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8 o'clock Saturday morning would have seen us swimming for the Maggs Memorial cup over 110 yards (100m) with prizes donated by Jonathan Benton.

Butler Bill Maggs is recorded as a starter in the Christmas Day race of 1910.  He won the Peter Pan cup in 1920 and again in 1954, aged 71.  Bill continued to race with the club up to the mid-1960s.

8am Saturday would have seen three scratch races.  First for the genteel and gracious, though competitive,  gliders.  Second for the fair-to-middling who like a challenging splash and thrash.  Third for the sharp-elbowed wannabe club champions who expect and show no quarter.

Since 2005 prizes have been presented by the Hunter-Coddingtons.  No races in 2021.  New prize giver for 2022.

On Saturday 27 February Deirdre Ward would have presented the 1868 Captain's Cup.  A chance for us to remember our recent captain, Gordon Brodie, appreciate our current captain, Deirdre Ward and pay homage to a founding member and first club captain, Harry Coulter.  This decorative pewter cup was originally presented to Henry E Coulter (Harry) in 1868.  Harry won the very first Christmas morning race in 1864 and was club captain 1864 - 1869.

The fixture is also the first in the series of handicapped races through the season over varying distances for the Emmi Hunte cup -  February 55 yards (50m), March 110 yards (100m), August 880 yards (800m), and October 100 yards (91m).

Saturday 6 February would have seen the final heats of the Mike Small cup series with prizes presented by Bill Deeley and family.  The post-Christmas winter series (optimistically referred to by some as the "Spring Series") was reintroduced into the race calendar in 1964.  The series was dropped at the outbreak of WW2, which meant the race calendar finished on Christmas morning and did not recommence until late March/Easter.  The cup is swum-for over a series of 40-yard races from the end of December until the beginning of February.

Mike Small is another of the club's great characters from the past.  Mike had a horrific motorcycle accident in his youth which left him with one arm, a club foot and in continuous pain.  Mike viewed this as a hindrance, not a disability.  His wicked sense of humour never left him and is reflected in the shape of the Mike Small cup adapted to his specifications by club silversmith Bill Phipps:  half an arm and a wonky base.

The Serpentine Swimming Club's Christmas morning handicap is swum over a 100 yard course for the Peter Pan Cup.  The club's Christmas Day race has been held every year since 1864.  In the early years it was customary for the winner to be presented with a medal.  Author J M Barrie became associated with the Christmas Day race in 1903, donating a medal to the winner.  The following year he donated the first Peter Pan Cup.   This coincided with the play Peter Pan's debut on the London stage.  Barrie continued to present a cup for the winner each year up to 1932.  The honour then fell to Albert Greenbury, a dedicated member since 1908 who served as club president from 1935 to 1955.  To this day the Greenbury family continue the tradition.  Albert's granddaughter, Lucy Harris, is a current member and races all through the year.
 

Saturday 19 December would have seen the final races of the Winter Series for the Fettes cup with prizes presented by the Kelly family.  The cup has been presented at the end of the Winter series since 1958, in memory of Bernard Fettes.  The Winter series span many generations and harks back to the early years of the club in the 19th century.  Since the mid-1970s the series has been sponsored by the Kelly family.  American artist Francis Bob Kelly was club President 1983 to 1986.

In 1963 South London Swimming Club contacted all the open water swimming clubs in London to ask if they would like to take part in a gala. Only the Serpentine Swimming Club responded and a tradition was born.  For many years now the middle Sunday of November has seen members of the two clubs meet at the SLSC's spiritual home, Tooting Bec Lido, to compete for the Doug Smith cup.  Doug was a popular member of both clubs.   Doug was very much involved in charity work, not just within swimming but also with youth clubs in south London.  Aside from the cup for the SLSC v SSC gala, both clubs have a Doug Smith race in his memory on their fixture cards.  The Serpentine's race is sponsored by Eric Carter over 440 yards in the spring.

November would also normally see the commencement of the Winter Series for the Fettes cup.  Heats are held every Saturday up to Christmas