Our Builders

Young Michael Webb

Born so long ago that it is not really significant. Started working life as an apprentice shipwright at the age of 15 in a Tyneside shipyard. To avoid the army went to sea as an apprentice in the British Merchant Navy and subsequently served as a navigating officer for ten years. The demands of a growing family made seafaring less attractive and he came ashore to a variety of jobs to support the family while looking for an opportunity in his trade.

After a number of years in which he built several boats in the back yard and developed a range of inflatable tenders, started "Wootton Industries" to exploit a contact made in the petroleum industriy. The company grew steadily for fifteen years making a range of sea pollution control equipment and producing special workboats to handle it. This side of the business was sold and Wootton Bridge Industries retained only the boatbuilding .

Master Boat-Builder Michael Webb

Following a natural inclination to build in timber rather than plastic and aluminium he is responsible for the design of our range of dinghies and the lofting and development of the replicas that we build. Will probably drop dead on the job or simply fade away in the corner of the shop un-noticed.

Peter Webb

Right hand man in the boatshop. Peter came to boatbuilding via various jobs that he found either boring or too indoor. Started a full apprenticeship at 18 and progressed through journeyman to time served boatbuilder. He is the companies' expert on clinker planking which he does better than anybody else, combining speed with the meticulous attention to detail which is required by this the most demanding of boatbuilding skills.

Once started on a hull he tunes in and cannot be destracted to do anything else without getting very grumpy. Also a great man for teak laid decks which can be just as fiddly.

Carol Taylor

Long time secretary to the company she combines the secretarial chores with the wages and the bought ledger. She is also busy supplying the company with its next generation of employees. How she manages to cope with it all and still look like a teenager is something of a mystery.