53°18′23.23″N3°14′8.52″W / 53.3064528°N 3.2357000°W /53.3064528; -3.2357000
 TSSDuke of Lancaster beached nearMostyn, North Wales, 2010 | |
| History | |
|---|---|
| Name | Duke of Lancaster |
| Owner |
|
| Operator |
|
| Port of registry |  Lancaster, United Kingdom |
| Route |
|
| Builder | Harland & Wolff,Belfast |
| Yard number | 1540 |
| Launched | 1 December 1955 |
| Maiden voyage | 1956 |
| In service | 1956–79 |
| Out of service | 1979 |
| Identification | IMO number: 5094496 |
| Status | Permanently beached at Llannerch-y-Mor Wharf |
| General characteristics | |
| Type | Turbine steam ship |
| Tonnage | 4,450 GT |
| Length | 114.63 m (376 ft 1 in) |
| Beam | 17.46 m (57 ft 3 in) |
| Draught | 4.54 m (14 ft 11 in) |
| Installed power | 2 xParmetradasteam turbines |
| Speed | 21 knots (39 km/h; 24 mph) |
| Capacity | 1,200 passengers |
TSSDuke of Lancaster is a former railway steamerpassenger ship that operated in Europe from 1956 to 1979, and is beached at Llannerch-y-Mor Wharf nearMostyn Docks, on theRiver Dee, in northWales.[1] She replaced an earlier 3,600-tonship of the same name operated by theLondon Midland and Scottish Railway company betweenHeysham andBelfast.
As of 2021 she was owned by Antony Rowley and The Duke of Lancaster Appreciation Society.[2]
Along with her sister ships theTSS Duke of Rothesay and theTSS Duke of Argyll, she was amongst the last passenger-only steamers built forBritish Railways (at that time, also a ferry operator).[3] She was a replacement for the 1928 steamer,Duke of Lancaster, built by theLondon Midland and Scottish Railway.
Built atHarland & Wolff,Belfast, launched on 1 December 1955 and completed in 1956, she was designed to operate as both a passenger ferry (primarily on theHeysham toBelfast route) and as a cruise ship.[4][5] In this capacity, theDuke of Lancaster travelled to theScottish islands and further afield toBelgium,Denmark,Netherlands,Norway andSpain.[3][6]
From the mid-1960s, passenger ships such asDuke of Lancaster were gradually being superseded bycar ferries.[3] Rather than undertake the expensive option of renewing their entire fleet, British Railways instead began a part-programme of conversion. In order to maintain ferry services whilst these modifications took place,Duke of Lancaster's duties as a cruise ship ceased.[6][7] On 25 April 1970 the ship returned to service, having had her main deck rebuilt to accommodate vehicles via a rear door at herstern. The ship now provided space for 1,200 single-class passengers and 105 cars, with a total cabin accommodation for 400 passengers.[6]
The three ships continued on the Heysham to Belfast route until the service was withdrawn on 5 April 1975.[6]Duke of Lancaster was then briefly employed on theFishguard toRosslare crossing, before becoming the regular relief vessel on theHolyhead toDún Laoghaire service until November 1978.[6] The ship was then laid up atBarrow-in-Furness.[3]
Duke of Lancaster arrived in Llanerch-y-Mor, North Wales, from Barrow-in-Furness in August 1979 to start her new life as a business venture and retail complex named "the Fun Ship". Owner John Rowley saw a legal loophole whereby the venue would be able to circumvent the then Sunday trading laws, as these did not apply to ships.[8] However, there were frequent legal battles with the local councils, and the owners closed the business in 2004 and "walked away". Subsequent owners have faced similar issues.[9]
The dock built around the ship with aggregates was filled with sand to prevent drifting after the Towyn storm`[clarification needed] in the 1980s. AnF.B. 18 – FCB ferroconcrete barge was also put in place.[10][better source needed] The 1941 bargeRea 3 (No. 182422) was towed from Liverpool on 19 August 1981 as a water source for possible fire emergencies for the ship.[11][better source needed]
Another concrete barge,Elmarine, launched on 4 January 1919, the first of her type and heralded as "the lightest sea-going concrete boat in the world", was previously positioned in the dock as agroyne; however over decades this was filled in and is now used as a breakwater.
In early 2012, several local arcade game collectors made a deal with Solitaire Liverpool Ltd and were able to purchase most of the coin-operated machines left behind inside the ship at the time the Fun Ship closed. Removing the games required the use of cranes and other heavy lifting equipment.[12]
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The plan was to transform the ship into the largest open air art gallery in the UK. As of August 2012, the Latvian graffiti artist "KIWIE" was commissioned to spraypaint a design on the ship.[13] The ship was covered with graffiti described as "bright and surreal".[14] The first phase of the project saw Kiwie and other European graffiti artists paint murals on the ship between August and November 2012, and the second phase (starting at the end of March 2013) included the work of British-based artists such as Snub23, Spacehop, Dan Kitchener and Dale Grimshaw.[15] One of the artworks is a picture of the ship's first captain, John 'Jack' Irwin. However in 2017 both sides of the ship were painted black.[16]
In 2021 some work was being done on the interior of the ship and deck areas refurbished for anticipated use as a dockside attraction.[17] In 2022 the ship was used as a 1957-era film set for an ITV series. However the restoration project encountered difficulties and stalled. As of early 2024 the future of the ship was uncertain. Due to illegal dumping activity near the ship, a local proposal would place vehicle barriers at the ship's access road. Without emergency vehicle access the ship could not be open to the public.[18]
