2025
LATEST PROJECTS
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ONA II
Currently in our workshop, under the wall of nameboards of boats restored at Dennetts over half a century, sits another well-known vessel with a heroic past. Owners of Dunkirk Little Ships, many from outside the traditional boating fraternity, are motivated by their respect for the boats’ heritage, and in the case of Ona II this is a heartfelt restoration underpinned by the relationship between a father and son. Built in 1931 by Staniland and Company at Thorne in Yorkshire, near the river Ouse, Ona II is a typical 36ft (11m) motor yacht designed for sedate cruising on English rivers. Official records show that she crossed to Dunkirk in 1940 and saved 20 soldiers.
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By 2024, her glory forgotten, Ona II was languishing in Paris, at the end of a five-year sentence of dereliction. An Englishman, Chris Westcott, instructed a local surveyor, not having seen the boat himself. The resulting report, despite being in French, was clear enough in its condemnation of Ona II’s condition, but in Chris’s study hangs a small black-and-white photo of a motor yacht once owned by his father. Family investigation revealed that this was in fact a Little Ship, so for Chris to own one of his own was a lifelong dream. He bought Ona II, sight unseen.
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Ona II arrived at Dennetts in June 2024, quickly followed by her eager new custodian on site visit to see his new boat. As fate would have it, sitting outside the front of the yard was another Dunkirk Little ship awaiting her time on the slip: it was Maimonde, the boat from the photo in the study!
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We are well underway with Ona II. Time has not been kind to this little boat and much of the planking and structural members have been replaced, as well as a new wheelhouse and deck. Chris is seeking a beautifully restored traditional vessel and despite some modern-day comforts and machinery below decks, she will, in all the ways that matter, be reincarnated as something indistinguishable from the family cruiser built in 1931, and as a boat that would make any father proud.
SUNDOWNER
Built in 1912 for the Admiralty, after WWI she lay deteriorating until in 1929 discovered and purchased by a Mr Charles Lightoller for £40. Mr Lightoller famous for being the highest ranking officer to survive the Titanic and the one who put in place the order to save women and children first.
Launched in 1930, Lightoller spent subsequent years using Sundowner untilI 1939, with the threat of war looming, Lightoller was tasked to secretly survey the European coast for the Admiralty. In May 1940, Lightoller personally skippered Sundowner to the aid of the trapped BEF in Dunkirk and rescued 130 men from their doomed fate.
We are very excited to start work on this iconic , even legendary Dunkirk Little Ship later in 2021
VERITY
We often refer to this type of saloon launch as a 'gentleman's launch'. However it was none other than Dame Nellie Melba who commissioned the leading Thames boatbuilder from Chertsey, one James Taylor, to build her a state of the art petrol driven saloon launch. She was a famous international opera star who lived in Kingston Upon Thames and moved in royal circles as a close friend of Edward VII, then king of England after the death of his mother Victoria.
1907 was early for petrol engines as prior to that time all boats were either steam or electric. Here in the UK there was not yet a suitable engine so Taylor looked across the Channel to France for a Renault engine which was duly installed in the mahogany launch. The elegant beaver stern spoke to the builder's skill and gave the boat greater waterline length thereby increasing the speed capability without creating so much wash. At that time there were less than 200 motor boats in existence and Verity with her teak superstructure, teak and mahogany decks, an internal toilet and galley compartment was absolutely the last word in modernity.
SUNNY MORN
Built in East Anglia in the early nineteen thirties by a well known British boat builder, JW Brooke, and christened Sunny Morn, Tarbes II has survived for nearly a century in her original format as a luxury saloon launch.
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Recently under new ownership Tarbes is to return to her original name Sunny Morn.
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New to boating this tall family are making a few changes to make Sunny Morn a little more comfortable for life in the 21st Century with an addition of a celestial roof to increase the somewhat snug headroom height.
JANTHEA
a highly coveted Dunkirk Little Ship, Janthea has been a proud member of the ADLS and within the same family for over 40 years. She is a stunning example of a twin screw 45ft motor yacht built in 1938 by Whisstocks, Woodbridge.
The yacht is of built out of 1” in pitch pine planking on 2” side grown English oak frames with two steamed ribs between each pair.
Her original superstructure is varnished teak along with teak skylights, hatches, covering boards and rubbing strakes and teak laid decks. She was powered by two 4.40 Gray engines as many were in those days, today she is powered by twin BMC 4 cyl Diesels.
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Janthea is in with us for preparation for the upcoming Dunkirk return
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WOODLAND
LILY
Built in 1903 by Andrews and Sons, Woodland Lily was discovered a wreck in 1965 and restored by Michael.
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Woodland Lily is one of our longest maintained vessels, below are the original restoration pictures back in 1965
