15/06/2026
Boat stories: GBR 192 BLUEBOTTLE
SKIPPER GRAHAM BAILEY, ROYAL YACHT SQUADRON
If there is one boat that embodies the spirit of the Dragon class, it is Bluebottle.
We are excited to welcome one of the most iconic boats in the Dragon class to NJK and Helsinki! And what an entrance — Finnish Open champion, with the Europeans right around the corner. NJK, we have a contender. 🔥🐉
Built by Camper & Nicholsons in 1948, Bluebottle was presented as a wedding gift to Princess Elizabeth and Prince Philip by the Island Sailing Club in Cowes and became closely associated with Prince Philip’s passion for competitive sailing. After winning bronze at the 1956 Melbourne Olympics for Britain, she retired from racing in 1961. The next decades she spent at the Britannia Royal Naval College before being displayed at the National Maritime Museum, in Falmouth. Today she is still a Royal Yacht and is managed by The Royal Yacht Britannia Trust.
Sixty years after her retirement, Bluebottle underwent an extensive restoration and returned to racing in 2021—winning her first regatta back at Cowes Week. Current skipper Graham Bailey tells a story from that first race back ; “I was a bit nervous about taking her into close situations. My crew, the boatbuilder David Heritage who did the restoration said – “don’t worry, the Duke would have wanted you to put her into situations – anyway if it goes wrong I have lots of wood and some blue paint left over.” I relaxed a bit.“
Racing Bluebottle is an experience unlike racing any other yacht because of its connection to the royal family and to generations of sailors who knew the boat, Bailey often speaks about feeling the weight of the boat’s history. But new traditions have been added by the current crew; every night after racing, they all drink Espresso Martinis ensuring no one gets to sleep!
Thanks to the continuity of the Dragon class rules, a carefully restored historic yacht like Bluebottle can still race at the front of an international fleet. Competing successfully against modern boats, by extracting maximum performance from an older design, sailors are not only preserving maritime heritage but also adding new chapters to one of sailing's most extraordinary stories.
It is her first time racing in Helsinki and the crew are looking forward to visiting both afloat and ashore. At NJK she will be reunited with her “big sister” 12mR yacht Blue Marlin, built by the same boatyard.
“One of the things about Bluebottle is that it is good for the public to see her in different countries around the World, so we do everything to encourage interest.
It’s all about the boat – she is famous, I’m just the latest driver.”
