RNLI 200 Voices

Familiar to millions as the former face of BBC Breakfast, hear how RNLI supporter Louise Minchin surprised herself with a midlife love of – and talent for – outdoor swimming  It’s part of Louise’s family lore that she could swim before she could walk. Her passion for swimming shone during her childhood when she swam competitively until she was 15.  Louise talks about why she decided to stop racing...

Trapped under a sail after being thrown overboard in pitch darkness, James Gaskin thought it was the end. He transports us miles out to sea on a stormy night off The Lizard Nearing the end of a solo sailing trip from Brittany to Ireland, James was enveloped by a foreboding darkness in the middle of a shipping lane. Caught in squalls, he battened down the hatches, but was thrown overboard. Utterly...

When school friends Stanley and Peter boarded a cabin cruiser in 1940, little did they know they’d play a part in the Dunkirk evacuation It was the Second World War rescue mission that Winston Churchill called a ‘miracle of deliverance’. The port of Dunkirk was destroyed – its beaches the only escape route for nearly 340,000 retreating allied troops.  Shallow waters meant that big ships couldn’t g...

David, a Watch Officer with the Irish Coast Guard, knows exactly how it feels to listen to the radio for news of a loved one who’s out at sea. As a boy, he was the one listening When David O’Driscoll was a child, he and his family would gather round his grandmother’s kitchen table to listen to radio exchanges between the Coast Guard and his father, who – as an RNLI coxswain – was out on another re...

The RNLI’s most decorated serving coxswain on launching to a Greek Prince, and meeting a real one On the night of 13 January 2008, the crew of the Greek-registered cargo ship Ice Prince was in serious trouble 31 miles off Portland Bill. Arriving on scene in atrocious conditions, the crew of the Torbay lifeboat found the Ice Prince taking on water and listing badly – she was destined to sink beneat...

In the case of Jamie Robson White – descendant of famous lifesavers – the apple didn’t fall far from the tree With a heritage like Jamie Robson White’s, it’s no wonder he’s passionate about saving lives at sea – lifesaving is tightly woven into his family history. In this episode, Jamie – full-time Second Coxswain at Humber Lifeboat Station and volunteer at Whitby Lifeboat Station – shares memorie...

A horse is trapped in an oyster bed. The tide is coming in. Kinsale Helm Jonathan Connor on galloping to the rescue When the pager goes off, RNLI crew never know what to expect. But a horse trapped in an oyster bed? That was a first. Kinsale crew member Jonathan Connor recalls the crisp February morning when the RNLI were called to the rescue of Paddy the horse, whose owner couldn’t swim. An unusu...

Meet the man helping to cut the number of river drownings in Galway The River Corrib in Galway is fast-flowing and dangerous. In the past, because of a lack of communication and co-ordination between local agencies, when a person entered the river, the RNLI couldn’t get there in time. Galway RNLI Lifeboat Operations Manager Michael Swan was determined to change that. He talks about working with ot...

The RNLI’s Medical Director on the unique challenges crew face, from performing casualty care on the deck of a lifeboat to coping with traumatic shouts Aroop Mozumder is the RNLI’s first Medical Director – and he’s a busy man. Having previously put his medical skills to use in war zones and humanitarian disaster zones, Aroop talks about how his experiences as a military doctor have prepared him we...

A to E – Principal Engineer Holly Phillips on designing the fastest lifeboat in the RNLI fleet Holly Phillips has always loved boats, spending most of her life being in them, on them or under them. Having joined the RNLI Poole crew in 1992, and starting as Senior Naval Architect 10 years later, she shaped the evolution of lifeboat engineering during her impressive 21-year career at the RNLI. In pa...

The ripple effect – thanks to Poole’s 2022 RNLI Lifeguard of the Year, Sandbanks’ gain is also Senegal’s Poole lifeguard Idi Ndiaye is so much at home in the water that his nickname is ‘The Waterman’. Idi, a former military firefighter, ambulance driver and rescue diver, is from Dakar in Senegal – a place where drowning is all too common. While working as a lifeguard on the beaches there, he once...

In 1923, Joseph Conrad wrote the foreword for Britain’s Life-Boats: The Story of a Century of Heroic Service. Toby Harper shares the author’s thoughts The author Joseph Conrad’s fascination with the sea began when he was just 13. Inspired by a book he’d read about the search for Sir John Franklin’s lost ships, Erebus and Terror, he spent 19 years in the merchant navy before turning to writing, oft...

When Shaddah the dog chased a ball into the sea, he was quickly swept out. His owner relives the anxious wait for a dog with no off-switch Shaddah is a cross between a Labrador and a Springer Spaniel. And as anyone who knows Springers knows, they love the water. One March day at Seaton Sluice in Northumberland, Shaddah’s enthusiastic nature got him into trouble. Determined to retrieve an elusive b...

Being part of a lifeboat crew is not a nine to five job – something that RNLI mechanic Dupre Strutt takes in his stride For RNLI lifesavers, days – and nights – are unpredictable. Crew never know when the pager will go off, or what emergency they’ll be called to. For Dupre Strutt, mechanic at Kirkwall Lifeboat Station in Orkney, it’s a way of life. He grew up with the lifeboat – his father was pre...

Wake up overlooking the second largest natural harbour in the world – take a tour of the RNLI College Don’t let the name fool you. The RNLI College is more than a college. Frequently voted one of the best places to stay in Poole, Dorset, the RNLI College includes 60 en suite bedrooms, all with sea views. Debbie Corke, who sadly passed away in 2023, was the RNLI’s Volunteer Development Coordinator,...

The RNLI’s Newquay lifeguard team includes lifesavers from eight nations. Agustin reveals why Cornwall’s gain is also Argentina’s   The lifeguards who patrol the Newquay beaches are an eclectic bunch, coming from places as far afield as Greece, Austria and Brazil. Agustin, who is from Argentina, talks about what drew him to join the multinational team at Mawgan Porth, and about some of the RNLI’s...

HRH The Duke of Kent reflects on 55 years as President of the charity Since becoming President of the RNLI in 1969, HRH The Duke of Kent has supported the organisation through some of the charity’s greatest milestones – including the opening of the RNLI College, the introduction of the lifeguard service, and the development of faster, safer lifeboats that have helped save more lives. In this episo...

On New Year’s Day, 1916, Horton and Port Eynon lifeboat volunteers paid a heavy price after braving conditions some called the worst in living memory When a steamer ran aground near Pennard Cliffs on the Glamorgan coast, Horton and Port Eynon volunteers launched their rowing lifeboat into the teeth of a gale. Unable to reach the steamer due to the conditions, the lifeboat – Janet – began to head b...

On 30 March 1985, Dover RNLI Coxswain Tony Hawkins was in the bath when maroons were fired. He leapt up to go to the aid of those aboard a cross-channel hovercraft, the Princess Margaret, which had collided with the breakwater on entering the harbour. Tony, who was Boathouse Manager at Dover RNLI when this interview took place, recalls how the hovercraft had a hole ripped into its side and that hu...

Less shoot 'em up, more round 'em up – why the RNLI’s new video game is a refreshing departure In an era in which children and young people are more likely to tap away on small screens rather than gather around the TV, how can the RNLI achieve the 'Blue Peter effect' that once planted a seed of support? To help the charity reach a new generation, the RNLI has been working with a video games develo...

RNLI volunteer Pat Abram knows only too well the devastating power of the sea Pat has a lifelong awareness of the dangers of the sea. His father drowned at sea before Pat was born, and on the 5 January 1983, while working as a police officer in Blackpool, Pat and three colleagues went to the rescue of a man struggling in the sea – a courageous act that ended in tragedy. Four lives were lost, leavi...

He had a life-changing accident while surfing – but Alex’s RNLI training helped save his life Working as a RNLI lifeguard in Scarborough, Alex was passionate about saving lives at sea and loved the water. But, on the 28 March 2013, while surfing on holiday in Argentina, he hit his head on the sea floor and was left face down in the water, unable to move his arms or legs. He puts his survival down...

The first Boxing Day Dip at Southend’s Jubilee Beach attracted 87 people. Last year, there were 400. Daniel Wanna from RNLI Southend-on-Sea explains what makes folks swap the sofa for the surf For some, the perfect Boxing Day is about a dip in the sea, followed by a hot drink and a mince pie on the beach. Daniel Wanna – Lifeboat Helm at Southend-on-Sea – talks about what draws a growing number to...

The sea doesn’t take a day off – neither do the lifeguards at Crosby Beach. Siobhan Murphy explains why Crosby Beach is unique, and in more ways than one. It’s the only beach patrolled by RNLI lifeguards 365 days a year. And on Christmas Day, Senior Lifeguard Siobhan Murphy will be one of them. They’re kept busy by the tourists who come to see the 100 Antony Gormley sculptures – titled Another Pla...

Christmas 2021: paraglider Dermot Ryan explains why his best present was from Newhaven RNLI It’s Christmas Eve, and paraglider Dermot has the scary realisation that he is about to swap the sky for the sea. After landing at the foot of a cliff with fellow paraglider, Trevor, both are soon cut off by the incoming tide. Soaked by the crashing waves, Dermot’s body temperature plummets. Newhaven RNLI v...