Sir Francis Chichester completed his historic solo circumnavigation on this day in 1967. Gipsy Moth IV, the yacht which carried him around the world, is currrently rotting in a Greenwich dry dock but Yachting Monthly is fighting to save her. Efforts to raise the funds to restore her and sail her round the world to celebrate the magazine’s forthcoming centenary are continuing.

“There’s a lot going on behind the scenes,” said YM’s editor, Paul Gelder. “Work is still continuing to secure Gipsy Moth IV’s future and allow her to serve as an inspiration for generations to come.”

When he set out from Plymouth on 23 August, 1966, Chichester’s project was ‘simple enough’ – to race against the average time of the Australian wool clippers – 123 days. Chichester hoped to beat the best time of 100 days, but after a knockdown 2,900 miles from Sydney, which damaged his windvane, he jury-rigged his self-steering and limped through Sydney Heads after 14,000 miles and 107 days – still a remarkable passage.

Chichester, 65, arrived in Plymouth on 28 May, 1967, having covered 29,630 miles in a sailing time of 226 days, averaging 130 miles a day on the 15,517-mile leg home from Sydney.

To see video of Chichester’s homecoming visit the BBC news archive