Donald Campbell's famous Bluebird faces uncertain future after restoration project
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- Опубліковано 12 вер 2024
- Donald Campbell broke the water speed record time and time again.
But now a legal battle has started about where his boat, the now-rescued and restored Bluebird, should be kept. Our North West of England reporter, Sophie Reaper, has the story.
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The family did nothing in 30 years or so to recover the body of a great man. They now want to reap the benefits and the hard work of the team that did the recovery and the restoration at no cost to them or the museum. The 9 + 3 agreement should be honoured in memory of Donald Cambell.
Maybe the family wanted it left as a watery grave? I wouldn't have messed with a grave without the family's permission.
@@ohboy2118 Maybe in international waters but certainly not in a lake that's open to all forms of water based recreation.
@@ohboy2118 Permition was granted by the family to recover the boat and the body. The deal was always to restore it to running condition and use it during the one week of the year where there is no speed limit on the lake. The problem started when the helth and saftey people at the museum decided it had to be drained of all fluids etc which would ruin the engine and it wouldn't be alowed to run on the lake (it would be a static exibit) and thats when the two parties fell out.
@K2edg thank you for the context. I remembered the raising but obviously didn't pay attention to the detail or forgot.
@@ohboy2118 I have to agree with that...
The museum did NOTHING to bring Bluebird back into existence, and they should get NOTHING in return. The bare faced cheek of these people!
As always MONEY rears it`s ugly head.
Completely agree. The museum should be offering to pay for a percentage of the parts and labour if they want it displayed too .
The chap from the museum comes across as greedy to be honest..
From this clip it looks like he’s done absolutely nothing, yet now wants the boat in the museum for, absolutely nothing🤔🤔
And the museum wants money to see Bluebird.
Given the length of time it was underwater I'm pretty sure the owner is safe under salvage laws
So, the museum, never having contributed a penny, now want the boat back after 20 years of painstaking work and huge cost. Very equitable!
Also: the museum guy isn't even a hunky looking bodybuilder. Imagine handing your hard earned work over to a gargoyle looking creature
"the museum, never having contributed a penny," Apart from the £750K to build the building that BBP agreed it would be housed in. That was the aggreement, try reading up on the history...
Big chunk of cash to build the bluebird wing was loto cash !
I wonder if he knows any contractors that work on that basis. I need a new roof, it'd be nice to get it done for nothing.
@@jjr1728wa?
It never ceases to amaze me the number of people who stand inline to claim a successfully completed project. They were nowhere to be seen during the project but now think they have some claim over the successful outcome.
Money being the root of all evil not to much of a surprise 😲 no doubt those involved can sleep soundly at night...rest in peace Donald 🥰
Based on a 2 second search of the UK law of salvage, I find this:
"The law of salvage focuses on shipwrecks with cash value, identifying original ownership, and ensuring salvor compensation. The law of finds-which assigns the first finder as the new owner-generally governs shipwrecks with more of a historical, rather than monetary, value."
They should enter politics !!!
Bit like Israel? 😂
Success has a thousand fathers, failure is an orphan.
The guys that put their heart and soul into recovering and restoring the boat should get their say. The museum are getting a free ride. The deal of 9 months in the museum and three in the hands of the restorers is exceedingly generous.
volunteering doesn't mean your entitled to own something... What about everyone who donated?
@@AussieBassplayer Those guys didn't volunteer anything. They took the initiative.
If they had volunteered on the museum's behalf and there was a contractual arrangement, then the museum would have every right.
As for those who donated, what did they donate to? Did they donate to the museum to get a free exhibit, or did they donate to assist the restorers in their efforts (efforts that the museum was unwilling to undertake)?
Show some respect people. To the man that made the boat originally and the people that brought it back to life. Everyone else did nothing. Whoever paid to pull the boat and fix it now has ownership and you should have to buy it legally and that’s even if they wants to sell. The guy seems quite reasonable.
Family not interested till someone else does all the work and should have no claim on it
Exactly......... they had no intention of recovering Donald Campbell's body so it's even less likly they had plans to raise the boat. IMHO i find it disgusting that Gini had an agrement in place with Bill and then handed over her interest in the boat to a museum without reading the small print causing all this in the first place...... her original agreement said Bill would be allowed to run it during the unlimited week on Coniston and the Museum would need Bluebird to be a static exibit to meet their health and saftey/insurance requirements.
Even discounting the time, cost and effort in restoring Bluebird, the fact the Donald Campbell's family didn't even bother to make efforts to recover his body speaks volumes about the sort of people they are. Give 'em bloody nothing.
I personally think they were right to not want to recover his body, to me that would be ghoulish and quite disrespectful of the man who died doing what he loved.
@@rogersmith8339👍 do you think rescue divers bringing bodies back to families are wasting their time? Lots of families would disagree and rescue workers all around the world risk their life and limb to fill the families desire.
@@rogersmith8339go watch adventures with purpose. Hundreds of families desperate to recover loved ones.
@@jct4418 There are many different circumstances where recovery of bodies would be appropriate but at the end of the day, it is down to the family. You also have to remember that it was quite likely that his body was torn apart by the impact.
@@rogersmith8339 so it's down to the family, have you heard what they said? I heard they supported the recovery.
IMO The Bluebird Project funded and did all the restoration they should have more rights than the Family and Museum. I think its a bit rich of Gina and the Museum to expect to claim 100% of the project when they've not put 100% into it themselves. With out the Bluebird project team her father's body would not have been recovered nore the bluebird itself brought back into existence. I think the origional deal was the best... 9 months in the Museum 3 months with the team who recovered financed and restored it.
Exactly right, bloody cheek.
If I lost the case I would dump it back where I found it.
It's the same agreement the pendine museum of speed have with Babs, the car is on display most of the year but is taken out for events such as the goodwood revival.
The original deal was for BBP, to recover, rebuild, and prove it worked, then put in the building the RM built at Coniston. BBP have moved the goalposts...
Bluebird project funded it. For the public. Not big head Bill Smith. Ill never forget him riding on the remains of Bluebird as its brought to the surface, seemed so selfish and disrespectful.
If the family never had his body recovered. They deserve nothing. Museum should be grateful for anytime they get to show it and the Bluebird Foundation should get all accolades and money showcasing it to fund its restoration and future recovery projects. It was left to rot. Forgotten 30 years. They all should be grateful for what this Foundation has done. I would be humbled and so Thankful if it had been my Father brought home to me. And honored to be able to see the beauty of what he loved restored and running again. It would bring a part of him back to me. I would be proud.
The family waited 20 years for the restoration to be completed before saying their true intentions of wanting it back? Kind of convenient. If the family came out of the woodwork a couple years into the restoration saying they want it to be put into the museum, then they could've came to some sort of financial agreement of the man building it. How is it far that he puts his money, blood, sweat and tears into it for so long just for it to be taken away? doesn't sit right.
Got to agree with Bill Smith on the whole response to the situation. He found it, he raised it and restored it and should be allowed to run it and the trust to display it between runs.
To be fair i thought the deal to allow Bill to take Bluebird for three months to run it during the unlimited speed limit week was sensible........ problem is the Museum need it to be a static exibit which would require all the fluids etc to be removed from it which would cause damage to the engine. I feel Bill has been turned on by the family tbh, lets not forget he returned Donald Campbell's body to his family and returned Bluebird to running condition without any financial input from the family, but the family were quick to give Bluebird away to a third party who also had no input to the project and are expecting the boat for nothing with no strings attached.
What a project, time ,money and
The fine skills required to make every component for this
Will have been a stressful journey
No dought testing and uncertain
And a great shame a ballance has not been achieved to serve both parties, could a wet shed be available to enable the museum to
Show it for a period and that way
The fluids would be retained.
Or is she not fully water tight
Requiring a bilge pump ?
Dismantle it and throw all the parts back in the lake where they came from and then let them spend their own time and money trying to salvage and restore it.
Many engines in the national railway museum have been run from time to time. That is so much better than putting something on display that could just as easily be a model. An external replica with no parts inside. How about instead of sinking Bluebird we sink the museum at the bottom of the lake instead?
@@BobK5 Who will start the "Dig up Donald" foundation?
The museum wants their cake and be able to eat it. If they want it, then they should pay the cost‘s, simple. The museum would not have been able to do the restoration or even finance it, now they want it for nothing. This sort of thing make‘s me very angry. Apart from Bill and his crew, no one was interested in salvaging the Bluebird let alone restoring it. Now it has been done, the ones who have done the least, want the most. I am with Bluebird project. Screw the museum.
You really dont have a clue who paid for it all do you? Wasnt fat Bill Smith
The cost’s what and the make’s what? You put apostrophes there which means they own something. In the context of what you wrote there are no apostrophes.
@@teeanahera8949 Bloody grammar police! Eff off!
@@teeanahera8949nit picker
@@teeanahera8949 Thankyou teacher.
If the Daughter and the museum want Bluebird then have them pay back every penny and then some to the man who found, brought back, and then restored it, sounds only fair to me.
'OK,' I have an answer. Simply strip it and return it to the lake where it will rest. But build a copy of the Blue Bird. They have the drawings.
That way, the family does not have the Blue Bird, nor does the engineering company. I support Bill for he did take a lot of time turning this engineering machine back to its glory. He remembers did take on apprentices to help with the build. What did the family or Museum do? It was not their money it was not their skills and time. It needs to go around the world so our young engineers can see the machine and discuss how it was built and any problems during the build. Not kept in a museum collecting dust. By doing this it will make money for all.
@@sweeneytod1about a third of the new boat is made up from the original boat
@@Hex___666 sounds about right. The war over who owns it will never end. A replica would have been the answer and give back the scrap.
@@sweeneytod1perhaps you fail to understand the terms "repaired" and "restored"?
Your statement is seriously flawed. Even wrecks can be restored. Look at all the warbirds and armored vehicles being pulled from forests, deserts, bogs, lakes and ocean depths and are being restored to operational condition. Not only to preserve history but to demonstrate it to the living and future generations. Bluebird is not simply repaired it was fully restored to operational condition. No easy feat and I commend those whose time and money, blood , sweat and tears went toward that end. Hopefully contracts were written and clearly spelled out for Bluebird and her future with all the I’s dotted and T’s crossed There should be legal claims to be made. But, if everything was done on a handshake and gentleman’s agreement between the restorers and the museum to display her then it will be a he said, she said , they said situation where there will be only losers and that will include the public who would otherwise never see her run on the lake ever again. And that is very, very sad indeed. Never has there been a civil court settlement where everyone wins.
I hope the preservationists that restored her will prevail. Shame on the museum. If the preservationist win then they should take Bluebird out of the Museum and establish their own display and put her in the water every chance they can. And not just on that piece of water. People around the world would come to see it at boating events even on static display.
@@shelbyseelbach9568
One mustn't crumble 🤗
So what is it ?
Two thirds "remanufactured" and one third restored or repaired ?
Ought not to be in lawyers hands. The museum showed absolutely no interest in salvaging bluebird or they would have set up a private fund. Now it's been recovered and restored, they want to claim it. You couldn't make it up.
So the Family couldn't be bothered to recover his body but as soon as someone else does they want to claim everything, they offered the museum a good deal, the museum did nothing to deserve to have Bluebird.
It's not a question of being bothered. It was Donald's wish that he remained with the boat, and the family complied with that wish. His wife Tonia wanted Donald and Bluebird to remain in the water, and Gina wanted the boat salvaging; I am amazed that there was no legal document agreed before the salvage operation commenced.
The museum should be grateful for having it at anytime, this boat belongs to the restoration team
Bill Smith, put a lot of effort into finding, recovering and restoring Bluebird, on top of that he was instrumental in recovering Donald Campbells body for burial, the campbell family do not appear to be too grateful for this, they waited untill the restoration was complete before taking legal action. It appears they want the best of both worlds.
It wasn't until the restoration was complete that Bill Smith's refusal to return Bluebird was apparent. Until then there was nothing to take action about.
I have a friend who lived within a stone`s throw of Coniston Water and he told me that Donald Campbell`s body was recovered together with his decapitated head (it was still in the helmet), within a few of hours of the accident, but it was kept quiet at the time.
@@MrHeesbeen The helmet was indeed recovered after the accident. I suspect the head was released to rejoin the body out of respect. I don't think the body was recovered at that time. Although the body has now been recovered (and buried ashore) the head has not.
So the museum wants it for free but are they going to charge people to see it.
You bet hey will GRIFTERS
The story of Bluebird and Donald Campbell is inspirational, the story of Bill Smith and The Bluebird projects, discovery and restoration of the craft is also truly inspirational. It should be told, shown and demonstrated to as many people as possible. Not stuck in one building forever.
Once it was complete, the legal battles began.
Of course.
Once the passionate restorers invested their time and energy restoring it now they’re wanting it.
Exactly. .. just think... not only the time, effort and cost, but also the knowledge, craftsmanship, passion, a sense of restoring something so profound etc... but none of that matters apparently..
Spot on
Typical corporate greed.
Once there is cheese on the table then the rats show up !!!
It sat on the bottom of the lake long enough for any other interested party to go look for it and bring it up (family or the museum) but they did not.
I am 100% in agreement with the Bluebird Project on this. The stunning cheek of leaving Bill and his team to bring up the wreckage, recover Sir Donald for his family then to set about an exhaustive and sympathetic restoration of Bluebird….only to try to then compel him to eff off empty-handed at the final stages? Unbelievable. What planet does that entitled jobsworth at the museum think he’s on?
The same planet that entitled jobsworth at the BPP is on. Both sides have egos worthy of world records. Problem is that BPP have spent so long "restoring" it they now can't part with their toy.
The Georgia bloke that found it did it for his own ego. I’m glad it’s settled now and he’s lost the boat that was never actually his.
If they wanted it they should've salvaged it...not wait for somebody else to do it and pay for it then say gimmie.
Too right. They didn't even try to recover Campbell's body from the depths.
That’s the modern way with most things ..somebody else does all the hard work then the ones that did sod all want the end results for nothing ..
Donald Campbell would want it running , not stuck in a museum .
Was thinking the same thing
poeple could have a ride in history ,not as fast but it will be an experience on that lake if they could do that not stuck in a museum
I doubt that as it was the instrument of his demise.
@@patrickkenney1080 And his success over 10 years having broke the record no less than 7 times in K7 .
I like how they waited until he'd fully restored at no cost to them before demanding it back.
They found it, they restored it, it’s theirs.
How much of that is from the original boat? 5 maybe 10% absolute tops? To all intents and purposes it's a 1:1 scale replica.
If that was me then if I lost the legal battle I’dstrip out the original pieces and dump them back in the water.
“An agreement was made between Bill Smith and The Campbell family that the restoration of Bluebird K7 would be a charitable project, using The Ruskin Museum’s status as a registered Charity to raise money from the public via donations, "
Bill is quite right. After all the efforts to rebuild the boat from scrap/ salvage and to get it running again was a remarkable engineering feat. The boat definitely by seen running for the three months. The Ruskin Museum should realise the importance of Bluebird being seen on the water where it becomes “alive”. I was fortunate enough to see bluebird running on Loch Fad and will never forget that day. Seeing it as a dead, static display would not impress me at all.
What Bill and his whole team arms suggesting makes absolute sense to me. Ruskin Museum; back down now!
I was over there ...met Ms Campbell too!
The Blue bird project did the work and bought it back to life then they should have the final say on who and where the boat goes.
What a sad world we live in! R.I.P Donald Cambell!
Exactly it should have been left at the bottom of the lake its was a grave site
@@interceptor-ss8kb 1000% agree. He even said himself the Skipper should stay with the boat if it goes down. Bet he’s turning in his grave now in what BS they causing now on who should have it and what it should be used for etc. They should of left him and the boat at peace at the bottom of the lake, like you said it’s his grave.
Tell that to the Chinese scrappers salvaging British and American navel vessels then dumping any remains back into the sea. Those bastards!
@@dentalnovemberthat’s a little different, it’s in their territory plus Britain and America aren’t exactly allies to them
The question is ask is, would you be okay with us scrapping the vessels of our enemies? If no, then that’s completely understandable. If yes, then there’s a double standard
@Krilium International waters are not Chinese territory! Philippine waters are definitely NOT Chinese territory! Do some research before making assumptions and posting inaccurate information.
A working bluebird is the way to go ….as a Brit that’s my vote ..the project has the right Heart not the museum
I'd rather set it on fire than give it to them.
Why?
@@sallyread1 what right do they have? If he hadn't put the blood sweat and tears Into it no1 would have it. They only wanted it back after it was restored and never helped financially or physically.
Yes and from what they said that was the agreement but like I posted if it wasn’t written in contract then he should be the sole owner for recovering and expense rebuilding it.
@@klashnacovak47 metal dedectorist have the same problem. How can something be underground for over a1000 years and u have to settle for what the government allow you to have? Greedy and disgusting. People are literally in prison cause of it.
@@sallyread1 if the Bluebird trust had not salvaged thd craft and recovered the body of Ginas father dont forget , then everything would still be at the bottom of the Lake, it had slready been there for 30 years !! With not a whisper of recovery ,
I say take the 9/3 deal and be thankful and appreciative to the team that made this all possible !
Its been left to rot since 1967 its clearly been abandoned and he put the time and money in to repair it fairly simple who should win.
So they waited until it was restored…then wanted it back?? Regardless of this so called ‘agreement’ these guys found it, recovered it and restored it.. If the museum want it and a court agrees, the museum have to pay back every penny of the costs to restore it!
Something stinks about this arrangement
They had the decency to recover his body, as well as spending years to restore Bluebird- nobody works for nothing, those parts weren't donated, and now they're expected to just hand it over/ Why not 9 months at the museum and 3 months with Blubird Project? I think that's more than fair.
Absolute robbers, they let these people raise funds and spend their own money snd time restoring it and now they want it back lock stock and barrel? Theivery. If it genuinely runs then of course it should be out on the lake during the summer months.
The grubbers should be thanking them for keeping the history alive and live, and not just a few bits of bent metal in an exhibition room
Bill couldn't even get to run K7 on Coniston as he wanted to. In the end he has to take the boat to Scotland. And now they want a say in the boat's future?
Campbell's own, rich family, couldn't be arsed to recover the craft he died in?
The museum is being disingenuous. Whoever put the money and the graft into the restoration (which wasn’t the museum) gets to decide Bluebird’s future.
Poor Bill Smith, He loves Bluebird, what he has done is amazing, be kind to the man he seems like a lovely man.The 9+3 agreement sounds fair. It's his Bluebird too, he's part of the story.
I remember back in the late 70's at one of my first summer training stints at a power station I spotted a blue 9v torch in the engineering workshop bin and I asked what it was doing there and the guy in charge said it was broken. I asked if I could have it if I fixed it and he said yes why not. So I fixed it and was about to walk out the gate with it that evening and he spotted me and said don't be daft, hide it or the security guys will think you stole it. I hid it and walked out a d that taught me two things, 1. make sure the person you are speaking to has the authority they claim to have and 2. if you fix something you keep it.
No worries, the restorers can simply put it back where and the same condition they found it then? The family can pay to have it salvaged and restored again. All good
I remember seeing a story years ago about a treasure hunter who spent his money and time recovering a sunken treasure worth, I believe, tens of millions of dollars. He was sued by the country of origin and lost. He was ordered to turn over the treasure, but instead went and shoveled all of the treasure out of the bottom of a small boat right back into the ocean. He said if that country wanted it, said country could go get it themselves.
That is disgusting, they put nothing in, and want to steal it.
Something just seems weird about the idea someone would dedicate this time to restore something and expect nothing in return than a hearty handshake, and a mention on piece of A4 paper behind Perspex.
I did a bit of digging and the museum has several of the major pieces of the blue bird from the recovery so the museum essentially has the wrecked boat and they want to take the one he built. This museum is shameful
It was abandoned property. The guy who found it, dragged it up, and restored it, put in all the effort and resources, he is the rightful owner.
In the uk you can be charged with “Theft by finding” it’s against the law to find something and keep it
@@Zombie_LongwingerWith marine it's classed as salvage rights that's why lots of ww2 wargraves ships have been taken and cut up over the years.
Perhaps UK has some strange and unjust laws. It's pretty crazy that after the man puts in all the resources someone else tries to claim ownership. If they want to claim ownership then they should be charged for the recovery and restoration, but that's not what they are trying to do.
@@Zombie_Longwinger
If the family wants bluebird back, they should have recovered & restored it themselves.
If I’d spent 20+ year of my life fixing it… I’d not give it up without a fight either. That’s just the family and the museum wanting their cake and eating it. The original should stand but the Ill feeling this will cause will make that nigh on impossible. Greed, plain & simple.
Strangely emotional with a feeling of overwhelming sadness just hit me…. What is happening to Britain. Seriously, our “three men in a shed” that can fix/invent things ethos of gentlemanly conduct / my word is my bond is just evaporating. The Bluebird was recovered and painstakingly restored by grit, determination and heartache; I guess mostly funded by charitable donations and the blood sweat and tears of the team. They deserve to now reap the rewards ….and have made a pragmatic offer to the museum that will benefit all parties.
Disgraceful antics by this museum. And they have the barefaced effrontery to ask for crowdfunding to support their warped legal action. They should be ashamed of themselves.
there’s a huge difference between putting a machine in a museum state and restoring to fully functional state. this should have been the focus from the beginning. if it’s been restored to running condition… let the public enjoy seeing it run
Any 'claim' on the recovered goods should have been made within days of recovery and preferably months before. It wasn't as if it was recovered in secret.
Surely the fact that the family allowed his body to remain there until it was recovered by a third party indicates their lack of interest in the boat as well?
My answer would be two short words and a hand gesture to the museum. 😁
Typical of the Lake District though, they would love to charge you £20 to see it and £25 to park for 30 mins nearby.
I can actually see both sides of this argument of ownership but, K7 is now a living ,breathing, totally functional piece of history and SHOULD be run and shown to the world. DC was a bona fide British hero and to my mind the greatest ever speed King, both on land and water. This man pushed limits when the only calculations on risk was made on slide rules and with crossed fingers. Let’s keep the memory of both man and boat alive.
What was originally written down in the agreement. If Gina and the museum was that interested in getting bluebird and Donalds body back wht leave it so long then rely on a somebody else to both from the lake.then spend his own money restoring it only to have the museum attempt to get the boat back in a cynical move
i will gladly sign a petition to keep the boat with the people that found it and restored it. screw that disgrace of a daughter. if she was mine i would turn in my grave.
It should be cared for by the Bluebird Project and displayed in the museum, as per the 9, 3 agreement. The museum want sole ownership with no involvement from BBP. Bluebird wouldn't be resored and in its current condition without them. The Museum need to start behaving like mature adults and sit round the table with BBP. Their fighting and inability to negotiate is the problem.
Geez, Donald’s daughter is a dragon, and even looks like a dragon!!!!!
Geez, fancy leaving Donald Campbell’s body in the wreckage. It must have been a deep lake for the wreckage to have taken that long to be found.
I find it astonishing that they left bluebird and Donald at the bottom of the lake ! It’s not the Atlantic Ocean 7 miles deep !
Whoever recovered it should keep it .
🤔 Sooo, they invested a great deal of time and money searching for and recovering the boat. They then spent a lot more money and time restoring it back to its full glory and we are expected to believe they were just going to give it all up to the museum for free?? Sounds like nonsense to me.
publicly funded you mean?
@@Stephen.C. "Publicly funded" tends to be used for things that are paid for by Government. I suspect the Bluebird restoration costs came (largely) from private donations to the Foundation.
@@trooperdgb9722 It's all been charity donations to the project.
@@Stephen.C. Who did the work?
@@Krilium Who paid for it? You think you know so much, but you are wrong.. “An agreement was made between Bill Smith and The Campbell family that the restoration of Bluebird K7 would be a charitable project, using The Ruskin Museum’s status as a registered Charity to raise money from the public via donations, " but dont let the facts ruin your ideas.
Totally agree with the salvage team, they searched the lake for it, found it and Campbell’s body then spent years rebuilding it, I’ll bet it wasn’t cheap as well. Sorry but the museum should cough up or shut up
It was Bluebirds wreckage he found and then salvaged it,he then restored it. If not for him it would still be sitting at the bottom of the Lake .
I would strip it of all the parts that was invested in it and say 'there have it'. The museum was of the understanding the bluebird project would restore it and give it to the museum at no cost to them, unbelievable
Is the Museum Free Entry or are they going to make Profit from Blue Bird. Guess we already know the answer to that one. Send them the Bill for the 20 years restoration and recovering it from the bottom of the Lake. Should be a nice tidy sum around 3 Million to 4 Million in labour costs for 4 engineers working for 20 years, plus Parts, Fabrications, Recovery, Storage for 20 years. Electric, Gas, Insurance, Employment Costs and Profit for etc
I've met Bill and had a chat with him about this subject. He and his team not only found it but they salvaged it, returned Donald to his family and restored, rebuilt and have returned Bluebird to the water... at the projects cost.
Why not let him run it, transport it to shows and keep it in shape? Even now they are working on it to solve issues and improvements.
The issue is the museum
Yes they should display it but it should also be doing what it was meant to do.
If the museum wants it then they should reimburse bill and his team for all the costs they incurred. No way should it be sat on trestles for the rest of its days.
Smiths costs were paid for from public money. Donations etc , Why dont you understand that? Smith has done nicely out of all this.
They did the right thing by recovering your fathers body , be bloody gratful and leave them alone .
If the family or museum wanted it, why didn't they go get the damn thing? It was in a lake with spectators who would have seen where it where it went down, not out in the middle of an ocean and invisible to radar. For that thing to sit so long makes me think they just didn't give a damn until somebody who cared came along and did all the work for them.
Exactly. It's not lost somewhere in the Pacific for Pete's sake! They didnt even bother to give him a burial, they just left him there!!
@@danielbuckner2167 Dang, that was a detail I glossed over. Didn't care about recovering Daddy's BODY, but "Damn it, I WANT THE BLUEBIRD." If that had been my dad, I would have BECOME a diver if that's what it took to recover his body.
Yeah exactly or had it registered as a burial site and protected under penalty of law.@@jasonvoorhees895
The family came out of the woodwork when someone else had recovered the remains and the museum didn’t do Jack to help the restoration so it stays with the team that did the graft end of .
Hopefully a Judge will make the right decision for all concerned. Quite sickening to see the way the people who made it all possible being treated so badly.
i remember watching this on tv at the time its fitting that he was recovered and laid to rest and the boat restored ,i dont understand why the museum is not happy to have it 9 months a year and the boat being used 3 months a year its a part of history and what was the point of restoring it and just parking it the love and respect that has gone into this is enormous and the people who did it are being treated dreadfully
The bastards really.. It belongs to the team that restored it and also recovered Campbells body.
Got to say that Bill Smith is talking the most sense. RM don't seem to have a clue about have privileged we all are that K7 has been brought back from the twisted wreck it was. In an age where engineering skills have mostly been lost, fixing up K7 to the condition she is in today is nothing short of amazing.
Having followed this project since it was raised they man that recovered it owns it. The museum [which I have visited] should be very glad to have it 9 months of the year.
A surprising amount of the boat is original,, the magnesium engine acted as a sacraficial annode saving the rest.
whoever put the money and work in,should keep it
public funded.
ok,gona be complex so.@@Stephen.C.
@@Stephen.C. i.e. the Bluebird trust.
@@Stephen.C. So what? I don't know what mental gymnastics you're doing right now but you are, rightfully, the minority with that opinion.
@@kriswelsh3844 yes, and how did they get the money?
The British law can be an Ass. Finders keepers sounds fair to me, and like so many other comments refer to, he gave the family their father back to rest in peace.
I agree that it should be on the water for special events and somewhere on display for all to see. The engineer has given so much time, passion and dedication to bringing the old bird back to life.
It's his boat. He recovered it, he loved and restored it. If Donald's daughter was that concerned she she should have received her father's remains. The Museum should take the deal or for the restoration and loyalties
It's not his boat. never was.
@@sallyread1salvage rights makes it his boats.
@@peterpann9619 This boat doesn't qualify for salvage rights
Definitely not his. It still belong to the people that funded it originally. And if that was Donald Campbell, then the beneficiaries of his Last Will and Testament own it. If a car, truck or plane crash, ownership is not lost or transferred to the first finder or treasure hunter. It belongs to the insurance company. And on the latter, they might own it if it was insured?
@dave4728 Any thing sunk automatically qualifies it is a marine law.
The Ruskin museum looks very hostile. Their website has loads of published statements and open letters. Bill should be recognised for his hard work.
That should be a slam dunk for the guys who found it and restored it. It would still be a broken hulk at the bottom of the lake otherwise.
First of all, this boat DOES NOT belong to the woman there. Not a single bit. She and the family forfeit her right of anything related to rights the moment they ignored for decades.
I mean, ok, you can let a few years pass, but you didn't take any action, and it took a stranger approaching your family.
Heck, that stranger should not have approached the family, because the family has ZERO rights.
It is an abandoned husk, metal debris.
He did a great job recovering whatever he recovered and as a gesture of faith to give the body to the family.
That is all the family could hope for, but nothing more. They had no rights over it, no rights to charity it away to whatever museum, none.
It was the person that recovered and restored it. He has complete ownership.
Museum for 9 months and used for 3 months - absolutely perfect.
This is the fate of all "agreements" that are not written in stone by lawyers experienced in drawing up contracts and signed by all parties. Im not a lawyer, ive just seen the result of slack contracts or verbal agreements that always go wrong.
At least give the blue bird team some money. Like the feller said below they found the blue bird raised it from the dead and gave the family closure on Donald’s remains. The blue bird team should be reimbursed for their time effort and money if the museum wants the boat. I’m behind the bluebird restoration project.
F the museum!
LET IT FLY AGAIN!!!
Exactly. Upgrade the engine,say a Phantom F4 and she'd be good for 400mph ! It's finding someone like Donald with the 'bottle' he had to pilot the thing ! They don't come around very often !
@@rogernevin7461 Phantom engine wouldnt fit. The Bristol Siddley Orpheus is a tiny engine and barely fit when it was upgraded from the previous Vickers engine.
Not sure that's a good idea!!!!!!!!...... The last time it flew, it killed Donald Campbell.....
They had 30 years to go get it themselves.... Tough luck, they earnt that boat.
The boat should not have been restored, but treasured as it was, and a replica built. Once these things have been over-restored, the genuine article is lost for ever.
Would you prefer it have been preserved at the bottom of the lake?
Agree. In hindsight, it would have been better all round if Blue Bird (once found), had been raised, recovered and then (in that state) preserved. Sir Donald would have been laid to rest and the raised wreckage of Blue Bird, which in itself would have been astonishing to look at, then exhibited in the museum “as is”. The wreckage would have delivered a far more powerful statement about the dangers of what Sir Donald was attempting, rather than a “pristine” rebuild of it?
However, as it was agreed at the time that Blue Bird be rebuilt and then run annually, then that is what should happen....
.....if any such case goes against the restorer and the restorer was myself, then “yes”, I’d be inclined to “restore” the Blue Bird to “as recovered” status and then put those remains back on the bottom of the lake....all a bit “tit for tat” and childish but there you go.....
@@richardbaxter2057 your idea at the end, won me over. Well said.
Fully agree mate. The wreckage as it was, in a well presented museum display with information boards, photographs of Donald Campbell, the story of the accident, etc-with a full-size replica of the Bluebird-would have been a far better idea and a big drawcard for the museum and respect to DC.
@@jct4418 Cheers, chum! Given the Brass Balls required to even give that sort of thing a go, I think that it’s bloody awful that such an uproar should even arise....it’s an affront to everything that (in my mind at least) Sir Donald stood for, possibly even believed in?
Sadly it looks as if “money” is at the roots of this? If Blue Bird can be run, then you and I know that folk will come to see it? Even if you only charged £2 a head, you can guess what a “charity” might just make on a weekend of it, can’t you? I bet Sir Donald is spinning in his box at this but there you go....money ugly, as usual....and it totally detracts from the marvellous job that the restorers have done, which is superlative and something Sir Donald would have applauded?
All the best to you!
The daughter is spouting all the (faux) lines to engender sympathy. Yet did nothing and expects it all to land in her lap. Same for the museum, they want to put their grubby hands on it, having done bugger all.
And they’ll charge people to go and see it.
Take all of your bits off it and give them back the knackered shell 👍
They could just take back what belongs to them and put the original Bluebird back where they found it.
This is just pure greed on the part of Donald Campbell`s family and i doubt he would approve of their actions. The team that found and restored Bluebird should be able to keep it and i doubt the museum would be able to make any money from it now after this.
Its an absolute disgrace that his family and the museum are dishonouring his memory like this.
Thanks for finding my father and his boat now can i have the boat back after all your hard work and at your own expense
The public funded the restoration!
Don't you love our modern way of settling disputes. Some obscure judge, jury, or arbiter that knows only what is presented, will make the final decision regardless who might be harmed by that decision.
I also heard that the boat might be shown on a display trailer at events elsewhere in the country which would have been good for people who couldn't travel to Coniston and potentially raised funds to look after it.
Those that payed for and worked on it should have the final say.
It should be in a museum. It is basically a casket and needs to be honored.
Typical hypocritical behaviour of these people. Campbell rotting away at the bottom of Coniston water for 30 years without a bye or leave and this Geordie takes the initiative to do something to preserve Campbell’s legacy for the future and he’s threatened with legal action for his troubles.
I'm on Mr Smith's side on this. I've always been a fan of Donald Campbell and his LSR and WSR . As a kid I saw K7 crash and disappear into Conistons depths and as an adult whenever I'm visiting the area, I always visit the great man's grave.
Mr Smith found and retrieved K7 and also recovered Donald Campbell years later. Then his team rebuilt her and ran her too. Now That's a very expensive bit of work that he and some other people paid for. Thank You.
I would like to know just how much the Ruskin Museum paid for the recovery of K7??.
Personally I think Mr Smith is being very fair by saying that K7 can be returned to Coniston, provided that he can take her out and run her.
Just my thoughts on the matter.
So they waited till it was completed 😂
So she wants the Bluebird back, so she should have paid for the cost of recovery of her father & the boat.
This clearly falls under the landmark case of 'Finders Vs Keepers'..... 😂
Donald Cambell is a true hero. I like to think he reached his objective as things went wrong.
I would love to visit (and perhaps lightly touch) Bluebird...but more than that, I desperately want to see Bluebird being used.
Thank you Bill for rebuilding her.