BHI Awards Day 2024

13 November 2024

Saturday 26 October 2024 saw students recognised for their excellence in the British Horological Institute examinations at the annual BHI Awards Day ceremony, held at Upton Hall near Newark.

The event saw students awarded with their qualifications, as well as prizes given for top performances in written and practical exams. Of particular note was Robert Talbot, who was awarded the coveted BHI Bronze medal. This medal has been awarded since the late 1800s to the notionally ‘best student’. However, it is now an even more important award, granted only to the top achiever in the BHI Certificate in Repair, Restoration and Conservation of Clocks/Watches (the upper grade of the BHI training programme).

In addition to the prize-giving, students were treated to a question and answer session with watchmaker David Cottrell, who spoke about his experimental tourbillon pocket watch, and Andrew Crisford, former Master of the Worshipful Company of Clockmakers, who brought along watches by George Daniels and Derek Pratt. Justin Koullapis FBHI also gave a talk entitled ‘Gold, Silver and Bronze – BHI Medals over the Years’, while former BHI student James Harris FBHI posed the question ‘Where to from here? Achievements and awards beyond horology exams’.

Coinciding with the Museum of Timekeeping and the BHI’s Autumn Time Showcase – an exceptional exhibition of horology – which was held the following day, on Sunday 27 October, award-winners and guests at the Awards Day were able to enjoy a sneak preview of the exhibits on show at the Showcase. These included a spring-detent chronometer tourbillon pocket watch by George Daniels, a Daniels wristwatch, and a tourbillon with in-carriage remontoire by Derek Pratt.

See our full Awards Day report in the January edition of The Horological Journal, and read more about David Cottrell’s pocket watch in the December 2024 edition of the HJ.