Gipsy Moth Trust Company Limited

General information

Returning to Plymouth on 28 May 1967, Sir Francis and Gipsy Moth IV were greeted by a huge flotilla afloat and a crowd of over 250,000 ashore, with millions more watching on TV, enthralled by the occasion and inspired by the courage and determination that had made it possible.
Honoured with a Knighthood by Her Majesty Queen Elizabeth II, Sir Francis had set new records for a small single-handed sailing vessel , and Gipsy Moth IV lives on today as part of our heritage.
Between 1967 and 2003, Gipsy Moth IV was on public display in a concrete dry dock at Greenwich – appropriately as a neighbour to the clipper ship Cutty Sark.
Sadly, her condition deteriorated dramatically. Following Yachting Monthly’s
extensive ‘Stop the Rot’ campaign, the UK Sailing Academy (a registered charity helping young people to change their lives through maritime education and personal development) formed a partnership with the magazine, and together worked to restore the classic yacht.
The restoration was undertaken at the Camper and Nicholson yard at Gosport,
where skilled craftsmen, many of whom had been involved in her original construction brought her back to life. The entire project was supported by the overwhelming generosity both of the British public and commercial donors who helped to re-equip her ready for her second circumnavigation.
This second journey, crewed by young people on each leg, ended once again in
Plymouth on the 40th anniversary of the first voyage by Sir Francis, and helped to
influence the lives of another generation.
But a classic wooden yacht needs constant and costly care and maintenance and in 2010 Gipsy Moth IV was bought by East Anglian business partners Eileen Skinner and Rob Thompson in order to keep her in the UK – with a continuing management contract with the UKSA. The next stage in her life had begun!

Ownership of Gipsy Moth IV has now been transferred by Rob and Eileen to the Gipsy Moth Trust, a charity registered in the UK (Registered Charity Commission No: 1142218), in order to protect and preserve her future.
The aims of the charity are:
• To preserve and maintain Gipsy Moth IV in sailing condition.
• To enable as many people as is practicable to see her or sail her.
• To use her (and her legacy) to promote charitable activities and to inspire future generations to achieve their full potential.

Despite a sound survey at the end of 2010, and a splendid re-furbishment by UKSA student apprentices early in 2011 to bring her back to first class sailing condition, as part of their training, she is, after all, a fifty year old cold-moulded wooden classic yacht.
Making her available for more people to see and sail, and attending events around the coast, inevitably leads to wear and tear, the occasional breakage, and unexpected one-off costs.
It is the responsibility of the Gipsy Moth Trust to ensure that funds are available to meet these costs whenever they are needed in the future.