Month: July 2007

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Click on the small images for much bigger and clearer images.

Bucknell sisters Margaret Palmer and Mary Ralph with
Andy Wyke; Mirror Dinghy building instructions; Mirror
on roof of Austin Mini; Barry Bucknell and sister sailing;
how we still think of the Mirror today

Copyrights: NMM; International Mirror Association; NMM &
Jack Holt; NMM; Turtle Photography

The Mirror is not everyone’s idea of a classic, but there’s no doubt that it has been a hugely influential design: it won huge numbers of people over to sailing as a pastime, and its influence on dinghy designers can still be seen today, not least because it was probably the first dinghy to be built using the stitch-and-glue technique; up to that time I gather only canoes had been built using the method.

And besides, like many people I have a certain slightly mixed-up affection for them: I built one with my father Brian Atkin when I was a kid, and more recently my partner Julie sails one.

The National Maritime Museum Cornwall recently received two very special visitors: the twin sisters of famous TV DIY expert and Mirror dinghy designer, Barry Bucknell.

The twin 93-year old sisters saw the first Mirror dinghy ever built on show at the Museum, and an original publicity film used to launch the class, including footage of their brother.

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Designed by Bucknell, together with Jack Holt in 1962, the Mirror dinghy was named after the Daily Mirror newspaper and was promoted as an affordable boat. Costing just 63s 11d when it first came onto the market, it did more than any previous design to make Read the rest of this post: Continue reading “A celebration of the Mirror”