RNLI 200 Voices

90. Lifeboat Lady: Betty Broocks

The lady with RNLI blood in her veins – Rye fundraiser Betty Broocks on why she devoted 55 years to the charity  
15 November marks the anniversary of the 1928 Rye Harbour lifeboat tragedy, in which the 17-strong crew of the Mary Stanford lifeboat drowned. A memorial service in honour of the crew takes place every year – the church packed with people, with more spilling outside.  
200 Voices hears from Betty Broocks, 91, who lost family members in the tragedy. She was born just 3 years later, and the legacy of that loss drove Betty to become not simply a fundraiser, but now officially the RNLI’s President of all the Fundraisers. Betty is also the founder of the Lifeboat Ladies – a group of crew’s wives dedicated to saving lives at sea.  
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200
 

89. The Shape of Courage: Sam Holland

How do you design a memorial that symbolises 200 years of sacrifice? Sculptor Sam Holland shares the inspiration for her beacon of hope
There are numerous local memorials that pay tribute to those who have lost their lives at sea in the cause of saving others. But until 2009, there was no single memorial.
The brief for the RNLI Memorial sculpture in Poole stated that it should celebrate those both lost and saved, along with those who go to the rescue. Sam Holland - the sculptor behind the memorial - reveals the idea behind her design.
Beneath Sam’s sculpture are the names of over 800 volunteers lost since the early 1800s. New names are still coming to light, and being added. In most cases, those listed saved the lives of others before losing their own. The names are exposed yet resistant to the elements, much like the lifeboat crews who venture out, knowing that ‘With courage, nothing is impossible’.
See the list of those remembered, or visit the page using the link below:
https://rnli.org/about-us/our-history/rnli-memorial/names
 
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

88. Saved from the Deep at 11: Howard Goddard

40 years on from the helicopter crash in which he lost his family, Howard Goddard remembers the man who helped save six lives, including his own
In 1983, 11-year-old Howard Goddard lost his entire family when, in thick fog, the helicopter they were flying in crashed into the sea off the Scilly Isles. Howard reveals how he and five others survived the crash, how the St. Mary’s RNLI lifeboat crew found them, and what the RNLI means to him and his two sons.
Matt Lethbridge, the highly decorated coxswain of the lifeboat that day, sadly passed away in 2010. After the crash, Matt gave Howard a special gift. 40 years on from the tragedy, it’s the first thing Howard sees when he gets up each new day.
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by the RNLI's Darren Crew
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

87. Connor Freeman: Losing My Best Friend

Connor Freeman remembers Tyler Westlake
When the sea started to get choppy while Tyler Westlake and his two friends were fishing, they decided to move to a better spot. But before they had the chance to, out of nowhere, a huge wave crashed on top of them. Tyler’s friends managed to stay on the rocks. But when they looked around, Tyler was gone.
RNLI crews did everything they could to find Tyler. But after a 2-day search, Tyler’s best friend, Connor Freeman, received the heartbreaking news that no friend should ever have to hear.
In this episode, Connor tells the devastating story of how he lost his best pal to the sea. But he also explains how Tyler’s story has given him a newfound appreciation for selfless RNLI volunteers.
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

86. For Pop: Dennis Lendrem

In 1942, a quirk of fate helped Dennis Lendrem survive a torpedo attack that his two friends did not. 81 years on, his son reveals how he reunited Dennis, Jack and Jock
When, during the Second World War, the call of nature led Able Seaman Dennis Lendrem to the upper deck of HMS Medway, it turned out to be a moment of chance that would save his life. After two torpedoes hit, the order was given to abandon ship. Dennis jumped into the water, but survived. His two friends – ‘Jack’ and ‘Jock’ – did not.
After Dennis died in 2003, his ashes were scattered at sea by RNLI Hartlepool. In the year that Dennis would have turned 100, hear why Dennis’s son – also called Dennis – decided to add ‘Pop’s’ name to a lifeboat as part of the RNLI’s Launch a Memory campaign. And learn how it has brought families, united by the same tragedy, together.
Learn more about the RNLI's extraordinary efforts in the Second World War in a special episode of Saving Lives at Sea, presented by Dermot O'Leary. Search Series 9: Episode 1 on BBC iPlayer or visit https://tinyurl.com/4cryn54u
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

85. Home from the Sea: Phil Coulter

Acclaimed musician Phil Coulter on the writing of an RNLI anthem
When his brother tragically drowned while windsurfing in Lough Swilly, Ireland, in 1984, musician Phil Coulter was determined to make a change. He was instrumental in the setting up of Lough Swilly Lifeboat Station. And through raising funds and spreading awareness of the devastating drowning tragedies that had happened at the lough – tragedies that also included his sister – the station opened 3 years later.
In 1989, Phil wrote his song ‘Home from the Sea’ – which has become a much-loved RNLI anthem. In this episode, Phil shares his inspiration for it, along with his thoughts about RNLI crews both past and present.
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

84. Longhope Legacy: Kevin Kirkpatrick

Kevin Kirkpatrick’s family have been volunteering at Longhope RNLI for 150 years. How does he feel about his daughter carrying on the tradition?
2024 won’t just be a big year for the RNLI – it’ll be a big year for Longhope Lifeboat Station too, as it reaches its 150th ‘birthday’. In all that time, a member of the Kirkpatrick family has been among the crew.
For former Longhope Coxswain Kevin Kirkpatrick, the RNLI has been a huge part of his life ever since he started volunteering in his early twenties. Today, his daughter is keeping the tradition going.
As well as speaking about the emotions that this stirs up, Kevin relives some of his most memorable rescues. He also reveals that the sense of togetherness that was formed after the disaster in 1969 - in which all eight lifeboat crew members were lost - is still felt in the community to this day.
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

83. Destination Whitby: Neil Williamson

Not all museums are musty and dusty. Since its renovation, Whitby Lifeboat Museum has been drawing a crowd. Its curator tells us why
In the first year after its renovation, Whitby Lifeboat Museum saw over 20,000 visitors. New audiences have been drawn by visual and interactive storytelling as well as painstakingly restored artefacts.
Museum Curator Neil Williamson reveals his three favourite exhibits, including a suitcase that belonged to Mary Roberts, a survivor of the Titanic. It wouldn’t be the only disaster that Mary and her suitcase would survive...
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200
 

82. Cold and Alone: Sheena Thompson

When winds pushed paddleboarder Sheena Thompson further and further out to sea, she shouted to her husband, who was on shore. Worryingly, he couldn’t hear her cries for help
While at the beach near Wick in Scotland, Sheena Thompson took her new paddleboard into the water, with the intention of staying in for just a few minutes. But the wind was much stronger than she anticipated, and she quickly started drifting out to sea. With no lifejacket or mobile phone, and too far out for her husband to hear her shouting for help, Sheena was in trouble.
Hear Sheena relive the terrifying moment when she lost control of her paddleboard. She also shares important guidance for staying safe on a paddleboard – things she wishes she had known before heading out that day.
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by James Dwyer
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200

81. Then and Now: Michael Vlasto

In 200 years, the RNLI has seen many changes. We hear from the man who played a key role in transforming it into the organisation we know today
From launching the concept of prevention to pushing for cutting-edge technology, Michael Vlasto OBE made his mark on the RNLI during his 38-year career, which included 16 years as Operations Director.
In this episode, Michael reflects on how the organisation evolved under his watch – a period that would see the introduction of the charity’s lifeguard service, hovercrafts, and lifeboats on the Thames.
During this time, the RNLI would go from being a European lifeboats service to an international lifesaving organisation.
200 Voices is produced by Adventurous Audio for the RNLI
Interview by Adventurous Audio
Soundtrack composed and performed by Jon Nicholls
The RNLI is a charity celebrating 200 years of saving lives at sea - find out more at RNLI.org/200