Listen and read

Step into an infinite world of stories

  • Read and listen as much as you want
  • Over 1 million titles
  • Exclusive titles + Storytel Originals
  • 7 days free trial, then €9.99/month
  • Easy to cancel anytime
Subscribe Now
Details page - Device banner - 894x1036

Under Pressure: Living Life and Avoiding Death on a Nuclear Submarine

13 Ratings

3.8

Duration
6H 49min
Language
English
Format
Category

Non-fiction

‘One of the finest memoirs published in recent years.’ Dan Jones

‘An utterly fascinating and wonderfully detailed insight into the hidden world of the modern submarine.’ James Holland

A candid, visceral, and incredibly entertaining account of what it’s like to live in one of the most extreme environments in the world.

Imagine a world without natural light, where you can barely stand up straight for fear of knocking your head, where you have no idea of where in the world you are or what time of day it is, where you sleep in a coffin-sized bunk and sometimes eat a full roast for breakfast.

Now imagine sharing that world with 140 other sweaty bodies, crammed into a 430ft x 33ft steel tube, 300ft underwater, for up to 90 days at a time, with no possibility of escape. And to top it off, a sizeable chunk of your living space is taken up by the most formidably destructive nuclear weapons history has ever known. This is the world of the submariner. This is life under pressure.

As a restless and adventurous 18-year-old, Richard Humphreys joined the submarine service in 1985 and went on to serve aboard the nuclear deterrent for five years at the end of the Cold War. Nothing could have prepared him for life beneath the waves. Aside from the claustrophobia and disorientation, there were the prolonged periods of boredom, the constant dread of discovery by the Soviets, and the smorgasbord of rank odours that only a group of poorly-washed and flatulent submariners can unleash.

But even in this most pressurised of environments, the consolations were unique: where else could you sit peacefully for hours listening to whale song, or…

Based on first-hand experience, Under Pressure is the candid, visceral and incredibly entertaining account of what it’s like to live, work, sleep, eat – and stay sane – in one of the most extreme man-made environments on the planet.

© 2019 HarperCollins (Audiobook): 9780008313098

Release date

Audiobook: September 26, 2019

Others also enjoyed ...

  1. The Longest Kill: The Story of Maverick 41, One of the World's Greatest Snipers Craig Harrison
  2. Target Tirpitz: X-Craft, Agents and Dambusters - The Epic Quest to Destroy Hitler’s Mightiest Warship Patrick Bishop
  3. The Hunt for Red October Tom Clancy
  4. The Dive: The untold story of the world’s deepest submarine rescue Stephen McGinty
  5. The Ice Diaries: The Untold Story of the USS Nautilus and the Cold War’s Most Daring Mission Don Keith
  6. Code Name: Lise: The True Story of the Woman Who Became WWII's Most Highly Decorated Spy Larry Loftis
  7. Blind Man's Bluff: The Untold Story of American Submarine Espionage Sherry Sontag
  8. The Red Line: The Gripping Story of the RAF’s Bloodiest Raid on Hitler’s Germany John Nichol
  9. Steel Boat Iron Hearts: A U-boat Crewman's Life Aboard U-505 John Vanzo
  10. The New Rules of War: Victory in the Age of Durable Disorder Sean McFate
  11. I Spy: My Life in MI5 Tom Marcus
  12. Mossad: The Greatest Missions of the Israeli Secret Service Michael Bar-Zohar
  13. Thunder Below!: The USS *Barb* Revolutionizes Submarine Warfare in World War II Eugene B. Fluckey
  14. How to Catch a Russian Spy: The True Story of an American Civilian Turned Self-taught Double Agent Naveed Jamali
  15. To the Limit: An Air Cav Huey Pilot in Vietnam Tom A. Johnson
  16. Stalking the Red Bear: The True Story of a U.S. Cold War Submarine's Covert Operations Against the Soviet Union Peter Sasgen
  17. We Few: US Special Forces in Vietnam Nick Brokhausen
  18. Carrier Pilot Norman Hanson
  19. Against the Tide: Rickover's Leadership Principles and the Rise of the Nuclear Navy Rear Adm. Dave Oliver, USN (Ret.)
  20. Those Who Fall John Muirhead
  21. Viper Pilot: The Autobiography of One of America's Most Decorated Combat Pilots Dan Hampton
  22. Taking Fire: The True Story of a Decorated Chopper Pilot Charles W. Sasser
  23. 19 Minutes to Live - Helicopter Combat in Vietnam Lew Jennings
  24. House to House: An Epic Memoir of War Staff Sergeant David Bellavia
  25. Apollo Charles Murray
  26. Vietnam: A Tale of Two Tours James C. Mooney, Jr.
  27. Gray Work: Confessions of an American Paramilitary Spy Jamie Smith
  28. Blood Red Snow: The Memoirs of a German Soldier on the Eastern Front Günter K. Koschorrek
  29. Panzer Gunner: From My Native Canada to the German Ostfront and Back. In Action with 25th Panzer Regiment, 7th Panzer Division 1944-45 Bruno Friesen
  30. Nam-Sense: Surviving Vietnam with the 101st Airborne Arthur Wiknik, Jr.
  31. Six Days of War: June 1967 and the Making of the Modern Middle East Michael B. Oren
  32. Ghost: Confessions of a Counterterrorism Agent Fred Burton
  33. Whispers In The Tall Grass Nick Brokhausen
  34. Enterprise: America’s Fightingest Ship and the Men Who Helped Win World War II Barrett Tillman
  35. Call Sign Dracula: My Tour with the Black Scarves April 1969 to March 1970 Joe Fair
  36. Making of the Atomic Bomb: 25th Anniversary Edition Richard Rhodes
  37. From F-4 Phantom to A-10 Warthog: Memoirs of a Cold War Fighter Pilot Steven K Ladd
  38. Chernobyl 01:23:40: The Incredible True Story of the World's Worst Nuclear Disaster Andrew Leatherbarrow
  39. Spies of the Deep: The Untold Truth About the Most Terrifying Incident in Submarine Naval History and How Putin Used The Tragedy To Ignite a New Cold War W. Craig Reed
  40. U.S.S. Seawolf Patrick Robinson
  41. Eyes Behind the Lines: L Company Rangers in Vietnam, 1969 Gary A. Linderer
  42. GCHQ: Centenary Edition Richard Aldrich
  43. Islands of the Damned: A Marine at War in the Pacific R. V. Burgin
  44. Stealth: The Secret Contest to Invent Invisible Aircraft Peter Westwick

This is why you’ll love Storytel

  • Listen and read without limits

  • 800 000+ stories in 40 languages

  • Kids Mode (child-safe environment)

  • Cancel anytime

Unlimited stories, anytime
Time limited offer

Unlimited

Listen and read as much as you want

9.99 € /month
  • 1 account

  • Unlimited Access

  • Offline Mode

  • Kids Mode

  • Cancel anytime

Try now