GUEST: NICK HEWITT, NAVAL HISTORIAN & JAWS FAN
Did you ever wonder how we got here, and how sometimes tiny pieces of history make up, and have shaped our lives?
Or realised how every day, all of us are making history?
Join me, Sarah Dowd, in exploring what has happened in the everyday lives of people for the better, or at least the experiences that have just make us laugh and say…
This is… History. For F***’s Sake, the podcast that explores untold stories that make a difference.
When the world seemingly shut down for almost two years, what were we doing? We were creating art, making history and crying out of human contact. We were craving our culture.
I’m your host, Sarah Dowd, and I have worked on over 200 history, heritage and arts projects in the last 20 years across the world, everywhere from the Imperial War Museum in London to exploring how we put a fleet of ships in the sky, or bringing wrecks back from Honolulu.
I was recently diagnosed with ADHD which has brought a whole new layer of thinking about creativity and how we get people – ALL PEOPLE – really engaged with our shared history and culture.
Stories. Art. Film. Books. Ships. Music. Museums. People. Joy. Experiences. Humour. Humanity.
Because it’s all History, For F***’s Sake.
Find out more at historyffs.com
What do a secret atomic mission, the horrors of war, and a shark tale immortalised in blockbuster cinema have in common? In this haunting, unforgettable episode of History For F***’s Sake, host Sarah Dowd welcomes naval historian, author, and maritime storyteller Nick Hewitt to dive beneath the surface of one of WWII’s most infamous tragedies: the sinking of USS Indianapolis.
From Jaws’ unforgettable monologue to the real-life trauma endured by hundreds of young sailors stranded in Pacific waters, Sarah and Nick dissect the myth, memory, and legacy of an event that shaped cinema and the modern US Navy. And with 2025 marking the 250th anniversary of the US Navy, there’s no better time to look at the stories we remember (and those we choose to forget).
Highlights:
- Jaws at 50: Sarah and Nick bond over their lifelong love for Spielberg’s classic
- How Quint’s monologue about USS Indianapolis hooked generations on a hidden WWII disaster
- Nick shares about the real USS Indianapolis, and her legendary war record, and why so many lives were lost
- The real context behind the atomic mission, and what war planners didn’t want in the post-war headlines
- From Jaws to Dunkirk and Oppenheimer, Nick and Sarah debate how (and why) film and TV keep history alive
- The personal aftermath for survivors and why stories like Indianapolis matter in an age still shadowed by nuclear threat.
- From Top Gun to Crimson Tide, old-school submarine duels, and a few terrible naval movies best left overboard.
Factoid: In Jaws, Quint famously recounts the sinking of the USS Indianapolis during his chilling monologue. He says the date was June 29, 1945, but in reality, the ship was torpedoed just after midnight on July 30, 1945.
Spotify / Apple Music Playlists for this episode:
About Nick Hewitt:
Nick Hewitt is a naval historian, author, and maritime storyteller known for making the drama of the past vivid, human, and unforgettable. His latest book is *Normandy: The Sailor’s Story* (Yale University Press, now in paperback), charting the unsung naval history of D-Day. He studied history at Lancaster University and War Studies at King’s College, London, before working at Imperial War Museums and The National Museum of the Royal Navy.
Nick’s broadcast credits include presenting the BBC’s Coast, Channel 5’s D-Day’s Sunken Secrets (2014) and the BBC’s Battle of Jutland: The Navy’s Bloodiest Day (2016). His first book, Coastal Convoys 1939-1945, was published in December 2008, and he has since published The Kaiser’s Pirates (2013) and Firing on Fortress Europe (2015) and Normandy: The Sailor’s Story (2024).
Connect with Nick:
X (Twitter): https://twitter.com/NickHewitt)
Book: Normandy: The Sailor’s Story
About Sarah Dowd:
I’m Sarah Dowd – writer, speaker, heritage and arts consultant, producer, and all-around nerd – here to share the stories of our past that make us laugh, gasp, and mutter: It’s History… For F***k’s Sake.
For 25+ years I’ve created immersive, inclusive experiences that bring history alive, from rallying Second World War convoys through London to staging performances between Pearly Kings and Gen Z creatives. My work spans museums, cathedral crypts, pop-up theatres, global brands, and community projects across the UK and beyond.
As a Canadian living between the UK and France (with a late ADHD diagnosis that fuels my curiosity and creativity), I zigzag through culture, history, and big ideas, but never boring ones.
Every week on HistoryFFS, we explore how history echoes through today, from Drag Race to prefab tiny houses, with voices from musicians to mischief-makers.
Follow @HistoryFFS – because we’re all making history, one ridiculous, wonderful moment at a time.
Connect with Sarah:
Website:www.historyffs.com
LinkedIn:https://www.linkedin.com/in/sarahdowd/
Patreon: HistoryFFS
YouTube: @HistoryFFSPod
Instagram: @historyFFSPod
TikTok: @historyffspod
Produced by: winteraudio.co.uk
When people talk about Jaws, they remember the iconic theme, the sun-soaked suspense, and those black, lifeless eyes. But 50 years on, it’s Quint’s bone-chilling monologue that haunts fans and few realise that speech is rooted in a true-life tragedy of epic and nearly forgotten proportions.
In this episode of History for F***’s Sake, we welcome naval historian Nick Hewitt to explore the story beneath the story: the sinking of the USS Indianapolis in the summer of 1945, and the horror that unfolded when over 1,100 sailors plunged into the Pacific, unrescued and alone, after delivering the Hiroshima bomb.
Nick shares how he first got swept up in maritime history (thanks, Dad and a stack of naval novels), and together we revisit Jaws: its troubled production, why you barely see the shark, and why pop culture so often turns lived horror into legendary storytelling. But what really matters, Nick says, is that drama, when done right, hooks us emotionally and leads a new generation to dig for real answers.
We break down what actually happened aboard the Indianapolis, why the Navy’s overconfidence led to delayed rescue, the mechanics of survival and loss at sea, and why the truth is so much grimmer than even Spielberg imagined. Nick’s take? “It’s not a story about sharks, it’s a story about war, memory, and what we choose to forget.”
The episode also marks the 250th anniversary of the US Navy, letting us spotlight both the Navy’s proudest legacies and its darkest hours. We talk favourite films (hello, Crimson Tide and Top Gun, what Hollywood owes to history, and why now, perhaps more than ever, we need real stories to help us face the anxieties and complexities of our world.
As Nick puts it: “Pop culture grips you with the essence of history. It’s a bridge and it’s our job to help people cross it and discover what’s real.”
If you’ve ever shuddered at Jaws, wondered about the line between memory and myth, or just love a salty tale of survival against impossible odds, this episode is for you.