Fresh off the horological presses is MB&F’s latest take on their sporty, complicated Legacy Machine Perpetual, the LM Perpetual EVO Blue, which replaces the green-dialled titanium model with a frosty blue.

Since its introduction in 2020, the sports-inspired take on the highly complicated legacy machine has won fans thanks to its contemporary take on the legendary movement, designed by renowned Belfast-based watchmaker Stephen McDonnell.

In addition to the sporty sand lightweight 44mm titanium case, there’s a host of design tweaks that make this EVO perpetual calendar one of MB&F’s sportiest offspring. Visibility is maximised thanks to the bezel-less case design, and then there’s the FlexRing; a dampener between the case and the movement that minimises shock on vertical and lateral exes. Likewise, the calendar pushers are large sporty oblongs that have been double-sprung for maximum comfort and ease of use. Finally, the screw-down crown disengages from the winding mechanism when pushed in and tightened to prevent the chance of over-winding.

Honestly, though, while the sports body kit does give the watch a contemporary feel, the undisputed heart and soul is McDonnell’s ingenious take on a perpetual calendar, which consists of a ‘mechanical processor’, that defaults the days of a month to 28 — the lowest common denominator, and adds extra days as required, a more elegant system that lowers the risk of error, and thanks to the inbuilt safety feature which disengages the pushers during the ‘danger zone’ of date change, lowers the risk of damage too.

This movement isn’t just impressive on the computational front, it’s visually stunning, too, thanks to the central floating balance wheel in the middle of the dial, adding even more drama to the already intricate mechanism. Finally, the backdrop of all this horological ingenuity is a pale blue CVD dial plate, paired beautifully with a white integrated rubber strap.