Duran Duran frontman Simon Le Bon’s former yacht Drum has undergone a quarter of a million pound refit. The 78-foot Maxi racing yacht, now owned by Scottish entrepreneur Sir Arnold Clark, has gone under the knife for a serious makeover in time for the charter season on the Firth of Clyde.

Famed for her fateful participation in the 1985 Fastnet Race, Drum has had a colourful existence since le Bon discovered her in 1984. Working in conjunction with Skip Novak, Le Bon and his team worked hard preparing the yacht for the challenging Whitbread Round the World Yacht Race in 1985, but hopes were nearly dashed after the keel was torn from the yacht during severe weather conditions whilst taking part in the Fastnet Race, and the crew had to be rescued – pictured.

None of the crew members were injured, but Drum required extensive reconstruction to make her safe for her debut in September 1985. Against the odds, Drum performed well and achieved a very respectable third place when she crossed the line on the 11th May 1986.

Sir Arnold Clark bought Drum in 1988, and agreed to loan her to Le Bon in 2005, allowing him to realise his dream of completing the Fastnet race, whilst raising over £1 million for the Royal National Lifeboat Institution, who’d come to their rescue 20 years previously.

Aside from team building and corporate events, Drum is often used for charity work and to date, has raised in excess of £1million. Since buying Drum, Sir Arnold has loaned the yacht’s service to numerous organisations and regulalry offers exclusive sailing packages as raffle and auction prizes.

For further information on Drum check out the new-look website with all the latest news and information at www.arnoldclarkdrum.com