Founding members of the clubs included four-time Olympian and gold medallist Rob Derbyshire, who was later inducted into the International Swimming Hall of Fame, and his wife, Alice.

[9] In addition, John Martin-Dye, who swam for Great Britain in the 1960 and 1964 Olympics,[10] and won three bronze medals for England at two Commonwealth Games,[11] also competed in water polo for Penguin in the National League.

[19][20] In the early years, Mrs (later Lady) Lucy Beatrice Foreman (née Randall), the Mayoress (wife of the mayor) of Hammersmith,[21] was the club's president.

[22][20] The Hammersmith Ladies SC had several Olympians,[1] including Olympic bronze medalist Belle White and springboard diver Millie Hudson, who attempted to swim across the English Channel in 1927,[7][23][24] and across the Strait of Gibraltar in 1928.

[25] Swimming captain Phyllis M. Gant also qualified for the British squad at the 1924 Paris Olympics,[26] and served as club president in 1927 as Mrs. C. M. Dunston, after marrying a swimmer from Penguin SC.

[27][20] Swimmers Dora Gibbs and Mabel Hamblen from Hammersmith Ladies joined platform diver Belle White in the British squad at the 1928 Olympics.

[32] Hammersmith Ladies SC were known for their "Diving Belles", as well as their annual long-distance race in the River Thames, hosted in conjunction with the Amateur Swimming Association (ASA).

"[1] Olympic swimmers he coached included Percy Peter and Leslie Savage, who won bronze medals for Great Britain in the men's 4 x 200-metre relay in 1920, and competed in subsequent Games after joining Penguin.

[40] Olympic divers from Penguin SC included Albert Dickin, Eric MacDonald, Stanley Mercer, Gregory Matveieff, and Wilfred Burne.

[52][53] A major figure in Penguin's water polo successes in the post-World War II era was forward and team captain Ron Turner, who has been called "The legend of 'Penguin', London".

But I wonder what happened to the once famous Penguin Club that at one time had an excellent water polo team, and produced swimmers like Martin-Dye, John Gorton, and the present Middlesex County champion backstroker Keith Watson.

[37][63] In 1979, the water polo team was promoted back to Division 1,[62] with help from a few older, experienced players including John Martin-Dye,[60] but was relegated again the following year.

[62] The water polo team's return to Division 1 in 1982 was hailed as a promising comeback by the Shepherds Bush Gazette, which noted that the Hammersmith Penguins had had to overcome the loss of the Lime Grove Baths as its main pool due to closure, as well as declining membership.

[64] In April 1982, the Hammersmith Penguins hosted a European club tournament attended by sides from Scotland, Wales, Holland, Germany, and Belgium, to raise money for charity.

[62] By 1984, the Penguins had a record eight water polo players selected for international trials and competitions, including Ian Spooner and Miguel Ortiz, who were both named to the Under 20 squad for Great Britain.

[66] That year, Hammersmith Penguin SC also entered the Guinness Book of Records for the "longest water polo match", winning a 25-hour charity game against Eton.

[67] The following year, Penguin failed to defend its British championship title against Polytechnic, despite the fact that 11 out of 13 members of its side were international water polo players.