What the heck is a lek?
Males great bustards perform spectacular courtship displays, gathering at a ‘lek’ or small display ground to try to impress the females.
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Rugged, reliable, and relatively affordable this two-stoke outboard motor from 1947 was one of hundreds of thousands made in Poole by British Seagull and attained cult status in ports and harbours all around the world.
The British Seagull outboard began its life on a drawing board at the Sunbeam Motors factory in Wolverhampton, about as far from the sea as you can get! The brainchild of engineers John Way-Hop and Bill Pinniger, they eventually managed to buy the rights to their design and moved production to Poole in 1938 changing the name to the universal ‘British Seagull’.
They initially marketed their two stroke, single cylinder motor as ‘The Best Outboard Motor in the World’ but later changed to the slightly less bombastic ‘The Best Outboard Motor for the World’. The target market had been fishers who needed a capable engine for their wooden coastal boats, but after the Second World War there was an explosion in recreational marine pastimes and with dinghies, tenders and many other small boats needing power, the reliable and affordable Seagull was many peoples go to choice.
It was extremely popular, selling 80,000 units a year in the 1960s and 1970s and branching out into a range of different models. They became renowned for their simplicity, Way-Hope had removed the reverse gear from the design claiming you didn’t need it if you handled your boat properly, and their reliability. Stories abound of Seagull engines being passed down three generations.
Although British Seagull closed its doors in 1996 as outboards became quieter and emissions regulations got stricter there is still a passionate community of enthusiasts keeping the flame this iconic Poole export alive, giving advice on repairs, sourcing spare parts and preserving as many different models as they can get their hands on.
Visit Saving Old Seagulls for the ultimate resource for anyone with an interest in British Seagulls.
Males great bustards perform spectacular courtship displays, gathering at a ‘lek’ or small display ground to try to impress the females.
The great bustard has a dignified slow walk but tends to run when disturbed, rather than fly.
The hen-bird on display at The Salisbury Museum was one of the last great bustards to be eaten in the town!