There can be few classic craft that have such a worldwide reputation for style and excellence as the Slipper launches of the River Thames in England. Although several boat builders made “slipper-style” launches, the most famous are those made by Andrews.

The Slipper launches of the River Thames actually came into being about 1912, when John Andrews departed from tradition and built a boat in his boatyard at Maidenhead with a long sleek bow and an aft deck that sloped down nearly to the water. The first boat was 16 feet in length and was built specifically for Sir Arthur Whitten-Brown, who, along with John Alcock in 1919, made the first transatlantic flight. The “Slipper Stern” launch with its unique sloping stern was felt to resemble an elegant ladie’s shoe of older times.
 

John Andrews’ father and uncle, Ned and Mark Andrews had started the firm in the late 1870s. Ned and Mark were fishermen, and as their business grew they began to build boats, most of which they used themselves in the fishing business. By the late 1890s, the Andrews were prominent builders and renters of electric powered launches. Ned’s sons, Fred and John, followed their father into the boat building business, and in 1912 John completed the building of his first launch.
The first boats were powered by the newly available American single-cylinder Watermota petrol engines. The boats themselves were very simply built with nearly all of the panels being flat; however, the build and finish quality were usually to a very high standard.
 

Andrews moved upstream on the river from Maidenhead to Bourne End in 1925. In the years up to World War II, Andrews built launches for some famous Europeans. Among them was Louis Renault, who is reputed to have scuttled his launch in the River Seine to prevent the Germans from seizing it, and then after the War recovered and restored it back to its former beautiful condition. Lord Lloyd, Commissioner of Egypt, opened the official Cairo Regatta of 1931 from an Andrews launch. The Maharaja of Jodhpur had a Slipper launch built all of teak in 1931 and shipped to India where he enjoyed it for many seasons.
 

Andrews built around 500 boats before they went out of business. Not all were Slippers, some were Day Cruisers.
 

John Andrews died in 1970, leaving no son, so his widow, Gladys Andrews continued to run the business for a few more years. The last Slipper launch was made in 1972. The boatyard closed in 1983.
 

Most Slippers are between 25’ and 30’ (7.6-9.1m) in length, although there have been others outside these sizes. Most remarkable were the three 50 footers (15.2m); the famous Baby Greyhound is the best known, the second being Debonaire. Both were built in 1937. The third 50 footer, La Belle Belline.was built in 1952. They were finished with varnished mahogany decks, cream-colored hull sides, and a light blue waterline, and powered by 40hp Graymarine engines. Top speed was 16.5mph with a full complement of passengers aboard. Three 20 foot boats were built, one of which was Cygnet II in 1932, and another, Zest in 1937
 

All Slipper launches have windscreens and open cockpits that are usually furbished with wicker chairs and a bench seat at the back. 25 foot was the most popular length, and approximately one boat in five was 30 foot.
 

LADY OF IONA
 

Lady of Iona, a 25ft Andrews Slipper, boat #451, was discovered in September 2002 on a trailer in a driveway between Henley and Wargrave near the River Thames. She was in very poor condition, having had the decks stripped and holes punched in the sides to check the condition of the chine boards.
Trevor Green of T Green & Co, a traditional boatbuilder and one of the foremost restorers of Slippers with over 30 years of experience, was asked to evaluate her condition, and he listed 9 major areas needing work which meant practically an entire rebuild. Trevor agreed to take on the job, and in October the boat was moved to his boatyard in Henley on Thames, where she was scraped and cleaned and made ready for the work to commence.
 

The first item to be addressed was the stern block. Since the stern on a Slipper slopes down almost to water level, the transom consists of a 4inch high stern block, usually fashioned from either mahogany or oak, and curved. In this case a new stern block was made in Brazilian mahogany.

Next the bottom boards were removed which uncovered some serious rot at the forefoot. The forefoot and stem were rebuilt, most of the ribs replaced, and then new Iroko bottom boards fitted. Of interest here is that the boards fit horizontally to the stern block, and then twist through 90 degrees to the stem where they are almost vertical, and with Iroko this has to be achieved without steaming.
 

Then the chines were repaired, new chine boards applied, and the sides completed. The cockpit area was finished in Brazilian mahogany. The motor, a four cylinder Morris Vedette, was overhauled, bench tested, and installed with new wiring and a new stainless steel fuel tank, then new deck hatches were fitted, and the boat was ready for the decking to begin.
 

The decks were laid with African mahogany covering boards and king planks, with alternate Brazilian and African decking strips, with Brazilian mahogany used for the screens and coamings.
After the wiring was completed and the instrument panel fitted, she was ready for painting and varnishing.

The hull sides were given 3 coats of epoxy, and then painted in a cream color. The decks received four coats of epoxy and four coats of natural varnish, with wet flatting between coats. The bottom was painted with four coats of metallic primer followed by two coats of black bitumen paint. The waterline was finished in light blue, and a sign writer put on the finishing touches painting the name in gold leaf, and finishing the cove lines in gold leaf with blue shading.
 

Finally, the original fittings were re-chromed and installed, a convertible top fitted for rainy days, and the boat was ready for testing in the water.
 

At the end of September 2003, Lady of Iona was launched on the River Thames for her maiden voyage. Minor adjustments were made to the engine, a safety inspection made, the safety certificate issued, and the work was declared complete.
 

In October the boat was loaded into a container and shipped to Toronto and then on by road to her current home on Lake Muskoka.
 

Lady of Iona, now beautifully restored to her former glory, is possibly one of the finest examples on the water today of an elegant English classic, the Andrews Slipper Launch.