After Wellington and Cambridge he became an apprentice in the drawing office of J.I. Thornycroft (now Vosper Thornycroft). On day release to Southampton University he qualified as a Naval Architect.

May took over the Berthon Boat Company aged just 22. After racing with some success in Finn dinghies he started building them. This led to orders for yachts coming and the yard built over 30 wooden boats in the next 10 years.

In 1964 May came across a new concept in the USA: a yacht marina. He immediately set about transforming the mudflats at Lymington.

In the early 1970s he founded the yacht brokerage Berthon International which is now dominant in Europe with offices in England, France and Spain.

In the 1980s, he stopped yacht racing for a few years to concentrate on his many non-executive directorships. He was Rear Commodore of the Royal Thames Yacht Club. And he was a business advisor to the Prince’s Trust.

In 1987 he gifted his Berthon shares to his two sons, Brian and Dominic, both of whom were enjoying their own careers in the City of London. In 1989 he had a severe stroke during Antigua Race Week and summoned the boys to his hospital bed: ‘it’s your business now, run it yourselves or sell it’. Much to their father’s amazement and delight Brian and Dominic took up the challenge.

After a year-long battle with cancer, he spent his last months very happily at his daughter Georgia’s house in the South of France.

He leaves three children and six grandchildren.