11 DAYS OF LONDONERS: Day 10 – Nick English, co-founder of Bremont Watches
Time+TideEditor’s note: A few months back, we announced that former Editor of GQ Australia, Mike Christensen, was to be our first European Editor. In this series, ‘11 Days of Londoners’, Mike will be sharing the stories of a few notable local collectors, starting on Day 1 with King Nerd, and with a stellar lineup still to come. Lastly, you might ask, why 11 days? That, friends, will become clearer over time …
There may be British watch brands with a richer heritage, but none has claimed the attention and respect of the watch world quite like Bremont. In the space of just 12 years, brothers Giles and Nick English have become the movers and shakers of British watchmaking and even inspired many others to follow suit. Here, Nick reflects on his own special relationship with watches that would go on to shape his working life.
The story behind the watch you are wearing today
It’s based on an event that happened in Giles’ and my life just over 25 years ago. Our father used to own an ex-RAF Battle of Britain Memorial flight Mark XIX Spitfire. After his passing in 1995, this remarkable Spitfire, which had been in continuous RAF service since 1944 when our father purchased it, was sold by the family to Rolls-Royce Aerospace. From that day on we kept in contact with the aircraft’s new owners and were very comfortable indeed with the knowledge that the Spitfire had found a perfect new home. Rolls-Royce is arguably the pinnacle of aerospace engineering and, having originally made the Griffon engine (powering this Spitfire), would be able to maintain this WW2 aircraft with all of the passion one would expect.
For some time now, Rolls-Royce has known that a significant part of the future of aviation will be focused around electric flight. Being one of the largest aircraft engine manufacturers in the world, Rolls-Royce want to show the industry where part of its mindset is focused. The decision was therefore made a couple of years ago to beat the world speed record for electric flight. The speed attempt will happen next year in a heavily modified Reno Air-Race airframe, and Bremont was called upon to not only be the Official Timing Partner, but also help manufacture some of the more traditional instrumentation in the cockpit, in the form of a stopwatch, and part of the emergency canopy release mechanism, at our machining centre in Henley-on-Thames, Oxfordshire.
As part of the project, Bremont has also manufactured a new very lightweight 42mm titanium GMT chronometer called the ‘ionBird’, which is a play on the name ‘Iron Bird’ given to engine-testing platforms on new aircraft. It has an off-set crown at four o’clock, an open caseback showing the beautifully finished movement, and some stunning bronze hands that contrast with the matt-black dial beautifully. It is such a lovely watch to wear – it sits on the wrist beautifully.
I love watches so much because …
I think, like most men, I love gadgets, but my close tie to watches comes from a real appreciation and fascination for precision and all things mechanical. They are little miracles sitting on our wrists, beating with their tiny hearts over 86,400 seconds a day without a single battery in sight – how special is that? They will also very much outlast me if they are looked after, which I think is wonderful. We are mere custodians of each watch we wear.
Other watches in my collection
I obviously have a few Bremont watches, but I am not a watch snob. As long as it is mechanical, if it holds a story then it is one to hang on to. I have a few of my father’s and grandfather’s old watches. My father won a watch in an RAF competition in the 1960s which is still with us. There’s another watch he wore when he took us away from school and we went sailing in the 1980s. Or indeed, the watch my grandfather wore when he was involved in the pioneering heart surgery of the day, and wore whilst he invented the Brompton Manley Ventilator, which is still used to this day around the world. Watches have stories to tell and this is what is important to me.
My favourite watch from 2020
I am very proud of the new Bronze Broadsword collection. A couple of years ago, through our extensive work with the British military, we were asked to become an official partner to Her Majesty’s Armed Forces (HMAF) and the Ministry of Defence. For any luxury watch brand this is quite a lovely part of its history and a wonderful accolade. We designed a contemporary version of the original ‘Dirty Dozen’ military watch design for the British Armed Forces in the 1940s. We worked with HMAF and designed a 40mm three-handed automatic chronometer with the sub-seconds hand at six o’clock. The watch was named the Broadsword. It was very well received and has been a joy to build. The latest version is in a beautiful CuSn8 Bronze cased version in three dial colours – tobacco, slate and sotek (teal) versions. Bronze really is a living material and is fascinating to wear.
Tell us an entertaining watch-related anecdote.
There was one rather amusing trip when I was heading across the US on a late-night flight with my young family whilst on holiday. At the time, our three children were aged 5, 5 and 4. I had just sat down on the plane with one of them next to me and there was a smart-looking gent seated on the other side. It was one of those journeys where drinks were spilt, kids wouldn’t stop chatting or getting airsick, me looking like I hadn’t slept for days – the usual. About midway through the flight I looked down at the wrist of the chap sitting next to me. He was wearing a Bremont EA-18G US military squadron watch. Instead of being excited, the feeling was of overwhelming embarrassment. I wanted the seat to swallow me up. I surreptitiously pulled down the sleeve on my wrist and just prayed that the chap hadn’t or wouldn’t notice my watch and initiate a conversation! To this day I am not sure if he clocked my watch or not!
Someone I know who has an admirable watch collection
A great friend of the brand is Orlando Bloom. Not only is he a true gent, but he really is a serious watch aficionado. Over time, and since a young age, he has put together a wonderful collection of vintage watches. He has an enviable eye for detail and real appreciation of the time and energy that goes into making a quality mechanical timepiece. Like me, he is also a bit of an adrenaline junkie and lover of all things mechanical.