorry, Morris, I couldn't grab all those bloody Sainsbury's curry tins. But his concentration snaps back. They're somehow 300 miles east of the Galapagos, with the wind sending them in the wrong direction. It will now take weeks to get there, perhaps months.

• 16:45Matt Forde?

  300 miles away by road would be a lot. In the ocean, on a dinghy, I mean...

• 16:54Alice Levine?

  In the baking heat with no rations...

• 16:57Matt Forde?

  It is so far away. And it's not like you've got an engine.

• 17:02Alice Levine?

  No, you've got whales.

• 17:05Alice Levine?

  It is actually chilling when you say it, isn't it? Imagine being in the middle of the ocean 300 miles from help.

• 17:14Matt Forde?

  Trying to basically paddle along with a spoon.

• 17:17Alice Levine?

  Realization sets in. His stomach knots. If they ration, that should last them around three weeks. Longer if they fish too. Do we really need those tins? I mean, how far out are we? Morris sees the colour drain from Marilyn's face. He feels his chest tighten as he looks back at the map. His eyes move to a series of diagonal blue lines crossing the chart, fishing lanes. He measures the distance to them with his thumb. With the wind pushing them the right way, they could reach one of these in around a week, try to flag down a ship. But it's risky.

• 18:00Alice Levine?

  A large cargo ship or oil tanker travelling at speed could barely feel a tiny life raft going under its bow. Morris! Morris looks from the blue lines to Marilyn's desperate eyes. He decides to tell a white lie. If we row 10 miles a day, I think we can still get to the islands in seven, maybe eight days.

• 18:28Matt Forde?

  That is about as big and black as a lie gets. You'd think she's gonna take months.

• 18:33Alice Levine?

  But to use some terminology of the sailing class, morale, Matt, morale must be kept high.

• 18:39Matt Forde?

  I agree, but that is a mega deception. I understand the purpose and the motivation, but nevertheless.

• 18:49Alice Levine?

  Before he can finish, Marilyn scrambles into the dinghy and picks up an aw. Morris feels wretched. He's never, ever lied to Marilyn, but he can't tell her that they have no hope of reaching land and a high chance of starvation unless they embark on what could be a suicide mission. Instead, he follows her into the dinghy and starts to row.

• 19:23Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, day three of the voyage. Marilyn grits her teeth, pulls the oar back. The dinghy lurches forward before the life raft tugs them back. She feels her shoulder muscles burning. They've been at this for forty-odd hours. She looks at Morris, his face strained as the sun rises behind him. She wants to cut the life raft loose, but she knows that without it, they'd dehydrate, burn, or worse, within days.

• 19:58Alice Levine?

  How far have we gone?

• 20:01Alice Levine?

  She watches him grimace.

• 20:02Matt Forde?

  I mean, this is the ultimate version of are we nearly there yet?

• 20:05Alice Levine?

  Totally. If we keep stopping to check, we'll never get anywhere. Marilyn feels her brow knot. It's important to take breaks.

• 20:18Alice Levine?

  She watches him reach for his charts and make his calculations. He looks sheepish as he glances back. Four miles. Marilyn stares at him in disbelief. We've gone four miles in three days. Too thirsty to think straight, she shuffles over to one of the containers and unscrews the cap, measuring out a small cupful of water. She takes a sip, spits it back out.

• 20:45Alice Levine?

  What's wrong? It's salty. Marilyn watches Morris jump over and check the rest. Four of the five are contaminated. Marilyn sees his expression darken as he looks from the containers to her.

• 21:02Alice Levine?

  I told you to tighten them properly, in Antigua. Marilyn bristles. I did.

• 21:10Alice Levine?

  She stays on him. Her jaw sets when, instead of responding, he slides back into the raft and gets out his wretched sextant again. Every time she sees that damn contraption, it reminds her of Morris's stubborn insistence on doing this trip the old-fashioned way, without a radio. She shuts the thought out. Petty recriminations are pointless. She must stay positive.

• 21:36Matt Forde?

  She has got a point about the radio, and I don't think I could not say anything. It would just be on my mind the whole time. I would just blurt it out.

• 21:43Alice Levine?

  And in Marilyn's defence, I would not put this in the petty category. I'd put this in the life-threatening category. This isn't forgotten to take the bins out.

• 21:50Matt Forde?

  No, this is just above the bins.

• 21:54Alice Levine?

  We'll get more water when it rains. Until then, we'll sleep during the day and row at night. Then we'll cover more ground and sweat less. Marilyn clambers out of the dinghy and into the life raft. She's comforted by the security its canopy provides, even if the heat it traps feels suffocating, especially when Morris flops down next to her. Sleeps too comfortably, it's said in the brochure. I want my money back.

• 22:22Matt Forde?

  See, even in scenarios like this, you can still have a bit of banter.

• 22:25Alice Levine?

  You can have a laugh, love.

• 22:27Matt Forde?

  And taking the view, I mean, it's probably spectacular. Terrifying, but spectacular.

• 22:31Alice Levine?

  Next to your barnacled partner. Exhausted, she starts to finally drift off. Marilyn's eyes snap open as she feels the floor flex beneath her. She sits bolt upright, her pulse racing. Her eyes widen as she catches sight of a dark shape gliding beneath the raft. Morris! Marilyn starts to tremble. If a whale took out their yacht, it'll surely shred a life raft to pieces. But then Marilyn's stomach drops even further as a fin breaks the surface. It's a shark. It's a fucking shark, Morris. What do we do?

• 23:14Alice Levine?

  She sees Morris flinch back. I don't know. Maybe if we stay perfectly still.

• 23:23Alice Levine?

  Marilyn wrings her hands. Morris reaches for his penknife.

• 23:29Alice Levine?

  I promised I'd keep you safe, and I will. I'll stay awake, keep watch.

• 23:35Alice Levine?

  I think it's a reef shark. I won't let it hurt you.

• 23:40Alice Levine?

  Marilyn studies his determined face. She knows he means it. She sinks back under the canopy and curls up in the fetal position, tries to drift back off, but her mind is racing. For the first time since they left Southampton, Marilyn wonders whether trusting Morris was the biggest mistake of her life.

• 24:13Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, seven days later.

• 24:17Alice Levine?

  Morris scratches the number seven into the roof of the canopy with his penknife, then scans around the damp floor. He wrinkles his nose at the stench of seawater and sweat as he pulls a tin from a plastic bucket. He forces up the jagged lid, hiding what's left of the ambrosia. Using one finger, he scoops up a tiny amount of rice pudding and lets it dissolve on his tongue. For a second, it's glorious.

• 24:46Alice Levine?

  Until he pushes back the raft's curtain and recoils at the sight of Marilyn, shuffling her naked bottom over the edge of the dinghy. I told you to use the tin.

• 24:57Alice Levine?

  He sees her already scorched face turn a deeper shade of scarlet before she scowls at the battered cake tin nearby.

• 25:05Matt Forde?

  There are various milestones in a relationship where you're sort of aware that both of you go to the toilet, if you see what I mean. The old battered cake tin cliche.

• 25:17Alice Levine?

  Yeah, because you have a moment where you're like, do we fart in front of each other, of course? And there's a moment where you're like, I would maybe wee while you're in the shower. Not in the shower, but whilst you were in the shower. And I think the battered cake tin, I mean, what's that? That's sort of Ruby anniversary stuff, isn't it?

• 25:33Matt Forde?

  Yeah, it's special. Birthdays only, I think.

• 25:36Alice Levine?

  You could fall in.

• 25:39Alice Levine?

  Morris stays on her until she slumps back into the dinghy. I don't need to go anymore. I just need to sleep. Doc, I know we said we'd row nights only, but we have to keep moving. It's a bit further than I thought.

• 25:58Alice Levine?

  Morris squirms as Marilyn climbs through the life raft opening. Morris, how much further?

• 26:06Alice Levine?

  He hesitates. You said we'd reached land yesterday. It could be another week, maybe longer.

• 26:15Matt Forde?

  Maybe longer's doing a lot of heavy lifting in that sentence. Definitely longer.

• 26:21Alice Levine?

  Morris rubs his stubbled chin. The lie has finally run out of road.

• 26:27Alice Levine?

  We were never gonna make it to land. He watches Marilyn take a shuddering breath.

• 26:35Alice Levine?

  Thought we might make it to a shipping lane.

• 26:39Alice Levine?

  He trails off as Marilyn shakes her head. You lied to me. Now Morris feels his own fury grow. I was trying to help, to make a plan. If I thought you would listen... What is that supposed to mean? Morris looks into the ambrosia tin, still in his hand. It means taking one mouthful a day instead of two, like I instructed. If I'd known it wouldn't last. Morris talks over her, his frustration spilling out. It means making sure the fishing hooks are packed in the emergency bag so they don't get left behind. It means securing water containers properly. It means not taking risks shitting over the side of the boat.

• 27:21Alice Levine?

  He freezes as she lurches forward, jabs a finger in his chest. From where I'm sitting, the biggest mistake happened before we left Southampton. It was you who stopped us getting a radio. Morris rolls his eyes. He takes a step back as her face gets even closer to his. This is how cooked it is. I'm as good as a famous explorer. You're a bloody type setter from Derby, Morris. What were you thinking? What was I thinking?

• 27:51Matt Forde?

  They're both as bad as each other, really. I mean, him deciding not to take a radio is the single biggest mistake of the whole venture, but she's the one who really drove the whole thing. I mean, he would more than happily not have sold all his worldly possessions to just be at sea for the rest of their life. And he's done it really because he's in love with her and he wants to spend all his time with hers. I feel for him a little bit, but I think they're a pair of idiots and he's made the biggest mistake of the lot.

• 28:21Alice Levine?

  Yeah, she was bored with swinging in the suburbs or whatever they were up to, the cheese and pineapple parties, and she wanted adventure. I would argue, both too naive for this to be the adventure. Couldn't they have gone to like, go ape?

• 28:35Alice Levine?

  Start small.

• 28:39Alice Levine?

  Morris feels like he's been punched in the gut. He tries to stutter a retort, but then he sees a shape behind her. Morris blinks. The shape remains, about a mile out, a long, grey rectangle, slowly moving, a smudge of smoke trailing behind it.

• 29:00Alice Levine?

  Doc. No, Morris, I'm not finished. Some captain you are. Marilyn, look.

• 29:09Alice Levine?

  He points over Marilyn's shoulder.

• 29:12Alice Levine?

  Is that, is that a ship?

• 30:15Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, moments later. Maurice lunges into the life raft. He tears open the waterproof emergency bag. Flares! Where are the flares?

• 30:26Matt Forde?

  They didn't come into the 70s, did they?

• 30:28Alice Levine?

  Ayyyy!

• 30:30Matt Forde?

  Ha, ha, ha! A fashion-conscious sailor.

• 30:35Alice Levine?

  His fingers close around the packet. Across from him, Marilyn is squinting at the boat, shivering with adrenaline. Ship's level, now! Maurice strikes a match with his shaking hands. The flame flickers out. He feels a knot of panic. It's alright, stay inside, out of the breeze! Maurice takes a breath. He nods and strikes another match. This time, it takes, and he holds it to the flare. He watches Marilyn shuffle forwards and point it towards the ship. But there's no smoke. No sound. No brilliant burst of colour. Nothing. I don't understand. I don't get it. Why won't it work?

• 31:19Alice Levine?

  Maurice picks out the next flare himself. He rips off the tape, tries to light it. It's dead. He tries another. It's the same. No light, no smoke. He feels a rush of nausea. They're all bloody duds! Maurice jumps to his feet and starts waving frantically. Marilyn follows his lead, grabbing her oil-skin jacket and waving it back and forth above her head.

• 31:46Alice Levine?

  Help us, please, help us! Help! Help! SOS! He starts to panic as the ship sails on. He pulls off his life jacket, his t-shirt. What are you doing? It's so close. If I swim, maybe... He's jolted when Marilyn grabs his arm and whips him round to face her. It's miles, Maurice, it's going too fast! Please, please, you can't leave me alone! He looks into her desperate eyes.

• 32:16Alice Levine?

  Let it go.

• 32:19Alice Levine?

  Maurice looks from her to the ship. It's already shrinking into the haze. She's right. He would never catch it. He falls to his knees. For a while, neither of them speak.

• 32:34Alice Levine?

  He watches Marilyn pick up a grain of rice pudding from the tin, hold it to her lips. His stomach flips as he remembers how he spoke to her before, how cruel he was. Duck, you can have more than that. All that stuff I said, I didn't mean any of it. He stays on Marilyn.

• 32:54Alice Levine?

  I know. But she doesn't say more. Maurice drops his gaze to his feet. He feels her take his hand.

• 33:04Alice Levine?

  There'll be other ships. But Maurice isn't listening. The only words of Marilyn's he can hear now are the ones from earlier. The only reason we're in this mess is because of your bloody arrogance!

• 33:19Matt Forde?

  It would weigh on your conscience, wouldn't it? There are mistakes that you make on any journey. Not taking the sat nav, missing a turning. They're very rarely as bad as this. And occasionally you think, "Oh, I was a bit of an idiot", or, I don't know, "What would the consequences be? You're late to the hotel, or you don't make it." But it would start to dawn on you that maybe not having that radio is gonna cost you and your wife your life. "Man, for the sake of a few quid..." But on the other hand, she should have tightened the water containers, so you know, it's kind of 50/50.

• 33:53Alice Levine?

  He knows that's what she really thinks. And she's right. He should have made sure the fishing hooks were packed in the right place. That the water containers were tight. That the flares were working. He should have bought a radio. He no longer has a plan. He just hopes that Marilyn is also right. That there are other ships out there.

• 34:25Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, two weeks later. Marilyn pulls back the life raft curtain, looks over at the oar she's propped up in the dinghy. A pair of oil-skin trousers hang from its handle as a makeshift flag. In the past week, four other ships have sailed past. Maurice is beside her, weakly etching the number 29 into the disintegrating canopy of the raft. She takes in his unkempt beard, his hollow cheeks, his vacant stare. He's rapidly deteriorated in the past two weeks. It's 25, Maurice, not 29. He doesn't answer. She turns her attention to the plastic bucket filled with empty tins. She clutches her stomach,

• 35:09Alice Levine?

  unable to ignore its ache. She snatches the final can, heinz vegetable salad, and offers the final drop of mayonnaise on its lid to Maurice.

• 35:21Alice Levine?

  When someone's delirious, at the point of passing out, definitely give them a jagged can lid.

• 35:29Matt Forde?

  Do you know what, I once cut my tongue licking a foil yogurt lid.

• 35:35Alice Levine?

  I've never heard something so predictable.

• 35:37Matt Forde?

  How desperate for you, you know, that's where the least amount of yogurt is. There was a litre of yogurt in the tub. I just thought, "Well, I'll get that little bit."

• 35:43Alice Levine?

  Come on.

• 35:44Matt Forde?

  Oh my, and it's a vascular region, as they'd say in the National Health Service. And the blood!

• 35:50Alice Levine?

  Really?

• 35:50Matt Forde?

  My word! It just wouldn't stop. I mean, the tongue's full of blood.

• 35:54Alice Levine?

  Yeah, what else is it full of? Yeah, of course.

• 35:56Matt Forde?

  Oh my word!

• 35:57Alice Levine?

  So you had a real raspberry ripple yogurt going on?

• 35:59Matt Forde?

  My advice to, my strong advice to people: Don't lick jagged stuff.

• 36:07Alice Levine?

  She rinses her hand over the side when a turtle swims into her eye line. Her mood darkens even further. These things never leave them alone. Day after day, they scrape and batter the raft floor, opening tiny punctures that have to be pumped back by hand. Overcome with rage, she picks up a paddle and starts hitting it, aiming for its exposed head. I've spent an hour pumping this up, you bastard thing!

• 36:38Alice Levine?

  Marilyn!

• 36:40Alice Levine?

  But something has snapped. Marilyn drops the paddle and grabs the turtle with her bare hands, wrenching it into the raft. It lands on its back, legs cycling in the air. Marilyn feels Maurice lurch upright. Christ, it doesn't mean you any harm! Marilyn isn't listening. She pummels the turtle's skull. It struggles in her hands, trying to pull inward, but she doesn't stop. She grabs Maurice's penknife and stabs it in the neck. A stream of blood shoots out, covering her face and hands. Marilyn licks it from her lips. She feels a rush of adrenaline as the metallic salty iron hits her tongue.

• 37:24Alice Levine?

  She wipes her mouth with the back of her hand and stares at the blood. An idea forming.

• 37:30Matt Forde?

  Turtle skin handbag.

• 37:32Alice Levine?

  Gorgeous!

• 37:33Matt Forde?

  We could just make some stuff while we're here. Some shoes, belts, bags. If we get back, we sell them.

• 37:39Alice Levine?

  Make a bit of money.

• 37:41Alice Levine?

  Help me take the shell off. She stays on Maurice until he uses his penknife to prise the hard shell from the turtle's body. Marilyn's eyes widen at what's underneath. Rich, white meat.

• 37:55Alice Levine?

  But it's food. She swallows it. Eat! She watches Maurice carve off another piece and start to chew. His face twists in revulsion. It's protein, Maurice. For the first time in days, she feels a flicker of energy. She hangs over the raft and dips her bloody hands in the sea. She watches the water turn pink as dozens of fish swim up, nibbling on her fingers. She yanks her hands out. Did you get bitten? No, I just...

• 38:29Alice Levine?

  She leans back over the raft and stares again at the fish. She grabs the first aid kit. Did you get hurt? Marilyn ignores it as she rummages through the plasters and creams until she finds a chain of safety pins. Then she grabs a pair of pliers. With trembling hands, she opens one of the pins and bends the sharp end into a curve, until it resembles a hook. Maurice may have given up, but she's going to ensure they have the strength to keep rowing, keep waving, keep living. Because she thinks she's found a new supply of food, and it's time for her to become the captain of this vessel.

• 39:16Matt Forde?

  Got a mutiny on his hands.

• 39:23Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, three weeks later. Marilyn deals out her newly-made cards, each one cut from the pages of a logbook. She tries not to watch Morris's bony fingers trembling as he sucks raw flesh from her latest catch, a purple grey triggerfish. But it's tempered by the twinkle in his sunken eyes as he scoops up his hand.

• 39:48Alice Levine?

  You do realise the paper's so thin, we'll be able to see each other's suits.

• 39:55Alice Levine?

  I promise I won't cheat if you don't.

• 39:58Alice Levine?

  Marilyn feels a burst of affection as he raises an eyebrow. While even their new diet of fish hasn't stopped Morris's physical decline, she's managed to lift his spirits these last few weeks. Gin rummy is her latest way of keeping him busy.

• 40:13Matt Forde?

  She is making a tremendous effort to keep their spirits high.

• 40:18Alice Levine?

  This is extraordinary. To have the wherewithal with so few resources, I mean, mental resources and actual resources, is incredible.

• 40:25Matt Forde?

  Just the fact that even in their darkest hour, she's like, well, we might as well play a game. Well, we can't play I Spy, can we? With nothing.

• 40:36Alice Levine?

  You might want to work on your poker face. Her heart melts as Morris throws her a wry grin. I think you are cheating. Marilyn laughs. The cards scatter as Morris lurches forward violently, bending double as he gasps for breath. Marilyn feels an icy chill when she sees blood speckled on the back of his hand. She reaches for a small bottle of rainwater and presses it to his lips. Relief washes over her as he takes a few shaky sips and his breathing settles. But she knows he needs more than that. She forces herself to smile and reaches for a nearby tin. Go on, I'm a smarty.

• 41:19Alice Levine?

  Marilyn watches him reach over and carefully select a small pale fish eye from the latest batch.

• 41:26Matt Forde?

  I'm an idiot. I was like, oh, at least I've got some sweets. Mmm, fish eye smarties.

• 41:31Alice Levine?

  This is a bit like growing up with a hempy mum where she's like, it's just like a Snickers and it's actually half a date with, you know, a peanut inside it. She gives it a quick once-over, checking it hasn't gone rancid. As Morris slurps it down, she passes him a scoop of congealed turtle blood, which he greedily takes as pudding. Forget the cards, we'll each pick a word and find as many swear words hidden inside it as we can.

• 41:55Matt Forde?

  Also, I should probably say, as someone who eats haggis, what right have I got to baulk at turtle meat and fish eyes? You know, I'm eating lungs and god knows what else. Anyone who's had a sausage is probably eating far worse than this.

• 42:08Alice Levine?

  They're actually not being daft either because if you are ever cast away at sea, which, you know, is very possible, you should drink blood, preferably not your companions, and eat raw organ meat because that's the only source of vitamin C to stave off scurvy. So they're fairly on the money.

• 42:24Matt Forde?

  Yeah, and blood rich in iron.

• 42:26Alice Levine?

  Sure.

• 42:27Matt Forde?

  It's very sticky though, isn't it?

• 42:30Alice Levine?

  Especially if it's congealed.

• 42:31Matt Forde?

  Be called like the vampire diet these days, wouldn't it?

• 42:34Alice Levine?

  Yeah.

• 42:34Matt Forde?

  There'll be some influencers on Instagram trying to peddle this nonsense.

• 42:39Alice Levine?

  Morris smiles. He takes a moment.

• 42:43Alice Levine?

  How about prostitute?

• 42:47Alice Levine?

  Okay, let me think. Um, tit. And piss, depending on how generous we're being with the spelling. She's glad to see the colour return to his cheeks as he laughs. But then he winces. Um, my back feels worse today.

• 43:04Alice Levine?

  Marilyn shifts closer. She carefully peels back the makeshift bandages from his otherwise naked body. The smell hits her first, then she stifles a gasp as the bandage falls away, revealing the wound.

• 43:19Alice Levine?

  What were a few days ago mere saltwater sores are now giant purple blisters full of foul smelling sludge pulling away from the bone. She'd expect to be dealing with scurvy. This looks much worse. She swallows hard.

• 43:37Alice Levine?

  Bandage just needs replacing. I've still got a bit of T-shirt we can use. Marilyn looks up at the darkening sky. More rain means more drinking water. But it also means more saltwater pooling beneath them from the waves crashing in. And it's eating Morris alive. Right, my turn. Um, how about scunthorpe?

• 44:01Matt Forde?

  Clever.

• 44:02Alice Levine?

  She grins as the penny drops for Morris. He shakes with laughter. Marilyn Bailey, you are filthy. She fixes a smile, but her vision is momentarily filled with a nightmarish image of her adrift at sea alone with Morris's decaying corpse at her side. His rotting flesh. She forces the image from her mind. Instead, tries to focus on his gentle eyes. But she sees in them a flash of panic. Because she knows if they're not rescued soon, she's going to lose him.

• 44:44Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, four days later.

• 44:49Alice Levine?

  Morris stares up at the rotting canopy. He tries to swallow, but his throat feels like sandpaper. His rib cage shudders as he splutters out a cough. Once he starts, he can't seem to stop. His whole body jerks with every spasm, intense pain overwhelming him. He clamps shut his eyes, tries to imagine himself somewhere else. The doorway of a small kitchen with stained paper peeling from the walls. His father spins round to him, his stern face turning darker as Morris continues to splutter. He catches his reflection in the kettle on the stove. He's skinny, pale, no more than 12 years old.

• 45:32Alice Levine?

  Shrink it away, the moment things get tough. He places his hand on the back of his neck. It's drenched with sweat. He starts shaking violently.

• 45:44Alice Levine?

  You're soft. You've always been soft.

• 45:48Alice Levine?

  Morris, stay with me, please. The voice is familiar but so different, soft like an angel. The kitchen flickers. Damp fabric cools Morris's forehead. Something clean touches his lips, water. He opens his eyes a fraction, just enough to make out Marilyn's face looking down at him. She's so gaunt. Her cheekbones jut out sharply beneath her burned skin. But her eyes, while hollow, are as fiercely determined as ever.

• 46:24Alice Levine?

  There you are. Don't you dare go back to sleep. Morris tries hard to obey. He can't leave the woman he loves, can't bear the thought of her in the middle of the ocean all alone. He must stay, but his eyelids feel so heavy, he can't help but let them close. Marilyn's voice persists, sharper. I'm talking and you were gonna listen. It's your job as captain. Morris knows he hasn't been the captain since Orlynn sunk, but he forces to whisper. Okay. I've been thinking about our next boat, the Orlynn Two. She'll be at least 36 feet, a proper blue cruiser, two cabins.

• 47:08Matt Forde?

  A radio.

• 47:10Alice Levine?

  Too soon.

• 47:12Alice Levine?

  Morris can't help but smile. Only Marilyn would be planning her next trip at a time like this. We'll do the fit ourselves, take our time, and you know where we're gonna go. Morris feels his pain dissipate. Where? Patagonia. Darwin sailed it in the 1830s. It has the most vast penguin colonies in the world and orcas, elephant seals. Morris feels her squeeze his hand. He tries with all his might to squeeze back, so she knows he's in.

• 47:49Alice Levine?

  That sounds, it sounds. But each breath he takes feels harder. He can't get the words out. The darkness starts closing in as her voice becomes distant. Morris, don't you dare! A bright light appears. Morris feels an overwhelming urge to follow it. He tries holding on to Marilyn's voice instead, but he's too weak and the sound fades to nothing.

• 48:24Alice Levine?

  Morris feels consciousness slipping away. All he can do is hold on to the woman he loves and hope she's enough to pull him back from the brink.

• 48:52Speaker 05

  He lurks in shadow. He slips into dreams. He casts no reflection. Audible presents Bram Stoker's Dracula: How You've Never Heard It Before, with a new full cast audio thriller starring Jonathan Bailey as Dracula, Ella Purnell as Mina Harker, and an A-list cast, including Maggie Gyllenhaal as Van Helsing, Amy Lou Wood as Lucy, David Johnson as Dr. Seward, and many more. When Mina's fiance Jonathan Harker vanishes in Transylvania, Mina pieces together letters, diary entries, and chilling testimony to hunt the predator stalking those she loves,

• 49:33Speaker 05

  only to discover Dracula's already hunting her. Audible's Dracula invites you to welcome literature's most shadowy figure into your home. Listen to the new audiobook adaptation of Bram Stoker's Dracula, only on Audible.

• 49:52Speaker 03

  You stepped out for your morning jog. Except it's not your usual morning jog. You started listening to an epic sci-fi book on Audible. Thirty chapters later, you've accidentally run a half marathon. You've lost track of how far you've run, somewhere just past the city limits. You can't stop. You have to find out what happens next. Then it's over. The universe seems bigger. You feel different. You feel like you have no idea where you are. Audible: Stories That Speak to You.

• 50:34Alice Levine?

  The Pacific Ocean, seventeen days later.

• 50:37Matt Forde?

  Okay, so since the whale attack, this is over two months they've just been drifting in the sea.

• 50:44Alice Levine?

  Yeah, and extraordinarily, it's eleven months since they departed from Southampton.

• 50:49Matt Forde?

  Almost a year they've been out there.

• 50:53Alice Levine?

  Marilyn rests her hand on Morris's knee and smiles as he looks over her shoulder at the calculations she's made, his voice barely more than a rasp. Okay, so he's... he's survived somehow.

• 51:06Matt Forde?

  I mean, seventeen days ago, it sounded like he was toast, and he's still going.

• 51:11Alice Levine?

  Her nursing has led to a stark improvement in his health: a diet of triggerfish and even the odd small shark, plus the application of precious rainwater to rinse the salt crust off his sores. But she's still fearful of a relapse. Okay. So we're drifting east. And if the wind holds... She taps the chart with a pencil. I'm right, aren't I? Marilyn holds her breath as Morris tries to focus. She watches him study her figures. To her relief, he slowly nods. We could end up at the Panama coast in a week.

• 51:54Matt Forde?

  Is that a week week, or is that a Morris week?

• 51:58Alice Levine?

  Marilyn tightens her grip on Morris's knee, feeling how paper-y thin his skin has become. She quickly loosens it again, afraid of hurting him. Told you, didn't I? We were meant to survive. I knew it. Morris holds his hands up in surrender. Marilyn feels tears roll down her cheeks. Her eyes drift up to the few rotting strips that remain of the life raft's canopy, then to the bucket holding the turtle and fish she caught this morning, only protected from the blazing sun by a rag that was once a sundress. Relief courses through her at the thought they need only hang on for just a few more days.

• 52:43Alice Levine?

  Let's have a feast, a proper one. All our favorites.

• 52:48Alice Levine?

  Marilyn takes out the knife and hands it to Morris, watches him pull the shellless turtle from the bucket and cut into its liver, the most flavorsome part. Then she turns her attention to a seagull, settled on the edge of the raft. She edges closer, then lunges. In one swift movement, she locks her hand around it and snaps its neck. She looks up to see Morris eyeing her with admiration. You've become quite the killer.

• 53:19Matt Forde?

  You've got to keep the marriage spicy.

• 53:22Alice Levine?

  It's that or Scrabble.

• 53:25Alice Levine?

  Marilyn laughs. I'm going vegetarian as soon as we get back on land. Full penance. Marilyn starts plucking the gull's feathers, salivating at the prospect of its fresh, raw meat. She's so focused on her kill, she barely notices the darkness closing in. Marilyn looks up to see Morris staring at the thick rain clouds in the distance.

• 53:49Alice Levine?

  Storm's coming. A big one.

• 53:53Alice Levine?

  Marilyn anxiously starts to gather up the food and place it in a sailbag. Her chest tightens as the clouds seem to close in faster than usual. To her horror, Morris begins to clamber over to the dinghy, its legs so thin they look like they could snap. What are you doing? Securing what I can. We have to... The wind drowns out the rest of his words. Marilyn's heart thuds. Just stay! Marilyn feels her stomach flip as she stares up at a wall of dark, solid water. She catches a glimpse of Morris clutching the dingy's side ropes. She starts to crawl towards him, desperate to help,

• 54:36Alice Levine?

  then stops dead at the sight of a giant wave heading towards her. Oh, Jesus.

• 54:44Alice Levine?

  She starts spinning through darkness and foam. Saltwater floods her nose and mouth. She fights against the churning waves, trying to grab at the surface, but she feels herself falling, deeper and deeper, as she's thrown from the raft and slaps against the surface of the ice-cold water and down into the blackness of the deep blue sea.

• 55:25Alice Levine?

  From Audible Originals and Samizdat Audio, this is the second episode in our series, The Shipwrecked Marriage.

• 55:31Matt Forde?

  A quick note about our dialogue. In most cases, we can't know exactly what was said, but all our dramatizations are based on historical research.

• 55:39Alice Levine?

  If you'd like to know more about this story, you can read 117 Days Adrift by Maurice and Marilyn Bailey, Maurice and Marilyn by Sophie Elmhurst, and 117 Days Adrift: The Full Story on paradise.ducastaway.com.

• 55:54Matt Forde?

  British Scandal is hosted by me, Matt Ford.

• 55:56Alice Levine?

  And me, Alice Levine.

• 55:58Matt Forde?

  Written by Wendy Granditer. Additional writing by Alice Levine and Matt Ford. Our story editor was James Maniac. Sound design by Rich Evans. Our engineer was Jai Williams. For Samizdat, our series producer was Chica Ayers. Our assistant producer was Louise Mason. Our senior producers were Joe Sykes and Dashillic Sina. Executive producers for Audible were Theodora LaLudis and Astelle Doyle.

• 56:36Speaker 05

  There are books that change how you see the world, and there are books that change how you see yourself. In a new podcast series, A Great Book with Barack Obama, President Obama sits down with a series of surprising and sharp guests to explore six books that have shaped his life and perspective on the world. From Song of Solomon and the Fire Next Time to All the Pretty Horses and Gilead, the president is joined by guests like Tom Hanks and Ta-Nehisi Coates to reflect on how these timeless stories shaped his thinking on everything from fatherhood to leadership and discover together what they tell us about the world we live in and the world we want to create.

• 57:19Speaker 05

  Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes of A Great Book with Barack Obama ad-free right now, plus access each audiobook discussed in the series. Download the Audible app today.

• 57:35Speaker 05

  There are books that change how you see the world, and there are books that change how you see yourself. In a new podcast series, A Great Book with Barack Obama, President Obama sits down with a series of surprising and sharp guests to explore six books that have shaped his life and perspective on the world. From Song of Solomon and the Fire Next Time to All the Pretty Horses and Gilead, the president is joined by guests like Tom Hanks and Ta-Nehisi Coates to reflect on how these timeless stories shaped his thinking on everything from fatherhood to leadership and discover together what they tell us about the world we live in and the world we want to create.

• 58:19Speaker 05

  Audible subscribers can listen to all episodes of A Great Book with Barack Obama ad-free right now, plus access each audiobook discussed in the series. Download the Audible app today.