Duke Of Lancaster
The Duke of Lancaster was amongst the last passenger-only steamers built for British Railways (at that time, also a ferry operator).She was a replacement for the 1928 steamer built by the London Midland and Scottish Railway, RMS Duke of Lancaster. Built at Harland & Wolff, Belfast and completed in 1956, she was designed to operate as both a passenger ferry (primarily on the Heysham-Belfast route) and as a cruise ship. In this capacity, the Duke of Lancaster travelled to the Scottish islands and further afield to Belgium, Denmark, Netherlands, Norway and Spain. From the mid-1960s, passenger ships such as the Duke of Lancaster were gradually being superseded by car ferries. 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, the Duke of Lancaster's duties as a cruise ship ceased. On 25 April 1970 the ship returned to service, having had her main deck rebuilt to accommodate vehicles via a door at her stern. The ship now provided space for 1,200 single-class passengers and 105 cars, with a total cabin accommodation for 400 Duke of Lancaster was briefly employed on the Fishguard-Rosslare crossing, before becoming the regular relief vessel on the Holyhead–Dún Laoghaire service until November 1978. The ship was then laid up at Barrow in Furness, Cumbria. The Duke of Lancaster arrived in Llanerch-y-Mor, North Wales, in August 1979 to start her new life as "the Fun Ship". However, there were frequent legal battles with the local councils and the owners closed the business in 2004. They have continued to fight the case over the years and are still doing so but unfortunately the ship has stood closed ever since.
Size: 3456px × 5184px
Location: Mostyn, Holywell, UK
Photo credit: © Intellifix / Alamy / Afripics
License: Licensed
Model Released: No
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