The South West Film and Television Archive (SWFTA) is the regional film archive for the South West of England. Established in 1993, SWFTA's core collection comprises of the combined programme libraries of Westward Television and TSW (Television South West). The archive also cares for a significant number of donated film collections, both amateur and professional, dating back to the early 1900s.
This film is part of Free
Instow Regatta
The Taw and Torridge Yacht Club hold a one-design-fits-all regatta.
From the collection of:
Overview
The Taw and Torridge Yacht Club at Instow held Bell Buoy Races on the estuary at the confluence of the Torridge and Taw rivers in the 1930s. The Club adopted the new seventeen feet one-design clinker with Bermudan rig and Egyptian cotton sails in the 1920s and raced from the Clubhouse known as the Roundhouse at Instow Quay. The film was taken by yachting enthusiasts Peggy O'Brian and Phyllis Shaw. This film shows the club's Regatta races and a flying boat on the river.
The wooden one design yachts overwintered in the Parish Hall and boatyards. The club commissioned this class of yacht to be built and with their members owned about fifteen one designs. The idea was that everyone raced the same boat with the same sail area, rig and number of crew and this would be a true test of yachtsmanship. The North Devon Yacht Club is still based at Instow in North Devon.