The Guardian - World news
‘We had right of way’: when British fair play met Russian firepower off the Isle of Wight 17 June 2026 at 20:17

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

By: Emine Sinmaz · Helena Horton · Jamie Grierson and Daniel Boffey

17 June 2026 at 20:17

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.

NYT - Top Stories
Russian Navy Ship Accused of Firing Warning Shots at U.K. Yacht 16 June 2026 at 17:58

Russian Navy Ship Accused of Firing Warning Shots at U.K. Yacht

NYT - Top Stories

By: Michael D. Shear

16 June 2026 at 17:58

Britain’s Defense Ministry said it was investigating a report that a Russian vessel fired warning shots near a U.K.-registered yacht in the English Channel on Tuesday.

The Russian warship Admiral Grigorovich docked in Turkey in 2021. British defense officials did not name the ship accused of firing shots on Tuesday, but the Royal Navy had previously said it was shadowing the Admiral Grigorovich in the English Channel.

The Guardian - World news
Russian frigate fires warning shots at British yacht in Channel 16 June 2026 at 22:13

Russian frigate fires warning shots at British yacht in Channel

The Guardian - World news

By: Dan Sabbagh Defence and security editor · Nadeem Badshah and Helena Horton

16 June 2026 at 22:13

Shots fired within 500 metres of vessel near Isle of Wight amid heightened tensions between London and Moscow

A Russian warship fired warning shots within a few hundred metres of a British pleasure yacht sailing across the Channel on Tuesday morning amid a period of heightened tensions between London and Moscow.

The rare incident took place at 11.40am more than 20 miles south of the Isle of Wight and less than 40 miles north of Normandy, France, when the yacht, identified as the private vessel Bright Future, sailed close to the Admiral Grigorovich and ignored at least one warning.

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