Flying home to France after a week in London on business, I was treated to lovely views of the Solent. It made me so homesick that I just had to look up the latest videos by the ‘Daves’ on Lee Shores, Lazy Jacks and Lunches. And there they are: back from their pandemic hiatus in better form than ever.

Lee Shores… follows the adventures of two self-described ‘old yachtmasters’ as they exercise their tidal pilotage skills by sailing each other’s boats (a Beneteau Oceanis 36CC and an Elan 333) from Beaulieu to various pubs around the Solent (and very occasionally beyond).

I asked my other half if it would be fair to describe them as fair weather sailors, but he couldn’t recall having seen much sailing at all.

To be fair, he’s not seen episode 35, in which the ‘nipper’ convinces the old salts to hoist the flappy things and a subsequent episode shows them having occasion to tack, not once, but twice!

Jibes are all of the good-natured insult variety… normally to do with the Daves’ differing standards of boat maintenance, navigation, provisioning or cooking. There is a strong ‘Odd Couple’ dynamic which is entertaining.

A number of their regular commenters, while never shown on screen, have developed into recurring characters: Foul Weather Andy, Gary in Japan, Fiona the Marco Island Siren.

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There may be nothing new under the sun, but happily it’s still fun to see younger generations rediscover old things…

In fact, the Daves’ failed attempt to meet up with one in the flesh nearly gets them beaten up. It turns out that some strangers don’t take kindly when asked if they answer to ‘Fat Tommo’.

Lee Shores, Lazy Jacks and Lunches is the antithesis of Sailing La Vagabonde, and they are very unlikely to set up an online merchandise shop, which is a pity, as it’s probably the one I’d most likely buy from!

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This feature appeared in the December 2021 edition of Practical Boat Owner. For more articles like this, including DIY, money-saving advice, great boat projects, expert tips and ways to improve your boat’s performance, take out a magazine subscription to Britain’s best-selling boating magazine.

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