Babcock and the Royal Navy have just announced Devonport Open Days on the 24th and 25th July 2025. The Thursday event will be for the families of those working on the site, but on Friday, the base will be open to the public.
Plymouth company, PL1 Events Limited, will be managing the Open Days, and further information and ticketing arrangements will be announced in the coming months.
This is the first time any naval base has been opened to the general public since the sad demise of the annual Navy Days, which used to be held in Portmouth, Rosyth and Devonport. The last event of this type was the “Meet your Navy” held in Portsmouth in August 2010 just before the carnage of the October 2010 Defence Review.
There have been sporadic ‘Ships Open to Visitors’ (SOTV) opportunities where singleton warships have opened to the public at ports around the UK, although at no time have been warships opened at any of the naval bases. The most recent example was HMS Prince of Wales’s visit to Liverpool in December 2024. The SOTV have been managed by releasing free tickets in advance. In every case, all the tickets have all sold out due to such high demand, demonstrating the public appetite to see warships and meet the sailors.
The ‘Devonport Flotilla’ is rather small these days, essentially now down to 8 frigates (HMS Scott and HMS Protector are nominally Guzz ships but spend most of the time forward deployed overseas). The dockyard is still busy as a submarine refit centre and with foreign warships that come to undertake training with FOST. It is unlikely there will be large numbers of RN ships on show, especially as the CSG25 deployment to the Indo-Pacific will be underway this summer. Foreign warships, RFAs and non-naval vessels could potentially be invited to expand the attractions.
Although likely to be on a very small scale compared with the Navy Days of the past, this is a very welcome step as the RN has increasingly disappeared from public view.
That takes me back…. back when there were so many ships to view. Back to a time when Union street at the weekend was utter carnage.
Yes – sorry about Union Street on a night out………….. 🙂
Ha, so it was you that caused all the trouble then !!!
Very Happy Memories of Pompey navy days as a kid and was able to take part whilst serving in 1985 (Guzz) and 1986 (Pompey). If we need to recruit more serviceman and women we need to showcase the kit and the people, why one of the Carriers has not had an open weekend in their home port is beyond me…. Opportunities missed are short sighted.
I’ve been aboard QNLZ at Portsmouth, but that was a Cadet/invitation weekday event not open to the general public.
Yeah I’ve been on both carriers at Liverpool but like you, QE was a cadet/family day.
Rosyth / mid 70’s — Albion or Bulwark in attendance?
Interesting day out.
Plenty of hulls in the water.
How things have changed.
I have great memories of the annual Navy days at Portsmouth. My Dad’s home base was Devonport but we only came here a few times. My last Navy day visit was to visit the old Ark Royal. Even went inside a sub. My Dad’s served 20 years and was buried at sea by the RN outside Portsmouth harbour.
Portsmouth was the place I visited for Navy Days when I was small. I was lucky enough to have sat in the Captain’s seat of HMS Fearless and HMS Hermes when I was little. It also hit home even more when ships I had been aboard were lost during the Falklands War.
Navy Days really did help us form a connection with our armed forces because we got to see and hear what they did first hand. I was heartbroken when they stopped doing them. I am glad to see that this may be changing and maybe a new generation of kids can get excited about the Royal Navy.
I managed to visit HMS Prince of Wales when open to visit when in liverpool very disappointing only allowed in hanger no helicopter or planes to see it was like warehouse with a drone very sad.
Used to love going to Navy Days in Rozzers as a kid. They were a bit of a PITA as a serving matelot in the run up to SOTV / Navy Days when I was in but good fun on the day meeting all the visitors – fun times.
All
At this particular moment in time – and this is an especially dangerous time in world history – the Royal Navy is, all to often, “out of sight: out of mind” to the UK population as a whole….
That affects eveything
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My last attempt at boarding an RN warship at one of these open week events was at DSEI 2023 in London’s docklands.
What happened – or rather, did-not-happen next – at that huge event “sort-of” up sums up, very-nicely, what keeps going repeaatedly wrong with the RN today….
So, let me explain……
SO
Accordingly
Two minor corrections Peter :
A run ashore in Plymouth—pints flowing, eyes scanning, and a local lass with curves like a well-rigged schooner. A bit of close-quarters handling in a shadowed doorway—hands wandering, whispers hotter than a steam pipe—until the Red Caps appear, all heavy boots and bad timing. A hasty retreat, rigging in disarray, back aboard with a rum headache, lipstick marks, and the lingering scent of a port visit well spent.
Most poetic!
Navy Days, great idea, with a bit of imagination you could still put on quite a show, a few tins of paint for the docky’s who wont have much to do soon, round up all the stuff laying around and get the flags out, a dozen nuclear subs, 4 or 5 type 23’s, a few sandown’s, a couple of Hunt’s, 2 LPD’s will look great, shed load of LCU’s and LCVP for jolly’s, get the Waves towed in, probably wouldn’t take much of a backhander to get Ocean back for the weekend, be just like the good old days when we had stuff to show off, locals might even get the #anny boats going again
Pugwash
One could go a lot further – and use the Wave for what the USN calls a live fire “SINKEX”
Now that would really get the punters flocking into a Navy Day!
Peter (Irate Txapayer)
PS…..and if we charge the punters to watch, the RN would be able to buy a new ship with all of the proceeds from their collection buckets!
On second thoughts….lets make it a card reader = the kids don’t crarry cash these days!
Dont forget Chatham Navy Days too, though sadly I never got to attend, but was always at the Portsmouth Navy Days…
Pompey not planning anything similar ????
Very happy memories of Plymouth Navy days both before I joined the Navy and as a serving rating.
Further to many comments – I am a Courageous Volunteer Guide, ready to show people around the restored Cold War Submarine that was HMS COURAGEOUS. For the last three years ‘security issues’ have prevented us from opening the boat to the general public – which was the original rationale for restoring and opening the boat. At present only those with approved security access to the dockyard may visit the boat.
We are currently making a case for COURAGEOUS to be part of the Open Days – but some believe it would be in the ‘too difficult’ box. We will persevere.
For this interested see: https://my.matterport.com/show/?m=uKUwcMcQR5C