Brendan O'Shannassy grew up in Fremantle, Australia, and gained his undergraduate degree and officer education with the Royal Australian Navy. After a period in commercial maritime he joined his first superyacht as a deck hand in 2001, and his first captaincy was in 2006. His yacht racing career has also seen him participate in multiple Sydney Hobarts, the Fastnet Race, and many more. Brendan continues to study and is currently beginning a PhD in marine data collection. He is also the author of Superyacht Captain, published by Adlard Coles in 2022.