The Boatshed team, along with thousands of visitors, press and boating enthusiasts braved the icy conditions in London this morning to attend the opening of the 55th London Boat Show at ExCel.

A host of celebrities from the worlds of sailing, acting and singing are expected over the next 10 days (the show runs until 18th January) and Boatshed will be out and about as normal seeing what is going on, catching up with old friends and letting you have a snapshot of the action.

The official opening was conducted by actress/model/presenter/dancer/wearer of high heels and a silly hat, Kelly Brook, who was helped in her task by the crew of HMS Westminster. This Type 23 frigate is moored on the Thames alongside the ExCel exhibition centre in London for the duration of the show and visitors are welcome.

Some show facts:
The London International Boat Show is London’s largest boat Show
This year, the Show celebrates its 55th anniversary
It takes 20 days to set up and eight days to dismantle the Show
The London International Boat Show has over 500 exhibitors
The biggest vessel on display is HMS Westminster, a Royal Navy Frigate stretching 133m in length
The biggest exhibitor boat at the Show this year is Sunseeker’s Tri-deck Motor Yacht 37M
The Tri-deck Motor Yacht 37M is also the most expensive boat at the Show, costing £9.7m (excluding VAT)
The smallest boat at the Show is 1.4m long - the Autoculture mini yacht, designed for children, costing £549

Check back here as we take a look at some of the boats on display, visit some of the interesting features that the organisers have put on (how to climb into a ships hammock perhaps - we'll leave that to Josh!) and photographing whatever we find.

London Boat Show