‘We had right of way’: when British fair play met Russian firepower off the Isle of Wight

Bright Future, a 12-metre pleasure yacht, found itself in a standoff with the 125-metre Admiral Grigorovich, a Russian frigate. Photograph: Bright future sailing Bright Future, a 12-metre pleasure yacht, found itself in a standoff with the 125-metre Admiral Grigorovich, a Russian frigate. Photograph: Bright future sailing ‘We had right of way’: when British fair play met Russian firepower off the Isle of Wight Jane and Alan Kelvey’s holiday yacht met a warship in the Channel – at a tense time for Anglo-Russian relations “We actually had right of way,” said Jane Kelvey, a little crossly, though keeping it civil. “But we weren’t going to argue with a warship.” The dramatic standoff in the Channel on Tuesday morning between Admiral Grigorovich, a 125-metre (409ft) battle-hardened Russian frigate, and Bright Future, a 12-metre (40ft) pleasure yacht owned and helmed by Jane, 69, and her husband, Alan, 71, has rather caught the nation’s imagination. It was a David and Goliath clash on the high seas, and one with some irresistible ingredients: a seemingly savage Russian foe meeting middle England’s implacable conviction in its own common sense – even if the couple ultimately beat a hasty and sensible retreat. As with so much in the British national story at the moment, it had the advantage for some in the British media that it also ended up making Keir Starmer look a bit bad. 9:54 Why did Russian warship fire warning shots in the Channel? – The Latest The Ministry of Defence has let it be known that it regards the matter – involving no less than warning shots being fired by the Russian warship just 20 nautical miles from the Isle of Wight – as a mere “nautical incident” for which the fault can most justifiably be said to lie in the foggy weather, and perhaps some dodgy sailing. The Kelveys are insistent that the government is letting the Kremlin off the hook – not quite getting away with murder, but with a damned cheek. “The British are trying to shut it down by agreeing with the Russian comments on it,” complained Alan, who claimed Starmer’s government wanted to avoid a diplomatic incident. View image in fullscreen Alan and Jane Kelvey were heading to France on holiday when they were fired on by a Russian vessel in the Channel. Photograph: Jane Kelvey Quite who has the better arguments is not entirely clear as yet – but the broad-strokes of the matter are at least largely known. And what is certainly evident is that Anglo-Russian relations are at a dangerously tense moment. For all the farce of what occurred in the Channel, these are serious times of genuine peril where minor incidents can turn into major disasters. “We don’t want world war three to start because of this,” Jane told the Guardian . The Kelveys had set sail from Lymington, Hampshire, at 4am on Tuesday, destined for the French port of Cherbourg. It was to be the happy start to a two-month sailing trip that was a repeat of a dream adventure they undertook in 2024, after retiring from the s