Drift is a 1941 Australian radio play by Thomas Wainwright.
Gilchrist was a sailor and based the play on his own experiences on a route to Nauru. He wrote a number of short stories over the years. His other radio plays included You'll Write to Irene and The Pilgrimmage.
Leslie Rees called it, and Gilchrist's Aphrodite, among the best plays of the year.
Premise
"Drift gives a graphic pictures of the "nerves' on board a ship drifting day after day on the equatorial current of the phosphate island of Nauru, and culminating in death and mutiny. Written by a man who has him-self sailed the seven seas and commanded his own ship, Drift has the authentic ring and flavor of life aboard a tramp steamer."
References
- "Australia on the Air", ABC Weekly, 18 January 1941, retrieved 8 February 2024 – via Trove
- "Plays of the Air", ABC Weekly, 18 January 1941, retrieved 8 February 2024 – via Trove
- "Our Short Story". The Daily Telegraph. Vol. 4, no. 269. 27 December 1934. p. 12. Retrieved 8 February 2024 – via National Library of Australia.
- "Radio Plays for Next Week A. B. C.", ABC Weekly, 24 March 1956, retrieved 8 February 2024 – via Trove
- "Plays of the Air Best of the Year", ABC Weekly, 20 December 1941, retrieved 8 February 2024 – via Trove
- "Friday Jan. 24", The Wireless Weekly, January 18, 1941, retrieved 8 February 2024 – via Trove