The Pacific odyssey of a runaway rebel

Ruth Shaw spent years on ships and islands, trying to outrun her past.

She left her home in New Zealand as a young woman, driven away by a traumatic attack that would shape her life for years to come. Ruth tried to find escape on sailing ships, in Tahitian gambling dens and in the bars and kitchens of Papua New Guinea. But ultimately she had to head home, to face up to deep adolescent scars, and to find the child she’d been forced to give up years before.

Presenter: India Rakusen Producer: May Cameron Editor: Munazza Khan

Photo: ‘The Bookseller at the End of the World’