Captain Simon Smith

Simon grew up in the Lake District where he acquired a taste for the outdoor life and from a very young age began working at the local chandlers and boat yard, learning sailing as a trade and being inspired by those who have now become his closest friends.  After graduating with a BSc in Medical Biochemistry at Manchester University, Simon pursued his sailing as a career and moved to the south coast of the UK where he gained his YachtMaster Ocean qualification.  He raced on yachts in the Solent with high level professionals achieving excellent results, including many podium finishes both as a skipper and crew.  2009 brought opportunities to work abroad in Germany, France and the Baltic.  It was here that a dormant passion for old wooden boats was reignited as he took the reins of a 20m 98yr old wooden ketch  SY Orm.

Simon was thrilled to receive the call to make him Skipper aboard Halcyon for the 2010 season and is looking forward to working to make this season both an enjoyable and prosperous one for both the crew and charter guests. 

Chef Amanda Drewery

Amanda grew up in the hospitality industry on the Isle of Wight. Starting from a very young age she worked in the family run hotel in Shanklin and learnt valuable hospitality skills before moving to London at the age of twenty four. From here she went on to work at various high profile restaurants such as the IVY and the The Diamond Club, the  Raymond Blanc exclusive members restaurant at ARSENAL Football Club.
She has always had a love of sailing and has raced many a Cowes week plus has she been  fortunate to have raced Antigua Sailing week 2009 and the ARC 2008.  She is also a trained Sports Therapist/ masseuse  so after a long day of sailing you may even be lucky enough to get a massage to relieve those aching limbs whilst sipping your sundowner Gin and Tonic! Amanda has recently completed an 18 month trip on a busy live aboard yacht as a chef/hostess as it completed two transatlantic passages and  busy Caribbean and  Mediterranean season so she certainly knows how to victual a yacht for long trips!  She is really looking forward to cruising the UK where fresh provisions are more readily available and is very excited about the challenges of delivering the fine cuisine that is a mark of a Halcyon cruise.  She looks forward to welcoming  you aboard Halcyon and making your stay so enjoyable that the memories will last a lifetime.

Ships Photographer

Roger Paice

Roger Paice is our "official" photographer and we try to get him to shoot us wherever he can. He is a marine engineer by trade and a photographer by instinct. He will work to capture Halcyon in all her glory and often goes for the most atmospheric of shots. He loves to observe the working of the ship and shoots us at a variety of angles.

We do try to feed him well of course. He has his own photography business trading under the name of Image Paice where he specialises in Classic ships and commercial marine photography in his home waters around Milford Haven. His website is definitely worth a visit. www.imagepaice.com