The Team

Tom Cunliffe was educated at a North of England grammar school and the University of Liverpool where he read law before running away to sea in 1968. Starting as an instructor in the South of France, he has served before the mast in small sailing ships, skippered yachts for private owners, raced offshore, been to sea as mate on a home-trade merchant vessel and taught sailing, seamanship and navigation at every level. He is an RYA/MCA Yachtmaster Instructor examiner, a Fellow of the Royal Institute of Navigation, and a consultant for the governing body of sailing in the United States.

He has written over 25 published books from technical works on astro-navigation to a three-volume 'Complete skipper' guide from beginner to ocean sailor. For thirty years he compiled The Shell Channel Pilot for the English Channel. He is a columnist for Sailing Today, Yachting World, Classic Boat and SAIL magazine (USA) and hosts a popular marine YouTube Channel, Yachts and Yarns

Bill Aylward studied maths and computers at university before changing to medicine. He then worked as an Ophthalmologist in London, and spent a lot of time in the NHS trying to get staff to use electronic records instead of paper. When he retired, he swapped the family home for a cruising catamaran, in which he and his wife Kate have now sailed 25000 miles in Great Britain, Europe and the Caribbean. He is a Yachtmaster Offshore, and likes to write apps which provide useful features for sailors, and which are not necessarily available elsewhere. He has really enjoyed the last two winters rigorously testing AngelNav in the Caribbean sea.

After studying Aeronautical Engineering at university (where he spent most of his time flying), James spent his career writing software - working for and then owning a small bespoke software development company in Emsworth on the south coast. Having tired of the stresses of running a company, he now works freelance, specialising in developing cross-platform mobile applications.

His software career was interrupted by several sailing interludes - including a season running a yacht flotilla in Greece, taking part in the 1989-90 Whitbread Round The World Race, several Fastnets and more offshore RORC and JOG races (usually 'bouncing around on the foredeck') than he cares to remember. He is a commercially endorsed Yachtmaster and a Cruising Instructor, He now spends his summers cruising his Sweden 36 'Arpeggio', trail running and walking with his wife Helen, and his winters writing software for himself and clients.