England

A three masted ship, similar to WA08 which sank in the Thames Estuary, Essex in the mid-to-late 19th century, is docked at the busy Southampton Docks, with other sailing vessels visible in the background. Date: 1878

Two Mystery Merchant Shipwrecks Now Protected

The two wooden cargo vessels, known as GAD23 off Goodwin Sands in Kent and WA08 in the Thames Estuary in Essex, have been protected by scheduling. This means recreational divers can dive them but their contents are protected by law and must remain in situ.

Fourth Element states it creates "products that perform in the world's most extreme environments"

Fourth Element is recruiting!

The candidate would join the current Marketing Team to help expand and develop the company’s online capabilities to support their continued growth.

We create products that perform in the world’s most extreme environments as well as working to minimise our impact on the planet and our oceans. — Fourth Element

Kraken have teamed up with champion freediver Beci Ryan and Project AWARE, to launch the first in a new series of "deep-sea inspired" limited editions rums

Kraken to launch 'Unknown Deep' Rum this October

Kraken UK are collaborating with competitive freediver Beci Ryan, because the drinks company has announced that it is opening its first underwater ‘Dive Thru'.

Beci Ryan has been tasked to freedive the depths of the National Diving & Activity Centre in Chepstow, to salvage bottles from a treasure chest full of 'Unknown Deep' rum.

Project AWARE

There is an additional twist to this product launch—Project AWARE has teamed up with Kraken UK, and that's good news. The ocean conservation charity that encourages scuba divers to litter pick underwater and remove marine trash, has confirmed that a £1 from the sale of every bottle of 'Unknown Deep' will be donated to Project AWARE. Whilst this is a new initiative, it is not a new concept. Over the years, Project AWARE has teamed up with various non-diving partners to help raise funds and awareness about marine debris.

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Distinctive Bottle

Alcoholic drinks bottles tend to fall into two camps. There is the straightforward, plain bottle. A practical ordinary vessel that holds the liquid, and does not excite or thrill you. Then there is the limited edition, exclusive, collectible bottle that catches your eye because it is so attractive. Some bottles are modern and funky, and some take their inspiration from historic flasks.

Kraken Rum

 

A freediver went to sea sea sea⁠
To see what she could see see see⁠
But all that she could see see see was bottles of rum in the deep blue ... quarry

Diving Then and Now: The Wookey Hole Caves—Birthplace of Cave Diving

Penelope Powell and Graham Balcombe kitted up in Wookey Hole Cave for the first ever cave dive in 1935. Historical photo courtesy of Mendip Cave Registry and Archive Cave Diving Group.
Penelope Powell and Graham Balcombe kitted up in Wookey Hole Cave for the first ever cave dive in 1935. Historical photo courtesy of Mendip Cave Registry and Archive Cave Diving Group.

The beginnings of cave diving can be traced to the Wookey Hole Caves in England. And 85 years later, divers like Matt Jevon are still doing their part to discover this cavern’s full potential.

Weymouth's attractive and historic sheltered harbour is an destination for UK divers because it offers access to a huge range of wreck diving.

Weymouth charter boat industry on the brink of collapse

Berthing Fees Issue

It is standard operating practice for harbours to charge harbour dues and mooring fees. The monies raised are used to cover the cost of managing and looking after the infrastructure of the harbour.

Simply Scuba won Diver Magazine's 'Retailer of the Year' ten years running, from 2009 to 2018
Simply Scuba won Diver Magazine's 'Retailer of the Year' ten years running, from 2009 to 2018

Simply Scuba Goes Into Administration

In the mid 90's Gerrard Dennis attended a DEMA seminar where it was stated the future of diving was online. Shortly afterwards in 1995 Dennis founded 'Simply Scuba'. Simply Scuba was either the first, or one of the very first internet-based scuba equipment retail businesses in the UK.

Simply Scuba, Gerrard Dennis, Joanne Dennis,

When Simply Scuba was launched in 1995, its original logo featured a shark wearing sun glasses

NOC hosts Marine Plastic Pollution Talk

On 10 May 2018 David Jones will be talking on "Marine Plastic Pollution: How did we get here and what can we do about it?"

Plastic pollution is undoubtedly one of the biggest environmental issues we face at the moment. Plastic has only been in our lives for around seventy years, so how did we get to where we are, what went wrong? More importantly, what can we do about it?" David Jones.