SIGNWRITING - TRADITIONAL CANAL DECORATION - GRAINING - COACH PAINTING
OF NARROW BOATS AND WIDE BEAM CANAL BOATS

Phil Speight is one of the best known and most influential boat painters of his generation.

His reputation has grown over 30 years of working to the highest standards as a coach painter, signwriter and boat decorator. During the last decade and half of his career he has also helped and trained many of today's most popular professionals.

Phil was born in Bradford in 1948 and attended BelleVue Grammar School before he spent a less than amicable year at Art College ! He learnt his craft once he'd left – first as a coach painter and later as a scenery painter. By a roundabout route, with many interesting ( if not necessarily sensible ) diversions on the way Phil finally became a full time canal professional – to the exclusion of all else – in the early Eighties. Based first on the Leeds to Liverpool Canal, he moved to Ellesmere Port for a period of six years before eventually settling into Dadford's Wharf on the Stourbridge Canal in 1995. There, most recently as part of Craftmaster Paints, he shares premises with Ian Kemp and Dave Harris, two truly legendary boatbuilders.

John Sanderson has worked with Phil, initially as a trainee, for almost fifteen years. He is now a brilliantly talented coach painter in his own right and, since the beginning of 2006, has become the manager of the paint dock set up by Phil. Both he and Phil however now work in hand with Craftmaster Paints Ltd ( www.craftmasterpaints.co.uk  ) a company set up by Phil and his wife Zita in 1999. Craftmaster markets a range of high quality paints and related products researched and developed by Phil and HMG paints of Manchester.

This is a chance to thank three icons of the the canal trades, Ron Hough, Tony Lewery and Ian Kemp. All three are good friends and have been, each one, an important influence. Not necessarily in questions of style, but certainly in helping Phil better understand the world of boat people and boat painters.

These days Phil and John are still painting customer's boats to a stunningly high standard under the Craftmaster banner with Phil designing the livery and signwriting and decorating the boats while John and his henchman Chris do the real work in between. However they are now spreading their wings and painting historic vehicles as well as boats - and to the same very high standard.

The recent addition to the painting workforce of Sean Hale, a highly respected coach painter of boats and Meg Harvey , a signwriter/decorator/clever little person with degree in Traditional Crafts guarantees the work will go on without a hitch once Phil eventually hangs up, or more probably loses, his brushes. The rest of the time Phil is either working with Zita and Sarah at Craftmaster where he is responsible for product development and technical help for customers – although if he's the one who answers the phone he'll be only too pleased to sell you some paint – or he is signwriting and decorating boats for other painters and private customers. He's even written a few vintage lorries in recent years and spent time painting for Carter's Royal Berkshire Steam Fair. You are welcome to contact him if you have similar work to be done, his prices are not outrageous, and he'll paint water cans, cabin stools and the like to order. But no giftware. Sorry. He also gives a challenging but entertaining talk on “ The Rise and Fall of Canal Boat Decoration” – often for a donation to charity – and teaches both on his own behalf and for The Waterways Craft Guild ( he holds their “Master” accreditation.) Please contact Craftmaster ( 01384 485554 or zita@craftmasterpaints.co.uk  ) if these things are of interest to you.

So that's pretty well all you need to know. Phil and Zita live at Dadford's Wharf with their mad colliedog Charlie and two cats. Zita's two horses are not far away. Hobbies ?

Phil's a musician ( well, to be more accurate, he's a bass player ) and a fanatical Alfa Romeo owner. He has three - a twenty one year old 3 litre group A racer masquerading as a road car, a somewhat older Giulietta that recently won two cups at a national concours event ( and made him insufferable for a month at least ) and his only child - a 1971 1750 GTV with lots of fancy bits. As an everyday car of course he has something far more sensible. A 1981 Lancia Coupe. He is a life member of the RAC and is on first name terms with a number of their employees.........."

Click to see more examples of Phil and John's work. (There's a lot of photos here, it might take a little time to download!)

Learn to paint 'Roses and Castles'.
Weekend courses at the Bonded Warehouse Stourbridge and, potentially, anywhere else by arrangement. Please ring or e-mail Phil".

For further information ring, write or email Phil Speight.