Design, creativity and ingenuity are some the the traits the British like to be proud of, and right now, the UK’s watch designers and makers are showing exactly why. We’ve collected four watches from £200-£4,000 available now, or on pre-order, to wear in 2023. These are pieces guaranteed to turn heads and you won’t see on everyone’s wrists.
Christopher Ward Bel Canto
The Christopher Ward Bel Canto took the industry by complete surprise when it was released in 2022. A ‘Sonnerie au Passage’striking hours complication, from a 60 piece in-house module on a Sellita SW200-1 base, and all the crazy stylings of an MB&F, for around £3,000. It was, quite rightly, out of stock before you could blink. Thankfully more are coming and in a range of new colours. Our pick is the sunray ‘Rosa’ gold version, but it is also available in a powder blue (Cielo), pink / purple (Viola) or black (Nero). Pre-orders are available now for delivery in February 2024, priced at £2,995 on leather or £3,305 on a titanium bracelet at christopherward.com.
Mr Jones Watches
So not a single watch, and the designs may not all be from British designers, but the brand is British and Crispin Jones’ collaborative vision has a truly British eccentric feel. Since 2007, Mr Jones has collaborated with scores of artists to bring incredible, unique designs and realise them in watch form.
These aren’t just novelty designs, each watch uses complications to fit time-telling into the design. Take the ‘Number Cruncher’ for example, made in collaboration with designer and illustrator Onorio D’Epiro. ‘Number Cruncher’ uses an automatic ST1721 movement, with a jump hour complication to let the monster pick hours out of the sky, while the minutes churn around in his stomach on a transparent disc over another transparent seconds disc, giving the impression of all the numbers churning in its stomach.
Did I mention value? Prices range from £195 to £595, which is incredible given the combination of design and watchmaking. Their watches regularly sell out, but keep an eye for when they restock. See the full range at mrjoneswatches.com.
Fears Brunswick Salmon Dial
Fears is one of the oldest family-run watch companies in Britain, tracing it’s history back to 1846. It shut its doors in 1976, before being relaunched in 2016 by Nicholas Bowman-Scargill, the great-great-great-grandson of founder, Edwin Fear. Fears have drawn from their back-catalog of designs and reinvigorated them for the modern world.
The Brunswick Salmon Dial takes its inspiration from a gentleman’s cushion case watch from the Fears archives, first made in 1924, and a dial colour used in the 1940s and 50s. The 38mm cushion-shaped case has no flat surfaces, with even the solid caseback having a gentle sweep. The copper salmon dial is created using galvanic coatings of 18ct rose gold and copper with a delicate vertical brushing.
The Brunswick is powered by a Swiss made, manual winding ETA 7001 movement finished in Britain, with Côtes de Genève striping and Rhodium plating.
The Brunswick is available to pre-order for Summer 2023, priced at £3,350 from fearswatches.com.
MHD-SC
The MHD SC is a limited edition of 150 pieces designed in the UK by automotive designer Matthew Humphries, who is best known for designing cars such as the Morgan Aeromax, Supersports and 3 wheeler.
For the SC (Super Car) Humphries took inspiration from Italian car designer Marcello Gandini, famous for designs such as the Lamborghini Countach, giving the watch a unique 1970’s feel. Gandini’s trademark rear wheel arch design has influenced the shape of MHD SC watch chassis case, exposing the knurled, DLC coated barrel case. The sandwich dial has laser cut holes to show the vintage-style lume beneath.
The watch is 42mm in diameter, 12mm thick, with at 45mm lug-to-lug. It is powered by a Miyota 9132 automatic movement with power reserve, date and 24hr subdial. The caseback has a sapphire crystal display and is engraved with limited edition serial numbers.
The MHD SC is available for pre-order for August 2023 at £495 or £545 after at mhdwatches.com.
