Classic Boat

Admire the world's most beautiful boats, brought to life through breath-taking photography. Classic Boat offers a unique blend of yacht reviews, seamanship and restoration features, history and design columns, practical advice and coverage of the leading international regattas and events. Whether your interest lies in working on restoration projects or sailing in classic regattas; whether you're a wooden boat owner or simply an admirer of traditional marine workmanship, Classic Boat will have something for you.

Classic Boat

Yard services

Featured Contributors

ALL POINTS NORTH • After 76 years on the water Berthon Boat Co’s fast cruising yacht Northele has survived intact through a series of owners and changes of name to end up with a family in Eire that loves to cruise and race in style

VIVA BARCA!

Mid-summer scorcher

A Jolie good bash

Tell Tales

SOUTHAMPTON BOAT SHOW DELIVERS A CLASSIC

CLASSIC MOMENTS FROM THE CANNES YACHTING FESTIVAL

AQUA VIVA • Designed by Sonny Levi, Viva Tridanté! had a short racing career and then spent nearly 30 years out of the water. Now under new ownership she has survived Covid on the hard and mellowed into a new role as family cruiser

Saleroom • Dedicated to marine antiquities, collectables and auctions

The importance of small mercies • A little suffering is good for soul, or the berth, the cockpit, the galley…

KING HARALD OF NORWAY 1937 - 2026 • Meeting the man who loved sailing so much was a huge privilege for me and for so many others, of all nationalities

BROAD & STRONG • To date more than 80 of these miniature international racing yachts have been built, almost all of which remain in Norfolk and Suffolk where Broads One Design racing remains extremely popular

PIONEERS • Powerboat racing began with a shock to the system: the inaugural race wasn’t won by a man, but a woman who outran them all – a fact history often forgets. This triumph lit the fuse for a lineage of fearless female racers who continue to push powerboat racing to the extremes

KNOT THAT EASY • Tom offers some valuable advice on reefing with plenty of first hand experience

Shades of grey • Sometimes it’s hard to resist a bargain!

MODERN CLASSICS • New Spirit of Tradition and traditional builds

THE YARDSTICK • The lifeblood of the traditional boat world? Inarguably. But how are today’s traditional boatyards fairing under the well-documented pressures of skills shortages, increases in costs, scarcity of materials, and a world increasingly focused on immediacy rather than craft?

ROPE & KNOTS • This month it’s all about chafe, and how to prevent it…

3 ISSUES FOR £5 • MAKE THE MOST OF THE SEASON WITH CLASSIC BOAT. PRACTICAL ADVICE, RESTORATION TIPS, AND THE STORIES BEHIND THE BOATS YOU LOVE. FOR SAILORS WHO ENJOY THE JOURNEY AS MUCH AS THE DESTINATION

Letters

Next month

Cultural lag and Henry the hoover • The charm of boatyards is their slow pace of change, says Steffan Meyric Hughes