Classic Ships

This final episode tracks the 20th century quest for speed on the water. When Jim Noone made an attempt on the British speed record for a propeller driven boat in October 1995, the existing record stood at 144 mph. However, when power-boat racing first became popular at the beginning of this century, the speeds were rather more modest.

By the start of the First World War, power boats were effective and dependable enough to be used by the Royal Navy. Many of the principles of pre-war racing boats were used in the construction of torpedo boats, which travelled at over 30 knots, packed with explosives, straight towards enemy ships.

Back in peacetime, the industry returned to the construction of boats for private use. As the design of the boats improved, so the speeds they could reach increased. Major Henry Segrave won the world championships in 1930 by pushing Miss England to a speed of nearly 90 mph.

If the 1930s saw the power-boat industry becoming increasingly involved with the military, the outbreak of another war led to all of the industry's remaining resources being transferred to the war effort. The end of hostilities saw the power boating industry change once again, with the emphasis returning to private ownership and leisure.

By 1954, the racing boat had returned, and had moved to the calmer waters inland where higher speeds were possible. Records were set and broken as technology propelled the boats to ever greater speeds.