Matchstick Fleet Exhibition

Come down to Nothe Fort and be amazed at the detail and accuracy of the scaled replicas of modern warships on display. Made entirely of matchsticks and matchboxes, these models have taken one man a lifetime to build.

For more than 60 years master modeller Philip Warren has been painstakingly creating an armada of every Royal Navy warship afloat, in service or setting sail since the Second World War ... out of matchsticks and wooden matchboxes.

The models are based on drawings, plans and photographs of the real ships. Phil constructed his first model in 1945 and has since produced over 800 models, many of which shall be on display in Nothe Fort's brand new exhibition space. Each model is built to a scale of 1:300 and painted entirely by hand.