THE GRAND TOUR
Most of my life has been spent on, around or even in the River Thames! I was born next to Hampton Court Palace and spent my early years swimming in the river on summer weekends, working in a riverside pub at Sunbury and later living by the river at Weybridge.
I bought my first wooden boat, a 1961 Andrews Slipper launch named Natsumi, in 1996 and enjoyed it so much that four years later I upgraded to a Dunkirk Little Ship called Lady Isabelle – a 30ft mahogany launch built by Gibbs in 1930.
In 2003 I retired from my job in the construction industry and set about looking for a larger classic cabin cruiser that I could operate as a charter business on the Thames. I looked at a number of different craft that sounded promising but turned out to be either unsuitable or in poor condition. Then by chance I stumbled across an advert for a 52ft fast coastal cruiser called St Joan. She was in immaculate condition and I fell in love with her the moment I saw her. She was exactly what I needed to set up Heritage Boat Charters Ltd, providing 1930s-style luxury cruises for private and corporate hospitality.
She was built by John Brooke in Lowestoft for Nigel Guinness for the princely sum of £3,900 and delivered to him in May 1929. She is carvel construction of Canadian redwood on elm and oak ribs and frames with a mahogany superstructure. The decks are pitch pine
