North Channel
- 34.9 km
- Distance
- Northern Ireland ↔ Scotland
Mercedes Gleitze, 1928
The first to try was Mercedes Gleitze, in the summer of 1928, a few months after her crossing of the Strait of Gibraltar. She set off for the first time at the end of June from Robbie's Point, in Donaghadee, but the water was too cold and they had to bring her back. She tried several more times, that summer and the next; sources do not agree on how many, from three to eight^2↓. On one of those occasions, they had to pull her out of the water by force. She never crossed the channel.
Tom Blower, July 27, 1947
Tom Blower, from Nottingham, the son of a miner, was called "Torpedo" in the English Channel after his 13-hour and 29-minute swim in 1937. In July 1947, he tried for the first time and had to give up due to rough seas^3. On his second attempt, while saying goodbye to his wife Clarice in Donaghadee, he said: "This time I'm not coming out for anyone". He had tied an old, mended swimsuit around his waist with a piece of string.
At one point, the schools of herring were so thick that they were nibbling at his feet. The observer who swam alongside him for an hour came out so frozen that he had to warm his feet wrapped in a blanket inside an oven. In the morning, a storm with hail arrived, and for four hours he did not gain a mile; some wanted to pull him out, but his wife, as he had asked her, did not allow it. He arrived in a small cove near Portpatrick after 15 hours and 26 minutes^7. The first person to shake his hand was a Scottish policeman: "You're the first to make it, lad, and you'll be the last". He was wrong.
After Blower
For more than twenty years, no one succeeded. Many tried, including Florence Chadwick. In 1959, the Greek major Jason Zirganos died shortly after being pulled out of the water, before reaching the shore. The second to succeed was Kevin Murphy, in 1970, in 11 hours and 21 minutes^8.
On August 22, 1988, Alison Streeter was the first woman, in 9 hours and 53 minutes; the next day Margaret Kidd arrived, the first Scot^8. In 1989, Streeter also completed the first crossing from Scotland to Ireland^3. The first relay dates back to 1990.
Today's times
The fastest time belongs to the German Andreas Waschburger, on September 4, 2025: 8 hours 11 minutes and 12 seconds, from The Gobbins to Knock Bay. Among women, Michelle Macy in 2013, in 9 hours 34 minutes and 39 seconds^8. In July 2022, Sarah Thomas completed the first two-way crossing, in 21 hours 46 minutes and 38 seconds. Caroline Block has crossed the channel four times, more than anyone else.
Timeline
Computed from the recorded crossings: the first, the first by sex, the first from each country and every record broken.
- RecordIreland OneSkin · Relay · 12:03:01
- RecordCity of Liverpool (1993)Skin · Relay · 10:39:42
- RecordThe Machine MenSkin · Relay · 10:18
- RecordChannel Swimming CraziesSkin · Relay · 9:55:44
- RecordOcean BreakersSkin · Relay · 9:20:40
- RecordOA GiantsSkin · Relay · 9:02:41
- RecordThe Olympic Club TeamSkin · Relay · 8:15:21