Empire

197. The Pirate Hunter

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Episode notes

Alongside legends like Blackbeard and Calico Jack, William Kidd is one of the most famous pirates to have entered the public consciousness, thanks to Hollywood, sea shanties and literary mythologization. A Scottish sailor and privateer living during the late 17th century, Kidd went from a life of prosperous respectability and high society on Wall Street; hunting down pirates and protecting the trade of the British Empire, to a life spent on the run, pillaging ships as he went. But what was the process by which Kidd turned to the dark side? And was it against his will? His fate changed in 1695 when a murky syndicate of aristocrats commissioned Kidd - with the authorisation of the government - to hunt down pirates and Frenchmen in the Indian Ocean, and protect the trade there. From that point onwards Kidd’s law-abiding life of respectability would spiral out of control…

Join William and Anita as they discuss the thrilling and tumultuous early career of the elusive William Kidd: his conversion from family man to pirate, his alleged visits to the famous Pirate utopia in Madagascar, and the acts of violence that would change his life forever…

Twitter: @Empirepoduk

Email: [email protected]

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Assistant Producer: Tabby Syrett

Producer: Callum Hill

Exec Producer: Neil Fearn

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