title: Gok Wan

text: Wan set about losing weight and at the age of 20 he began a crash diet, losing half his weight in several months. In his autobiography he includes a section from a calorie diary he kept at the time, revealing he survived for weeks on end on as little as fruit and honey. He also took up to 50 laxatives a day to prevent himself gaining weight from the little food he did consume. Wan reveals that during his diet he lacked energy and motivation; this, coupled with the stress of his course, sent him into depression. He states that he became suicidal around this time – "I fantasised about killing myself – I could see no other way out...I concluded that suicide was the only option." Wan never did attempt to kill himself, stating a fear that he would be unsuccessful and the attempt would be regarded as "just another failing". Upon dropping out of his course and returning home, he confessed his feelings to his family, and was diagnosed as suffering from anorexia by a doctor. Under the supervision of his family he began to eat more and slowly increased to a healthier weight. Despite the sudden change, he had no problem with having been overweight, later reflecting: "I don't regret having been fat at all. I know how to throw jokes at myself and I use humour before anything else, and those skills allow me to do the chat-shows. So I'm thankful for that." He even lamented that, after losing weight, he had to try harder to attract attention, saying that his weight had, to an extent, defined him.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan started his career in London as a makeup artist, then moved into the field of being a fashion stylist. He has worked with many celebrities including Bryan Ferry, All Saints, Damian Lewis, Erasure, Vanessa Mae, Wade Robson, Lauren Laverne, Wet Wet Wet, and Johnny Vaughan. He has offered his opinions to magazines, becoming a fashion consultant, and his work has been published internationally in several magazines including "Tatler", "Glamour", "Times Style", "Marie Claire", "Cosmopolitan", "The Face", "Afisha Mir", "Clash" and "People". He has worked with photographers such as Rankin, Mike Owen and Jason Joyce. He has also worked as an "on-screen" fashion consultant on many television shows including: "MTV Shakedown" (MTV Europe), GMTV (ITV), "LK Today" (ITV), "Big Brother's Little Brother" (Channel 4), "Battle of the Sexes" (BBC One), "The Wright Stuff" (Channel 5), "Make Me a Grown Up" (Channel 4/T4), "The Xtra Factor" (ITV2) and "T4" (Channel 4).


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2006, he was approached by Channel 4 and asked to present his own fashion show, "How to Look Good Naked". In addition, he wrote his first book to accompany the series, entitled "How to Look Good Naked: Shop for Your Shape and Look Amazing!", that was published in April 2007. A second series was commissioned and was broadcast on Channel 4 in mid-2007. Along with the second series, he appeared on "The New Paul O'Grady Show", in which he persuaded Paul O'Grady to strip "naked". From 2008 until 2010, he presented "Gok's Fashion Fix", broadcast on Channel 4.


title: Gok Wan

text: His next series "Miss Naked Beauty", which he co-presented with Myleene Klass, was broadcast in October and November 2008. The series attracted controversy after Wan denigrated semi-naked women, causing critics to question the motives behind the series; journalist Amanda Platell described it as "vulgarity masquerading as self-help".


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan presented a documentary which was first broadcast on 27 January 2009, entitled "Too Fat Too Young", which examined overweight children in the UK. He reflected on his experience of being obese to help several teenagers. In 2010, he joined the celebrity panel on Channel 4's "TV Book Club".


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2011, he presented a series entitled "Gok's Clothes Roadshow" on Channel 4, which was criticised for its gimmicks and similarities to Wan's previous shows. This was the year he also released his much anticipated autobiography, "Through Thick and Thin", published by Ebury Press. He launched his first women's clothing collection with Sainsbury's on 6 November 2011. His red wrap dress sold at a rate of one every 24 seconds. The range ran into 24 collections and Wan was also their Style Ambassador. In 2012, he starred in a new series entitled "Gok's Teens: The Naked Truth" on Channel 4 where he gave advice to teenagers about self-confidence, bullying, anxiety and eating disorders.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2012, he presented a series entitled "Gok Cooks Chinese" on Channel 4 and later a book by the same title, "Gok Cooks Chinese" was published by Michael Joseph (Penguin Group UK). In autumn 2012, Wan presented "Baggage", which was broadcast on Channel 4.


title: Gok Wan

text: Between 2013 and 2015 Wan was the Style & Quality Ambassador for the Target Australia brand. As part of his role, he presented an Australian TV show titled "Target Style the Nation", in which he transformed the appearances of five women. Wan's employer dismissed concerns about his use of the term "bangers" as a description for women's breasts in the brand's adverts.


title: Gok Wan

text: In June 2014, Wan attended Royal Ascot for the first time as fashion presenter alongside racing presenter Clare Balding on "Channel 4 Racing".


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan was a regular stand-in presenter for Phillip Schofield on ITV's daytime show "This Morning". He also presents various weekly fashion features, and travel documentaries, including a trip with his Dad to explore two different sides to Hong Kong, covering food, family and fashion.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2016, Wan presented "Fearne and Gok – Off the Rails" on ITVBe and "Gok's Lunchbox" on ITV. Since August 2016, Wan has presented "Gok's Fill Your House for Free" for Channel 4 daytime, replacing Kirstie Allsopp.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2017, National Geographic aired his show "Gok's Chinese Takeaway", that explored Chinese food around the globe.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2017, Wan was a fashion expert on "Made Over By" on E4 and 2018 saw Wan as a panel member on "Britain's Favourite Dogs: Top 100" on ITV.


title: Gok Wan

text: In both 2016 and 2017, Wan was the Ambassador for the American Express campaign, "Shop Small" where he championed small independent shops and the importance of shopping with local businesses.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2018, Wan launched a company, Beautiful Events and Productions Ltd which offered high-end event management services – everything from creative production to logistics and event management. The new venture started after Wan and his business partner Peter Ferguson produced a 21-date tour around the UK and Ireland of Wan's show entitled 'Fashion Brunch Club' (2016/17). These shows are a live version of what Wan offered in his previous TV show "How to Look Good Naked". The guests experience a 5 star Brunch, and catwalk show of clothes from their local clothing stores, along with a surprise audience makeover and Wan also provides a much coveted body-shape masterclass.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2018 Wan, along with co-founders Lucy Mitchell and Sarah Lewis, founded and launched the inaugural Golden Chopsticks Awards. The event took place on 16 April 2018 at the London Marriott Hotel, Grosvenor Square, London and Wan was host, with judges including Ken Hom, Simon Rimmer, Ching He Huang, Fuchsia Dunlop, Katy Tse Blair and Sonny Leong.


title: Gok Wan

text: In March 2019, Wan began presenting "Say Yes to the Dress Lancashire", which is the first Northern spin-off of the hit TV show, set in Ava Rose Hamilton in Colne, Lancashire. It was a family-run business where Wan became an honorary member of the family. Wan helped brides search for their dream dress, with a little input from their friends and family. A second series aired in 2020 on TLC UK.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan also filmed a brand new series of "How to Look Good Naked", ten years after the last show aired on Channel 4. This new series for Discovery aired on Really in spring 2020 to much anticipation.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2021 Gok presented Gok Wan's Easy Asian (Series 2) for the Food Network. Gok also presented Bling for ITV


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan wrote a book titled "How to Dress: Your Complete Style Guide for Every Occasion" which was released by HarperCollins on 1 October 2008. The book was praised by both "Heat" and "Closer" magazines for its sensitive and feel-good approach to a style guide.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan made his pantomime debut as the Man in the Mirror in Snow White and the Seven Dwarfs at Birmingham Hippodrome in 2013 and since then has starred as the Fairy Gokmother in Cinderella opposite Brian Conley at Mayflower Theatre, Southampton (2014) and Paul Zerdin at the Theatre Royal, Plymouth (2015). In 2016 he played the part of Spirit of The Ocean in Robinson Crusoe and the Caribbean Pirates at the Cliffs Pavilion, Southend-on-Sea. 2017 saw Wan reprising his role as Fairy Gokmother in "Cinderella" at the Milton Keynes Theatre. In 2018 Wan performed in Bristol in the production of "Cinderella", and likewise in 2019 in Cardiff.


title: Gok Wan

text: In May 2018, Wan took a job in the animated preschool series "Luo Bao Bei", voicing the father and uncle of the main character. The show follows Luo Bao Bei, a bright and spirited seven-year-old girl with a vivid imagination, on a quest to understand the world around her. Viacom-owned UK terrestrial network Channel 5 picked up the series for its morning kids' block "Milkshake!". This is a 52×11' series and was written by Dave Ingham ("Shaun the Sheep", "The Octonauts").


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2021 Gok played the role of The Man In The Mirror in Snow White & The Seven Dwarfs at Woking New Victoria Theatre.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan launched an opera compilation CD in March 2017 called "Gok's Divas". It was well received and reached number one on the Official Classical Compilation charts.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan is a big music lover and regularly DJs in the UK and abroad. His preferred music is house music and club classics but enjoys playing a varied range. In 2017, he toured Poland including Pacha Nightclub in Poznań. He is represented by Club Class Management.


title: Gok Wan

text: In September 2020, Wan released his debut single, a cover of the Baby D song "Let Me Be Your Fantasy", with DJ/producer Craig Knight featuring Kele Le Roc on vocals.


title: Gok Wan

text: Isolation Nation compilation CD released in 2020 with Defected. A second volume 2 CD compilation was released in 2021


title: Gok Wan

text: In the autumn of 2017, Wan embarked on an 18-date stand-up tour of the UK called Naked and Baring All. This was an auto-biographical show, where Wan discussed family, work, business, fashion and TV.


title: Gok Wan

text: In 2019, Wan signed a deal with QVC to create a new collection called Wuli:Luu. Wan sold his range on the shopping channel.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan resides in Bloomsbury, London. In 2009, he said he had slept with "21 and a half" men in his life, and that he had also slept with women. In the same interview he also said he had lost his virginity to another boy whilst they were both under the legal age of consent.


title: Gok Wan

text: His brother, Kwoklyn, is a martial artist and cook, who launched a Chinese takeaway cookbook in 2019. He also has an older sister, Oilen, who is a child-care solicitor.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan has been involved in various charitable projects, supporting anti-bullying charities Kidscape and Ditch the Label and launching a National Glasses Day with Specsavers to encourage everyone to wear their spectacles with pride. As part of Children in Need 2008, he treated the actors of "Coronation Street"s Underworld factory to a glamorous makeover. Wan also appeared in "Comic Relief Does The Apprentice" in March 2009. In 2014, he was named in the top 10 on the World Pride Power list. He is also a supporter and ambassador to Stonewall, and The Prince's Trust, and is an active member of the Chinese community in London and the UK.


title: Gok Wan

text: Wan has taken part in dragon boat training with the Raging Dragons, and episode 3 of "Gok Cooks Chinese" features them paddling together in Royal Albert Dock and eating dim sum at the Yiban Chinese restaurant.


title: Gok Wan

text: He was appointed Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the 2020 New Year Honours for services to fashion and social awareness.


title: William Bligh

text: Vice-Admiral William Bligh (9 September 1754 – 7 December 1817) was an officer of the Royal Navy and a colonial administrator. The mutiny on the HMS "Bounty" occurred in 1789 when the ship was under his command; after being set adrift in "Bounty"s launch by the mutineers, Bligh and his loyal men all reached Timor alive, after a journey of . Bligh's logbooks documenting the mutiny were inscribed on the UNESCO Australian Memory of the World register on 26 February 2021.


title: William Bligh

text: Seventeen years after the "Bounty" mutiny, on 13 August 1806, he was appointed Governor of New South Wales in Australia, with orders to clean up the corrupt rum trade of the New South Wales Corps. His actions directed against the trade resulted in the so-called Rum Rebellion, during which Bligh was placed under arrest on 26 January 1808 by the New South Wales Corps and deposed from his command, an act which the British Foreign Office later declared to be illegal. He died in London on 7 December 1817.


title: William Bligh

text: William Bligh was born on 9 September 1754, but it is not clear where. It is likely that he was born in Plymouth, Devon, as he was baptised at St Andrew's Church on Royal Parade in Plymouth on 4 October 1754, where Bligh's father, Francis (1721–1780), was serving as a customs officer. Bligh's ancestral home of Tinten Manor in St Tudy, near Bodmin, Cornwall, is also a possibility. Bligh's mother, Jane Pearce (née Balsam; 1713–1768), was a widow who married Francis at the age of 40.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh was signed for the Royal Navy at age seven, at a time when it was common to sign on a "young gentleman" simply to gain, or at least record, the experience at sea required for a commission. In 1770, at age 16, he joined HMS "Hunter" as an able seaman, the term used because there was no vacancy for a midshipman. He became a midshipman early in the following year. In September 1771, Bligh was transferred to and remained on the ship for three years.


title: William Bligh

text: In 1776, Bligh was selected by Captain James Cook (1728–1779), for the position of sailing master of and accompanied Cook in July 1776 on Cook's third voyage to the Pacific Ocean, during which Cook was killed. Bligh played a significant role in navigating the beleaguered expedition back to England in August 1780. He was also able to supply details of Cook's last voyage following the return.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh married Elizabeth Betham, daughter of a customs collector (stationed in Douglas, Isle of Man), on 4 February 1781. The wedding took place at nearby Onchan. A few days later, he was appointed to serve on HMS "Belle Poule" as master (senior warrant officer responsible for navigation). Soon after this, in August 1781, he fought in the Battle of Dogger Bank under Admiral Parker, which won him his commission as a lieutenant. For the next 18 months, he was a lieutenant on various ships. He also fought with Lord Howe at Gibraltar in 1782.


title: William Bligh

text: Between 1783 and 1787, Bligh was a captain in the merchant service. Like many lieutenants, he would have found full-pay employment in the Navy; however, commissions were hard to obtain with the fleet largely demobilised at the end of the War with France when that country was allied with the North American rebelling colonies in the War of American Independence (1775–1783). In 1787, Bligh was selected as commander of His Majesty's Armed Transport "Bounty". He rose eventually to the rank of vice admiral in the Royal Navy.


title: William Bligh

text: William Bligh's naval career involved various appointments and assignments. He first rose to prominence as Master of "Resolution", under the command of Captain James Cook. Bligh received praise from Cook during what would be the latter's final voyage. Bligh served on three of the same ships on which Fletcher Christian also served simultaneously in his naval career.


title: William Bligh

text: In the early 1780s, while in the merchant service, Bligh became acquainted with a young man named Fletcher Christian (1764–1793), who was eager to learn navigation from him. Bligh took Christian under his wing, and the two became friends.


title: William Bligh

text: The mutiny on the Royal Navy vessel HMAV "Bounty" occurred in the South Pacific Ocean on 28 April 1789. Led by Master's Mate / Acting Lieutenant Fletcher Christian, disaffected crewmen seized control of the ship, and set the then Lieutenant Bligh, who was the ship's captain, and 18 loyalists adrift in the ship's open launch. The mutineers variously settled on Tahiti or on Pitcairn Island. Meanwhile, Bligh completed a voyage of more than 3,500 nautical miles (6,500 km; 4,000 mi) to the west in the launch to reach safety north of Australia in the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia) and began the process of bringing the mutineers to justice.


title: William Bligh

text: In 1787, Lieutenant Bligh, as he then was, took command of HMAV "Bounty." In order to win a premium offered by the Royal Society, he first sailed to Tahiti to obtain breadfruit trees, then set course east across the South Pacific for South America and the Cape Horn and eventually to the Caribbean Sea, where breadfruit was wanted for experiments to see whether it would be a successful food crop for enslaved Africans there on British colonial plantations in the West Indies islands. According to one modern researcher, the notion that breadfruit had to be collected from Tahiti was intentionally misleading. Tahiti was merely one of many places where the esteemed seedless breadfruit could be found. The real reason for choosing Tahiti has its roots in the territorial contention that existed then between France and Great Britain at the time. "Bounty" never reached the Caribbean, as mutiny broke out on board shortly after the ship left Tahiti.


title: William Bligh

text: The voyage to Tahiti was difficult. After trying unsuccessfully for a month to go west by rounding South America and Cape Horn, "Bounty" was finally defeated by the notoriously stormy weather and opposite winds and forced to take the longer way to the east around the southern tip of Africa (Cape of Good Hope and Cape Agulhas). That delay caused a further delay in Tahiti, as Bligh had to wait five months for the breadfruit plants to mature sufficiently to be potted in soil and transported. "Bounty" departed Tahiti heading west in April 1789.


title: William Bligh

text: Because the vessel was rated only as a cutter, "Bounty" had no commissioned officers other than Bligh (who was then only a lieutenant), a very small crew, and no Royal Marines to provide protection from hostile natives during stops or to enforce security on board ship. To allow longer uninterrupted sleep, Bligh divided his crew into three watches instead of two, placing his "protégé" Fletcher Christian—rated as a Master's Mate—in charge of one of the watches. The mutiny, which took place on 28 April 1789 during the return voyage, was led by Christian and supported by eighteen of the crew. They had seized firearms during Christian's night watch and surprised and bound Bligh in his cabin.


title: William Bligh

text: ]Despite being in the majority, none of the loyalists put up a significant struggle once they saw Bligh bound, and the ship was taken over without bloodshed. The mutineers provided Bligh and eighteen loyal crewmen a launch (so heavily loaded that the gunwales were only a few inches above the water). They were allowed four cutlasses, food and water for perhaps a week, a quadrant and a compass, but no charts, or marine chronometer. The gunner William Peckover, brought his pocket watch which was used to regulate time. Most of these were obtained by the clerk, Mr Samuel, who acted with great calm and resolution, despite threats from the mutineers. The launch could not hold all the loyal crew members, so four were detained on "Bounty" for their useful skills; they were later released in Tahiti.


title: William Bligh

text: Tahiti was upwind from Bligh's initial position, and was the obvious destination of the mutineers. Many of the loyalists claimed to have heard the mutineers cry "Huzzah for Otaheite!" as "Bounty" pulled away. Timor was the nearest European colonial outpost in the Dutch East Indies (modern Indonesia), away. Bligh and his crew first made for Tofua, only a few leagues distant, to obtain supplies. However, they were attacked by hostile natives and John Norton, a quartermaster, was killed. Fleeing from Tofua, Bligh did not dare to stop at the next islands to the west (the Fiji islands), as he had only a pair of cutlasses for defence and expected hostile receptions. He did however keep a log entitled "Log of the Proceedings of His Majesty's Ship Bounty Lieut. Wm Bligh Commander from Otaheite towards Jamaica" which he used to record events from 5 April 1789 to 13 March 1790. He also made use of a small notebook to sketch a rough map of his discoveries.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh had confidence in his navigational skills, which he had perfected under the instruction of Captain James Cook. His first responsibility was to bring his men to safety. Thus, he undertook the seemingly impossible voyage to Timor, the nearest European settlement. Bligh succeeded in reaching Timor after a 47-day voyage, the only casualty being the crewman killed on Tofua. From 4 May until 29 May, when they reached the Great Barrier Reef north of Australia, the 18 men lived on of bread per day. The weather was often stormy, and they were in constant fear of foundering due to the boat's heavily laden condition. On 29 May they landed on a small island off the coast of Australia, which they named Restoration Island, 29 May 1660 being the date of the restoration of the English monarchy after the English Civil War. Over the next week or more they island-hopped north along the Great Barrier reef—while Bligh, cartographer as always, sketched maps of the coast. Early in June they passed through the Endeavour Strait and sailed again on the open sea until they reached Coupang, a settlement on Timor, on 14 June 1789. Three of the men who survived this arduous voyage with him were so weak that they soon died of sickness, possibly malaria, in the pestilential Dutch East Indies port of Batavia, the present-day Indonesian capital of Jakarta, as they waited for transport to Britain. Two others died on the way to England.


title: William Bligh

text: The reasons behind the mutiny are still debated; some sources report that Bligh was a tyrant whose abuse of the crew led them to feel that they had no choice but to take over the ship. Other sources argue that Bligh was no worse (and in many cases gentler) than the average captain and naval officer of the era, and that the crew—inexperienced and unused to the rigours of the sea—were corrupted by the freedom, idleness and sexual licence of their five months in Tahiti, finding themselves unwilling to return to the "Jack Tar's" life of an ordinary seaman. This view holds that most of the men supported Christian's prideful personal vendetta against Bligh out of a misguided hope that their new captain would return them to Tahiti to live their lives hedonistically and in peace, free from Bligh's acid tongue and strict discipline.


title: William Bligh

text: The mutiny is made more mysterious by the friendship of Christian and Bligh, which dates back to Bligh's days in the merchant service. Christian was well acquainted with the Bligh family. As Bligh was being set adrift he appealed to this friendship, saying "you have dandled my children upon your knee". According to Bligh, Christian "appeared disturbed" and replied, "That,—Captain Bligh,—that is the thing;——I am in hell—I am in hell".


title: William Bligh

text: "Bounty"s log shows that Bligh was relatively sparing in his punishments. He scolded when other captains would have whipped, and whipped when other captains would have hanged. He was an educated man, deeply interested in science, convinced that good diet and sanitation were necessary for the welfare of his crew. He took a great interest in his crew's exercise, was very careful about the quality of their food and insisted upon the "Bounty" being kept very clean. The modern historian John Beaglehole has described the major flaw in this otherwise enlightened naval officer: "[Bligh made] dogmatic judgements which he felt himself entitled to make; he saw fools about him too easily … thin-skinned vanity was his curse through life … [Bligh] never learnt that you do not make friends of men by insulting them." Bligh was also capable of holding intense grudges against those he thought had betrayed him, such as Midshipman Peter Heywood and ship's gunner William Peckover; in regard to Heywood, Bligh was convinced that the young man was as guilty as Christian. Bligh's first detailed comments on the mutiny are in a letter to his wife Betsy, in which he names Heywood (a mere boy not yet 16) as "one of the ringleaders", adding: "I have now reason to curse the day I ever knew a Christian or a Heywood or indeed a Manks man. Bligh's later official account to the Admiralty lists Heywood with Christian, Edward Young and George Stewart as the mutiny's leaders, describing Heywood as a young man of abilities for whom he had felt a particular regard. To the Heywood family Bligh wrote: "His baseness is beyond all description." Peckover applied for a position as gunner on HMS "Providence" (the second breadfruit expedition to Tahiti) but was refused by Bligh. In a letter to Sir Joseph Banks, 17 July 1791 (two weeks before departure), Bligh wrote:


title: William Bligh

text: Should Peckover my late Gunner ever trouble you to render him further services I shall esteem it a favour if you will tell him I informed you he was a vicious and worthless fellow – He applied to me to render him service & wanted to be appointed Gunner of the Providence but as I had determined never to suffer an officer who was with me in the "Bounty" to sail with again, it was for the cause I did not apply for him.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh's refusal to appoint Peckover was partly due to Edward Christian's polemic testimony against Bligh in an effort to clear his brother's name. Christian states in his appendix:


title: William Bligh

text: In the evidence of Mr. Peckover and Mr. Fryer, it is proved that Mr. Nelson the botanist said, upon hearing the commencement of the mutiny, "We know whose fault this is, or who is to blame, Mr. Fryer, what have we brought upon ourselves?" In addition to this, it ought to be known that Mr. Nelson, in conversation afterwards with an officer (Peckover) at Timor, who was speaking of returning with Captain Bligh if he got another ship, observed, "I am surprized that you should think of going a second time with [Bligh] (using a term of abuse) who has been the cause of all our losses."


title: William Bligh

text: Popular fiction often confuses Bligh with Edward Edwards of , who was sent on the Royal Navy's expedition to the South Pacific to find the mutineers and bring them to trial. Edwards is often made out to be the cruel man that Hollywood has portrayed. The 14 men from "Bounty" who were captured by Edwards's men were confined in a cramped 18′ × 11′ × 5′8″ wooden cell on "Pandora"s quarterdeck. Yet, when "Pandora" ran aground on the Great Barrier Reef, three prisoners were immediately let out of the prison cell to help at the pumps. Finally, Captain Edwards gave orders to release the other 11 prisoners, to which end Joseph Hodges, the armourer's mate, went into the cell to remove the prisoners' irons. Unfortunately, before he could finish the job, the ship sank. Four of the prisoners and 31 of the crew died during the sinking. More prisoners would likely have perished, had not William Moulter, a bosun's mate, unlocked their cages before jumping off the sinking vessel.


title: William Bligh

text: In October 1790, Bligh was honourably acquitted at the court-martial inquiring into the loss of "Bounty." Shortly thereafter, he published "A Narrative of the Mutiny on board His Majesty's Ship "Bounty"; And the Subsequent Voyage of Part of the Crew, In the Ship's Boat, from Tofoa, one of the Friendly Islands, to Timor, a Dutch Settlement in the East Indies." Of the 10 surviving prisoners eventually brought home in spite of "Pandora"'s loss, four were acquitted, owing to Bligh's testimony that they were non-mutineers that Bligh was obliged to leave on "Bounty" because of lack of space in the launch. Two others were convicted because, while not participating in the mutiny, they were passive and did not resist. They subsequently received royal pardons. One was convicted but excused on a technicality. The remaining three were convicted and hanged.


title: William Bligh

text: The following is a letter to Bligh's wife, written from Coupang, Timor, Dutch East Indies (circa June 1791), in which the first reference to events on the "Bounty" is made.


title: William Bligh

text: I am now, for the most part, in a part of the world I never expected, it is however a place that has afforded me relief and saved my life, and I have the happiness to assure you that I am now in perfect health...


title: William Bligh

text: Know then my own Dear Betsy, that I have lost the "Bounty" ... on the 28 April at day light in the morning Christian having the morning watch. He with several others came into my Cabin while I was a Sleep, and seizing me, holding naked Bayonets at my Breast, tied my Hands behind my back, and threatened instant destruction if I uttered a word. I however call'd loudly for assistance, but the conspiracy was so well laid that the Officers Cabbin Doors were guarded by Centinels, so Nelson, Peckover, Samuels or the Master could not come to me. I was now dragged on Deck in my Shirt & closely guarded – I demanded of Christian the case of such a violent act, & severely degraded for his Villainy but he could only answer – "not a word sir or you are Dead." I dared him to the act & endeavoured to rally some one to a sense of their duty but to no effect...


title: William Bligh

text: The Secrisy of this Mutiny is beyond all conception so that I can not discover that any who are with me had the least knowledge of it. It is unbeknown to me why I must beguile such force. Even Mr. Tom Ellison took such a liking to Otaheite [Tahiti] that he also turned Pirate, so that I have been run down by my own Dogs...


title: William Bligh

text: My misfortune I trust will be properly considered by all the World – It was a circumstance I could not foresee – I had not sufficient Officers & had they granted me Marines most likely the affair would never have happened – I had not a Spirited & brave fellow about me & the Mutineers treated them as such. My conduct has been free of blame, & I showed everyone that, tied as I was, I defied every Villain to hurt me...


title: William Bligh

text: I know how shocked you will be at this affair but I request of you My Dear Betsy to think nothing of it all is now past & we will again looked forward to future happyness. Nothing but true consciousness as an Officer that I have done well could support me...Give my blessings to my Dear Harriet, my Dear Mary, my Dear Betsy & to my Dear little stranger & tell them I shall soon be home...To You my Love I give all that an affectionate Husband can give –


title: William Bligh

text: Love, Respect & all that is or ever will be in the power of your <br>ever affectionate Friend and Husband Wm Bligh.


title: William Bligh

text: Strictly speaking, the crime of the mutineers (apart from the disciplinary crime of mutiny) was not piracy but barratry, the misappropriation, by those entrusted with its care, of a ship and/or its contents to the detriment of the owner (in this case the British Crown).


title: William Bligh

text: After his exoneration by the court-martial inquiry into the loss of "Bounty", Bligh remained in the Royal Navy. From 1791 to 1793, as master and commander of and in company with under the command of Nathaniel Portlock, he undertook again to transport breadfruit from Tahiti to the West Indies. He also transported plants provided by Hugh Ronalds, a nurseryman in Brentford. The operation was generally successful but its immediate objective, which was to provide a cheap and nutritious food for the African slaves in the West Indies islands around the Caribbean Sea was not met, as most slaves refused to eat the new food. During this voyage, Bligh also collected samples of the ackee fruit of Jamaica, introducing it to the Royal Society in Britain upon his return. The ackee's scientific name "Blighia sapida" in binomial nomenclature was given in honour of Bligh.


title: William Bligh

text: In Adventure Bay, Tasmania, third lieutenant George Tobin made the first European drawing of an echidna.


title: William Bligh

text: In February 1797, while Bligh was captain of , he surveyed the River Humber, preparing a map of the stretch from Spurn to the west of Sunk Island.


title: William Bligh

text: In April–May, Bligh was one of the captains whose crews mutinied over "issues of pay and involuntary service for common seamen" during the Nore mutiny. The mutiny was not triggered by any specific actions by Bligh; the mutinies "were widespread, [and] involved a fair number of English ships". Whilst "Director"'s role was relatively minor in this mutiny, she was the last to raise the white flag at its cessation. It was at this time that he learned "that his common nickname among men in the fleet was 'that Bounty bastard'."


title: William Bligh

text: As captain of "Director" at the Battle of Camperdown on 11 October, Bligh engaged three Dutch vessels: "Haarlem", "Alkmaar" and "Vrijheid". While the Dutch suffered serious casualties, only seven seamen were wounded on "Director". "Director" captured "Vrijheid" and the Dutch commander, Vice-Admiral Jan de Winter.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh went on to serve under Admiral Nelson at the Battle of Copenhagen on 2 April 1801, in command of , a 56-gun ship of the line, which was experimentally fitted exclusively with carronades. After the battle, Nelson personally praised Bligh for his contribution to the victory. He sailed "Glatton" safely between the banks while three other vessels ran aground. When Nelson pretended not to notice Admiral Parker's signal "43" (stop the battle) and kept the signal "16" hoisted to continue the engagement, Bligh was the only captain in the squadron who could see that the two signals were in conflict. By choosing to fly Nelson's signal, he ensured that all the vessels behind him kept fighting.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh had gained a reputation as a firm disciplinarian. Accordingly, he was offered the position of Governor of New South Wales on the recommendation of Sir Joseph Banks (President of the Royal Society and a main sponsor of the breadfruit expeditions) and appointed in March 1805, at £2,000 per annum, twice the pay of the retiring governor, Philip Gidley King. He arrived in Sydney on 6 August 1806, to become the fourth governor. As his wife Elizabeth had been unwilling to undertake a long sea voyage, Bligh was accompanied by his daughter, Mary Putland, who would be the Lady of Government House; Mary's husband John Putland was appointed as William Bligh's aide-de-camp. During his time in Sydney, his confrontational administrative style provoked the wrath of a number of influential settlers and officials. They included the wealthy landowner and businessman John Macarthur, and prominent Crown representatives such as the colony's principal surgeon, Thomas Jamison, as well as senior officers of the New South Wales Corps. Jamison and his military associates were defying government regulations by engaging in private trading ventures for profit, a practice which Bligh was determined to put a stop to.


title: William Bligh

text: The conflict between Bligh and the entrenched colonists culminated in another mutiny, the Rum Rebellion, when, on 26 January 1808, 400 soldiers of the New South Wales Corps under the command of Major George Johnston marched on Government House in Sydney to arrest Bligh. A petition written by John Macarthur and addressed to George Johnston was written the day of the arrest but most of the 151 signatures were gathered in the days after Bligh's overthrow. A rebel government was subsequently installed and Bligh, now deposed, made for Hobart in Tasmania aboard . Bligh failed to gain support from the authorities in Hobart to retake control of New South Wales, and remained effectively imprisoned on the "Porpoise" from 1808 until January 1810.


title: William Bligh

text: Shortly after Bligh's arrest, a watercolour illustrating the arrest by an unknown artist was exhibited in Sydney at perhaps Australia's first public art exhibition. The watercolour depicts a soldier dragging Bligh from underneath one of the servants’ beds in Government House, with two other figures standing by. The two soldiers in the watercolour are most likely John Sutherland and Michael Marlborough and the other figure on the far right is believed to represent Lieutenant William Minchin. This cartoon is Australia's earliest surviving political cartoon and like all political cartoons it makes use of caricature and exaggeration to convey its message. The New South Wales Corps' officers regarded themselves as gentlemen, and in depicting Bligh as a coward, the cartoon declares that Bligh was not a gentleman and therefore not fit to govern.


title: William Bligh

text: Of interest, however, was Bligh's concern for the more recently arrived settlers in the colony, who did not have the wealth and influence of Macarthur and Jamison. From the tombstones in Ebenezer and Richmond cemeteries (areas being settled west of Sydney during Bligh's tenure as governor), can be seen the number of boys born around 1807 to 1811 who received "William Bligh" as a given name, e.g. William Bligh Turnbull b. 8 June 1809 at Windsor, ancestor of Malcolm Bligh Turnbull, Prime Minister of Australia; and James Bligh Johnston, b.1809 at Ebenezer, son of Andrew Johnston, who designed Ebenezer Chapel, Australia's oldest extant church and oldest extant school.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh received a letter in January 1810, advising him that the rebellion had been declared illegal, and that the British Foreign Office had declared it to be a mutiny. Lachlan Macquarie had been appointed to replace him as governor. At this news Bligh sailed from Hobart. He arrived in Sydney on 17 January 1810, only two weeks into Macquarie's tenure. There he would collect evidence for the coming court martial in England of Major Johnston. He departed to attend the trial on 12 May 1810, arriving on 25 October 1810. In the days immediately prior to their departure, his daughter, Mary Putland (widowed in 1808), was hastily married to the new Lieutenant-Governor, Maurice Charles O'Connell, and remained in Sydney. The following year, the trial's presiding officers sentenced Johnston to be cashiered, a form of disgraceful dismissal that entailed surrendering his commission in the Royal Marines without compensation. (This was a comparatively mild punishment which enabled Johnston to return a free man to New South Wales, where he could continue to enjoy the benefits of his accumulated private wealth.) Bligh was court martialled twice again during his career, being acquitted both times. Soon after Johnston's trial had concluded, Bligh received a backdated promotion to rear admiral. In 1814 he was promoted again to vice admiral of the blue. Perhaps significantly, he never again received an important command, though with the Napoleonic Wars almost over there would have been few fleet commands available.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh was recruited to chart and map Dublin Bay, and recommended the building walls for a refuge harbour at what was then known as Dunleary; the large harbour and naval base subsequently built there between 1816 and 1821 was called Kingstown, later renamed Dún Laoghaire. Many sources claim that Bligh designed the North Bull Wall at the mouth of the River Liffey in Dublin. He did propose the construction of a sea wall or barrier at the north of the bay clear a sandbar by Venturi action, but his design was not used. The wall which was constructed used a design by George Halpin and resulted in the formation of North Bull Island by the sand cleared by the river's now more narrowly focused force.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh died of cancer in Bond Street, London, on 7 December 1817 and was buried in a family plot at St. Mary's, Lambeth (this church is now the Garden Museum). His tomb was notable for its use of Coade stone ("Lithodipyra)", a compound of clay and other materials which was moulded in imitation of carved stonework and fired in a kiln. This stoneware was produced by Eleanor Coade at her factory in Lambeth. The tomb is topped by an eternal flame, not a breadfruit. A plaque marks Bligh's house, one block east of the Garden Museum at 100 Lambeth Road, near the Imperial War Museum.


title: William Bligh

text: He was related to Admiral Sir Richard Rodney Bligh and Captain George Miller Bligh, and his British and Australian descendants include Native Police Commandant John O'Connell Bligh and the former Premier of Queensland, Anna Bligh. He was also distantly related to the architect and psychical researcher Frederick Bligh Bond.


title: William Bligh

text: The suburb Bligh Park in New South Wales is named after William Bligh as at the time of the Rum Rebellion the Hawkesbury settlers supported the then-deposed governor.


title: William Bligh

text: Bligh is humorously portrayed in Sir Arthur Quiller-Couch's short story "Frenchman's Creek" as a competent but irascible and tactless surveyor sent to a small fishing village in Cornwall during the Napoleonic Wars. His accent and strong language being misunderstood by the locals as French, he is temporarily imprisoned as a spy.


title: William Bligh

text: The situation in Sydney in 1810, with Bligh returning from Tasmania to be restored as governor, is the setting of Naomi Novik's fantasy novel "Tongues of Serpents" (Harper-Collins, 2011).


title: William Bligh

text: On 16 December 1964, the "Adobe Dick" episode of the cartoon "The Flintstones" (episode 129) paid a humorous homage to Cpt. Bligh and his ship. On the show, the characters Fred and Barney took a chartered fishing trip with the guys from the lodge on the U.S.S. "Bountystone". The captain of the ship, Capt. Blah, was a domineering man with a uniform resembling the historical figure, William Bligh.


title: Bacchanalia

text: The Bacchanalia were unofficial, privately funded popular Roman festivals of Bacchus, based on various ecstatic elements of the Greek Dionysia. They were almost certainly associated with Rome's native cult of Liber, and probably arrived in Rome itself around 200 BC. Like all mystery religions of the ancient world, very little is known of their rites. They seem to have been popular and well-organised throughout the central and southern Italian peninsula.


title: Bacchanalia

text: Livy, writing some 200 years after the event, offers a scandalized and extremely colourful account of the Bacchanalia, with frenzied rites, sexually violent initiations of both sexes, all ages and all social classes; he represents the cult as a murderous instrument of conspiracy against the state. Livy claims that seven thousand cult leaders and followers were arrested, and that most were executed. Livy believed the Bacchanalia scandal to be one of several indications of Rome's inexorable moral decay. Modern scholars take a skeptical approach to Livy's allegations.


title: Bacchanalia

text: The cult was not banned. Senatorial legislation to reform the Bacchanalia in 186 BC attempted to control their size, organisation, and priesthoods, under threat of the death penalty. This may have been motivated less by the kind of lurid and dramatic rumours that Livy describes than by the Senate's determination to assert its civil, moral and religious authority over Rome and its allies, after the prolonged social, political and military crisis of the Second Punic War (218–201 BC). The reformed Bacchanalia rites may have been merged with the Liberalia festival. Bacchus, Liber and Dionysus became virtually interchangeable from the late Republican era (133 BC and onward), and their mystery cults persisted well into the Principate of Roman Imperial era.


title: Bacchanalia

text: The Bacchanalia were Roman festivals of Bacchus, the Greco-Roman god of wine, freedom, intoxication and ecstasy. They were based on the Greek Dionysia and the Dionysian Mysteries, and probably arrived in Rome c. 200 BC via the Greek colonies in southern Italy, and from Etruria, Rome's northern neighbour. Tenney Frank suggests that some form of Dionysian worship may have been introduced to Rome by captives from the formerly Greek city of Tarentum in southern Italy, captured from the Carthaginians in 209 BC. Like all mystery cults, the Bacchanalia were held in strict privacy, and initiates were bound to secrecy; what little is known of the cult and its rites derives from Greek and Roman literature, plays, statuary and paintings. One of the earliest sources is Greek playwright Euripides's "The Bacchae", which won the Athenian Dionysia competition in 405 BC. The Bacchanalia may have had mystery elements and public elements; religious dramas which were performed in public, and private rites performed by acolytes and priests of the deity.


title: Bacchanalia

text: Livy, the principal Roman literary source on the early Bacchanalia, names Paculla Annia, a Campanian priestess of Bacchus, as the founder of a private, unofficial Bacchanalia cult in Rome, based at the grove of Stimula, where the western slope of the Aventine Hill descends to the Tiber. The Aventine was an ethnically mixed district, strongly identified with Rome's plebeian class and the ingress of new and foreign cults. The wine and fertility god Liber Pater ("The Free Father"), divine patron of plebeian rights, freedoms and augury, had a long-established official cult in the nearby temple he shared with Ceres and Libera. Most Roman sources describe him as Rome's equivalent to Dionysus and Bacchus, both of whom were sometimes titled "Eleutherios" (liberator).


title: Bacchanalia

text: Livy claims the earliest version of the Bacchanalia was open to women only, and held on three days of the year, in daylight; while in nearby Etruria, north of Rome, a "Greek of humble origin, versed in sacrifices and soothsaying" had established a nocturnal version, added wine and feasting to the mix, and thus acquired an enthusiastic following of women and men. The nocturnal version of the Bacchanalia involved wine-drinking to excess, drunkenness and the free mingling of the sexes and classes; the rites also involved loud music.


title: Bacchanalia

text: According to Livy's account, Publius Aebutius of the Aebutia (gens) was warned against the cult and its excesses by a courtesan, Hispala Faecenia. The Senate appointed Spurius Postumius Albinus and Quintus Marcius Philippus to investigate the cult. The inquiry claimed that under the cover of religion, priests and acolytes broke civil, moral and religious laws with impunity; weak-minded individuals could be persuaded to commit ritual or political murders undetected, at the behest of those who secretly controlled the cult, right in the heart of Rome. Livy claims that the cult held particular appeal to those of uneducated and fickle mind ("levitas animi"), such as the young, plebeians, women and "men most like women", and that most of the city's population was involved, even some members of Rome's highest class.


title: Bacchanalia

text: The Legislation of 186 survives in the form of an inscription. Known as the "Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus", it brought the Bacchanalia under control of the Senate, and thus of the Roman pontifices. The existing cult chapters and colleges were dismantled. Congregations of mixed gender were permitted, but were limited to no more than two men and three women, and any Bacchanalia gathering must seek prior permission from the Senate. Men were forbidden Bacchus' priesthood.


title: Bacchanalia

text: Despite their official suppression, illicit Bacchanals persisted covertly for many years, particularly in Southern Italy, their likely place of origin. The reformed, officially approved Bacchic cults would have borne little resemblance to the earlier crowded, ecstatic and uninhibited Bacchanalia. Similar attrition may have been imposed on Liber's cults; his perceived or actual association with the Bacchanalia may be the reason that his Liberalia "ludi" of 17 March were temporarily moved to Ceres' Cerealia of 12–19 April. They were restored when the ferocity of reaction eased, but in approved, much modified form.


title: Bacchanalia

text: Livy's account of the Bacchanalia has been described as "tendentious to say the least". As a political and social conservative, he had a deep mistrust of mystery religions, and probably understood any form of Bacchanalia as a sign of Roman degeneracy. Though most of his "dramatis personae" are known historical figures, their speeches are implausibly circumstantial, and his characters, tropes and plot developments draw more from Roman satyr plays than from the Bacchanalia themselves. Paculla Annia is unlikely to have introduced all the changes he attributes to her.


title: Bacchanalia

text: For Livy, the cult's greatest offences arose from indiscriminate mixing of freeborn Romans of both sexes and all ages at night, a time when passions are easily aroused, especially given wine and unrestricted opportunity. Women at these gatherings, he says, outnumbered men; and his account has the consul Postumius stress the overwhelmingly female nature and organisation of the cult. Yet the "Senatus consultum de Bacchanalibus" itself allows women to outnumber men, by three to two, at any permitted gathering; and it expressly forbids Bacchic priesthoods to men. Livy's own narrative names all but one of the offending cult leaders as male, which seems to eliminate any perceived "conspiracy of women". Gender seems to have motivated the Senate's response no more than any other cause.


title: Bacchanalia

text: Livy's consistent negative description of the cult's Greek origins and low moral character—not even Bacchus is exempt from this judgment—may have sought to justify its suppression as a sudden "infiltration of too many Greek elements into Roman worship". The cult had, however, been active in Rome for many years before its supposedly abrupt discovery, and Bacchic and Dionysiac cults had been part of life in Roman and allied, Greek-speaking Italy for many decades. Greek cults and Greek influences had been part of Rome's religious life since the 5th century BC, and Rome's acquisition of foreign cults—Greek or otherwise—through the alliance, treaty, capture or conquest was a cornerstone of its foreign policy, and an essential feature of its eventual hegemony. While the pace of such introductions had gathered rapidly during the 3rd century, contemporary evidence of the Bacchanalia reform betrays no anti-Greek or anti-foreign policy or sentiment.


title: Bacchanalia

text: Gruen interprets the "Senatus consultum" as a piece of "Realpolitik", a display of the Roman senate's authority to its Italian allies after the Second Punic War, and a reminder to any Roman politician, populist and would-be generalissimo that the Senate's collective authority trumped all personal ambition. Nevertheless, the extent and ferocity of the official response to the Bacchanalia was probably unprecedented, and betrays some form of moral panic on the part of Roman authorities; Burkert finds "nothing comparable in religious history before the persecutions of Christians".


title: Bacchanalia

text: In modern usage, "bacchanalia" can mean any uninhibited or drunken revelry. The bacchanal in art describes any small group of revellers, often including satyrs and perhaps Bacchus or Silenus, usually in a landscape setting. The subject was popular from the Renaissance onwards, and usually included a large degree of nudity among the figures.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The sixth series of "Line of Duty", consisting of seven episodes, began broadcasting on BBC One on 21 March 2021. The story follows the actions of AC-12, led by Superintendent Ted Hastings (Adrian Dunbar) and DI Steve Arnott (Martin Compston), as they investigate DCI Joanne Davidson (Kelly Macdonald) and her team, including former AC-12 officer DI Kate Fleming (Vicky McClure).


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: On 5 May 2017, "Line of Duty" was renewed by the BBC for a fifth and sixth series. The fifth series began broadcasting on 31 March 2019, and finished on 5 May. In November 2019, it was announced that Kelly Macdonald would join the cast of the sixth series. Filming took place in Belfast, beginning in February 2020, but stopped the following month due to the COVID-19 pandemic, before resuming in September and finishing in November. The sixth series is over seven episodes rather than the usual six.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: On 5 March 2021, Vicky McClure and Adrian Dunbar appeared on "The Graham Norton Show" to promote the sixth series, and the full-length trailer was released on 9 March. The series's initial broadcast date was brought forward because of its popularity, with some episodes still being in post-production only days before the premiere of the first episode.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: Following Kew Media's collapse in early 2020, it was announced that ITV Studios would be handling global sales and distribution for "Line of Duty"'s sixth series. BritBox exclusively premiered the sixth series in both the United States and Canada on 18 May 2021.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The BBC One premiere of the first episode of the sixth series was watched by 9.6 million viewers, a record audience for "Line of Duty", surpassing its fifth series finale, which was watched by 9.1 million. It so became the best-performing drama on television in the United Kingdom since "Bodyguard" in 2018, also created by Jed Mercurio.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The second episode of the sixth series saw a drop in live BBC One viewers, falling 0.7 million to 8.9 million.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: Episode three of the sixth series saw a further drop in BBC One viewers, with 8.6 million watching live. Including seven-day catch-up viewing, the series's second episode was viewed 12.5 million times, an increase on the second episode.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: Episode five of series six drew in 9.9 million live viewers on BBC One, the most for any episode of the sixth series yet. It was also the second most-watched programme throughout the weekend of its broadcast, only behind the funeral of Prince Philip, the Duke of Edinburgh.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The sixth episode of the sixth series was the most-watched television drama episode since the "Doctor Who" Christmas day special, "The Next Doctor", in 2008, pulling in 10.9 million live viewers on BBC One on the evening of 25 April 2021. The episode topped figures posted by "Bodyguard" and series two of "Downton Abbey", both of which secured 10.6 million viewers for their final episodes.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The final episode of the sixth series was seen live on BBC One by 12.8 million viewers, making it the most watched episode of any drama, excluding soaps, since modern records began in 2002. The finale commanded 56.2% of the British television audience on the night of its broadcast, and reached a peak of 13.1 million viewers between 21:45 and 21:50 BST, near the end of the programme.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The "review aggregator" "Rotten Tomatoes" gave the series a 84% approval rating, with an average of 7.20/10, based on 25 reviews. The critical consensus reads, "Unnecessarily dense storytelling and an oversaturation of acronyms gives the sense that this sturdy procedural may be overextending itself, but Kelly Macdonald reports in for duty to provide some fresh blood and intrigue.”. On Metacritic, the series has a weighted average score of 85 out of 100 based on 5 reviews, indicating "universal acclaim”.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: "The Guardian"'s Lucy Mangan gave the first episode a rating of four out of five, writing that the show "seems just as good, if not better, than ever", while Anita Singh of "The Daily Telegraph" gave it the same rating, stating that the episode "played to all of "Line of Duty"'s strengths – taut, edge-of-the-seat stuff." Ed Cumming of "The Independent" gave it five out of five, noting that the "first episode of series six returns to what "Line of Duty" does best". Carol Midgley of "The Times", however, criticised the series debut, describing it as "wilfully turgid".


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: "The Daily Telegraph"'s Singh dropped her rating for the second episode to two out of five, describing it as "exhausting" and "frustrating", while Midgley of "The Times" saw it as a "slight" improvement on the first episode, though still a "little dull".


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: Both Singh of "The Daily Telegraph" and Midgley of "The Times" awarded the third episode three out of five, with the former stating that it saw the series "heating up nicely", and the latter writing that "there was more intrigue in episode three than in the previous two combined".


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The fourth episode was well received. Singh of "The Daily Telegraph" gave a perfect rating and described it as an "absolute belter" delivered after "three lacklustre weeks". Similarly, Louisa Mellor of Den of Geek praised the episode, and described the ambush scene as "tremendous television". In the "Radio Times", David Butcher stated that the episode is ""Line of Duty" at its best", and Midgley of "The Times" awarded a rating of four out of five.


title: Line of Duty (series 6)

text: The final episode received mixed reviews. Rachel Cooke with the "New Statesman" said that the series "ended with a whimper, not a bang". Lucy Mangan of "The Guardian" gave episode seven a three out of five rating. Harry Fletcher of "Metro" gave the same rating. "The Times"' Ben Dowell gave the episode a four out of five rating, as did Singh of "The Daily Telegraph", describing it as "genuine edge-of-the-seat stuff".


title: Codemasters

text: The Codemasters Software Company Limited (trade name: Codemasters) is a British video game developer based in Southam, England, which is a subsidiary of American corporation Electronic Arts. Founded by brothers Richard and David Darling in October 1986, Codemasters is one of the oldest British game studios, and in 2005 was named the best independent video game developer by magazine "Develop".


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters Group Holdings plc was the holding company of Codemasters, which was publicly traded and owned Codemasters until being purchased by EA in 2021 for $1.2 billion.


title: Codemasters

text: While attending school in Vancouver, Richard Darling and his elder brother, David Darling, had learned programming with punch cards and had access to the school's computer room outside of hours through one of the school's janitors. Additionally, on weekends, they were allowed to use the Commodore PET computer owned by their father, James, to create a text version of "Dungeons & Dragons". Later on, the two brothers and school friend Michael Heibert, whose family possessed a VIC-20 computer, founded Darbert Computers and created video game clones of popular games, such as "Galaxian" and "Defender".


title: Codemasters

text: The Darling brothers later returned to England, where they acquired their own VIC-20 and founded Galactic Software, again with the help of Heibert. An advertisement placed in the magazine "Popular Computing Weekly" caught the attention of Mastertronic, a British software publisher, and the two brothers quit their education to pursue development of budget-priced games for the company. These games included "Space Walk", "BMX Racers", "Jungle Story", "Orbitron", "Sub Hunt" and "Pigs in Space". They also developed The Games Creator, a game-making tool that would later be sold commercially. The Darling brothers found success in making these games, gaining by the time they were 16 and 17 respectively. In 1985, the two owned a 50% stake in Mastertronic, which they proceeded to sell in March 1986 when they decided to become independent. By October 1986, the Darling brothers, with help from their father, had founded Codemasters. They initially worked out of the Beaumont Business Centre in Banbury, where their elder sister Abigail managed the front desk.


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters' first game was "BMX Simulator", a successor to "BMX Racers". According to David Darling, the company aimed at making budget-priced games with the quality of full-priced games, as they would gain a larger customer base that would subsequently create better exposure. To produce more games in less time, Codemasters started hiring developers on a freelance basis. Products developed using this strategy include "G-Man" and "Danger Zone" by Mike Clark, "Terra Cognita" by Stephen Curtis, "Super Robin Hood" and "Ghost Hunters" by the Oliver Twins, "Super Stuntman" by Peter Williamson, "Lazer Force" by Gavin Raeburn, and "ATV Simulator" by Timothy R. Miller. By April 1987, Codemasters started seeking programmers that would create platform conversions of Codemasters' games in exchange for four-digit sums, via placements in "Popular Computing Weekly".


title: Codemasters

text: As the 8-bit computer market diminished, Codemasters turned to develop for the 8-bit and 16-bit console markets, as well as moving away from their budget title legacy to more full-price games on the 16-bit computers — 1992 saw the last title in the "Dizzy" series, "Crystal Kingdom Dizzy", released at full-price rather than budget price. They had major success with the "Micro Machines" series and "Pete Sampras Tennis" on the Sega Mega Drive. Both franchises featured the J-Cart, allowing two extra controllers to be attached to the game cart without requiring Electronic Arts' "4 way play" or SEGA's four-player adaptor.


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters is notable for making the large majority of games published by Camerica, which bypassed Nintendo's lock-out chip by glitching it and produced unlicensed NES games. These NES games were known for being shiny gold and silver cartridges. Many Codemasters titles were also featured on Camerica's Aladdin Deck Enhancer.


title: Codemasters

text: In 1990, Codemasters developed a device called the "Game Genie", which came out of the lockout bypass work to play unlicensed games. It was a cheat cartridge for the NES, released in the US by Galoob and in Canada and the UK by Camerica. In the case Galoob v. Nintendo, Game Genie was determined not to violate Nintendo's copyright under fair use.


title: Codemasters

text: In an effort to establish themselves in the United States, they announced that they would launch a new development studio in Oakhurst, using offices that were abandoned by Sierra On-Line and hiring much of Yosemite Entertainment's laid off staff in mid-September 1999.


title: Codemasters

text: Between 1998 and 2003, Codemasters teamed up with Jester Interactive Limited to publish their range of music creation software, for PlayStation, PlayStation 2 and PC, "MUSICtm", "Music 2000", "MTV Music Generator" and "MTV Music Generator 2". In 2003 this partnership was dissolved, with Jester releasing their own "Music 3000" product. Codemasters released their final music based product, "" in 2004.


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters have since continued to release titles for later generation systems, such as the "Brian Lara Cricket" series, "Colin McRae Rally and Dirt" series, "Dizzy" series, "F1" series, "Grid" series, "LMA Manager" series, "Micro Machines" series, "Operation Flashpoint" series, "Overlord" series, "Project CARS" series and "TOCA" series. They owned the rights to use the title "", but have parted with the original developer Bohemia Interactive Studio. In spite of this, Codemasters released "", developed by Bohemia, for Xbox in October 2005. The year 2005 also saw the appointment of Rod Cousens, formerly of Acclaim, as Managing Director.


title: Codemasters

text: In December 2006, Warner Bros. Interactive Entertainment entered into a game distribution agreement with Codemasters to distribute the company's titles in North America. Also in April, Codemasters launched the massively multiplayer online role-playing game, "" in Europe on behalf of Turbine. In June, Codemasters were purchased by equity group Balderton Capital and they changed their logo to an interlocked metallic C and M. Later that month they released the latest in the "Colin McRae Rally" series, "". They also published "Overlord" and "Clive Barker's Jericho". Following the death of Colin McRae on 15 September 2007, Codemasters released a public statement expressing their sorrow and support for the family.


title: Codemasters

text: In March 2008, Codemasters announced a new partnership with Majesco Entertainment which would focus on titles for DS and Wii, including "Nanostray 2", "Toy Shop", "Cake Mania 2" and "Nancy Drew: The Mystery of the Clue Bender Society" for DS, and "Wild Earth: African Safari", "Our House" and "Cake Mania" for Wii. In May, it was announced that Codemasters had won the rights to the Formula One licence after Sony's deal ran out. The first resulting game, "F1 2009", was released on the Wii and PlayStation Portable in November 2009, and another similar game, "F1 2010", on the PC, PlayStation 3, and Xbox 360 in 2010.


title: Codemasters

text: On 8 April 2008, Sega announced the closure of Sega Racing Studio, although no reason was specified it has been assumed it was due to lackluster sales of "Sega Rally Revo". At a later time Sega announced none of the employees were folded into internal studios. On 25 April 2008, Codemasters bought Sega Racing Studio. The studio was headed by Guy Wilday, who was involved in the "Colin McRae Rally" games and was formerly the series producer.


title: Codemasters

text: In the 2008 Queen's Birthday Honours, the Darlings were appointed Commanders of the Order of the British Empire (CBE) for services to the video game industry.


title: Codemasters

text: On 5 April 2010, Reliance Big Entertainment, an Indian company acquired a 50% stake in the company. Later in 2010, Codemasters launched the free-to-play version of "Lord of the Rings Online". While originally scheduled for 10 September, it was delayed due to contractual reasons and launched on 2 November. In May 2011, Codemasters transferred control of the European "Lord of the Rings Online" to Turbine.


title: Codemasters

text: In May 2011, Codemasters signed a North American distribution deal with THQ. In March 2012, Codemasters renewed its American distribution deal with Warner Bros.


title: Codemasters

text: On 3 June 2011, the Codemasters.com website was breached. It is believed that the attacker was able to gain access to the personal information of registered users with Codemasters accounts. Codemasters notified its users about the attack via email on 10 June 2011, after which their websites were pulled down and users redirected to their Facebook page.


title: Codemasters

text: In mid-2012, it was announced that Codemasters' racing games, whether about to be produced or developed, would begin to be branded under the "Codemasters Racing" label. "" and "F1 2012" were the first racing titles to receive the new label name. The label was discontinued in 2016, as Codemasters' subsequent racing games, "Dirt Rally" and "F1 2016" are branded with the regular Codemasters logo.


title: Codemasters

text: On 9 June 2013, Reliance Entertainment increased its stake in Codemasters from 50% to 60.41%, making it the majority owner.


title: Codemasters

text: In April 2015 Codemasters CEO Rod Cousens left to join Jagex, leaving COO Frank Sagnier as the new temporary CEO. In April 2016, Codemasters announced that they had hired most of the staff of racing game developer Evolution Studios after Sony closed the company.


title: Codemasters

text: The first Codemasters title for eighth generation consoles was "F1 2015", launched in July 2015. In October 2015 they released "", their first non-racing game since 2011.


title: Codemasters

text: After the disappointing sales of "Onrush", several members of the Codemasters EVO development division were made redundant and the division was shifted to a support role for other titles.


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters held an initial public offering to list the company on the London Stock Exchange's Alternative Investment Market on 1 June 2018. The company's shares were valued at 260 pence during trading bringing in a total of . As a result of the IPO, Reliance Entertainment held a 29.5% stake in Codemasters.


title: Codemasters

text: Through placings in June and November 2019, Codemasters welcomed new institutional shareholders to the register whilst providing Reliance with a highly satisfactory exit and thus ending their nine-year relationship with them.


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters acquired Slightly Mad Studios, the developers of the "Project CARS" titles, in November 2019 for about . The acquisition brought the total staff at Codemasters to about 700 people.


title: Codemasters

text: The studio acquired the exclusive license to the "World Rally Championship" series in June 2020 which will begin as a five-year deal in 2023, with plans to release their first game in 2024.


title: Codemasters

text: Codemasters announced in November 2020 that it had been approached to be acquired by Take-Two Interactive as a buyoff offer valued at . Codemasters said its board was ready to approve the deal, pending the required regulatory approvals and Take-Two's own commitment once those approvals were granted. In the same month, both Take-Two and Codemasters agreed to a Take-Two buyout of Codemasters in a stock and cash deal around , which was expected to be completed by early 2021. Following the acquisition, Codemasters would have operated within the 2K label under its existing leadership. In a statement, Take-Two boss Strauss Zelnick said that Codemasters' racing games would fit well with its own roster of sports games. However, Take-Two's bid was subsequently trumped by Electronic Arts in December 2020, which offered to buy all outstanding shares at for an offer valued at about , about 14% higher than Take-Two's offer. Codemasters' board of directors agreed to the EA deal, which closed by the first quarter of 2021. Take-Two formally withdrew its offer in January 2021, ceding to EA's bid, while Codemasters' board signed off on EA's bid later that month. The acquisition was completed on 18 February 2021, with all shares transferred to Codex Games Limited, a subsidiary of EA. EA's Andrew Wilson said they plan to keep Codemasters as a standalone entity within EA similar to Respawn Entertainment. Codemasters announced in July 2021 that CEO Frank Sagnier and CFO Rashid Varachia will depart the company at the end of the month, as part of the EA acquisition plan. Special vice president of product development Clive Moody and of publishing Jonathan Bunney will take over leadership of Codemasters following this.


title: Codemasters

text: In May 2022, EA merged Codemasters subsidiary Codemasters Cheshire into Criterion Games, an existing subsidiary of EA, as to support effort on the "Need for Speed" series as the two companies were already working together on a new title in the series together for months, then later that year in October, announcing a new title called "Need for Speed Unbound".


title: Korean reunification

text: Korean reunification () is the potential reunification of the Democratic People's Republic of Korea and the Republic of Korea into a single Korean sovereign state. The process towards reunification was started by the June 15th North–South Joint Declaration in June 2000, and was reaffirmed by the Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Unification of the Korean Peninsula in April 2018, and the joint statement of U.S. President Donald Trump and the Democratic People's Republic of Korean Supreme Leader Kim Jong-un at the Singapore Summit in June 2018. In the Panmunjom Declaration, the two countries agreed to work towards a peaceful reunification of Korea in the future.


title: Korean reunification

text: Prior to World War I and Japan's annexation of Korea (1910–1945), all of Korea had been unified as a single state for centuries, known previously as the Goryeo and Joseon dynasties, and the penultimate state, the Korean Empire. After the end of World War II in 1945 and during the beginning of the Cold War, Korea had a unified government, the People's Republic of Korea. However, this would be brief and serve as the last government, as Korea was divided into two countries along the 38th parallel (now the Korean Demilitarized Zone) in 1948. The Democratic People's Republic of Korea was administered by the Workers' Party of Korea in a coalition government in the years immediately following the war, with South Korea being occupied by the United States. In 1950, the Democratic People's Republic of Korea invaded the South after the South engaged in mass arrests of suspected Democratic People's Republic of Korea sympathizers, beginning the Korean War, which ended in stalemate in 1953. Even after the end of the Korean War, reunification proved a challenge as the two countries increasingly diverged at a steady pace. However, in the late 2010s, relations between North and South Korea warmed somewhat, beginning with the Democratic People's Republic of Korea's participation at the 2018 Winter Olympics in Pyeongchang County, Gangwon Province, South Korea. In 2019, South Korean president Moon Jae-in proposed reunification of the Korean peninsula by 2045.


title: Korean reunification

text: The current division of the Korean Peninsula is the result of decisions taken at the end of World War II. In 1910, the Empire of Japan annexed Korea and ruled over it until its defeat in World War II. The Korean independence agreement officially occurred on 1 December 1943, when the United States, China, and the United Kingdom signed the Cairo Declaration, which stated: "The aforesaid three powers, mindful of the enslavement of the people of Korea, are determined that in due course Korea shall become free and independent". In 1945, the United Nations developed plans for trusteeship administration of Korea.


title: Korean reunification

text: The division of the peninsula into two military occupation zones was agreed: a northern zone, administered by the Soviet Union, and a southern zone, administered by the United States. At midnight on 10 August 1945, two army lieutenant colonels selected the 38th parallel as a dividing line. Japanese troops north of the line were to surrender to the Soviet Union, and the troops south of the line would surrender to the United States.


title: Korean reunification

text: The partition was not originally intended to last long, but Cold War politics resulted in the establishment of two separate governments in the two zones in 1948, and rising tensions prevented co-operation. The desire of many Koreans for a peaceful unification was dashed when the Korean War broke out in 1950. On 25 June 1950, troops from North Korea invaded South Korea. Mao Zedong encouraged the confrontation with the United States and Joseph Stalin reluctantly supported the invasion. After three years of fighting, which involved both Koreas, China and United Nations forces, the last of which were led by the US, the war ended with an at approximately the same boundary.


title: Korean reunification

text: Despite being politically-separate entities after the Korean War, the governments of North and South Korea both proclaimed the eventual restoration of Korea as a single state as a goal.


title: Korean reunification

text: After the "Nixon Shock" in 1971 that led to détente between the United States and China, the North and South Korean governments made in 1972 the 7 · 4 South and North Korea Joint Statement, also known as the July 4 North-South Joint Statement or the Joint Announcement on July 4, 1972. It had a representative of each government secretly visit the other's capital city, and both sides agreed to a North-South Joint Communiqué, outlining the steps to be taken towards achieving a peaceful reunification of the country:


title: Korean reunification

text: The agreement outlined the steps to be taken towards achieving a peaceful reunification of the country. However, the North-South Coordination Committee was disbanded the following year after no progress had been made towards implementing the agreement. In January 1989, the founder of Hyundai, Jung Ju-young, toured North Korea and promoted tourism in Mount Kumgang. After a twelve-year hiatus, the prime ministers of the two Koreas met in Seoul in September 1990 to engage in the Inter-Korean summits or High-Level Talks. In December, the two countries reached an agreement on issues of reconciliation, nonaggression, cooperation, and exchange between North and South in "The Agreement on Reconciliation, Nonaggression, Cooperation, and Exchange Between North and South", but these talks collapsed over inspection of nuclear facilities. In 1994, after former U.S. President Jimmy Carter's visit to Pyongyang, the leaders of the two Koreas agreed to meet with each other, but the meeting was prevented by the death of Kim Il-sung that July.


title: Korean reunification

text: In June 2000, North and South Korea signed the "June 15th North-South Joint Declaration," in which both sides made promises to seek out a peaceful reunification:


title: Korean reunification

text: During the 2007 high-level inter-Korean talks held in Pyongyang between Kim Jong-Il and Roh Moo Hyun, both sides agreed to the "October 4th Declaration", improving on inter-Korean relations on the basis of the June 15 Joint Declaration. The eight points of the declaration signed on the 4th of October 2007 are as follows:


title: Korean reunification

text: In April 2018, at the north-south summit talks at the "House of Peace" in Panmunjom, Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in signed the "Panmunjom Declaration for Peace, Prosperity and Reunification of the Korean Peninsula", declaring that there would be no longer war and a new era of peace has opened on the Korean peninsula. They declared as follows reflecting the firm will to put an end to division and confrontation, to open up a new era of national reconciliation, peace and prosperity and more actively improve and develop the north-south ties. A brief outline of the three main points of the agreement are as follows:


title: Korean reunification

text: In September 2018 during the Pyongyang summit of the two leaders, under the implementation of the Panmunjom declaration, the "September Pyongyang Joint Declaration" was signed. The six main points of the declaration are as follows:


title: Korean reunification

text: A unified Korean team marched in the opening ceremonies of the 2000, 2004, and 2006 Olympics, but the North and South Korean national teams competed separately. There were plans for a truly unified team at the 2008 Summer Olympics, but the two countries were unable to agree on the details of its implementation. In the 1991 World Table Tennis Championships in Chiba, Japan, the two countries formed a unified team. A Unified Korea women's ice hockey team competed under a separate IOC country code designation (COR) in the 2018 Winter Olympics; in all other sports, there were a separate North Korea team and a separate South Korea team.


title: Korean reunification

text: The nature of unification, i.e. through North Korean collapse, South Korean collapse, or the formation of two systems under a united federation, is still a topic of intense political debate and even conflict among interested parties, which include both Koreas, China, Japan, Russia, and the United States.


title: Korean reunification

text: Relations between the two Koreas have been strained in recent years, with conflict between the two coming to a head such as in the enforcement of the colonial era National Security Law in South Korea which lead to the arrest of South Korean pro-reunification activist Ro Su-hui, suspected torpedoing of the ROKS "Cheonan" and the bombardment of Yeonpyeong Island, both in 2010, the rocket launches in April and December of 2012 and North Korea's third nuclear test in 2013. Kim Jong-un's sudden accession and limited experience governing have also stoked fears about power struggles among different factions leading to future instability on the Korean Peninsula.


title: Korean reunification

text: Reunification remains a long-term goal for the governments of both North and South Korea. North Korean leader Kim Jong-un made calls in his 2012 New Year's Day speech to "remove confrontation" between the two countries and implement previous joint agreements for increased economic and political cooperation. The South Korean Ministry of Unification redoubled their efforts in 2011 and 2012 to raise awareness of the issue, launching a variety show ("Miracle Audition") and an Internet sitcom with pro-unification themes. The Ministry already promotes curriculum in elementary schooling, such as a government-issued textbook about North Korea titled "We Are One" and reunification-themed arts and crafts projects.


title: Korean reunification

text: In Kim's 2018 New Year's address, a Korean-led reunification was repeatedly mentioned and an unexpected proposal was made for the North's participation in the 2018 Winter Olympics that were held in Pyeongchang County of South Korea, a significant shift after several years of increasing hostilities. Subsequent meetings between North and South led to the announcement that the two Koreas would march together with a unified flag in the Olympics' Opening Ceremony and form a unified ice hockey team, with a total of 22 North Korean athletes participating in various other competitions including figure skating, short track speed skating, cross-country skiing and alpine skiing.


title: Korean reunification

text: In April 2018, at a summit in Panmunjom, Kim Jong-un and Moon Jae-in signed a deal committing to finally seal peace between both Koreas by the end of the year. Both leaders also symbolically crossed each other's borders, marking it the first time a South Korean president crossed the North border and vice versa. Kim stated that the North will start a process of denuclearization, which was supported by then U.S. President Donald Trump. The peace talks led to nothing, as North Korea continued forward with their nuclear program, despite former U.S. President Donald Trump boasting it as a considerable win.


title: Korean reunification

text: Support for reunification in South Korea has been falling, especially among the younger generations. In the 1990s, the percent of people in government polls who regarded reunification as essential was over 80%. By 2011 that number had dropped to 56%.


title: Korean reunification

text: According to a December 2017 survey released by the Korea Institute for National Unification, 72.1% of South Koreans in their 20s believe reunification is unnecessary, with younger South Koreans saying they are more worried about issues related to their economy, employment, and living costs.


title: Korean reunification

text: Polls show a majority of South Koreans, even those in age groups traditionally seen as being more eager to reunify the peninsula, are not willing to see their living conditions decline in order to accommodate a reunification with the North. Moreover, about 50% of men in their 20s see North Korea as an outright enemy that they want nothing to do with.


title: Korean reunification

text: Some scholars, like Paul Roderick Gregory, have suggested that a complete abandonment of Korean reunification may be necessary, in exchange for the North to dismantle its nuclear weapons program and permanently ending the Korean War with a peace treaty.


title: Korean reunification

text: Introduced by the Millennium Democratic Party of South Korea under President Kim Dae-jung, as part of a campaign pledge to "actively pursue reconciliation and cooperation" with North Korea, the Sunshine Policy was intended to create conditions of economic assistance and cooperation for reunification, rather than sanctions and military threats. The plan was divided into three parts: increased cooperation through inter-Korean organizations (while maintaining separate systems in the North and South), national unification with two autonomous regional governments, and finally the creation of a central national government. In 1998, Kim approved large shipments of food aid to the North Korean government, lifted limits on business deals between North Korean and South Korean firms, and even called for a stop to the American economic embargo against the North. In June 2000, the leaders of North and South Korea met in Pyongyang and shook hands for the first time since the division of Korea.


title: Korean reunification

text: Despite the continuation of the Sunshine Policy under the Roh administration, it was eventually declared a failure by the South Korean Ministry of Unification in November 2010 over issues of North Korea's nuclear weapons program, stymied further negotiations, and again strained relations between the two Koreas.


title: Korean reunification

text: Opponents of the Sunshine Policy argue that dialogue and trade with North Korea did nothing to improve prospects for peaceful reunification, despite the transfer of large funds to the North Korean government by President Kim Dae-jung, but allowed the North Korean government to retain its hold on power. Others believe that South Korea should remain prepared for the event of a North Korean attack. Hardliners also argue that the continued and maximized isolation of the North will lead to the country's collapse after which the territory could be absorbed by force into the Republic of Korea.


title: Korean reunification

text: In November 2000, outgoing US President Bill Clinton wanted to visit Pyongyang. However, the intended visit never happened because the controversy surrounding the results of the 2000 US presidential election. Around April or May 2001, Kim Dae-jung was expecting to welcome Kim Jong-il to Seoul. Returning from his meeting in Washington D.C. with newly elected President Bush, Kim Dae-jung described his meeting as embarrassing while privately cursing President Bush and his hardliner approach. This meeting negated any chance of a North Korean visit to South Korea. With the Bush administration labeling North Korea as being part of the "axis of evil", North Korea renounced the nonproliferation treaty, kicked out UN inspectors, and restarted its nuclear program. In early 2005, the North Korean government confirmed that the country had successfully become a nuclear armed state.


title: Korean reunification

text: In North Korea, the Three Charters for National Reunification serve as the sole guidelines for reunification. It contains the Three Principles for National Reunification, Ten Point Programme for Reunification of the Country and the plan of founding the . They were formulated by North Korean leader Kim Jong-il into the Three Charters for National Reunification in his public work ""Let Us Carry Out the Great Comrade’s Instructions for National Reunification"”, in 1997.


title: Korean reunification

text: North Korean President Kim Il-sung proposed the Three Principles of National Reunification in 1972 as the central force that should drive reunification. They are as follows:


title: Korean reunification

text: The Ten Point Programme for Reunification of the Country was written by Kim Il-sung in 1993 and contains the idea of reunification with South Korea under a pan-national unified state. It emphasises once again the need for an independent reunification, and more specifically, the removal of US forces from the peninsula. It is laid out as follows:


title: Korean reunification

text: In accordance with the three principles and the ten point programme, Kim Il-sung elaborated on the proposed state, called Democratic Confederal Republic of Koryo (DFRK), on October 10, 1980, in the "Report to the Sixth Congress of the Workers' Party of Korea on the Work of the Central Committee". Kim proposed a confederation between North and South Korea, in which their respective political systems would initially remain. It is described by North Korea as a "...peaceful reunification proposal to found a federal state on the condition that the north and the south recognize and tolerate each other’s existing ideologies." It was stated that the DFRK should be a neutral country which does not participate in any political, military alliance or bloc, embracing the whole of the territory and people of the country.


title: Korean reunification

text: On January 1, 2011, a group of twelve lawmakers from the ruling and opposition parties introduced a bill into the South Korean National Assembly to allow for the establishment of a "unification tax". The bill called for businesses to pay 0.05% of corporate tax, individuals to pay 5% of inheritance or gift taxes, and both individuals and companies to pay 2% of their income tax towards the cost of unification. The bill initiated legislative debate on practical measures to prepare for unification, as proposed by President Lee Myung-bak in his Liberation Day speech the previous year. The proposal for a unification tax was not warmly welcomed at the time. Lee has since reiterated concerns regarding the imminence of unification, which, combined with North Korean behavior, led to the tax proposal gaining wider acceptance. Practical measures to prepare for unification are becoming an increasingly frequent aspect of political debate, as concern regarding imminent and abrupt unification increases.


title: Korean reunification

text: It has been suggested that the formation of a Korean Economic Community could be a way to ease in unification of the peninsula. Lee Myung-bak, departing from the Saenuri Party's traditional hardline stance, outlined a comprehensive diplomatic package on North Korea that includes setting up a consultative body to discuss economic projects between the two Koreas. He proposed seeking a Korean economic community agreement to provide the legal and systemic basis for any projects agreed to in the body.


title: Korean reunification

text: Former Inha University professor Shepherd Iverson has proposed creating a $175 billion reunification investment fund aiming to bribe the elite officials on top of DPRK's hierarchy to ensure a diplomatic way to resolve the Korean conflict by conducting an internal regime change. In the proposal a sum of up to $23.3 billion would be paid in total to the families of those elite officials who wield power in Pyongyang, while he noted that the top ten families would receive $30 million each, and the top thousand families would get $5 million. Another sum of $121.8 billion would go to the country’s general population to start their life again post-reunification, and it's envisioned that the proceeds for the fund is to be raised from private groups and business moguls.


title: Korean reunification

text: The hypothetical reunification of Korea is often compared to other countries which had divided governments and reunified, including Germany and Vietnam. Like the Koreas, each of these divided countries had a USSR/Warsaw Pact or China aligned communist government and a US/NATO-aligned capitalist government. Germany had the communist German Democratic Republic in East Germany and the capitalist Federal Republic of Germany in West Germany, and Vietnam had the communist Democratic Republic of Vietnam in North Vietnam and the capitalist Republic of Vietnam in South Vietnam from 1954 to 1976.


title: Korean reunification

text: While the situation of South and North Korea might seem comparable to East and West Germany, another country divided by Cold War politics, there are some notable differences. Germany did not have a civil war that resulted in millions of casualties, meaning "it is very hard to believe that People's Army commanders who fought the South in such a bloody fratricidal war would allow the ROK to overwhelm the DPRK, by whatever means". Both sides of Germany maintained a working relationship after World War II, but the two Koreas' relationship has been more acrimonious.


title: Korean reunification

text: The East Germans also had 360,000 Soviet troops on their soil in 1989; however, North Korea has not had any foreign troops on its soil since 1958. "East Germany collapsed because [Soviet general secretary Mikhail] Gorbachev chose to do what none of his predecessors would ever have done, namely, to keep Soviet troops in their barracks rather than mobilize them to save the Honecker regime." The East Germans looked favorably at the fact that West Germans had good retirement benefits, public order and strong civil society, whereas North Korean citizens are not aware of any immediate benefits from uniting with South Korea, because all such knowledge is kept from them by the state.


title: Korean reunification

text: Under Roh Tae-woo, a former South Korean army general and politician, the Seoul government created a "Nordpolitik" policy, based on the West German "Ostpolitik" model, hoping to make trading agreements with Pyongyang.


title: Korean reunification

text: The cultures of the two halves have separated following partition, even though traditional Korean culture and history are shared. In addition, many families were split by the division of Korea. In the practically comparable situation of the German reunification, the 41-year-long separation has left significant impacts on German culture and society, even after three decades. Given the extreme differences of North and South Korean culture and lifestyle, the effects might last even longer. Many experts have suggested that the differences between "Westerners" and "Easterners" () will gradually dissipate among younger generations, born after reunification and with increasing migration between eastern and western Germany. Therefore, it is highly likely that Korean youth will play a major role in the cultural integration after a hypothetical Korean reunification.


title: Korean reunification

text: On the other hand, the North Korean population is far more culturally distinct and isolated than the East German population was in the late 1980s. Unlike in East Germany, North Koreans generally cannot receive foreign broadcasting or read foreign publications. Germany was divided for 44 years and did not have border clashes between the two sides. By comparison, the Koreas have been divided for over 70 years, and hostilities have flared frequently over the years, becoming more frequent since the ascension of Kim Jong-un as the supreme leader of North Korea. The Korean ethnic nationalist belief that unification is a "sacred, universally-desired" goal to recover an ethnic homogeneity ("dongjilseong") obscures North-South differences developed since 1945, and risks intolerance for the cultural accommodation necessary for a unified Korean polity.


title: Korean reunification

text: Korean reunification would differ from the German reunification precedent. In relative terms, North Korea's economy is currently in a far worse situation than that of East Germany in 1990. The income per capita ratio (PPP) was about 3:1 in Germany (US$25,000 for the West versus about US$8,500 for the East). The ratio is around 22:1 in Korea (in 2015: US$37,600 for the South, US$1,700 for the North). While at the moment of German reunification the East German population (around 17 million) was about a third of West Germany's (more than 60 million), the North Korean population (around 25 million) is currently around half of South Korea's (around 51 million). In the event of Korean reunification, a flood of North Koreans to a much more developed South Korea may cause the country's economy to undergo a heavy burden that will cost upwards of US$1 trillion, possibly creating a period of economic collapse or stagnation.


title: Korean reunification

text: In September 2009, Goldman Sachs published its 188th Global Economics Paper named "A United Korea?" which highlighted in detail the potential economic power of a unified Korea, which would surpass many G7 countries, including Canada, Germany, France, Italy, the United Kingdom and possibly Japan within 30–40 years of reunification, with a potential GDP of more than $6 trillion by 2050. The young, skilled labor and large amount of natural resources from the North combined with the advanced technology, infrastructure and large amount of capital in the South, as well as Korea's strategic location connecting three major economic powers, were cited as potential factors that could drive this growth. According to some opinions, a unified Korea could occur before 2050. If it occurred, Korean reunification would immediately raise the country's population to over 80 million. According to research by Jin-Wook Kim at Citi, reunification would require an investment of US$63.1 billion in the long term to rebuild transportation such as railroads, roads, airports, sea ports and other infrastructure like power plants, mines, oil refineries, and gas pipelines.


title: Korean reunification

text: The division between North and South Korea can be seen as more comparable to North and South Vietnam, which were also divided after independence following World War II from a colonial power (France), and after occupation by Japan. Unlike the Korean War, the Vietnam War spanned a much longer period and spilled over to the neighboring countries of Laos and Cambodia. The end of the war resulted in all three countries coming under control of the Communist-oriented independence movements 1976, with China and the Soviet Union competing for influence. Relations between North and South Vietnam were also acrimonious, with North Vietnam being largely isolated and unrecognized except by other communist states, similarly to North Korea.