Mark Lochrin Edwards (born August 1954) is an English traditional boatbuilder based at

Richmond Bridge Richmond most often refers to: * Richmond, Virginia, the capital of Virginia, United States * Richmond, London, a part of London * Richmond, North Yorkshire, a town in England * Richmond, British Columbia, a city in Canada * Richmond, California ...

in Richmond, London, England. He has constructed several significant reproductions of vintage boats and built the Royal barge ''Gloriana'', the lead ship in the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant in June 2012. Edwards has built and maintained a variety of watercraft over the years including Thames skiffs, punts, shallops,

cutter Cutter may refer to: Tools * Bolt cutter * Box cutter, aka Stanley knife, a form of utility knife * Cigar cutter * Cookie cutter * Glass cutter * Meat cutter * Milling cutter * Paper cutter * Side cutter * Cutter, a type of hydraulic rescue to ...

s, and wherries.''British Rowing Almanack'' 2004 However, he is noted for four particular builds:

Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant - Royal Barge Gloriana

*In 2002 he built an eight-oared shallop, ''The Jubilant'', to celebrate the Golden Jubilee of Elizabeth II. *In 2002 he built a wooden

submarine A submarine (or sub) is a watercraft capable of independent operation underwater. It differs from a submersible, which has more limited underwater capability. The term is also sometimes used historically or colloquially to refer to remotely op ...

based on the original 17th-century version by

Cornelius Jacobszoon Drebbel Cornelis Jacobszoon Drebbel ( ) (1572 – 7 November 1633) was a Dutch engineer and inventor. He was the builder of the first operational submarine in 1620 and an innovator who contributed to the development of measurement and control systems, op ...

. This was shown in the BBC TV programme ''Building the Impossible'' in November 2002. It was successfully tested under water with two rowers at Dorney Lake in

Buckinghamshire Buckinghamshire (), abbreviated Bucks, is a ceremonial county in South East England that borders Greater London to the south-east, Berkshire to the south, Oxfordshire to the west, Northamptonshire to the north, Bedfordshire to the north-ea ...

. Legal considerations prevented its use on the River Thames itself. *In 2004 he built two replicas of the original boats used in the 1829 Boat Race. These were raced by former members of Oxford and Cambridge crews over the original course at

Henley Henley may refer to: Places United Kingdom * Henley, Dorset, a location * Henley, Gloucestershire, a location * Henley-on-Thames, a town in South Oxfordshire, England ** Henley (UK Parliament constituency) ** Henley Rural District, a former ru ...

and prior to the 2004 Boat Race from Putney. *In 2011 and 2012 he built the ''Gloriana'', a rowing barge powered by 18 oarsmen as the lead ship in the Thames Diamond Jubilee Pageant. Edwards was appointed a Member of the Order of the British Empire (MBE) in the

2013 Birthday Honours The 2013 Birthday Honours were appointments by some of the 16 Commonwealth realms of Queen Elizabeth II to various orders and honours to reward and highlight good works by citizens of those countries. The Birthday Honours are awarded as part of ...

for services to boatbuilding, heritage and the Diamond Jubilee.

References

{{DEFAULTSORT:Edwards, Mark 1954 births Living people The Boat Race British boat builders Members of the Order of the British Empire People from Cornwall Richmond, London Submarine designers