26th - 29th
October 2007| News and Info | |
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25th October 2007 Reserve you place by calling 01452 503050 or in person at Gloucester Tourist Information Centre, Gloucester Guildhall or GL1. If places are still available at the day you will be able to reserve your place at North Warehouse, Gloucester Docks. Motorists are being advised to avoid Llanthony Road in Gloucester at lunchtime on Friday (October 26) which will be closed for an hour in advance of the city’s first-ever Tall Ships Festival. Llanthony Bridge will need to be raised to allow the procession of tall ships up the canal and into the main dock basin. The Parade of Sail is one of the impressive spectacles of the weekend festival that is expected to attract thousands of visitors. The road will be closed between 11.30 – 12.30. The first ever Tall Ships festival at Gloucester Docks is promising to give visitors an unforgettable experience. A weekend full of entertainment and events is planned both onboard and dockside. A stunning lighting show will be one of the main attractions to the Festival. ‘Night ships’ will give visitors the chance to witness the Docks like never before. An amazing show of lights on the Tall Ships sails and rigging will be accompanied by live music from the Darcy Quartet. The entertainment starts at 6pm on Saturday 27th October. Dozens of other family activities and events will be taking place at the festival. A range of live music, arts and crafts including pavement art and sand sculpture, guided tours, boat trips, storytelling and a chance to improve drawing and photography skills in a special workshops. Highlights on the water, as well as the magnificent Tall Ships, include a living history enactment showing what it was like to live and fight on a Nelsonian ship of war. More up to date will be a high-speed demonstration of ‘Zapcats,’ small powerboats that are highly manoeuvrable and capable of doing speeds up to 50 mph. Leader of the City Council, Paul James, commented: “I am very excited about the festival. To see the Tall Ships in the Docks will be a magnificent sight but also all the events and entertainment taking place will make it a festival to remember. There is something for everyone and we want to attract visitors from outside of the city but also give local residents something to be proud of.” Greg Smith, chair of Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company, said: “The Tall Ships Festival with bring excitement and enjoyment into Gloucester as it continues to undergo a massive £1 billion regeneration.”The Gloucester Tall Ships Festival is being funded primarily by the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA), as part of its programme of support for local tourist and retail industries affected by flooding earlier this summer. The event, being organised by Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company with Gloucester City Council, is a four-day celebration of Gloucester and its maritime heritage. 4000 signatures could be all it takes to save the Kathleen and May, the last remaining wooden three masted topsail schooner in Great Britain, which is making her last public appearance in this country at the Gloucester Tall Ships Festival, before being put up for sale. The Friends of Kathleen and May already have 6000 signatures and are aiming for 10,000 before sending it to The Secretary of State for Culture, Media and Sport, The Rt Hon James Purnell MP. Having spent more than £2 million restoring The Kathleen and May, current owner Steve Clarke is being forced reluctantly to put her up for sale, after his bid for Heritage Lottery funding was rejected and he can no longer sustain the financial burden associated with her future. The Kathleen and May is now on the market for nearly £3.5 million and it is thought that the eventual buyer is most likely to come from overseas, possibly America. Throughout the Gloucester Tall Ships Festival weekend, members of The Friends of Kathleen and May, some of whom will have sailed up from Bideford, Devon on the ship will be out and about on the Quayside asking visitors to sign their petition to help save the ship. Launched in 1900 at a cost of around £2,700 The Kathleen and May sailed from her home port of Bideford on trade routes in British and Irish waters. She made her last commercial visit to Gloucester 62 years ago, delivering fuel and loading wheat for a trip to Barry. Over a period of 30 years she made over 150 passages up the river Severn. Bound for the ports of Lydney, Sharpness and Gloucester with inbound cargos of timber, pitwood and fuel and returning with assorted cargos of mainly coal from the Forest of Dean and bound for Southern Ireland. Her last commercial visit to Glouceter was 62 years ago on September 29th 1945, just months after the end of the second World War, when she brought in fuel, leaving on October 9th with wheat for Barry. Greg Smith, chair of Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company, said: “I’ll offer to be the first to sign the petition. It would be a tragic shame to see such a beautiful ship sail away from The British Isles, especially when one individual has gone to so much trouble and expense to restore her. Our heritage is more than buildings, it’s about everything that contributes to our history and there’s no doubt that The Kathleen and May has contributed more than her fair share to Gloucestershire’s economy over the last hundred years. Let’s see if Gloucester can save The Kathleen and May for the nation.” Although the ship no longer carries a commercial cargo she is still equipped with the original windlasses opening hatches and all the working gear. Apart from a few concessions to comply with today’s regulations the Kathleen & May is very much as she would have been during her working life. Below deck visitors can enter the large open hold in which can be seen an illustrative ship’s archive. Also open to view are the crew’s quarters and the beautifully panelled Master’s accommodation. The Kathleen and May brings the total number of Tall Ships at the Gloucester festival to five. The other four are The Ruth, a 90-feet Baltic Trader, The Earl of Pembroke and The Phoenix, who will all sail up The Gloucester and Sharpness Canal on Friday 26th October to join The Johanna Lucretia, a topsail Schooner, to open the first Gloucester Tall Ships Festival. Elsewhere during the Gloucester Tall Ships Festival, exciting events and attractions will be happening on the quayside giving everyone a weekend of unforgettable sights and sounds, showing how Gloucester could have looked over 100 years ago. Saturday evening will host a stunning lighting show of the ships sails and rigging which will accompany live music on The Docks. On Sunday, visitors can wander around the Docks and appreciate these beautiful tall ships in one of their natural environments. The Gloucester Tall Ships Festival is being funded primarily by the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA), as part of its programme of support for local tourist and retail industries affected by flooding earlier this summer. The event, being organised by Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company with Gloucester City Council, is a four-day celebration of Gloucester and its maritime heritage. The Kathleen and May, Britain’s last remaining wooden triple-mast trading schooner could be making her last public appearance in this country before being sold abroad, when she sails up the Gloucester and Sharpness Canal to the Gloucester Tall Ships Festival, being held from 26-29 October. The Gloucester Tall Ships Festival is being funded primarily by the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA), as part of its programme of support for local tourist and retail industries affected by flooding earlier this summer. The event, being organised by Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company with Gloucester City Council, is a four-day celebration of Gloucester and its maritime heritage. Having spent more than £2 million restoring The Kathleen and May, current owner Steve Clarke is being forced reluctantly to put her up for sale, after his bid for Heritage Lottery funding was rejected and he can no longer sustain the financial burden associated with her future. The Kathleen and May is now on the market for nearly £3.5 million and it is thought that the eventual buyer is most likely to come from overseas, possibly America, although recent enquiries to purchase her have also been received from Ireland. An organisation called The Friends of Kathleen and May has been formed to take up the challenge to save her for the nation by launching an appeal to the Secretary of State to buy her and keep her in her home port of Bideford. Representatives of The Friends of Kathleen and May will be on board in Gloucester, campaigning to keep the ship in this country and asking all visitors to sign their petition. Launched in 1900 at a cost of around £2,700 The Kathleen and May sailed from her home port of Bideford on trade routes in British and Irish waters. She made her last commercial visit to Gloucester 62 years ago, delivering fuel and loading wheat for a trip to Barry. In 1971 the 29m (98ft) ship was bought by the Maritime Trust, who sold her to Mr Clarke in 1998, when he discovered her lying without masts and rigging in poor condition at Gloucester Docks. Mr Clarke returned the ship to her home port and paid from his own funds to have her completely restored. Steve said: "I have explored every possible avenue to raise enough money to retain and preserve the Kathleen & May for the country. "Since I first saw her neglected hull in Gloucester docks back in 1998, the restoration has been a true labour of love.” Although the ship no longer carries a commercial cargo she is still equipped with the original windlasses opening hatches and all the working gear. Apart from a few concessions to comply with today’s regulations the Kathleen & May is very much as she would have been during her working life. Below deck visitors can enter the large open hold in which can be seen an illustrative ship’s archive. Also open to view are the crew’s quarters and the beautifully panelled Master’s accommodation. The Kathleen and May brings the total number of Tall Ships at the Gloucester festival to four. The other three are The Ruth, a The Ruth, a 90-feet Baltic Trader, will join the previously-announced tall ships The Earl of Pembroke and The Phoenix to sail up The Gloucester and Sharpness Canal on Friday 26th October to open the first Gloucester Tall Ships Festival. Elsewhere during the Gloucester Tall Ships Festival, exciting events and attractions will be happening on the quayside giving everyone a weekend of unforgettable sights and sounds, showing how Gloucester could have looked over 100 years ago. Saturday evening will host a stunning lighting show of the ships sails and rigging which will accompany live music on The Docks. On Sunday, visitors can wander around the Docks and appreciate these beautiful tall ships in one of their natural environments.
The Ruth, a 90-feet Baltic Trader, will join the previously-announced tall ships The Earl of Pembroke and The Phoenix to sail up The Gloucester and Sharpness Canal on Friday 26th October to open the first Gloucester Tall Ships Festival, running from 26th – 29th October at Gloucester Docks. Gloucester's Tall Ships Festival, funded primarily by the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA) is being organised by Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company with Gloucester City Council, as a four-day celebration of Gloucester and its maritime heritage. Exciting events and attractions will be happening on the quayside giving everyone a weekend of unforgettable sights and sounds, showing how Gloucester would have looked over 100 years ago. Saturday evening will host a stunning lighting show of the ships sails and rigging which will accompany live music on The Docks. On Sunday, you can wander around the Docks and appreciate these beautiful tall ships in one of their natural habitats. ‘The Ruth’ was built in the Rää Shipyard Sweden in 1914. A traditional gaff-rigged ketch, she was baptised Ruth, by the owner Sven Petter Persson, after his wife. Her main cargo at the time was ceramic pots and stoneware, delivering for a famous Swedish company called Höganas. Ruth’s first engine was fitted on 20th February 1922, a 20 h.k.r. saffle. She continued to carry her cargoes and is said to have travelled as far as France and Iceland in the second world war. Gloucester Docks to host Tall Ships Festival There are fewer than ten tall ships festivals held annually around the country; so this is a rare opportunity to see these beautiful ships ‘up close and personal’ in England’s most inland and historic Docks. Gloucester's Tall Ships Festival, funded primarily by the South West of England Regional Development Agency (RDA) is being organised by Gloucester Heritage Urban Regeneration Company (GHURC) with Gloucester City Council, as a four-day celebration of Gloucester and its maritime heritage. Alongside the Tall Ships in the Docks, a range events and attractions will be held quayside to give visitors, families and residents of the city a weekend of unforgettable sights and sounds, offering a glimpse of how Gloucester might have looked and sounded over 100 years ago. Tall ships will be sailing from Sharpness near Bristol, up the Gloucester and Sharpness canal on Friday 26 October in a parade of sails which will be followed by a weekend of fun and celebration. Saturday evening will host a stunning lighting show of the ships sails and rigging which will accompany live music on The Docks. On Sunday, you can wander around the Docks and appreciate these beautiful tall ships in one of their natural habitats. Greg Smith, Chair of GHURC, said: “This is a wonderful opportunity to showcase Gloucester to the world, putting tall ships back where they belong; in the heart of our great City, and bringing excitement and enjoyment back to Gloucester as it undergoes a massive £1 billion regeneration. This will be a long weekend of celebration and I can’t wait to see some of England greatest ships moored in the Victoria Basin. Chris Foley, head of operations in Gloucestershire for the South West RDA, added: “The Tall Ships Festival will be a great event for Gloucester, its residents and visitors to the city. It will help celebrate our maritime history and with the on-going regeneration of Gloucester Docks, the event could signal the start of a significant boost to the local economy.” |
