Built by Furness Shipbuilding at Haverton Hill, Teesside in 1959 for John I. Jacobs, REGENT FALCON, photographed passing Portishead on 4th September 1965, fifty years ago tomorrow, was built specifically for a long term time charter to the Regent Oil Company.

Trinidad Leaseholds, a British company with crude oil concessions in the Caribbean and its own overseas refinery capacity, had entered the market with the Regent brand of petrol in 1930. The Regent Oil Company was created in 1948 when Trinidad Leaseholds and the California Texas Corporation (Caltex) established joint marketing arrangements in the UK and Eire.

Expanding during the 1950’s into shipping and refining, Regent Petroleum Tankship Company was created in 1956 but the name disappeared after Texaco took full ownership in 1967 when the Caltex assets in Europe were split up.

The ship’s managers became Texaco Overseas Tankship Limited in 1971 and her name was changed the following year to TEXACO DURHAM. Sold to Greece in 1975, as KALLIPOLIS she traded for the fast growing Eletson Maritime Services until arriving at Gadani Beach near Karachi on 1st December 1982 to be broken up.

This photograph and the above information can also be seen in my book "Bristol Port and Channel Nostalgia" published by Coastal Shipping of Portishead