Could Tilbury steamer become Southend entertainment venue? (From Thurrock Gazette)

Could Tilbury steamer become Southend entertainment venue?

2:30pm Monday 5th September 2011 in News

A 1930S paddle steamer could be a cost-effective entertainment venue, a council has heard.

The outlandish proposal is being floated by a group of councillors who want Southend Council to shell out about £150,000 for the TS Queen Mary, which has been growing moss in Tilbury Docks since 2009.

They see the 250ft steel gargantuan, which has previously been used as a floating pub and restaurant, as an ideal replacement for its stalled bid to build at the pierhead.

Southend Tory councillor Trevor Byford, said the plan would bring some “showbusiness” and “razzle-dazzle” to the seafront. He said it could be moored by the pierhead.

He added: “We should be looking to make the most of the pier. I believe people would really love to see a ship like that, with so much history, when they look out to sea.

“It would make a real statement about Southend.”

The TS Queen Mary was built in 1933 and ferried thousands of passengers around Scotland before her retirement in 1977.

In 1981, she was refitted as a floating restaurant and taken to London, where she was later converted again to include two bars and two functions rooms.

She was towed out of London two years ago – destined for a new life in La Rochelle, France.

But the deal fell through at the last minute and the ship has been moored at Tilbury ever since.

She is on sale for offers between £150,000 and £200,000, although that figure could rise to nearer £1million once refurbishing costs are factored in.

Richard Lane, of selling agents Capital Boats, said: “She needs to be dry-docked and there are a number of elements which would need attention. That said, she has still got a lot of life left in her.”

If the council’s Tory leadership baulks at the cost, Mr Byford said he may even consider forming a private consortium to buy the ship and tow her to Southend.

The plan also received backing from Liberal Democrat councillors on Southend Council.