Built by Fellows & Co. Shipbuilders of Great Yarmouth in 1930, Oulton Belle was designed to withstand easterly gales, featuring strong bulkheads below deck and a high freeboard. She was launched on the morning of 23 May 1930 and entered service later that year. Operating out of Great Yarmouth and Lowestoft on the Norfolk Coast of England, Oulton Belle quickly became a popular vessel for holiday excursions, running these services for nine years until the outbreak of the Second World War.

On 14 May 1940, the Admiralty issued a request through the BBC for all owners of self-propelled pleasure craft between 30 and 100 feet in length to submit vessel particulars within 14 days. Subsequently, Oulton Belle and similar vessels moved along the coast to the Channel Ports to assist in Operation Dynamo, the evacuation of the British Expeditionary Force from the beaches of Dunkirk.

Between 28 May and 4 June 1940, a total of 337,131 British and French troops were evacuated under hazardous conditions, facing mines, enemy E-boats, and Luftwaffe attacks. Oulton Belle’s gallant service during this operation is commemorated by her flying the flag of the Association of Dunkirk Little Ships at her masthead.

Following the evacuation, Oulton Belle returned briefly to Great Yarmouth before being posted to the Firth of Clyde as a fleet tender. During the remainder of the war, she transferred United States troops from the ocean liners Queen Mary and Queen Elizabeth after their transatlantic voyages.

After the war, Oulton Belle resumed her peacetime duties operating out of Great Yarmouth until 1954. That year, she was sold to Scarborough Cruises and renamed Regal Lady. She commenced cruising from Scarborough in late June 1954, providing thousands of passengers with sea excursions along the Yorkshire Coast, including views of the cliffs at Ravenscar and the southern headland of Filey Brigg.

Despite changes in appearance over the years, Regal Lady remains a distinguished vessel, remembered for her extensive service and the many holidaymakers who enjoyed their time aboard.