In its prime, it carried Queen Elizabeth II and hosted early concerts by the Beatles. Now the ‘Royal Iris of the Mersey’ is so badly damaged that it may never sail again
An iconic British ferry boat that inspired a world famous musical and hit song is in a state a far cry from its glory days as it now sits abandoned.
The original “Ferry Cross the Mersey” is now a vandalised wreck abandoned on the Thames. In its prime, it carried Queen Elizabeth II and hosted early concerts by the Beatles in Liverpool. Now the ‘Royal Iris of the Mersey’, which crossed the River Mersey for four decades before being moored in Woolwich, London, is so badly damaged that it may never sail again.
A public appeal to save it failed and its ownership is in dispute. It inspired the 1964 musical ‘Ferry Cross the Mersey’ and the Gerry and the Pacemakers hit of the same name.
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The ship hosted early shows by the Beatles in 1961 and 1962 and carried Elizabeth II during her silver jubilee in 1977, before it was taken out of service in 1991 and sold for conversion into a night club. But it has been abandoned and has gradually fallen into a total state of disrepair next to Thames Side Studios, by the Thames Barrier, since 2002.
A fire last year set half the boat alight. Six fire engines and 40 firefighters tackled the blaze, with a fireboat deployed on the scene. Mirror reader Trevor Barnett, 75, spotted it near the Mellish Industrial estate after our story on the last voyage of the Royal Iris of the Mersey, the service which began carrying passengers in 1959 and was featured in movies and TV series.
The much-loved vessel officially retired on March 31. Trevor, of Chislehurst, Kent, said: “You can still see the name Royal Iris of the Mersey on the side, it must be one of the first boats on that service. It is not that far from the Woolwich ferry now but it is covered in graffiti, and vandals have had a good go at it. It is in some state now.”
The ferry, which could carry more than 2,000 people, was known in Liverpool and Birkenhead as the “fish and chip boat” because of the cruises that featured live music during the Sixties and Seventies. By 1979 it was fitted with a dome and used in the Saturday morning ITV children’s programme The Mersey Pirate.
In the mid-1980s it received a refurbishment as part of the Liverpool Garden Festival and even sailed to London to promote the city to investors. The ferry also played a role in the memorial service that followed the Hillsborough stadium disaster in 1989.
Several campaigns started to bring the Royal Iris back to Liverpool, with nearly 2,000 signing one petition after squatters were reported to be on the ferry in 2010. However, no one willing to take responsibility, the ferry has slowly rotted away.
A spokesperson for the Liverpool City Region Combined Authority said: “As it has not been in our ownership for some time, we’re unable to provide an update on her history or comment on the intentions of other parties.”
