Unsinkable: The Titanic Podcast

An exciting new Titanic project: " Unsinkable is a shattering new play from Liverpool creatives Matthew Reynolds and Joseph Winder, developed from a finalist piece at Tip Tray Theatre’s What Happens Next? 2025 , now a full-scale production heading to Hope Street Theatre from 30th September to 3rd October 2026. This is a project that already has momentum, from competition acclaim to a sold-out...

What if Robert Ballad, who discovered the wreck of Titanic in 1985 alongside a French oceanographic team, had decided to salvage Titanic himself? How would the Titanic world look now? The artifacts, where would they be, how many would their be? Join us as we jump into one of the most complex and intriguing "what ifs" yet... Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as...

Here's a refresher on Ballard, a re-release of my episode from back in 2021! Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/unsinkablepod Or buy me a coffee!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/labeadles Buy Unsinkable shirts here!: https://www.bonfire.com/unsinkable-the-first-t-shirt/ Support the pod via my Bookshop Storefront: https://bookshop.or...

A very special announcement! I'll be joining J. Kent Layton, Tad Fitch and a whole crew of wonderful Titanic experts the night of April 14th for a Titanic sinking livestream/conversation.  Join us on this channel: https://www.youtube.com/parttimeexplorer Also check out all of Tad and Kent's April (and anytime!) Titanic content via these links:  The Steam & Splendor Network on YouTube...

Today I'm joined by James Penca from the Witness Titanic podcast for a fascinating and heartfelt look at the stories of a few of Titanic's third class passengers, ones too often left out of more sensational narratives. Together, we shine a light on journeys across the Atlantic that reveal so much more than tragedy. Through their own words and research into both their socioeconomic and cu...

Today's episode dives even deeper into the fascinating but complex familial history of Archibald Gracie IV, one of the most well-documented survivors of the Titanic disaster. We'll explore the layers of his lineage and how he viewed it, from his questionable passion for a Confederate military heritage to the personal tragedies that shaped the man who found himself aboard that ship in Apr...

The Gracie family, starting with its original Scottish immigrant Archibald, built a shipping empire in 18th and 19th century America--New York to Alabama--that profoundly shaped economic development. But their wealth was deeply entangled with the slave trade, its plantation economy, and later the Civil War itself. Their legacy, memorialized in landmarks like Gracie Mansion (now the NYC mayor'...

Happy 2026! Join me in a new season as I take a look at Titanic's historiography, changing legacy, and questions of its over-commodification. Feel free to reach out with feedback! All of the books I recommend can be found here, where you can purchase and support the podcast + local independent bookstores:  https://bookshop.org/shop/unsinkablepod Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon...

Join author Richard Stone and myself as we discuss his work Project Mayflower: Building and Sailing a 17th Century Replica --a detailed and important dive into the legacy of the Mayflower and how its replica (a joint venture between the US and the UK) has also resonated for several generations.  You can find the book here: https://bookshop.org/a/80949/9781493084364 The Titanic and the Mayflower st...

Come along as we unpack a veritable grab-bag of "what if" questions, some submitted by listeners! These are questions that perhaps can't warrant their own episode but are important to address nonetheless. Thanks to Pablo as always and to you, the listeners, for being here! Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/unsinkablepod...

Titaniac alert! This is a fun and moving one.  Tim Baker is an actor, screenwriter, and firm believer that iced coffee should be its own food group. A Midwest-born, East Coast-raised transplant, he now calls Los Angeles home. Fueled by a healthy dose of sarcasm and a lifelong love for history, he writes about dynamic, flawed, and multifaceted characters—probably because he finds perfect people inc...

Noah Angell is an artist who has exhibited and performed internationally. He's also an author - last year he published his first book, Ghosts of the British Museum , a meticulously-researched, genre-defying narrative non-fiction work about the storied museum's many ghosts. He's currently at work on his first feature-length documentary film, and is speaking to us today from Durham, N...

Join me for a fantastic interview with renowned lawyer and journalist Adam Cohen, whose new non-fiction work-- Captain's Dinner: A Shipwreck, an Act of Cannibalism, and a Murder Trial that Changed Legal History-- takes a look at one of the most controversial maritime cases of all time, on the cusp of the age of steam. From Author's Equity: "On May 19, 1884, the yacht Mignonette set...

*Yes, mange is real in humans, I looked it up! *The film podcast I mention is Unspooled, with Amy Nicholson! Enjoy this fun dive into the life, love and manic-pixie-dream-boy aura of our favorite fictional Titanic third class passenger. Thanks to Pablo, as always, for joining me on this adventure. Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/uns...

In this second part of my exploration of the Astor fortune and its relationship with Mackinac Island and native communities, I look at the ways by which the fur trader impacted the island and its ecosystems, both human and non-human. I also break down the evolution of the island into a tourist destination, how the Astors bowed out of it as the fur business died down, but how ultimately they ended...

Visit my Bookshop link to buy the book club books and support the pod plus indie booksellers! https://bookshop.org/shop/unsinkablepod New pod merch can be found here:  https://www.bonfire.com/store/unsinkable-the-titanic-podcast/ 20% of proceeds will be donated to World Central Kitchen! Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/unsinkablepod...

The Astor family name conjures images of Gilded Age opulence and tragedy—perhaps most famously embodied by John Jacob Astor IV, who perished aboard the Titanic in 1912. But the roots of one of America's first great fortunes stretch back much further, to the late 18th century when German immigrant John Jacob Astor built a fur trading empire that spanned from the Great Lakes to the Pacific Nort...

What is Captain Smith hadn't gone down with the ship but instead lived to attend the inquiries and be inevitably torn apart by the press? How does he live with himself? How does Titanic's legacy change? Is there a chance it did happen and someone saw Smith in Baltimore years later? Wild to imagine right...? Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https:/...

I'm back and energized for a whole new relevant and real era of Unsinkable. Take a listen! xLA Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/unsinkablepod Or buy me a coffee!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/labeadles Buy Unsinkable shirts here!: https://www.bonfire.com/unsinkable-the-first-t-shirt/ Support the pod via my Bookshop Storefront: h...

Join me and Pablo for another riveting "what if" in Titanic land! What if Titanic had enough lifeboats for all its passengers and crew? Would they have been loaded in enough time? Would all lives have been saved? More? What would change about the ship's legacy? Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/unsinkablepod Or buy me a...

Ever wonder what became of Rose after she walked off of the Carpathia? Get in, let's go find out... Support the show Support Unsinkable on Patreon for as little as $1/month: https://www.patreon.com/unsinkablepod Or buy me a coffee!: https://www.buymeacoffee.com/labeadles Buy Unsinkable shirts here!: https://www.bonfire.com/unsinkable-the-first-t-shirt/ Support the pod via my Bookshop Storefro...

This is a fun one! Pablo and I unpack the utter DESOLATION of a world without the success of 1997's Titanic. Imagine if somehow the Hollywood nutjobs who harassed James Cameron during the production were...right? That audiences wouldn't respond? How would it have affected what museums and memorial sites we have now, or how Titanic's legacy survives? What is pop culture without Jack...

Join me and Pablo as we reflect on the wonder that swept the world when the shipwreck of Titanic was finally found in 1985 by Robert Ballard, and how it changed not just history books, but our own lives. We dive into a fascinating “what if”—imagining a world where Ballard never found the wreck. We discuss how the cultural history of the Titanic would be completely different: museums in Belfast, So...

Join me and fellow Titanic expert Pablo O'Hana for an intriguing and oft-narrative-bending journey into the "what ifs" of Titanic's sinking. For decades historians and fanatics alike have tossed around theories of who was to blame, or what might have happened if a few details were different that fateful night. In this conversations series we'll unpack some of the most cont...

Join me and fellow Titanic expert Pablo O'Hana for an intriguing and oft-narrative-bending journey into the "what ifs" of Titanic's sinking. For decades historians and fanatics alike have tossed around theories of who was to blame, or what might have happened if a few details were different that fateful night. In this conversations series we'll unpack some of the most cont...