BOATYARD HISTORY III

HISTORY OF H. ATTRILL & SONS (continued)

In 1953 the yard converted an old admiralty 72' M.L. which was in an appalling state. The ship was gutted and refitted to the owner's design. Alterations were completed successfully. On the owner's arrival at his home in Venezuela, which he had reached via Italy, he sent a message saying that he did not have to put a spanner to the ship at all. Her name was 'BARRACUDA'.

Passenger work with the Holiday Camps was a summer job, and, with this in mind they built a 41'. Motor-Launch to Commander Peter Thornycroft's design. He was at that time on a ship in Portsmouth and they wanted a craft similar to his fathers boat 'KING DUCK'. They named the vessel 'HENRY ROSE' after their parents. Little did they realise that the building of this vessel was a turning point in yacht construction. A Mr. Patrick de Laslo for whom they had been fitting out small launches, asked if he could borrow 'HENRY ROSE' to use as a mould to make a fibre-glass plug. As he wanted a slightly different shape, the brothers suggested that that he got Com. Thornycroft to design a vessel from which they would produce a female mould. It took a lot of convincing, but in the end Mr. de Laslo gave them the go ahead.

In 1954 the mould was constructed and taken to Langstone Harbour by boat, and then to part of a factory at Fratton. This part was called Halmatic, a now famous G.R.P. moulder. It was a great success. The glass-fibre hull was towed back to Bembridge Harbour by HENRY ROSE and fitted out at the yard. She was called 'PERPETUA'.

Brother Douglas became its skipper and took her to Denmark where the Duke of Edinburgh had a trip in her. The 'PERPETUA' had the largest G.R.P. hull in the world at that time.

The great success of the Attrill mould resulted in a larger order of a 63'. mould. This became the vessel 'BEBE GRANDE' which was owned by a South African, Jack Gerber. The vessel was completed by Tough of Teddington. A stretched version was also built later.

Due to the increase in trade with the ferry, boats on the beach and the demand for trips to view the liners, it was decided to build another ferry boat to assist in transferring passengers from a holiday camp near Priory Bay onto the 'HENRY ROSE'. This ferry boat was called 'WHITE ROSE', which is still in commission to this day.

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