Name Ethel von Brixham

Built in 1890 in Brixham at the shipyard of J & W Upham, originally as LILY & ETHEL.  She fished from Lowestoft in the North Sea fisheries for her first two years.  In 1906 she went to Sweden, and was subsequently used as a fishing vessel in Bohuslan, Norway, until 1927, when bought by the Sævlandsvik Partrederi in Kopervik, Norway and renamed SALVØY.  She fished from Norway for several decades. 

By 1981 she was in Germany, being converted by then owners Eckhard Clemens and Annette Pipahl from a motor vessel to an oceangoing staysail schooner.  She was registered in Kiel, Germany, from 1986-2024, and sailed the Baltic, used for weekend trips, week-long voyages, and day trips.  In 2011 the rig was changed to be more like the original Brixham trawler.  The high-rigged mainsail was retained, the fisherman and staysail (both between the masts) were replaced by a gaff sail, and the jib was made smaller and designed as a boom jib.

In 1997, ETHEL appeared on screen in the German language film adaptation of the Gunter Grass novel The Rat, and latterly in the Guy Ritchie film The Ministry of Ungentlemanly Warfare (2024). 

After her German safety certificate expired in September 2024, she was put up for sale as her German owners could not afford the costs of refitting her to new safety regulations. She was sold in summer 2025 and then again in November 2025, to a British owner who planned to return her to the UK for a full restoration. However, in January 2026, ETHEL was reported to have run aground off some rocks near the port of Cuxhaven, with her crew having to be rescued. She subsequently broke in two during the salvage operation in February, and was disposed. 

Although this vessel has been disposed, we are seeking further information about this historic vessel. If you have any details past or present, please contact us.