'BRING ME SUNSHINE' was the theme of the 27th London International Boat Show, set against a Caribbean background, at Earls Court from January 8 to 18, so who else could have opened it but Eric Morecambe and Ernie Wise? Always good friends to the RNLI, Eric and Ernie exhorted everyone to 'support the lifeboats' in their opening speech and, adding practice to precept, then came to call at the RNLI stand. In the photograph (left) they can be seen preparing to 'launch the boat' under the guidance of 'head launcher' Raymond Baxter, chairman of the Institution's Public Relations Committee.

It was Raymond Baxter who, during the show, presented the Public Relations Awards 1980. One award was to representatives of Kodak Ltd (below, left) who mounted a spectacular exhibition of lifeboat photographs last year seen first in their offices in Holborn and later at other sites round the country.

The other was to the production team of 'This is Your Life' television programme (below, right) which in recent years has featured four lifeboat coxswains including, in 1980, Coxswain Brian Bevan of Humber. The Kodak award was received by Bob Freeman Wright, legal director for Kodak, and the 'This is Your Life' award by Eamonn Andrews, seen to the left and right of Raymond Baxter in the lefthand photograph.

Exhibited on the RNLI stand was Portaferry's twin engined Zodiac Mk IV inflatable lifeboat, fitted with single tiller control for the outboard engines and water ballast tanks in the hull. The stand was manned throughout the show by voluntary branch and guild members from various districts and, with the sale of souvenirs and lottery tickets, with donations and with contributions from lifeboat boxes on the RNLI's own stand and those of other exhibitors, a grand total of £11,391.15 was raised. A volunteer Shoreline team enrolled 1,011 new members, 76.6 per cent of whom covenanted their subscriptions, and Shoreline insignia to the value of £3,618.50 was sold..