As a restless and adventurous eighteen-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 odors that only a group of poorly washed and flatulent submariners could unleash.
But even in this high-pressure environment, the consolations were unique: Where else could you sit peacefully for hours listening to whale song?
Based on firsthand experience, Under Pressure is the candid, visceral, and incredibly entertaining account of what it’s like to live, work, sleep, and eat—and stay sane—in one of the most extreme man-made environments on the planet.
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“An utterly fascinating and wonderfully detailed insight into the hidden—and frequently disorientating and claustrophobic—world of the modern submariner, this richly compelling and hugely entertaining memoir brilliantly conveys the tension, huge responsibility, culture and, of course, humour of being a crewman on the nuclear deterrent.”
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James Holland, author of Normandy `44