The powerboat used by Sir Malcolm Campbell to set the world water speed record in 1937 is set to hit the waves again after a loving restoration

  • Returned to its former glory, the Bluebird K3 hits Bewl Water in Kent this month 
  • Sir Malcolm commissioned the boat in 1937, breaking the record the same year
  • He then beat his own record three times, hitting 141.740 mph in 1939 in a K4
  • Sir Malcolm broke a total of nine land speed records between 1924 and 1935 
  • His son Donald Campbell then broke eight world records on water and land 
  • Donald died attempting a new speed record in a Bluebird K7 in 1967 aged 45 

By Sebastian Murphy-bates For Mailonline

Published: | Updated:

The powerboat in which racing driver Sir Malcolm Campbell set three world water speed records is set to rock the waves once again.

The Bluebird K3, which broke the world water speed record in 1937, will take to Bewl Water reservoir in Kent later this month.

Commissioned by Sir Malcolm in 1937 to rival the Americans in the fight for the world water speed record, the hydroplane powerboat set three world best marks with Sir Malcolm Campbell at the helm.

The powerboat in which Sir Malcolm Campbell set the world water speed record will take to Bewl Water reservoir in Kent later this month

The powerboat in which Sir Malcolm Campbell set the world water speed record will take to Bewl Water reservoir in Kent later this month

Sir Malcolm Campbell commissioned the Bluebird K3 in 1937 to rival the Americans' attempts at record-breaking

Sir Malcolm Campbell commissioned the Bluebird K3 in 1937 to rival the Americans' attempts at record-breaking

Its first world record was on September 1, 1937, on Lake Maggiore, which is on the border between Switzerland and Italy.

The Bluebird K3 hit speeds of 126.32 mph, breaking Garfield Wood's previous record, which was set at 124.860 mph five years earlier.

Sir Malcolm then broke his own record the next day, bringing it up to 129.5 mph.

He achieved yet another record on August 17, 1938, when he hit 130.91 mph at Switzerland's Lake Hallwyl, before hitting 141.740 mph in 1939 in a Blue Bird K4 on Coniston Water, Cumbria.

Son Donald Campbell followed family tradition, breaking eight world speed records on water and land, before he was decapitated attempting a new water speed record in a Bluebird K7 in 1967 aged 45. 

The hydroplane powerboat was restored in a 'labour of love' carried out in Polegate, East Sussex

The hydroplane powerboat was restored in a 'labour of love' carried out in Polegate, East Sussex

But the Bluebird K3 is ready to make waves once again as it prepares to head out on Bewl Water after an extensive restoration.

The boat's owner, Karl Foulkes Halbard, said the extensive project was carried out in Polegate, East Sussex.

'The restoration is a real labour of love by a small but dedicated team at Filching Manor,' he said.

Sir Malcolm died in Surrey in 1948 following a series of strokes, but his record-breaking legacy will be celebrated as his former boat hits the water again

Sir Malcolm died in Surrey in 1948 following a series of strokes, but his record-breaking legacy will be celebrated as his former boat hits the water again

'We have rebuilt the engine and electrics and the Bewl Water date will be a test of those systems.

'As the largest stretch of open water in the South East and being so close to our base in Sussex, Bewl Water is the ideal place for this test run and, all being well, the public will get a great view of Bluebird K3 back in action.'

Donald Campbell died in Cumbria while attempted to set another water speed record

Donald Campbell died in Cumbria while attempted to set another water speed record

Howard Mackenzie, of Bewl Water, added: 'We know the Filching Manor team well and have been following their work on Bluebird K3 closely.

'To have such an historic vessel running here is a great honour and something we are excited to have the chance to see.'

Lives spent breaking records 

Sir Malcolm Campbell was born on March 11, 1885, in Chislehurst, Kent

He broke the land speed record in 1924, hitting 146.16 mph, before breaking another eight between then and 1935. 

Sir Malcolm went on to win the 1927 and 1928 Grand Prix de Boulogne in France driving a Bugatti T37A.

In 1935 he set his final land record, hitting 301.337 mph at Bonneville Salt Flats in Utah, America.

When war broke out in 1939, he built his own vast bomb shelter at his Headley Hall home in Epsom, Surrey. 

He also installed a fortified trophy cabinet in his cellar after winning the Segrave Trophy in both 1933 and 1939. 

Sir Malcolm died aged 63 after a series of strokes in 1948 and was inducted into the International Motorsports Hall of Fame in 1990 and the Motorsports Hall of Fame of America in 1994.

His son, Donald Campbell, followed in his footsteps to break eight world speed records on water and land in the 1950s and 1960s.

He remains the only person to set both world land and water speed records in the same year. 

Donald died on January 4 1967 aged just 45 when his jet-powered boat, Bluebird K7, flipped into the air and disintegrated as he attempted a new water speed record on Coniston Water in Cumbria.

It later emerged that the speed ace was decapitated by Bluebird’s windscreen exploding at 300 mph.

He was posthumously awarded the Queen’s Commendation for Brave Conduct.

In 2001 Campbell’s body – with his race suit intact – and the wreckage of Bluebird were recovered from the depths of the lake and he was buried later that year in the village of Coniston.

In 2010 an English Heritage blue plaque was installed to commemorate Sir Malcolm and his son at Canbury School, Kingston Hill, Kingston upon Thames, where Donald was born in March 1921 and the Campbells lived until late 1922.   

Advertisement

 

Most watched News videos