Our August Speaker-Nigel MacKnight

Today, at our first meeting with a speaker since March 2020, we welcomed Nigel MacKnight, a successful technical author.

Coming from ordinary back ground, Nigel found an aptitude for writing technical books in layman’s speak about anything that moved –  rockets, spacecraft, aircraft, formula 1 and so on, and made a successful career from it.  Starting by writing short articles for aircraft magazines as a teenager helped him obtain a press pass enabling access behind the scenes to meet and interview all the sporting greats as well as some well-known showbiz personalities and to fly with the Red Arrows. All this was done without realising, until a few years ago, that he had Dyslexia.

Nigel’s determination and ambition pushed him through any difficulties he had with his writing and these days he brings the same attitude to challenges by leading a team striving to bring the water speed record back to Britain inspired by his hero, Donald Campbell. His new boat ‘Quicksilver’ is currently being built after 20 years of designing and modifying, initially with the help of one of the original Bluebird designers  Ken Norris.

Nigel gave us an interesting presentation not only of his background, but of the progress and testing of the scale model of the boat, and invited members to speak to him about helping to support the project which is run mainly by volunteers and goodwill from universities, engineering and marine experts and the MOD.

If you missed this talk, you will never know why Red Arrows pilots have piles!