Condor Ferries - The Islands' Lifeline

Condor Ferries was formed in 1964 by Channel Island businessmen Peter Dorey and Jack Norman. Some thirty years later they established the first high-speed car ferry service to the Channel Islands from Weymouth with Condor 10. In 2008, the Macquarie European Infrastructure Fund II acquired the Condor Group, twenty years later Columbia Threadneedle Investments purchased the business, forming a consortium with Brittany Ferries. In August 2024 the French company become the majority owner. Following Brittany Ferries becoming the majority shareholder, it was announced as Guernsey’s preferred company to operate the 15-year service contract that was being tendered but they lost the operations to Jersey to DFDS. In the light of this the Guernsey-only operation is now marketed as Brittany Ferries, marking the end of the 60-year history of the Condor Ferries brand. This book looks at the history of the of Condor and how operations look in 2025 to both Guernsey and Jersey with two separate operators.