There’s a sea lover in every Brit.

The Shipping Forecast on Radio 4 has been keeping people in tune with the gloriously fickle British weather for a century, and capturing our hearts and imaginations along the way.

Celebrating a hundred years since the first broadcast, this book takes you to the heart of what the Shipping Forecast means to us as a nation. Each of the ten chapters brings you on a fascinating exploration of a different area of our British maritime history, from stormy weather up above to the seabed far below, and from fishing boats and battleships to the songs and poems inspired by the forecast.

This joyous book invites you to sail away into the enchanting world of the forecast, and is the perfect companion for anyone curious about our great British skies and seas.

Meg Clothier studied Classics at Cambridge, sailed from England to Alaska and worked as a journalist in London and Moscow. She has published three historical novels and also Sea Fever: A Seaside Companion, a book full of marine lore and seaside charm, with her brother, Chris. She lives on the sunny side of the Quantock Hills with her husband, two children and an improbable amount of vegetables.