The Port of London’s Deputy Harbour Master is about to become Falmouth’s ‘Harbour Master Designate’, shadowing the current HM Duncan Paul until his retirement early in 2024, and joining the team in the run up to Falmouth’s busiest ever season of events on and beside the water.
Miles Featherstone will be bringing his wide-ranging experience and qualifications over a decade on the management of 95 miles of the Tidal Thames – and actively enhancing Falmouth Harbour’s vision to make the Cornish Port “The UK’s best to invest in, live beside or visit.”
Miles will join Falmouth Harbour on the 5th June and hit the ground running in his new role, with a blockbuster season of events which will draw many thousands of visitors to the Harbour.
Highlights include the ever-popular Shanty Festival from June 16 – 18, the national Armed Forces Day on June 24, a rare return for the world’s Tall Ships Festival and Race from 15 – 19 August and Falmouth’s famous Oyster Festival from October 12 – 15. Commercially the Harbour will welcome almost 50 cruise ship visit in 2023 and Miles will start the preparations for the arrival of our new £1.6m Pilot Boat in May 2024.
Interspersed are major regattas including the Azores and Back (AZAB) Race, the prestigious, inaugural Richard Mille Cup for classic superyachts, Falmouth Classics, International Shrimper Week, the Scheveningen50 Dutch Regatta, Powerboat racing and Falmouth Sailing Week.
Falmouth Harbour CEO Miles Carden says, “We are excited to be building our team during such a monumental season on the water. The safety of our harbour users visitors and community underpins everything we do and Miles will be an instrumental part of the team in all of this. It is an incredibly exciting time for our Harbour as we look to the horizon for new commercial opportunities.”
During his time working on the Tidal Thames Miles Featherstone rose from Marine Trainee to Deputy Harbour Master in just ten years – with major events falling under his management through the Port of London Authority including the Oxford & Cambridge Boat Race, the Thames New Year’s Eve Fireworks, The Great River Race and the Clipper Round the World Yacht Race Start amongst others.
He sees his new role in Falmouth Harbour as representing an extraordinary opportunity in the next stage of his career: “With family links to Devon I’ve always had a great fondness for the Westcountry and I cannot wait to build a new life and career in one of the UK’s most important and beautiful ports.
“Falmouth Harbour has a truly vibrant and forward-thinking team and it is an exciting time to be joining them in managing such an enormous year of events.”
To find out more about the work of Falmouth Harbour, Falmouth Haven and Falmouth Pilot Services, along with details of events through the 2023 season, visit www.falmouthharbour.co.uk
