Tenby Observer: Recovered from original sources, Black Barty is the fascinating true story of Bartholomew Roberts, one of the most successful and deadly pirates in all of history, and the model for Johnny Depp in Pirates of the Caribbean.

Black Barty was pirate captain of a succession of ships (including the Royal Rover, Fortune, Royal Fortune, and Good Fortune) which burned and plundered ships from the coasts of Brazil and the Caribbean and as far north as Newfoundland. Two years after Roberts was made captain, he had accumulated over £51 million worth of treasure and had taken close to 400 ships.

Born in Little Newcastle in Pembrokeshire in 1680, Black Barty was the greatest pirate of his age. A "tea drinking marauder of astonishing audacity", he was fearless in battle, but good to his prisoners and fair to his crew. He drank a lot of tea instead of alcohol, was well-mannered and clean shaven, and discouraged drinking and gambling amongst his crew. He is believed to be the first pirate to fly the Skull and Crossbones and was responsible for the expression Jolly Roger.

In Black Barty, Aubrey Burl vividly depicts the harsh reality of pirate life, with all the squalor, disease, temptation, fear, triumph and debauchery that it entailed.