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Join Wundry Plus in the Wundery app or on Apple Podcasts. Wandering. It's summer 1964 in the middle of the Atlantic Ocean on board the Kunard liner

RMS Queen Mary.

Basil Smallpiece looks out over the choppy seas.

The 57 year old grips the railings with one hand and straightens his thick round

glasses with the other. Basil has recently been named to the Kunard board after a long career in the airline industry

and he's decided to make this transatlantic crossing to get a feel for his new employer.

The journey is proving rougher than expected though, so he tries to remain calm

in front of the Kunart executive next to him, a stocky man in his 40s named Stanley. Stanley

seems to be handling the weather with much greater ease.

I say, are you all right, Basil?

Oh, yes, quite all right.

I rather thought summer would be a bit calmer, though.

Well, they do say the Atlantic has two moods, tempestuous and tyrannical.

It's even worse when she was first built, would you believe?

She didn't have stabilizers then, used to roll like a pig.

The liner shutters as its prowl burst through another huge wave.

A spray of salt water soaks Basil.

Ugh, you know what, I think I've seen enough of the deck for now.

Let's go inside, shall we? Stanley leads Basil through the door and into the ship's interior.

And to Basil's delight, it's warm and dry. The two shed their coats and make their way down the hall into one of the ship's grand lounges.

It takes seats near a stage where a pianist plays jazz.

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