The Box is a major cultural and heritage attraction and archive, which opened in Plymouth’s city centre in September 2020. Its collection, formally the South West Film and Television Archive (SWFTA), is the regional film archive for the South West of England, comprising the combined programme libraries of Westward Television and Television South West (TSW). It also includes a significant number of donated film collections dating back to the early 1890s.
This film is part of Free
Capsize of Drum
Singer Simon Le Bon and his rescuer Navy diver Larry Slater are interviewed in Falmouth after the capsizing of the yacht Drum.
From the collection of:
Overview
Pop star Simon Le Bon has a lucky escape after the yacht in which he was competing in the Fastnet Race capsized in the English Channel off Falmouth. Le Bon and twenty-three crew were rescued after the keel of the ocean racing yacht Drum sheared off on the return leg of the six hundred and five mile race. He and five crew were trapped in an air pocket of the upturned hull. The yacht was co-owned by the lead singer Le Bon and the managers of the group Duran Duran, Mike and Paul Berrow.
The Royal Navy Search and Rescue diver from 771 Naval Air Squadron RNAS Culdrose Petty Officer Larry Slater led each trapped crewman including Le Bon to safety. Larry was awarded the George Medal and appeared on reality TV show This Is Your Life in April 1986. Le Bon, Drum and crew went on to come third in the Whitbread Round the World Challenge just five weeks later. Le Bon competed in the 2005 Fastnet nearly twenty years after the first attempt failed. He borrowed Drum to do so. Duran Duran's 1982 video to the single Rio featured the group in fair weather yacht scenes filmed over three days in English Bay off the coast of Antigua in the Caribbean. Who could have predicted then such stormy waters ahead?
Related
Watch for free
Tour up the River Fal Tour up the River Fal
Current affairs 1977 7 mins Location: Falmouth
A boat trip from Falmouth to Tolverne Cottage takes in the sights along the banks of the River Fal.
Watch for free
Tinkerbelle Tinkerbelle
Current affairs 1965 12 mins Location: Falmouth
Newsman Robert Manry fulfils his lifelong dream of sailing solo across the Atlantic Ocean from Falmouth to Falmouth.
Watch for free
Robin Knox-Johnston and the Golden Globe Win Robin Knox-Johnston and the Golden Globe Win
News 1969 5 mins Location: Falmouth
Merchant Officer Robin Knox Johnston is the first person ever to complete a solo single-handed round-the-world yacht race.
Watch for free
Scenes on the Cornish Riviera Scenes on the Cornish Riviera
Advert 1912 19 mins Silent Location: Plymouth
From Saltash to St Ives, a whirlwind tour of Edwardian Cornwall.
Watch for free
School Visit to Falmouth School Visit to Falmouth
News 1964 2 mins Silent Location: Falmouth
Pupils from a Teddington school visit the town hall and the docks of Falmouth.
Watch for free
In and around Falmouth In and around Falmouth
Amateur film 1950 4 mins Silent Location: Falmouth
A family enjoys a trip to the Green Bank Hotel in Falmouth and indulges in some water activities.
Watch for free
Khichdi Khichdi
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 16 mins
The interwoven stories of four best friends who reunite in the UK, thirty-five years after training together as nurses during their teens in Ferozepur, Punjab.
Watch for free
Every Moment Counts Every Moment Counts
Animation & Artists Moving Image 2023 9 mins
A short animation that offers a window into the world of children’s palliative care.
Watch for free
Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology Dr XYZ: A Medical Drag Transthology
2023 15 mins
A satirical take on the healthcare service announcements of the 1960s and 70s.
Watch for free
Police Story: Panel Discussion Police Story: Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 24 mins
Panel discussion on Jackie Chan's 1985 action classic Police Story, with Chase Armitage, Sam Mak and Jadey Duffield.
Watch for free
China O'Brien: The Reunion China O'Brien: The Reunion
Documentary 2024 60 mins
Cynthia Rothrock, Richard Norton and Keith Cooke reunite three decades on from the groundbreaking martial arts classic.
Watch for free
Women in Action Panel Discussion Women in Action Panel Discussion
Inside Film 2024 28 mins
Action Xtreme - the UK's leading action film studio - hosts this panel discussion with four leading women in action cinema - Soo Cole, Jo Rolison, Jadey Duffield and Ioanna Karavela.