19 October 2016

Göran R Buckhorn writes:

Tim Koch’s article about the HTBS’s ‘mystery sculler’ on 12 October caught the eyes of two avid readers of this website, Lionel Baily and Kieran Kerr.

Lionel Baily, of Tideway Scullers, writes regarding old regatta programmes:

Here is the cover of a 1961 Regatta [see above]. I rowed there as school boy in both ’61 and ’62. Bitterly cold Boxing Day morning, no wonder the regatta folded a few years later. The programme includes a beautiful pen and ink drawing of a famous, still in existence, Thames side pub, The London Apprentice. Alas the Eights Room etc are no more but the drawing is a beautiful piece of graphic art HTBS readers might find interesting.

Indeed, it is a very nice drawing, Lionel.

Kieran Kerr, founder and curator of the website irishrowingarchives.com, has found other images of HTBS’s ‘mystery sculler’. He writes:

I am currently archiving material from the Irish Federation from 1940s to 1970s (amazing what you find in old attics!) and came across a few images [of the ‘mystery sculler’]. It would appear that we were not a very imaginative lot in this part of the world and numerous clubs and regattas used the image in question or a variation of it. Attached are letterheads from the Scottish Federation and Fermoy RC in Ireland. Also included is a Galway regatta programme with a sculler in a very similar pose.

Thank you gentlemen!

However, Tim’s question of the origin of the mystery sculler is still unanswered. Any HTBS readers who have more information?