A rare 1950s speedboat with a New Zealand connection at its mechanical heart has returned to the Cotswolds lake where it first caused a sensation, more than 65 years after Donald Campbell drove one across a sandbank and into the history books.
On 5 June 2026, a Dowty Turbocraft named Rowdy Dowty powered off from Lake 16 at South Cerney, the same stretch of water where Campbell trialled the craft in the late 1950s.
The boat represents a cross-Pacific collaboration that was unusual for its era. The hull and mould for the UK-built Turbocraft were the work of British designer Fred Cooper, while the water-jet propulsion technology came from New Zealand inventor Sir William Hamilton. Hamilton had developed the concept in response to the shallow, gravel-strewn rivers around his Irishman Creek Station in Central Otago, and his early prototypes, though modest in speed, demonstrated the viability of the approach.
The Turbocraft was launched to the press at the 1959 London Boat Show, with Campbell’s involvement generating considerable publicity for the Dowty Group, which was better known for manufacturing aircraft components. As described by Dowty Heritage in their event summary, Campbell famously drove a Turbocraft flat out across a sandbank separating two of the South Cerney lakes at the craft’s press debut, becoming fully airborne before landing safely on the other side. Jackie Heywood, daughter of former Dowty CEO Sir Robert Hunt, told the BBC her sister had witnessed that stunt firsthand: “She always remembered it,” Heywood said, describing Campbell as “a very wild character.”
Old Speed Boats describe the Turbocraft’s specifications as impressive for its time: a 14-foot-6-inch hull powered by a marinised Ford Zephyr straight-six, with a two-stage Hamilton Chinook jet unit, a top speed of 35mph, and seating for five. Restoring one is no small undertaking.
The exact number of boats produced is unknown, though it is believed to be fewer than 3,000. Each sold for around £790 at the time, equivalent to roughly £23,000 today. The business closed in 1966. Surviving examples do occasionally surface at auction, with auctioneers Brightwells among those to have listed them for sale.
The event at South Cerney served as a reminder that some engineering ideas outlast the companies that created them. A propulsion system conceived for navigating Central Otago rivers ended up on the Thames. That it still draws a small crowd to a Gloucestershire lake in 2026 is a measure of how well it was originally conceived.
Learn more about Donald Campbell and Rowdy Dowty.
