What does the Greek expression “Θα γίνει της Πόπης” (“All hell will break loose”) really mean? For those unfamiliar, Popi is not a person—Popi was a steamship!
Originally built as a private yacht in 1880, it was registered as a steamboat in 1920. In November 1934, the Popi sank just 700 meters from shore in the bay of Vouliagmeni, taking 11 passengers to their deaths.
The ship had been loaded with 122 passengers and cargo, headed for the Cyclades and other islands. But after hitting the Kasidas islet, it capsized dramatically just a breath away from land—one of the most tragic shipwrecks in Greek maritime history.
Shockingly, lives were lost because officers allegedly ordered that perishable goods—like cheese—be saved first, leaving behind passengers who couldn’t swim and tragically drowned within sight of the coast.
In this episode, Nikolas Angelidis investigates the circumstances of the wreck, drawing from newspaper archives and reports from that era to piece together the chilling story behind a saying still heard today.