Pleasure cruiser sinking off the Cornish coast in 1966
MV "Darlwyne" was a pleasure cruiser, a converted Royal Navy picket boat, that disappeared off the Cornish coast on 31 July 1966 with its complement of thirty-one (two crew and twenty-nine passengers, including eight children). Twelve bodies and a few artefacts were later recovered, but the rest of the victims and the main body of the wreck were never found.
Built in 1941, after ending its naval service in 1957, "Darlwyne" was used as a private cabin cruiser, first on the River Thames and later in Cornwall, where it became a commercial passenger boat, despite being unlicensed for such work. It underwent considerable structural modifications, including the removal of its original watertight bulkheads and the conversion of its aft cabin into a large open cockpit. These changes adversely affected its seaworthiness. Surveyors' reports in 1964 and 1966 indicated that "Darlwyne" was unfit for the open sea; furthermore, it carried no radio or distress flares, and its lifesaving aids were rudimentary.
By 1966, "Darlwyne" was in the ownership of John Barratt of Penryn in Cornwall. The fatal voyage was arranged when the boat's skipper, Brian Bown, agreed to take a group of guests from the Greatwood guest house in Mylor on a sea trip to Fowey. On the morning of 31 July, the outward voyage was completed without mishap, but the weather subsequently deteriorated. Bown disregarded advice to remain in Fowey harbour, and shortly after 4:00 pm began the return trip to Mylor. An unconfirmed sighting at around 6:00 pm placed the boat, in worsening conditions, in the vicinity of Dodman Point, a prominent coastal feature. Following its failure to arrive at Mylor the alarm was raised early on 1 August, and full air and sea searches began at dawn. After the recovery of 12 bodies, searches continued intermittently for several months, without finding traces of the vessel.
A Board of Trade enquiry into "Darlwyne"'s loss placed the main blame on Barratt and Bown for allowing the vessel to go to sea in an unsafe and unprepared condition. Bown was lost in the disaster; Barratt was censured and ordered to contribute £500 to the cost of the enquiry. The Board's report exposed the laxity with which boat licensing regulations were being administered, and led to stiffer penalties for non-compliance, but there were no immediate regulatory changes, and no criminal proceedings were recommended. In April 1967 a memorial screen, listing the names of the 31 dead, was dedicated in Mylor church at a special service led by the Bishop of Truro. In 2016, on the 50th anniversary of the sinking, divers found an anchor and other debris at a location close to Dodman Point, which they stated were in all probability "Darlwyne" relics.
Vessel history.
Construction.
Picket boat no. 41768, the future "Darlwyne", was built for the Royal Navy in 1941 in the Sussex Yacht Works yard at Shoreham-by-Sea. The hull, carvel built from African mahogany and rock elm, was long, approximately wide, with a draught at the stern of . Bulkheads divided the hull into fully watertight compartments, each equipped with a bilge pump. The vessel's original engine power was provided by twin Gardner 6LW diesel engines, each developing 95 horsepower. It was built to operate in harbours and estuaries, mainly in transferring personnel between ship and shore, rather than for the open sea.
1941–1964.
The vessel remained with the Royal Navy until 1957, when it was sold to the Belsize Boatyard in Southampton. Here, it was converted to a cabin cruiser, during which most of the original bulkheads were removed; the replacements were not watertight. In September 1959 the boatyard sold the boat to joint owners Messrs Lowe and Gray, who replaced the engines with less powerful twin Perkins P6 units each generating 65 hp. They then moved the boat to Teddington on the River Thames, where on 22 April 1960 it was registered as a river cruiser under the name "Darlwyne". At this time its gross register tonnage was recorded as 12.35.
In October 1962 the owners transferred "Darlwyne" to St Mawes, in Falmouth, Cornwall. It was taken there by a crew of six; although the sea trip was accomplished without any serious incident, the crew were critical of the boat's performance in certain weather conditions. They found it top-heavy, difficult to steer, and with a tendency to list. "Darlwyne" remained at St Mawes until September 1963, when the owners decided to sell it as a potential commercial passenger boat. At Mylor, in the Carrick Roads estuary of the River Fal, it was inspected by a local marine surveyor, George Corke. He noted the poor steering—it was impossible, he said, to navigate a straight course—and thought that much work would be necessary before it was fit for passenger-carrying operations. On 30 May 1964 Corke acted as agent for Lowe and Gray in the sale of "Darlwyne" to John Barratt of Penryn, whose main objective was to renovate the vessel with a view to a profitable sale.
In Cornwall.
After extensive work and repainting, in September 1965 Barratt agreed to sell "Darlwyne" to Steven Gifford, who took possession and began further adaptations. The sale ultimately fell through, and by the end of the year the vessel had been returned to Barratt. In the spring and early summer of 1966, under the supervision of Barratt's daughter, further substantial alterations were carried out, including the removal of the aft cabin to create an open cockpit area. This work, undertaken without professional advice, was never fully completed. During this period the boat was in regular use for trips by members of the Barratt family, including a Whitsuntide voyage across Falmouth Bay to the Helford River, where it apparently performed well in strong winds.
At the beginning of July 1966, "Darlwyne" made several commercial sightseeing trips around Falmouth Harbour during Falmouth's Tall Ships regatta. A passenger on one of these sorties was Brian Michael Bown, a former member of the RAF Marine Rescue Section. Although not formally qualified as a ship's master, Bown had sailing experience and had skippered boats on seagoing trips to Fowey and the Isles of Scilly. Subsequently, Bown suggested to Barratt a business venture in which "Darlwyne" would be used as a day-trip boat. Bown's letters indicate that he was proposing to work as the boat's skipper, and to take a third share of the profits. Barratt's daughter advised Bown that they were preparing "Darlwyne" as "a twelve-passenger charter boat"; any number in excess of 12 would mean conforming with tougher Board of Trade regulations, and licensing might prove difficult. According to Barratt, Bown was to assume responsibility for obtaining whatever licences were necessary. Barratt later claimed that Bown had bought the boat outright, but there is no documentation of this supposed purchase, nor did Barratt mention it to anyone else.
On 20 July 1966, at the request of Barratt's daughter, "Darlwyne" was again examined by George Corke, who found the boat in generally poor condition. Among the faults he listed were dry rot, a weakening of the hull caused by the removal of various supporting frames, and signs that the hull had been "pushed in" below the waterline. Corke's report reiterated his earlier view that "Darlwyne" was presently unfit for work in the open sea. This report was sent not to Barratt but to the family's solicitors, where in the days that followed it lay unread; there is no indication that Barratt was aware of its contents before 31 July.
Disaster.
Plans.
Robert Rainbird, proprietor of the Greatwood guest house at Mylor Creek, near Falmouth, was familiar with "Darlwyne", having cruised with Bown in one of the earlier Tall Ships sailings. According to his later account, when two of his guests asked him about the possibility of organising a sea excursion, he put them in touch with Bown. On the evening of Saturday 30 July, amid celebrations following England's victory in the 1966 FIFA World Cup Final, Bown and his friend Jeffrey Stock, a qualified engineer, visited Greatwood. They found that enthusiasm for a sea trip had spread to many of the guests, and an agreement was made to take a large party to Fowey the following day. Different accounts were given later of the financial basis for the proposed hire – whether it was to be a fixed charge or a rate per head is uncertain.
Barratt, the boat's legal owner, professed ignorance of the arrangements made at Greatwood, believing, he said, that Bown had gone there to discuss with Rainbird future charter work once the necessary licences had been obtained. Under local regulations, a licence for carrying up to 12 passengers was subject to examination of the boat by the harbourmaster, who would also require the person in charge to be a licensed skipper. Vessels proposing to carry more than 12 passengers had to have a licensed master, a qualified marine engineer, and a Class III Passenger Certificate from the Board of Trade. This certificate was only granted to vessels in good condition with watertight hull compartments, a two-way radio, a qualified radio operator and a range of safety devices. "Darlwyne" had no radio, no distress flares, and carried only two lifebelts. Bown had apparently begun enquiries with the Falmouth Harbour Commission, but neither he nor "Darlwyne" possessed any of the licences needed for the boat to operate commercially.
Voyage, 31 July 1966.
In accordance with the arrangement made the previous day, early on Sunday 31 July Bown and Stock brought "Darlwyne" to Mylor Creek. The Greatwood party comprised, in all, twenty-six guests, one member of staff on her day off, and two children of another staff member. Eight of the party were children. "Darlwyne" anchored offshore, and the passengers were rowed out in two dinghies, one of which was hauled aboard and stored on davits, the other attached by a painter to "Darlwyne"'s stern.
BBC weather forecasts for the Cornwall area, broadcast the previous evening and earlier that morning, were discouraging; all promised increasing winds, up to Force 7, with the probability of rain from midday. Such weather conditions could produce heavy seas and poor visibility. Nevertheless, "Darlwyne" set out from Mylor shortly after 10:00 am in pleasant sunshine, expecting to return before 7:00 pm. The journey to Fowey, which included a slight detour to view Mevagissey harbour, was completed without incident, and the party arrived in Fowey just after 1:00 pm. By this time the weather had deteriorated, and it was raining heavily. Bown did not tie up to the main town quay – he was heard saying that the vessel was "a bitch to handle" – and anchored mid-harbour, again using the dinghies to land the party.
After three hours in the town, the group reassembled at the quay to be ferried back to "Darlwyne". The wind was rising; a bystander heard a local fisherman advise Bown not to leave the harbour until the weather improved, but the warning was brushed aside. "Darlwyne" sailed at approximately 4:10 pm, and headed westward into the worsening weather. For the first few miles the large headland known as Dodman Point would provide some shelter; thereafter the vessel would be fully exposed to the force of the winds.
There were several possible sightings of "Darlwyne" on its homeward voyage. Outside Fowey Harbour in the vicinity of the Cannis Buoy a fisherman watched a vessel towing a dinghy pass by; soon afterwards another fisherman saw a boat off Meanease Point, close to Dodman Point, but did not notice a dinghy being towed astern. At about 5:45 pm a farmer whose land overlooked the sea to the west of Dodman Point saw a launch running close to Hemmick Beach, moving westward. He could see people in the stern area, and there were no evident signs of distress. A short while later an observer in the village of Portloe saw a cabin cruiser somewhere between Dodman Point and Nare Head, moving in the direction of Falmouth. This was the last recorded possible sighting. By this time winds had strengthened to Force 6, with waves reaching amid increasing rain and flying spray.
In the late afternoon a holidaymaker reported seeing four people apparently stranded on Diamond Rock, a semi-submerged reef off Porthluney Cove, west of Dodman Point. The police were informed, but at that time "Darlwyne" was not overdue, and thus there was no reason to connect these people with those on the boat. This incident was not referred to in the subsequent searches, nor in the later Board of Trade enquiry